Menu Monday

After skipping my menu planning last week (I was just being lazy) I look forward to getting back into the swing of things this week.

• Monday - oven baked chicken strips
• Tuesday - pancakes...It's national Pancake Day after all and who wants to wait in line at IHOP for the free ones
• Wednesday - empanadas (blame it on my sister)
• Thursday - corn cobbler
• Friday - family get-together at my Dad's house
• Saturday - ???
• Sunday - slow cooker chicken cacciatore (the recipe is here)

Okay so I am making pancakes for dinner tomorrow and it wasn't too long ago that I thought the only way I could make pancakes was with Bisquik....well throw away that box of Bisquik and whip up a batch from scratch. I like making it from scratch so I can add whole wheat flour to the recipe. This is the recipe I use:

Pancakes

• 2 eggs
• 2 cups flour - I use 1/2 all-purpose flour and 1/2 whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cup milk
• 2 Tbsp sugar - either white or brown sugar or a mixture of both
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix it all together and cook on the griddle. This makes A LOT of pancakes, but family eats A LOT of pancakes.

And corn cobbler is really a tuna casserole recipe I found on kraftfoods.com. I don't really know how I found it because we don't really like tuna and for some reason the kids have dubbed it corn cobbler. It is super easy and super fast. And it is done in one pan. Add 1 qt water to 2 cups uncooked medium shell pasta in a large skillet. Bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook 8-10 minutes or until pasta is tender, adding 2 cups frozen mixed vegetables to the cooking water during the last 5 minutes of the pasta cooking time. Drain pasta and vegetables. Stir in 1 can cream of mushroom soup, chicken(the recipe calls for 1 can of tuna, I just use whatever chicken I have on hand) and 1 cup shredded cheese. Top with additional 1/2 cup of shredded cheese; cover and cook an additional 2 minutes or until cheese is melted. The best part about this recipe is the flexibility. If I have leftover chicken breast I can use that. The canned chicken from Costco is great in the recipe. Also the veggies and pasta can be whatever you have in your pantry. Elbow macaroni and peas - great! Rotini and broccoli - yummy! I think you get the idea.