American Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup

I saw this grilled cheese recipe in Cooking Light (one of my favorite magazines!) a while back. We love it here and it's become an easy weeknight meal. As an added bonus, it's a meal I've managed to make with 350 calories. My rear thanks me. Yours will thank you too. =)

American Grilled Cheese: Ingredients

Reduced Fat Sargento Provolone Cheese

Reduced Fat Sargento Colby Jack Cheese

45 Calorie sliced bread (Sara Lee)

light spreadable butter or margarine

sliced Roma tomatoes

fresh basil leaves

I'm wondering if I really need to type out how to make a grilled cheese sandwich? Ok, if I get one comment about needing directions, I will come back and edit this post with directions. =) But it goes butter, bread, provolone cheese, sliced Roma, basil leaves, Colby jack slice, bread, butter. Grill. If you use more than once slice of each cheese, it will be more than 350 calories.

Tomato Soup: Pacific Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato

Now, the soup. My favorite soup with this sandwich is Pacific Natural Foods Organic Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato soup. It's only $3.69 for 32 oz. We usually warm half and put the box in the fridge. It lasts for two meals since the girls won't eat it. As usual.

So, serve up the soup, top with a few croutons and some shredded Parmesan cheese (again, you will add a few extra calories there, too.)

So, cheap, easy, delicious. What more could you want?!

Four Ingredient Breakfast Casserole

Giving Credit: This one is my mom's. I love that it's a) easy and b) only has four ingredients!

Ingredients:

1 package of pork sausage

2 packages of crescent rolls (dairy case)

1 box of cream cheese

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

Brown sausage in skillet breaking up into smaller pieces with back of spoon.

While browning sausage, unroll one pkg of crescent rolls and line bottom of 9x13 pan. I usually press to edge of pan and pinch seams to close up.

Drain sausage and return to skillet on low.

Cut cream cheese into cubes and melt in skillet mixing into the sausage.

Spread cream cheese/sausage mix onto crescent rolls in 9x13 pan.

Top with shredded sharp cheddar cheese and cover with remaining can of crescent rolls.

Bake at 350 until crust is brown.

Slice and eat!

Easy Easy Chicken and Dumplings

I got this recipe from my friend Holly about 5 years ago. I love chicken and dumplings as a fall and winter meal, but was always intimidated by the trouble my mom went to in making this for her family. So, when I was introduced to this recipe and it tasted almost as good as Mom's, I was sold! Hope you like it.

Ingredients:

1 rotisserie chicken

1 box of chicken stock (you can use broth, but it isn't nearly as good.)

2 cans cream of celery soup

1 12oz can of home style biscuits

Directions:

De bone chicken.

Add stock, celery soup, and chicken to stock pot. Heat through and salt/pepper to taste.

(I let it simmer for several hours, but it's fine if you only have about 30 min.)

Cut biscuits into small pieces (or the size you like your dumplings) and add to pot.

Cook an additional 7-10 min to allow biscuits to puff up.

Serve and enjoy!

**If you're feeling like giving it an even more homemade taste you can cut up some fresh celery and add that too.

Still Menu Planning

I may be the only person who even ventures to this blog anymore, but thought I would share where I was in my menu planning endeavor.

My husband went on a major dietary change last November. He is now a part time vegetarian and so many of my recipes are now null and void. I have had to re-think what we eat and seriously cut down on the meat. On top of that we have entered the land of busy kids. We are at gymnastics twice a week after school. All in all, my menu planning has become easier just by the fact I don't have as much to choose from. I am working on adding to the recipes we use, but it takes time to find those things that taste good, fit the health requirement, and don't cost a fortune. Eating healthier is still more expensive.

We almost always eat soup, sandwiches, and salad on Tuesday nights. (It's a gymnastics night.) I have found a great soup line by Pacific Natural Soups. They carry several varieties such as roasted red pepper and tomato. It's better than the canned soups or boxed V8 that we tried. Plus, we can store what we don't use in the fridge to have the next week. Also, we can offer the girls what ever kind of sandwich they want. Reese is the pickiest eater I've ever met. If she doesn't turn into crunchy peanut butter at some point, I will be shocked.

So, as I find good recipes I will post them still. But I doubt my menus will be much help to anyone at this point!

Happy Fall!