SUNDAY: Make Marinated Flank Steak With Corn Relish for the family today. Trim a 11/2-pound flank steak and place it in a resealable plastic bag. Mix 1/2 cup dry red wine, 1/3 cup chopped sweet onion (such as Vidalia), 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 2 cloves garlic (minced). Add to bag; seal and refrigerate 30 minutes to overnight. Heat grill. Remove steak from bag and discard marinade. Lightly season steak with coarse salt and pepper.
Grill 17 to 21 minutes, turning once, for rare to medium-rare doneness. Carve steak across grain into thin slices. For the relish: Combine 1 (11-ounce) can Mexicorn (drained), 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, 1 teaspoon olive oil and 1 teaspoon sugar; mix well.
Serve with steak. Add ovenbaked potato wedges, steamed zucchini and sourdough bread.
For dessert, strawberry ice cream is the sweet treat.
Plan ahead: Save enough steak for Monday; save enough ice cream for Tuesday.
MONDAY: Add extra pennies to your purse and serve Beef-and-Gravy-Topped Baked Potatoes.
Chop the leftover steak and add to brown gravy (from a jar). Heat and top split baked potatoes with the mixture.
Serve with mixed vegetables and whole-grain rolls. Orange sections make an easy dessert.
TUESDAY: Make Tuna Melts for a quick meal. Spread tuna salad on whole-grain bread and top with a slice of your favorite cheese. Broil until cheese melts. Serve with canned tomato soup and a packaged green salad.
Leftover ice cream is a fine dessert.
WEDNESDAY: Kids will like the cheesy flavor of Baked Ziti (see recipe). Serve it with a lettuce salad. Chunky applesauce and gingersnaps are an easy dessert.
Plan ahead: Save enough cookies and baked ziti for Thursday.
THURSDAY: Yippee! Dinner is ready as soon as you heat the leftover baked ziti. Cover and heat it in the microwave on 50 percent power for 2 minutes per cup. Add a spinach salad and garlic bread. Why not have leftover cookies for dessert?
FRIDAY: Carrot-Fennel Soup (see recipe) is a meatless soup to enjoy on a cold night. Add some deviled eggs alongside to up the protein. Add a lettuce and tomato salad and breadsticks to complete the meal. Enjoy fresh tropical fruits for dessert.
SATURDAY: Expect rave reviews when you serve your guests Sesame Broiled Salmon With Wasabi Marinade (see recipe).
Serve with jasmine rice, snow peas and Boston lettuce.
Present butter cookies with pineapple sherbet for dessert.
THE RECIPES Baked Ziti 16 ounces ziti pasta 1/2 pound lean ground beef 1/2 pound ground turkey breast 4 cups chunky pasta sauce 1 tablespoon Italian
seasoning, divided use 8 ounces shredded mozzarella
cheese, divided use 1 (15-ounce) container cottage
cheese2 egg whites 1/4 cup freshly grated
parmesan cheese, divided
use
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.
In a Dutch oven, cook beef and turkey until no longer pink; drain and return to pot.
Add pasta sauce along with 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning to meat mixture. Stir cooked pasta into meat sauce and mix well.
Spread half of mixture evenly in the prepared dish. Top with half the mozzarella cheese. Combine cottage cheese, egg whites, 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese and remaining Italian seasoning;spread over mozzarella in dish.
Spread remaining pasta mixture over cottage cheese mixture.
Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until hot and cheese is golden. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Makes 10 servings.
Nutrition information: Each serving (made with reduced-fat and low-fat cheese) contains approximately 413 calories, 29 g protein, 11 g fat, 49 g carbohydrate, 53 mg cholesterol, 658 mg sodium and 3 grams fiber.
Carrot-Fennel Soup 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 fennel bulb, sliced 11/2 cups chopped onion 2 whole cloves garlic, peeled 1 pound carrots, cut into 2-
inch pieces 11/2 pounds sweet potatoes,
cut into 2-inch pieces 1 teaspoon coarse salt 1 teaspoon ground coriander 1/8 teaspoon paprika Fresh thyme sprigs, if desired 4 cups water 1 teaspoon toasted fennel
seeds for garnish
In a Dutch oven, heat oil on medium. Add fennel, onion and garlic; cover and cook 5 minutes or until softened. Add carrots and sweet potato and stir until coated by oil. Stir in salt, coriander, paprika and thyme (if using). Add water;
increase heat to medium-high and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and re-cover; simmer 25 minutes or until the carrots and potatoes are fork-tender.
Meanwhile, toast fennel seeds in a skillet on mediumlow heat for 2 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove and discard thyme sprigs from soup; puree using an immersion blender or food processor.
Serve hot, garnished with fennel seeds.
Makes 6 servings.
Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 220 calories, 4 g protein, 7 g fat, 37 g carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 462 mg sodium, 8 g fiber.
Recipe adapted from The Meat Lover’s Meatless Celebrations by Kim O’Donnel Sesame Broiled Salmon With Wasabi Marinade 1 tablespoon sesame seeds2 tablespoons wasabi powder 1 tablespoon water 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium
soy sauce 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons rice wine
vinegar 1 tablespoon light brown sugar 11/2 pounds salmon filets
Toast sesame seeds over medium-high heat in a dry skillet 3 minutes or until light golden-brown.
Combine wasabi powder, water and soy sauce in a small bowl; mix well. Add oil, vinegar, sugar and sesame seeds. Mix well. Reserve 2 tablespoons marinade for basting later.
Cut salmon into 6 serving pieces. Place salmon and marinade in a resealable plastic bag. Turn to coat. Marinate atroom temperature 30 minutes.
Remove salmon and discard marinade.
Place on rack of broiling pan. Fold thin ends under for more even cooking. Broil 8 to 10 minutes per inch of thickness or until desired doneness.
Brush with reserved marinade last 2 minutes of cooking. Serve immediately.
Makes 6 servings.
Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 175 calories, 24 g protein, 7 g fat, 2 g carbohydrate, 53 mg cholesterol, 178 mg sodium and no fiber.
Susan Nicholson is an Atlantabased cookbook author and registered dietitian. She can be reached by e-mail:
Food, Pages 32 on 01/16/2013