Here I am again with another Meals of the Week post. It is hard to believe that we are already into August. The summer seems to just be flashing by! And what a lovely summer it has been! July was hot and humid as always, but August has been much nicer. Still hot, but not so humid and the nights have been lovely and cool for sleeping. So far at any rate!
I have had my daughter staying with me for the last 10 days. Her husband was away to Ontario with his mother. We have enjoyed spending this time together. Its been a lot of fun and we have eaten some really nice food as you will see!
Normally there is just me here, as you know. I do try really hard to always cook myself a meal. I never want to be one of those people who eats frozen dinners or from out of tins! They are okay for the occasional meal, but by and large I like to cook for myself and will continue to do so for as long as I can!
I really enjoy putting these meal plan posts together for you, and you all seem to be enjoying them also. I will continue to do them for as long as you are interested and as long as you find them helpful! I am the type of person who is always interested in what other people are eating and I hope that you are too!
I hope that you will find that none of my meals are overly expensive, or super hard to put together. And for the most part I try to keep them pretty healthy as well, with an occasional treat thrown in, because what is life without a treat now and then!
I hope you will enjoy and if you have any comments or feedback at all, one way or the other, do not hesitate to let me know in the comments below! Thank you!
SUNDAY, July 30th - Sunday Roast Chicken Dinner at my Sister's
Normally on Sundays we all go to my sister's for Sunday Dinner. Occasionally I will host it. This week, she roasted a chicken. She had defrosted her freezer and found an abundance of chicken in it! The chicken she did in the oven, but she roasted the vegetables on the BBQ (corn, parsnips, carrots, potatoes.)
She just puts them into a foil roaster with a bit of butter and broth and covers them tightly with foil, then roasts them slowly over medium heat, giving them a stir every now and then. They are delicious. She also made Newfie Stuffing to go with it. You can find my recipe for that here. It has become a family favorite!
MONDAY, July 31st - One Pan Italian Pasta
This is a delicious one dish entrée where everything cooks in the pan. No fuss, no muss and very little clean up afterwards. You can have this on the table in about half an hour or less. With plenty of meaty chunks of white chicken meat, a rich perfectly seasoned sauce, perfectly cooked pasta, cherry tomatoes and some tasty cheese melted on top, this always goes down a real treat. All you need is a salad on the side and everybody's happy!
TUESDAY, August 1st - Taco Baked Potatoes
I had a bit of an exciting day on Monday as I ended up going to hospital via ambulance due to an anxiety attack. Those things can really play havoc with you. Thankfully that is all it was! I decided to take it very easy on Tuesday and so we had Taco Baked Potatoes for our Tea. I love baked, or Jacket Potatoes as they are also called in the U.K. They are a beautiful base for just about anything. I love them with baked beans ladled over top, or chili, with tuna or cheese, and this taco version is a real favorite also.
Just use your favorite taco filling (I used ground turkey) and ladle it over top of the crispy skinned baked potato and then top with all of your favorite taco toppings! Simply delicious!
Along with these potatoes we also enjoyed some delicious Roasted Corn Ribs! Nicely spiced they make a wonderful summer side dish for any meal. Tis the season for corn on the cob and this was a lovely way to enjoy it!
WEDNESDAY, August 2nd - Supper out with Dad and Hazel
Usually we go to the Big Scoop but this week we went to the China Village in Greenwood for a Chinese meal. It used to be a really good place to go for Chinese food, but I have to say its standards have really dropped and the meal was not very good at all. I always have the #7 combo, which is Beef & Broccoli, Sweet & Sour Chicken and fried rice. My beef was okay, but the chicken balls were dry and over cooked.
My sister had ordered a spring roll, but when it came it was on someone else's plate and it fell onto the table. She requested a new one because you never know how clean a table is. When it came (eventually) you could tell that they had just refried the old one. When we opened it up it was not like any spring roll we have ever seen inside. It looked like they had taken the scrapings off of plates and filled it with those. Of course she didn't eat it. Her chicken and vegetables were okay, but we have decided we are not going there again.
My own Homemade Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls would have been a bazillion times better (see photo above.) No complaints there! As would my own Beef and Broccoli.
THURSDAY, August 3rd- Curried Chicken Sauté
My daughter loves a good chicken curry, just like her mom and so on Thursday I made us a Chicken Curry. This is one of my favorite versions. Adapted from a recipe from Foster's Market it is a quick and easy sauteed curry with a rich and tasty sauce that is the perfect combination of heat, spice and sweet. We enjoyed this with some steamed rice and poppadoms. It went down a real treat!
FRIDAY, August 4th - Spicy Ranch Turkey Burgers
You can't beat tasty burgers for a Friday night supper. Especially when they are as delicious as these Spicy Ranch Turkey Burgers. The burgers themselves are moist and deliciously flavored with sweet carrot, spicy jalapeno peppers, red onion and coriander leaf.
Grilled to perfection, and with a slice of Jack cheese melted on top they are served on toasted buns atop a layer of creamy hand shredded slaw. Skin on chips/fries on the side complete this delicious meal!
SATURDAY, July 5th - Amish Country Casserole
Cheap and cheerful for the smaller family. Those Amish sure know how to cook. Simple ingredients done incredibly well with no bells and whistles. A tasty mix of lean ground beef, some seasonings, tomato and mushroom condensed soup, pasta and cheese. The full recipe serves 8, but this small batch one serves only four. Enough for my daughter and I to enjoy and an extra casserole for her to take home with her to share with her husband.This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Oven temperatures can vary somewhat, so it may take a bit longer, according to your own oven. I do recommend checking right at 11 minutes. Gently spoon the egg out to test to see how set the egg is. If not, cook for 1 - 2 minutes longer.
The water rises in the oven temperature as the eggs cook. This may make it appear that the eggs are not set, but don't be fooled by it. Check as above if you are not sure.
These eggs do not store or reheat well, so only do as many as you need.
You can make up to twelve poached eggs this way, which makes it the ideal way to poach eggs for a large group.
If you like and are cooking for a much smaller group, you can use individual ramekins to cook these eggs. Just pop the buttered ramekins onto a baking tray, butter, add the water and the eggs as per the recipe. Easy peasy!
Yield: 2
Oven Poached Eggs
Ingredients
- 2 large free range eggs
- 2 TBS water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter two cups/receptacles in a muffin tin really well. Place 1 TBS of water to each muffin cup in the tin, even if you are not making a full 12 eggs. (This helps to prevent the tin from buckling.)
- Crack one egg into each of the two buttered cups.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 11 to 13 minutes. At 11 minutes, the yolk is very runny and the whites are just about set. At 13 minutes the yolk is runny, but beginning to set around the edges with the white being completely set.
- Use a spoon to gently scoop out the poached eggs, one at a time. Do it at an angle so that the water drains off the poached eggs.
- Serve hot.
Notes
Oven temperatures can vary somewhat, so it may take a bit longer, according to your own oven. I do recommend checking right at 11 minutes. Gently spoon the egg out to test to see how set the egg is. If not, cook for 1 - 2 minutes longer.
The water rises in the oven temperature as the eggs cook. This may make it appear that the eggs are not set, but don't be fooled by it. Check as above if you are not sure.
These eggs do not store or reheat well, so only do as many as you need.
You can make up to twelve poached eggs this way, which makes it the ideal way to poach eggs for a large group.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
- 1 1/4 cups (160g) plain all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 TBS poppy seeds
- 1/4 cup (55g) butter, melted
- 1 TBS vegetable oil
- 1 large free range egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 TBS (32g) sour cream, room temperature
- 1/8 tsp almond extract
- 1 TBS freshly grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon)
- 1/2 TBS fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup (120ml) milk, room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60ml) fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- the grated zest of 1/2 lemon
HOW TO MAKE LEMON POPPYSEED BAKERY STYLE MUFFINS (SMALL BATCH)
I adapted the original instructions to my usual method of making and baking muffins with excellent results!!
Preheat the oven to 425*F/220*C/ gas mark 7. Butter a six cup medium muffin tin really well, or line with paper liners.
Rub the sugar and lemon zest for the muffins together in a bowl. Whisk in the flour, soda, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds, combining everything together well.
Whisk the egg, sour cream, both extracts, lemon juice, and milk together in another bowl.
Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet. Mix together just to combine. The batter will be a bit lumpy. That is as it should be.
Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups, filling them almost to the top.
Bake in the preheated oven for 8 minutes, then REDUCE the oven temperature to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes longer until well risen and golden brown. They should spring back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.
Brush with the lemon syrup as soon as you remove them from the oven. (I did this several times to use up all the syrup.)
To make the lemon syrup put the lemon juice and sugar into a small saucepan. Bring to the boil. Add the lemon zest and then simmer on low for about 10 minutes. (Do this while the muffins are baking.)
Leave the muffins in the pan to cool for about 5 minutes before lifting them out to a wire rack to cool to warm. Delicious served warm with copious cups of hot tea!
Lemon Poppyseed Bakery Style Muffins (small batch)
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups (160g) plain all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 TBS poppy seeds
- 1/4 cup (55g) butter, melted
- 1 TBS vegetable oil
- 1 large free range egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 TBS (32g) sour cream, room temperature
- 1/8 tsp almond extract
- 1 TBS freshly grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon)
- 1/2 TBS fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup (120ml) milk, room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60ml) fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- the grated zest of 1/2 lemon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425*F/220*C/ gas mark 7. Butter a six cup medium muffin tin really well, or line with paper liners.
- Rub the sugar and lemon zest for the muffins together in a bowl. Whisk in the flour, soda, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds, combining everything together well.
- Whisk the egg, sour cream, both extracts, lemon juice, and milk together in another bowl.
- Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet. Mix together just to combine. The batter will be a bit lumpy. That is as it should be.
- Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups, filling them almost to the top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 8 minutes, then REDUCE the oven temperature to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes longer until well risen and golden brown. They should spring back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.
- Brush with the lemon syrup as soon as you remove them from the oven. (I did this several times to use up all the syrup.)
- To make the lemon syrup put the lemon juice and sugar into a small saucepan. Bring to the boil. Add the lemon zest and then simmer on low for about 10 minutes. (Do this while the muffins are baking.)
- Leave the muffins in the pan to cool for about 5 minutes before lifting them out to a wire rack to cool to warm. Delicious served warm with copious cups of hot tea!
That is one very happy girl! It has been so much fun having her around! She goes home tomorrow. I will miss her! So will the cats!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
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