Friday Sunshine

It's Friday. Wahoo. We made it through another week. Have you ever had the experience when you repeat an activity, say the same day and time each week, that when that event rolls around, you wonder how it was that another whole week went by? That's me lately.

The day started off a little foggy but I am trying my best to find the sunshine right?

I managed to find a few moments to grab a few things at the store alone! Anyone else prefer shopping with no kiddos? Amen. I snagged a few things for the weeks ahead, oh how I love when that happens! I also had a chance to volunteer at school this morning. I love working with the kids and being present in the lives of my children. I value their school, their education, and their awesome teachers.

Fridays mean Family Movie Nights in our house. We are all just so tired by the end of the week and we love to snuggle up to watch a good movie together. I really look forward to this family time together. They will be grown up all too soon. I stopped by our local Redbox to rent a movie and low and behold the Redbox man was there servicing the machine. How amazing is that? Let me just say that he was drawing a small crowd of curious customers who wanted to see what the inside of that happy Redbox machine looked like and just how it worked on the inside. It was pretty cool! To top it off, I even scored a free movie. Here's hoping that I picked a good one!

I am even excited about what I am planning to make for dinner tonight. I can only hope that it lives up to my expectation. I actually made this meal for our monthly meal swap, intended to post that recipe here, and then got sidetracked with lots of other things on my plate. It's called Shrimp Destin and you can go here for the recipe and try it for yourself. One of my meal swap friends made her meal and served it over homemade pasta. She said it was delicious. The recipe says that you can serve it over fresh toasted french rolls, pasta, or even rice. I think we will go the route of pasta too, but mine will likely come from a box.

The day is ending up to be pretty sunny after all! I hope your day has sunny so far too! I am adding prayers to those that are near and dear to my heart that are going through hard times right now. I pray that the Rays of Sunshine that shine down on your path today, wherever you are, sustain you through your difficult days.

Pasta and Fagioli Soup

I'm running...not very fast for sure, but my effort is good and that has to count for something. Not exercise running, sadly. I am still just giving lots of good effort to create peace, a normal routine, and lots of love in our house. We are seeing glimpses of normalcy within the walls of our house and that is a good thing.

I swapped meals last week and in the madness of the week forgot to post what I made. I was assigned beef this month. Truly, I don't care what kind of meal the other ladies bring, I am just grateful for the meal. I assume this is true of most of us but is does seem to help when the meat selections for the month are a bit varied.

I decided to love on my crock pot this month and make a meal for busy moms, just like me. The weather in our area has been cold, damp, and rainy often lately. So it was decided and settled that I would make a Pasta and Fagioli soup this month as my contribution to our swap. I for one, am really excited to have a hearty meal like this one waiting for us in our freezer on one of those chilly evenings this fall.

Click on the highlighted text if you are interested in the recipe. Hope you enjoy it too!

Fauxtisserie Chicken

Now this is a recipe I have needed for awhile now. It seems like a perfect one for those busy nights and also one that lends itself to creative leftovers or helping to get the hard part of dinner preparations done ahead of time. Check this recipe out for Fauxtisserie Chicken. My mom shared a cookbook with me that she had checked out of the library. We both tend to check out a lot of cookbooks from the library. When I get to the point that I simply drool over each and every recipe, it is time to buy the cookbook. However, I realized that there was a blog that was mentioned in the cookbook that was also written by the authors of this cookbook. I think I'll check out their blog for awhile and see if that will hold me over or if I really need to buy the cookbook. Be warned there seem to be a lot of yummy recipes listed on this website and on this blog as well.

I made this recipe for our monthly meal swap. I made a slight variation of the recipe that I linked to this post. I simply used a whole chicken,gave it a good rinse, then patted it dry with paper towels. I loosened the skin all over the chicken and then stuffed three tablespoons of cilantro and 4 cloves of garlic under the loosened skin. I then made a dry rub of 1 1/2 teaspoons of chili powder, 1 teaspoon of cumin, and 1 teaspoon of season salt and applied that all over the outside of the chicken. The recipe then calls for the juice of one lime to be squeezed all over the outside of the chicken and then for the lime halves to be baked inside the cavity of the chicken during the cooking time in the crock pot.

I definitely think this recipe is a keeper and will be used often in our house.

Turkey Cutlets With Rosemary Tomato Sauce

This month's meal swap was held last night. Here is the recipe that I made. I have never had it before but all of the ingredients seemed to go well together and are flavors that my family typically enjoys. It was published in the Best Of Cooking Light Recipes which gave me a bit more confidence in making a meal that I have personally never tried before. I also searched for a recipe that could be prepared somewhat quickly now that spring has arrived and all of the activities that come with this season really alter our dinner times as a family. My oven is also acting up so I am having to use the stove top more often.

If there are any others out there that are making meals and freezing them for later use, I would love to hear about your tried and true recipes.

Now I will get back to taking care of another sick child. Really. I am so done with sickness in our house.

Tomato Salsa Chicken

The snow and ice did not prevent the Diva's from swapping meals last night. I was really looking forward to filling my freezer with five more meals again this month. I was looking forward to some girl time and perhaps even a yummy treat.

I did leave with five other meals. I was also feeling grateful for so much more than the meals to go in my freezer. I was ever so grateful for the gift of authentic friendships. These women are real. They do not live in glass houses high on hill. They bring their meals and are unafraid to open their souls to the vulnerability from deep within. The responses from the other Divas are shared from places of love, friendship, and compassion. I am grateful for each of these women and their trust in all of us to be able to share the burdens of their hearts . I can only hope that in some way these women left feeling a little lighter from being to unload some of the hurts and weights of the world with their friends. I am glad that I have the blessing of having real friends to love me unconditionally both when life is good and when it is not. I am also grateful for the opportunity to be a friend and love others in return as well. Maybe this is why our meals taste so good? Meal swap is so much more that swapping meals...

Here is the recipe for the Tomato Salsa Chicken meal that I made this month. It is yummy. It used to be a favorite in our house back in the newlywed stage of my life. I think this recipe got lost in my recipe file and it was a step back in time to find it the other day. I hope you enjoy it.

Superbowl

It is no surprise in our house that I am not a football fan. I can easily think of a million things that I would rather do than watch football on the television.

I do love the sense of community that sports can evoke a times. The team spirit and seeing everyone united about the same thing is wonderful.

What I do love is food and I especially like creating a menu that suits the occasion. I like having fun with food and trying out new

Today, I was inspired to make chili. A good friend has been telling me for awhile now about how much she loves to make white chicken chili. I'll admit that I was curious as I grew up eating more of a traditional version of chili. The next thing I knew, one of our Dinner Diva's made a White Chicken Chili that was really yummy. Recently an episode of Giada at Home was airing on the Food Network and guess what she made? Yep. White Chicken Chili. I was sold.

Here is the recipe. It is both a little different than I was expecting and delicious. I could not get my hands on Swiss chard so I ended up substituting Kale this time around. It was a hit with our family and I would definitely make it again. I did however make tacos as an alternative for the kids. One child was brave enough to try it at least and did like it. The other two preferred tacos tonight and that's okay too!

I made some cornbread that I bought at Target. I believe it was the Archer Farms brand and it was called Honey Cornbread. It too was delicious and I will admit to being a little picky about my cornbread. We ended up with a sweet, moist, cake- like consistency with this mix and that was a thumbs up in my book!

I do hope that everyone enjoyed the evening whether it was about the game, the time spent with folks that you care about, the food, or maybe all of the above.

Jeremy's Birthday Dinners

My monthly meal swap is tomorrow. I was assigned the Wild Card this month which means that I had the freedom to make whatever meal I wanted. This month I will be contributing a favorite family meal since I am all about comfort at this time in my life. It is a recipe that belongs to a special Aunt and I am so grateful that she shared it with my family and now yours too! You're the best Aunt Juney! I also happened to have some of the ingredients in my pantry and it is super easy to make. I really needed easy this month. I think I made a good choice this month and I hope everyone else agrees.

My Dinner Diva friends also surprised me with a sweet idea to help celebrate Jeremy's birthday. They decided to each make one extra meal this month and donate them to the Children's House, the respite home, that is near and dear to me. I thought it was a wonderful idea and I am grateful to have such amazing friends that have been by my side since the very beginning of Jeremy's story. Thank you for loving me and my family and for always standing up to do more, to share that love with others in need, in honor of Jeremy. It means more than you will ever know. We will never really know the ripple effect of this generosity and compassion for others.

Here is the recipe that I simply call Aunt Juney's Chicken:

Ingredients:
1 small bottle of Wishbone Russian Dressing
1 envelope of Lipton Onion Soup Mix
1 8 ounce jar of Apricot preserves
1/2 cup of walnuts chopped
1/2 to 3/4 cups of raisins

Mix ingredients together and pour over chicken. My favorite chicken to use in this recipe is boneless skinless thighs but it would work well with any chicken parts on the bone too. I use about about 1 1/2 lbs of chicken in each recipe. I portioned out about 2 thighs per person.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for about one hour and fifteen minutes or until chicken is fully cooked. We like to serve the dish over warm rice. A nice salad or other green vegetable would compliment the meal nicely. Enjoy.

Calling All Football Fans

It's that time of year again, football season. There are a few football fans in our house and Mexican food is often a requested meal on game days. My Dinner Diva group will meet tomorrow so I thought I'd share my contribution to the meal swap.

Mexican Manicotti

Ingredients:
1 lb of lean ground beef
1 can (16 oz) refried beans
2 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 1/2 tablespoons dried oregano
1 package manicotti shells (80z)
2 1/2 cups water
1 jar (16 oz) picante sauce
2 cups (16 oz) sour cream
1 cup (4oz) shredded Monterrey Jack or Mexican style shredded cheese

Assembly:
In a bowl combine UNCOOKED beef, refried beans, chili powder, and oregano. Spoon into UNCOOKED manicotti shells and arrange in a greased 13x9 baking dish. Combine water and picante sauce and pour over shells.

If freezing - cover and freeze

If making meal without freezing- cover and refrigerate overnight. Remove from refrigerator thirty minutes before baking.

***helpful hints from me***
I use disposable pastry bags to pipe the meat into the manicotti shells. The bag I used worked well without the tip. The preformed hole in the end of the bag worked well to fill the shells. This was really helpful since I filled 108 manicotti shells last night.

This recipe is ideal for me to split into two 8x8 pans for my family. At this point, my kids aren't big eaters for every meal. I serve this dish with some rice, corn, chips and salsa, etc. so one 8x8 pan is enough for my family. This way I get two dinners out of one recipe. If I have company for supper, I can easily bake two pans.

Serving Day:
Thaw completely in refrigerator before baking. Cover and bake at 350 for one hour. Uncover, spoon sour cream over the top and sprinkle with cheese. Bake ten minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Remember to split sour cream and cheese if you make 8x8 pans.

*** We ran out of chili powder while making this recipe. Hubby suggested using a package of taco seasoning that was thankfully in the pantry. Everyone in the swap will get the traditional recipe and I'll let you know how the taco seasoning works out when we eat ours.

This meal is a lot of work if making more than one dish. However, the dinner time hour on a weekday could be smooth if prepared ahead of time. It was a hit with the Dinner Diva group last time and was requested to make again! Hope you all enjoy it too!

Bacon Cider Pork

Hot? I know, I know, it is summer after all. It was down right steamy here where we live today. My skin was sticky and when that happens, I am in no mood to cook anything in the oven for dinner.

Our monthly meal swap crept up under my feet again this month.
My assignment-pork.
My challenge was to find a recipe which would not require us to turn on our ovens.
My result- Bacon Cider Pork

Ingredients:
Trim, cut, and season one pork tenderloin (1- 1 1/2 lbs) - I used boneless pork chops since they were on sale and cut them in half.

Wrap each pork steak in a strip of bacon
olive oil to saute pork
1/4 cup shallots minced
1/2 cup of cider or apple juice
2 T unsalted cold butter sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Trim tenderloin of fat and silverskin and cut into steaks about 1 1/2 inches thick. Season with salt and pepper.

Wrap each steak in a strip of bacon and secure with a toothpick. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute pork for 5 mins. per side or until browned. Tip the steaks on their edges to to brown the bacon, rolling them until they brown, about 3 minutes total. Cover and finish cooking to an internal temp. of 145 degrees., about 5 mins. Remove pork and keep warm. Pour all but about 1 T of the pan drippings.

Saute shallots for 2 mins in the same pan, stirring constantly. Deglaze pan with cider, scraping up the brown bits and simmer for two minutes. Then add butter, swirling until butter melts. Return pork to pan along with any accumulated juices and season sauce with salt and pepper.

Serves 4 (2 steaks per person)

The recipe suggests serving the pork with Marmalade Sweet Potatoes and a second side of spinach. I must say the picture looks very pretty with the variety of colors in the meal, which by the way, means lots of good healthy vitamins!

Cut 2-3 Sweet Potatoes into strips like steak fries.
Toss in 1/2 cup of Orange Marmalade that has been melted
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Wrap inside of baking sheet with foil and coat with non-stick spray.

Cut potatoes into wedges and toss with marmalade. Season with salt. Arrange on a single layer on a baking sheet and roast for 35 minutes or until fork tender. Turn once.

I plan to use my toaster oven to make the Sweet Potatoes.

Would you please share any family friendly recipes you have for hot weather?
Thanks.

Girl Time and the Ant Head Chicken

The boys were all headed out to get hair cuts. That left us girls to spend some quality time together doing one of my daughter's favorite things, cooking!

We tried a new recipe, Poppy Seed Chicken. Apparently, it has been a huge hit in many homes in America, even though we had never heard of it. I can see why it was such a hit with so many people. My husband and I loved every bite. Being honest, I will say the kids needed more time to develop a taste for this one. My kids were a little put off by the look and texture of so many Poppy Seeds in the chicken. They even said, "Are those ant heads?" The old saying, "Mind over Matter", applies to this situation for sure.

I lightened up the recipe since we so close out from the holidays. I consumed way too many cookies and other treats for sure and need to cut back on so many calories.
I think the lightened version was delicious, so I cannot imagine what the other full version would taste like.

I will definitely make it again sometime soon.

Poppy Seed Chicken (aka- Ant Head Chicken)Poppy seed chicken

2 or 3 chicken breasts, boiled and cut in small pieces
1 16 oz sour cream
2 cans cream of chicken
2 tbs of poppyseeds (I don't measure - I just shake a ton in)
Ritz crackers
1 stick of butter

Mix the first 4 ingredients and put in a baking dish. Cover with crushed up ritz crackers. Melt a stick of butter and pour on top. Bake for 20-30 minutes at 350.


***I used fat free soup, light sour cream, whole wheat crackers, and 1/2 stick of butter. As I said, I thought it was delicious and still very rich!

Hope you enjoy this recipe too!