Menu Plan Week 132 - Using What We Have

Hi all ... it's that time of the week again! Time to Menu Plan and Meal Prep!

I hope everyone had a fantastic 4th of July weekend?  We laid low, the kids each had their own things to do and after our little episode with Snuffy the Escape Artist, I wasn't in a very big party mode ;-) -cleaning the kitchen and wigging out every time I opened a cabinet is just not for me!  We have come to the conclusuion that he must have either found his way back out the cat door (they do say that rats are smart) OR when he climbed over the plywood blocking the kitchen opening, he jumped in to the garbage can which I was super diligent about taking out twice a day ... either way, no sign of Snuffy in any of the traps and no visable signs of him period ... nor do we smell him and the cats are clueless so he can not be in the house! Thankfully. Unfortunately, because of this issue in the kitchen, we ate out one night, ordered pizza Friday night (and consumed it in the pool, the best way to eat pizza) and I totally skipped dinner one night.

So, there you have it, without me giving you the long 48 hour drama story (and morbid facination by the big boys) you now know that there was lots of excitement (and booze) this past week. Yikes! So, no big BBQ at the house on Saturday, more of a day of relaxation and pool time!

Today (Sunday) is Day 5 of the Pantry/Freezer Challenge. How's it going, you ask? So far, so good. Hubby and I did take a drive to Emils Sausage place Friday morning to get some authentic german brats and frankfurters but other than that, store trip was minimal: beer, buns, eggs, cat food, corn on the cob.

I've got a few things I'd like to prep for the week ahead but need to find out what Hubby's travel plans are ... I did the usual: ranch dressing, tuna, boil eggs.  I wanted to make some rice for a few side dishes this week and start a crock pot meal, but that didn't work out ...

Made a trip to my dads and then Costco with my very specific list, voucher and gift card. There were a few things I didn't get and not ONE spontaneous purchase. Knowing that I needed to get home and take care of a few things for my sister rather quickly, I was in and out with no browsing allowed. Odd thought, they had no beef broth. All they had was the concentrate stuff in a jar ... and I'm OUT of beef broth and really wanted some!

Here's what I'm looking at this week:

Sunday - Leftovers from Saturday ... it's been a rough day for me, emotionally (my sister is having some serious issues that I am trying to help her out with, a little difficult to do when we live so far apart and being financially driven, even more difficult during a weekend). There are a few hamburgers, frankfurters and brats leftover. The Boy made a batch of guacamole. We also have leftover pasta salad.  And I made up some roasted broccoli earlier in the day to have readily available green stuff at breakfast/lunch/dinner/as needed

Monday - Making a Beef Barbacoa in the crock pot ... the Boy and his girlfriend 'should' be here for dinner with us and they can make a Chipotle knockoff. Beef from freezer, balance of ingredients from pantry and then rice, wraps in pantry and salad ingredients from the fridge. Will heat up a can of corn and black beans to go along with this. IF it turns out as good as it sounds like it will, I'll definitely be sharing the recipe later!

Tuesday - Surprise, it's Taco Tuesday! Meat from freezer, all the fixins in the pantry and freezer. May make a batch of mexican rice to go along if anyone wants. Will let the Boy make up his taco spread for me again as it really helps to have someone do all the prep work. Margaritas or not? That has yet to be decided ... NOTE: this may not happen. If we have a lot of beef leftover from Monday, I will just serve up something with that!

Wednesday - Pizza burgers ... beef and italian sausage from the freezer, may need to evaluate the bun situation.  Will offer up a garden salad on the side with iceburg lettuce, black olives and pepperoncini, all in the fridge from Hubby's pasta salad making this past weekend.  I might also whip up a batch of the Olive Garden dressing if Hubby is going to be around.

Thursday - Margherita Frittata ... hopefully ;-) This is a recipe I've been wanting to make for a long time and hopeful that today is the day ... eggs and cheese in the fridge, tomatoes on the counter top

Friday - Chili Cheese Dogs - hot dogs and beanless chili in the freezer, will need to evaluate the bun status, cheese and onions in fridge.  Hoping to get around to finally making the street fries! Potatoes in the fridge (yes, I put mine in the fridge, too hot and humid here to leave them out)



Saturday - Hubby's choice ... I'd like to say something along the lines of chicken as you can see, not a single bird is on the consumption list this week. That's because I don't have a lot of chicken left!!

I'm aiming for $30 miscellaneous spending this week AFTER the Costco trip with $240 in free money (gift card and annual rebate).  Keep an eye out for the Costco trip breakdown!

What are YOU making this week?

Looking forward to sharing over at Organized Junkie's Menu Plan Monday party ... go check it out!

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