Menu Plan

--In the pic above, my sweet sister and her kiddos joined us for an impromptu dinner in February. Thankfully, I had a menu planned and could feed these precious ones a yummy meal that did not involve cussing or running to McD's (neither of which I am above doing, sadly enough. Just keeping it real).--

Monday:
Squash/Zucchini/Mushroom/Chicken Quesadillas with sour cream, homemade salsa and chips

Tuesday:
Roast (Julia Child style, see below), mashed taters, salad made with spinach from our garden!! our first fruits this year!! I LOVE gardening! (make granola)

Wednesday:
Date night with the hot hubster

Thursday:
Butter Roasted Chicken (another Julia style), leftover taters, green beans or peas (soak dough for pizza)

Friday:
Homemade Pizza

Saturday:
If it doesn't rain, we're hoping to spend the day at the pool. I'll probably take leftover pizza or make cheese quesadillas, will definitely take popcorn, apples, raisins, whatev.
Dinner that night will probably be marlboro man sandwiches with a little less salt than the recipe calls for.

Sunday: clean out the fridge day. We eat all the leftovers and often eat out for lunch or dinner on Sunday.

Recipes:

So, what I mean by a roast being made Julia style is that I cook a good sized roast (large enough to serve 6 adults) with nothing but red wine and beef broth (about 1 cup wine, 2-3 cups broth or vice versa). Now, Julia does a LOT more to her roasts than I do to mine, but this still gets a very rich flavor and makes an out-of-this-world gravy.

Butter Roast Chicken is another Julia recipe. I bake a whole chicken (bones and all, people) for this recipe. When the chicken is raw, I rub the entire surface with 1 stick of softened butter, then I sprinkle salt all over the chicky. Then, I stuff the cavity with a whole bunch of fresh herbs from my garden. Bake at 350 for about 2 hours, I check mine for doneness with a thermometer. Divine, I tell ya! Divine!

Julie's Granola (easy and delirsh)

10 cups whole oats

16 oz hot water

3 oz Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar

1 cup coconut oil

soak the above for 8-24 hours

then add:

1/2 c. honey

1/2 c. maple syrup

1.5 teaspoon salt

1-2 tablespoons vanilla

Stir well, bake at 240, 3ish hours, maybe more, stir every 30 minutes. Watch this well after the first two hours. It burns quickly and you will cry if it does. Trust me. If I do this at night, I'll turn the oven off for the last thirty minutes or so and give it all night to dry out in the oven. If it's not crispy in the AM, I turn on the oven again for a bit.

Okay, party's over. Laundry and granola are calling my name. Enjoy!