Menu Monday: Apri 30, 2012

Nothing exciting this week.  You might notice some repeats from last week because we shifted things around a bit.

Sunday- parm crusted chicken breast, mac & cheese, green beans

Monday- leftovers (Clint's last apprenticeship class... EVER!)

Tuesday- meatloaf, mashed potatoes, peas

Wednesday- baked fish, broccoli, rice

Thursday- grilled chicken, corn, red potatoes

Friday- dinner out or pizza

Saturday- chicken enchiladas, rice

Mason Jar Salads

Are you on Pinterest yet?  If not, you should be. I cannot tell you how many hours I've wasted on this website in the past year or so.  I've found some really great recipes, craft ideas, home decor/beauty/fashion inspirations, and some really great products.

For the past few weeks I've been making mason jar salads for Clint's lunch after seeing the idea on Pinterest.  I was intrigued by the idea since it said you could make up an entire week's worth of salads without them getting soggy.  Clint said he liked the idea too so I got a few salad ideas from some friends. This lettuce-hating girl doesn't know know much about making a good salad. He's happy because I fill them with lots of veggies and such so he doesn't feel like he's just eating lettuce and dressing.  He also gets a nice variety since they are individually packaged. 

I use wide mouthed, pint sized mason jars. You can find them at any grocery store, superstore, or kitchen supply store.  I paid around $10 for 12 at Meijer. 

First, add your dressing to the bottom of the jar.  I've been using store bought dressings because I'm lazy.  Maybe I'll try making my own as these run out. 

Next, add your veggies.  I add the "sturdiest" veggie to the bottom (usually carrots or red onion) since they'll be sitting in dressing for a few days.  I top the veggies off with the most delicate veggies.  Basically, you don't want anything that might get soggy touching the dressing.  Could you imagine mushrooms after sitting in dressing for five days? Talk about mush!

Next comes your protein.  I've included chicken, hard boiled eggs, turkey pepperoni, and black beans as protein so far.

Finally, you add the lettuce.  I'm using iceberg this week at Clint's request.

If you like, you can sprinkle a bit of cheese on top at this point.  I also put individual servings of toppings in small containers for him.  These babies will get soggy if you add them in advance.

I need to get some reusable labels for the jars, but for now I've been putting a small Post-it on each labeling the salad and telling him which topping to add.

He's happy because I load them up with lots of veggies and I've really enjoyed making them on Sunday evenings.  I plan on planting some salad fixings in the garden this year, so we'll save some money by using fresh, homegrown veggies and lettuce. Win!

Below I've listed the ingredients (in order) for each of the five salads I made this week.

Garden Salad

-Light French dressing

-julienne carrots

-red onion

-red bell pepper

-broccoli florets

-baby bella mushrooms

-hard boiled egg

-iceberg lettuce

+croutons

Buffalo Chicken Salad

(This one looks weak, ha!)

-Light Buffalo dressing

-red onion

-red bell pepper

-grilled chicken strips

-iceberg lettuce

-blue cheese crumbles

Asian Sesame Chicken Salad

-Light Asian sesame dressing

-julienne carrots

-red onion

-broccoli florets

-grilled chicken strips

-iceberg lettuce

+chow mein noodles

Pizza Salad

-Light sun dried tomato vinaigrette

-red onion

-red pepper

-baby bella mushrooms

-sliced black olives

-diced turkey pepperoni

-iceberg lettuce

-shredded Italain cheese blend

+croutons

Southwest Salad

-Semi-homemade dressing (salsa + sour cream)

-red onion

-red pepper

-corn

-black beans

-iceberg lettuce

+crispy tortilla strips

Here's the blog I used for inspiration.

Menu Monday

I'm trying to blog more regularly, so hear goes...

Sunday: Grilled tilapia and asparagus, risotto

Monday: Mac & cheese, California blend

Tuesday: Spaghetti with meat sauce, garlic bread, salad

Wednesday: Leftovers

Thursday: Marinated grilled chicken, green beans, roasted red potatoes

Friday: Dinner out

Saturday: Chicken enchiladas, rice

My new thing is to add fish to our menu once a week.  I'm not a fish eater, but Clint is and I'd like Isabella to develop a taste for it.

What are you having this week?

Isabella's "New" Room

Ok, so it's the same old room with a new look. :)

A couple months ago we ditched the crib and purchased new furniture for Isabella's room.  We knew we were nearing that time, but when I caught her stuck with one leg half-way over the crib rail I knew we couldn't wait.

We ordered a twin sleigh bed, mattress (duh!), and a new dresser with mirror.  Although she cried that at that first nap in the "big girl bed," she has loved it ever since.  I had fun redecorating, but man was it hard to change the room.  That was the room we brought her home to after she was born!  I'll admit I was a bit jittery seeing the crib and changing table out by the curb for pick-up too.  I kind of wanted to save them for sentimental value!  We knew we (ahem, I) would want new furniture if we have another child, so there was no reason to keep it.  Plus, it was a drop-side, and even with the rail secured it made me a wee bit nervous.  Unfortunately, we couldn't even donate it because it's now illegal to sell or donate drop-side cribs. 

Her bedding the Circo Blossom collection from Target, in Aqua/Coral.  I painted the canvases above her bed for her.  We made add for baskets to the wall for storage.  This girl has A LOT of stuffed animals!

I ordered her growth chart from Amazon.  It's by Oopsy Daisy.  Too bad she won't let us use it to actually measure her.  Maybe if I bribe her with marshmallows...

The dresser area.

 

The back wall.  I've got to find longer curtains!

 

 I love these Etsy prints!  I had the hardest time deciding which ones to order.  I'm pretty happy with with the end result though.

I got the idea for the hair accessory storage from Pinterest.  I need to find a knob or something a bit more decorative to hang it from though.

The wall color is Valspar's "Sparkle."  How perfect is that color name for a little girl's room?  The photos don't really show the color accurately, but it's a pretty aqua blue.  We'll probably add a couple more decorative touches, like a rug, but Isabella really likes her new room!