It was a rare weekend.

Maybe it was all the cold, rainy weather that kept us indoors, but I actually spent most of Sunday and part of Saturday planning, preparing and setting aside meals for the week. I was the master of my gluten-free kitchen for a fleeting moment. I even baked a cake with my two boys and let them help me decorate it. I felt like a regular June Cleaver. Only I had to take off my apron and dust myself off in time to go to work Saturday night!

Here's how I did it:

Meal one: I started by making a big pot of spaghetti sauce. I chopped, dropped and simmered the sauce and reserved half for the rest of the week (recipes to follow). For tonight, it was gluten-free spaghetti noodles tossed with the fresh sauce. I served it with corn and chocolate soy milk.

Big Pot O Sauce
1 jar Classico sauce
1 large can tomato puree
1 can stewed tomatoes
2 teaspoon olive oil
1 pound Jenny-O turkey
1/3 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, sliced thin
2 zucchini or zucchini squash grated
1 package mushrooms, diced
Italian spices, to taste

In large stew pot, heat olive oil and add garlic and onion. Saute 5 minutes, then add turkey. Brown, then add veggies. Saute 5 minutes, then add sauce, puree, tomatoes and spices. Simmer about 1 hour.


Meal 2: The next morning, I turned into Betty Crocker. I don't know what got into me. Maybe it was the actual Betty Crocker yellow cake mix in the cupboard, or the fresh-from-the-farm chicken in my fridge, but I was set on spending the day in the kitchen. I started by roasting the chicken and throwing the remains in my big stock pot (a slow cooker also works) for broth. I would later serve chicken for dinner with some Lundberg Risotto and broccoli.

Roasted Chicken
1 roasting chicken
1/3 onion whole
1 stalk celery
salt, pepper to taste
2 teaspoons olive oil

Place onion and celery inside crevice of chicken. Rub with olive oil and season to taste. Set chicken in roasting pan and cook 40-45 minutes at 350 F, or until temperature of the breast reaches 165-170 F. (Disclaimer: The government says whole chicken should be cooked to 180 F, but I go with the temperature of the breast, since the thigh will be a higher temperature and the government also says a chicken breast should be cooked to 165.)

Stock
1 chicken carcass
1 whole onion, cut into 4 sections
2 carrots, whole
2 garlic cloves whole
4-5 celery stocks, whole
3 teaspoons salt
6-8 whole peppercorns
2 quarts of water, or enough to cover the whole shebang

Set in pot or slow cooker and simmer 4-6 hours.
While the pot bubbles, make a cake or a fun treat. The smell will make you hungry.
Strain broth into heat-safe container or another large pot. Cool 1 hour, then cover and put in fridge. When it is completely cooled, fat will congeal. Spoon fat off top and place liquid in containers for freezing and/or storing. I put mine in two empty fruit juice containers. One goes in the freezer, one in my fridge.

Meals 3, 4 and 5: So, here's where I get a little ahead of the game. I've got dinner all set to go by about 3 p.m., some extra sauce in the fridge and I just went shopping. So, I put together three more meals for the rest of the week. The thought occurs to me that this may be a good habit to get into because school is starting next week ... we'll see.

Mushroom meatballs (adapted from Weight Watchers)
1 pound ground sirloin
1 package mushrooms, grated or put through food processor
1/2 onion, grated or put through food processor
2 cloves garlic, also grated or put through food processor
2-3 teaspoons cumin
salt and pepper, to taste

Mix ingredients with hands and roll into balls. Place on large cookie sheet lined with foil and bake 15-20 minutes at 350 F. Makes about 35 balls. I let them cool and set in a container for later. Good on Kinnikinnick hot dog buns with a little reserved sauce and sliced mozzarella or Rice Cheese (all found at Hiller's). Warning: Shredded Rice cheese has casein in it. Stick to pre-wrapped slices if you are casein-free.

Beef Stroganoff
1-2 pounds beef (skirt steak or sirloin), cut into long, thin strips
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, sliced
1 package mushrooms
3-4 cups broth (I just scooped from my pot)
1 can tomato paste
2 teaspoons dried mustard
salt, pepper to taste

Brown beef with garlic and onions in large saute pan. Then deglaze pan with 1/3 cup of the broth. Add mustard, salt and pepper, mushrooms and the rest of the broth. Bring to boil, then add tomato paste. Simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat. Cook 4 cups rice. Set 3 cups of cooked rice in large casserole dish and cover with stroganoff (reserve 1 cup for recipe below). Cool and cover. Set in fridge for another night. Serve with sour cream if desired.

Stuffed Zucchini
4 small or 3 large zucchini or summer squash, cut lengthwise
3 cups spaghetti sauce
1 cup rice
Cheese of choice (we used Vegan Gourmet), such as mozzarella

Take a small spoon and scrape out seeds and pulp of zucchini or squash. Place in Pyrex or casserole dish, side-by-side. Mix sauce and rice and scoop mixture into cavities of squash. Cover with slices of cheese and cover with tin foil and then lid. You can freeze this for later or put in your fridge. When it's time to make it, bake with tin foil on for 30 minutes at 375 F.

I think that's it. Can someone come over and do my dishes now?

Call for help: I have been seaching high and low for a bag of Ting's. They are gluten- and casein-free and my son loves them. Anyone know where I can find some?