Seven-Day Menu Planner

PLAN AHEAD: Save enough stew for Monday.

11/ 2

Heat-and-Eat Monday

Brighten the leftover STEW by adding some frozen green peas when you reheat it. Serve with SALAD GREENS and CRUSTY BREAD. For dessert, PEARS are perfect.

PLAN AHEAD: Make Tuesday’s casserole today if time permits.

11/ 3

Budget Tuesday

You won’t mind saving a few greenbacks with delicious NEW MEXICO-STYLE CHILI-CHICKEN CASSEROLE (see recipe). Serve with a SLICED AVOCADO SALAD. KIWIFRUIT is a simple dessert.

11/ 4

Express Wednesday

You can make TURKEY PHILLY SANDWICHES for a quick dinner. Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a large nonstick skillet, melt 2 teaspoons butter on medium and cook 1 cup chopped onion and green bell pepper (frozen or refrigerated) for 5 minutes or until softened; drain. Divide vegetable mixture and 12 ounces deli sliced turkey breast evenly among bottom halves of 4 split sandwich rolls; top each with 1 slice mozzarella cheese and the other halves of rolls. Place on baking sheet and bake 5 minutes or until cheese melts.

Serve with VEGGIE CHIPS and DILL PICKLES. CHUNKY APPLESAUCE is a good dessert.

11/ 5

Meatless Thursday

Enjoy easy RED PEPPER-SPINACH LASAGNA for a no-meat dinner. Coat a 4-quart or larger slow cooker with cooking spray. Spread 3/4 cup (from 26- to 28-ounce jar) tomato pasta sauce in cooker.

In a large bowl, mix 2 medium chopped red bell peppers, 1 small chopped onion and 2 (9-ounce) boxes frozen chopped spinach (thawed and squeezed dry); stir in remaining pasta sauce and 1 (8-ounce) can no-salt-added tomato sauce.

Layer 3 (9 total) (broken to fit) uncooked lasagna noodles in slow cooker. Top with 1/3 (of 16-ounce jar) Alfredo sauce over noodles, spreading to cover. Top with 5 (15 total) provolone cheese slices, overlapping if necessary. Top with 1/3 of vegetable mixture (about 2 cups), spreading evenly. Repeat layers twice. Sprinkle 1/4 cup parmesan cheese on top. Cover; cook on low 5 to 6 hours. (Adapted from “Betty Crocker: The Big Book of One-Pot Dinners”; Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015.)

Add a LETTUCE WEDGE and some GARLIC BREAD. Enjoy fat-free VANILLA ICE CREAM for dessert.

PLAN AHEAD: Buy enough Alfredo sauce for Friday. Save enough ice cream for Saturday.

11/ 6

Kids Friday

Treat the kids to RAVIOLI WITH ALFREDO SAUCE tonight. Cook refrigerated ravioli according to package directions and top with leftover Alfredo sauce. Serve with RED AND ORANGE BELL PEPPER RINGS and SOFT BREAD STICKS. Let the kids make OREO (instant) COOKIES ‘N’ CREAM PUDDING (such as Jell-O) with skim milk for dessert.

11/ 7

Easy Entertaining Saturday

Serve your lucky guests GRILLED SALMON WITH DILL SAUCE (mix 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill and 1 tablespoon capers). Serve with FETTUCCINE tossed with pesto, STEAMED FRESH BROCCOLI and BAGUETTES. Finish with our favorite, HONEY-RUM PEACH GALETTE (see recipe) topped with leftover ICE CREAM.

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THE RECIPES

BEEF STEW (Sunday)

1 1/2 pounds well-trimmed beef for stew, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

3/4 cup lower-sodium beef broth

1/4 cup no-salt-added tomato paste

1/3 cup dry red wine

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 pounds red potatoes, cut into bite-size pieces

8 ounces assorted mushrooms (such as shiitake, crimini, oyster and button), cut into quarters

1 1/2 cups baby carrots

Place beef in 4-quart or larger slow cooker. Combine flour, salt, pepper and thyme; mix well. Sprinkle over beef; toss to coat. Combine broth, tomato paste, wine and garlic; mix well. Pour over beef. Add potatoes, mushrooms and carrots; mix well. Cover and cook on high 4 hours or on low 7 to 8 hours, or until beef and vegetables are tender. Stir well before serving. Serves 6.

Per serving: 345 calories, 28 grams protein, 8 grams fat (22 percent calories from fat), 3.1 grams saturated fat, 38 grams carbohydrate, 71 milligrams cholesterol, 453 milligrams sodium, 5 grams fiber.

Carb count: 2 1/2.

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NEW MEXICO-STYLE CHILI-CHICKEN CASSEROLE (Tuesday)

1 (14-ounce) can unsalted chicken broth

2 (4-ounce) cans chopped green chilies, drained

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup reduced-fat sour cream

3/4 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 (10 1/2-ounce) cans condensed reduced-sodium, reduced-fat cream of chicken soup

1 clove garlic, minced

18 (6-inch) corn tortillas

1 pound cooked chicken breast, shredded

2 cups finely shredded 50 percent reduced-fat cheddar cheese (8 ounces)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. In a large pan, combine broth, chilies, onion, sour cream, salt, cumin, pepper, soup and garlic; mix well. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Spread 1 cup soup mixture in dish. Arrange 6 tortillas over soup mixture (tearing to fit dish) and top with 1 cup chicken and 1/2 cup cheese. Repeat layers, ending with the cheese. Spread remaining soup mixture over cheese. Bake 30 minutes or until bubbly. Serves 8.

TIP: If you prepare the day ahead, cover with nonstick foil. When ready to serve, bake 1 hour. Uncover, and bake 30 minutes more or until bubbly.

Per serving: 358 calories, 34 grams protein, 14 grams fat (33 percent calories from fat), 7 grams saturated fat, 28 grams carbohydrate, 93 milligrams cholesterol, 851 milligrams sodium, 3 grams fiber.

Carb count: 2.

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HONEY-RUM PEACH GALETTE (Saturday)

1 refrigerated piecrust (from 15-ounce package)

2 to 4 tablespoons sugar (according to sweetness of peaches)

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

2 cups sliced peaches

1 1/2 tablespoons honey

1/2 teaspoon rum extract

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Place room-temperature piecrust on a lightly floured surface; roll into a 12-inch circle and place on a 12-inch pizza pan. Combine sugar and nutmeg. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon sugar mixture over dough. Arrange peaches spokelike on top of dough 1 inch from edge, working from outside edge to center. Sprinkle peaches with remaining sugar mixture. Fold dough over peaches and crimp edges to fit; coat dough with cooking spray. Bake 30 minutes. Combine honey and rum extract and microwave on high 20 to 40 seconds. Brush mixture over warm tart and serve with ice cream. Serves 10.

Per serving: 119 calories, 1 gram protein, 6 grams fat (40 percent calories from fat), 2.4 grams saturated fat, 18 grams carbohydrate, 2 milligrams cholesterol, 110 milligrams sodium, 1 gram fiber.

Carb count: 1.