A week's worth of quick, healthful meals for budget-minded families
SUNDAY: Smoky Chipotle Pot Roast (see recipe) is on the menu for family day. Serve with lima beans, coleslaw and cornbread on the side. Buy chocolate brownies for dessert.
Plan ahead: Save half the roast and enough brownies for Thursday.
MONDAY: Make Our Favorite Vegetable Chili (see recipe) tonight. Serve with a spinach salad and crusty bread. And there are pears for dessert.
Plan ahead: Save enough chili for Tuesday.
TUESDAY: With a little help, the kids can make their own Vegetable Chili Burritos tonight. Heat the leftover chili and spoon chili down the center of heated tortillas. Top with shredded cheddar cheese. Roll and eat. Serve with rice and carrot sticks. Butterscotch pudding is dessert.
Plan ahead: Save enough carrot sticks for Wednesday.
WEDNESDAY: Look for Amy's or another brand of heat-and-serve soup. Stop by the deli for your favorite sandwich (on whole-grain bread) to go with the soup. Add leftover carrot sticks, pickles and olives on the side. Serve peaches for dessert.
Plan ahead: Save enough peaches for Friday.
THURSDAY: Make dinner special for your valentine with (leftover) Chipotle beef served over bow-tie pasta. Add a bibb lettuce salad and baguettes. For dessert, make Brownie Snowflakes from leftover brownies. Flip brownies bottom side up (it's smoother). Use doilies to cover brownies and dust with confectioners' sugar. Carefully lift doily and see your snowflake. Serve strawberry ice cream and light whipped cream on the side.
FRIDAY: Tuna Biscuit Melts are a prize-winner! Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a cookie sheet with cooking spray. In a medium bowl, combine 2 (6-ounce) cans drained, water-packed albacore tuna, ½ small onion (chopped), 5 tablespoons mayonnaise and coarse salt and pepper to taste; mix well. Separate dough of 1 (16.3-ounce) can refrigerated flaky biscuit dough into 8 biscuits. Place 4 biscuits on cookie sheet. Press or roll each to form a 5-inch round. Spoon tuna mixture in centers of biscuits. Divide 2 ounces (½ cup) shredded sharp cheddar cheese among biscuits. Press or roll remaining 4 biscuits to form 5-inch rounds. Place over filling. Press edges to seal. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden. Halve each sandwich; top with sour cream, shredded lettuce and chopped tomatoes. Serve with stir-fry vegetables (from frozen). For dessert, mix leftover chopped peaches into instant vanilla pudding.
SATURDAY: Entertain in style with Pork Tenderloin With Raspberry Sauce (see recipe). Serve with your oven-browned potatoes and green peas with pearl onions (from frozen). Add sourdough rolls. For dessert, keep it light with lemon sorbet alongside your favorite cookies.
THE RECIPES
Smoky Chipotle Pot Roast
1 ½ teaspoons chipotle chile powder
1 (2 ½- to 3-pound) boneless beef arm chuck or blade roast
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 (14 ½-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
Press chile powder evenly onto all surfaces of roast. Heat oil in Dutch oven on medium. Place roast in pot; brown evenly. Pour off drippings. Add tomatoes and their juice; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover tightly and simmer 2 to 3 hours or until roast is fork-tender. Remove roast; keep warm. Skim and discard fat from cooking liquid. Return liquid to pot; bring to a boil. Cook 8 to 10 minutes or until sauce is reduced to 2 cups. Carve roast into thin slices; top with sauce and serve.
Makes 8 servings.
Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 229 calories, 30 g protein, 11 g fat, 2 g carbohydrate, 81 mg cholesterol, 297 mg sodium and 1 gram fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 0.
Our Favorite Vegetable Chili
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (10-ounce) package shredded carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
2 (15-ounce) cans beans (pinto, chili, red or kidney), lightly drained
1 tablespoon finely chopped and seeded jalapeno pepper
1 to 2 teaspoons chile powder
2 teaspoons cumin
Coarse salt to taste
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, crushed and lightly drained
¼ cup unsalted vegetable broth
1 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced ½ inch thick
Shredded sharp cheddar cheese for garnish
In a 3-quart microwave container, combine oil, onion, carrots, garlic and bell pepper. Cover and microwave on 100 percent power for 6 to 8 minutes or until the vegetables are softened. Stir several times; drain. Add beans, jalapeno pepper, chile powder, cumin, salt, tomatoes and broth. Mix well, cover and microwave on 100 percent power for 10 minutes and then on 50 percent power for 5 minutes. Stir in zucchini and microwave 2 minutes on 100 percent power. Let stand covered 5 minutes. Garnish with cheese and serve.
Makes 8 cups.
Nutrition information: Each cup (prepared with reduced-sodium beans and tomatoes and served without garnish) contains approximately 157 calories, 8 g protein, 1 g fat, 32 g carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 409 mg sodium and 10 g fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 2.
Pork Tenderloin With Raspberry Sauce
1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, cut crosswise into 8 pieces
Ground red pepper (cayenne), to taste
2 teaspoons butter
6 tablespoons red raspberry preserves
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon ketchup
½ teaspoon prepared horseradish
½ teaspoon soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
2 kiwis, peeled and thinly sliced
Fresh raspberries (optional)
Press each pork tenderloin slice into 1-inch thickness. Lightly sprinkle both sides of each slice with cayenne pepper. In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter. Add pork slices; cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine preserves, vinegar, ketchup, horseradish, soy sauce and garlic. Simmer over low heat about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Keep warm. Place cooked pork slices on warm serving platter. Spoon sauce over each pork slice; top with a slice of kiwi. Garnish serving platter with remaining kiwi and optional raspberries.
Makes 4 servings.
Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 235 calories, 22 g protein, 5 g fat, 26 g carbohydrate, 65 mg cholesterol, 153 mg sodium and 1 gram fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 1 ½.
Susan Nicholson is an Atlanta-based cookbook author and registered dietitian. She can be reached by email:
susan@7daymenu.com
Food on 02/06/2019