I have been sitting here, with my computer on my lap, for the past two hours trying to think of what to write about. For two hours, I have been sitting here and nothing even remotely related to food has crossed my mind. Instead my mind has been wandering to far off places, thinking of things that really aren’t helpful at all when trying to write a post for a food blog.

• Random Non-Food Related Thought #1 - I’ve been contemplating buying a Dyson vacuum but am hesitant to plunk down that much change for a vacuum cleaner. According to my contacts over at Twitter, a Dyson is well worth the investment. What do you think? Experiences?
• Random Non-Food Related Thought #2 - I turn 35 in less than 2 weeks. Why is it that as a teenager I had perfect skin, but now that I am in my mid-30’s I am having massive breakouts?  Bring on the Noxzema.
• Random Non-Food Related Thought #3 - I wonder if people who are auditioning for American Idol play the American Idol Wii game. I’ve actually won the game and have become the next American Wii Idol… thinking it may give those people considering auditioning a little more confidence than they should have to audition.
• Random Non-Food Related Thought #4 - I really need to find a good blog designer for another blog I’m working on. If Jules with Everyday Design is not available, I need to get someone else in place pronto! Do you know of anyone you can refer?
• Random Non-Food Related Thought #5 - My husband doesn’t read this blog or our family blog, and I think that is starting to irk me a bit. Seriously… if he wrote a blog (which will never happen) but still…if he wrote a blog I would hang on every word and would love to have that glimpse into his life.  Do your loved ones read your blog?

My thoughts are now getting a bit too random to even continue. I do have to share this recipe with you that I tried out last week. You may have remembered seeing it on our menu. I followed the recipe exactly, but added some chicken breast pieces sauteed in rosemary and garlic. Delicious!

Penne with Pumpkin Cream Sauce from Everyday with Rachael Ray Magazine

1 pound penne pasta
2T butter
1 onion, chopped
salt & pepper
1 15-oz. can pure pumpkin puree
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese plus more for topping
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Cook pasta until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking water.

In the same pot, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the onion and season with salt and pepper; cook, stirring until softened, about 6 minutes. Stir in the pumpkin and heavy cream and bring to a boil. Return the pasta to the pot, along with the reserved pasta water, and toss. Stir in the parmesan; season with salt & pepper.

Top pasta with parsley and more parmesan to serve.

I know that so many people have such a love/hate relationship with Rachael Ray. I admit, I don’t watch her shows, but I do like a lot of her recipes. Other food bloggers do too! Check out some of these food blog tried and true Rachael Ray recipes:

• Gigi’s Apple Cake from Culinarily Obsessed
• Garlicky Bean and Chicken Enchiladas from Taste and Tell
• Spanish Shrimp and Chorizo Skewers from I’m Running to Eat
• Cheddar Cheese and Macaroni from Family, Friends and Food

Hubby is gone on business again this week, so the kids and I are on our own. I remember when I was a kid and my dad would go out of town on business, we would get to have frozen pizza, boxed macaroni and cheese and hot dogs. My mom always cooked fantastic meals when dad was home, so although we missed him when he was out of town, we looked forward to eating meals that we didn’t get to eat when he was home. Just like when we had babysitters, TV Dinners (with the dessert and everything) was our special dinner. We got to get out the metal TV trays and everything! What a treat

Our menu this week is pretty much inspired by what we have in the fridge, freezer and pantry that needs to be used up. Check out I’m An Organizing Junkie for other Menu Planning Monday participants!

• Monday - Easy Chuck Roast from Tammy’s Recipes (modified for Crock Pot)
• Tuesday - Shredded Beef Tacos with leftover Chuck Roast
• Wednesday - Tuna Noodle Casserole inspired by Pinch My Salt
• Thursday - Mom’s Mustard Chicken from Apples and Butter (my adoptee!)
• Friday - Homemade Pizza
• Saturday - Date night out at the Barn Party - eating at the party!
• Sunday - Zippy Chicken and Mushroom Soup from Dine & Dish (one of our Family Favorites!)

What’s on your menu this week?

This is probably completely inappropriate talk for a food blog, but why is it that you can get in the car, leave work, drive for 30 minutes and not have to go to the bathroom at all. Then, when you pull onto your street and open the garage door, you suddenly have to go soooooo bad that you can hardly stand it! What is up with that? I think it is all about the anticipation of being home.

Being an instant gratification kind of gal, I don’t do well with anticipation. I buy my husband Christmas presents and have to give them to him early because I can’t stand to wait to see his reaction. I rarely let cookie dough chill before baking it. I’ve never made a sourdough starter because the thought of waiting for days for something to come to fruition would drive me to drink (actually… that may be a good enough excuse as any!).

Bierocks were on the menu for tonight. Biercocks are a German food, commonly seen at Oktoberfest events and well known for being a “stretch your dollar” kind of recipe. The only problem I have with Bierocks is it takes awhile to put them together. You start with the dough then you have the filling cooking on the stovetop… the aroma of it filling the air and your mind racing to the time when you can actually take your first bite. No instant gratification with this one, just a whole load of wonderful anticipation. I can tell you this much… the first bite of one of these Bierocks, fresh out of the oven, is well worth waiting for!

Did you know that Susan over at Sticky, Gooey, Creamy, Chewy is celebrating her 1 year blogiversary with a huge bash? She is and she has asked each of us to bring a dish. I know that Bierock’s are probably not common party fare, but I am going to bring them anyway. They are a great handheld treat and are not something that people get to have everyday. Just like Susan’s blog, they are a little pocket full of goodness with something unexpected in every bite!

Bierocks (adapted from Delicious! Delicious!)

Dough:
2 1/4 tsps. dry yeast
1 cup warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs, beaten
4+ cups bread flour

Filling:
1/2 medium-sized onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. ground beef, pork, or turkey (I used turkey)
1 Tbs vegetable oil
1/2 small head of cabbage, shredded
salt and pepper, to taste (I add garlic salt and other seasonings as I see fit… make sure you season the filling well because the cabbage can take the show if you don’t!)
2 Tbs Butter, melted

1. Dissolve sugar and yeast in warm milk. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. In a heavy -duty mixer, combine oil, salt and eggs; add yeast mixture. Add 1 cup of flour and beat for 1 minute. Beat in 1/2 cup of flour at a time, until dough pulls away from sides of bowl.
2. Switch to dough hook. Knead on low speed, adding remaining flour 1 TB. at a time, until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
3. Place dough in a well-oiled large bowl and loosely cover. Let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
4. To make filling, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add meat, onion and garlic and cook until meat is browned, stirring to crumble. Add cabbage and cook until wilted. Season with salt and pepper. Let cool.
5. Punch dough down and let rest 5 minutes.
6. Divide dough in half. Roll each half into a letter-sized rectangle (roughly 8 by 11) and cut each rectangle into 6 squares. Spoon 1/4 cup filling into center of each square. Bring opposite corners together at the center, pinching corners and seams to seal. Place seam side down on a large baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Repeat with remaining dough. Cover and let rise 20 minutes.
7. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
8. Uncover, brush tops with melted butter and bake until lightly golden, about 15 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Makes 12 bierocks.

How about some other German recipes to get you in the Fall mood! Check out what these other food bloggers have to offer:

• Hot German Potato Salad from Andreas Recipes
• German Farmer’s Breakfast from Simply Recipes
• Hearty German Soup from the Green Gourmet Giraffe
• German Salad Dressing from A Veggie Venture
• A Whole German Meal from The Open Pantry

• Read about what has caused me to be a bit of an emotional wreck lately HERE
• I’ve started what I am calling a Button Blogroll. If I read your blog (which if you comment on my blog, you are in my Google reader) and you have a button you would like for me to add, please contact me and I’ll add your button!
• It isn’t too late to enter the giveaway for the Cabaret Brewed Chocolate! Comment on THIS POST to enter.
• I have to give an extra special thanks to Robin at Big Red Kitchen for adding my Mom’s blog “On the Inside Looking Back” to her Blogs of the Month group. I am so proud of my mom and having other people recognize her just makes my heart swell!

My husband is out of town all week this week on business. While he is enjoying all the fine dining New York establishments on his company’s dime, the kids and I are going to be attempting to have somewhat decent meals at home. My instinct is just to feed them cereal every night, but I guess that wouldn’t be very appropriate, now would it? Instead, I’ve planned meals that they like…mostly centered around pasta!

Join Menu Planning Monday. More information can be found at I’m an Organizing Junkie!

• Monday - Bierocks from Delicious! Delicious!
• Tuesday - Penny with Pumpkin Cream Sauce from Everyday with Rachael Ray
• Wednesday - Church Mother’s Circle Kickoff (eat out prior!)
• Thursday - Cheesy Baked Shells and Broccoli from Real Simple Magazine
• Friday - Homemade Pizza
• Saturday - Angel Hair with Spicy Shrimp from Real Simple Magazine
• Sunday - White Bean Chicken Chili from Dine & Dish

• If you are participating in Adopt-A-Blogger 2 and haven’t heard from your partner, please contact me ASAP! Also, if you are an experienced blogger and missed out on adopting someone, we still have newbies who want to be adopted. Just let me know!
• The winner of the Country Bob’s Cookbook is Lan from Angry Asian Creations. Congratulations to you!
• Remember to enter the Dine & Dish giveaway from Cabaret Chocolate for a jar of their delicious Brewed Chocolate! More info can be found HERE.

I have received a lot of emails over the last couple weeks about Menu Planning. I really think that many of you are a lot like me… you don’t want to start doing something if you can’t do it absolutely perfect. Menu Planning is one of those things that I used to shy away from. I wanted to cook each night based on my mood, not on a strict schedule. That wasn’t so difficult when there was just two of us. Now, with a family of five, I have no choice but to have a little structure to my menu.

I menu plan for a couple of different reasons. The main reason is this…I am a work at home mom. I work part time from home doing freelance work. Our food/entertainment budget since staying at home has dwindled considerably. We just don’t have the funds to go out and eat on a whim like we used to. When I have a menu planned for the week and have shopped from my grocery list for those meals, I am much less likely to be tempted to eat out. Plus, if I can limit the number of times I go to the grocery store, that helps eliminate the impulse buys that inevitably happen when I go to the store unprepared.

I try to stick to our menu each week, but it doesn’t always happen. Last week, we had the first really cold, fall day of the season and to me that screams chili. I didn’t have chili on the menu plan, but I did have the ingredients on hand, so we switched out whatever was that day for chili. When you have at least five days worth of dinners planned out, you know that with at least those ingredients on hand, you have a meal to fall back on. If your mood calls for something different that night and you have the ingredients on hand, don’t feel like you are stuck to what’s on the menu. Let your menu be a flexible guide and start with baby steps. Once you get in the routine of planning, you will find it is an enjoyable event. (Think of it this way… what better excuse do you need to get to browse through your recipe collection? My husband knows that Sunday afternoons, I can usually be found pouring over magazines, cookbooks and food blogs, all in the name of “menu planning”.  Me time, with a purpose!)

Here is what the Dine & Dish household has on the menu this week. What do you have planned? Make sure to head over to Organizing Junkie to see what others are planning this week!

Let me know one thing that is on your menu this week or what you find to be the most challenging aspect of menu planning, and your comment will be entered into a giveaway for a great cookbook from Country Bob’s.  Winner will be chosen by the Random Number Generator. Deadline for commenting will be 10pm CST on Friday, September 12th.

• Monday - Maple Grilled Salmon from Cooking Light
• Tuesday - Grilled Bacon Cheeseburger Calzones - from Everyday with Rachael Ray
• Wednesday - Tacos
• Thursday - Chicken Baked in White Wine Marinade from Cooking Light
• Friday - Homemade Pizza
• Saturday - Onion Smothered Italian Burgers from Cooking Light
• Sunday - Pork and Bell Pepper Stir Fry from Everyday with Rachael Ray

Since you stuck with me through this whole post, let me share with you one of my favorite Tilapia recipes.

Mama’s Supper Club Tilapia Parmesan (from Recipezaar)

35 min | 15 min prep

SERVES 4

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In buttered 13-by-9-inch baking dish or jellyroll pan, lay fillets in single layer.
3. Do not stack fillets.
4. Brush top with juice.
5. In bowl combine cheese, butter, mayonnaise, onions and seasonings.
6. Mix well with fork.
7. Bake fish in preheated oven 10 to 20 minutes or until fish just starts to flake.
8. Spread with cheese mixture and bake until golden brown, about 5 minutes.
9. Baking time will depend on the thickness of the fish you use.
10. Watch fish closely so that it does not overcook.
11. Makes 4 servings.

It feels like Monday to me. Actually, it kind of still feels like the weekend. After two full weeks of school, our kids have their first offical day off for Teacher Inservice things. I love it when they extend an already long weekend with an extra day off of school, but it makes me wish that we had more long weekends like this. My husband took off work too, so it has been an extra amount of fun to have daddy home with us!

I feel the need to explain my menu this week. We had a big neighborhood pool party on Saturday and we had a ton of leftover sandwich buns. My husband smoked some meat and we had a party at our house on Sunday night and got rid of one huge package, but we still have one huge package left. By huge, I mean commercial size package. We have a lot of buns to go through! So, it is sandwich week at Dine & Dish!

• Monday - Cheeseburgers
• Tuesday - Pesto Chicken Sandwiches with Caramelized Onions from For The Love of Cooking
• Wednesday - Emmental Honey & Ham Panini from Paninni Happy
• Thursday - Turkey and Vegetable Hand Pies from Everyday Food
• Friday - Homemade Pizza
• Saturday - Summer Lovin’ Salad from Coconut and Lime
• Sunday - Crokpot Roast with potatoes, onions and carrots

What’s on your menu this week?

I launched Adopt a Blogger #2 last week. Blogging friends, we have some eager food blogging newbies who need an experienced blogger to adopt them. Thanks to those of you who have already stepped forward. For the rest of you veteran bloggers, here are the top five reasons why I think you should adopt a blogger:

1. Adoption is cool. If you go the adopt a blogger route, it is much less expensive and you don’t have to travel internationally to pick up your adoptee.
2. Under most circumstances, your food blogging adoptee will come already potty trained.
3. How often do you get to completely influence someone without actually worrying about what kind of adult they’ll turn out to be?
4. Deb from Smitten Kitchen, Lydia from The Perfect Pantry, Holler over at Tinned Tomatoes and Peabody were all adoptive parents last go around (along with a whole slew of wonderful people!). If they have the time to adopt a newbie, you do too!
5. Oprah Winfrey has a mentor. Michael Phelps has a mentor. Wouldn’t you like to be a mentor too?

Lydia from The Perfect Pantry (who adopted 2 bloggers last time around) had this to say about her Adopt a Blogger experience.

“I just want to tell all the more experienced food bloggers out there that adopting a blogger is a wonderful thing. I’ve adopted two bloggers. The time commitment is only what you can do, and it’s so rewarding to watch your adoptive blogs grow. Please sign up!”

I am not going to beg… at least not yet… but I hope you will consider taking a part of Adopt a Blogger #2. Help a fellow food blogger get their wings and mentor someone today! Sign up by commenting on THIS post.

Just for kicks and grins, here is what we had for dinner tonight. I made some minor adjustments (didn’t have colby jack cheese, so used what we had on hand… cheddar and mozzarella) and I completely changed the tomatillos and chilies to a can of rotelle. I know - nothing like tomatillos and it is probably a bit sacreligious, but it is what I had on hand and it turned out great! This is a very versatile recipe. I hope you enjoy!

Chicken Chilaquiles (from Cooking Light Magazine)

2 cups shredded skinless, boneless rotisserie chicken breast
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese with jalapeño peppers, divided
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup 1% low-fat milk
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 (11-ounce) can tomatillos, drained
1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375°.

Combine chicken, green onions, 1/4 cup Monterey Jack cheese, Parmesan, chili powder, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Place milk and next 3 ingredients (through chiles) in a food processor or blender; process until smooth.

Heat tortillas according to package directions. Pour 1/3 cup tomatillo mixture into bottom of an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 4 corn tortillas in dish, and top with half of chicken mixture. Repeat layer with remaining tortillas and chicken mixture, ending with tortillas.

Pour remaining 1 1/2 cups tomatillo mixture over tortillas; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Monterey Jack cheese. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until bubbly.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups)

Intrigued by tomatillos? Check out what these food bloggers are doing with them:

• Tomatillo and Black Bean Salsa from Kaylyns Kitchen
• Avocado and Tomatillo Salsa from Cafe LynnyLu
• Pork and Tomatillo Stew from Daily Bread Journal
• Homemade Guacamole with Tomatillos from A Veggie Venture

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• Two more days to enter the Dine & Dish giveaway for your very own set of Envirosax. Check out the details here.
• Something I found hilarious, and so very handy. Check out Inn Cuisine’s post on The YouTube Movement Against Chip Clips.
• Obsessed much? My son is a tad bit obsessed with the Olympics and Michael Phelps. At least my kiddos learned something from watching so much TV! Dishing It Up Family Style is here.

I admit… I was torn to see school start this year. It felt like the summer just flew by. Maybe that is something all moms say once they have kids in school, but I truly feel like summer was gone in a blink.

As sad I am to see school back in session, I am truly excited to get back into a somewhat more manageable routine. We may have more things going on during the school year, but at least we are on somewhat of a schedule.

Along with that schedule comes the challenge of finding time to sit down to dinner as a family each evening. During the summer we would eat dinner early or eat late or eat out… we ate dinner together, but it varied greatly as far as times. Now with school getting out at 4pm, and after school activities starting soon after, I am hungrily looking for delicious recipes that can fit into our ever tight schedules.

I recently found this recipe for Asian Lettuce Wraps on another food blog and now I can’t find the blog. Luckily, I did a search on All Recipes and found the same recipe. (If I commented on this recipe on your blog, please let me know and I’ll link this back to you.) I love this recipe because it gives me something besides tacos and spaghetti to use ground beef with. It is a fun, hand held dinner and it can be made in a jiffy. With recipes like this in my repertoire, I feel like I can finally get into the groove of things!

Asian Ground Beef Lettuce Wraps, from Allrecipes

• 16 Boston Bibb or butter lettuce leaves
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 2 teaspoons minced pickled ginger
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• Asian chile pepper sauce (optional)
• 1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts, drained and finely chopped
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 2 teaspoons Asian (dark) sesame oil

1. Rinse whole lettuce leaves and pat dry, being careful not tear them. Set aside.
2. In a medium skillet over high heat, brown the ground beef in 1 tablespoon of oil, stirring often and reducing the heat to medium, if necessary. Drain, and set aside to cool. Cook the onion in the same pan, stirring frequently. Add the garlic, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger, vinegar, and chile pepper sauce to the onions, and stir. Stir in chopped water chestnuts, green onions, and sesame oil, and continue cooking until the onions just begin to wilt, about 2 minutes.
3. Arrange lettuce leaves around the outer edge of a large serving platter, and pile meat mixture in the center. To serve, allow each person to spoon a portion of the meat into a lettuce leaf. Wrap the lettuce around the meat like a burrito, and enjoy!

Interested in other recipe versions of Lettuce Wraps? Check out what these food bloggers have to offer:

• Asian Turkey Lettuce Wraps, from Picky Palate
• Quick Chinese Lettuce Wraps, from Chaos in the Kitchen
• Ginger Chicken Lettuce Wraps, from The Village Voice
• Five-Spice Turkey and Lettuce Wraps, from Culinary in the Desert

There is still some room for you in the Adopt-a-Blogger 2 event. Veteran’s especially… come on out and mentor a new blogger! Click here to sign up.