7 Day Menu Planner

Serve the juicy bird with your macaroni and cheese and tiny green peas (from frozen). Add crusty rolls. For dessert, buy a blueberry cobbler.

Plan ahead: Save enough chicken and some cobbler for Monday.

2/26

Heat-and-Eat Monday

Use the leftover chicken and make nontraditional Grilled Chicken and Provolone Cheese Sandwiches. Chop the leftover chicken and mix with 1/3 cup golden raisins, 1/4 cup thinly sliced celery and 1/3 cup low-fat mayonnaise. Coat one side of 12 whole-grain bread slices with cooking spray. Turn 6 bread slices coated side down and add a thin slice of provolone cheese to each. Spread with chicken mixture. Top with another thin slice of cheese and remaining 6 bread slices (coated side up). Place in a thick skillet or griddle heated to medium; gently press down. Cook 3 to 4 minutes per side or until lightly browned.

Serve with carrot salad. Warm the leftover cobbler and top it with vanilla ice cream.

Plan ahead: Save enough ice cream for Tuesday.

2/27

Kids Tuesday

You'd think they might get tired of Spaghetti and Meatballs, but kids are often resistant to change. Make them happy and cook some spaghetti, top it with their favorite red pasta sauce and buy or make your own meatballs. Sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese for some adult appeal. Make a chopped lettuce salad and add crunchy bread sticks. Enjoy leftover ice cream with chocolate syrup for dessert.

2/28

Meatless Wednesday

Crustless Vegetable Quiche has great flavor without any meat. Coat a 4-quart or larger slow cooker with cooking spray. In a medium bowl, beat 6 eggs with 2 tablespoons flour, 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, 1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Whisk in 1 cup half-and-half and 1 cup 1 percent milk. Stir in 3 cups of any chopped cooked vegetable, 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil, 1/2 cup grated Gruyere, Emmentaler, Gouda or cheddar cheese (or a mixture) and 1/2 cup Parmesan. Pour the mixture into the slow cooker. Sprinkle another 1/2 cup Parmesan on top. Cover and cook on high 1 1/2 hours or until quiche is just set in center. Run a knife around the edge of the quiche, cut into wedges and serve hot.

Add baked sweet potatoes, a romaine salad and whole-grain rolls. Enjoy fresh pears for dessert.

Plan ahead: Bake enough potatoes for Friday.

3/1

Express Thursday

Make tonight a soup-and-sandwich night. Buy deli Roast Beef Sandwiches and jazz them up with horseradish sauce. Serve the sandwiches with butternut squash soup for a big shot of vitamin A, and add a mixed green salad. For dessert, plums are simple.

3/2

Budget Friday

For an economical meal, serve Catfish Po' Boys (see recipe) tonight. Make sweet potato oven fries with leftover potatoes. Cut them into 3/4-inch wedges, coat with cooking spray and add coarse salt and black pepper to taste, then bake in a 425-degree oven 10 minutes or until hot. Serve with bell pepper sticks and olives. Try peaches for dessert.

3/3

Easy Entertaining Saturday

These Onion-and-Cherry-Glazed Pork Chops (see recipe) would please any guest. Serve with brown rice pilaf, green beans, a spinach salad and sourdough rolls. Lemon sorbet is just the right light dessert.

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Classic Roast Chicken (Sunday)

2 teaspoons coarse salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 (4- to 5-pound) whole chicken

1 lemon, halved

1 sprig fresh rosemary

1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together salt and pepper. Remove neck and giblets, if present, and reserve for later stock. Pat chicken dry. Sprinkle half salt mixture inside cavity of chicken. Place lemon and rosemary sprig inside cavity. Rub oil into skin; rub remaining salt mixture into skin. Tuck wings under if desired. Coat wire rack with cooking spray. Place rack on a shallow, rimmed baking pan. Place chicken on rack, breast side up. Bake 1 1/2 hours or until meat thermometer inserted into thigh registers 165 degrees. Remove from oven. Cover; let stand 10 minutes before slicing. (Adapted from “Sunday Suppers,” Cynthia Graubart, Time Inc. Books.) Serves 8.

Per serving, white meat without skin: 129 calories (percent calories from fat, 22), 24 grams protein, no carbohydrate, no fiber, 3 grams fat (0.6 gram saturated fat), 73 milligrams cholesterol, 612 milligrams sodium.

Per serving, dark meat without skin: 135 calories (percent calories from fat, 32), 22 grams protein, no carbohydrate, no fiber, 5 grams fat , 1.2 grams saturated fat, 108 milligrams cholesterol, 581 milligrams sodium.

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Catfish Po’ Boys (Friday)

1 egg, beaten

4 (4-ounce) catfish fillets

1/2 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs

1 tablespoon canola oil

4 (4-inch) long rolls, split, or Italian bread cut into 4-inch pieces

1/4 cup prepared pesto sauce, divided

8 roasted red pepper halves (from jar)

8 lettuce leaves

4 thin slices provolone cheese, halved

Pour egg into a shallow dish. Coat each fillet in egg, then sprinkle with bread crumbs. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil to medium-high. Cook fillets, 2 at a time, 3 or 4 minutes per side or until golden and opaque in the center. Drain on paper towels. Spread cut sides of rolls with pesto. On bottoms, layer red peppers, lettuce and provolone; top each with a catfish fillet, cover with roll tops and serve. Serves 4.

Per serving: 505 calories (percent calories from fat, 38), 34 grams protein, 44 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams fiber, 21 grams fat (6.2 grams saturated fat), 127 milligrams cholesterol, 949 milligrams sodium, .

Carb count: 3.

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Onion-and-Cherry-Glazed Pork Chops (Saturday)

4 well-trimmed boneless pork chops (3/4 inch thick)

1/2 teaspoon garlic-pepper seasoning

3 teaspoons olive oil, divided

2 small onions, sliced into thin rings

1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup sweetened or tart dried cherries

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Season chops with garlic-pepper seasoning. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet to medium-high. Cook chops 6 to 8 minutes or until golden brown, turning once. Remove chops from skillet; keep warm. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook onions, covered, in remaining oil in the same skillet, 12 to 14 minutes or until onions are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in brown sugar. Increase heat to medium and cook 3 or 4 minutes more or until onions are lightly browned.

Meanwhile, stir together cornstarch, water, cherries and vinegar. Add to skillet; cook and stir until bubbly and slightly thickened. Add chops (and accumulated liquid) back to skillet and heat through; serve.

Per serving: 330 calories (percent calories from fat, 34), 35 grams protein, 18 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber, 12 grams fat (3.4 grams saturated fat), 90 milligrams cholesterol, 126 milligrams sodium. Serves 4.