Menu for the week

I make my menu and grocery list on the weekends. That way we get shopping for the week (the one and only trip to the land of HEB) done before the week begins.
I used to shop during the week, but several things had to change when we took on homeschooling. You know, like leaving the house on a school day.
So my big Friday night last night...I watched three Gilmore Girls in a row while I scoured my recipes and made a menu.
Two out of four of these are Southern Living recipes. I swear by them. They're almost garunteed to be good. Once upon a time, when I got magazines and had time to look in them, I got Southern Living, and many of the very best recipes I have are from them. You can also get their recipes off their website for free, I think.
Here it is, for anyone who is interested.
You'll notice that these meals have common ingredients. This is something to keep in mind when saving money at the store. However, the expert on saving money is definitely Kyle McVay. She's the bomb! Check her out. She posts her menu also!
Okay, here goes...what are we eating this week?

Mon.: Easy Honey Mustard Chicken, rice, steamed broccoli with cheese on top.

Honey Mustard Chicken
This recipe calls for chicken breasts, but I like to use tenders instead sometimes because they're kid friendlier and soak up more flavor in recipes like this where the sauce is SO good! I got this recipe from an old church cookbook.

1/4 c margarine, 1/2 c honey, 1/4 c mustard, 1 t curry powder, 1/2 t salt, up to 4 chicken breasts. (If you're making this for a crowd, like me, you might double the sauce.)

Melt margarine in a baking dish. Stir in all the other ingredients. Place chicken in the dish and bake at 375 degrees. If you're using breasts, bake 20 minutes on each side. For tenders, it won't take as long.
Serve over rice.

Tues.: Southwest BLT wraps, chips, and salsa
This is a pretty light and VERY easy recipe from Southern Living. It's Jax's favorite! I make my own salsa when I make this. Once you've made homemade salsa, that jar stuff at the store will make you gag.

Southwest BLT wraps
1/2 c salsa, 1/3 c frozen corn, thawed, four tortillas, a package of turkey bacon, cooked and broken in half, butter lettuce (or whatever kind you want to use),
Avacado Lime Sauce: 1 avacado mashed, 4 t fresh lime juice (3 mini limes), 1/2 c mayo, 1 t chopped fresh cilantro, and salt to taste.

Make your avacado lime sauce. Then stir together salsa and corn. Now top your tortillas with lettuce, corn salsa, bacon, and drizzle with avacado lime sauce. Serve with chips, to dip in either your salsa or avacado lime sauce.

Wed.: Beef and Lime Rice Salad
I know this says Beef, but I usually ignore that and use ground turkey. We think it works for most recipes!

1 lb. ground turkey, 3 c water, 1/2 t salt, 1/2 t cumin, 1 1/2 c long grain rice, 1 t grated lime rind, 1 T fresh lime juice
Suggested Toppings: salsa, shredded cheddar, tortilla chips, sour cream, chopped tomatoes, chopped green onions, avacado slices.

Brown your meat. Bring the water with cumin and salt in it to a boil. Add rice. Cover, reduce heat, for 20-25 min. or until water is absorbed and rice is tender.
Stir in meat, lime rind, and lime juice.
Serve over chips and add toppings.

Thurs.: I'm trying a new recipe for Beef Tips and rice. I've never made this before. I'll let you know how we like it.

Desserts: I have ingredients to make two different desserts this week. I don't know which I'm making. Apple Dumplings, which I got from Leslie Wakefield...at least that will be her name later today! She's marrying Clayton today! Yay!!!
I also have a new recipe for Pound Cake that I got from Ashley Kinnard. She made it for us last week at her house, and it was awesome!!! My daughter actually asked her for the recipe so that we could make it at home. How cute is that?

Apple Dumplings
2 cans of crescent rolls (any recipe with crescent rolls in them is a winner!), 2 large Granny Smith apples, sliced and peeled, 2 c sugar, 2 sticks margarine, 1 t cinnamon, 1 can Mountain Dew

Wrap slices of apple with crescent rolls. Place in a greased baking dish. Melt margarine, sugar, and cinnamon on stove top. Pour mixture over the crescent rolls. Cover with Mountain Dew! (Isn't that crazy?!) Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 min. or until apples are soft. I suggest serving with vanilla ice cream.
This is so good!!!

Ashley's Pound Cake:
1 pkg duncan hines butter recipe cake mix
4 eggs
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c water
1/4 c oil
1 stick melted butter
1 8oz. pkg cream cheese
mix everything together. Grease pan w/ butter & roll sugar around on it. Cook at 350 for 50-60 minutes. If not done at 50 min, turn down to 325.