MMC 30-Minute Menus for March 28, 2010

Are you getting ready for Easter? I am almost there and this week's menus will help me because they are easy on the budget and prep time. I have even included 'cook once - eat three times' menus with the Chicken with Herbed Wine Sauce followed by Warm Citrus Salad and Chicken Pot Pie; since all entrees are so different, no one will complain about 'left overs'!

My family will begin arriving on Friday for the special weekend. I will be serving the Grilled Shrimp with Greek Veggie Salsa to honor Good Friday and it is so easy and quick to prepare. On Saturday, our dinner will be the Spaghetti Bolognese menu; I love serving this for big family meals because it can be cooked ahead and left to simmer (and let the flavors develop) so it will be ready when folks are ready to eat. To stay with the Italian theme for Saturday, I will serve my MMC 'Meatball Magic' Party-in-a Bag consisting of: Swiss wedge or gouda ball; meatballs with mango chutney; endive, cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, and mixed bell peppers with basil pesto and sun dried tomato pesto; sea salt pita chips, spring onion water crackers; and Valdosta spiced pecans.

Do you have a party in your plans? If so, check out the latest feature on my website - 'Party in a Bag'! The Bags are designed to help you pull your party together in 30 minutes - flat! I love to entertain but don't often have the time required to pull off a big, fancy 'do', so, over the years, I have learned a few short-cuts; I will share them with you.

If you are planning a dinner party or family gathering, take a look at the Holiday and Special '30-Minute Complete Menu Plans' on my website. You will find menu ideas to help with your celebration or 'do'.

The Family Meals '30-Minute Complete Menu Plans' are developed to help with both weeknight and special dinner prep. I create Complete Menu Plans using the 30-minute menus from this blog:

• The Complete Menu Plans give you recipes and step-by-step instructions for preparing the complete meal (not just the entree as most meal plans do) in 30 minutes - flat! I even include a grocery list to save unnecessary trips to the grocery store.
• These are eComplete Menu Plans so you can purchase the menu plan now and use it for dinner tonight!
• You won't have to spend your precious time thinking of menu ideas and then looking up the recipes - I will send it all directly to you!
• You can purchase a Complete Menu Plan for the introductory price of .25 each.
• You can purchase a Complete Menu Plan for the introductory price of .25 each. If you have found my 30-minute menus helpful, then you must check out the 30-Minute Complete Menu Plans!

You will find that I use several cooking methods, mix and match, to get dinner on the table quickly! (The ingredients in parenthesis show some of my quick-prep steps.) You can always substitute your favorite made-from-scratch recipes when you have more time.

I hope you have a great week!

Sunday: Palm Sunday
Turkey Breast with Herbed Wine Sauce (crock pot; save some turkey for Tuesday and Thursday)
Mashed Potatoes (frozen mashed potato steamers)
Green Beans with Mushrooms
Pecan Pie (purchased pecan pie, canned whipped cream; save some pie for Tuesday)

Monday:
Double Bean Tortilla Stacks (vegetarian; purchased tortillas, jarred salsa, canned black beans and kidney beans, shredded cheese)
Condiments and Veggies (jarred condiments, bagged shredded lettuce)
Spanish Rice (canned diced tomatoes)
Chocolate Pear Tart (chocolate cookie pie crust, canned pears, jarred marmalade, bottled fudge topping)

Tuesday:
Warm Chicken Citrus Salad (chicken from Sunday; bagged salad greens, jarred citrus)
Triple Corn Chowder (canned corn, purchased corn chips)
Pecan Pie (pecan pie from Sunday)

Wednesday:
Grilled Pork Chops
Hobo Potato Packets (canned potatoes and Mexi-corn)
Grilled Pineapple Salad (canned pineapple slices)
Banana Cream Pie (vanilla wafers, instant banana pudding mix, frozen whipped topping)

Thursday:
Chicken Pot Pie (Chicken from Sunday; biscuit mix, cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, frozen vegetable mix)
Sliced Tomatoes with Blue Cheese (crumbled blue cheese, bottled vinaigrette)
Blueberry Stacks (refrigerated crescent rolls, jarred blueberry jam)

Friday: Good Friday
Grilled Shrimp with Greek Veggie Salsa (cleaned and deveined shrimp, canned tomatoes)
New Potatoes
Corn on the Cob
Ice Cream with Apple Crunch Topper (purchased ice cream)

Saturday:
Spaghetti Bolognese (boxed pasta, jarred Bolognese sauce)
Italian Vegetables (frozen veggie mix)
Jam Thumbprint Cookies (jarred jam)

Get inspired for your weekly menus at OrgJunkie!

I sincerely hope you have fun with your meal planning and preparation,
Elizabeth Randall and Family