Menu Monday-October 8th-October 12th

In the attempt to get back on track with the blogging, I am going to give every day a theme so that I have some sort of direction.  Will I keep up with it?  Let's hope!  Will it happen everyday?  Probably not.  :)

This week is our "Financial Fast"
We vow to not spend any money on ANYTHING except gas to get to and from work.  It's hard, but so worth it.  Once our pantry is a mess and our freezer is full we decide to just "do it" and not spend that week. It forces you out of your comfort zone and makes you be creative with dinner.

What do you do to cut down on spending for the week and clean out the fridge/freezer/pantry?

Here is our plan for the week, with recipes below for each.

Monday-Sloppy Joes and Mac-n-cheese (the mac-n-cheese is in a bag from velveeta.  go ahead and judge, I don't care.  Something you need to be able to make things quickly!)
Tuesday-Chicken Piccata
Wednesday-Whiskey Glazed Pork Loin
Thursday-Savory Steak Tips
Friday-BBQ Pork Chops


Sloppy Joes
Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
3/4 cup ketchup
3 teaspoons brown sugar
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. In a medium skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef, onion, and green pepper; drain off liquids.
2. Stir in the garlic powder, mustard, ketchup, and brown sugar; mix thoroughly. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Chicken Piccata
The recipe from this one is in a video form.  Why?   Because i'm using my new Ninja Cooking System (which by the way is awesome!  and i big pink puffy heart love it!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0Qa_ziSiOM

Whiskey-Glazed Pork Loin
Ingredients:
1 2 1/2-pound pork loin
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons Tennessee whiskey
1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
Instructions:
1.  Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a roasting pan with foil. Season the pork with salt and pepper; place in the prepared pan.
2.  In a small bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, whiskey, and mustard powder. Brush the pork with half of the glaze. Roast about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until internal temperature of pork reaches 150°F, brushing with the remaining glaze after 45 minutes. Let the pork rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

Savory Steak Tips
Ingredients:
1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 cup Italian-style salad dressing
2 teaspoons garlic pepper seasoning
1 cup barbeque sauce
2 pounds beef sirloin tip steaks
Instructions:
1. In a medium bowl, mix the Worcestershire sauce, Italian-style salad dressing, garlic pepper seasoning, and barbeque sauce. Place the meat in the marinade, and turn to coat. Cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
2. Preheat grill for high heat.
3. Brush grill lightly with oil to prevent sticking. Place steaks on the grill, and discard marinade. Grill steaks 10 minutes on each side, or to desired doneness.

BBQ Pork Chops
**I may try to do these in the ninja cooking system to cut down on the time.**
Ingredients:
6 pork chops, 3/4 to 1-inch thick
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 cup vinegar
3/4 cup water
1 tablespoon brown sugar or honey
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
dash cayenne, optional
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Place pork chops in bottom of a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan. Place sliced onion over the pork chops. Combine remaining ingredients; pour over pork chops. Bake uncovered for 1 hour, or until chops are tender.

Steak and Potatoes

Once again, a couple new recipes from the Food Network Magazine this month.

SO good.

Rosemary Chips

Directions
Toss 1 1/2 pounds thinly sliced russet potatoes with 2 teaspoons chopped rosemary, 1 grated garlic clove, 3 tablespoons olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon salt and a pinch of cayenne. Spread on a baking sheet; roast in a 500 degrees F oven until golden, about 20 minutes. Flip the potatoes and cook until golden and crisp, 8 more minutes. Season with salt.

Balsamic Steak with Radicchio
Ingredients
4 6-ounce beef eye round steaks
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 to 2 teaspoons sugar, plus a pinch
1 clove garlic, sliced
2 heads radicchio, torn into pieces
1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced, plus more for topping
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (preferably aged)
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, sliced, plus leaves for topping
Directions
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the steaks with salt and pepper. When the pan is hot, add 1 tablespoon butter, swirling the pan to coat. Add the steaks, sprinkle them with a pinch of sugar, and sear until golden brown on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Flip and cook until golden on the other side, 2 more minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and tent with foil.

Reduce the heat to medium and add 1 tablespoon butter to the skillet. Add the garlic and cook 20 seconds. Add the radicchio in batches, tossing until wilted. Sprinkle with 1 to 2 teaspoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and vinegar and cook until the vinegar evaporates slightly, about 1 minute. Add the broth and cook until the radicchio is tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in the basil. Transfer the radicchio to plates using tongs. Continue cooking the sauce until it thickens slightly, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter.

Thinly slice the steak and add to the plates. Drizzle with the sauce and top with more sun-dried tomatoes and basil.

Sicilian Steak

This recipe comes from the super fabulous Teresa Giudice's new book "Skinny Italian"
This was REALLY good.

Sicilian Steak

2 (1lb each) shell steaks (also known as strip steak) 1" thick
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 dried bread crumbs
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper



1. Trim excess fat from the steaks. combine oil and garlic and marinate steaks on each side for 15 min each side.
2. Mix bread crumbs, cheese, oregano, salt and pepper together and put in shallow bowl. remove steaks from oil, letting the oil cling, and dip each steak into the bread crumb mixture, patting the bread crumbs to make sure they stick. let stand for 10 minutes to set the crumbs.
3. Position a broiler rack 6 to 8 inches from the source of heat and preheat the broiler. (if the crust starts to burn move rack down)
4. Place steak on the rack and broil until the crust is lightly browned, and flip and do the same for the other side. cook until done to your liking.
transfer to a platter and let stand for 3 minutes, cut across the grain into 1/2 inch thick slices and serve.

Nutrition Information (servings-4)
490 Calories; 7g carbs; 29g fat; 10 g saturated fat; 1 g fiber; 37g protein; 343mg sodium

I love my grill.

This was REALLY good. and i'm stressing the REEEEEEEEEALLY good part. Even hubby commented SEVERAL times DURING the meal at how good it was. and yes I AM YELLING.

it had a sweet and tangy taste all at the same time. a flavor explosion in your mouth really.
I served with sweet corn, and it was the perfect match.

Grilled Asian Flank Steak

Ingredients
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
1/4 cup unsweetened pineapple juice
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup plum sauce
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
1 beef flank steak (1-1/4 pounds)

Directions
In a small bowl, combine the first eight ingredients. Pour 3/4 cup marinade into a large resealable plastic bag; add the steak. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. Cover and refrigerate remaining marinade.
Drain and discard marinade. Grill steak, covered, over medium heat for 6-8 minutes on each side or until meat reaches desired doneness (for medium-rare, a meat thermometer should read 145°; medium, 160°; well-done, 170°), basting occasionally with reserved marinade. To serve, thinly slice across the grain. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition Information
4 ounces cooked steak equals 265 calories, 10 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 68 mg cholesterol, 1,050 mg sodium, 11 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 29 g protein.
Weight Watcher Points-6

Been a while, but i'm back...

I kind of took a break from trying new recipes, i needed it. I was starting to just go insane, and we needed to clean out our freezer!
but tonight was something new and delish!

Sirloin Steak with Dijon-Port Sauce

Ingredients
3 cups uncooked medium egg noodles
1 pound trimmed sirloin (about 1 inch thick)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Cooking spray
1/2 cup port or other sweet red wine
1/4 cup minced shallots
1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1/2 cup less-sodium beef broth
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves


Preparation:
Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain; keep warm.

While noodles cook, heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle both sides of steak with salt and pepper. Lightly coat steak with cooking spray. Add steak to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Transfer meat to a platter; keep warm.

Add port to pan, scraping to loosen browned bits. Stir in shallots and garlic; cook 45 seconds, stirring frequently. Add beef broth; bring to a boil. Cook 20 seconds; remove from heat. Add mustard and thyme, stirring with a whisk.

Cut steak diagonally across grain into thin slices. Serve steak and sauce with the pasta.

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 344; Fat: 11g; Protein: 28.5g; Carbohydrate: 23.6g; Fiber: 1g; Cholesterol: 4.3mg; 97mg; Iron: Sodium: 501mg; Calcium: 36mg

Weight Watcher Points-8

Crockpot Love

My secret santa got me the cookbook by Stephanie O'Dea called Make It Fast, Cook It Slow. she is actually the owner of the blog http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/. She took to her crockpot like a fish took to water and did her challenge with flying colors. I decided to give the Cheesesteak she had in the book a whirl...Sounds odd right? well guess what ITS EFFIN' DELICIOUS!

Philly Cheesesteak-Crockpot Style

Ingredients
--1 pound sliced tri-tip (i used shaved lean beef)

--1/2 sliced onion

--1 red pepper
--1 green pepper
--1 yellow pepper

--1/2 cup of white wine

--1 T Worcestershire sauce

--pepperjack cheese

The Directions:

--dump sliced meat into stoneware

--put sliced pepper and onion in too

--add white wine and worcestershire sauce

cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours or high for 4-6.

grab whatever you want to use as bread, throw the cheese on it, toast it up a bit and there you have it! a healthy take on the cheesesteak.

Nutrition Info (does include whatever bread you decide to put this on)
Calories 181; Total Fat 11g; Cholesterol 43mg; Sodium 65mg; Total Carbohydrate 5.3g; Dietary Fiber 1g; Sugars 1.6g; Protein 10.8g
Weight Watcher Points-6

Dinner-6/1

These steaks were really good. Instead of T-bone steaks we used london broil, as it was on sale.
these are on the make again really soon list. :)


Savory Garlic Marinated Steaks
Ingredients:
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring
1 pinch cayenne pepper
2 (1/2 pound) rib-eye steaks

Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, mix the vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, honey, olive oil, ground black pepper, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, salt, liquid smoke, and cayenne pepper.
2. Place steaks in a shallow glass dish with the marinade, and turn to coat. For optimum flavor, rub the liquid into the meat. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days.
3. Preheat grill for medium-high to high heat.
4. Lightly oil the grill grate. Grill steaks 7 minutes per side, or to desired doneness. Discard leftover marinade.

Portuguese Style Steak

This week, i decided i would learn my mom and dad's secret recipe for Portuguese Style Steak. When i asked them how much of everything, they laughed at me, so play chef and add what you think you should add!

Portuguese Style Steaks

Ingredients
thinly cut steak (one per person)
beer
garlic
crushed red pepper (wet kind)
water
paprika

Directions
1. Mix all the ingredients together, and add steaks to marinate over night. Make sure the entire steak is covered with the sauce.
****Tips: the more garlic the better! and the pepper isn't spicy but leaves great flavor. You can also use red or white wine instead of beer if you'd like.
2. put a little bit of oil or butter in a frying pan and fry the steaks till done.
3. then to the drippings, add the marinated sauce and cook for a gravy on top. to thicken gravy, use corn starch. but gravy for this steak should be running
4. now fry one end per steak, and serving with the egg on top.
5. serve with fries and white rice drenched in the gravy. Or you can do salad instead of the rice.
Ta-Da!
I'm sure this recipe will make no sense to anyone who isn't Portuguese!