Soup Days

Menu Plan for Last Week
and how it all turned out. 

Roasted Garlic White Bean Lasagna Soup - Check!

(using the leftover lasagna noodles and ricotta)
****  I thought this soup recipe sounded unusual.  But I had those lasagna noodles,
and that ricotta, so I was willing to give it a try.  It turned out to be absolutely delicious!
 I used the recipe linked above, and cut my cooked lasagna noodles in small pieces,
instead of using the noodles called for in the recipe.  I think it was the roasted garlic
and fire roasted tomatoes that made it truly fantastic.  The ricotta went into the
bowl first and then I ladled the hot soup over it, resulting in melty, creamy cheese.
I'm thinking about making this again soon and instead of using lasagna noodles,
 I'm going to use tiny shell pasta.

Chicken Marsala with Mushrooms and Sage -Check!

Mashed Potatoes (leftovers)

Broccoli

Black Bean Quesadillas -Moved to this week's menu

(Use romaine lettuce, shredded cheddar)

Grilled Chicken Asian Salad - Check!

(Use some of the red cabbage with salad greens)

Vegetable Beef Soup  - Check!

(Use leftover roast beef and green beans )

Artisan Bread

I used the bit of pesto I had in the refrigerator and diced up some of my
dried tomatoes to add to this bread.  It was great!

This soup was especially flavorful, because I made my  own beef stock.
  I roasted the meaty bones and some vegetables

and then put it all into a huge pot, covered with water, and let it simmer for

 two days.  Really.  Two days. I then strained it and put it into jars.  

A couple of those jars went into the veggie beef soup.

Stuffed Shells

(Use marinara , parmesan, mozzarella and ricotta)

Salad and Bread
I made gnocchi instead!

I'll blog about this recipe soon.  It was fantastic topped with a fresh marinara .

Pork Roast - Moved to this week's menu plan.

Acorn Squash ( in storage)

Sweet and Sour Cabbage (use red cabbage!)

Possible Ricotta Recipes to Try

Blueberry Ricotta Scones

Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake

Sweet Potato Rounds with Herbed Ricotta and Walnuts

Easy Ricotta Gnocchi

How did I do with food waste?
No food waste!

What Do I Have in the Fridge This Week?
broccoli
carrots
celery
romaine lettuce
beet greens (from freezer)
sandwich ham
mushrooms
red cabbage
some slightly shriveled apples
an orange
cheddar, ricotta, mozzarella and monterey jack cheeses
whole wheat tortillas


Menu Plan for Week of January 25
Black Bean Quesadillas
(use beet greens, cheddar, monterey jack and tortillas)

Quiche
 Make pie crusts.  Use ham, broccoli, mushrooms, cheese)
Salad ( Use romaine, carrots, celery, red cabbage)

Pork Roast
Sweet Potatoes (from storage)
Sweet and Sour Cabbage ( use red cabbage)
Apple Pie  ( use apples)


It's a short menu plan this week, because I'm leaving 
on Thursday, heading to Charleston for a girl's weekend with
my good friend, Lynette.  I'll be more than ready to get off
 this snowy mountain and soak up a little coastal sunshine and
 of course eat some wonderful seafood!  We have reservations
 at Husk, a restaurant I've been longing to visit and
 I'm looking forward to tasting for myself some of the food
 that's making Sean Brock a celebrity chef.  I'm leaving behind 
plenty of food in the freezer for my hubby, so he won't go
 hungry in my absence.  It's the least I can do...

*Take the Time Goals # 33- Make menus each week. Eliminate food waste. 

 #17 Eat less meat. 

 #20- Make pasta once a month.

Snow on the Mountain

* Take the Time Goal #38 - Take lots of pictures. Lots. 

So Much Ricotta. What Was I Thinking?

The menu plan for last week worked out pretty well. 

Menus

Butternut Squash Soup - Check!

( use pancetta, onions, 3/4 apple and squash from storage)

Pork Chops with Cranberry Orange Sauce- Check!

( use leftover cranberry sauce, oranges and ginger)

Broccoli and Sweet and Sour Cabbage (red cabbage)
We had sautéed kale and sweet potatoes. The cabbage didn't happen.

*Meet Miss Margeaux Party*

Lasagna- Check! 

( use ricotta and cottage cheese, mozzarella, parmesan, 

 Italian sausage, the rest of onions and pesto.  Make marinara sauce)

Salad and Bread

Jean Hyder's Apple Cake

( use apples)
Chocolate Sheet Cake - I decided against this.  Made chocolate chip cookies instead.

Chicken Piccata - Check!

Sautéed Kale  Steamed Broccoli

Sweet Potatoes (from storage)

Pizza -Check!

( mozzarella, canadian bacon, pineapple tidbits, artichoke hearts)

Salad

Sunday Roast - Check!

(roast from freezer, onions, carrots and celery)

Mashed Potatoes and Gravy

Green Beans (from storage)

How did I do with food waste?
I had to throw away the artichoke hearts.  By the end of 
the week, when I made pizza, they were too old and slimy.
I should have put them in the freezer.  I hated that, but overall,
 I guess losing one little container of food wasn't so bad.
  Trying again this week for zero waste!

What do I have in the refrigerator to work with?

roast beef

marinara sauce

mashed potatoes

green beans

cooked lasagna noodles
(am I the only one who always cooks too many noodles?)

lots of ricotta

fresh broccoli

red cabbage (it's still there)

celery and carrots

romaine lettuce

salami and sandwich ham

mozzarella and parmesan cheese

grated cheddar cheese

 a little bit of pesto

eggs

When I shopped last week for the lasagna party, I was at Sam's and picked up a large container of Ricotta.  I already had a small one at home!  I guess I thought that if I made two large pans of lasagna that I would need that much ricotta.  Not so!  Now, I have a lot of ricotta to use, and this is one item that I'm notorious for letting go to waste. It tends to get pushed to the back and resurfaces after it's too late.  My challenge this week is to see how many ways I can use that ricotta.  Zero waste!

Menu Plan for January 18-24 

Roasted Garlic White Bean Lasagna Soup

(using the leftover lasagna noodles and ricotta)

Chicken Marsala with Mushrooms and Sage

Mashed Potatoes (leftovers)

Broccoli

Black Bean Quesadillas

(Use romaine lettuce, shredded cheddar)

Grilled Chicken Asian Salad

(Use some of the red cabbage with salad greens)

Vegetable Beef Soup

(Use leftover roast beef and green beans )

Artisan Bread

Stuffed Shells

(Use marinara , parmesan, mozzarella and ricotta)

Salad and Bread

Pork Roast

Acorn Squash ( in storage)

Sweet and Sour Cabbage (use red cabbage!)

Possible Ricotta Recipes to Try

Blueberry Ricotta Scones

Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake

Sweet Potato Rounds with Herbed Ricotta and Walnuts

Easy Ricotta Gnocchi

*Take the Time Goal #33- Plan weekly dinner menus. Eliminate food waste.

Turn Back and Let Peace Rule

" Let the peace of God rule in your hearts...  Let the word of

Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and 

admonishing one another...singing with grace in your hearts.
 And whatsoever you do in word and deed, do all in the
 name of Jesus Christ giving thanks to God the Father by him."

Colossians 3:15-17

I've been ponderizing  these scriptures this week in the early hours. Peace is something I covet.  There are things I can do that help me feel peaceful.  I start each day in quiet ways and I try not to over schedule myself, as that's one sure way to rob me of peace.  I keep serious lists that keep me on task and prevent me from missing out on appointments and obligations.  Sometimes things slip through the cracks, but most of the time it works.  I love the peaceful feeling I have as I leave a yoga class or when I'm out walking the dogs.  Knowing what I'm having for dinner before five o'clock and staying on top of housework and laundry lend to a peaceful atmosphere in our home.  I find sitting in the celestial room of the temple to be one of the most peaceful places on earth.  Over the years I've learned, that these are things I can do to help me feel peaceful.  For the most part, these are things that are within my control.

So, what robs me of peace?  It's the emotions I struggle with that threaten to bring me down.  The hard stuff of relationships, the messy day to day living with people who are all carrying their own burdens, some I'm not even aware of, and my personal struggle to feel of value and worth.  When I let fear or anger into my heart, I lose peace.  When I'm feeling frustrated with others or myself,  I lose peace.  When I feel jealous or prideful, I lose peace.  Fear, anger, jealousy and pride?  I don't want those things to rule my heart, but often, they do.  When these negative emotions reign, I'm under someone else's control and need to repent.  I need to "turn back".

Turn back.  I can let the peace of God rule my heart, not my emotions, nor the emotions of others!  As I continue to turn to Him throughout the day, "always remembering Him", He will bless me with this peace.  This is what I know in my mind, but living it out can be difficult.  It's easy for me to start my day focused on Christ, feeling positive and upbeat, but then the day accelerates and I become busy with my to do list. The struggles of life (we all have them) start weighing in on me and the emotions start to take over.  I find myself snapping at someone I love.  The mother fears kick in and I begin to worry about my family and their struggles.  I begin to doubt the good that I'm trying to do and wonder if I'm living out the life that God had intended for me.  Before I know it,  I've lost those peaceful feelings that I enjoyed at the beginning of the day.  It's not easy to keep turning back and recentering myself on the Lord.  It takes intentional practice.

 I want His peace to rule my heart and the verses that follow give me clues as to how I can have it.

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly 
in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another.

I must take the time to put the words of Christ into my mind and heart each day and then sit with it, carry it around with me as I go through the day, think about how it applies to my life .  This is ponderizing and what Paul calls letting His word dwell in you richly.  On more than one occasion, I've felt prompted to share with others insights I've received from my scripture study.  I love it when friends do the same for me.  The Lord is teaching us, not only for ourselves, but for the blessing of others. 

And whatsoever you do in word and deed, 
do all in the name of Jesus Christ giving thanks

to God and the Father by him.

Here is an interesting exercise: go about your day, doing everything as if it were for Christ himself, and give thanks in the process.  Give thanks for the work you have to do.  Make the beds, do the laundry, cook dinner, visit with friends, pay the bills, run errands, and so forth, just normal stuff and do it all as if it were for Christ.  It can change an ordinary day into something very special. 

As I fill my heart with His words and remember to be thankful and live my life for Him, I begin to recognize the spirit guiding my conversations and filling my mind with ideas as to how I can work through my challenges. This brings a gentle confidence that helps restore peace as the stress starts to melt away.   

I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.  No one understands me like He does.  He is there to offer me strength in every moment and to bless me with His peace, even peace that passeth all understanding. This I know, because I've experienced it for myself.  Such grace.  Committing these scriptures to memory reminds me that everyday I can "turn back" and have peace rule my heart.  That's what I want and it's worth working for.  

*Take the Time goal #2 - Start the day with scripture and prayer.

The Many Faces of Margeaux

Having just spent the last three days with my grand baby, you know  baby pictures would be the next thing to show up on the blog. She's six months old and a total delight.  Truly, even when her parents are out on a date and she cries every waking moment, she is a delight.  Because after the crying comes the snuggling.  And I love the snuggling!  There are however no unhappy images here, because it's hard to take pictures and try to soothe a crying baby at the same time.  With this girl, it's all about those blue eyes...

I miss her already...

* Take the Time goal #9 - Spend lots of time with my grand baby.