Seven-Day Menu Planner

She’ll love your SUGARED STRAWBERRIES for dessert. Rinse and dry 2 pints of strawberries (do not hull). Place strawberries in serving bowl. Place 2/3 cup vanilla yogurt and 2/3 cup loosely packed light brown sugar in separate bowls. Dip strawberries into yogurt and then into sugar for her dessert.

5/ 11

Meatless Monday

Make an easy meal of STUFFED BAKED POTATOES with BROCCOLI AU GRATIN (frozen) as the stuffing. Add SALAD GREENS and WHOLE-GRAIN ENGLISH MUFFINS. For dessert, make PISTACHIO PUDDING with 1 percent milk.

PLAN AHEAD: Bake extra potatoes and cook eggs and green beans for Tuesday.

5/ 12

Express Tuesday

Tonight’s TOMATO “SANDWICH” NICOISE is colorful as well as easy. Cut 4 slices from center of 2 large ripe tomatoes. On each of 4 plates, layer a tomato slice, a lettuce leaf, a red onion slice and 1/2 cup deli tuna salad; top with remaining tomato slices. Arrange 1/2 cup chilled cooked fresh green beans and 2 hard-cooked egg wedges on each plate. Drizzle olive oil over all.

Serve with BAKED POTATO WEDGES (cut leftover baked potatoes into wedges, coat with cooking spray and bake at 425 degrees until hot) and BAGUETTES. Fat-free VANILLA ICE CREAM is dessert.

PLAN AHEAD: Save enough ice cream for Thursday.

5/ 13

Budget Wednesday

Serving PICADILLO (see recipe) over RICE is an easy way to save some food dollars. Fresh STEAMED CARROTS add color to the plate, and WHOLE-GRAIN BREAD adds fiber. For dessert, PEARS will work just fine.

PLAN AHEAD: Save enough picadillo for Thursday.

5/ 14

Heat-and-Eat Thursday

Make PICADILLO TACOS with the leftovers. Just heat the picadillo and spoon into warmed taco shells. Add deli COLESLAW on the side. Leftover ICE CREAM with BLUEBERRIES makes a good dessert.

5/ 15

Kids Friday

Make the kids happy with SLOPPY BEEF AND BEAN BURGERS. Heat a large nonstick skillet on medium and cook 1 pound lean ground beef and 1/2 cup finely chopped carrots 7 minutes or until beef is no longer pink; drain well. Stir in 2 tablespoons sloppy Joe seasoning mix and 1 (19 3/4-ounce) can pork and beans. Cook 2 minutes or until heated through. Serve on whole-grain hamburger buns.

On the side, add steamed FRESH SPINACH and BAKED CHIPS. For dessert, have some fun baking slice-and-bake COOKIES (refrigerated).

5/ 16

Easy Entertaining Saturday

Entertain friends by serving them colorful CHICKEN CACCIATORE REVISITED (see recipe). Serve the chicken-vegetable combo over RICE. Alongside, serve FRESH BROCCOLI SPEARS and an ITALIAN SALAD. LEMON MERINGUE PIE is a festive dessert.

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THE RECIPES

RED PEPPER AND CHEDDAR EGG CUPS (Sunday)

2 large red bell peppers

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/3 cup finely chopped onion

2 small garlic cloves, minced

1 cup shredded 50 percent reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese, divided

2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley

4 eggs

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut peppers in half lengthwise. Remove seeds and membranes. Place peppers cut-side down in an 8-inch square baking dish. Cover; microwave on high 4 minutes; drain well. Turn peppers cut-side up in same dish; set aside. Heat olive oil in a small skillet on medium. Add onion; cook 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add garlic; cook 30 seconds or until fragrant. Scrape into a small bowl; cool several minutes, then stir in 3/4 cup cheese and parsley.

Divide onion and cheese mixture among peppers, pressing mixture up sides of peppers to create a hollow for egg in center of each. Break 1 egg into a small bowl and then pour into each pepper. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake 20 minutes or until desired doneness. Sprinkle with remaining cheese; serve immediately. (Adapted from “The Cabot Creamery Cookbook”; Oxmoor House, 2015.) Serves 4.

Per serving: 186 calories, 15 grams protein, 11 grams fat (50 percent calories from fat), 4.8 grams saturated fat, 8 grams carbohydrate, 201 milligrams cholesterol, 486 milligrams sodium, 2 grams fiber.

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PICADILLO (Wednesday)

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 pound lean ground beef

1/2 pound ground turkey breast

1 cup frozen corn

1/2 cup sliced green olives with pimiento

1/4 cup raisins

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1/3 cup water

In a large nonstick skillet, heat olive oil on medium. Add onion and garlic and cook 5 minutes. Stir in chili powder, salt and cinnamon. Cook and stir 30 seconds. Add beef and turkey; cook 5 minutes or until no longer pink; drain well. Add corn, olives, raisins, tomato paste and water; bring to boil. Boil 1 minute to thicken slightly, and serve. Serves 8.

Per serving: 139 calories, 15 grams protein, 5 grams fat (28 percent calories from fat), 0.9 gram saturated fat, 12 grams carbohydrate, 27 milligrams cholesterol, 389 milligrams sodium, 2 grams fiber.

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CHICKEN CACCIATORE REVISITED (Saturday)

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces

8 ounces fresh white mushrooms, halved or sliced

1 large green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 medium onion, chopped

3 medium cloves garlic, thinly sliced

2 pounds tomatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Balsamic vinegar

In a large nonstick skillet, heat olive oil on medium-high. Add chicken; cook and stir 5 minutes or until browned. Add mushrooms, bell pepper, onion and garlic; cook and stir 6 minutes or until mushrooms release liquid. Stir in tomatoes, salt, oregano and black pepper. Cook on low, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes or until tomatoes are heated through. Add a splash of balsamic vinegar and serve. Serves 6.

Per serving: 173 calories, 23 grams protein, 4 grams fat (23 percent calories from fat), 0.8 gram saturated fat, 11 grams carbohydrate, 61 milligrams cholesterol, 441 milligrams sodium, 3 grams fiber.