Ranch Dressing that is Low in Calorie, but High in Taste

Salad Bar Supper

Don't get me wrong, I buy ranch dressing. My kids love to dip just about anything in ranch dressing especially their chicken nuggets and it's a main ingredient in our favorite marinated for buffalo chicken. But I wanted a ranch dressing that I could pour on my salad without adding 130 calories to my meal. We eat a lot more salads in the summer and this is perfect for a summer salad bar dinner.

My main solution to this problem has been to switch to lower calorie dressings. I enjoy many different vinaigrettes, but sometimes I'm really in the mood for a creamy ranch dressing. A little internet searching and I found this higher calorie recipe to tweak.

A low calorie ranch dressing that is healthy and delicious? Yes, it is possible. The big switch in the recipe was replacing the mayonnaise with non-fat plain yogurt. The exciting thing about this deliciously fresh tasting recipe is that it is only 30 calories per 2 tablespoon serving.

Recipe
1 C non-fat plain yogurt
1/2 C sour cream
2 T skim milk*
1 tsp. finely minced or grated onion
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. dried dill weed
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/8 tsp. salt (I used kosher salt)
1/8 tsp. pepper

Mix all together and store in the refrigerator.

*For a thicker dressing, omit the milk. For thinner dressing, add more milk.

Menu Plan for the Week of April 7

Cheesy Italian Tilapia

We are enjoying a beautiful spring day and were able to use the outdoor grill for our hamburgers today. Why does food taste so much better on the grill? I started to fill my menu plan with grilled meals and then Mark mentioned all of the rain in the forecast for this coming week. Thus far Saturday is the only day without rain, so I planned a grilled meal for that day. If we happen to have more rain free days, I may deviate from my plan in order to enjoy our grilled favorites.

We enjoyed our spring break. We were able to get away for a few days to Clifty Falls State Park in southern Indiana. A beautiful park with several great hiking trails that we were able to enjoy. We had perfect weather for hiking. It was nice to have a break for the normal routine, but we're ready to get back into the swing of things.

Menu Plan

Chicken Nuggets

Sunday
grilled! hamburgers
French fries

Monday
chicken nuggets
crispy carrot fries
whole wheat drop biscuits

Tuesday
cheesy Italian tilapia
rice
broccoli with cheese

Wednesday
pork tacos salad bar style

Buffalo Chicken

Thursday
paprika chicken and green beans
rice

Friday
roasted sausage and potatoes
salad

Saturday
grilled! buffalo chicken 
baked potatoes
green beans

Resurrection Tomb Centerpiece

David and I tried to create our own resurrection tomb inspired by these ideas. My good friend, Marcia, gave me the idea of using homemade play dough to make the tomb. After trying to find the perfect rolling stone from our landscape rocks, Mark suggested I could have made that from play dough too. A good idea a little late for me, but thought I would pass it on. The examples that inspired this Easter centerpiece used real plants, but since I am not much of a gardener, I just used dried moss and river rocks from the dollar store to fill in around the tomb.

Since today is Good Friday, the tomb is currently closed until Sunday morning.

I thought it was appropriate to put the tomb on my buffet next to our olive wood carving of the Lord's last supper with his disciples.

I hope you all have a meaningful Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday as you remember and marvel at what Christ accomplished on our behalf.

Easter Menu Plan 2013

picture linked to original source

Many holiday traditions include a special meal, and Easter is no exception. I love the tradition of a holiday meal because it's a bigger, fancier meal that encourages longer and more meaningful fellowship. A holiday just wouldn't feel like a holiday without special foods. It's also just fun to plan and prepare a special meal.

I have to share my parents with my sister on the other side of the state, so some years they are able to join us and some not. For several years we have used Easter as an opportunity to share our dinner with church friends who do not have local extended family. This is something we all look forward to and it wouldn't be the same without a full dinner table.

Of course, while we are getting ready for church and all day long we have music playing that celebrates Christ's life, death, and resurrection.

Menu Plan with Make Ahead Strategies

Breakfast
Since I do not normally make a big breakfast, this is a way to make our day start in a special way. I enjoy getting up before everyone on this special morning to prepare this simple, but special breakfast. To make the breakfast festive, I use my floral tablecloth (same as dinner) and lunch sized china plates.

Egg Casserole
Assembled the night before.

Resurrection Rolls
Dough made and stuffed with marshmallows the night before. This year I even rolled them in butter and cinnamon before tucking them away in the refrigerator for the night. In the morning I will use a quick method rise and baking.

Fruit Salad
All cut up and ready the night before except for the banana.

Dinner
This menu isn't much different than last year. I decided to delete the carrots and add roasted cauliflower this year. We love roasted cauliflower, so I thought it would be a nice addition. I also plan to make the desserts this year. This menu makes such a nice spread, but it really is quite simple. You will notice in my notes that most of this meal is prepared ahead of time, allowing me to get everything on the table quickly after church.

Ham (of course)
Potatoes
I always make my ham and potatoes in the crockpot while we are at church. I let the grocery store meat counter slice my boneless ham so it will easily transfer from the crockpot to the service platter. 

I actually peel my potatoes for this special occasion! The potatoes can be peeled ahead of time and stored in cold water in the refrigerator without turning brown. 

Potatoes cooked with ham give them such a delicious flavor. The only other thing in the crockpot other than potatoes topped with ham is a couple of halved celery stalks for flavor and a generous amount of ground pepper.

Roasted Cauliflower
I will have the cauliflower all cut up ahead of time so it will be a quick side dish.

Caesar Salad
I will have the lettuce, dressing, and croutons all prepped. I will just need to combine them just before serving. (A great job to allow a guest to assemble who would like to help.)

Deviled Eggs
These will be made the night before using these techniques.

Dinner Rolls
I use Brigette's recipe for the dinner rolls and they bake up great ahead of time and can be quickly warmed in the microwave for a fresh from the oven taste.

Blueberry Crumb Pie
Brownies
These desserts will both be made ahead of time. 

I almost always make a crumb topping in place of a top crust on pie. Along with a stir and press pie crust, a crumb topping makes baking a pie much easier without sacrificing taste. 

I sometimes make brownies from a mix and sometimes use the Hershey cocoa recipe. The thing that makes brownies special is stirring chocolate chips into the batter. 

I thought these two dessert options would be a good variety for our guests.

Menu Plan for the Week of March 24

Picture lined to the original source.

This is a special week to consider all of the things Christ accomplished on our behalf. I hope you are making the most of this time to reflect on God's perfect holiness and selfless love displayed through Christ's life, death, and resurrection.

I don't have any new things to share with you this Easter. We have been repeating our normal Easter traditions as we lead up to Resurrection Sunday. We have been listening to music all month that tells Christ's story and I bought the marshmallows for the resurrection rolls. My menu plan isn't yet finalized for Sunday, but it probably won't be too different from last year's menu plan. I may post my plan later this week. We also hope to create an Easter centerpiece inspired by the above picture.

Leading up to Sunday, I have a fairly normal and simple menu plan. Good Friday we have a tradition of eating out for lunch after the afternoon service. I added it to my plan simply because having a bigger lunch effects our dinner.

Sunday
hamburgers
French fries

Monday
pork gravy over rice (carry over from last week as we didn't end up having this meal)
salad

Tuesday
tuna burgers
crispy carrot fries

Wednesday
pizza (crust, sauce)
salad

Thursday
paprika chicken with green beans
rice

Friday
eat out for lunch after Good Friday service
HLT sandwiches

Saturday
TBD

Menu Plan for the Week of March 17

Pork Roast

I have a busy week of substitute teaching this week so I have another simple menu plan. I know, most of my menu plans are simple. I do like to make more involved meals when I have a day off and can spend more time in the kitchen, but these meals are perfect to make after my paid job.

Goulash

Yesterday all of my guys went to an event so I was able to spend a little under an hour prepping ahead for the week. I even assembled my rice lasagna so monday's meal just needs to be popped into the oven. That little bit of time spent will make mealtime even easier. Seriously, stopping to pick up a hot and ready would be more trouble (and much less tasty) than most of these meals.

Italian Chicken and Potatoes

Menu Plan
Sunday
hamburgers
French fries

Monday
rice lasagna (using this recipe, but replacing the noodles with brown rice)
crostini
salad

Tuesday
Italian chicken and potatoes
broccoli with cheese

Wednesday
pork roast in the crockpot
carrots
potatoes

Thursday
goulash
crostini
salad

Friday
pork gravy over rice
green beans

Saturday
leftovers or a simple meal

Garlic Penne with Chicken and Broccoli

My family isn't always excited when food groups are mixed so I was a little nervous about creating this recipe. It sounded wonderful to me, but I was hoping they would feel the same way. I was delighted when it met with rave reviews.

Garlic Penne with chicken and broccoli is hearty enough to stand alone, but for some reason it doesn't seem like a meal if only one thing is on the table, so I usually accompany it with salad. The first time I made this dish is pictured above. By the huge plate of crostini, you can tell I wasn't sure how everyone would like this new meal.

Recipe
3 T extra virgin olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, divided
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp thyme
salt and pepper
3 chicken breasts
4 C chopped broccoli
4 C penne
+/-1 C chicken broth
1/2 C parmesan cheese
1/2 C non-fat plain yogurt

1. Crush or finely mince 2 cloves of garlic into 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Let sit on the counter for  several hours or overnight.*

2. Boil penne in salted water with 2 cloves of minced garlic. Cook pasta until al dente and drain.

3. Preheat garlic and olive oil mixture along with crushed red pepper and thyme over medium heat.

4. Sauté chicken in preheated oil and spices. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

5. Once chicken has cooked on the outside but not done, add the broccoli to the pan and sauté.

6. When broccoli is slightly tender (al dente) and chicken is cooked through, add about 3/4 cup of chicken broth. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Add more chicken broth as needed depending on how long you let it simmer. You don't want it dry or soupy.**

7. When you are ready to assemble and serve, reduce the heat to low and stir the yogurt into the pan.

8. Stir in drained pasta with garlic.

9. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and toss with tongs to combine. Enjoy!

Extra Notes

*The longer this sits, the stronger the garlic flavor. The longer the better in my opinion.

**Don't let this cook too long or the broccoli will over cook.