Meal Plan Monday: Winter Edition

It’s finally cold (well, colder…this is El Paso, after all) and my body is winterizing, which means all I want is pasta, butter, cream, cookies and soup. I want my comfort foods!

Here’s what’s planned for dinner this week:

Chicken Pot Pie from The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook by Paula Deen

Chicken Pot Pie

Serves 6 to 8

One 10 3/4-ounce can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
One 10 3/4-ounce can condensed cream of celery soup
1/2 cup milk
1 chicken, skinned, cooked, boned, and cubed
1 medium onion, diced
One 10-ounce package frozen green peas (or one 8-ounce can, drained)
3 carrots, sliced, cooked, and drained
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pastry for top and bottom
Butter to dot pastry

In a large saucepan, heat soups and milk. Stir in chicken, onion, peas, carrots, and salt and pepper. Cook until mixture boils. Remove from heat. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour into a pastry-lined 13x9x2-inch pan. Cut pastry for top into strips. Lay over pie filling in a lattice style. Dot with butter. Bake for 45 minutes until golden brown.

PASTRY**

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup Crisco shortening
Ice water

Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. Cut in shortening with pastry blender until pieces are the size of small peas. Sprinkle 1 to 2 tablespoons of ice water over part of mixture. Gently toss with fork push to side of bowl. Repeat until all is moistened. Form into 2 balls. Flatten each on a lightly floured surface by pressing with edge of hand three times across in both directions. With a floured rolling pin, roll out on floured surface. Roll from center to edge until 1/8-inch thick.

**I skip the homemade pastry and use frozen pie shells instead.

From Real Simple magazine:

Eggplant Parmesan Rollatini

    4 tablespoons  olive oil

    2 large eggplants (about 3 pounds total), sliced lengthwise (about 16 slices)

    kosher salt and black pepper

    1 1/2 cups  marinara sauce

    2 large eggs

    1 15-ounce container ricotta

    2 teaspoons  dried oregano

    2 cups  grated mozzarella (8 ounces)

    1/2 cup grated Parmesan (1 1/2 ounces)

Heat oven to 450° F. Divide the oil between 2 rimmed baking sheets. Dividing evenly, arrange the eggplant slices in a single layer on the baking sheets and turn to coat in the oil; season with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.

Bake the eggplant, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until soft and beginning to brown, 12 to 15 minutes; let cool. Reduce heat to 400° F.

Meanwhile, in the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch or some other 3-quart baking dish, spread ½ cup of the marinara sauce. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, ricotta, oregano, 1 cup of the mozzarella, and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper.

Place about 3 tablespoons of the ricotta mixture on one end of a slice of eggplant, roll it up, and transfer it to the prepared baking dish. Repeat with the remaining eggplant slices and ricotta mixture.Top the eggplant rolls with the remaining cup of marinara sauce and the remaining cup of mozzarella. Sprinkle with the Parmesan. Bake until the cheese has melted and the sauce is bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Bowtie Chicken Alfredo from The Pioneer Woman

Click here for the recipe with funny commentary and beautiful photos.

And, of course, something sweet! I’ll be making these lovelies for our MOPS meeting this week. Can’t wait to try them. Hope I’ll be able to share! 

Eggnog Doughnut Muffins

Click here for the recipe from Two Peas and Their Pod blog. This blog is quickly becoming my new favorite place to go for sweet treat ideas.

Enjoy!