Fantastic Dinner!!!

Unfortunately, Dan was not home when I made this meal. He had to work late, and I didn't think my mushrooms could last one more day. So I made this scrumptious meal for me, myself, and I. I gave it a 4-3/4 out of 5. I thought it was simply fabulous!

I found these recipes in my Rachael Ray cookbook. I by no means made them up myself.

Turkey and Wild Mushroom Meat Loaf

3 T olive oil
8 crimini (baby portobello) mushrooms, chopped
8 shiitake mushrooms, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1-1/3 lb. ground turkey (I used 1lb, and it worked fine)
3 or 4 sprigs of fresh sage, leaves stripped and chopped (I used dried)
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1/2 C Italian bread crumbs
1 egg
2 T butter
2 C chicken or turkey broth
1 t poultry seasoning

Heat skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil, mushrooms, shallots, salt, and pepper. Saute until mushrooms are dark and tender, about 5-6 minutes. Remove to a bowl and return pan to stovetop to preheat to cook patties.

In a mixing bowl, mix turkey, sage, Worcestershire sauce, bread crumbs, egg, and mushroom/onion mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste. Make a small 1 inch patty and cook for 1 minute on each side. Taste to see if the raw meat mixture needs more spice.

Divide meatloaf into patties 1 inch thick. Add 1 t olive oil to pan and arrange patties in pan. Cook 6 minutes on each side and transfer to serving plate.

Return pan to heat and add butter. When melted, wisk flour and cook 1-2 minutes. Whisk broth and season gravy with poultry seasoning, salt, and pepper. Pour over patties, reserve some for table if you like.

Herb Smashed Potatoes with Goat Cheese

3 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
salt and pepper to taste
1 T olive oil
2 T butter
1 shallot, chopped
10 blades chives, chopped or snipped (3 T)
3 or 4 sprigs of thyme, leaves stripped and chopped (again, I used dried)
1 C chicken broth (I only ended up using 1/3 C)
1 small log (4oz.) herb, peppercorn, or plain goat cheese

Bring pot water to a boil, and boil potatoes until fork-tender, about 15 minutes.

drain potatoes and return empty pot to stove. Adjust heat to medium. Add oil, butter. When melted add shallots and saute 2-3 minutes. Add chives and thyme, then potatoes to pot. Mash potatoes, adding broth as you work to achieve desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper.

Remove goat cheese from packaging and cut into disks. Serve potatoes on dinner plates and top each mound with a disk of goat cheese.

Groceries 9/15/09

I decided to get rid of some of the spaghetti from Betsey's wedding. So I pulled out a pan of that last week. It lasted us a whole week, Monday through Saturday night, 2 meals a day. Yeah, I'm a little tired of spaghetti. But that allowed me to save up some moolah for the next shopping trip. Woohoo!

Here is my most exciting purchase: yeast! My aunt told me that you can buy yeast at Gordon Food Service much cheaper than at the regular grocery store. I was so shocked at the price. For $2.99 you can get 16 oz. of yeast at Gordon's. For $3.69, you can get 4 oz. of yeast at Meijer. Holy Cow!!! What savings!!!

Note: I am using yeast on a regular basis as I no longer buy bread or English muffins from the store.


Aldi:

OJ is reduced to $.99 from $1.25
Pineapple $2.59 (not sure if this is a good deal. I just wanted some fresh pineapple!)

Meijer:

Dannon yogurt $.40 each
Fiber One yogurt $1.19
Campbell's soup $.20 each (that's right!) - use the $.40/4 manufacturer and $1.00/4 MeijerMealbox (Woot! Woot!)


Menu:

Breakfasts
English Muffins and Cottage Cheese
Blueberry Pancakes
French Toast
Eggs and Toast

Dinners
Homemade Pizza
Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup
Chicken Pot Pie
Velveeta Cheeseburger Mac (homemade so slightly better than hamburger helper!)
Turkey and Wild Mushroom Meatload & Herbed Smashed Potatoes
Chicken Divan
Kal-bee & Rice (Korean marinated ribs)