Friday Foreshadowing

This was a week where all the delicious recipes floating around really made me wish I had all the time in the world to try things in the kitchen. Sadly, that is not the case, but these all got added to my {ever-growing} list to try.

• The Perfect Iced Coffee from My Home Tableau: As we're getting closer to summer we're also approaching the time of year when sometimes, hot coffee in the morning just doesn't appeal.
• Quick Blender Light Rolls from Joyful Homemaking: As I'm always searching for new bread recipes this caught my eye. It looks easy enough and with a fun twist of using the blender I can't resist wanting to try making them.
• Raw Cookie Dough Bites from A Dash of Compassion: This is not the first recipe I've marked that uses nuts as a main component which is quite odd since historically I don't care for nuts. However, when you tell me it can bring to mind the taste of cookie dough, well, it's hard to say no!
• Cinnamon Fantans from Better Homes and Gardens: This is similar to a recipe I found last week so I must really be drawn to the idea.
• Slow Cooker Sweet & Sour Chicken from Cooking Classy: I adore Sweet & Sour Chicken but don't have a go-to recipe. The fact that this is a slow cooker recipe is a bonus.

This is linked to Friday Favorites.

Menu March 26

Highlights from last week:
We had Lasagna Soup, Hawiaan Tuna Sandwiches, Apple Chicken, and Waffles this week. Honestly, the best part was that my husband made the Apple Chicken--such a treat! Also, Friday afternoon the baby was a little cranky so we ended up getting pizza from Sam's Club which is a favorite of ours.

Onto This Week:

• Monday: Soup Night! Chicken Tortilla Soup with Cornbread: An easy, basic soup but one of our favorites.
• Tuesday: Mom's Sloppy Joes: I love, love, love these and appreciate the fact that they can be prepared ahead of time.
• Wednesday: Soup at Church {Last week of this}
• Thursday: Cheesy Broccoli Pockets: I tried, in vain, earlier this year to get this on the table but it never worked out so hopefully I'll have better luck this time.
• Friday: Pepperoni/ Salty Dog Pizza: Since we had Sam's Club pizza last week we'll have Pepperoni/ Salty Dog Pizza this week.
• Brunch: Pumpkin Pancakes: We've found these have so much flavor you hardly need syrup on top.

Visit I'm an Organizing Junkie for more menu ideas.

Friday Foreshadowing

This week my selections are a little more balanced than the last time but really, not too much better. The ironic thing is that most recipes I actually make are the healthier, meal recipes as opposed to the sweet, dessert recipes. A girl can dream though!

• Reese's Peanut Butter Bars from Bakerlady: These were all over Pinterest this week and with good reason {I'm sure} because who doesn't love chocolate and peanut butter?
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Toffee from MyRecipes: I made something very similar to this at Christmas but the addition of peanut butter and white chocolate sounds really good.
• Grilled Chicken Teriyaki Pineapple Sandwiches from Living Light: I have everything I'd need for this so the next time we grill we will definitely try these delicious looking sandwiches.
• Cinnamon Sugar Pull Apart Bread from Joy the Baker: This looks so pretty. I'm thinking this might be a good choice for a special {but still quick and easy to eat} breakfast before church on Easter Sunday.
• German Chocolate Fudge Bites from Chocolate-Covered Katie: I'm definitely intrigued by this recipe. It will require buying some special ingredients that I don't typically use but I might just have to buy them!

This is linked to Friday Favorites.

Menu March 19

Highlights from last week:
It was a split decision on the Cheeseburger Soup. I thought it was just okay but my husband really enjoyed it. In the future I might try a different variation, but honestly, I'm not in a hurry to make it again.

I mixed up the Cranberry Chicken Sandwiches during the day on Tuesday which turned out to be great because we went for a walk and played outside Tuesday afternoon. When we came inside everyone was hungry so it only took me a few minutes to slice the bread and make the sandwiches.

I didn't get a good picture of our Shish Kabobs but they were excellent. We used a simple basting sauce of olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic powder and it was quite tasty.

I had extra pizza dough so I made a little dessert pizza on Friday. I spread peanut butter and topped it with peanut butter chips, butterscotch chips and chocolate chips: good combination! 

Onto This Week:

• Monday: Soup Night! Lasagna Soup: I'm excited because I have some fun pasta to use for this soup. It's the simple things in life!
• Tuesday: Hawiaan Tuna Sandwiches: The green peppers and carrots were on sale. We're supposed to continue having beautiful weather this week so this summery sandwich will be perfect.
• Wednesday: Soup at Church
• Thursday: Apple Chicken: It's been a while since we've had this and I keep seeing the bottle of apple juice in the fridge, just tempting me to make this.
• Friday: Pepperoni/ Salty Dog Pizza: Back to the basics.
• Brunch: Waffles: From the freezer.

Visit I'm an Organizing Junkie for more menu ideas.

Easy Cheesy Biscuits

My husband's new favorite recipe is Easy Cheesy Biscuits. He's a huge fan of cheese, which plays a tasty role and the butter makes them undeniable soft and flaky.
Similar to Baking Powder Biscuits these Easy Cheesy Biscuits are a quick, easy addition to any meal. With a food processor they come together easily but even without a food processor they are a cinch to make.

Easy Cheesy Biscuits
 Print Recipe
Yields: 10 biscuits

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) cold butter, cut into pieces
1/2 cup shredded cheese
1/3 cup milk 

 

Directions:
   1.  Preheat oven to 450.
   2.  In bowl of food processor {or regular medium bowl} mix flour, baking powder, cream of tartar, sugar and salt.
   3.  Cut in butter using food processor {or a pastry blender or two knives} until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
   4.  Add cheese.
   5.  Add milk; stir until a soft dough forms.
   6.  On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a long rectangle; cut into 10 biscuits {I usually do a 5x2 cut}. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet.
   7.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Source: Kraft Foods

Menu March 12

Highlights from last week:
Broccoli Cheddar Soup: This was the second time we had this soup and since we liked it again it's now on a recipe card. {My test is to try each recipe 2 times before it's deemed a keeper.} We also had Easy Cheesy Biscuits. {Recipe coming Wednesday.}

Rodeo Burgers: My husband ended up grilling for us on Thursday. We had rodeo burgers {hamburger, onion rings, cheese and BBQ sauce} and fries.

BBQ Chicken Pizza and Sweet Hawaiian Pizza: Since we're still experimenting with personal size pizzas it was easy to make two varieties.

French Toast: My sister {who was here this past week for her Spring Break} requested French Toast so we'll move the Apple Cinnamon Pancakes to this weekend.

My sister and I also did a bunch of baking...
Cake Batter Truffles: They were good but nothing super special. I definitely have the truffle itch now though.

Brownies Two Ways: This is definitely something I'm going to keep experimenting with. One side was PBJ Brownies and the other was Peanut Explosion.

Low Fat Low Cholesterol Chocolate Cake: It was fun to see that you could make a cake without eggs, etc but we didn't think the result was worth making again.

Onto This Week:

• Monday: Soup Night! Cheeseburger Soup: I'm using a recipe from our church cookbook but from the looking around I did it seems similar to most Cheeseburger Soup recipes out there.
• Tuesday: Cranberry Chicken Sandwiches: I'm really looking forward to these sandwiches. I'm not sure what side I'll serve yet.
• Wednesday: Soup at Church
• Thursday: Grilling! Shish Kabobs: We are supposed to have a week of absolutely beautiful weather so we're planning on grilling Thursday. We'll skewer chicken, potatoes, onions, green peppers and anything else I think of by then.
• Friday: Sweet Hawaiian Pizza: We just had this last week but I like it! Also, it means I don't have to make a trip to the store so that's a plus.
• Brunch: Apple Cinnamon Pancakes: Carry-over from last week.

Visit I'm an Organizing Junkie for more menu ideas.

Friday Foreshadowing

My sweet tooth has been in active mode this week and is evident by my list of recipes...

• Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownies from Recipe Girl: Brownies with cookie dough on top--no question that this will be good! I almost made this the other night but I was too impatient. :)
• Scrumptious Baked Cinnamon Breakfast Bites from Oh My! Sugar High: These look delightful and not too hard to make.
• Sky High Cookie Pie from Flour Me With Love: Chocolate chip cookie in a pie--fun idea. I'm sure it's delicious with the tenderness of pie dough really adding to the already known goodness of cookies.
• Peanut Butter Stuffed Chocolate Fudge Cookies from My View From the Avenue: While it might take a little bit more work than a regular cookie I think a peanut butter stuffed cookie would be worth it.
• Homemade French Bread from A Few Shortcuts: Finally, a non sugar recipe to balance things out a little. I have a go-to bread recipe but I wouldn't mind having another option.

This is linked to Friday Favorites.

Mom's Chili

My mom's chili has been a family favorite (especially with my brother) for years. She often makes it when we go home and she had it waiting for my husband and I when we came home from the hospital after our daughter was born so Mom's chili definitely has lots of good memories associated with it.
It's really quite easy to put this Chili together. It benefits from a long simmer time so, if need be, you can make it early in the day and let it simmer all day. Growing up, we always had Club crackers with our chili so that's how I eat mine. My husband has adopted the Club cracker technique but also adds olives to his. To each his own!

Mom's Chili
 Print Recipe
Yields: ~10 servings

Ingredients:
1 lb hamburger (not pictured)
2 medium onions, chopped
4 cans tomatoes
4 can kidney beans (drained, reserve juice)
3 T chili powder
2 T flour (not pictured)

Directions:

   1.  Fry hamburger until no longer pink; drain fat.

   2.  In a large pot combine meat, chopped onions, tomatoes (with juice), and kidney bean juice.

   3.  In a small bowl mix chili powder and flour with water until it makes a watery paste. Add to pot.

   4.  Simmer for at least 1 hour. Thirty minutes before serving add beans.

   * This recipe freezes well.

This is linked to URS and Finding Joy in My Kitchen.

Menu March 5th

Highlights from the last 2 weeks:
Baked Potato Soup: I tried making it in the crockpot and it worked splendidly! I will likely never make it on the stove again. It was much easier and less labor intensive this way.

Crock Pot Bacon and Cheese Chicken:This was okay but I'm not going to make it again as there are many other dishes we enjoy more.

We've been experimenting with making personal size pizzas. We're still figuring out the best way to roll it out and how long to bake it but we're definitely on the right track!

We had my mom's chili this last week, for the first time in a long while. It turned out great, probably the closest I've gotten to it tasting like hers! {Recipe coming Wednesday}

Onto This Week:

• Monday: Soup Night! Broccoli Cheddar Soup: I've been wanting to try this again for a while so I'm really looking forward to it.
• Tuesday: Cream Cheese Pasta: A favorite around here, I'll also make breadsticks.
• Wednesday: Soup at Church
• Thursday: TBD: My sister will be in town for her spring break so I'm going to wait to get her opinion.
• Friday: BBQ Chicken Pizza: We'll have my sister's favorite, unless we can convince her to try a different variety.
• Brunch: Apple Cinnamon Pancakes: We love these pancakes and have found that they also reheat well from the freezer.

Visit I'm an Organizing Junkie for more menu ideas.