Salad Dressings!

I love salads and playing with dressing creations so here are a few of my favorites I've made compliments of my newfound loves from Half Moon Bay, California - infused vinegars and oils from Olive Crush in downtown HMB. They're a local place I go to every time we visit family in Half Moon Bay and the variety of their oils and vinegars is AMAZING and they're so goooooddd! I picked up 6 bottles of different flavors a few visits ago and already have my list going for our trip down. I definitely recommend checking them out! If anyone is interested in trying out fun flavors or olive oil and balsamics, check out www.olivecrush.com 

Basic vinaigrette:

1/2 cup good olive oil (I used Olive Crush's Garlic Olive Oil)
1/4 cup vinegar (apple cider vinegar is probably best)

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard 
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
3 gloves garlic, minced

A pinch of salt and a few pinches of black pepper. 

Combine in a mason jar and shake well. Shake well before each use. Best if made a day ahead of when you want to use it or when it's at least had time to chill in the fridge for a bit. Store in fridge and let sit out for a bit before use because it will solidify in the fridge.

Garlic vinaigrette: 

1/2 cup good olive oil (I used Olive Crush's Garlic Olive Oil)
1/4 - 1/3 cup vinegar (I used Olive Crush's Oregano White Balsamic Vinegar but apple cider vinegar would be my best recommendation if you don't have what I used!)

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard 
1-2 Tbsp sugar
3 gloves garlic, minced
A few pinches of black pepper

Combine in a mason jar and shake well. Shake well before each use. Best if made a day ahead of when you want to use it or when it's at least had time to chill in the fridge for a bit. Store in fridge and let sit out for a bit before use because it will solidify in the fridge.

Sesame Ginger Dressing (great on a Chinese Chicken Salad!) 

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup rice vinegar

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup sesame oil

1/4 Tbsp white sugar

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp fresh (or frozen) ginger, grated

Combine in a mason jar and shake well. Shake well before each use. Best if made a day ahead of when you want to use it or when it's at least had time to chill in the fridge for a bit. Store in fridge and let sit out for a bit before use because it will solidify in the fridge.

Lemon chicken artichoke pasta

This is another one of my favorite recipes because it quite literally combines a lot of my favorite things into one amazingly easy dish - lemon, chicken, zucchini, artichokes and pasta. This recipe makes A LOT because we'll have it for lunches and/or our leftover dinner night.

1 box of spaghetti noodles
1 lemon
4-5 chicken breasts
5 cups chicken/turkey/vegetable/whatever type of broth you prefer
1 large zucchini (or 2 medium), julienned (*prep tip for this below if you don't have a Julienne peeler)
6 cloves of garlic
1 (14.5 oz) can of marinated artichoke hearts (yummmm!)
1/4 cup live oil + some for cooking chicken
2.5 tsp Lemon Pepper seasoning + more for chicken
Salt + Garlic Powder for chicken
Parmesan cheese, if desired

DIRECTIONS
1. Season chicken breasts with salt, lemon pepper and garlic powder. Cook on stovetop in a little olive oil until cooked through. Set aside.

2. While chicken cooks, break pasta in half and add to stock pot or dutch oven with 5 cups broth and juice from 1 lemon. Cook pasta until tender; it will absorb most of the cooking liquid.

3. Drain artichokes in colander. Add artichokes, 1/4 cup olive oil, 2.5 tsp lemon pepper rub and 6 garlic cloves to food processor and pulse until artichokes are coarsely chopped, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary to make sure everything gets chopped.

4. Prepare zucchini. Cut off ends of zucchini. Using Julienne Peeler, cut zucchini into long strips (avoiding seeds) to measure 2 cups, cut strips in half crosswise to make shorter strips. *If you don't have a julienne peeler use a regular vegetable peeler to peel the sides down to the seeds then cut these lengthwise into skinny strips similar to the size of your pasta; cut crosswise to make them shorter.

5. Once pasta is cooked, add artichoke mixture, zucchini and diced chicken. Toss to coat; let stand 5 minutes. Serve, top with Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Serve with a side salad - I just did a simple spinach and balsamic dressing this time, 

**I've done this with spinach incorporated into the pasta too, just add spinach in the last 3 minutes or so of the pasta cooking so the spinach wilts down. Easy way to incorporate veggies without them looking like veggies!

Summertime salsa perfection!

Nothing says summertime quite like chips and salsa! This recipe is one of my favorites! 

6 large tomatoes (I used a variety of types - some heirloom, some romas, etc.)
6 garlic cloves
Handful of cilantro 
1/4 of a red onion
Juice from 1 lime
Salt and pepper
Red pepper flakes, if desired. I add about 1/4 tsp or so. 

Blend to desired consistency - I like mine a little chunky. It's good served right away but it's even better if you have the time to let it sit and let the flavors blend overnight. 

3 meals in one - Chicken Caesar Spinach Pasta!

Ever had those days where you just can't decide what you want for dinner because so many things sound good? This recipe was the result of one of those nights - and I wasn't even pregnant at the time! I was wanting lemon pepper chicken, caesar salad and pasta - so....I combined it all into one meal! 

Chicken Caesar Pasta with Spinach.

- Cook chicken however you'd like, I sautéd it in olive oil and seasoned it with lemon pepper. Chop up and set aside.
- Cook pasta al dente. Drain and set aside with a tiny bit of oil so it doesn't stick together.
- Sauté 3 cups spinach in light olive oil
- Combine all ingredients and add Caesar dressing* and cook until warmed through. Yum!

* will add Caesar dressing recipe soon - once I can find it in all of my piles of recipes! 

{Big Batch} Breakfast Burritos

Breakfast burritos are a staple in this house! I'm terrible about eating breakfast so it's SO easy to just whip up a big batch of this for the week and fill my burritos every morning or if I'm feeling like a really lazy week I'll pre-fill the burritos and freeze them.

Ingredients for a BIG FAMILY BATCH:
1 dozen eggs
1 pound ground turkey 
2 bell peppers, diced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 zucchini (green or yellow, or one of each!) diced
2-3 cups spinach
Cheese

Hot sauce

DIRECTIONS:

{one of my favorite things about this meal prep is that all of the cooking is done in ONE big saute pan!}

Brown turkey meat; drain & set aside.

Scramble eggs; add spinach and cook until wilted. Set aside.
Sauté zucchini, peppers and onions until tender. Add eggs/spinach and meat. Mix to incorporate.

Fill your favorite tortillas - I love spinach tortillas - and top with cheese and hot sauce if desired.

Filling for individual burritos if you don't want to do a big batch:
1 egg or 2 egg whites
Ground turkey
Diced zucchini
Diced bell peppers
Diced onions
Handful spinach
Sprinkle of cheese
Favorite hot sauce on top if desired.

Warm winter comfort - Kale-Tofu Soup!

I'm not a big fan of "measuring" ingredients when I'm in a rush to prepare dinner so I typically just toss stuff together in approximate measurements until it tastes good --- and looks good. I'm definitely one to eat with my eyes first so I love for my food to LOOK good and taste good delicious, too! 

This is one of my favorite soups because it's so light but still filling and definitely warms you up on cool fall and winter evenings! 

*** Please do not be affraid of tofu! It's packed with protein and it's SUCH a versatile food! It gets a bad wrap but it really can be delicious and it takes on the flavor of whatever you're cooking it in, so seasoning is a MUST. In this case, it's boiling and simmering in the tasty broth, so it soaks up the flavors of the broth and spices wonderfully. Give it a try before you decide to just skip the tofu in the produce section from now on! ;) ***

KALE-TOFU SOUP

Ingredients:
* 1 pkg firm tofu
* 1 bunch kale, stripped from the stems and cut up into bite size pieces (I use curly kale but lacinto-aka "dinosaur" kale - or any other variety is great, too)
* 6ish cups of your favorite broth (I've literally used every broth there is and it's great every time but I think chicken is probably my favorite)
* 4ish cups of water
* (4) garlic cloves, minced
* (1) onion (I use yellow or purple, depends what's in my onion box!), diced small
* salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste
* 1/4 tsp or so red pepper flakes (if desired - I LOVE the spice this gives the soup and the flavor it brings to the tofu)

Directions:
* add about 2 Tbsp broth to the pot and saute onion and kale until onion is soft and kale is bright green and starting to get tender, add garlic and saute another minute or so until garlic is fragrant 

 * add broth, water, tofu and desired spices and bring to a boil.

* Once boiling, lower heat, cover and let simmer 15-20 min. Stir well before serving. Yummm!

* If you want to add a little (or a lot) of spice, add 1/4 to 1 tsp of red pepper flakes when you add the liquids, tofu and other seasoning to it. We love the extra heat but obviously the kids may not approve. wink emoticon

2 New Fishy Recipes!

This post comes with TWO THREE more recipes! 

My latest dinner obsession has been fish. Specifically, tilapia. I just love it and can't get enough of it...especially with rice and a nice salad on the side. I've Pinned a ton of fish recipes on my "Something Fishy...and Delicious" board lately, I just never seem to have any of the fish in my house except tilapia because I love it. So, I was craving it last night but wanted something different than my classic lemon-y tilapia I usually prepare.

First, my classic recipe...

LEMON-PEPPERCORN TILAPIA

INGREDIENTS

1 cup low-sodium Chicken Broth

1/4 cup lemon juice (I, personally, think fresh lemon juice tastes the best)

1 1/2 tsp drained, brine-packed green peppercorns, lightly crushed

1 tsp butter

1 tsp olive oil

2 (6 oz each) tilapia fillets

1/4 cup flour

2 tsp butter

Lemon wedges for squeezing are optional (but are a must-have for me!)

DIRECTIONS

Combine broth, lemon juice, peppercorns. Set aside.

Melt 1 tsp butter with oil in nonstick skillet on low heat

Sprinkle salt and pepper over tilapia, if desired, then cover in flour. Sheke off excess flour. 

Turn stove to medium heat; once butter is golden brown add fillets. Saute 3-5 minutes on each side until fish is flaky. Remove from pan.

Add broth mixture from first step to the pan and scrape loose any browned bits from the pan. Bring to a boil; reduce to about 1/2 cup (should take about 5 min or less). Remove from heat; add 2 tsp butter and whisk well. Serve fish over rice; serve sauce over fish and rice. Squeeze lemon wedges on top, if desired. 

Delicious!!!

My second recipe that I just made for the first time was delicious, too! I think I still prefer the classic "lemon-y" taste of the first recipe, but this one was amazing, nonetheless...and it's from the webpage of one of my favorite chefs - Rachael Ray! Although, I have to admit...I made quite a few of my own tweaks to the recipe...I will post the original first then comment on my changes. 

PARMESAN-CRUSTED TILAPIA

(VIA RACHAEL RAY)

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup Parmesan cheese

2 tsp Paprika

1 Tbsp chopped, flat-leaf parsley

4 Tilapia fillets

1 lemon, cut into wedges

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine cheese, paprika, parsley, salt and pepper.

Drizzle fish with olive oil and dredge in the cheese mixture.

Place on foil-lined baking sheet and bake until fish if opaque in color at it's thickest part, about 10-12 minutes.

Serve over rice, with lemon wedges. 

My own tweaks to this recipe...

I cooked it on the stove-top as I did the first recipe.

I used Italian Seasoning instead of Paprika, and dried Parsley instead of freshly chopped. 

The side salad I made...amazing. And super simple. 

Cut up oranges and dried Pomegranate juice-infused Craisins over leaf lettuce with a Pear Gorgonzola Dressing. 

FaBuLoUs Farm Fresh to You

Essentials in my house are always fruits and veggies...I have an addiction to them. And as far as food addictions go, I guess fruits and veggies aren't the worst addictions to have.

That said, I make weekly trips to Sprouts or a local Farmer's Market if I happen to pass by one to stock up on the week's fresh fruits and veggies. Bananas, apples, spinach, strawberries, cucumber, carrots (oh if you could only imagine the amount of carrots in my fridge!), lettuce, kale, and so much more are usually on my list. But, in doing this I found that I fall into a rut of buying the same ol' thing and never trying new stuff. I love the stuff I buy and not a lot of it usually goes to waste thanks to freezing items, making smoothies, juicing, cooking, and snacking, but I wanted to try stuff I wouldn't normally always buy but never know where to start. 

Alas! Farm Fresh to You to the rescue! This service is amazing! I can spend anywhere from $40-$60 a week on fresh produce at the store (only some of which is actually organic because that can get expensive!) BUT...with my Farm Fresh to You service I spend the same amount each week (or bi-weekly or however often YOU decide you want deliveries!) and get great quality, organic produce and a decent variety...as well as a lot of new things I'd never think of buying and some things I'd never even heard of! The best thing about the new items is that the Farm Fresh to You website has a Recipes section specifically searchable for recipes for the produce they provide you! For example, I've never used leeks before...I went to the Recipes section on the FFTY website and typed in "Leeks" and it comes up with a huge list of recipes to use leeks with! 

Another great quality of this service is that it is completely customizable to suit you and your family's needs. You can get deliveries however often you want - weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, etc...and you can cancel your service at any time or change delivery weeks if, for example, you are going on vacation on a week that would usually be a delivery week. Also, if you have a food allergy in the family, or just a produce that absolutely horrifies you, you can go into your options and select items to add to your "Exclusions List" of items you'd prefer not to receive and they will exclude those from the order and add something else instead. (for example, I'd prefer not to receive collard or dandelion greens, chard, apricots, prunes and a few other things so if that's due to be delivered they send me something else that's not on my exclusions list)

Now...a picture of my very first box I got when I first subscribed: 

I pay $33.50 per delivery for the No Cooking Box.

2 bunches of celery

2 Meyer lemons

1 bunch of Nantes carrots

4 Yakima apples

1 head of cauliflower

4 Bosc pears

2 heads of bok choy

1 grapefruit

2 Navel oranges

It was all delicious! And I learned ways to use bok choy and don't even panic when I see it in my box when it does come! =) 

I highly recommend this service to anyone and everyone who loves produce as much as I do, or for anyone looking for a little variety in their produce department of their own house! 

If you're interested click here to check it out and if you decide to sign-up, let me know and I'll share my referral code with you so you can get $10.00 off your first box!!

Hawaiian-inspired "Huli-Huli Chicken"

Great for whole chickens, half chickens, breasts, thighs, whatever pieces you like to use! We had a whole rotisserie chicken and it was delicious!

Huli-Huli Chicken is a Hawaii favorite, often served with vegetables and sticky white rice which, for anyone who knows me and my cooking, veggies and rice are staples in my kitchen!

The term "huli-huli" means "turn-turn" because the chicken should either constantly be turning (the most popular method being a rotisserie), or if you'd prefer to do it in the oven or classic BBQ grill then it should be turned every 10 minutes until the skin is crisp and dark (but not burned, obviously) and cooked thoroughly.

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 cup ketchup

1/3 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup sherry

1-2 Tbsp. sesame oil

1-2-more pieces ginger root, crushed

3 cloves garlic, crushed

Worchestershire sauce to taste

Sriracha or Asian chili paste (or red pepper flakes) to taste

Squeeze a lemon in if you've got one

DIRECTIONS: 

Marinate your chicken for at least a half-hour.

Rotisserie the chicken until cooked thoroughly (typically 40-50 minutes) and the outer skin is crispy and dark. Brush with marinade throughout rotisserie process. Serve with grilled veggies and sticky white rice, if desired.

Enjoy!

A Pinterest Recipe Kinda Day

Last weekend while my husband and dad were busy taking our car apart my mom and I were busy in the kitchen testing some recipes we'd found on Pinterest. Not only were they delicious, they came out looking exactly how they did in the pictures...and that hardly ever never happens! 

While we sipped margaritas infused with Blue Curacao we whipped together: 

* Baked Mozzarella Sticks and

* Garlic Bread-Wrapped Meatballs for appetizers and

* Spicy Cashew Chicken for dinner

Deliciousness!

Baked Mozzarella Sticks

Ingredients: 

12 sticks part-skim, reduced sodium mozzarella string cheese

1 large egg, beaten

2 tbsp flour

5 tbsp Italian seasoned breadcrumbs

5 tbsp panko crumbs

2 tsp parmesan cheese

1 tbsp dried parsley

olive oil cooking spray

Directions: 

Cut cheese in half to give you 24 pieces. Place cheese in the freezer until cheese is frozen.

In small bowl, whisk the egg. Place the flour on another small bowl. In a third bowl, combine bread crumbs, panko, parmesan cheese and dried parsley.

Dip the frozen sticks in flour, shaking off excess, then into the egg, then coat with the crumbs.

Repeat this process with the remaining cheese placing them on a tray with wax paper. Place cheese back into the freezer until ready to bake (this is a must or they will melt before the crumbs get golden).

When ready to bake preheat oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly spray with oil.

Place frozen cheese sticks on baking sheet. Spray the tops of the mozzarella sticks with a little more oil and bake in the bottom third of your oven until crisp, about 5-10 minutes. Turn and bake an additional 5-10 minutes watching them closely so they don't melt.

Dip on your favorite ranch or marinara dipping sauce!

Garlic Bread-Wrapped Meatballs 

Ingredients: 

1 can Pillsbury golden layers biscuits - each pulled into 2 layers 
10 frozen fully cooked italian style meatballs - thawed and cut in half 
2 sticks string cheese - cut each into 10 pieces 
1 T. parm cheese 
1/2 t. Italian seasoning 
1/4 t. garlic powder 
1 c. marinara sauce 

Directions: 

Heat oven to 375. Separate biscuits into 2 layers. Place 1 meatball half and one piece of cheese into each biscuit, wrap dough around it and seal edges. Place seam side down into 9 inch round cake pan. Sprinkle with parm cheese, garlic pwd. and italian seasoning. Bake 18-20 min or until golden brown. Serve warm with warm sauce.

Spicy Cashew Chicken

*Note: I love spicy, but this was almost too spicy...ok, it was too spicy...I had to save almost half of what I served myself and had to eat in the next day for lunch because I couldn't finish it. I haven't had a chance to play around with the recipe to find the "right" amount of "kick" for it yet...but I'd probably say that 1/2 tsp is enough. 

Ingredients: 

2 chicken breasts  cubed
2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
¼ cup oil
1/2-1 tsp red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you want it, a little goes a long way)
3 green onions, sliced diagonally
2 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tsp of jarred minced garlic)

1 cup cashews, unsalted
toasted sesame seeds

Sauce:
4 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
4 tsp sugar
2 tsp white vinegar

Directions: 

Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces & put into a bowl; add soy sauce. Let sit while you prepare the other ingredients. (could also prepare a day before and do a 24-hour marinade to get a little extra flavor in the chicken)

In a small bowl, whisk 4 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 1/2 tbsp corn starch, 4 tsp sugar, and 2 tsp vinegar. Set aside. Slice the green onions, and measure out the red pepper flakes and minced garlic. 

Drain chicken in strainer to get the marinade off as much a possible. Heat oil in a wok over high heat.  Add red pepper flakes to oil,stir a couple times. Add chicken all at once, let sit for a minute or two till golden,then turn chicken. Add garlic to chicken. Cook chicken till golden on all sides and cooked through. drain oil if there is still an excessive amount. Add cashews. Move wok off hot stove and immediately pour in sauce while constantly turning chicken over to cover everything in sauce. Sauce should thicken quite a bit, if you want it thicker put it back on medium heat for about 5-10 seconds, and stir, stir, stir. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds and add sliced green onions. Serve over Rice. ENJOY!

Pampered Chef Brownie Pan

Ok, so per the Christmas business boom and recent requests, I've decided I need to add a new label to some of my posts, as well under my Recipe tab...BROWNIE PAN RECIPES. 

This is seriously one of the most versatile Pampered Chef products I currently sell, and probably one of the most popular. Everything from breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, appetizers and desserts - you name it, there's a recipe for that category for this pan! That said, I will try to post a few recipes each week specifically for this pan. It's amazing. If you don't own one yet, what are you waiting for? You definitely need one. Now. And, you can order it right here !

First few recipes: 

MINI CHICKEN POT PIES

Ingredients: 

1 bag frozen veggies (carrots, corn, peas)

2 chicken breasts

2 cans of cream of chicken soup

2 cans of Pillsbury Crescent Roll Dough

Directions: 

Cook the bag of frozen veggies until they are almost done.

Cook chicken and dice up.

Combine the canned soups with the veggies and chicken.

Roll out crescent dough and cut into oversized squares to fit into the brownie pan wells.  Press the dough down in the bottom and up the sides.  Put a spoon full of combined ingredients into each well.  Cut a small square of dough to put on top of the little pies.

Cook at 350 until the crescent rolls are done (about 25-30 minutes).  These lift out easy once completely cooked.

Can use a citrus peeler to help lift them out.

When done, they will look like a stuffed biscuit.

MINI CORN DOG MUFFINS

Ingredients: 

1-8.5 oz. box of Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix

1 egg, slightly beaten

1/3 cup skim milk

1 TBS honey

4 hot dogs, each cut into 5 pieces 

Directions: 

Spray the wells of a mini muffin pan with cooking spray.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 

In a med bowl, combine the mix, egg, honey and skim milk.  Allow to sit for 3 - 4 min.  Stir batter.  

Fill each mini muffin well with about 1/2 TBS batter.  Place a piece of hot dog into each well, pressing in.  

Top each hot dog with about a tsp. of batter, covering hot dog.  

Bake in oven for 10 - 15 min.  or until golden brown.  Allow to cool in pan for 5 min. before removing to platter.

SWEET LIME TARTLETS

Ingredients: 

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

½ cup lime juice

1 egg
9 full sheets of graham crackers (one sleeve or about 1 and 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup melted butter

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Crush graham crackers into fine crumbs and mix well with sugar and melted butter.
Lightly spray the bottoms of Brownie Pan with non-stick spray
Scoop about 2 T of crumbs in each square well of the pan. Press into bottom and sides of each square using your fingers or the Pampered Chef Mini Tart Shaper.
Mix together condensed milk, egg and lime juice. Spoon about 2-3 T of mixture into each crust.
Bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes. 
Remove from oven, allow to cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan. 
Chill several hours. Top with whipped cream, graham crumbs, raspberries or other fruit— be creative!

 Tip: The Pampered Chef scraper that comes with all Stoneware pieces is a GREAT tool to use to remove items from the Brownie Pan!

Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan

Deliciously delicious and SO easy! I literally threw everything together in my CrockPot in less than 10 minutes...the longest part was slicing the fresh mozzarella for the tops of the chicken! 

Ingredients: 
2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/2 cup Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 TBSP olive oil
1 egg, beaten
sliced or shredded mozzarella cheese
favorite jarred marinara sauce

Directions: 
Spread the 1 TBSP of olive oil into the bottom of your crockpot.
Beat the egg with a fork in a separate bowl.
Mix the bread crumbs with the seasonings and the Parmesan cheese in another separate dish.
Dip the chicken into the egg, then into the bread crumb mixture, coating both sides with crumbs, cheese and seasonings.
Place the chicken breast pieces in the bottom of the crockpot.
Layer 2-3 slices or 1-2 cups of mozzarella cheese on top, depending on how much cheese you like.
Cover chicken and cheese with entire jar of marinara sauce.
Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or high for 3.
Serve with your favorite pasta.
Enjoy!

January Monthly Menu/Shopping List

Happy 2013! Hope you all brought in the New Year in a fun and safe way with some fabulous people!

So...here it is! My fabulous Menu for January 2013! (yeah...we're gone a lot this month...) Sundays and Wednesdays are family days so I don't cook on those days because we are usually with family. As for Fridays, it's a free day. =) Pizza or wings are a must-have to celebrate surviving another busy work week! 

A lot of my recipes I have saved on Pinterest, check them out on my boards and follow me here ! But if you can't find them just let me know! Eventually, I hope to have them all under my Recipes tab, but that's going to take some time that I just do not have right this minute...plus I want to upload my OWN pictures with the recipes. So be patient, but until then..droop over THIS January goodness!

SU	M (CP)	TU	W	TH (CP)	F	SA
		1 Lemon/ Garlic Tilapia	2 NOT HOME	3 French Dip Sandwiches	4 Lettuce Cups	5 Steak w/ mushrooms & caramelized onions
6 NOT HOME	7 Chicken Parmesan	8 Roasted Garlic Pasta Salad	9 NOT HOME	10 Terriyaki Chicken	11 PIZZA/ WINGS	12 Rotisserie Chicken
13 NOT HOME	14 Smothered Beef Burritos	15 Chicken & Green Bean Stir Fry	16 HMB	17 HAWAII >	18 >>>>	19 >>>>
20 HAWAII >>>>	21 >>>>	22 >>>>	23 >>>>	24 COME HOME TODAY	25 PIZZA/ WINGS	26 Chili-Cornbread Bake
27 NOT HOME	28 Mexican Chicken <P-CP>	29 Creamy Chicken & Broccoli over Rice	30 NOT HOME	31 Mexican Pizzas <P-Recipes>

As for my shopping lists, they are a bit...organized..well, I try to organize them. I hate wasting time having to back-track in the store so my list is organized, roughly, by aisle, or at the very least, category. 

PRODUCE	MEAT	DAIRY	BOXED/ CANNED	BREAD/ SNACKS
Garlic Cherry tomatoes Parsley Grn onion (x2) Ginger Broccoli Butter lettuce Lg tomatoes WEEKLY: apples bananas peaches strawberries spinach blueberries romaine lettuce	Chicken (x5) Whole chicken -3 ½+ lbs. chuck roast -Ground turkey (x1) -Ground beef FROZEN -tilapia (x1)	15 oz. ricotta mexican blend cheddar monterey jack provolone fr. mozzarella Milk Eggs	-sm pasta shells (x2) Black olives Green olives Marinara Chili Refried beans (x2) Beef bouillon cbs Enchilada sauce (19+ oz) Picante sauce Hoisin Teriyaki Cornbread Ital. seas. Crumbs Cornstarch Cider vinegar Condensed french onion soup	Tortillas Wheat bread French rolls Salsa

Notes/Tips: 

* "CP" indicates CrockPot recipes. I'm obsessed with my CrockPot. Yeah...let's just leave it at that. 

* "(x2)" or any other number indicates the number of meals I need that ingredient for so I stock up. I am not very good at writing down exact amounts of what I need because I try to over-buy and stock up when I can so I have it for next time.

* Freeze, freeze, freeze! There isn't really anything I haven't had luck freezing, yet. Frozen leftovers are great for mid-week lunches or "leftover" days.

* While I do knock out all of the canned/boxed shopping once a month, I do still make weekly trips to the grocery store for the fresh stuff - fresh fruits and veggies are essential for my sanity. Can't get enough of them! 

I hope you have success using this Monthly Meal Planning! It's a bit difficult to get yourself started, but I promise it makes life SO much easier when you get in the routine!

Have you Monthly Meal Planned before??? I'd love to hear more tips, tricks or anything ya'll have to offer!