Menu Plan Monday

On the menu this week:

Oatmeal Meatballs, Wild Rice, Green Beans
Campfire Packs, Frozen Corn
Parmesan Chicken, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Boiled Carrots

Our Oatmeal Meatballs are really called Meatballs with Cream Sauce. The recipe is out of The Taste of Home Cookbook. I love this cookbook and use it very often.

• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley (I don't always have this, so I just add a couple of teaspoons of dry instead.)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef (Our ground beef packages are 1 pound, so I just adjust the amounts of the other ingredients a little. For example, instead of a full 1/4 cup of milk, I'll add 1/8 cup first, mix my ingredients and then add a little extra if the mixture seems too dry.)
  
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  

Combine first nine ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into 1-1/2 inch balls. Roll in flour, shaking off excess. Place 1 in. apart on greased 15"x10"x1" baking pans.

Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Turn meatballs; bake 12-15 minutes longer or until meat is no longer pink.

The meatballs are really good, but I hardly ever make the cream sauce that goes with them. Most of the time, we'll just eat them with a little ketchup. Besides, with Wild Rice, we really don't need a sauce.


Campfire Packs are really good and easy, too. They are great for when you don't want to spend tons of time in the kitchen. I don't have a recipe with measurements and you can really tailor this meal to the likes of your family. Why the name? Because you can make these when you are camping and throw them on some coals to cook while you're out in the "great outdoors". I can't tell you how long to cook them on a fire, though, because I've never done it. (And I don't really foresee myself trying it out any time soon! Hey, you could throw these on the grill, though, and that would keep you from using the oven if you don't want to heat up your house.) Ok, on to the recipe!

• Ground Meat
• Lawry's Seasoning Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• Worcestershire Sauce, to taste
• Sliced onion
• Garlic, peeled and minced
  
• Potatoes (skins on or off), sliced into half moons 1/4" thick
• Carrots, peeled and sliced into rounds 1/4" thick

Season meat with salt, pepper, and Worcestershire Sauce. Shape into patties. Lay out a sheet of aluminum foil (make sure it is long enough to pull up and wrap around to make a little pack with the ingredients inside. Place meat patty in center of foil, top with sliced onion, garlic, some potatoes, and some carrots. Top with 1/2 to 1 tablespoon of butter, if desired. Roll up foil around meat and vegetables to make a pack. Place packs on a cookie sheet (just in case one has a hole, you don't want all of the juice to clean up later!) and cook for 45 minutes in a 375 degree oven. The packs cook in their steam, so there's really not a lot of grease.

I think this meal is great for a family who's likes are different because you can add more carrots in one pack, and less in another. Also, if you're not a big fan of onions or garlic, you can always substitute the powdered forms. If you do decide to make each pack to a family member's liking, don't forget to mark the outside of the pack with a permanent marker.

What are y'all having this week?