Thanksgiving Planning

We have two Thanksgivings each year. That's right, two turkeys, multiple pies, cranberry sauce you name it. The first Thanksgiving is at my mother's house each year. It takes place on actual Thanksgiving. We typically have shrimp bisque for the first course and fried turkey with dressing and sides. 

 

Our second thanksgiving is at my in-laws. It always takes place a day or two after actual thanksgiving (which is good news for us!). They always oven roast their turkey and stuff it with stuffing and serve it with traditional sides. 

I love to cook, but I am always delegated to appetizers, small sides or dessert. I make a pretty mean apple pie, but it's SUPER time consuming. I haven't made it since I had my daughter, but I'm sure I will get it going again soon enough. This year, I am making homemade rolls for T1, and THIS pumpkin cream cheese pie for T2. I may make some cinnamon butter to go with the rolls, or try and sneak in an appetizer to one of the gatherings. 

For those with a bread machine (one of my favorite appliances), here's my easy go-to dinner roll recipe:

Easy Dinner Rolls, makes 12

 

Ingredients:

• 1 egg, room temp and enough hot water to equal 3/4 cup when placed together in a measuring cup
• 2 Tbsp Vegetable oil
• 2 Tbsp Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 2 Cups All purpose flour
• 1 tsp Dry Active Yeast

Directions:

1. Add ingredients to bread machine in order shown. Set machine on "dough" setting
2. Place dough on a floured surface and divide into 12 pieces and shape.
3. Let rise on a greased baking sheet for 30 minutes or until double in size (you can cut time in half if your oven has a proofing setting)
4. Bake at 350º for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

 

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Quick and EASY Kale and Bean Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette

Our garden this year is BURSTING with kale. Next year, I will plant like half as much... Luckily I have been able to trade it out for some other veggies from friends and family. In the mean time, I have been trying to work as much of it into our meals as I can without burnout. I've sauteed and added it into pastas but my favorite way to enjoy it has been in salads. Since kale is pretty hardy, you can mix up a salad (dressing and all) and it will keep for the week. This week, I worked up a tasty version with chickpeas, black beans, walnuts, dried cranberries, carrots and sunflower seeds. I mixed it up with a pomegranate vinaigrette and it is super tasty, filling and healthy!  

  Pomegranate Vinaigrette: 1/2 cup pomegranate juice 1/4 cup oil 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar 1/4 tsp garlic powder 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper


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Mom's Spaghetti

Growing up my mom cooked most nights. We rarely went out to eat. She would go through phases where she would learn a new recipe and we would have it all the time. Like the great Chicken Marsala run of '98. I got to where I dreaded Chicken Marsala night, we had it so much (which is funny since that is kind of like a really nice dish..). She always, always kept her spaghetti recipe in the loop though. I never get tired of it. It's really easy and adaptable because it uses store bought sauce and spruces it up a bit. You can add in mushrooms and red peppers or omit onions.. the possibilities are endless! Pair it with a green salad and garlic toast or green beans and dinner rolls. Dinner is served!

Mom's Spaghetti

Ingredients:

• 1lb Lean Ground Beef
• 1/4 Cup chopped onions
• 1 32oz Jar Store Bought Pasta Sauce (I use Traditional flavor. You can use any though)
• 2 Bay leafs
• 1 Tsp Italian Seasoning 
• 2 Tsp Minced Garlic (I use the jar stuff. If using fresh, about 2 cloves)

Directions:

1. In a dutch oven or large pot, brown ground beef w/ onions added. Drain and return to pot. Season with Italian seasoning. (I use the McCormick Grinder Italian Seasoning)
2. To meat mix, add the jar of sauce, 2 tsp garlic and 2 bay leafs.
3. Simmer, covered, on low for as long as you like. The flavors just get better. At least while you cook your pasta.
4. When ready to serve, be sure to dig out and toss the 2 bay leafs.

Sweet Soy Broiled Salmon

I have a picky toddler. I know, gasp...first one in existence. But lately she is loving the most random foods. Broccoli for one. She will spit mac and cheese on the floor, but give her some steamed broccoli and she's in foodie heaven. I decided to press my luck and throw a new food for her in the mix, knowing that it could go either way. I am a salmon lover. I love it broiled, grilled, mushed into salmon cakes..you name it. Any time I see a nice piece of it on sale, I leave my weekly menu in the dust and grab it up with no recipe plan. That's what happened this week and my simple recipe for it knocked it out of the park. The kiddo loved it and I can't wait to make it again. Without further adieu, here it is, Sweet Soy Broiled Salmon:

I made this whole dinner in less than 20 minutes. I am a rice cooker girl (here's mine). It makes cooking so easy and you can buy the big bulk bags of brown and white rice and that machine cooks it up perfect. It also has a steaming basket where you can add in veggies and it's cooking both of my sides at the same time. LOVE IT.

Here's the run down. Preheat your broiler on high. In a small bowl, mix together 1/4 cup of light brown sugar and 2 tablespoons soy sauce (I prefer light soy, low sodium). Set aside. This will thicken up while you cook the salmon. I just stirred it ever so often.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil to make for easy clean up. Lay down your filet(s) and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, and broil for around 10-15 minutes depending on thickness. Drizzle with the soy mixture for the last 2 minutes of cooking. I served mine with rice and steamed broccoli and drizzled the rest of the sweet soy sauce over everything (it's that good..). Easy peezy.

Sweet Soy Broiled Salmon

Ingredients:

• Salmon filet(s) (Mine was half a pound, the soy mix would cover up to 2 lbs with left over to drizzle at the end)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Olive oil to drizzle
• 1/4 Cup Light Brown Sugar
• 2 tbsp Soy Sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat broiler to high. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Add salmon, drizzle with a little oil and add salt and pepper to your liking.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl mix brown sugar and soy. Let sit while fish cooks, stirring occasionally.
3. Broil salmon 10-15 min depending on thickness, drizzling with sweet soy sauce the last 2 minutes of cooking.
4. Once plated, drizzle with additional sauce.

Serving suggestions: 
I served mine with fluffy white rice and steamed broccoli, drizzling sweet soy sauce over the veggies and rice.

5 Uses for Vinegar

The Mr is away on business and the little one and I have been flying solo. So naturally, that means waking up early on a Saturday and cooking up 20 buttermilk pancakes. That makes sense for one person and a one year old, right? The recipe calls for one egg so I wasn't sure how to split it. If anyone has suggestions for that please let me know! I'm just freezing the leftovers for later.

All that cooking made me think of how many times I've used vinegar this past week. What? How do pancakes make me think of vinegar? Because I used it in my recipe! I used to buy buttermilk for baking only to have it go bad and have to throw it out. (I do, however, still buy it when I fry a bunch of chicken since it gets used up in my recipe.) So here's my top 5 uses for this inexpensive staple, starting with cooking:

1) Make your own Buttermilk: Add 1 Tbsp Vinegar to 1 Cup milk and let sit for a few minutes.

2) Clean clogged faucet head: get a small zip top bag and pour a little vinegar in it. Put it over the faucet and secure with rubber bands or twist ties. Leave on for at least an hour or overnight if you can. Scrub off leftover gunk with an old toothbrush. 

3) Clean windows: I just put a little vinegar on a microfiber cloth and rub. I ran out of glass cleaner this week and this really worked well!

4) Freshen and clean disposal: Pour a half cup of baking soda down the disposal, then a cup of vinegar. Let it sit and bubble up. In about 20 min, flush with hot water. Gets rid of gunk and smells.

5) Hard Boil a Cracked Egg: Add a tablespoon of Vinegar to your boiling water. The vinegar will keep the egg from leaking out.

Do you have any other uses for this wonder juice?

Crockpot Chicken Nachos

It's Sunday - and it's raining - and I'm feeling SUPER lazy. Lazy days call for easy dinners and it can't get any easier than these Crockpot Chicken Nachos! Depending on how much you want to make, add either 1 large or 2 smaller chicken breasts to your Crockpot. (Mine were frozen, just throw them in.) Cook on low for about 6 hours or high for around 3. Then shred and season. Layer up your chosen nacho toppings and pop under the broiler for a few minutes until bubbly. SUPER easy and SUPER tasty! Here's how I made mine.

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts, fresh or frozen
• Chicken broth or water (enough to come half way up the chicken in the pot)
• Half a bag of tortilla chips
• 2 Cups Shredded cheddar cheese
• 4oz Can of Black Olives
• 16oz of Salsa
• 1 Can Black beans, rinsed

Directions:

• Spread out half the chips on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
• Cover with half of the toppings
• Spread a layer of chips on top and the rest of the toppings
• Broil until warm and bubbly
• Serve with more salsa, sour cream, avocados, etc.

Easy Crock Pot Baked Ziti

I LOVE minimal prep Crock Pot dinners. Especially on busy week nights when I KNOW I am not going to feel like messing with dinner. Sometimes when I am browsing slow cooker recipes I skip over any of them that require you to sear or pre cook the meat. That's how lazy I am on Crock Pot night... I want to dump everything in that bad boy and push the button. I have never done any of the freezer meals I've seen online, but the ease of those intrigue me!

Here's a go to slow cooker meal my family and I make quite often. Aside from the ricotta, a lot of the ingredients are things you would have on hand. Pair it with a crisp green salad and homemade dressing and you're a dinner making super hero.

Crock Pot Baked Ziti

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ziti or tubular noodle of choice.
• 1 15oz container of ricotta (I haven't tried this recipe with cottage cheese, but I don't see why it wouldn't work as well)
• 2 25oz jars of your favorite spaghetti sauce
• 1 Cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 Cup shredded Parmesan (I suggest you use the real deal but I'm sure the powdery kind is fine to use as well)
• 2 tsp Garlic Salt (This is a GO TO seasoning for me. You can cut french bread into rounds, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with this seasoning and broil until golden for instant garlic bread!) 
• 2/3 Cup water

Directions:
In a medium bowl, mix the ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan and garlic salt. Set aside

Rinse the noodles under cold water so they get a little damp. Spray your cooker with cooking spray and put half the noodles in an even layer on the bottom.

Pour 1 of the jars of sauce over the noodles and dot half of the cheese mixture on top of the sauce. Then, layer the rest of the noodles evenly on top. Pour your other jar of sauce and dot the remaining cheese on the top.

Pour 2/3 Cup of water in on everything and place the lid on your cooker. Cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours.

I had to cook mine on the longer side - everyone's slow cooker is different!

Enjoy with a cheap bottle of red wine if you are so inclined. I really enjoy this:

Menu Planning - How I do it

Grocery lists and menu planning are a necessary evil. I say that lightly because I actually like planning out our menu for the week. But as everything in life that you HAVE to do, sometimes it can be tedious.

We my hubby and I first got married, I couldn't cook for the life of me. Most of our dinners revolved around a box of Mac and Cheese. (We throw back to that every now and then though, don't get me wrong!). Because of finances and my love of good food, I came to love learning new dishes and techniques. I have an extensive library of cookbooks and pin boards to prove it!

Along the way through 8 years of marriage and a baby, I've cracked the code on a good weekly menu. I used to pour though my food magazines and cookbooks and pick out tasty options as if I was ordering at a fancy restaurant. I would go to the grocery store, pick up all the ingredients and then "it" would happen... That's right, life would happen. Work would happen, projects, laundry... you know, life. As it happens, no one feels like whipping up crazy "Martha Stewart level" dinners EVERY night. So, for me, this method works. Here's the plan:

6 dinners a week
One night a week, usually Friday, we get a pizza or takeout as a treat. If that's not in your budget you can use that night for a frozen pizza, sandwiches or leftovers.

1 night for a new or difficult recipe
I use one night to try something new or to do a difficult recipe. Just one a week. Play it by ear as the week happens if you need to to see what night works best. Maybe that is your Friday or Saturday. Usually that is Tuesday for me, oddly enough!

1 Night for the Crock Pot (or Slow Cooker if you prefer!)
I always make sure I use my crock pot at least once per week. It allows me to be lazy or it helps me out when my day is busy! I am planning on doing a post later on my top go to crock pot meals that I use over and over. I LOVE my crock pot. I have 2. :)

1 Night Meat Free
This REALLY helps with the grocery bill. It also helps with the waistline! There are a ton of reasons to go meat free at least once a week. More than that if you like. I have a lot of meat free meals that we do over and over. Most are pasta, but we also have stews and chili or loaded potatoes.

1 Pasta Night
I really try and limit our pasta nights. I won't go over 2, I try and keep it to 1. This is because I LOVE pasta and would eat it every night if I could get away with it. It's also typically an easy dinner night. Especially if you do tortellini or ravioli. I love Buitoni, but if you are trying to save money the deli usually has fresh options or check the freezer section. If you buy frozen, it's a great meal to skip and sandbag if a dinner plan pops up!

Mexican night!
We LOVE Mexican food. It can be inexpensive and easy to fix. I've got some great crock pot recipes for shredded pork and chicken. Then you just need some beans, rice and tortillas! If Mexican's not your thing, you could do Cajun red beans and rice or Greek chicken with pitas! Pick a region!

Wild Card
For the 6th meal, I just see how the week is going. If it's busy we may do Sloppy Joes or Chicken Philly sandwiches with oven fries. If it's slow, I may try another new recipe or a "more involved" favorite or let my man loose on the grill (weather permitting!).

Hope this helps inspire you to find a weekly equation that works best for you!

Nap Time Holiday Baking!

I ALWAYS bake goodies during the holidays. My mom and I used to get together one day between Thanksgiving and Christmas and just bake all day long for friends and family. Well, last year I was super pregnant but it didn't stop me from making a few things here and there. I wasn't able to stay on my feet all day though, that was for sure. So I told myself I would definitely go all out this year! Then I realized something,...I have an almost 11 month old... So starts my week of nap time baking! I can get a good hour in the morning just set aside for making treats so I am trying to use it wisely!


Yesterday during nap time, I made this Mint Chocolate Chip fudge. SUPER delicious and ridiculously easy. While you are stirring the frosting and chocolate I wouldn't recommend trying to simultaneously clean and descale your Keurig machine. The chips melt faster and smoother if you stand there and stir.

 

Pretty much all it is, is:

1 container of vanilla frosting

1 bag of white chocolate chips

1 packet of Duncan Hines Mint Chocolate Frosting Creations

A few mini chocolate chips for sprinkling on top

Using a double broiler, mix and melt the first 3 ingredients until smooth

Pour into a 9x9 pan lined with parchment or wax paper

Immediately sprinkle with mini chips (or whatever you like)

Pop into the fridge for an hour or so until hard.

TODAY for nap time, I made my favorite go to sugar cookie dough so it can hang out in the fridge until tomorrow when I can roll - cut - bake! You can find my go to recipe here.

And follow my Christmas Baking Pintrest board for some of the recipes I'll be trying out in upcoming nap times!

New Recipe - Beanie Weenie Casserole

 I LOVE a quick, easy and inexpensive recipe.. don't you? Well, it doesn't get anymore easy and inexpensive than beanie weenies! This simple casserole costs around $10 for the whole thing (depending on what you beans and wieners you purchase). I used Bush's baked beans and Ballpark all beef bun length franks.

BEANIE WEENIE CASSEROLE
Ingredients:

• 1/2 of an Onion, diced
• 1/2 of a Green Bell Pepper, diced
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 8.5oz box Corn Bread Mix (I used Jiffy)
• 1 egg (for corn bread mix)
• 1/3 Cup Milk (for corn bread mix)
• 2 8oz or 1 16oz can of baked beans (I used 2 short cans of Bush's Baked Beans)
• 4 Hot Dogs - Cut into bit sized pieces
• 1/2 Cup BBQ Sauce (any kind, use your favorite)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400º
2. Saute Bell Peppers and Onion with 1 tbsp Oil in a skillet until tender (about 5 min)
3. In a large bowl mix beans with 1/2 cup BBQ sauce. Add cut hot dogs and onion mixture.
4. In a medium sized bowl, mix cornbread mix with egg and milk.
5. Spray a 2 quart casserole with cooking spray. Pour in bean and hotdog mixture. Top with prepared cornbread mix. (may not cover entirely as in my pic above. You can dollop on like a chicken a biscuit casserole then spread around)
6. Bake at 400º for 20-30 minutes or until cornbread topping is golden and casserole is bubbly. (It took mine 30 minutes but some ovens cook faster than mine so just check on it!)

Weekly Menu!

Here's my menu for the week, what's yours?

Monday: Monterey chicken tortilla casserole (This is my first time making this!)
Tuesday: Greek chicken pockets (These are SO good)
Wednesday: Crockpot beef and broccoli (Easy crockpot meal for mid week)
Thursday: Cheesy sausage tortellini (I make this all the time, SO yum)
Friday: pizza pickup! Order, carry out or buy a frozen pizza.
Saturday: Rotisserie Style Chicken in the crockpot
Sunday: Burgers on the grill and sweet potato fries (Forecast calls for nice weather Sunday!)