Menu Plan Monday Week of 9/22

I am so excited for this week's Menu Plan Monday - Family Favorite's Edition. Our family definitely has lots of favorites, so many that there was no way I could include them all in this week's plan. I can't wait to find some new recipes to try out also. With the number of MPM participants growing every week, that shouldn't be a problem!

This week we'll still be relying on a few freezer meals for a few days. I'll also be restocking some breakfast items for the freezer. We've gone through our stash from earlier in the month. I've found that having breakfast in the freezer always starts our day off on the right food, whether we sleep in or have a lot on our plate for the day. There are so many breakfast items that freeze well. Usually I'll make smoothies to go along with any breakfast that is as substantial as others (like muffins).

Breakfasts

• M- Chocolate-chocolate chip muffins (replace 1/4 c. flour with 1/4 c. cocoa powder) (triple batch for freezer) & smoothies
• T - Pancakes (triple for freezer) & bananas
• W - Banana nut bread (double for freezer) & smoothies
• Th - Baked oatmeal w/peaches
• F - French toast sandwiches (filled with peanut butter & honey)
• S - Puffed pancake w/strawberry jam
• Su - Chocolate chip muffins

Lunch

• M - Weekend leftovers
• T - Tuna pasta salad, applesauce
• W - Ham & cheese biscuits, pears
• Th - Hummus & pitas, celery sticks
• F - Grilled cheese, pita chips (from the leftover pitas) & oranges
• S - Tuna melts on homemade English muffins (double for freezer), yogurt
• Su - Baked potato soup, maple-oat bread

Dinner

• M - Lasagna (from the freezer) and salad
• T - Cheesy Chicken & broccoli curry casserole over brown rice (This is one of family's all-time favorites!)
• W - Red beans & rice with chorizo, cinnamon apples, corn muffins
• Th - Cheesy pasta casserole (this is another huge family favorite, so much so that it's been dubbed "everyone's favorite casserole" - recipe below) & breadsticks
• F - Ranch ham skillet (recipe below) & biscuits
• S - BBQ meatballs (from freezer), oven Parmesan fries, skillet corn
• Su - Pizza fondue, Italian bread cubes, carrot sticks

Cheesy Pasta Casserole

• 1/2 pkg. egg noodles, cooked and drained
• 1/2 - 1 lb. ground turkey or beef (optional)
• 1 18 oz. can tomato sauce (I use 2 c. of my tomato-veggie sauce)*
• 5 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 c. sour cream
• garlic salt, pepper
• 1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

*If you are just using plain tomato sauce, you will need to add some seasonings to boost the flavor

Place the egg noodles in a 13"x9" casserole dish. Add ground meat on top of the noodles, if using. Pour sauce over that. Blend together cream cheese, sour cream, garlic salt, and pepper. Put dollops of that mixture over the tomato sauce. Cover with shredded cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Ranch Ham Skillet

• 1/4 c. butter
• 2 T. flour
• 1 1/2 c. milk
• 1 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp. pepper
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 1 c. Ranch dressing (commercial or homemade)
• 2 c. diced ham
• 1 bag frozen California-style vegetables, thawed
• 1/2 lb. cooked egg noodles

1. Melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Whisk in flour and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.
2. Whisk in milk, bring to a boil and cook until thickened. Reduce heat to low.
3. Stir in Parmesan, pepper and nutmeg, until cheese is completely melted.
4. Add Ranch dressing, ham, vegetables and noodles to skillet. Toss to combine and serve.