Hi Everyone and welcome to my weekly Sunday Meals of the Week post!  Every Sunday I like to do a recap of all of the main meals that I have enjoyed over the past seven days.  I find it very useful for myself and you, my readers have also said that you enjoy what i share, which is why I continue to do it each week.

As a person who lives on their own, it can be quite a challenge to cook healthy and interesting meals for myself.  I have gone from cooking for a family of seven to cooking for two and  now one.  

As a person on their own there can be a huge temptation to be lazy about eating and to eat from frozen dinners, ready meals, tin cans, etc.  I do not want to be that person.  This type of eating is not only very unhealthy, but those kinds of things are loaded with sugar, fat and salt.  I do not want or need to be eating like that.

Sharing my meals and menus with you each week inspires me to want to not only eat better but cook better. Combine that with the fact that I am a Senior citizen, living on a fixed income.  This means that not only am I challenged to eat fairly healthy, but also within the confines of a budget.

What you find here is tasty, but also economical and fairly healthy.  At least I try for it to be.  Most of the time.  I do treat myself every now and then!

What I share here are only my main meals. For breakfast most days I will enjoy a protein shake.  I also eat my main meals about mid day or early afternoon, unless I am eating with someone else.  I will then eat when they are eating.  For my supper/late afternoon, I will have a salad, or a sandwich sometimes,  occasionally a bowl of cereal or some toast.  I try to keep my eating later in the day light and easier to digest.  (Ahh the joys of growing older!)

In any case, here are the main meals that I enjoyed over the past seven days. I have included recipes and menu suggestions as well. I hope that you enjoy what I have shared!

SUNDAY, September 22nd - Sunday Dinner with the family at my sister's

On Sunday I usually have dinner with my family. My sister always cooks a delicious meal for us all. This week she did Meat Loaf, which she served with scalloped potatoes, carrots and corn pudding. It was delicious. We enjoyed a scoop of ice cream for dessert.  

She used the recipe from the package of Lipton Onion Soup mix to make the meatloaf. The scalloped potatoes were PC frozen scalloped potatoes and very good. She made the corn pudding herself. I made small version of it myself earlier this week. You can find that small batch recipe here. It's fabulous.

In it's place I am sharing my recipe for Mini Meatloaves, which are delicious.  

MONDAY, September 23rd, Spaghetti Pizza Pie for two

Spaghetti Pizza Pie for Two is a very simple meal.  You have a three cheese, egg and spaghetti base, topped with a simple and flavor filled marinara sauce topping. A layer of Pizza cheese goes on top and I like to add some pepperoni to finish it. I enjoyed with some garlic toast (homemade) and mixed vegetables.  This is delicious.

You can use whatever pizza toppings you enjoy.  I can't think of anything that would not work!  On the side garlic bread and a salad go very well!  The leftovers also heat well, should you actually have any left, but I predict that you won't!  This is really delicious and makes a change from a bread crust!

I had a piece of ham steak to use up so I baked it as per a Vintage menu I had done a few years ago. It always comes out tender and juicy with a nice glaze and hints of citrus flavors.  I did recreate the apple salad as well because that is especially tasty and goes very well with the ham.

On this particular occasion however, I did not do the whole menu, instead enjoying it with some mashed sweet potatoes and broccoli.  To make my mashed sweet potatoes, I simply bake a sweet potato until it is soft and then I peel the potato and mash it with a fork. It always tastes delicious. You can add a bit of salt and pepper if you like, but I enjoy it just as it is.

WEDNESDAY, September 25th - Supper out with Dad and Hazel

On Wednesday nights I usually go  out for supper with my father and his friend Hazel. Sometimes my sister joins us.  This week she did not.  We usually go to a local eatery.  The food is always hit and miss. this week my father had the haddie bits which were dried out. He didn't enjoy them at all.  Hazel had the grilled Haddock dinner which she enjoyed.

I had wanted to order a club sandwich, but was told they didn't have any turkey for club sandwiches or for the turkey dinner which is another favorite of mine.  The special was a Hot Turkey sandwich supreme. So I ordered that, only to be totally disappointed in it. There was no sliced turkey. Just crumbs of turkey, mixed with bread stuffing and crumbled bacon and gravy.  This was stuffed between two thick slices of toasted bread with gravy ladled over top.  It came with chips and coleslaw and I hate to say it but, it was nasty.  I think they were getting rid of the leavings before they close on Saturday for a refit.

In it's place I am sharing my own recipe for a Turkey Club Platter.  This is what a turkey club sandwich should be like.  I don't know why the people at this place can't even get something as simple as a hot turkey sandwich right.  I also don't know why my father and Hazel continue to want to eat there.

THURSDAY, September 26th - Cheese Crusted Grilled Cheese Sandwich and soup

I ended up in emergency for most of the day on Thursday. Thankfully it ended up being nothing, so that was good.  In any case I got home late and didn't really have much time to cook anything and so I made myself a grilled cheese sandwich which I enjoyed with a cup of Broccoli and Cheese Cup-A-Soup.

This is a grilled cheese sandwich that is cheesy not just on the inside, but also the outside. It is very satisfying and delicious. I like to use the Kraft Extra Cheddar Cheese slices when I made a grilled cheese. They just taste better than normal cheese slices. They are not individually wrapped in plastic, which I think makes a difference.  They are also thicker than normal cheese slices.

Normally I would not eat a sandwich two days in a row, but it is what it is. Sometimes life just gets in the way of you doing what you normally would do.

FRIDAY, September 27th - Teriyaki Beef Stir Fry

My sister and I went grocery shopping on Friday and I picked up a nice piece of flank steak half price.  I also got some nice vegetables. I decided to make myself a stir fry for supper.

I love stir fries.  They go together quickly and easily and this one is certainly a delicious version. It uses steak and a variety of vegetables.  Really whatever you have on hand. Stir fried and then you coat everything in a delicious homemade teriyaki sauce. Quick, easy and delicious.

I enjoyed with a pouch of  ready cooked steamed basmati rice for a simple supper that was not only really tasty, but very simple and quick to throw together.

SATURDAY, September 28th - Chicken Tostadas

I had some leftover cooked chicken to use up and I had picked up some tostada shells the other week when I was shopping so on this day I whipped myself up a small batch of chicken tostadas.  I have made tostadas in the past but this was the first time I was able to make them using proper shells.

They were delicious with a base of refried beans, spicy chicken, some salsa, cheese, lettuce, sour cream and spring onion.  With a squeeze of lime juice over top, these were excellent and really enjoyed. I also had some salad on the side. Quick, easy and delicious!  Very tasty!

And there you have it, my meals of the week for the past seven days! I hope you saw something here that tingled your tastebuds and inspired you to want to cook it for yourself!  That would make me very happy!

I was on Instagram the other day (Food Obsessed Girl) and saw this pudding recipe.  It immediately caught my eye. It is a British style pudding.  In the U.K. the term "pudding" is used to describe any dessert.  It can be cake, pies, cookies, sponges, and, well, puddings.  I love British Puddings, and knew I had to make this one.

Actually puddings there are not the same as our milky puddings here in North America either. More often than not they will be in the form of a sponge, or a steamed sponge, and so it is with this lovely pudding.

It consists of a delicious sponge cake type of pudding, made from flour and almonds, and studded throughout with bits of fresh pear and dark chocolate.  Pears and chocolate are perfect partners!  They go together like peas and carrots!

There is the added crunch of toasted almonds on top of this delicious sponge, and it is fabulous served warm with lashings of warm custard spooned over top.  The custard recipe is also included.  It is the simplest custard I have ever made.   In fact, it is so simple that it just might replace my normal custard recipe!

This was fabulous! The cake part of the pudding was light and fluffy, quite moist because of the pears, but not stodgy or damp. The chocolate went perfectly.  And that custard, well, these were perfect together. I really hope that you will be inspired to bake one of these delicious desserts this weekend! You won't be sorry!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Yield: 8 Servings

Author: Marie Rayner

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Pear Pudding with Custard

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 55 Min

A delicious pudding in the British style, studded generously with sweet bits of pear and dark chocolate. Fabulous served warm with lashings of the warm custard sauce spooned over top.

Ingredients

For the pudding:

• 1 cup (225g) butter, softened
• 1 cup +3 TBS (225g) caster sugar (fine granulated sugar)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cup (200g) self raising flour
• 3/4 cup + 2 TBS (75g) almond flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 ripe medium sized pears, peeled, cored and small diced
• 2/3 cup (100g) dark chocolate, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup (40g) flaked almonds

For the custard:

• 4 cups (950ml) whole milk
• 4 large egg yolks (or 5 medium)
• 2/3 cup (125g) caster sugar
• 1/4 cup + 3/4 TBS cornstarch (corn flour)
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 340*F/170*C/ gas mark 3. Butter a deep baking dish that is 8 by 11 inches in size.
2. Cream the butter and sugar for the pudding together until light and fluffy. Add both extracts and one egg. Beat until well combined and then beat in the other egg.
3. Whisk together the flour, baking powder and ground almonds until combined. Fold this mixture into the creamed mixture until well combined and no dry streaks remain. Gently stir in the chocolate and pears.
4. Spoon the mixture into the baking dish, smoothing over the top. Sprinkle the flaked almonds over all.
5. Bake for 30 minutes. Turn the dish around, then bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer. The center should be well set and not wobble and a toothpick inserted should come out clean with moist crumbs.
6. Run a butter knife around the edge to keep anything from sticking. Cut into squares to serve, along with the custard.
7. Make the custard while the cake is baking. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch together in a medium sized saucepan until it is smooth, thick and yellow.
8. Heat the milk in the microwave just until bubbles appear around the edges. Do not let it boil.
9. Slowly whisk the milk into the egg/sugar/cornstarch mixture, whisking constantly, until all of the milk has been added.
10. Place over medium high heat and cook, stirring constantly, with a whisk until the custard has simmered for a few minutes and thickened up to the desired consistency. It should coat the back of a metal spoon.

Did you make this recipe?

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