Week of November 2, 2014

Well hello friends! I can call you friends, now right? I forgot to take many pictures this week (oops!). I did get one of the French Dip sandwiches and have added it to last week’s blog. When I get the soup and fish made this weekend, I’ll update with pictures. Maybe I’ll post a Halloween picture, too.

I hope y’all had a great Halloween. Two years ago, I asked Mr. Rutledge to dress up with me for Halloween. You know there all those really cute couple’s costumes. I just knew he would be game for something. Now, I am a realist. I wasn’t planning a Ken and Barbie or Flo and Mayhem. I was thinking I could be a spider, Mr. Rutledge could be a spider web and Wrigley could be a spider egg sac. Based on what I’ve already told you about Mr. Rutledge, you can probably guess how that plan went. Some day I’m going to sucker him into one of those family-themed costumes. I should start plotting this now.

My all time favorite Halloween story occurred one of the first times I ever went trick-or-treating. About ¾ of the way through our trek, I tripped over something and my glasses and candy went flying everywhere. When my dad tells this story he makes it sound like all the other neighborhood kids had a feeding frenzy on my spilled candy until he scared them all off- flailing his arms and shaming the kids for trying to take my loot! That’s my dad, though, going all out for his kids.

Unfortunately for me, my boss has decided to come to town and complete my annual evaluation on Halloween. Do you think she will take me seriously with all the spider web eyeliner and 8 legs? Surely this will not call my professionalism into question! I have only seen her about 4 times (including my interview) and now we will sit arachnid and supervisor across from each other and address all this arachnid has accomplished over the last year. Sometimes I think my life provides enough material for a comic strip.  

I almost forgot... Nutrition tip for the week! Hide the leftover candy from yourself. Or freeze it. Or look up how many burpees you have to do to burn off the calories of each candy bar. 

Stuffed Bell Peppers (1) – These peppers have tons of flavor, but less refined carbohydrates than traditional Mexican food. I hope you enjoy them!

Ingredients

6 Large Bell Peppers

½ lb lean ground beef or turkey breast

½ cup onion, chopped

2 can of Rotel tomatoes

1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained

½ cup of frozen corn

1 cup brown rice, cooked (any kind of rice will work)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cumin

1¼ cup shredded cheese, divided

¼ cup water

Directions: Cut off each top of the peppers and scrape out the seeds and membranes. Set aside. Combine ground beef, onion, Rotel, beans, cooked rice, corn, salt, cumin, and 1 cup of cheese. Stuff each bell pepper with mixture.  Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours until peppers are tender and ground beef is cooked throughout. About 15 minutes before serving, sprinkle remaining cheese and let it melt.

Sherry’s Chili (2) – My buddy Megan and her mom sent me this recipe a couple of years ago. I tweaked it without permission because they do the same thing to me! It is delicious. I will take this to our neighborhood block party next weekend!

Ingredients:

1 onion, diced

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1 lb ground beef or ground turkey breast

1 lb sausage

1 can pinto beans

1 can of kidney beans

2 cans of diced tomatoes (I like fire-roasted)

2 cans of enchilada sauce (red, hot)

2 tablespoons of chili powder

1 bottle of beer (Mr. Rutledge recommends a lager—whatever that is)

Directions: In the bottom of a large stew pot, cook meat and add onions and garlic. Once meat is cooked through and onions are clear, add remaining ingredients. Bring to a low boil and cook for at least 30 minutes (the longer the better) on low-medium.

Seared Tuna and edamame (3) – This tuna recipe is new to us, but I love a good seared tuna. Edamame is green and starchy so it counts as both sides in my book. You can always cook up something extra if your Mister wishes. I buy the steamable edamame and add just a little salt (or soy sauce).

Lemon Rosemary Chicken, with sautéed green beans and potatoes (4) – This is new for us, but it’s a crockpot meal.

Ingredients:

Whole chicken, skinned

Salt/pepper

Whole head of garlic

1 bunch of rosemary

2 lemons

Red potatoes

Green beans

Almond Slivers

Directions: Rinse chicken and rub with salt and pepper (inside and out). Put in the crockpot. Layer garlic cloves in and around chicken. Zest one lemon (reserve for green beans). Slice lemons and stuff those along with the rosemary inside chicken. Set on low for 8 hours.  When you get home, steam green beans. While beans steam, slice and sauté potatoes. Once green beans soften to your preference, quickly sauté with lemon zest and almond slivers.

Chicken Salad Sandwiches with fruit salad (5) – I’ll be deboning the rest of our chicken and making a chicken salad. Mr. Rutledge likes green onions, celery, almonds, a little mayo and his own secret blend of spices (salt, pepper, cayenne, and a dash of cumin—don’t tell him I told you; he thinks he invented that mixture!) in his. I don’t mind apples and grapes in there as well. I have to get the rest of those sandwich thins from last month out of my freezer and they will be great toasted and topped with a spoonful of the chicken. For the fruit salad, take a package of instant vanilla pudding and mix with the juice of canned pineapples in the bottom of a mixing bowl. Once all the lumps are gone, add in the pineapple and other fruits.

Produce

6 green bell peppers (1)

2 Onions (1, 2)

Garlic (2, 4)

Fresh tarragon (3)

2 Oranges (3)

Red onion or shallots (3)

2 Lemons (4)

Fresh rosemary (4)

Red potatoes (4)

Green beans (4)

Green onion (5)

Celery (5)

Fruit variety- banana, strawberries, apples, etc (5)

Deli/Meat counter

½ lb lean beef or turkey breast (1)

1 lb lean beef (2)

1 lb lean breakfast sausage (2)

4-5 oz per person Tuna (3)

Whole chicken (4)

Dry Goods

2 cans of Rotel (1)

Can of Black beans (1)

Brown rice or quinoa (1)

1 can of pinto beans (2)

2 can of kidney beans (2)

2 cans of fire-roasted tomatoes (2)

2 cans of enchilada sauce (2)

1 bottle of beer (2)

Olive oil (3)

Almond slivers (4, 5)

Mayonnaise (5)

Bread (5)

Instant vanilla pudding (5)

1 can of peaches in natural juices (5)

1 can of pineapple in natural juices (5)

Spices/Seasonings

Salt, pepper

Cumin (1, 5)

Chili powder (2)

Allspice (3)

Coriander (3)

Cinnamon (3)

Cayenne (5)

Fridge/Freezer

Frozen corn (1)

1 ¼ cup shredded cheddar or Mexican cheese, low-fat (1)

Edamame (3)