10 minutes to Steak House Sizzle

So simple, So dreamy.

An absolute knock-out dinner every single time.

Now, let's rock this steak house steak in 10 minutes.

Are you ready to rrrrruuuuuuummmmmmmble?

Here's all you need--

Meat (I did 2-10-ounce NY strips today, they are on sale. 1 pound boneless rib eye easily feeds two --or even 4 people, get filet, strip whatever you prefer, but we usually get rib eye)
Vegetable Oil
Salt 
Pepper
Worcestershire Sauce
Optional:
Butter (if you really want to "go there", if you're trying to watch the fat/calories then you really don't need it.

Tools:
Oven Set to Broil
Ovenproof Skillet (this means Cast Iron or stainless steel with all steel handle)
Oven Mitt (I care about you! Take a second to check it for holes/worn places first)
Stove
Tongs

Set oven to Broil and put your skillet in on the top rack as the oven heats.

Remove steak from packaging and pat dry with paper towels or a cloth. coat both sides of your steak with a drizzle of olive oil, a pinch of salt, a few grinds of pepper and a few splashes of Worcestershire Sauce.

Grab your oven mitt and take the skillet from the oven and place it on the stove on high. Place steak in HOT pan with tongs. It should sizzle and steam, cook for 30 seconds and then flip. Cook for 30 more sizzling seconds then return the skillet.

Back into the oven and broil for 2 minutes, using mitt and tongs flip the steak (a note from the wife of your friendly insurance agent--please make sure your kids are FAR away if you have them, there will be some serious heat coming from the oven). Broil 2 more minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven. Move the steak onto a cutting board and cover (foil, lid of a pan, bowl, anything will work) to let the meat rest for a few minutes before cutting. (if you're opting for butter drop about a tablespoonful on top before covering)

This will be the best darn steak you've ever made.

You'll impress your guests, your spouse, even yourself.

If you like a steak Medium-Well add a minute or so to your broil time. That's all you should need.

This and a salad is perfection and feels oh-so-fancy any night of the week.

Steak, roasted veggies, a potato and bread are the perfect home-cooked date night, Valentine's surprise for the man who has everything, celebratory meal or anniversary dinner.

Now, keep this in mind next time you need a date night, but don't want to go out. Keep this handy for Valentine's Day coming up and you're all set!

I hope you love cooking your steak this way! Have a wonderful day!

Rockin Roast Chicken and Revising Menu Monday

It's a New Year and another Monday!

This week I'm showing and sharing my experience making a Roast Chicken for the first time.
(Actually the first, second and third times!)

I've used the Pioneer Woman's Roast Chicken recipe and instructions--and using this chicken in a variety of ways. I'll also share with you what I learned along the way and how it worked for me in my real kitchen with my real family.

Here is the PW's recipe in its entirety. And it is awesome.

And here is the way I made it and the modifications I made getting it right for me (on the third time around).
1 whole chicken
1/2 cup butter softened
3 lemons
2 sprigs fresh Rosemary

The morning I'm cooking I set out a stick of butter to soften. I'm only using 1/2 cup of butter instead of the 3/4 cup the PW recommends.

When I'm ready to roast I preheat my oven, zest 2 lemons and remove the leaves from one sprig of rosemary. The PW says to finely--really, really finely chop the rosemary. After doing this for the first two chickens I used the food processor for the last one and loved the results.

So into the Cuisinart go the zest, butter and rosemary leaves.

Perfect! This chopped my herbs, mixed my ingredients and whipped my butter just slightly to ease the spreading. I'm so glad I did it this way instead of chopping, chopping, chopping and mixing by hand.

I rinsed and patted the chicken DRY. Not patted it mostly dry, as the first time I made this recipe--I mean DRY. It made smearing the butter a breeze. So easy that I used a rubber spatula and just used my hands for the portions where I wanted to smear butter between the skin and meat.

So easy!

Cut the three lemons in half, squeezed the lemon juice over and stuffed with remaining Rosemary and lemons.

Into the oven and the house smells absolutely amazing within the hour and once the chicken is done the possibilities are endless. I've used mine a number of ways and even used the bones for a soup base once I'm done. This is the universal meal that can spark your menu and your diet! Learning to roast a chicken myself can be scratched off of my kitchen bucket list. Now, here's a list of ways to use this delicious dish once you're done!

1.Chicken Salad-My kids love "Chick-fil-a" style with celery, mayo, relish, salt and pepper
2. Calzones-pick up some pizza dough, add chicken a little sauce and your favorite cheeses, fold and bake!
3. Tamale Pie
4. Big Salads
5. Chicken Enchiladas
6. Chicken, Apple and Provolone Sandwiches
7. Mexican Chicken Skillet
8. Mini- BBQ Chicken Sandwiches
9. Chicken Club Appetizers
10. Cheese Tortellini with Chicken-buy premade and add your favorite red or alfredo sauce
11. Chicken tacos
12. Ranch Lettuce Cups
13. Chicken Cheese Ball
14. Just as your main dish with roasted or steamed veggies. Can't go wrong this roasted chicken is SO juicy and tender!

About Menu Monday--I'm sharing one new dish from my kitchen every week and how we really prepare it and eat it. I've shared weekly menu plans which you can view here or by searching the Menu Monday label on the blog.

I cook A LOT and love to share ideas and tips and tricks that make life easier. The hope is that it helps some of my friends add new options to their menus and we all benefit. This spring for us is incredibly busy and instead of sharing a week's worth of dinners I've decided to share one really worthwhile cooking adventure every week. If there is something you've wanted to try but haven't yet--leave a comment and maybe I'll give it a try. This roasting of a chicken was something I've wanted to do for myself for a while, but I thought it would be too difficult it wasn't hard at all and got easier each time...not to mention the result was amazing!

Follow along to see what other new frontiers we'll conquer this spring! Thanks for visiting!!

Menu Monday #16- Let's Do Something EASY!

Okay friends, it's the week before Christmas. I'm going to go ahead and call it-there is likely pizza delivery or drive-thru in our future this week. Which is completely acceptable, just not the norm for us lately.

These recipes are hearty, interesting and best of all EASY! We're cooking a family size pack of chicken breasts one time and using it for three dinners. The other two nights are great-gooey sandwiches that are perfect for the winter weather and busy schedules!

Let's get this menu together and the grocery list done so we can soak up the great, happy and holy week ahead!

Steak Hoagies-get a skillet heating with some sliced onion, add a pound or so of cube steak cut into 1/2 to 1 inch strips. Stir occasionally until browned. Remove meat and onions from skillet add 2 tablespoons of butter to melt. Meanwhile open your hoagie buns and place them cut side down into the skillet to toast them. (2 fit in my pan at a time, so add more butter and repeat if you're serving more than 2 hoagies) Once toasted spread a little thousand island on each side of your bun, layer provolone and steak onto your sandwich and top with French fried onions. Top sandwich, wrap in wax paper and place back into a warm skillet, cover just until cheese is melted.

Chicken Alfredo while prepping this dish, I precooked for three nights meals. I bought a family pack of boneless/skinless chicken breasts, drizzled them all with olive oil and seasoned with garlic salt and pepper and baked at 350 for about an hour. This chicken will be used tonight, on salads and for Mexican later in the week.

Cook your favorite pasta to al dente then drain..  Return pasta to pot, add 1 cup half and half or cream, 1/2 stick of butter and about 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese until heated through. Add 2 cups chopped chicken.  Serve with a salad. Boom. Dinner. Simple!

Meatball Sandwiches- Use the rest of those hoagie buns from two nights ago and re-use leftover meatballs (or cook some fresh--see what I did last week here) my husband likes his with a little mayo. But just some red sauce and mozzarella will make a hot and hearty sandwich for kids and adults alike!

Big Salads with chicken- We're chopping up the chicken we cooked and stored earlier this week and tossing it into a big salad with boiled egg, peas, bacon, cheese and ranch.

Mexican Chicken Skillet-heat about 1 pound (1 and 1/2 cups) of shredded chicken in a skillet. Add 1 envelope of taco season, 1 can of corn drained, 1 can of black beans, drained and one cup of water or chicken stock. Serve over yellow rice (prepared per package instructions) and top with sour cream. I put this in tortillas for the kids.This + Chips + Salsa = Dinner. Winner.

I am not planning to plan a regular menu next week, so if you need some ideas, scroll through some of the past menus and enjoy your holidays!

Menu Monday #15

Lasagna-I'm doing one for tonight and one for the freezer-here's how-

1 pound of Italian sausage, browned
1 jar spaghetti sauce
Oven ready lasagna noodles
32 oz part-skim ricotta
1 and 1/2 cups freshly grated mozzarella, divided
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 egg
1 Tablespoon dried parsley

Brown Sausage in a large skillet, add sauce and let simmer. Preheat oven to 350.
Combine all other ingredients except 1/2 cup mozzarella in a mixing bowl.

Here are the pans I use.

They are available on amazon here. Free Shipping with Amazon Prime.

I highly recommend getting 3 or 4 if you want to start freezing meals. These have been the one thing (okay 4 things) that have enabled me to do this. Before, I never felt like I had the right "equipment" these are literally all you need.

Line one with two sheets of foil with plenty of overhang....

Now, assemble your lasagna by spooning a bit of sauce into the bottom of each pan and spread it around.

Then layer noodles, sauce, cheese mixture. Noodles sauce, cheese mixture.

 Noodles sauce cheese mixture. Top with reserved mozzarella.
Pop one in the oven and cover the other with foil.

Place in the freezer in the Pyrex. Tomorrow remove the foil wrapped frozen lasagna from the pan, slide into a labeled, gallon size freezer bag. You just spent about two extra minutes making a whole dinner for another night down the road!

Pork Chops and Roasted Cabbage- I'm bringing these back this week. I know y'all liked them too based on the texts and comments I got from some of you! I'm so happy y'all liked them and shared them with the Pinterest world!! Here they are again this week for us to enjoy! Welcome Pinterest Pork Chop People!!

Pork Chops and Oven Roasted Cabbage- if you've all but given up on pork chops, I urge you to try cooking them this way. Over the past 7 years I have prepared many mediocre pork chops...until I discovered this magical method. Its super simple too--

You'll need:

3-4 boneless center cut pork chops

1 head of cabbage

1 medium onion (I use Spanish, but whatever)

olive oil

salt and pepper

Creole Seasoning (I use Tony Chachere)

Preheat to 350, line a baking sheet with aluminum foil with plenty of overhang. Sprinkle Creole Seasoning over both sides of pork chops, set aside. Chop Cabbage into 6-8 chunks or wedges, discard outer leaves and core. Coarsely chop onion. Place cabbage, onion and pork on aluminum foil in center of pan, tucking pork in among cabbage chunks. drizzle all with olive oil, add salt, pepper and more creole seasoning over the top. Place a second sheet of aluminum foil loosely over top and seal edges all the way around. You will have a foil packet that should allow for some airspace. 

Pop in the oven for 1 hour, let rest for 5 minutes before opening foil then serve. I make macaroni and cheese with this and its just perfect. 

So easy and yummy, you'll find yourself loving pork chops from now on. 

Simple Meatloaf- this is the quickest, easiest meal in my arsenal. With the hectic Christmas schedule, I need quick and easy one night this week.

1 pound ground beef, or a mix package of 1/3 pound pork, 2/3 ground beef, one egg, envelope of Lipton Onion Soup mix, pepper. Mix it up, spread it in a casserole and bake at 350 for an hour. 15 minutes before its done open a small can of tomato sauce, stir in a few shakes of Worcestershire and garlic salt and coat top of meatloaf. Ta-dah! And leftovers for lunch!!!

Frontier Casserole (courtesy of Kate at 2 Kids, a Minivan and  a Mortgage) Kate first shared this recipe and I've made it several times. Its also an easy-peasy crowd pleaser. With Chicken, Sausage and Yellow Rice as the main ingredients this is great for a pot-luck, tailgate or anytime year-round. I'm so glad she shared this!

3 chicken breasts cooked and chopped

1 pound browned breakfast sausage

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 small can of mushrooms (optional)

1 package yellow (saffron) rice prepared per package directions

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, place in a greased 9x13 baking dish, bake at 350 for 30 minutes. 

Spaghetti and Meatballs- I make my meatballs by combining equal parts ground beef and pork, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and just about 1/2 cup of Japanese breadcrumbs for 2 pounds of meat. I brown mine in a skillet with a little olive oil and add sauce when they are cooked through.

If its easier for you to open a bag of frozen, that is okay with me. They are also delish. :)

That rounds out or 5 days of dinner this week.

I'll be in the kitchen aplenty this week making some Christmas cookies and making the most of the holiday season!

Menu Monday #14

Okay, here we are getting the Christmas Season underway and it's back to another full week of menus for a variety of family meals this week.

Swiss Steak-using cube steak* (which my mom calls minute steak), put about 1 cup of flour in a pie plate or shallow pan, add salt and pepper then dredge steaks. Brown in a skillet with 1/4 to 1/2 inch hot vegetable oil and place in a baking dish. In a small bowl mix 1/1/2 cups tomato juice, 1 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp garlic salt, pepper and several hearty shakes of Worcestershire. Pour mixture over meat, cover with foil and bake at 350 for 2 hours. Serve over rice.

*I use venison instead of beef for this recipe because we always have plenty in the freezer. Pick up a beef cube steak at the grocery store if you don't have venison, but if you are like me and always looking for a way to cook deer--this is a good go-to recipe to have in your repertoire. 

Breakfast for Dinner-Tonight I'm using Hashbrown Casserole (from the freezer since I made extra last week), Eggs, Sausage and Biscuits and Gravy. I love this for busy nights because breakfast cooks so fast!

Soup from the freezer- We have Potato Soup and Dixie Stampede Creamy Vegetable. I'll grab one and thaw for tonight's dinner. Presto-dinner.

Cube Steak Roll-Up- Prepare a boxed stuffing mix according to package directions. Meanwhile dredge cube steak* in 1 cup flour, salt and pepper then brown in a skillet of hot oil (just like the Swiss steak above). Lie steak flat, spoon stuffing onto steak and roll. Secure with a tooth pick and place in casserole dish. Dissolve 2 cubes of beef bullion in 2 cups of water and add to baking dish, bake covered at 350 for 90 minutes.

*This is another night I'll be using venison instead of beef and this is a classic way to cook venison for the family. I'm thinking about experimenting with some variations of this over the weekend and if any are worth sharing, I'll share them here.

Taco Night- I'm just using our family's favorite taco kit and ground chicken tonight. Can't beat it.

Menu Monday-Hashbrown and Nameless Casseroles, Soup and SausageBalls-Oh My!!

Happy Tuesday! Yeah, so this blogging thing is super easy. Its the knowing what day it is that can be the hard part. If you were waiting on my Menu Monday post to tell you what to cook this week I hope you were able to wing it and no one went hungry! Haha!

There's a whole lot of cooking going on at our house this week. So, let's get to it.

I'm taking dressing, gravy and squash casserole to our main Thanksgiving and hosting a little mini-version on Sunday for some Nashvillians coming down on Sunday with Turkey, Dressing, Gravy, Green beans, Salad, Mac N Cheese, Corn, Squash Casserole and whatever else sounds yum.

For Dinner this week we'll be having--

The Casserole That Needs a Name

Here's what you do-

Brown a pound of ground beef. Throw in some salt, pepper and garlic salt while it does its thing. 

Meanwhile layer a casserole dish like this- thinly sliced onion on the bottom, then a layer of thinly sliced potatoes, then sliced carrots (pause here ans salt and pepper here) then a drained can of peas. When your meat is done top the casserole with the meat then pour on a can of tomato sauce. I migth salt and pepper here as well. Bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes, let stand for about 5 minutes and serve. Then serve seconds. So good and makes the house smell scrumptious. 

This is also a goodie to split and freeze. And you could sub canned sliced potatoes and canned carrots if you want, I've done that before. You can cut your baking time by about 10-15 minutes by doing this. 

Now, we need to name this delicious dinner, I feel a little bad for it.....

We're also having fish this week--Gulf Coast Red Snapper from our freezer-thawed- dredged in beaten egg then Japanese bread crumbs and fried up in no time.

SOUPER Loaded Potato Soup-this weather we're having is begging for potato soup! Here's a recipe from HG, people are always raving about his, so I'm sharing it here. In his words....

Loaded Potato Soup

2  cans low sodium chicken broth
1- 32oz. bag of frozen diced hashbrowns
2 cans cream of celery soup
1  cans cream of  chicken soup

1/8 to 1/2 cup chopped onion depending on personal taste
8 oz. block of sharp cheddar cheese (cubed)
8 oz. block of Monterrey Jack cheese (cubed)
8 0z. block of Pepper Jack cheese (cubed)
1 qt. half and half

To garnish
Bacon, cooked and crumbled
Chives/ Green onions, chopped
Shredded cheddar and Monterrey jack cheese  (for color variation) 

In a large pot, combine and simmer hashbrowns and chicken broth, until potatoes are soft.

Add all other ingredients and continue to cook over medium heat for 30 minutes or until all cheeses are melted.

Garnish with bacon, chopped green onions, and shredded cheese.

And because its a holiday week--we're having Sausage Balls and Hashbrown Casserole you could have this for dinner or for an awesome Holiday week breakfast. Speaking of HG, he helped me perfect my Hashbrown Casserole recipe...and it may or may not have been based upon his YEARS as a Cracker Barrel employee....Here's what you do--

Hashbrown Casserole

Melt one stick of butter....in a large mixing bowl combine 1 bag (30 oz) thawed shredded hashbrown potatoes, melted butter, 1 can of cream of chicken soup, salt, pepper and about 1 1/2 to 2 cups freshly grated cheddar. Mix and spread into a greased 9x13. I usually double (and have been known to triple) this recipe and it all works out fine. There really isn't a bad way to do this...some recipes call for cream of mushroom, sour cream, half and half--I'm sure those are all delightful. The cream of chicken soup is what makes this recipe so fantastic. 

Anyhow, bake that baby at 350 for about 40 minutes, watching as the edges become golden brown, then go to town--er, I mean serve. 

And the Sausage balls I made this time were delightful. I love how the combination of Cheddar Cheese Soup and the Bisquick makes for more of a biscuit with sausage than a crunchy sausage ball. 

Sausage Balls

2 cups Bisquick

1 can Cheddar Cheese Soup

1 pound bulk, cooked breakfast sausage (I use Tennessee Pride)

Combine in a bowl, line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, spray some nonstick spray on your hands and form into mounds about the size and shape of a marshmallow.

This will give you more of a ball/biscuit shape when they are done. If you start with a ball with this recipe, it will flatten out or "run" just a little bit and your sausage ball will be more of a sausage round. 

Ta-dah! 

After this we'll be feasting on leftovers all the live-long day. I'm working on a few leftover turkey recipies tonight and I'll be back with those in the morning. 

I hope you have a holy holiday full of love and gratitude for all of our blessing.s And extra helpings of dressing. 

Menu Monday #12

After 12 weeks of menu planning and sharing, I'm enjoying the fruits of my labor this week!

It really seems easier to put together our weekly dinner menus now that I've been blogging them, hopefully you aren't bored to tears and have picked up a few new items for your own menu rotation.

Now, this week I'm taking advantage of the many freezer meals I've stocked as a result of splitting recipes and planning new and different menus for our family each week. 5 nights this week will be dinners from the freezer, I'm including them here in case you need ideas for things that are simple to prepare for your family to enjoy now and freeze portions to stock for later.


Beef and Cheddar Casserole from Week 7

Pioneer Woman Cheese and Corn Chowder from Week 7

Turkey Divan from Week 10

Dixie Stampede Creamy Vegetable Soup from Week 8

Lasagna from Week 3

We're also having Taco night this week, since Jay has been asking and asking for tacos. I think with my focus being on so many new recipes, I may have slighted Jay on his all-time favorite meal. Sorry buddy!

I'm loving that I can spend more time this week prepping for the holidays and out of the grocery store. I'm also freeing up some space in my freezer to continue with holiday prep.

I'll be back later this week with another installment of Holiday Hostess, if you missed the first installment find it here.

You can always click the Menu Monday label to the right to view all of the Menu Mondays to inspire your own family meal planning.

Menu Monday-Turkey Two New Ways

It's Monday again! When I put together this week's menu I tried using turkey two new ways and they were both AWESOME. These are yummy anytime of year, but go ahead and try them this week to build up your tryptophan tolerance (i am not a scientist and have no idea if that is even possible) and keep them handy during the holidays when thinking of uses for leftover turkey!

BBQ Turkey Stack on Pumpkin Corncake

oooh yeah!

Here's what I did--I bought a packaged Turkey brease "tenderloin" (mine was Jennie O brand)-these are usually near the pork tenderloin packeaged to look like one piece of meat. When you open them up-there are two huge breasts. Place them both in a pyrex, bake at 350 for about an hour (per directions). Save one in the fridge for the next recipe and go ahead and slice the other fairly thin.

Coat your sliced turkey breast with your favorite barbecue sauce (turkey and sauce in a storage container, lid on and shake) then set aside.

Add about 1/2 inch of vegetable oil to a skillet and get it heating. Make a basic cornbread batter with your favorite cornmeal mix, but make it thick--I would suggest cutting the liquid by half. Then add 3/4 cup canned pumpkin and a dash of ground Allspice and stir to combine. Your batter should be to thick to pour.

Once oil is HOT spoon cornbread batter (about 1/3 cup) into skillet for each corncake. Brown 2 minutes (or so) per side, move to towel to drain.

Stack warm bbq turkey slices on each corncake and prepare to be amazed with yourself! So simple and delicious!!

Vegetable Turkey Pie

Using cooked turkey, chop 1-1/2 cups and set aside. In a mixing bowl combine 1 bag of frozen mixed vegetables (I used birdseye "Primavera blend" for this dish-asparagus, peas, red pepper, green beans- but any type you prefer would probably work), 1 can of cream of chicken soup, 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard and chopped turkey. Add mixture to a pie plate (or any small casserole dish), top with prepared pie crust, crimp edges and brush with eggwash, cut three slits in the top and bake at 350 for one hour. Keep an eye on the edge of the crust.

Serve with a Salad. Watch it disappear.

SO that's two days of Turkey, but I would serve something different in between--

Cheesy Gnocchi Casserole with Ham and Peas--this is a great, different but yummy recipe from the food network--I'd never cooked gnocchi before I found this recipe and it was a hit. It's also a great way to use leftover ham after the holidays!

Cheese Burger Casserole
1 pound ground beef, browned with a dash or two of garlic salt
Mixed with 1/2 bag (thawed) frozen shredded hashbrowns, 1 can cream of mushroom, 1+cup shredded cheddar cheese.

Beef Stroganoff there are no less that 6 zillion ways to make beef stroganoff, I think I do something different to mine every time. :) Its always a good go-to to change up the usual menus for us.


That's what's cooking at our house this week! I hope you've found some ways to make the most of turkey time and inspired your own menu this week.

My favorite meals...

This week's menu is perhaps reflective of my trip to my hometown over the weekend. These are some of MY favorite meals and I hope they are favorites at your house too! We're cooking up 5 dinners this week and two nights feature entree's that can be split between a meal for tonight and one for the freezer. This is my absolute new favorite thing to do! Enjoy!!

Miss Daisy's Turkey Divan- this is one where we'll serve half and freeze half. It will give your family 2 amazing dinners. If I'm making this on Sundays I'll serve the whole thing, but for a weeknight this works for us twice. Its simple southern comfort food at its absolute finest!

2- 10 oz. packages Frozen broccoli

2-3 cups cooked turkey, diced or sliced

Sauce

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 cup mayo

1 tsp. lemon juice

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 cup toasted bread crumbs (half if freezing

1 tbsp margarine (half if freezing)

In a glass baking dish, put a layer of broccoli and turkey. Prepare Sauce by mixing remaining ingredients and pour over broccoli and turkey. Top with bread crumbs and margarine. This can be made ahead of time and heated.

***SIDE NOTE***

I just had to share this-Miss Daisy herself shared this little blog on facebook with her followers!

She's just wonderful and I want to say Thank you for the kind words and welcome to those of you who may be visiting and are also fans of Daisy King. I've never gone wrong turning to one of her recipes and I truly appreciate the kind words.

She shared this recipe of mine on facebook. 

***NOW BACK TO OUR MENU***

Pork Tenderloin, biscuits, apple butter, green beans, corn-I'm going to coat my pork tenderloin in Dijon mustard and sear it on all sides in a medium-high skillet. Then I finish it off in a 350 oven for about 40-50 minutes. Let it rest while baking some biscuits and cooking my veggies o the stove. I told you about my love of canning in this post, so I'm using some of the apple butter I made! You, too can can!

Meatloaf, Mac-n-cheese, Lima beans. Sometimes you just go with what you know, and for me this meal is just that.

Baked pasta with sausage-using mild or sweet Italian sausage that you've browned and sliced make a no-fuss pasta bake by boiling your favorite pasta (rigatoni, shells or fusilli are easiest for my kids!), tossing it into a Pyrex dish that you've prepared with olive oil--OR TWO SMALLER PYREX-one prepped with oil the other lined with foil then a dash of olive oil--toss pasta with sliced sausage, a large can of diced tomatoes (drained) and about 1.5 cups of grated mozzarella or slices of provolone bake at 350 for 23-30 minutes. 

Breakfast for dinner! Pancakes, sausage links, cheese grits, fruit

The oven is working overtime this week! I'm putting together some items to donate to a bake sale and serving these beauties for the family! Yum!!

Baked Blueberry Muffins

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 generous cup canned blueberry pie filling
• 
  

Preheat your oven to 375 and grease (i use real Crisco when making doughnuts) and flour 2 pans.

Mix of sift together flour, baking powder and salt, set aside. Using a mixer, combine butter and sugar then add egg, buttermilk and vanilla and combine. Mix in dry ingredients until just combined. Fold in pie filling and fill doughnut pan wells 2/3 full. Bake 13-17 minutes. Let cool in pans for  a few minutes then turn out onto wire racks. I buttered some and they were extra tasty. Yield one dozen. 

These are the pans I use and I am LOVING them. 

That's what's cooking with the Wests this week, I hope you have a great one! Come back next Monday for another week of family dinners!

Menu Monday- Halloween, Chili 5 ways, Pumpkin Bread and More

Lots and lots to talk about with this Menu Monday! Stick around for some tips and tricks for your trick-or-treat week!

Chicken Tamale Pie-I am loving how easily this recipe came together and it was delicious. I used this recipe.

Dixie Stampede Soup- So many folks have mentioned this on facebook that I decided to go ahead and give this a whirl. I've had it on my "to try" list for about a year now and thought now that its soup season, let's give it whirl. Jay ate 2 bowls..one before church and another after. Um, if my 3 year old will eat vegetable soup, then this one is staying in the rotation, friends! There are lots of versions out there, I adapted a few and did this:

6 Tablespoons salted butter

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic salt

2 tsp corn syrup

6 tablespoons all purpose flour

few grinds of pepper

pinch of salt

1 cup of chicken broth

3 cups of water

1 can sliced potatoes finely chopped

1 can sliced carrots finely chopped

4 cups half-and-half

In a large pot, melt butter add onion powder, garlic salt, corn syrup. Add flour, pepper, salt, chicken broth, water and vegetables simmer for a few minutes, add half-and-half and simmer on low, do not boil. 

Calzones with Chicken, Marinara, Mushrooms-I made extra chicken on Tamale Pie night and used the extra to make these awesome calzones. (Disclaimer: I made the kids a cheese pizza tonight.)

1 pizza dough (in the bakery at Publix, there is a tiny fridge with dough--did you know that?)

1# cooked chicken

1 package fresh mushrooms

1 jar marinara

freshly grated mozzarella

olive oil

salt, pepper, garlic salt italian seasoning, to taste

flour for surfaces

Heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet, add chopped, cooked chicken. Once heated add entier package fresh mushrooms, saute 2-3 minutes, add salt pepper and season ings to taste. Reduce heat to low, let mushrooms continue to cook down. 

Remove dough from package, cut into thirds. Using floured hands and a floured surface, Stretch each third into  large oval shapes, spoon half of the chicken mushroom mixture onto one side of two ovals. Top with generous handful of mozzarella, fold plain side of dough over pressing seam together all the way around with a fork. Place on baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and spread over entire top with hands. Season with italian seasoning. 

I used the final third oval to make a cheese pizza for the kids with the marinara and mozzarella. 

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with warm red sauce. 

Chili-for us, Chili is a Halloween must-have. If you've been following our Menu Monday plans, you may have some Chili in the freezer to make tonight extra easy. I also want to share with you how we do leftover chili at our house...

(if you follow me on instagram you've seen some of these before)

Chili 5 ways

1. Top Baked potatoes, add cheese and sour cream.

2. Cornbread Cups- I found these awesome cornbread biscuits in the dairy section and knew I had to try them out. I greased a muffin tin, pressed the biscuits into the cups, making a well. Filled the well with some thawed leftover chili and topped with cheese (all we had was sliced) and baked at 350 for about 15-17 minutes. Total homerun!

3. Burritos-using a slotted spoon, fill tortillas and roll, bake in a casserole dish at 350 for 15 minutes, top with queso OR just heat individually in the microwave and serve with chips and salsa

4. Quesadillas- in a nonstick skillet or on a griddle warm tortilla, layer on cheese, chili, peppers, salsa--whatever you like, more cheese, top with another tortilla, flip and brown second side.

5. Nachos-line a baking sheet with foil, spread tortilla chips, top with chili, cheeses, peppers, salsa, pop in 375 degree oven, top with sour cream, lettuce, tomato, guacamole.

There you have it! 5 easy ways to re-mix this fall menu staple!

Beef and Mushrooms (aka Pot Roast) click here for the recipe and the story behind that name!

also this week it's Pumpkin Bread from Miss Daisy.

1 cup water

1 cup oil

1 can pumpkin pie filling or plain pumpkin

3 cups sugar

3 eggs

1 cup black walnuts, chopped

1 and 1/2 cups dates, chopped

3 and 1/2 cups self rising flour

1 tsp each nutmeg, ginger, salt

1/2 tsp cloves

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking soda

Mix together first 7 ingredients, sift together remaining ingredients. Mix well with pumkin mixture. Pour into two large greased loaf pans (I used 1 large and 4 small) Bake for 1 and 1/2 hours at 325 (30 minutes for the small loaves).

It is awesome!

So awesome in fact that just after I snapped this picture and put the "pumpkin cake" waayyy back on the counter, I turned around to this.

The boy and the very eager dog in the wings.

Jay took some in his lunch box he liked it so much!

This recipe is from my all-time favorite cook book Recipes from Miss Daisy's - 25th Anniversary Edition
 you can find it here. This is the 25th anniversary edition and it is UNDER $10. It is the best $10 you'll ever spend.

Its a busy week in the kitchen, and this menu is awesome and easy. I know you'll find somethings here to add to your family's favorites.

Thanks for visiting and Happy Halloween!!

I'll be back Monday for another awesome week of family dinners! Have a wonderful week!

Menu Monday #7-food for the week and for the freezer

There's a chill in the air and my menu looks like fall this week!

Pork Chops and Oven Roasted Cabbage- if you've all but given up on pork chops, I urge you to try cooking them this way. Over the past 7 years I have prepared many mediocre pork chops...until I discovered this magical method. Its super simple too--

You'll need:

3-4 boneless center cut pork chops

1 head of cabbage

1 medium onion (I use Spanish, but whatever)

olive oil

salt and pepper

Creole Seasoning (I use Tony Chachere)

Preheat to 350, line a baking sheet with aluminum foil with plenty of overhang. Sprinkle Creole Seasoning over both sides of pork chops, set aside. Chop Cabbage into 6-8 chunks or wedges, discard outer leaves and core. Coarsly chop onion. Place cabbage, onion and pork on aluminum foil in center of pan, tucking pork in among cabbage chunks. drizzle all with olive oil, add salt, pepper and more creole saesoning over the top. Place a second sheet of aluminum foil loosely over top and seal edges all the way around. You will have a foil packet that should allow for some airspace. 

Pop in the oven for 1 hour, let rest for 5 minutes before opening foil then serve. I make macaroni and cheese with this and its just perfect. 

So easy and yummy, you'll find yourself loving pork chops from now on. 

Corn Chowder-freeze half of this to eat again later.I used this recipe from the Pioneer Woman. I added plenty of salt and pepper and a few shakes of Tony's. I did not do the bread bowls, but made cheese biscuits. I also used frozen corn, although I want to remember to make this next summer for freezing when it's peak corn season. It was great and even better on day 2.

Tortellini with Pumpkin Alfredo Sauce--remember how I told you I was trying to embrace fall in this post? I've not yet tried this, so here goes nothing!

Beef and Cheddar Casserole--I'm using this recipe, but making it in two 8x8 pyrex dishes. Making one to serve and one to freeze.

Chili-Here's how I make my chili. For us its enough to eat for dinner, have leftovers for lunches and freeze two more portions that will be dinners in upcoming weeks.

In a a large pot-brown meat with a dash of olive oil and garlic salt then add onion and leave it for a few minutes. 

1 pound ground beef (venison, turkey, chicken-whatever)

1 medium onion, chopped

olive oil

garlic salt

Then add:

1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes

2 cans chili beans

2 cans kidney beans

2 cans black beans (I always get reduced sodium)

**i have been known to add an extra can of beans here or there if I have them, but this is the usual. This part is all up to you**

1 bag Carroll Shelby Chili Seasoning. I only  use the big packet, not the extra cayenne, masa or salt.

Stir. Cover. Cook at least 30 minutes, up to 2 hours on LOW. Bust up the tomatoes with your stirring spoon if they don't burst on their own.

I usually make mine by lunchtime to serve that day. The longer it sits, the better it gets. (up to a point, of course. Don't give yourself food poison or anything...)

Okay, so we've cooked 5 meals, and have a total of 9 dinners plus some lunches to show for it. That's a win in my book!

That's what I'm cooking this week, plus some fall treats.

Oh, and I did just receive this little baby (actually 2). Be prepared for some homemade doughnut magic soon!


What's for dinner at your house?

Menu Monday {Week 6}

Here we go--5 days of Family Dinners to fill up this week! Do us a favor and pick up a piece of fresh Parm from the cheese department instead of using the bagged or canned variety. This week we'll use it twice--you'll taste the difference and it keeps in the fridge for a good while.

Pulled Pork BBQ Sandwiches-buy it, roast it, slow-cook it.... Whatever works for you.

Salmon Salads- I just do mine with lemon pepper and use a grill pan--main dish in 10 minutes flat. I serve a salad with bacon, mandarin oranges, nuts and balsamic vinaigrette. This is a chicken or grilled cheese night for the kids mandarin oranges.

Melt in your mouth Chicken. I would try to give proper credit for this recipe, but I discovered it in the  newspaper years ago and a quick Google search tells me half of the free world claims this recipe as theirs. So, here's what I do and my family likes it. Also, a great way to start using chicken thighs if you have never done so. Inexpensive and tasty.

1-2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1/2 (or a little more) Parmesan cheese

about 1 teaspoon garlic salt

few grinds of black pepper

Spray glass dish with cooking spray. Place uncooked chicken in your dish. Mix mayo and seasoning, spread over chicken. Bake at 375 for 35-45 minutes.

Serve with a salad and maybe fried okra or lima beans, or whatever veggie you like and some fruit for the kids. Home run, Mom.

Pioneer Woman's Beef Enchiladas. This one is one to fix while the kids are napping or at school, but it is totally worth it. Yum.

Cavatappi with turkey and peas. Yes, your kids will eat peas....just go with me on this one.

1 pound of ground turkey (or chicken or 3/4 pound diced ham)

1 pound cavatappi pasta-it's like elbows, but longer. Rigatoni or Farfalle would also work well. Perhaps small shells, whatever you like.

1 bag of frozen peas

1 1/2 cups low-fat milk

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Brown meat (unless you're opting for ham), drain set aside.

Boil pasta 7 minutes, drain and put right back into pot, add frozen peas, place over low heat. Add milk and cheese. Stir to combine and melt cheese. Salt and pepper to taste, serve immediately.

Join the clean plate club. 

Headed to the Gulf Coast this weekend for Shrimp Festival....can't wait to share lots of new shrimp recipes next Monday!

This is what's for dinner at our house this week, what's cooking in your kitchen?

What is Menu Monday....sharing what we're having for dinner just to take the burden off of other moms who struggle with "What am I going to cook tonight?!?"

For our family, we eat dinner together every night right now. Usually at our house. Its a time to connect and doesn't really serve so much to end the day as start the evening. The "mood" at dinner is the determining factor in what kind of night we'll have as a family. It's the launch pad for whatever the next 3 or so hours before bedtime will become. Its VERY important for me that it is a positive time and not a stressful time. I will not say that it is perfect, more of a constant work in progress.

If I'm stressed about what we're gong to eat, it can negatively impact our evening.

If its a battle to get the kids to eat, we're all in an rotten mood and that's no way to end the day.

If we can't get through a meal relatively peacefully, there's a good chance the rest of the night will not be peaceful.

Planning the weekly menu, getting prepared for an hour to help make sure the week nights go smoothly is totally worth it to me. I blog these plans with the hope that it helps some of my friends or other wives with their plans as well.

It also serves as my own personal "idea archive" when I start suffering from mealtime amnesia. I think its a real condition. ;)

Menu Monday {5}

Y'all.

It's 11:48 on Monday Night.

Here's Menu Monday!

Tonight we did Mummy Dogs. And by we I mean Jay really did do most of this and was so proud.

Here's the rest of the week--
Tuesday-Italian Sausage Penne for the grownups and meatballs for the kiddos
Wednesday- Turkey Burgers
Thursday- I'm picking up a family dinner at Whole Foods because I have a coupon about to expire.
Friday- Big Salads for the grown ups and kids can pick their dinner tonight.

Full Disclosure: Last week was a tad crazy--we got back from a long weekend at the beach, Lizzy was at the doc with an ear infection, then Dad had to be out of town for 4 days and I hosted a baby shower. We abandoned our meal plan but my freezer supply saved us.

I'm back on schedule planning meals for next week--The Annual National Shrimp Festival kicks off next weekend in Gulf Shores and I have some new seafood recipes to try out soon! Stay tuned!

What's cooking at your house this week?

Menu Monday {3}

There's a special day on my calendar this week!
Not a birthday or an anniversary or anything sweet like that...

That's what we're having Wednesday night. Cheddar Cheese and ketchup for the kiddies and Bacon and Bleu Cheese for mom and dad.

So, there's my tip for the week. Don't make burger night a boring night...it's and easy meal so it's easy to let yourself get stuck.Dress up those burgers just like you'd order them out and picky eaters of all kinds can be pleased on burger night.

The rest of the week will look like this...

Lasagna (I used my regular recipe, but made it in three 8x8 pans and froze two)
Salmon, Veggies, Salad
Chili cups, Salad
Bleu Cheese BT's (that's just like a BLT, minus the "L", plus bleu cheese, and a dash of balsamic vinagrette--regular grilled cheese for the kids)


and that's our week!

What's cooking at your house?