What We Ate

Last Saturday night, we ate Steak & Shake after going to see Kung Fu Panda 3.

On Sunday, we had our gumbo. It is SO good.

We had enough gumbo for dinner on Monday night as well.

On Tuesday night, we had cracker crusted chicken, baked potatoes, and sauteed green beans. For this recipe, we crumble Ritz crackers and add melted butter to them and then coat the chicken in the cracker crumbs. You then bake the chicken at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.

I made a batch of banana bread with some ripe bananas! I use this amazing recipe.

On Wednesday night, we had bean and rice burritos and roasted asparagus. The asparagus happened to be on sale at Harps that day so I picked some up!

On Thursday night, I made spaghetti and served it with leftover asparagus.

On Friday night, we ate leftover spaghetti.

Tonight, I made country style ribs. As always, they were super delicious!

What We Ate

This is beginning from two Friday nights ago:

Pulled pork sandwiches.

I had a 3 lb. pork butt that I put in the crock pot. I added a generous sprinkle of garlic powder, onion powder and salt to the top of the meat and around it. 

I added about 1 1/2 cups of water. It cooked in the crock pot for about 6 hours. 

I took it out and shredded it and added a bit of barbecue sauce and that's it!

Tim declared this the best pulled pork of his life. That is HIGH praise from him!!!

We all loved this meal!

We had enough to eat it the next night as well!

We loved the frozen Arby's curly fries with this meal!

I roasted some frozen broccoli the second night and it was so good!

 We ate a couple of random meals that I didn't take photos of but they included bologna sandwiches and some chicken and noodles from the freezer that we received after my surgery.
That's how real life is around here!

I made this Red Beans and Rice recipe. 

If you scroll down to the notes, I made the quick version and I substituted a small amount of Cajun seasoning for the Creole seasoning. 

We don't like things too spicy!

This was a keeper of a recipe!

Brown sugar glazed salmon using this recipe minus the whiskey!

This is my favorite way to cook salmon. Salmon isn't my favorite, but I know it is good for me, so I needed to find a yummy way to prepare. 

My kids love salmon for some reason and I'm so glad for that!

This past Friday night, I made this Chicken enchilada ring. 

I did half with cheese and half without.

This weekend, the kids had Spaghetti and taco soup while Tim and I were out of town.

Monday night we ate at Dixie Cafe after arriving back home.

Last night, I made tacos and didn't get a picture!

I hope y'all enjoy these food posts!

What We Ate

I love seeing what other people eat and getting ideas for our menu because I can get stuck in the same meals over and over!

I thought I would start sharing about we have eaten over the past week. I will link to recipes where I can!

I do have to make modifications to our meals since I am dairy free. I will substitute dairy free "butter" for regular butter and almond milk (I use unsweetened original) for regular milk. I also divide certain recipes and then add cheese to the portion for Tim and the kids. 

It really hasn't been a big deal and I'm obviously feeling better by not consuming dairy which makes it all worth it!

I do have to be vigilant about reading labels because milk can be in so many things!

Here's what we ate since last Friday:

Bourbon Chicken, fried rice, sauteed green beans, and egg rolls.

This is a family favorite!

 The best meatloaf, instant mashed potatoes, and green peas. 

We can't be gourmet alllll the time. 

This was the first time making this specific meatloaf and we all loved it!

We had purple hull peas with ham (that was in the freezer saved from Christmas) on Sunday but I didn't get a picture of that meal.

 Chicken spaghetti makeover, sauteed green beans, sliced strawberries with a *little* sugar sprinkled on them.

I haven't made chicken spaghetti in a long time because the recipe I have uses "cream of" soups and I can't have any of that since I am dairy free. This turned out really good!

This is a picture of my plate. I separated the food out before I added cheese to the part for Tim and the kids. 
We actually ate this two nights in a row and had salad with it the second time.

I know this isn't a great picture. It was taken quickly after we had already eaten dinner, so it was what was left over. 

This was a recipe that I created- It is an Italian Gnocchi bake.

First, I browned up a pound of Italian sausage. Next, I placed chopped frozen broccoli florets (about half of a package), the sausage, and a package of potato gnocchi (my kids call them dumplings!) in my new Dutch oven. (side note- I got this Dutch oven in November and I have used it several times since. I love it!)

To all of that, I added a can of spaghetti sauce and about 1 cup of chicken broth to thin that out.

I baked it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes.

It was so good and gobbled up by everyone!

Pan seared wild caught flounder, roasted russet and sweet potatoes, and salad.

A couple of other food related things:

• I bought my first ever fresh mango this week. I watched a YouTube video to learn how to cut it! I learned that I really love fresh mango!

• My kids used to beg to "be a tray" at school. I am big on packing their lunches, but over the last year and not feeling well, my kids have eaten at school a lot more than normal. Needless to say, they don't ask to be trays anymore. They've expressed how lunch at school really isn't that good. I find that so sad because lunch was usually pretty good when I was growing up. Do you remember the rolls and cinnamon rolls??!!!

Country style ribs

This is one of our favorite things to cook. 

I've wanted to share it for awhile, but we usually eat it all before I think of photographing it. It's also not the most photogenic thing either! The taste more than makes up for that!

We weren't really schooled in how to cook meat early in our marriage.

One day, we learned that you just keep cooking meat until it is literally falling off the bone and then it is done!

You will need:

a crock pot

a package of country style ribs

garlic powder

barbecue sauce to dip it in!

Place the ribs in the crockpot and generously sprinkle garlic powder over them.

Let cook for 4-6 hours until meat is falling off the bone. Note: sometimes I add some BBQ sauce to the meat in the crockpot. Either works great!

Serve with barbecue sauce and the sides of your choice!

Salmon cakes

Salmon Cakes

1 can Alaskan salmon

1 egg

6-8 crackers (saltine, Ritz, etc), crushed

2 Tbsp. onion, minced

1/4 cup red bell pepper, finely diced

1-2 Tbsp. mayo

Salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

1 Tbsp. green onion, minced (optional)

Other options: Old Bay seasoning, dill weed

Drain salmon and place in mixing bowl. Flake with a fork, mashing any bones (they are edible). To the salmon, add the egg, crushed crackers, onion, red pepper, mayo and seasonings. Mix thoroughly. Shape into patties. Refrigerate the cakes once shaped for 20-30 minutes. It will prevent the cakes from breaking up during cooking. There are two ways that you can cook these: bake at 375 for about 20-25 minutes...flipping once halfway through OR heat enough oil to cover a skillet on medium to medium high and pan fry them.

Pan seared, caramelized honey-garlic carrots

I am always searching for new ways to cook vegetables, specifically to entice my children to eat them. They are actually really good eaters, but age has brought about more pickiness. 

We typically steam carrots and serve with honey drizzled over them.

This recipe takes it to the next level with the carmelization.

I l-o-v-e carmelization! It brings out those sugars!

You will need:

5-6 medium carrots, sliced into coins or whatever shape you prefer

olive oil

salt

pepper

1 tsp minced garlic

honey for drizzling- maybe 1 Tbsp?

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the oil, then the carrots. Salt and pepper them. Cook, rolling the carrots occasionally so that they brown on all sides. How long you cook them is your preference. I like to cook them until they are pretty brown and soft. Remove carrots to a serving dish and toss with the garlic and honey. Serve warm.

The yummiest Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I'm not sure why I have never posted our recipe for oatmeal raisin cookies. This is very high up on my favorite cookies list. Tim and the kids cannot get enough of them either. Also- I like to think they are a little healthy since they have oats and raisins. Just let me keep thinking that :-)

The Yummiest Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

1 cup shortening
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups uncooked oats
1 cup raisins (sometimes I use golden raisins)

In a large mixing bowl, beat shortening, on med-high speed for 30 seconds.  In a smaller bowl, stir together 1 cup of the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add this to the shortening along with brown sugar, sugar, eggs and vanilla.  Blend 1-2 minutes or until thoroughly combined. Stir in remaining flour and oats. Fold in raisins. Drop by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool on wire rack.

Deviled Eggs

I started making deviled eggs when I still lived at home with my parents.

It gradually became my "thing" to make for family gatherings.

It morphed into being my "thing" that I brought to Tim's family gatherings as well.

I remember lots of holiday mornings, up early and stressing about peeling eggs! I always wanted to make enough for everyone to have two eggs and usually we had about 30 people at family meals, so that is a lot of egg peeling!

This is my mom's recipe and though I no longer rely on the recipe, it is a good starting base for someone who has never made deviled eggs. I think once you make them quite a few times, you start adjusting everything by taste. This recipe is very easy to double or triple.

With summer starting Saturday, I think deviled eggs would make a nice addition to a yummy weekend barbecue!

6 hard-boiled eggs

3 Tbsp. mayonnaise

½ tsp. dry mustard

1/8 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

 Cut eggs lengthwise in half. Slip out egg yolks and mash with a fork. Mix in mayo, mustard, salt, and pepper. Fill egg whites with egg yolk mixture, heaping it lightly. 

Chicken Enchilada ring

I just finished updating the recipes tab at the top of the blog. Somehow, a few recipes had not been added to it!

This recipe is from Pampered Chef and is a big favorite at our house.

If you have never tried this before, you must rectify that soon!

This picture only has a cross section of the "ring." I failed to get a picture of the entire ring before it was eaten!

2 cups coarsely chopped cooked chicken
1/4 cup chopped pitted ripe olives
1 (4 ounce) cup shredded cheddar cheese, and monterey jack cheese blend
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, undrained
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
2 plum tomatoes
1 lime
2/3 cup finely crushed corn tortilla chips, divided
2 (8 ounce) packages refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
1 cup salsa
1 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 375F. Chop chicken and olives using Food Chopper; place in mixing bowl.
Add cheese, green chilies, mayonnaise, and seasoning mix. Seed and chop 1 tomato.
Slice lime in half. Using Juicer, juice one half of lime to measure 1 teaspoon juice.
Reserve remaining lime for garnish. Add chopped tomato and lime juice to chicken mixture. Reserve 2 tablespoons crushed chips; add remaining chips to chicken mixture and mix well. Sprinkle reserved crushed chips over cutting board.
Unroll crescent dough. Place dough, sticky-side down, onto crushed chips; press down lightly, so chips adhere to dough. Separate dough into triangles. Arrange triangles, chip side down, in a circle on round baking stone (or round pizza baking sheet) with wide ends overlapping in the center and points towards outside. (There should be a 5-inch diameter opening in center.) Scoop chicken mixture evenly onto the wide ends of each triangle.
Bring points of triangles up over filling and tuck under wide ends of dough at center of ring.
(Filling will not be completely covered.) Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden. For garnish, cut remaining tomato into 8 wedges. Cut remaining half of lime into 4 slices; cut in half.
Arrange between openings of ring. Cut and serve with salsa and sour cream.

Broccoli salad

This recipe is not mine and it is not new, but it is very good. I have made it quite a few times in the past few months. It makes me eat more raw broccoli and there ain't anything wrong with that!

Broccoli Salad

2 heads fresh broccoli 1/2 pound bacon 3/4 cup raisins

3/4 cup sliced almonds/pecans 1 cup mayonnaise 1/2 cup white sugar 2 tablespoons white  vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Place bacon in a deep skillet and cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Cool and crumble.
2.	Cut the broccoli into bite-size pieces. Combine with the bacon, raisins, your favorite nuts and mix well. To prepare the dressing, mix the mayonnaise, sugar and vinegar together until smooth. Stir into the salad, let chill and serve.

sweet potato fries

I started making sweet potato fries a few years ago. We really love them, but they always ended up being soggy. I happened to see somewhere that the fries cannot be touching while cooking or they will end up soggy. Bingo! Now, we separate them and no more soggy fries!

First things first. I cut up one large sweet potato into fries. I then toss the fries in a bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper. Next, I place them on the baking sheet with room to breathe! Bake at 450 degrees for about 10 minutes, flip and then bake for 10 minutes more. You can cook them longer if you want them extra crispy :-) They do get darker as you bake them, but it is carmelization, not burnt-ness! Try them, you might like them!

Fish Tacos

Food is an important part of our family. 

We love to cook and we love to eat. 

When I was growing up, my parents cooked at home a lot, but they were not very adventurous in the kitchen. 

I studied food preparation in college and that was the first place where my eyes were opened to the joy of cooking and different kinds of food.

Tim opened my eyes to even more food experiences and we love to try new foods and recipes.

I have been creating a recipe book with all of our family recipes.

I have posted some of them on the blog and you can find them here.

Since I have had children and gotten older, healthy food has become more important to me.

Being diagnosed with IBS has also contributed to eating changes in my life.

I've learned that a lot of times, healthy food tastes better and makes you feel better than the alternatives.

In our day and age, there are many more food options than ever before.

However, knowing what is a "good" choice isn't always cut and dry.

I've read and researched and I try my best to make the healthiest choices that are within our budget.

We make good choices the best that we can, but we also enjoy treats.

A few years into our marriage, I decided that we should eat fish pretty frequently.

For the longest time it consisted of pan fried tilapia or salmon.

We have added a few more dishes since then. One of those dishes is fish tacos.

I had never eaten a fish taco until last year.

I had always been leery of them for some reason. Once I tried them, I was hooked and determined to make them at home.

We tried a few different versions before we arrived at this recipe.

There are so many ways to do fish tacos. The fish can be grilled, baked, or fried. The toppings and sauce are all up to your imagination.

Our version is just what we like. You can look around at recipes on the web and create your own fish tacos!

Fish Tacos

-4 tilapia fillets
-1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
-butter to coat pan for pan frying the fish
-1 cup prepared black beans
-Sauce:
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. taco seasoning
juice of 1 lime
-Pico de Gallo

1 medium tomato, chopped
1/2 medium onion, chopped
3 sprigs fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
-hard or soft shell corn tortillas

Melt butter in pan over medium to medium high heat. Coat tilapia fillets in panko crumbs and place in pan. Cook on both sides until fish flakes easily with a fork.
To prepare sauce, combine sour cream, mayonnaise, taco seasoning and lime juice. To prepare pico de gallo, combine tomato, onion, cilantro, garlic powder, salt and pepper. 
Assembling tacos: in taco shell, add fish, black beans, pico de gallo and top with sauce.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Today seems like a good day to have cookies, am I right?!
One of my close friends gave me this recipe years ago and it is the only one I have made since. 

Tim absolutely loves this recipe and the cookies are usually gone in two days.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/4 cup flour

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup shortening

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 pkg semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°. In small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. In large mixing bowl, beat butter, shortening, and sugars until creamy. Beat in eggs and vanilla.  Add flour mixture; mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Bake 10-12 minutes.

Southwest Chicken and black bean soup

The weather has been bitter cold here lately.  We have had snow and ice and missed multiple days of school.  

Today is a different sort of day.  We live in Arkansas, so we are used to these rapid changes in weather.

It is currently 50 degrees and steadily raining with a little thunder here and there.

There is nothing like a dreary day to put me in the mood for soup.

I made this Southwest chicken and black bean soup last month and it was the first time I had made it in a few years.

I'm not sure why, now that we have had it again!

It is a simple recipe that is super delicious!

Ingredients
about 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can black beans
1/2 bag frozen whole kernel corn
1 16 oz. jar mild salsa
6 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
3tsp cumin

Put all ingredients in crock pot and cook until chicken is cooked through and shreds easily. Shred the chicken with a fork, place it back in the soup and serve. This goes great with tortilla chips.

The kids ate this up!  My husband said, "Put this at the top of the menu list!" That, my friends, means that this recipe is a keeper!

Seriously good Taco Soup

Our weather is about to get really cold and nasty.  There is nothing I like better on days like that than a hot bowl of soup.  This soup is one that we make frequently.  The kids lap it up.  That's a win in my book!

Taco Soup

1 lb ground beef

1 can pinto beans, rinsed

1 can black beans, rinsed

1 can mild Rotel

1/2 pkg frozen corn (or as much or little as you like!)

1 pkg Hidden Valley dry ranch dressing mix

taco seasoning to your liking (I make my own seasoning so I pour as much in as I think looks good. If using a package, maybe 1 package?)

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker or stock pot and cook on low for 3-4 hours.  We love to sprinkle cheese over this in our bowls and serve with corn chips! Yummo!

Crock-pot Thanksgiving dressing & a visit to Santa {Recipe}

We had breakfast at The Egg and I in Rogers this morning with Tim after his doctors appointment.  We had been wanting to try it for a long time.  It was really good!

Afterwards, we headed over to the Promenade to visit Santa!

I know, I know. It is still November.

BUT, we were the only ones there and the kids had a blast visiting with Santa!

Compiling all of our recipes digitally and also putting them into a binder has been a big goal of mine for awhile.  I haven't had lots of time to work on it, but it is at the top of my list right now.

I want to have all of our recipes together for my sake and for the kids to have someday.

Today, we are having our own family (Tim, the kids, and I) Thanksgiving.

We are having turkey, dressing, cranberry sauce, sweet potato casserole, asparagus and pie!

This dressing recipe is from my mom.  She made it a few years ago and it was instantly my favorite dressing ever.

It has so much flavor and is so moist! I cannot tolerate dry dressing!

Crockpot Thanksgiving dressing  (or make it anytime you want!)

8-inch pan of prepared cornbread
8 slices of bread
4 eggs
4 cups chicken broth
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sage
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tbsp butter

Crumble breads, then add all ingredients except butter. Pour into crock-pot and dot butter on top.  Cook on high for 2 hours or on low for 3-4 hours.

Pumpkin pie {Recipe}

I pretty much love every season.  By the time they get here, I'm so ready for the change.

However, from the end of November to the end of December may be my favorite time of the year.

I love the holidays. We are in full gear for Thanksgiving and have even started a little for Christmas :-)

I love the traditions.  Today, the kiddos painted ornaments like they do every year. 

Most importantly, I love the FOOD!

We have four Thanksgiving meals over the next three days and today I began baking.  This morning, I whipped up pumpkin pies, pecan pies, and sweet potato casserole.  Tim says my pecan pie is the best. Ever.  I have to say that it is very, very good.  
Pecan pie is my most favorite pie.  

Another pie is high up on the list too-- pumpkin pie.

Pumpkin Pie

1 can pure pumpkin
1 can evaporated milk
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
2 9-inch unbaked pie shells/crusts

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Thoroughly blend all ingredients and pour into pie crusts. Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake 40-50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

The best cinnamon rolls I've ever had [Recipe]

I have been dying to learn how to make homemade cinnamon rolls.

The best cinnamon rolls I ever remember having, were on beef stew day in the cafeteria at school when I was growing up. 

I've never found a cinnamon roll that has really came close to them.

I tried making the Pioneer Woman's recipe last year. I don't know what happened, 

but it was a total flop :(

I gave up for awhile after that.

Then, in Sunday school someone had made homemade cinnamon rolls and it gave the itch to try again.

I did an Internet search for the best cinnamon rolls ever and I came across THIS 

(Recipe and my notes below.)

I have to admit, when I saw the potato in the recipe, I was pretty skeptical.

Another problem I've always had is getting my dough to rise.

It would rise, but it would never double.

I don't know what the magic in these cinnamon rolls comes from, but they may actually be better than the ones I remember.

This recipe is not hard, but it is somewhat time consuming.

However, a lot of the time is waiting on the dough to rise.

And rise, it did!

If you've ever wanted to learn to make cinnamon rolls, I highly suggest this recipe!

They are perfect in my book!

Yield: 12 servings
Time: 3½ to 4 hours, mostly unattended

*My notes are in purple

1 small potato (about 4 ounces), cut into 1-inch chunks
1½ teaspoons salt
4½ cups flour, plus more for kneading and shaping
1 cup sugar
2¼ teaspoons instant yeast or one ¼-ounce packet active dry yeast
¾ cup (1½ sticks) butter, at room temperature
1 large egg
Oil or butter for greasing the bowl and pan
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1/2 tsp maple extract)

1. Put the potato in a medium saucepan with ½ teaspoon salt and enough water to cover it by at least 1 inch. Cover the saucepan, bring to a boil, and cook until the potato is very tender, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the flour, ½ cup of the sugar, the yeast, and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt in a large bowl.

2. Drain the potato, reserving 1¼ cups of the potato-cooking liquid, and put the potato through a ricer (I just used a fork and smooshed it. You are just trying to get baby food consistency.) (Discard the potato skin.) Add ¼ cup (½ stick) of the butter to the reserved potato-cooking liquid and stir until it melts. When the butter mixture cools to 100°F—about the same temperature as the inside of your wrist(I used my candy thermometer and did the exact temp it called for)—add it to the flour mixture along with the riced potato and the egg. Stir with the dough-hook attachment of a stand mixer or by hand until combined.

3. Knead the dough with the dough-hook attachment of a stand mixer or by hand until it feels smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, adding flour as necessary to keep the dough from sticking. Grease a large bowl (it’s fine to use the same one you mixed the dough in), add the dough, and turn it over to coat it lightly with oil or butter. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap, put it in a warm place, and let the dough rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour. (I set my bowl outside because it is very hot and humid. Maybe that was the difference in why I got the dough to rise so much?)

4. Grease a 9- by 13-inch pan(I used two 8-inch round pans) with oil or butter. Punch down the dough, then transfer it to a floured surface. With a rolling pin, roll the dough into an approximately 8- by 12-inch rectangle(I did this exactly and the dough was still 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch. So it will look kinda puffy, not flat.) Spread the remaining ½ cup (1 stick) butter over the surface of the dough(My butter was softened, not melted.) Combine the remaining ½ cup sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle this mixture evenly over the butter. Starting from one of the long sides, roll up the dough as tightly as possible. Cut the roll into 12 one-inch slices and arrange the slices, cut side up, in the greased pan.

5. Cover the pan with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap, put it in a warm place, and let the rolls rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.(Again, I put mine outside to rise.) (At this point you can refrigerate the cinnamon rolls for up to 12 hours or overnight; let them return to room temperature before baking.)

6. Heat the oven to 350°F. Uncover the cinnamon rolls and bake until golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together the powdered sugar and milk until smooth, then whisk in the vanilla(and maple extract.) Let the cinnamon rolls cool slightly, then drizzle the icing over them and serve warm.