A week's worth of quick, healthful meals for budget-minded families
SUNDAY: It's a good day for Grilled Flank Steak and Peach Salad (see recipe). Accompany the steak with Brown Rice Salad. Mix together 3 cups cooked brown rice, 1 ½ cups cucumber slices (quartered and seeded), ¼ cup sliced kalamata olives, 1 large chopped tomato, 1 small finely chopped red onion, ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley and ½ cup Italian dressing. Serve with whole-grain bread. For dessert, top angel food cake with chocolate ice cream.
Plan ahead: To save time on Sunday, marinate the steak a day ahead. Also, cook enough brown rice for Tuesday. Save enough steak, cake and peaches for Monday. Save some ice cream for Wednesday.
MONDAY: Make a Southwestern Beef Salad for dinner. Toss together 6 cups cold, coarsely chopped iceberg lettuce, 1 (15-ounce) can rinsed black beans and 1 (11-ounce) can rinsed Mexican-style corn. Place thinly sliced cooked (leftover) steak over top. Drizzle ¼ cup ranch dressing and spoon ⅓ cup salsa separately over beef. Sprinkle with 1 cup broken baked tortilla chips. Leftover cake topped with sliced leftover peaches is dessert tonight.
TUESDAY: Vegetable Curry (see recipe) takes advantage of the summer garden's bounty. Serve the vegetable blend over leftover brown rice. Add a green salad and whole-grain pita bread. For dessert, fresh pineapple chunks are sweet and juicy.
WEDNESDAY: Help the kids make their own Chicken and Sour Cream Enchiladas tonight. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine 1 cup sour cream, 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese, 1 cup salsa and 1 (9- or 10-ounce) package cooked carved chicken. Divide and spoon down center of 6 (6- or 8-inch) whole-grain flour tortillas. Fold tortillas in thirds and place seam-side down in a shallow baking dish coated with cooking spray. Top with ½ cup salsa; cover and bake 30 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with ¼ cup additional cheese; bake 5 more minutes or until cheese melts. Top with chopped tomatoes and lettuce. Serve with canned vegetarian refried beans. Leftover ice cream is a cool dessert.
THURSDAY: Make it quick tonight with a B.T. Pizza. Top a ready-to-bake whole-grain thin pizza crust with 4 slices crumbled bacon, plenty of diced tomatoes (drained on paper towels), sliced fresh basil and shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese. Bake as directed or until cheese melts and pizza is hot. Serve with a green salad. Slice a watermelon for dessert.
FRIDAY: Tighten your purse strings with Turkey Apricot Salad Sandwiches. Combine 1 ½ cups chopped cooked turkey, ¼ cup thinly sliced celery, ¼ cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons unsalted cashews, 2 tablespoons chopped dried apricots, 2 tablespoons chopped green onions, 2 tablespoons plain yogurt and some coarse salt and pepper to taste. Spread on 4 slices pumpernickel bread; top with a lettuce leaf and a second slice of bread. Cut in half and serve with corn-on-the-cob and sliced tomatoes. Fresh blueberries are dessert.
SATURDAY: Your lucky guests will dine on Tuna Steaks With Avocado Salsa (see recipe) tonight. Try this Spicy Potato Salad for a perfect side dish: Cook 2 pounds unpeeled large red potatoes in boiling water about 15 minutes or until tender. Drain and cool. Cut into ½ inch cubes and place in a large bowl. Whisk together 3 tablespoons canola oil, 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon sugar, ¼ teaspoon chile powder, ¾ teaspoon coarse salt and ⅛ teaspoon hot sauce; pour over potatoes; toss. Cover and chill 1 hour. Stir in 1 (8 ¾-ounce) can rinsed corn, 1 small shredded carrot, ¼ cup sliced black olives and 4 sliced green onions; toss to mix. Add whole-grain rolls. For dessert, spoon vanilla pudding into wine goblets. Top each with a teaspoon or so of raspberry jam and stir. Garnish with fresh raspberries, and you have a Raspberry Swirl.
THE RECIPES
Grilled Flank Steak and Peach Salad
½ cup fresh lime juice
¼ cup orange marmalade
¼ cup olive oil
3 tablespoons minced fresh jalapeno pepper
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 (1 ½- to 2-pound) flank steak
4 fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
4 plum tomatoes, cut into wedges
4 romaine lettuce hearts, halved
Combine lime juice, marmalade, oil, jalapeno and salt in a small bowl.
Place steak and ½ cup marinade in a resealable plastic bag; turn to coat. Close bag; turn. Marinate in refrigerator 12 hours to overnight. Cover and reserve remaining marinade in refrigerator.
Prepare grill.
Remove steak; discard marinade in bag. Place steak in center of grill over medium ash-covered coals. Grill, covered, 16 to 21 minutes (or 11 to 16 minutes on gas grill) for medium-rare to medium; turn occasionally.
Meanwhile, arrange peaches, tomatoes and lettuce on grid around steak. Grill peaches 2 to 4 minutes; tomatoes 2 to 3 minutes and lettuce 1 to 2 minutes, turning once. Carve steak across grain into slices. Cut lettuce into small pieces. Combine lettuce and reserved marinade in large bowl; toss to coat. Divide evenly among 4 serving plates. Arrange beef slices, peaches and tomatoes over lettuce.
Makes 8 servings.
Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 203 calories, 18 g protein, 9 g fat, 14 g carbohydrate, 49 mg cholesterol, 281 mg sodium and 2 g fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 1.
Vegetable Curry
3 cups broccoli florets
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon butter
1 small onion, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
1 ½ tablespoons curry powder
½ teaspoon coarse salt
¼ teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
1 (14-ounce) can unsalted vegetable broth
1 small green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 small red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 small yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
3 medium carrots, thinly sliced
½ cup half-and-half
½ pound fresh green beans
Roasted peanuts for garnish
Combine broccoli and water in a medium bowl and cover; microwave on 100% power for 1 ½ minutes. Drain and set aside.
Melt butter on medium in a Dutch oven; add onion and cook 4 minutes or until softened. Stir in flour, curry powder, salt and cayenne. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually stir in broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring constantly, 8 minutes or until thickened. Stir in broccoli, bell peppers, carrots, half-and-half and green beans; cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly, or until vegetables are softened. Garnish with peanuts and serve immediately.
Makes 4 servings.
Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 176 calories, 6 g protein, 7 g fat, 26 g carbohydrate, 19 mg cholesterol, 430 mg sodium and 7 g fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 1.5.
Tuna Steaks With Avocado Salsa
½ cup chopped red onion
½ teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon firmly packed light brown sugar
⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper
½ cup halved orange sections
⅓ cup chopped tomato
⅓ cup chopped avocado
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 tuna steaks (about 1 ½ pounds total)
Cook onion and garlic in a nonstick skillet on medium-high 4 minutes or until onion is softened. Stir in vinegar, sugar and red pepper. Cook and stir 2 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat; stir in oranges, tomato, avocado and lime juice.
Meanwhile, heat a separate nonstick skillet over medium-high. Add tuna steaks and cook 4 minutes per side. Halve each steak and serve immediately with salsa.
Makes 4 servings.
Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 237 calories, 42 g protein, 3 g fat, 9 g carbohydrate, 66 mg cholesterol, 81 mg sodium and 2 g fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 0.5.
Susan Nicholson is an Atlanta-based cookbook author and registered dietitian. She can be reached by email:
susan@7daymenu.com
Food on 07/17/2019