I am a little late getting in, but pinterest has officially consumed my life... the ideas are endless, and finally a way to keep up with them.  I made these last night from a recipe I found on pinterest... they are for a cookie/candy exchange Monday night... my perfect treat... salty, sweet, and of course, chocolate!

You can find this awesome recipe by clicking here...

Comfort Food

I had my first ever root canal today. I only put it off for about six years. So, on this rainy night, chicken noodle soup was the perfect choice. I am so glad my boys are big soup fans like mom.

I boiled two boneless, skinless chicken breast, shredded them, and added them to chicken broth, chopped celery and a chopped carrot. I then added one can of Cream of Chicken, and a bag of egg noodles. I heated it to boiling, and then simmered until the noodles were right. All three boys love it!

Happy December!

Taco Seasoning Recipe

I've seen this before, and I believe there are many variations... but hello? If this works, why buy the prepackaged stuff... I have all these spices in my cabinet... (this is for one pound of meat by they way)

Taco Seasoning: 2 T chili powder, 1 1/2 T cumin, 1 1/2 T paprika, 1 T onion powder, 1T garlic powder, 1/8 to 1/4 t cayenne pepper. (2 T of this will falvor 1 pound of beef, turkey, or chicken.


I found this recipe tonight... I'm searching out high protein, low fat recipes that the whole family will love... this one sounds good to me!  

Mexican Lasagna

I guess when my son remembers something we had from dinner the night before and asks me to write down the recipe so that I can make it again, it must have been a hit. He also, at his ripe old age of 10, has figured out that I often just throw stuff together and invent in the kitchen.  Last night I was searching for a recipe using things I already had on hand (which wasn't much!) I used supercook, which thanks to my blogging buddy, Shannon, is one of my favorite go-to websites. It's the coolest  thing ever, you enter the food you have and it pops out lots of recipes you can make right now! What is better for a procrastinator like me, when it's like, oh, 5:24 and dinner is at 6! So, anyway... I used supercook and kinda' sorta followed a recipe it suggested for me.

I made a sort of Mexican lasagna which I've always wanted to try... Let's see if I can remember it... (and in case anyone actually reads my blog, and in case anyone actually cares, I love blogging about my recipes, because I actually do check back through my recipe posts to plan meals!) 

Mexican Lasagna

Two pounds groundbeef, seasoned with taco seasoning
Shredded Cheese (amount varies- my husband complains suggests I use more, when I skimp on the shredded cheese)
2 Cans Tomato Soup
1 cup salsa
Kernel Corn
Corn tortillas (I like these so much better than flour lately)

Brown and drain the beef. Follow directions on taco seasoning.  Add soup, salsa, and corn to meat mixture and heat through. 
Layer Corn Tortillas, Cheese, Meat mixture in baking dish lasagna style. Top with more shredded cheese. (crushed doritos would be good here, too)
Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.

This was a hearty casserole. Yum!

Cream of Broccoli Soup

I made a really good Cream of Broccoli Soup the other night.. if you melt cheddar cheese into it, it tastes a lot like the famous Blackeyed Pea cheddar-broccoli soup we all grew up loving! This recipe only serves two, and I'm never exact when I cook, but I think I doubled most everything except for the broccoli and it turned out great.

4 cups fresh broccoli
2 tablespoons butter
1 chicken bouillon cube
1 cup water
1 clove garlic (didn't have any, I just shook some garlic seasoning into it)
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup heavy cream

Steam broccoli until well done and soft. In a separate pot, add butter, bouillon, garlic, salt & pepper, steamed broccoli and water. Cook and stir until the broccoli falls apart. With beater, liquefy the broccoli, add heavy cream, cook until totally liquefied beating occasionally.

What's for dinner?

Planning my week:

Sunday: Hotdogs around the bonfire

Monday:

Breakfast: Pumpkin Muffins... recipe here! I just made them and tried one (and a half). They are to die for. I didn't do the icing this time.

Dinner: Porcupine Meatballs

Tuesday: Tomato Basil Soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Wednesday: Tator Tot Casserole

Thursday: Pork Fried Rice

Friday: ???

And a pic -

Happy Birthday To My Main Man!

We had fun celebrating Dan's birthday this week! Just some good old-fashioned family fun!

Yummy Paula Deen Strawberry Cake with strawberry cream cheese icing... to die for!

Jayden is full of surprises... keeps us laughing all the time!

These are the men in my life... don't know what I would do without them.

Dan enjoying his birthday cards.

Jayden wanted to write on the envelope... for some reason, seeing it made me feel all mushy inside. My boys mean everything to me, and they are growing up so fast... Jayden with his straight up and down writing, insisting on calling Dan "Dad" instead of "Daddy" , trying to be all grown up... this is the "stuff" people, this is the "stuff."

What's for dinner? Some ideas...

The cooler Fall weather is inspiring me to cook up some comfort food... I might try these, or if you do, let me know how it turned out.

Homemade Sausage and Cheese Turnovers

Cheeseburger Pie

Meatloaf Cups and Mashed Potatoes

Deconstructed Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Slow Cooker Pork Chops

Sour Cream Pork Chops

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

What's for Dinner?

Monday- Farmers Casserole

Tuesdays- Quesadillas

Wednesday-Stuffed Shells

Thursday-Leftovers/Silly Supper

Friday- Pizza

Planning out my week...

A little late, but an A for Effort, right? It worked last week, so I'm going to give it another go. I didn't go shopping for everything yet, so it may be more of a struggle to stick with the plan this week. Here's what I'm thinking...



Monday-Cobb Salad

Tuesday-Little Caesar's Hot and Ready (Bryce has a school program)

Wednesday-Sour Cream and Chive Chicken Pasta Bowties

I've got a teenager in my house not eating meat for lent, and a husband doing South Beach, so I did the broccoli as a side and only put chicken in 3/4 of the dish. I also used two packages of farfalle, which made TONS, but I didn't double the cream cheese, as I prefer a lighter sauce. I thought the dish was "okay" the night of, the sour cream and onion taste was pretty strong to me, but I've been warming up the leftovers all weekend, and for some reason the taste was more mild after sitting in the fridge. Just to compare, next time, I'm going to use unflavored cream cheese and try low fat and see how it works.

Thursday-Leftovers (I'll be working late on a field trip with my school)

Friday-More Leftovers

Saturday- Baked Potatoes with ham and cheese

What about your family? I'm always looking for great ideas!

Tortellini Soup

Okay, with my third entry in a row about food, I think I may be becoming a "foodie." I am really into all the great tasting, and very inexpensive meal ideas I am finding on the blogs I follow. Tonight, I made a really good Tortellini Soup. I found the recipe here. Also, it was a very filling, meatless meal which is good for lent. All the boys (including the husband) enjoyed the soup, as did Mary, who gives up meat for lent each year.

Make Your Own Pizza Night!

Lately, all my posts relate to food. I guess I'm not suprised! Thanks, Casey, for the idea! Tonight we made our own pizzas using canned biscuits, tomato sauce, pepperoni, and mozzarella cheese! It was fun and inexpensive change-up for our Friday night pizza and a movie tradition!

The boys totally got into the whole process, overloading the dough with toppings!

I was trying to get them all to look, but only Jayden turned!
This picture makes me laugh since Jayden's head is fit perfectly under Bryce's armpit!

Action shot, very busy night at the Baird Pizzeria!!!

The finished product... Let's dig in!!!

What's for Dinner?

The nosey part of me has always wondered what other moms are doing for dinner? Dinnertime can be stressful for a working mom... and by working, I mean ALL OF US, whether we are working at home or working outside the home. Therefore, one of my favorite blog-stalking activities has been checking out posts about what other moms are making for dinner. So, I thought I'd post my first "What's for Dinner" entry. Last night, we had an Chicken Enchilada Casserole, which was a crowd-pleaser, cheap, and easy (my three main criteria for a successful meal!)

Here's how I threw it together.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup salsa
1 1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup crushed Doritos
Flour tortillas cut into small strips
2 cups shredded cheddar

Boil chicken and cut into small pieces. Mix chicken pieces together with soup,sour cream, and salsa.
Layer chicken mixture, tortillas, and cheese like lasagna. Continue until you run out of ingredients. Spread crushed Doritos on top. Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes or until bubbly at 350.

What's for dinner at your house?