3 meals with 1 meat-Rotisserie Chicken

Day 1: Rotisserie Chicken Dinner

Bake or buy a rotisserie chicken for use during the rest of the week. Serve chicken with a green vegetable, mashed potatoes and gravy.


Day 2: Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

• 1-2 tsp butter
  
• 1 large carrot, chopped or grated
  
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 1/2 small onion, chopped or grated
  
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can Cream of Chicken Soup
• 1 can chicken broth
  
• 1 cup cubed cooked chicken
• 1 cup homestyle egg noodles or go here to find a recipe for homemade egg noodles
  

Directions

1. Melt butter in 3-qt. saucepan over medium heat. Add celery and onions and cook until tender.
2. Stir broth into pan. Heat to a boil. Add carrots, chicken and noodles.
3. Reduce heat to low. Cook and stir for 20 min. or until vegetables are tender and noodles are cooked.

Day 3: Sweet and Sour Meatballs with Rice

I like to make and freeze a batch of meatballs into meal sized portions. I also like to make a big batch of rice and freeze it in meal sized portions. Those two preps make this meal easy to throw together. We usually have green beans with this meal.

Big Batch of Meatballs for Freezing

• 3 lbs of lean ground hamburger or ground turkey
• 2 cups oats (quick or old fashioned)
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp soy sauce (I use lite)
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk

Combine ground beef, oats, onion powder, garlic poweder, salt, soy sauce, egg and milk. Shape into 80 balls about 1-1 1/4 inch in diameter. (Use a small cookie scoop to make the job go quicker.) Place the meatballs on a sprayed or foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-30 minutes until lightly browned and no longer pink in the center. Cool. Bag and place in the freezer. I usually put 10 meatballs in a bag.

Sweet and Sour Sauce

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

In a medium bowl, mix together the water, vinegar, ketchup, cornstarch, sugar and soy sauce. Place slightly thawed meatballs in a skillet set to medium low. Pour sauce over the meatballs and heat until the sauce until it thickens and the meatballs are warmed through. You may want to cover the pan with a lid for part of the time.

Day 4: Lazy Chicken Pot Pie

• 1 frozen pastry crust
• 2 cups chopped rotisserie chicken
• 1 bag frozen peas and carrots
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup chicken broth
  

Mix chicken, frozen vegetables, soup and chicken broth. Spread mixture out in a glass pie dish or 9x9 baking dish. Cut thawed pastry dough into strips. Arrange in a lattice pattern over the chicken mixture. Bake at 350 F for around 45 minutes or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.

Day 5: Rotini Pasta with Marinara or Alfredo and Cheesy Italian Bread

I like to use Barilla Plus when I can find it, but that has become harder and harder. I really like Newman's Own marinara and Newman's Own Alfredo or Classico Alfredo. My preschooler like peas with his Alfredo sauce.

Cheesy Italian Bread

• Partial loaf of French Bread (or I like French dinner rolls from Walmart)
• 2 tsp butter
• 2-3 tbsp mayonnaise
• 2-3 tbsp parmesan cheese
• onion powder
• garlic powder
• Italian seasoning
• 1/2 cup shredded colby-jack cheese

Melt butter. Add mayo and parmesan and seasoning to your preference and stir until smooth. Add shredded cheese and mix until cheese is coated with mixture. Spread on bread and bake at 375 F until cheese is bubbly.

Shopping List Items:
Rotisserie Chicken
Potatoes
Broccoli/Cauliflower
Pastry Crust
Frozen Peas and Carrots
Celery
Egg Noodles (unless making homemade)
3 lbs ground Hamburger or Turkey (if making meatballs)

Check Pantry For:
Turkey Gravy Mix
Cream of Chicken Soup
Carrots
Onion
Oats
Soy
Shredded and Parmesan Cheese
French Dinner Rolls