Meal Plan Monday - 11/3/08

We have a lot of carry over from last week. Claron worked late and I was working on Eliza's costume. Also, we ate a lot of leftovers from the fridge. Hopefully, we'll stay on target more this week.



Mon. – Creamy Chicken Casserole with Biscuits and Garlic & Shallot Green Beans


Tues. – Obama's Chili, Cornbread and Apple Cake (recipe below)

Weds. – Eat Out


Thurs. – Honey Glazed Chicken, Beet Salad with Goat Cheese and Roasted Acorn Squash


Fri. – Leftovers


Sat. – Chicken & Sweet Potato Curry with Basmati Rice and Naan


Sun. – Homemade Pasta with Italian Sausage and Tomato Basil Sauce (with basil from my garden)

Apple Cake
6 apples
1 tablespoon cinnamon
5 tablespoons sugar
2 3/4 cups flour, sifted
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a tube pan. Peel, core and chop apples into chunks. Toss with cinnamon and sugar and set aside.
Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl. In another bowl, whisk together oil, orange juice, sugar and vanilla. Mix wet ingredients into the dry ones, then add eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl to ensure all ingredients are incorporated.
Pour half of batter into prepared pan. Spread half of apples over it. Pour the remaining batter over the apples and arrange the remaining apples on top. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until a tester comes out clean.

Red Lentil Burgers

This weekend we went to a Halloween party. Our friend is from Lebanon and was cooking middle eastern. Claron is a huge fan of middle eastern food and he suggested I make red lentil burgers. I first saw these burgers made by a friend's Turkish mother. I found this recipe online and have tweeked it until they tasted right.

Red lentils can be hard to find. Here in Santa Barbara, I buy them at the Isla Vista Co-op. They cook more quickly than normal lentils and I think their flavor is more mild.



Kirmizi Mercimek Koftesi (Red Lentil Burgers)
1 cup red lentils
1.5 cups hot water
1 chicken bouillon cube
1/4 cup fresh, chopped parsley or 1.5 T dried parsley
3 cloves garlic, smushed into a paste
1 large onion, finely minced
1 T cumin
1 t crushed red pepper
1 egg
olive oil, for frying

Boil the lentils with the bouillon and water. When the lentils are cooked, all the water should be absorbed. If the lentils are watery, let them sit to absorb the rest of the moisture. If the lentils don't seem done, add a little more water. When the lentils are cooked and relatively cooled, add the parsley, garlic, onion, spices and egg. Shape the lentils into patties and fry in skillet with olive oil. Garnish the lentil 'kofte' like you would a burger. We like eating these on middle eastern flat bread from Trader Joe's with tzaziki or hummus and tomatoes, red onions and cucumbers.