A week in review – #recipes in our #menu

It was hot this week, really hot. I am so glad we have been focusing on our “Summer Electric Plan.” We had one oven baked dish this week. All the other dishes fell within the cooking methods the meet our “Summer Electric Plan” methods. (No Cook, Grilled, Slow Cooker, Microwave, Quick Stove Top)

Unfortunately, we had a really crazy weekend and had to skip grilling. The good news is, the meat we were going to use is in the freezer. So no worries. We can grill this week or next.

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Guess #whatsfordinner tonight 7/20/2016 its #food

Last night we mentioned we got a ‘critical alert’ from our ‘Smart Hours’ thermostat. Between the hours of 2 and 7 p.m. we were told the electric rate for this evening would be 42 cents per kwh.

That is why we adjusted our menu so that we could prep a delicious meal using a crock pot. The great thing about cooking in a slow cooker or crock pot is that most of the cooking is done well before the higher rates start. Once they do start, a crock pot only used a tiny bit of electricity and generates very little heat, at least when compared to an oven.

Guess #whatsfordinner tonight 7/19/2016 its #food

 

That doesn’t look much like Black Bean Soup with Rice. Your right.

We’ve mentioned before that we participate in our electric companies ‘Smart Hours’ program. Between the hours of 2 and 7 p.m. the adjust their rates based on demand. This evening that rate was  18 cents per kwh. If they predict what they call a ‘critical’ rate they notify us in advance. Tonight they predicted the rate for tomorrow to be 42 cents per kwh 

Guess #whatsfordinner tonight 7/18/2016 its #food

Tonight we had probably one of the easiest recipes ever.

If you like Taco Bell you will really like these.

Tonight we had a copycat version of a Taco Bell classic Mexican Pizza.

It really turned out great.

Could be a new family favorite.

Guess #whatsfordinner tonight 7/17/2016 its #food

So this evening we tried a couple of new recipes.

Unfortunately, we thought the servings would be a little bigger than they turned out to be. In reality they both made great side dishes.

Originally we thought we would make sandwiches to put with them but instead we stopped and picked up some chicken tenders. They were a better match for the 

A week in review – #recipes in our #menu

This week we again deviated just a little from our “Summer Electric Plan.” We found a great deal on a ham this week. Even though it does require using the oven to prep it the first day we were able to use it for several dishes later in the week. Some things are just worth it. Ham is one of those things

Besides that we were able to make up for it with several ‘no cook’, microwave, and  crock pot dishes during the week.

What is nice is that we are finding that even though we are using these alternate cooking methods we aren’t really having to sacrifice flavor. All of the dishes we had this week were delicious.

Guess #whatsfordinner tonight 7/14/2016 its #healthy

This has become a go to dish for us. It is so easy and flavorful. Its also the perfect food for this time of year. With our ‘Summer electric plan’ in play it fits in beautifully.  Absolutely no oven or stove top cooking. It did use several gadgets for cooking, a rice cooker, a crock pot, and a Microwave.

Guess #whatsfordinner tonight 7/13/2016 #food

 

Earlier this week we had a delicious Baked Ham with Cherry-Pineapple Glaze and we had leftover ham. Last week we had Zucchini Pancakes the zucchini we had was huge. Since it was fresh from the garden it kept well.

This was the perfect combination for a great

A week in review – #recipes in our #menu

This week we deviated just a little from our “Summer Electric Plan.” We did a little more stove top cooking than in previous weeks and even fired up the oven. However, it was a holiday week so we made up for it a bit by grilling a large brisket and using it later in the week for other meals too.

The really cool part was that we took the opportunity to invite some friends over when we smoked the brisket and they shared some really great dished with us.

Bacon Wrapped Corn
Smoky Haricots Verts and Mushrooms
Basil Cherry Tomatoes

Basil Cherry Tomatoes

This is the last of the sides our friends brought over for a dinner on the 4th.

I love cherry tomatoes. Especially if they are as sweet and juicy as these were.

Who would believe such a simple recipe could taste so good.