A New Habit

We've started a new habit here at casa de twins and that is to publish a weekly dinner menu for the family. This means that every weekend (usually on Saturday) Tom and I choose the menu for the week and then I do the shopping. The goal is to get our grocery bill down to $150 per week (we're almost there) and to throw away less food every week. We only buy for the menu and for lunches for the boys. We started it a few weeks ago and the result has been much less stress each night, yummy food and less waste. A success any way you look at it.
So, our menu for this week is:
Mon - Chicken Marsala (recipe at the end) with mashed potatoes and salad
Tues - Tortilla soup with tomato and avocado salad
Wed - Leftovers
Thurs - Cauliflower soup and salad
Fri - Sandwich night

I made the Chicken Marsala and the tortilla soup on Sunday afternoon. Monday night I just had to reheat the chicken, boil and mash the potatoes and toss the salad.
Cauliflower soup is really quick and easy and I'm going to garnish it with crispy bacon. I'll cook extra bacon so we can have bacon and egg sandwiches on Friday night. Easy menu, inexpensive ingredients and quick to prepare.

Chicken Marsala
olive oil
8 chicken thighs (can be bone in or not, skinless or not)
1 small onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
marsala wine
white wine
1 8oz package of cremini mushrooms (white buttons are fine if it's all you have), sliced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Swirl a tablespoon of olive oil in a large pot or dutch oven, add chicken thighs and cook until browned. Remove chicken to a plate and set aside. Pour off the excess fat. Add the sliced onions to the pot and cook until translucent. Add the garlic and cook another 30 seconds or so. Deglaze the pot with 2 cups of marsala wine scraping the browned bits off the bottom of the pot. Add a 1/2 to 1 cup of white wine and let simmer for 10 minutes. Toss in the mushrooms and add the chicken back to the pot along with the accumulated juices. Put it in the oven and let it cook for 30 minutes.
The chicken will be super tender, there will be a sweet and earthy sauce, and the mushrooms and onions will taste divine. Served over creamy mashed potatoes, this will become one of your favorite comfort foods.