Week 3-Monday

Mexican Monday-- Santa Fe Casserole with Steamed Asparagus

taken from 6 Week Meal Planning

What you will need:
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1 tablespoon garlic
1/2 tablespoon EVOO
Pinch of salt
1/2 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 tablespoon pepper
1/2 can red beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup milk
1 and 1/2 cup brown rice, cooked-We used a steamer bag HOWEVER! Jason forgot to put it in the mix!
2 eggs, beaten
1 and 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 large green pepper, chopped

Direction
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees and spray a casserole dish with EVOO spray.
2. In a skillet, cook the onion, garlic, and EVOO on Medium High until tender.  Add the salt and chili powder.
3. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the pepper, milk, beans, COOKED brown rice, eggs, cheddar cheese, and green pepper.
4. Pour mixture into casserole dish and sprinkle with extra pepper.
5. Bake casserole for 25 minutes or until center is firm.
6. Let cool 5 minutes and serve.

ENJOY!
 
Steamed Asparagus

Stars

Jessie: 2.5 out of 5
Jason: 2.0 out of 5
*Our ratings could be different if we would have actually cooked the meal it was suppose to be. 

Thoughts:
It took us about 45 minutes from start to ready to serve.  Jason said he gave this meal a 2.0 because the casserole was runny, he put too much water in the tea he made and he forgot the rice! I thought it was ok. I would like to try it again and mix the rice. I think the rice would really help it set up. The flavor overall wasn't too bad but it was a little on the spicy side. Overall the meal was pretty easy and ok.

2012 Summer Transformation
Weight: Since I didn't weigh in since May 31st I was a little scared to get on the scale but it wasn't so bad. Monday is my official weigh in day I'm down 1.5 total since starting so I only gained 1 pound over two weeks which I will take with the way that I ate. 
Water: 48 oz...I need to get back on track!
Breakfast: 2 pieces white Goldfish bread with peanut butter and a banana
Lunch: chips and queso dip
Snack: am-nothing
           pm-Nature Valley Sweet & Salty Nut Granola Bar
Dinner: Santa Fe Casserole with Steamed Asparagus
Exercise: 50 minutes of water zumba-our normal teacher was gone so we had a sub
Sleep: I went to bed a bit late last night since we were watching the MIA/BOS basketball game. I think it was around 11:30 when I finally fell asleep then I was up at 6:30am so I still got 7 hours of sleep which isn't bad.

Saucy Lady BBQ

The second barbeque we had while we were back in Kansas was from Saucy Lady BBQ in Osage City. We have been wanting to try the Saucy Lady BBQ for a while so we were very excited to find out Gail would be open while we were back! Saucy Lady BBQ is sold out of a traveling trailer and can be found in the parking lot of Lohmeyers Haircuts most Fridays.

On this particular Friday Gail had several things on the menu so it made it difficult to choose but Jason and I ended up choosing three different items to share. We had Pulled Pork Nachos with White Cheese Sauce, Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich and a Pulled Pork Sandwich.

Pulled Pork Nachos with White Cheese Sauce

Ok, I know what you are thinking, pulled pork on chips with white sauce...really?!? That was my thought too but it was AMAZING! I seriously could have eaten the whole thing by myself and wanted more! The pork was very good but the white sauce was what made them very YUMMY!

 Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich

Several regulars at Saucy Lady BBQ told us we HAD to get the Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich so if the regulars say it is the best then that is what we shall have! The Philly Cheese Steak was just as the regulars said it was very good and full of flavor!

 Pulled Pork Sandwich

And finally, of course when you are at any BBQ joint you have to try the traditional sandwich. We already knew the pulled pork was good from the nachos but what made this sandwich great was the bun. I'm not sure exactly what kind of bun it was but is had a honey taste to it which made it very savory.

It has now been over a week since we had Saucy Lady BBQ and I'm still craving the Pulled Pork Nachos with White Cheese Sauce! We will be heading back to Osage a few more times this summer and several times this fall so I'm hoping we will be able to enjoy some Saucy Lady BBQ the next time we are back! If you are ever around Osage City on a Friday at lunch time you should swing by Lohmeyers Haircuts parking lot and get some very good BBQ!

**As a side note please pardon the quality and back drop of the pictures. The pictures were taken on my cellphone so they are not the best quality and back drop was the back of the boat! We had taken the boat to the car wash and walked down to get the BBQ then went back to wash the boat while we ate our lunch. Nothing like a makeshift table for some small town BBQ!**

Oklahome Joe's Barbeque

Our first stop when we got to Kansas was Oklahoma Joe's Barbeque one of our favorite places and arguably the best barbeque in Kansas! Oklahoma Joe's currently has two locations and will be opening a third soon! We we able to visit both of their current locations while we were home on this trip (I told you it was good BBQ)!

I get the same thing every single time (for those of you know me well this is absolutely no surprise!). I get a sandwich called a Z Man, which is one of their most famous sandwiches. It is brisket, smoked provolone topped with two onion rings and barbeque sauce on a kaiser bun. So good!

Z Man

Jason usually gets a half slab of rib dinner which comes with the ribs, one side and Texas toast. As a side we usually get fries but their baked beans are also very yummy! Jason loves the Texas toast but since Kinley has been eating real food he has had to learn to share! The ribs are cook absolutely perfect! They don't fall off the bone with you pick them up but as soon as you bite into the meat the do fall off the bone. The meat is cook just right as well.

Finally the fries. The is just ONE order! More than enough for two and a half people to share. They have a seasoning on them that makes them melt-in-your-month-yummy!

After we finished lunch we headed over to their new store which has all of their barbeque sauces, rubs and a huge variety of grills and smokers. We picked up some of their signature sauce, which just became available for purchase, and some of their chicken rub.

All of these pictures are from our stop at the restaurant on 119th and Strang Line. On our way home we stopped at the original location in a gas station on 47th and Mission. Of course we had the same exact meal and again to no surprise is was just as good!

If you are ever in the KC area make sure you stop by one of the locations and enjoy some yummy barbeque!

We're back!

Hello! So as I told you clear back on May 22nd we would be taking a bit of a hiatus. Basically from the 19th on we had commitments at dinner time so we were unable to eat at home. Here is the quick rundown:
19th: Kinley's birthday
20th: volleyball
21st and 22nd: Cedar Falls baseball game
23rd: we were packing
24th through 30th: Kansas!

And we have been too lazy to go grocery shopping since. We are ready to start the 6 Week Meal Planning again on Monday so be ready because this week sounds super yummy!

While we were in Kansas we were able to eat some very yummy barbeque so I thought I would spend the next couple of days telling you all about the food so stay tuned for all the details! Happy Saturday!