Last night I prepared taco salad for my family and the two other families in our supper co-op. This recipe came from Nan's recipe blog which you can find here. I made some slight modifications to the recipe, so am recording it all here (if I don't record it somewhere, I will forget what I did).
Here is a list of ingredients needed:
lettuce (I mixed bagged Romaine lettuce with iceberg)
1 to 1 1/2 c. grated cheese ( I used low fat mild cheddar)
1 can black beans (rinsed, of course)
sliced olives
chopped onions
sliced avocados
cooked chicken
tortilla or corn chips
Nan used a store-bought rotisserie chicken! Those things are yummy and convenient, but since I was cooking for 3 families, I opted for a more economical route. I bought chicken leg quarters and after consulting Main Street Mom, used this recipe (from the Oct. 2008 issue of Everyday Food) to give it a Mexican flavor:
In a slow cooker, combine chicken, 4 garlic cloves (thinly sliced), 1/2 c. salsa, 1 to 2 T. chopped canned chipotle chilis in adobo, 1 T. chili powder, 1 t. salt, and 1/4 t. pepper. Cover; cook on high 4 hours or on low 8 hours.
Transfer chicken to a bowl, and shred, using 2 forks; moisten with cooking juices.
The results of the slow cooking and wonderful spices produces a very tasty chicken that can be used for tacos, quesadillas , etc.
To make the taco salad, place chips on a plate or bowl and top with all other ingredients. Then, pour this dressing over it all:
1/2 c. Ranch dressing
1/2 c. salsa
1/4 c. sour cream
3-5 shakes of Tabasco sauce
1 can diced green chilis
Combine all ingredients and stir.
Then get ready to "slap your mamma!" (never heard that phrase? you must not live down south!)
Showing posts with label supper coop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label supper coop. Show all posts
Friday, October 3, 2008
Monday, February 18, 2008
Karen's Chicken Casserole
2 or 3 chicken breast
dumpling noodles
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 -8oz sour cream
1 stick butter
1 stack Ritz crackers
Cook chicken until tender, cut into small strips, put in baking dish. Cook noodles until tender, drain, put in chicken and mix with sour cream, cream of chicken soup and cream of celery soup. mix well. Crumble Ritz crackers over chicken and noodles. Melt butter and dribble over Ritz crackers.
Bake on 350 degrees about 35 minutes
Thursday, February 14, 2008
I Joined A Supper Co-op!
I am so excited about this! I joined three friends in a supper co-op! If you have ever thought about doing this, I highly recommend that you give it a try!
Here's how it works: Four families agree that they will work together to provide meals for each other during the week. Each cook is assigned a week day (Monday through Thursday) in which she is responsible for cooking. Today was my day to cook this week. I made enough food to feed all four families, then I delivered them to each home. That means that on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I did NOT cook supper! And on those days, a meal was delivered to my home.
This is the second week that we have been doing this, and I am sold on the idea. It has freed me from the large amounts of time I felt like I was spending in the kitchen. I have been able to give more attention to schooling. I have been able to be more flexible with my children and to add more fun activities to our day.
Here are a few tips for starting your own supper co-op:
1. Find friends to join you who have similar family size and similar preferences in food.
2. It is important that everyone in the coop live in close vicinity to each other. Spending a lot of time delivering food adds stress and takes up a lot of your time.
3. Have a meeting of all the cooks and plan a menu for a whole month. Make sure the meeting is a low stress event. If at all possible, meet where children are not present. Our next meeting will be at our local coffee shop. We will accomplish our goal in a fun and enjoyable atmosphere.
4. Use this meeting to discuss the likes and dislikes of each family as well as the menu choices for the month. Make menu assignments and determine who will be cooking on which days.
5. Determine delivery times. This will vary based on the time of year and the activities in which each family is involved.
6. Be flexible. Life happens and people have activities in their lives which will make flexibility in scheduling essential. One of our co-op families is traveling this week, so we agreed to freeze the one meal they missed. They can relax knowing that when they return from their trip, there is a meal waiting for them.
7. Be willing to be honest. If your family doesn't particularly like a certain menu selection, don't hesitate to kindly let the co-op cooks know.
8. Don't wear your feelings on your sleeve. Everyone has different taste. If other families don't prefer a dish you made, it's not an attack on your cooking.
9. Choose menus that are not too time intensive to prepare. The idea of a supper co-op is to make life easier. Don't get carried away!
10. Budget your meals. Your group may want to agree on a weekly budget per family. Don't let this time-saving idea stress your budget.
11. If you have left-overs, serve them for lunch the following day or freeze them for future weekend meals.
12. Have fun making friends with co-op members!
13. Enjoy the extra time with your family or on your favorite projects!
Curious about what we are cooking? See our menu plan for February.
As for what I prepared today: Southwest Lasagna, yellow rice, lettuce salad, and Valentine brownies.
Here's how it works: Four families agree that they will work together to provide meals for each other during the week. Each cook is assigned a week day (Monday through Thursday) in which she is responsible for cooking. Today was my day to cook this week. I made enough food to feed all four families, then I delivered them to each home. That means that on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I did NOT cook supper! And on those days, a meal was delivered to my home.
This is the second week that we have been doing this, and I am sold on the idea. It has freed me from the large amounts of time I felt like I was spending in the kitchen. I have been able to give more attention to schooling. I have been able to be more flexible with my children and to add more fun activities to our day.
Here are a few tips for starting your own supper co-op:
1. Find friends to join you who have similar family size and similar preferences in food.
2. It is important that everyone in the coop live in close vicinity to each other. Spending a lot of time delivering food adds stress and takes up a lot of your time.
3. Have a meeting of all the cooks and plan a menu for a whole month. Make sure the meeting is a low stress event. If at all possible, meet where children are not present. Our next meeting will be at our local coffee shop. We will accomplish our goal in a fun and enjoyable atmosphere.
4. Use this meeting to discuss the likes and dislikes of each family as well as the menu choices for the month. Make menu assignments and determine who will be cooking on which days.
5. Determine delivery times. This will vary based on the time of year and the activities in which each family is involved.
6. Be flexible. Life happens and people have activities in their lives which will make flexibility in scheduling essential. One of our co-op families is traveling this week, so we agreed to freeze the one meal they missed. They can relax knowing that when they return from their trip, there is a meal waiting for them.
7. Be willing to be honest. If your family doesn't particularly like a certain menu selection, don't hesitate to kindly let the co-op cooks know.
8. Don't wear your feelings on your sleeve. Everyone has different taste. If other families don't prefer a dish you made, it's not an attack on your cooking.
9. Choose menus that are not too time intensive to prepare. The idea of a supper co-op is to make life easier. Don't get carried away!
10. Budget your meals. Your group may want to agree on a weekly budget per family. Don't let this time-saving idea stress your budget.
11. If you have left-overs, serve them for lunch the following day or freeze them for future weekend meals.
12. Have fun making friends with co-op members!
13. Enjoy the extra time with your family or on your favorite projects!
Curious about what we are cooking? See our menu plan for February.
As for what I prepared today: Southwest Lasagna, yellow rice, lettuce salad, and Valentine brownies.
February Supper Coop Menu Plan
Week of 4-7:
Ham, corn on cob, fried okra, roasted potatoes
Chili
Spaghetti Lasagna, focacia breadsticks, lettuce salad
Chicken and Rice Bake, corn, butter beans
Week of 11-14:
Chicken casserole, green peas, pear salad
Chicken Zucchini Pasta, black-eyed peas, cabbage
BBQ sandwiches, cole-slaw, baked beans, jello-jigglers
Southwestern Lasagna, yellow rice, lettuce salad, brownies
Week of 18-21:
Rotisserie Chicken, green beans, mac & cheese, croissants
Pork Tenderloin
Chicken Broccoli Alfredo Pasta
Ravioli, salad, garlic bread
Week of 25-28:
Hamburger Casserole, lima beans, sweet potato souffle
Salmon Fillet, butter-chive carrots, garlic roasted potatoes, broccoli cheese casserole
Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans
Country Style Ribs, corn casserole, green bean bundles
Ham, corn on cob, fried okra, roasted potatoes
Chili
Spaghetti Lasagna, focacia breadsticks, lettuce salad
Chicken and Rice Bake, corn, butter beans
Week of 11-14:
Chicken casserole, green peas, pear salad
Chicken Zucchini Pasta, black-eyed peas, cabbage
BBQ sandwiches, cole-slaw, baked beans, jello-jigglers
Southwestern Lasagna, yellow rice, lettuce salad, brownies
Week of 18-21:
Rotisserie Chicken, green beans, mac & cheese, croissants
Pork Tenderloin
Chicken Broccoli Alfredo Pasta
Ravioli, salad, garlic bread
Week of 25-28:
Hamburger Casserole, lima beans, sweet potato souffle
Salmon Fillet, butter-chive carrots, garlic roasted potatoes, broccoli cheese casserole
Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans
Country Style Ribs, corn casserole, green bean bundles
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