What’s for Dinner?

I know. I have not done one of these forever either!
I actually tried a couple of new things this week, though, that I thought I would share.
You may of seen these on Pinterest but a new favorite breakfast item of Tim and I’s are these egg cups.

They are super easy and travel well to the office, too!
All you do is spray a muffin tin with Pam, add some Canadian bacon (or they are good without, too), crack open an egg on top of that and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. You also can sprinkle a little cheese on top before baking as well. Really, you could do anything with these — you could scramble them, add veggies. Whatever.
What else have I been trying out?
Well, Monday night it was grilled chicken breasts. However, I spiced these up by marinating in some BBQ sauce and wrapping each breast in a slice of bacon. It really gave them a good flavor. We had these with lettuce salads and green bean casserole. Every once in awhile I get a craving for that and just have to make it. When I make it just for us, I omit the cheese and use the reduced calorie soup. It still tastes good and fulfills my craving.
Tuesday night I tried out BBQ ribs in the crockpot. They turned out great. I used country style pork ribs. I seasoned with Misty’s seasoning salt and topped with some Cookies Western Style BBQ sauce. I cooked them all day on low while I was at work. And the best thing? Having the house smell like a BBQ restaurant when I got home!
Wednesday night Tim grilled us burgers and fresh asparagus. One of the things I love about spring is asparagus. To grill, I just washed and trimmed it, put it on some foil and drizzled with a bit of olive oil. Also seasoned it with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
Thursday night we plan to grill again. This night Tim is having a smoked pork chop and me a piece of fish on the grill. (Tim doesn’t like grilled fish.) When I do fish on the grill, I put it on foil and drizzle a tiny bit of olive oil on it, salt, pepper and lemon juice. We’ll have this with salads.
Finally, Friday night is one of my favs — grilled steak. I’ll pair this with our favorite Trader Joes’ French onion soup and baked sweet potatoes.
And finally, Saturday, I actually am excited we will be home all day long with no where to go. I plan to do some spring cleaning and yard work. This night I am going to do my first beer butt chicken of the year! Will have to share pictures of how it turns out.
Hope this gives you all some ideas of things to try out in the near future.
Happy cooking!

What’s for dinner?

I’ve said this before, but sometimes I can be a bad blogger. I should write a post on the same day of the week, every week.
When I don’t feel like blogging, I should blog anyways.
But enought of that. Have you been wanting some new ideas for dinner?
Well, here is what I’ve been cooking in the Karstens house.

Sunday night I made a new favorite of Tim and I’s — the coffee-rubbed chuck roast.
I’ve shared this recipe before, and you can find it on a previous blog post at the link above.
A chuck roast works best. When you grill it, it stays nice and juicey as this cut is a tad more fattier than a rump roast. Totally easy and totally yummy. We paired this with salads and crusty bread.

Monday night it was was turkey tenderloins on the grill with sweet corn (frozen from Mom and Dad’s farm, of course, although my supply is getting low. Can’t wait for sweet corn season! Which, I am thinking will be ready before July 4 this year. We’ll have to see!) We also had tossed salads with this. The turkey tenderloins are just from Hy-Vee. I got a good deal on 8 of them for like only $6 one day. So, have like 4 more of them left. They are a great summertime grilling staple in our house.

Tuesday night it was something fast and easy. I tried out the frozen chicken low mein and vegetables from Trader Joes. All you do is dump the bag in the skillet, and viola, dinner. I had good intentions of making chicken tacos in the crockpot, which is what I did Wednesday night. But forgot to get it ready the night before. So, glad I had this bag of low mein on hand. This is the first time I tried this product from TJs and it was pretty good. Paired it with a tossed salad and strawberries and whip cream for dessert. Which makes me have to say, I sure am glad it is strawberry season! I love strawberries and always stock up on them this time of year. Strawberries and cream are one of our favorite springtime desserts.

And now for Wednesday. There is nothing more easy than throwing some meat in the crockpot and having it be ready when you get off of work. I love this. And things always taste good in the crockpot. This time it was 2 large chicken breasts, some lime juice and a half package of taco seasoning. I also added about a cup of water. I let this cook all day and came home and shredded it. It was really good. I served it on two corn tortillas along with sour cream, tomatoes, cheese and black beans. Yum. This chicken also is good if you throw in salsa, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes or green chilies into the crockpot too. But just used what I had on hand. And this meal is even better as there is are leftovers for at least 4 more lunches.

Tonight Tim is on his own, grilling a burger as I have JLL Book Club tonight! Yay! I joined a book club. This has been something I always thought would be fun and finally found some women interested in starting one. I have my list of book ideas all ready for tonight. Excited to make up our list of books tonight and get the club organized. And, it should be a fun time too as we are meeting at a local winery — Deer Springs. Tim and I visited this local winery this fall on our annual fall foliage tour we do to Nebraska City.

And finally, Friday night, Tim and I will most likely grill up something. Right now I am thinking chicken breasts marinated in a sesame ginger marinade from Lawrys paired with cliantro lime rice and salads. Love that combo. I call it our Hawaiian night. ha! I also have some Ribeyes I am excited to try, but think I’ll wait on those for next weekend when we run the big Lincoln Half Marathon! woo hoo! We got some beef again from some friends of ours. Sure do LOVE that stuff!

As for Saturday, going to leave that up in the air, but am thinking eating out might have to be in store.

And that is a week of meals.

I have been in such a great mood lately because of the excellent weather we’ve been having lately! Tuesday and Wednesday highs were in the 90s! As you all know, I so love summer and so love that we are having summer temps in April! yay!

I also am happy that teaching is done for the semester, papers are graded and grades are figured. Always a welcome relief.

Happy day!