Upside Down Cats

Another week, another menu planned in advance... Here's what I'll be cooking this week for my wonderful Scott and myself...



Beef & Cheese Quesadillas & Mixed Greens Salad

Burgers Topped w/ Artichoke Dip, Home Fries & Marinated Cauliflower Salad

Chicken Caesar Salad & Italian Bread w/ Herb Butter

Herb-Crusted Sea Bass w/ Lemon-Pepper Sauce, Rice Pilaf & Escarole Sauted in Olive Oil w/ Garlic

Homemade Fettucini Tossed w/ Butter & Garlic & Mixed Greens Salad w/ Fresh Mozzarella

Eggs In A Rye Bread Frame, Hash Brown Potatoes w/ Bacon, Fresh Fruit

Greek Shrimp Over Rice w/ Spinach, Feta Cheese & Walnuts

Breakfast "Burgers" w/ Sausage Patties, Eggs & Cheese on a Kaiser Roll & Hash Browns w/ Onion



Sounds pretty tasty, I think. Now all that's left to do is Get Cooking!

I'm back on schedule posting the meals I've planned in advance for the week ahead. Although I also pre-plan and often utilize many of the same ingredients in meals for my daycare children, these meals posted here are the ones I prepare strictly for Scott and me. Here's some of what I'll be cooking for us this week:



Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches on Toasted Club Rolls, Garlic French Fries & Mixed Greens Salad

Pasticcio* & Wilted Spinach Salad

Cheese & Rice Casserole & Oven-Roasted Asparagus

Shrimp Fajitas & Tortilla Chips w/ Salsa & Refried Beans

Waffles, Chicken-Apple Sausage Links & Fresh Fruit

Chicken Burgers w/ Bleu Cheese & Bacon, Beer-Battered Onion Rings & Raw Vegetable Platter w/ Ranch Dip

Bacon & Cheddar Omlettes & Bagels w/ Garlic-Herb Cream Cheese



*Pasticcio - Thanks, Kelly, for recently reminding me of a dish I haven't made in years! Greek food rocks!

Before proceeding to the meat of the matter, I want to take this opportunity to exclaim in abject horror...

OMG, did I just type 6 for the month???

Inconceivable!

It can't possibly be JUNE already!!!

...OK, now I've taken a deep breath and regained my time-passage composure, so let us move forward to the subject at hand: Answering the (hopefully not) burning question...What's Cookin'?

My friend Kelly at kellementology recently complimented me on my organizational skills because I plan my meals for the week in advance. It gave me such a warm feeling to be lauded for my ability to not only make a plan and stick to it, but to prove it by posting it here for all the world (or at least my handful of readers) to see.

I felt so energized by Kelly's praise, in fact, that I proceeded to abandon the whole process the next two weeks...! Yup, it's true...I haven't posted an installment since Sunday, May 11!

Gee, Kelly, I didn't mean to make a liar out of you! I guess the pressure of your admiration was simply too much for me - and I caved! In my defense, I've had some computer and health issues in the past couple weeks. Nothing serious in either arena, just not conducive to blogging.

I have overcome these obstacles (for the most part) so I am here to make Kelly proud once again. Here's what I'll be cooking this week:



Grilled Greek Chicken Salad w/ Mixed Greens, Asparagus, Artichoke Hearts, Feta Cheese & Walnuts & Multi-Grain Bread w/ Honey Butter

Toasted Multi-Cheese Sandwiches on Whole Wheat Bread, French Fries & Ramen Noodle Coleslaw

Orange Roughy Marinated in Soy Sauce, Honey & Citrus Zest, Rolled in Sesame Seeds, Fried Rice w/ Almonds & Steamed Broccoli drizzled w/ Sesame Oil

Honey-Chipotle BBQ Chicken Wings, Macaroni & Cheese & Garlic Sauted Spinach

Linguine w/ Shrimp, Scallops, Calamari & Clams in a Garlic & White Wine Sauce & Mixed Greens Salad

Chicken-Fried Steak w/ Creamy Country Gravy, Mashed Potatoes & Collard, Turnip & Mustard Greens Sauted w/ Bacon & Garlic



That's better...now I feel like I'm living up to my obsessive-compulsive organized reputation!

Happy Mother's Day to all you wonderful moms! I'm not a mother, so today is just a plain old Sunday in my kitchen... As usual, I've planned my week's menus in advance to make things run more smoothly during the week. Here's some of what I'll be cooking this week:



Breaded, Sauted Ocean Perch, Oven-Roasted Red Potato Wedges & Ramen Noodle Coleslaw

Risotto & Mixed Greens Salad

Thai Peanut Chicken w/ Rice Noodles & Thai Vegetables

Italian Macaroni & Cheese & Garlic & Lemon Broccoli

Chili & Cornbread

Roast Chicken, Cornbread Stuffing & Oven-Roasted Vegetable Medley

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Breakfast Wrap, Hash Brown Potatoes & Fresh Fruit



Here's hoping all you moms out there get treated to a special meal on your special day!

Yesterday I made German Potato Salad the way my mom taught me. Like all natural-born cooks, her recipe resides completely in her head. So when I asked her several years ago to tell me how to make it myself, she retrieved what she believed was the recipe from the recipe box in her head.

I dutifully copied down every ingredient and step. Then I attempted to make my mom's German Potato Salad...

Hmm...

Continue reading "There's A Mother In My Kitchen" »

OK, OK...sheesh, you guys...

I will gladly offer you the recipe for Roller Coaster I mentioned and pictured in a recent post...no begging necessary - it's undignified!

I want to clarify that I am not taking credit for inventing this spectacular breakfast creation. In fact, Scott discovered it online several years ago.

If you watch it bake, you'll discover with your own eyes the reason it's called Roller Coaster. The eggs make it puff up all over the surface creating lots of hills and valleys - lots of ups and downs - like a roller coaster! It's the only roller coaster that doesn't make me sick to my stomach!

Here goes:

Roller Coaster Breakfast

Ingredients

6 eggs

1 c flour

1/2 t salt

1 c milk

2 T butter, melted

Powdered sugar, additional butter and your choice of syrup for serving.

Method

Butter a 9"x13" pan (not Pyrex). Place pan into freezer while mixing batter.

Heat oven to 450 degrees.

Beat eggs in a large bowl with a fork. Slowly add flour. Beat well. Add salt, milk and melted butter. Pour batter into chilled pan.

Bake at 450 degrees for 18 minutes;* lower temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking 10 minutes longer. Gather the kids. Enjoy the show!

*Note about baking time: I notice from one time to the next baking time can vary. Watch the color carefully during the 450 degree part of the baking. If it begins to go from lovely brown to too brown, lower the temperature to 350 degrees up to five minutes earlier.

Top with a sprinkle of powdered sugar, butter and syrup as desired.

That's all, folks!

We really love this for brunch! I hesitate to say how many servings this recipe makes because it depends upon whether it is served as a main course or side dish. When served with sausage and fruit, there is usually a serving left over when the two of us enjoy this for brunch.

I hope you'll give this recipe a spin! When you do, let me know how it turns out and how you liked it in the comments.

Just a suggestion...this might be a tasty addition to a Mother's Day brunch...

I can hardly believe it's May already! Before long I'll be wanting to fire up the grill out back! Our weather's not quite there yet, so here's the list of meals I've planned in advance to cook in my kitchen this upcoming week:



Wagon Wheel Pasta w/ Shrimp & Broccoli in a White Wine, Sun-Dried Tomato & Parmesan Sauce & Garlic Herb Breadsticks

Southwestern Chicken Burgers Topped w/ Cheddar-Monterey Jack Cheese & Chipotle Sauce, Onion Rings & Mixed Greens Salad

Chicken-Fried Steak w/ Creamy Gravy, Mashed Potatoes & Spinach Sauted w/ Shallots in Olive Oil

Hot Dogs, German Potato Salad & Chili-Lime Corn on the Cob

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches on Oat Bread, Tater Tots, Raw Vegetable Platter w/ Garlic Herb Dip

Pesto-Marinated Chicken Breasts Served over Vegetable Rice Pilaf

Puffy Egg Roller Coaster,* Chicken Maple Sausage Links & Blackberries w/ Whipped Cream

Beef Enchiladas & Mixed Greens Salad



Wishing you a wonderful and well-fed week! Bon Apetit!

*Here's a photo I took the last time I made Roller Coaster for brunch. It is a concoction of eggs, flour, milk and butter. Drizzled with a touch of maple syrup, it is absolute heaven, my friends!

Usually by midweek I begin looking forward to the weekend, when - hopefully - I will be able to carve out a generous chunk of time to recuperate from the breakneck pace of my Monday through Friday gig as a daycare provider.

Just the notion of lounging in bed or drinking a leisurely cup of coffee or spending the better part of the day in my pajamas is enough to fuel me through the end of the work-a-day week.

I learned something this past weekend, though, that convinced me that a busy Saturday can have its merits.

Continue reading "Zoned Out" »

Last week flew by...it's hard for me to believe it's already time to post this week's meals I've planned in advance. Here's a sampling of what's on the menu at Chez Gina...

Beef-Barley-Lentil Soup & Grilled Cheese Sandwiches on Whole Wheat Bread

Meal-Sized Salad w/ Crabmeat, Cheese & Bacon & French Bread w/ Garlic-Herb Butter

Parmesan-Crusted Cod, Rice Pilaf w/ Almonds & Oven-Roasted Asparagus w/ Garlic & Olive Oil

Homemade Cheese Pizza, Mixed Greens Salad

Barbeque Spareribs, Macaroni & Cheese & Creamy Coleslaw

Seafood Benedict w/ English Muffins, Hash Brown Potatoes & Pineapple-Orange Salad

Pasta Two Ways: Fettucini w/ Chicken Alfredo Sauce & Campanelle w/ Tomato Basil Meat Sauce, Homemade Garlic Herb Breadsticks, Mixed Greens Salad & Strawberry Shortcake



Hey...that sounds like a pretty tasty week! No matter what the week brings, at least I have dinner to look forward to!

There have been some happy family happenings which have prevented me from making a menu the last couple weeks. Now that things are returning to normal, I am back to planning my menus in advance. Here's a sneak peek of what I'll be cooking this upcoming week...



Bacon, Egg & Cheese Bagel Sandwiches & Hash Brown Potatoes

Steak, Cheese & Rice Burritos & Mixed Greens Salad

Fried Eggs Served over Sausage & Cheese Grits & Multigrain Toast

Bow Tie Pasta w/ Chicken & Asparagus in Lemon Garlic Sauce w/ Toasted Walnuts

Roast Beef, Mashed Potatoes & Brussels Sprouts Sauted in Olive Oil & Garlic

Hot Beef Sandwiches w/ Cheddar Horseradish Sauce, French Fries & Raw Vegetable Platter

Coquilles St. Jacques, French Bread & Mixed Greens Salad

Beef Barley Soup & Bacon, Lettuce & Tomato Sandwiches on Whole Wheat Bread

Chicken Parmesan, Pasta Tossed w/ Garlic & Olive Oil & Mixed Greens Salad



I feel absolutely large and in charge now that I've got my meals planned out again!