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01/13/2013

Plan your meals a week at a time or pick and choose your favorites. Each meal comes with a handy shopping list. Bon Appetite!

Family SUNDAY

Make MARINATED FLANK STEAK WITH CORN RELISH for the family today. Trim a 1 1/2-pound flank steak and place in a resealable plastic bag. Mix 1/2 cup dry red wine, 1/3 cup chopped sweet onion (such as Vidalia), 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce and 2 cloves minced garlic. 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 drained Mexicorn, 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, 1 teaspoon olive oil and 1 teaspoon sugar; mix well. Serve with steak.

Add oven-baked POTATO WEDGES, STEAMED ZUCCHINI and SOURDOUGH BREAD. For dessert, fat-free STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM is the sweet treat.

PLAN AHEAD: Save enough steak for Monday; save enough ice cream for Tuesday.

Budget 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.

Express TUESDAY
Make everyone's favorite, TUNA MELTS, for a quick meal. Spread deli tuna salad on whole-grain bread and top with a slice of your favorite cheese. Broil until cheese melts. Serve with canned SUN-RIPENED YELLOW TOMATO SOUP (such as Campbell's) and a packaged GREEN SALAD. Leftover ICE CREAM is a fine dessert.

Kids' WEDNESDAY
Kids will like the mild 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.
Check out the recipe for this day!

Heat and Eat THURSDAY
Yippee! Dinner is ready as soon as you heat the leftover BAKED ZITI. Cover and heat it in the microwave on medium (50 percent power) about 2 minutes per cup. Add a SPINACH SALAD and GARLIC BREAD. Why not have leftover COOKIES for dessert?

TIP: When heating dishes with cheese in the microwave, use a lower power so the cheese does not get tough.

Meatless 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.
Check out the recipe for this day!

Entertaining 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.

Check out the recipe for this day!

Susan Nicholson is an Atlanta-based cookbook author and registered dietitian. E-mail Susan at menuplanner@mindspring.com.