Too much stuff to do, too little time

I'm up early again planning the week's meals because I don't know when else I will be able to do it.  The laundry needs to be done, but we don't have a working washing machine due to the fact that it flooded our house almost three weeks ago.  We have had to be creative in getting a little bit of laundry done each week.  Thanks to my wonderful mother-in-law she has been doing some for us each week when she watches Tessa.  Thankfully, it looks like people will be coming out this week to start repairing our floor molding, carpet, and floors in the guest bathroom and laundry closet.  Yahoo!  That means I can go ahead and order a new washing  machine this week. 
Anyways, enough venting.  Hopefully this week's recipes will help warm us all up.  It's freezing here!  Tonight I am making Teriyaki Burgers.  I usually do soup on Sundays, but we have a lot in the freezer now, so I am taking a break.
Teriyaki Burgers (From Once a Month Cooking)
I saved 2 tablespoons of the teriyaki sauce from the Asian Chicken last week to make this.
1 pound lean ground beef.
4 sandwich rolls

Mix teriyaki sauce into ground beef and form four patties.  Freeze patties in a 1 gallon freezer bag with a piece of waxed paper between each patty.  Freeze sandwich rolls.  To serve, thaw rolls and patties.  Grill or fry meat to desired pinkness.  Serve on warmed sandwich rolls.

I'll probably serve this with carrot sticks and celery sticks.  I need to get rid of the rest of the celery from the soup last week.  Tessa loves carrot sticks and dip.  Then we'll have some of our Halloween sugar cookies!

Monday's Menu:  Happy Halloween!
We usually have a lot of people over here for Halloween.  It's tradition that my parents usually come over.  This is what my grandparents did every year on Halloween. My parents don't have a lot of little kids in their neighborhood.  My sis-in-law and bro-in-law and nephew, Jackson, will be coming over, too.  Our neighborhood is a great place to trick-or-treat.  Since everyone is coming over, I wanted to make something that would serve lots of people and didn't require a lot of prepping.  This recipe comes from foodnetwork.com courtesy of Rachel Ray.  She and I are pretty tight.  :) 

Indian Summer Turkey Chili ( I love using ground turkey b/c it makes it just a little bit healthier)

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
• 2 1/2 pounds ground turkey (85 percent lean) or ground turkey breast (99 percent lean), 2 packages
• 4 tablespoons dark chili powder, 2 palm fulls (I probably won't use this much)
• 2 tablespoons grill seasoning blend, any brand, 1 palm full
• 1 tablespoon cumin, 1/2 palm full
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 to 3 tablespoons hot sauce, medium to extra-spicy
• 1 large onion, quartered
• 2 large peppers, any color combination, red, green, purple, yellow or orange, chopped
• 1/2 bottle beer (the alcohol cooks out), about 1 cup
• 1 (14-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup smoky barbecue sauce
• 2 cups corn kernels, optional

Directions

Heat a pot over medium to medium high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, 3 turns of the pan, and the turkey meat. Season the meat with: chili powder, grill seasoning, cumin, Worcestershire and hot sauce. Break up the meat with the back of a wooden spoon into small crumbles.

Chop the onion, reserving 1/4 of it for topping the chili. Brown meat 5 minutes, then add onions and chopped bell peppers and cook 10 minutes more. Add beer and deglaze the pan, scraping up the drippings and cooking off the alcohol. Add tomato sauce and barbecue sauce and bring to a bubble. It using corn kernels add them now. Let chili simmer 10 minutes. Adjust seasonings and heat level to your taste. Remove from heat and serve.

I'll probably serve this with shredded cheese, sour cream, salsa, and blue corn tortilla chips for toppings.  Once we've eaten, we'll have time to go out and trick or treat!

My best friend got me a subscription to the Food Network Magazine and I am forever grateful.  I loved it so much that I got it for my mom.  I also love the website!  This chicken recipe is super easy and yummy!  Balsamic Vinegar is something I always have in the pantry.

Tuesday's Menu:  Giada's Chicken with Balsamic BBQ Sauce

Ingredients

For the Balsamic BBQ sauce:

• 1 cup balsamic vinegar
• 3/4 cup ketchup
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the chicken or steak:

• 4 pieces chicken (any combination of breast or leg-and-thigh pieces) or 4 pieces of New York strip or Club strip steak
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

For the BBQ sauce:

Directions

Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and stir until all the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Simmer over medium heat until reduced by 1/3, about 15 to 20 minutes.

For the chicken or steak:

Place a grill pan over medium heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Lightly coat with some of the BBQ sauce using a pastry brush. Place the meat on the grill. Place the remaining BBQ sauce, still in the small saucepan, over low heat or on the edge of a gas or charcoal grill and allow to gently simmer while the meat cooks.

Cook the chicken about 8 minutes per side. Cook the steaks starting at about 4 minutes per side until a meat thermometer reads the desired temperature, 120 degrees F for medium rare, 135 degrees F for medium (about 6 minutes per side), 155 degrees F for well done (about 9 minutes per side). Continually brush the meat with BBQ sauce every few minutes. Remove the meat from the grill and let rest for at least 5 minutes. Serve with the heated BBQ sauce alongside.
Alternately, the chicken can be baked in the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the chicken skin side up in a baking dish and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the baking dish from the oven and spoon the BBQ sauce all over the top of the chicken. Return the baking dish to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes.

I might serve this with a some potatoes or sweet potatoes and a veggie.  It depends on what's for sale at the store!

Hopefully this will get you started this week!  I'll post some other dinners we will have later in the week.  Happy Eating!