Making Do Without Missing A Thing--6 weekly meal plans in six posts---week five

   I have a confession to make.

   Girlscouts are just too darn cute. And they come to me, their doting, friendly piano teacher, 

and ask me to buy cookies. 

Every. single. year.

   My confession is that I just cant say no.

   SO....right now I am sitting here, writing my blog, drinking a Cherry Coke and eating a Samoa cookie.

   (was that thump I just heard you falling off your chair? Are you all right?)  

 ( Let's see, where was I?)

 Oh yes, I dream in chocolate. And when there is a possible chance I might actually get some, especially in the form of a Samoa Girlscout cookie, all resolve melts away and I can barely usher the adorable urchin out the door before ripping the top off the box in an effort to get to the cookies. And that plastic they wrap around it---seriously, is that stuff made of NASA material or what? Even a strong set of teeth can barely get it open when a person is in a hurry.
   Sad, isnt it? *sigh* Truth be told, I am incredibly thankful that you can not get those darn cookies other than once a year.
   I started berating myself about spending money on cookies while writing a six week series on spending less and feeding your family for under $200 a month.

And then......it hit me.

   It really is okay.

   Did you know the main reason most diets fail is because people reach a certain point that they just can no longer say no to the things that tempt them? They deny themselves SO much, that eventually that self-control just wears thin, and they give in. And THEN they reason that they have already fallen off the bandwagon, why not just go all out?
   Either that or when presented with the reality of all the things they would have to give up, they are completely unwilling to embrace a "full-tilt" plunge into dieting, and avoid it all together.
   Everything I have been sharing with you the last couple of months talk about gradual change leading to radical change. It is about changing your mindset, your approach, how you think of food, how you shop....all of it. And kudos to the many of you who have stepped out of those comfort zones and are starting on your own journey of "making do without missing a thing". But I want you to listen to something I have to say to you.
   There is nothing wrong with going out to eat once in a while, with getting a frozen pizza, or even ordering one in. Nothing wrong with budgeting a couple bags of chips and dip into the groceries for the week. NOTHING wrong with picking up the occasional soda, or candy, or any of that. Honestly, those things will keep you in the game, and make it so much easier to do what I am showing you.
   One dear crunchy friend, who has been a positive and encouraging influence in my life, said to me: "I admire all that you do, Heather, but I don't think you should bake that much sweet stuff. I mean, do you think it is that healthy for your kids to have all those cookies, and cobblers, and hand pies and etc? And surely you could probably make your grocery bill even lower if you cut some of that stuff out! I am just saying you want your kids to be healthy as well as satisfied". Now, Lord bless her little heart, she is right on only one thing. I COULD cut our grocery bill by more, a little, by cutting those things out. But to what end? We eat simply, healthily, and my kids (and husband) love their treats. It makes the beauty of cooking so much from scratch and/or basic ingredients seem like not such a huge endeavor when my kids' eyes light up at a batch of chocolate chip cookies. And I would rather they learn from a young age that ALL things should be done in moderation, including eating sweet snacks. I want them to learn to be able to say no to temptation because they have something else that replaces it in a healthy way. Isn't that what we all strive for in raising our families?
   So dont cut out the special things from your meal plans in an attempt to skimp by on the very least amount you can spend on groceries. Save a little wiggle room for those things...

                           and answer the door when the adorable Girlscout starts knocking.

just look at that face-could YOU say no?--this is the top selling cookie scout for three years!

   ***just as a sidenote, for those of you who love new recipes for baking, I happened to come across this recipe on Pinterest about making your OWN samoas and thin mints. I have not had the time lately to try them, and would be interested to hear if any of my readers have made these yet. click here for the recipe that will make you drool just looking at it. And if you like Thin Mints, here is the other recipe I am dying to try...
   Shall we get started on this week's meal plan? :)

 Meal Plan Number Five


Monday
   breakfast: Campfire toast with fried potatoes, onion and apples
   lunch: ground beef stroganoff over homemade noodles
   snack: apples and peanut butter, Oatmeal chocolate chunk cookies
   dinner: Open faced Turkey sandwiches over mashed potatoes and stuffing bread, green beans,
apple dumplings
Tuesday
   breakfast: Mulberry muffins
   lunch: cheesy potato soup with bread and salad
   snack: cottage cheese with pineapple, cookies
   dinner: Sesame noodles with stir fry veggies
Wednesday
   breakfast: wheat berry cereal with apples and cinnamon
   lunch: hummus and pita chips
   snack: carrot sticks with yogurt cheese dip, english muffins with cheese and chive topping
   dinner: Chicken Tortilla soup
Thursday
   breakfast: homemade pop tarts with Warm Chocolate Soother
   lunch: Leftover Chicken Tortilla Soup with toast points and canned pears
   snack: orange slices, and banana bread
   dinner: porkchop stuffing bake with roasted winter veggies
Friday
   breakfast: homemade breakfast sandwiches with eggs, sausage and cheese
   lunch: baked potatoes with broccoli, onion and cheese topping
   snack: banana Peanut butter bites, banana bread
   dinner: Green coconut chicken curry
Saturday
   breakfast: french toast from banana bread covered with a maple butter glaze for topping
   lunch: calzones with turkey, broccoli and cheese
   snack: whatever fresh fruit and baked goods we have on hand
   dinner: Individual pizzas with choice of toppings, meats, veggies and olives or mushrooms
Sunday
   breakfast: cinnamon rolls
   lunch: steaks, salad and hot cross buns
   snack: apples or oranges, any baked good we have on hand
   dinner: leftovers or waffles

  Really looking forward to sesame noodles and the green coconut chicken curry. I hope you have a wonderful week, and tell me, what are the items that you are going to splurge on once in a while to keep from feeling "deprived" in any way? Oh...and did you get them on sale? :)

Many Blessings to you and yours,

Heather

MOnday: Campfire toast is known by many different names. We always made it while camping, so in our household, that is what it is called. It is simply texas toast with a hole torn in the bread, and an egg cracked and cooked in the bread while toasting. The compliment to that is another thing we love to fry up while camping: potatoes, onions and apples all together. :) Seriously, dont knock it 'til you have tried it. A little butter and salt and you're good to go for breakfast. Beef Stroganoff is simply 3/4 lb ground beef fried up with onions and mushrooms, seasoned with garlic and Lawry's seasoning, then a cream sauce made from the  magic mix, and after adding about 1/2 cup plain yogurt, or sour cream, served over noodles. I often toss in dried spinach into the noodle mix while it is kneading in the mixer so that I know the kids are getting more veggies in this meal. Open Faced Sandwiches are pieces of toasted bread on a plate, with mashed potatoes, a meat and a gravy over the top. I am sure you still have a ton of turkey left over from the meal plan from last week, so this is one of those meals you can use it up. To make stuffing bread, I make a batch of bread and include the following spices: sage, rosemary, thyme, basil, and oregano, plus garlic powder, and salt. Let it bake like normal and then when done, you can use it for this meal AND cut it up and dry it for homemade stuffing, or even croutons. Smart, right? :) Apple Dumplings are peeled, cored apples that you wrap in homemade pie dough, set into a greased 9X9 pan, and fill the middle open space with brown sugar, apple pie spice, and butter. Bake at 350* for one hour and let them sit for a while before eating because that filling is HOT. I know a lot of people in the fall who actually stuff the inside cavity with red hots. I havent tried it yet, but am sure for red hot fans it would be amazing. :)

Tuesday: Using my master muffin mix throw in 1/2 cup dried mulberries and be sure to either add in 1 tsp of vanilla or almond flavoring if you have it. They bake for around 15 minutes at 350*. Cheesy Potato Soup is great stuff, and wonderful for cold winter days. In a stock pan bring 3 cups of chicken stock or one quart of canned chicken stock to a boil, and add 1 cup dried, crushed potatoes. (otherwise, just add 3 cups uncooked or homecanned potatoes). Let simmer for about 20 minutes, and then add 1 1/2 cups fresh or canned potatoes to the stock pot, one more quart of water, and mix in enough Magic Mix to thicken it up into a creamy sauce. To the pot add one cup diced onion, 2 stalks diced celery, 1 tsp of sea salt, and about 1 tsp garlic powder. Once all the potatoes are cooked thoroughly, as is the other veggies, take out your potato masher and mash most of the potatoes so the soup becomes like thin mashed potatoes (with some chunks). To this add one full cup of sour cream or plain yogurt, and one cup of shredded cheese. Sprinkle the top of the soup with real bacon pieces and chives, and serve with fresh bread. Sesame Noodle Stir Fry was based off this link from Pinterest. I use all my own noodles, use apple cider vinegar, skip the chicken, and toast my sesame seeds, as well as throw in a bag of stir fry veggies instead of buying everything separate and chopping it up. To make a garlic-asian sauce, use garlic powder, soy sauce and teriyaki sauce instead with a touch of brown sugar. Easy to do, and very good tasting.

Wednesday: Hummus around here is chock full of veggies covered by smooth chickpea paste. In a bowl (or if you dont have an immersion blender, do all this in your blender) I put two cans (or one pint) of chickpeas, reserving some of the liquid in case I need to thin the hummus. I then add one tomato, one cucumber, two carrots, 1/2 onion, one garlic clove, 1/2 cup mayo or plain yogurt, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp cumin and curry powder, 3 dashes tabasco sauce, two dashes soy sauce, and blend away. When it is pureed, I serve in bowls with powdered green onion over the top, although in the summer we often serve with chopped green onion and cucumber slices as well as pita chips for dipping. To be honest, there are an awful lot of veggies you could throw into this mix and your kids will still eat it. I have found that you have to be careful how many cukes you throw in because it will water your hummus down. And it is still good the next day.  Chicken Tortilla Soup is one of my very favorites, and is often so good you just keep going back for more. I got the basic recipe from my Fix it and Forget it cookbook, but of course tweaked it to fit our tastes in this family. You need: one cup chicken (cubed, shredded, frozen fresh or dehydrated)/ 2 cans or one quart black beans, undrained (just dump in crockpot)/ 2 cups (or one pint) sweet and spicy salsa/ 2 cans Rotel tomatoes or one quart home canned chili tomatoes)/ 1 small can chopped green chilies/ 1 large can tomato sauce or spaghetti sauce/ one bag (or two cups dried corn)/ two quarts chicken stock (7 cups worth)/ and 1/2 block Veleveeta cheese. (yes, I know, SO BAD for you.....but it really isnt going to kill you if you eat it ONCE in a while...or atleast, I dont think so.....). Throw everything but the Velveeta into the crockpot and cook on low for 6 -8 hours. If you are using dried chicken, make sure to test the chicken before serving--it may need a little longer to cook without being stringy tasting. Put the cheese-ish stuff in about an hour before serving and let it cook down. I serve with tortilla strips sprinkled across the top. To make those, cut a tortilla in thin strips, shake in a bag with oil and salt, and then bake in an oven for a couple of minutes until crisp. Watch carefully as they burn fast. :) This recipe normally makes enough for us to eat one night, and then we bag the other half and freeze it--two bags, one for another night of soup sometimes, and another I add more Velveeta to and we turn into a dip with homemade tortilla chips. :) You just add more Velveeta to get it there.
Thursday: Homemade Pop Tarts came from another one of my favorite sites (Heavenly Homemakers)and the kids LOVE them. I have yet to figure out how to make chocolate ones (*sigh*) but have gotten pretty good at making the Maple Brown Sugar filling that is similar to the store ones. It is simply pie crust, rolled out in a 50/50 sugar and flour combination, the filling is either your favorite jam or shortening, butter, brown sugar and cinnamon with a touch of maple flavoring. Cut the pie crust into typical "pop-tart" shapes, spread the filling, and lay another layer on top, pinching the edges with your fork, and pricking the top. We have never put these in the toaster, but you can bake in the oven in about 8-10 minutes, or in the toaster oven for less. Warm Chocolate soother is the same as last week's vanilla soother drink, but with 1 TBS of baking cocoa mixed in. Very rich and satisfying. Again, from Heavenly Homemakers site. Porkchop Stuffing Bake is this: in a 9X13 greased pan layer the following: 4 cups stuffing with herbs (homemade or boxed) not made, six porkchops, thin ones. In a separate bowl combine 2 cups of water (hot) and 2 batches of magic mix made with chicken stock and crumbled dried mushrooms (or 2 cans cream of mushroom soup). Pour this over the porkchops and stuffing, cover with foil and bake one hour at 350*. Test meat to be sure it is no longer pink inside.
Friday: I got the great idea on breakfast sandwiches from this great website: skinnymomskitchen. com Your imagination is all that limits your breakfast sandwich making. The best part is being able to freeze them and have them available for your family to pull out when they want one (such as hungry hubbies who are on the prowl for something after working hard outside, etc). Convenient to pull out for a quick breakfast as well. Banana Peanut Butter Bites are sliced bananas that you freeze on a cookie sheet for a couple hours, heat up one cup of peanut butter and mix with a handful of chocolate chips, and drop the banana slices into until they are coated. Then lay them on a cookie sheet and put back in the freezer until set. We have tried this with using Nutella as well, and man, just way too good. I have also used SunButter, and it has worked just as well. Coconut Chicken Curry uses green curry paste, which might be a little much for those of you who are feeding kids, so be sure to add it after you take out portions for kids who arent going to react to spice very well. This is the recipe I printed and keep in my cooking binder. I use canned cubed chicken, my own tomatoes and skip the tomato sauce, going for more of the coconut yumminess by stretching the sauce with either milk, or almond milk, depending on what we have on hand. I also add the green curry paste right at the end after dishing out the kids' plates. When we have it, I put large chunks of pineapple, and bell pepper in the pan only a few minutes before serving.
Saturday: all your links are above. For the Maple Butter sauce for the french toast just melt butter in a pan, stir in 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, 1 tsp of vanilla, and 1/4 tsp maple flavoring. Simmer until thick, and then drizzle over french toast.
Sunday: for the hot cross buns make them ahead of time when you bake bread and put them in the freezer. Just mix one Tbs caraway seeds into the bread dough before rising the first time, and add an extra 1/4 cup sugar into the mix. Taking a muffin tin that has been well greased, split your bread dough into 12 pieces from one portion you would have put into a loaf of bread. Roll each portion into a ball and place in the muffin cups, then score the top with a cross or plus mark. Let rise until double, and then bake at 350* for 15 minutes or so until golden brown. When cooled, drizzle a simple frosting over the top that is made with powdered sugar, lemon juice and a touch of vanilla.