Week of Sept 24, 2012

Mon - "Baked" Zitti 
Tue - Meatloaf 
Wed - Maple Pork Chops http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/maple-mustard-barbecued-pork-chops-recipe/index.html
Thur - Tater-Tot Casserole
Fri - Chicken Quesidilas

Mircowaved “Baked” Ziti

Ingredients

1 lb of Italian sausage (or ground beef, seasoned with 1 tbsp of Italian seasoning, 2 tsp black pepper, 2 tsp seasoning salt [such as Johnny’s], 2 tsp garlic salt)

1 can/jar (660 – 780 grams) of your favorite tomato based pasta sauce

1 cup of shredded mozzarella or “Three Italian cheese” packaged mix

½ cup of shredded parmesan cheese

3 cups pasta (penne, zitioni or rigatoni work best, but you can use any that take 9-11 minutes to cook according to package)

3 ¾ cups water or chicken broth

2 tsp black pepper

2 tsp salt

1 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

Arrange the sausage (or meat) in an even layer on the bottom of the Baker. Cover and cook in the microwave on HIGH for 7-9 minutes or until no longer pink. Take out of microwave (remember the baker will be HOT use potholders) drain meat, crumble into small bite size pieces, and set aside.

Add pasta, oil, salt, pepper, and water or broth to baker. Cover, and microwave on HIGH for 16-19 minutes until pasta is tender, stirring after 10 minutes.

Drain pasta, if needed.

Mix pasta, sauce, meat, and ¾ of the cheese in the baker. Put the remainder of the cheese on the top of the mixture.

Microwave on HIGH, covered, until cheese is melted and bubbly, aprox 3 minutes. Enjoy!

Yields 6-8 servings.

Meatloaf

2 lb lean ground beef (or ground turkey for low fat)

1 1/4 cup bread crumbs

1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp each salt and pepper

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp garlic powder
(1 tbsp olive oil, for turkey only)

Topping: 1/2 cup ketchup, 1 tsp BBQ sauce, 2 tbsp brown sugar. Mix in a bowl.

Mix ingredients together until incorporated, do not over mix. Place in a loaf pan, best to use a meatloaf pan that has a way to drain fat off bottom. Bake at 350F for 1 hour or until temp reaches 160F in center. Add topping sauce 20 minutes before done, if desired. Allow to stand 5-10 minutes before slicing.

DCB option: place in DCB. Microwave covered on high for 17-20 minutes, or until reaches temp of 150F. Top with sauce, if desired, microwave covered for another 2-3 minutes, or until temp reaches 160F. Allow to stand 5-10 minutes before slicing.

tator tot casserole

1 can of condensed cream of mushroom soup

1 bag of tator tots

1 lb ground beef

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

salt and pepper

1. Crisp tots in oven on a cookie sheet at 425F for 10 minutes. Brown and drain ground beef.

2. Layer 1/2 the tots, 1/2 the soup, 1/2 beef and then 1/2 the cheese in a 2 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat. Bake at 350F until warm in center, about 30 minutes.

Chicken Quesidilas

1 cup shredded or diced chicken

1 cup shredded cheese (I like Montery Jack)

1 can Mexi-Corn, Drained

1 can Black Beans, Drained

1 hot pepper (Jalapeno, Serrano, ect) diced fine

8 - 10 Flour Tortillas

Salsa and sour cream for dipping (optional)

In a large microwave-safe bowl combine chicken, corn, beans and the pepper to make filling. Warm filling in microwave for 3 minutes. Preheat oven to 425F. Spray/coat a cookie sheet with oil. Lay tortillas on a cookie sheet spoon filling on each tortilla. Sprinkle with cheese. Heat in the oven for 10-15 minutes until the cheese is melted. Fold and serve with salsa and sour cream.