Ditch the PB&J and put a twist on one of America’s #1 sandwiches – HAM! Send the family off to school or work with new variations of this perennial favorite in their lunchboxes. Make sure you leave a comment after downloading todays recipes so that you are entered to win the $100 gift card to your favorite grocery store!

Ham & Cheese Dippers put a spin on the traditional ham sandwich by cutting it into bite-sized squares, threading them onto a toothpick and dipping the skewers into sauces:

• Honey-Mustard (stir together 1/4 cup mustard and 2 tablespoons honey)
• Barbecue (stir together 1/4 cup barbecue sauce and 1 tablespoon Italian dressing)
• Fruit (stir together 1/4 cup fruit jam and 1 tablespoon of minced fruit of choice).

Ditch the bread and make Ham & Cherry Roll-Ups for lunch instead. This unique flavor combination will have kids (and grown ups) cheering for more. Stir together cream cheese, sliced green onions, chopped walnuts and cherry preserves and spread onto each ham slice. Then roll ‘em up and secure with a tooth pick.

Making smart food choices to feed a family can be challenging in today’s economic climate. For a protein choice that’s flavorful, economical and cooks in a flash, give ground pork* a try. Kid-friendly and versatile, ground pork will quickly become a grocery cart staple. For another great value option, try a pork shoulder roast.
Spicy Asian Ground Pork Burgers use Asian flavors of crushed garlic, grated ginger root, soy sauce, garlic chili paste and some fresh minced mint for flavorful patties. Grill and serve on sandwich buns for a tasty lunch or dinner.
Other ideas:

• Beyond meatballs, burgers and meat loaf (all definitely tasty with ground pork!), sprinkle cooked ground pork on pizza, rice, taco salad or a baked potato.

• Fill tacos, burritos and casseroles with ground pork.

• Stir ground pork into chili, stew, sauces, dips and sloppy Joes.

Don’t forget that everytime you download a recipe from TheOtherWhiteMeat.com you gain another entry into the $100 gift card contest! Make sure you are leaving a comment to get your entry!

With all that’s on a family agenda, it’s hard enough to find time to enjoy a meal together – much less anything else! Use NETW as inspiration to commit to an activity together that takes you beyond the table, too. First, start in the kitchen by preparing an easy meal that kids can help with, like Pepperoni Pizza with Peppers. Smaller hands can add the toppings after moms and dads chop ‘em. Don’t be afraid to try new toppings either, such as chopped bacon or even pulled pork. Serve pizza wedges with a lightly dressed tossed salad.
Once dinner’s done, choose an activity everyone will enjoy. It doesn’t have to be an evening out – keep it low cost with plenty of at-home ideas:

• “Retro” Returns: Teach kids a classic card game parents remember from childhood (i.e. gin rummy, spades, hearts); or have the kids teach their parents a game they like.

• Enjoy Autumn: Take a walk in the park or around the neighborhood to collect fallen leaves to fill a decorative outdoor planter back at home.

• Say Cheese!: Bring out the photographer in everyone! Take turns with the digital camera, and work with the kids to create a picture collage with the printed pictures. Get creative and make customized placemats that you can laminate and use at the dinner table.

Breakfast can be crunch time – everyone is in a rush to get to school or work. For a quick start that’s friendly for families on-the-go, prepare these super simple Ham and Cheese Muffins – yummy buttermilk muffins that get a flavor boost from diced ham steak and Cheddar cheese.

Even better, they can be made in advance, frozen and defrosted individually for a quick breakfast days down the road!

We had a fantastic time at the twitter Party last night! We thank each and every one of who came out and celebreated National Eat Together Week with us! I know everyone is very excited to see if they won a very cool lunch tote last night! the winners are all below! If you won, please fill out our form so we can pass your information along to the sponsor. You don’t want to miss out on your prizes! If you do not respond within 48 hours we will chose another winner so MAKE SURE YOU CLAIM YOUR WIN!

WINNERS FORM – Please fill in your information if you won!

10 Lunch Tote Winners
@serenemoments2
@shawnmh
@CountrySprite
@carogonza
@permeister Chosen randomly from the RSVP list because we missed a question in all the excitement!
@LiveLaughLoveCj
@bluefroggie
@rejoiceinsaving
@lovemykeiki
@lovemy2doggies

The $100 Gift Card prize is still open to enter until Saturday! Don’t forget to download your recipes and come back and tell us which ones you picked! You can find all information on our previous posts. Please do not post entries here post as they will not count!

Don’t forget tonight’s twitter party!!! Download your recipes to enter to win $10o giftcard to your grocery store or some adorable lunch kits!

Make Monday night Grilling Night! Pork cuts like chops or pork tenderloin are easy to fire up and can go from grate-to-table in less than 30 minutes. Try America’s Favorite Pork Chops tonight. Marinate pork chops with Italian dressing and a dash of Worcestershire sauce for about 20 minutes (or start them the night before when you have more time). Then, toss the chops on the grill and enjoy with sliced tomatoes in vinaigrette, broccoli spears and garlic mashed potatoes.
Once dinner’s served, use the table time to talk to kids about what it means to “give back.” Below are some dinnertime talking points to get the conversation started.

• Support Food Banks: There’s no better time than mealtime to talk about how to help the hungry. For an easy start, visit TheOtherWhiteMeat.com to “click for a cause”. Starting September 20-26, for each recipe printed or shared within the special National Eat Together Week section of the Web site, America’s pork producers will donate five pounds of pork to a food bank in need.

• Volunteer to Help Those in Need: Identify a local soup kitchen in the area where the family can volunteer. Ask the kids why serving food to those in need is important to trigger their desire to get involved.

• Kid-friendly Kindness: Ask each child to list a task they can easily complete – raking leaves, visiting with an older neighbor, helping a sibling – and challenge them to complete it as a kindess for someone else by the end of National Eat Together Week.

Today kicks off National Eat Together Week and we are getting so excited about our twitter party on Monday night! Today is the first day that you can start downloading recipes to donate five pounds of pork (or about 25 meals) to a food bank in need which also gets you qualified to enter to win a $100 giftcard!

Here is a great Sunday meal to get you started! You have to go to TheOtherWhiteMeat.com to download the recipe!

Cook Once, Eat Twice

Planning a Sunday dinner that provides enough leftovers for a second meal on Monday saves time for any busy family. Purchasing larger cuts of pork, such as pork shoulder or a roast, can be a cost-saver too.

Recipe #1
Peppered Pork Roast: When looking for a quick and easy recipe, dry rubs are a convenient way to add flavor fast. A seasoned pepper rub on pork loin roasts packs a punch. Serve with mashed potatoes and buttered corn to complete the meal.

Recipe #2
Caribbean Pork and Mango Salad: Slice yesterday’s leftover roast and toss with mixed greens, black beans, red onion, mango and fruit-flavored vinaigrette dressing. It’s a delicious lunch, or for a dinner, pair it with cornbread muffins.

We are getting ready to celebrate National Eat Together Week: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner with a twitter party so we want you to be able to get ready for the week!

To maximize family mealtime, do your “homework” and plan ahead. Sitting down once a week to map out a meal plan and make a grocery list will save time and money on rushed weeknights. Use this list of ingredients to create the week’s worth of meals within this book.* All these recipes will be available in the special National Eat Together Week (NETW) section on TheOtherWhiteMeat.com.

By printing or sharing any of them, you will be donating five pounds of pork to a food bank in need.

Pork
4 pork chops
2 pork loin roasts (2 lbs. ea.)
1 pound ground pork
2 pounds deli ham
1 package (8 oz.) boneless ham steak
1 package (2 oz.) pepperoni
1 package (6 oz.) Canadian bacon
Pantry
1 bag (6 oz.) walnuts
1 jar cherry preserves
1 canister pepper blend seasoning
1 can (15 oz.) black beans
1 bottle fruit-flavored vinaigrette dressing
1 bottle Italian dressing
1 bottle Worcestershire sauce
1 package (10 oz.) refrigerated pizza crust
1 can (15 oz.) prepared pizza sauce
1 bottle garlic chili paste
1 package sandwich buns (8 ct.)
1 bottle soy sauce
1 loaf whole wheat bread
1 bottle honey mustard dressing
1 jar honey
1 bottle barbecue sauce
Produce
1 small plum tomato
1 bunch fresh chives
1 bunch fresh mint
1 bunch fresh green onions
6 cups mixed greens
1 medium red onion
1 medium Spanish onion
1 green bell pepper
1 small fresh ginger root
1 head of fresh garlic
2 ripe mangos
1 apple
1 package (16 oz.) refrigerated potato wedges
Eggs & Dairy
1/2 dozen large eggs
1 pint half-and-half
1 package (8 oz.) Gruyere or Swiss cheese
1 package (8 oz.) Cheddar cheese
1 package (8 oz.) pizza blend shredded cheese
1 package (12 oz.) American cheese
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese
1 pint buttermilk
*Assumes the pantry is already stocked with basic ingredients like flour, baking powder, vegetable oil, salt and pepper.

Oh, yeah! It is time to party down on twitter and celebrate National Eat Together Week! Here at The Coupon Cupboard we could not be more on board with bringing families back to the table! America’s pork producers have officially been encouraging families to enjoy meals together for the last 14 years. Whether it’s dinner, breakfast or a weekend brunch, National Eat Together Week (formerly National Eat Dinner Together Week), celebrated September 20-26, 2009, encourages families to eat together WHENEVER they can find time.

The night of the party we will be giving away 10 adorable Lunch Kits! These Lunch Kits will be full of surprises and will be sent to some lucky trivia winners. So when you are downloading your recipes, poke around TheOtherWhiteMeat.com site so you will be ready to grab some trivia goodies! Make sure you are following @AllAboutPork @Delightful_Toni and @Chaotic_Barb and include hashtag #NETW in your tweets so you don’t miss the questions or the conversation!

• Tweet about National Eat Together Week or the party! Make sure to include the hashtag #NETW and a link to this post. You can do this 3 times a day until Saturday, Sept. 26th.
• Spread the love on Facebook. Post about the party to your wall.
• Blog about National Eat Together Week. Maybe vlog yourself making a recipe you downloaded?
• Let your blog readers know you are coming to the party! Post our party button above on your site
• We will be posting all week long here about National Eat Together Week. Leave a comment on any of those posts as well but make sure you come back to this one and link to it.
RSVP for the party here with your TWITTER ID: