Juniper Ale Braised Kielbasa and Cabbage

We actually managed to stick mostly to our meal plan this last week, and today and over the next few days, I'll be sharing a couple recipes that we particularly enjoyed.

Meanwhile, my meal plan for the next little while is still loosely based on the two-week menu I posted a couple weeks ago, but with room to switch things up as needed.   Right now, 'as needed' means that it is getting toward the end of the month, I have a large stash of edibles already on hand, and using what I have to avoid unnecessary shopping trumps establishing a new plan and sticking with it.

My freezer stock is good enough to see us through at least a couple weeks, as long as I don't mind cooking some larger cuts to make them into multiple meals - and we do still get our weekly box of goodies to keep us in fresh fruits and vegetables.  I'll be skipping that next Wednesday - it'll be the 5th Wednesday of the month, and I'm just not budgeted for that.

So, this plan covers the next two weeks - far enough to get us to our next grocery delivery.  There may be a couple small grocery runs to cover an item here or there, but for the most part, this is using what I have on hand.

Wednesday, 7/23

Honey Spiced Chicken Thighs

Coconut Milk Quinoa

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Thursday, 7/24

Slow Cooker BBQ Brisket & Onions

Corn on the Cob

Tossed Salad

Friday, 7/25

Leftovers
with Coleslaw

Blanch greens for the freezer

Saturday, 7/26

Lemon Roasted Whole Chicken

Sauteed Summer Squash Medley

Fruit Salad with Coconut

Sunday, 7/27

(out most of the day)

Leftovers

Monday, 7/28

Spaghetti Squash 

with Ground Pork and Greens

Make broth of chicken carcass

Tuesday, 7/29

Leftovers

Wednesday, 7/30

Slow Cooker Beef Stew and Vegetables

Thursday, 7/31

Vegetable and Cheese Omelets

Salsa

Bacon

Friday, 8/1

DINNER OUT WITH FRIENDS

Prepare potluck offering for tomorrow.

Saturday, 8/2

LUGHNASADH POTLUCK GATHERING

Bring a Three Sisters Medley side dish

(corn, beans, squash)

Sunday, 8/3

Chili & Toppings

Rice

Monday, 8/4

Chicken & Vegetable Casserole

(specifics to be determined)

Tuesday, 8/5

TRIVIA NIGHT

(eating out)

Come the 6th of August, I'll be able to get in a large grocery delivery and replenish the larder, and I'll do so with an eye toward following  the plan I've established - so things should be a lot more 'routine' for the rest of the summer.

One dish from last week that we enjoyed was this Kielbasa skillet meal. While Kielbasa and Cabbage is nothing exotic, there were a couple things here that really made it stand out - first, this Kielbasa is from a local area farm, and was so ridiculously flavorful that every bite made my eyes roll back in my head.  I love kielbasa - but often the overriding flavor note is salt.  We will be keeping this on hand regularly!

The second  thing is  that the beer we used to braise it in was my husband Michael's second try at his own homebrewed beer recipe - a Juniper Ale that is lower on the hoppy side, higher with the malt notes, and a good hit of juniper, which played very well with the cabbage.  Obviously, you won't be able to recreate that exactly - but try a malty amber ale, and toss in a few juniper berries, and you should get close enough.

Juniper Ale Kielbasa, Cabbage and Potatoes

1 pkg. kielbasa, cut into 1" sections

2 Tblsp. butter

1 bottle malty amber ale

1/2 tsp. juniper berries

1 head cabbage, chopped

4 Yukon Gold or red skinned potatoes, scrubbed and sliced

1 tsp. caraway seeds

Melt butter in a skillet and brown kielbasa.  When browned, add beer and juniper berries to pan, cover and simmer about 20 minutes, or until cooked through.

Add the chopped cabbage and potato slices, mixing gently to combine, and cover, simmering until cabbage and potatoes are tender.

Serve in a bowl with a bit of the resulting broth (the alcohol will have cooked off, leaving a good rich broth).

We ate all but one of the kielbasa sections on the first night, but still had a good bit of veggies left - so on day two, we browned some Italian sausage and added it to the veggies, along with a few cut carrots, and that gave us enough for a second night's meal, with just enough for a couple of lunch portions on the third day.

Shared with:
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~ Dare to Share, Link Party Palooza, My Favorite Things Saturday, No-Rules Weekend, Saturday Sharefest, Say G'Day Saturday, Serenity Saturday, Show & Tell Saturday, Show Stopper Saturday, Simple Saturdays, Simply Natural Saturdays, Sparkles of Inspiration, Super Saturday, Weekend Potluck, Weekend Recipe Link Up.
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~ A Round Tuit Monday, Amaze Me Monday, Busy Monday, Clever Chicks Blog Hop, Creative Collection Blog Hop, Craftastic Monday, Frugal Crafty Home, Gathering Spot, Inspiration Monday, Mad Skills Monday, Making Your Home Sing Monday, Masterpiece Monday, Meandering Monday, Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Menu Plan Monday, Mix It Up Monday, Mommy Monday Blog Hop, Monday Funday, Mostly Homemade Monday, Much Ado About Monday, Real Food Recipe Round Up, Sweet Sharing Monday, Thank Goodness It's Monday.
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