Week of 3/7/10

Main Courses
Chicken Salad
TJ Turkey Meatballs

Vegetables
Eggplant sauteed with garlic and parsley
Broccoli alla Romana
Mache salad with mozzarella

Grains
Bread
Pasta

Week of 2/28/10

Main Courses
Char-Siu / Leftover Roasted Turkey Thigh Meat
Balsamic-Plum Glazed Pork Chops (http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1571476)
Mahi Mahi with Mango Avocado Salsa

Vegetables
Pea Sprouts
You-Choy
Soup with green carrots, orange carrots, and pork bones

Grains
White Rice

Week of 2/21/10

Main Courses
Bacon and Corn Quiche (adapted from Cooking Light)
Broiled Lemon Garlic Chicken (Joy of Cooking)
Roasted Turkey Thigh Meat

Vegetables
Sauteed Kale with Garlic
Romaine Lettuce Hearts with Oyster Sauce
Grilled Eggplant and Red Bell Peppers

Grains
White Rice
Pasta

Week of 2/13/10

Lunch
Cranberry Turkey Sandwich - honey roasted turkey, havarti cheese, alfalfa sprouts, mayo, and cranberry apricot chutney on multigrain bread (adapted from Nordstrom Cafe)

Main Courses
Gourmet Mushroom Risotto / Risotto al Salto (risotto cakes) with leftovers (Allrecipes)
Chicken Salad Sandwich - shredded chicken breast, toasted almonds, diced apples, alfalfa sprouts, mayo, lemon juice, oregano, and pepper (adapted from Andersen Bakery)
Shredded Chicken served with Sesame Paste and Parsley

Vegetables
Broccoli alla Romana (Contorni)
Tagu Choy

Grains
White Rice

Dessert
Tiramisu II (Allrecipes)

CPG Products
Kashi Strawberry Fields Cereal
Oskri Turkish Delight Bar
FSTG Chocolate Corn Tortilla Chips

Week of 2/7/10

Main Courses
Chicken from Wing Wa in Burlingame
Char-siu from Ranch 99
Ginger Glazed Mahi Mahi

Vegetables
Gai-lan
Taiwan A-choy
O Baby Romaine Caesar Salad Kit
Soybean Sprout Side Dish - Kong Namul

Grains
White Rice

World's Best Lasagna

I almost had a nervous breakdown this weekend with the lasagna. I simmered the sauce for 1.5 hours (recommended on Allrecipes) and ended up with an inch of burnt crap at the bottom despite occasional stirring. The sauce had a bitter hint from the burning and I was thoroughly anxious that I had ruined everything and it would just turned out to be a charred mess post-baking. And this would be the main dish to keep people full. I vowed I would never entertain again. AHHHH!

Amazingly, the dish turned out perfectly with no burnt taste. In fact, I couldn't think of a single thing to improve upon it - it was THAT good. And that is why, contrary to tradition, it deserves its own blog entry. Here's the recipe with my modifications:


Ingredients

• 1.25 pounds ground turkey meat
• 1/2 cup minced onion
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 13 oz Newman's Own Italian Sausage & Peppers sauce (1/2 jar)
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves or 4 tsp fresh basil
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds (dill seed can be used as sub)
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (equal parts basil, marjoram, thyme, oregano, rosemary)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 9 lasagna noodles
• 15-16 ounces ricotta cheese
• 1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 1 egg
• 8-12 oz mozzarella cheese
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Cook ground turkey, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and tomato sauce. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 15-30 mins, stirring occasionally (can cook longer with Magic Pot).
   
2. In the meantime, soak lasagna noodles in very hot tap water for 20-30 mins. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and ground nutmeg.
3. To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange 3 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers (noodles - ricotta - mozzarella - sauce - parmesan - noodles - sauce), and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
4. Let flavors seep overnight in fridge.
5. Bake in preheated oven at 350-375 degrees for 25 minutes (or if coming straight from fridge, maybe preheat dish and oven together to allow more gradual temp change of dish). Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Week of 1/30/10

Saturday Brunch
Waffled French Toast (All Clad Waffle Maker Recipes)
O Berries & Balsamic Salad Kit
Wallaby Bartlett Pear Yogurt

Sunday Potluck
Jamie's Cranberry Spinach Salad (Allrecipes)
World's Best Lasagna (Allrecipes)
Roasted Yukon Potatoes
Chokladbollar (http://www.gretchencooks.com/recipes/732_NoBake_Chocolate_Cookies_Chokladbollar)

Main Courses
Honey Glazed Pork Chops (Allrecipes)
Beaker's Vegetable Barley Soup (Allrecipes)

Vegetables
Green chard
Kale

Grains
White Rice

Dessert
Pumpkin & Cinnamon Nutmeg Pudding (Bauman)