A Proverbs 31 Kind of Day

I can't even remember what I was fixing but I needed a side dish to serve with it. Oh wait!  Just typing that sentence made me remember what I was making! Ham! Which reminded me . . . I'm going to post my ham recipe! But not right now. Right now, it is about the potatoes. Since I was making a ham, I wanted to have a complete meal. You know, not the one-dish-call-it-good meal. But a meal that resembled thought, and preparation, and time, and love, and all those things! I had some potatoes in the refrigerator. I keep my potatoes there because I don't use them fast enough to keep them in a cute potato basket. Because if I kept them in a cute potato basket, my potatoes would be gross. And unusable. So I keep them cold so they won't get gross so fast. Now, before you start thinking about all the bad things that happen to cold potatoes. I know. The starch changes to sugar. They don't taste the same as if you store them ...

My girl cherub loves French Dip Sandwiches. It's kinda weird, because I really don't know what she loves about them! Because truly, a French Dip sandwich is really basic. Yet, if done right, the flavors are simply . . .yummy! I know it's customary to put cheese on the sandwich. But honestly, I'm not certain that it really enhances the sandwich. I guess, ultimately, it is a matter of preference. But the Au Jus? That is NOT a matter of preference! That little component is the essence, in my opinion, of the sandwich! That's one reason why you need crusty bread. To dip the sandwich. The dip of the crusty bread that will adequately absorb the Au Jus and not get soggy to the point of falling apart . . . that is the art of the French Dip Sandwich! Beef Dip Sandwich   3 pound roast of choice 3-5 cloves garlic, whole 1 can beef broth 3 TBSP soy sauce, gluten free 2 tsp. browning sauce (I like Gravy Ma...

I think I have said it before, but it's worth saying again. I really like my crock pot! My cherubs aren't too fond of it! They say they get tired of crock pot food! I say you aren't old enough to appreciate a crock pot! Since there is a small battle that surrounds the crock pot at our house, I try to make our crock pot meals "worthy." This recipe has made it's rounds 'round town, but I've never made it until now. I'm so sad that I've missed out all these years! Easy French Dip Sandwiches 3-5 pound boneless beef  roast 1-2 envelopes Lipton onion soup mix 2 cans beef broth 1 tsp black pepper Ciabatta rolls  ("hard" bread absorbs the au jus!) provolone cheese Combine the dry soup mix, broth and pepper, pour over roast. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until meat is tender. Remove meat from slow cooker and shred with two forks on a cutting board. Place the meat back in the crock pot with the liqui...

I'd like to say "Beef" in the title, or "pork." or maybe even "chicken." But because this is versatile, I just called it meat. Doesn't sound appetizing, does it? I know! I'm not sure that I would have read much further than the title! But I'm just saying, that if you'll give this a whirl, you'll be glad that you hung with me! This can be as spicy as you want. I like this recipe because it's kind of a sweet heat. Because my girl cherub is a wimp when it comes to much spice, I kept it easy. But I will say, I could have easily added an extra toss of the chipotle peppers! Which!  Let me tell you my most exciting find on the grocery aisle this past shopping trip! Normally, I have to buy a can of chipotle peppers. Like this: I pop the top, use what I need and freeze the rest until another recipe. But then I found the peppers, chopped, in a jar . . . a small jar, but none-the-less, a jar! That means I...

The Mr. had a birthday last week. At our house, when it's your birthday, you get to pick your birthday meal. But it's the Mr. He usually doesn't have a preference. So I picked his birthday meal. When I told him, he whinned like a 2 year old that it was " his " birthday meal. " He " gets to pick! Really!  Because I had a good  birthday meal all picked out for the Mr. But NOOOOOOO ! He gets to pick! He picked his usual: Creamy Poblano Chicken over Cornwaffles with a salad and blackberry cobbler. But I hate making blackberry cobbler the way he likes it. And since his birthday, I've sworn off making anymore cobblers the way he likes cobblers. Let me make cobblers they way I know how and lets all be happy! There! That feels better! So, since I didn't get to make the Mr. the birthday meal I was going to make for him on his birthday, I made it a different day. It was so yummy! It smelled so great cooking. And ta...

This weekend we were busy. Between homework, baseball games, laundry, and a wedding  -- there wasn't much time for anything else. Saturday afternoon, the Mr. says, "We need to think about what the cherubs are doing for dinner."  Mind you -- it's 2:00 and we leave for the wedding at 5:00.  Everything is in the freezer. My mind wandered . . . what would I feed them? I grab the crock pot -- because that's what first comes to your mind when you're in a hurry, right?! I throw in some chicken and a seasoning packet and turn it to high. It cooks. The cherubs and the dude who came over to hang out with them said it was good. My boy cherub said it was "blog worthy." While there's no picture of the dish, there is the endorsement of a 13 year old boy and a 25 year old single guy!  That's a pretty strong support! In honor of the brave man who ate something I had never made and didn't have a recipe for, I bestow the honorary...

 A couple of weekends ago we had lunch with some friends after church and my friend made a fantastic meal. I asked her to share the recipes with me . . . which really means I'm sharing them with you! By the way -- I asked her if I could post it here and she said "Yes!"  It's your lucky day! She served this fantastic meat so we could make soft tacos.  It was spicy and perfect! It was delicious! How do you say "delicious" in Spanish? I don't know, but I do know you'll want to make this meat  . . .and don't forget to make the Green Chili rice to serve with it! Slow Cooked Mexican Beef 1  (4 pound) chuck roast 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon ground black pepper 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 large onion, chopped 1 1/4 cups diced green chili pepper* 1 teaspoon chili powder 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper* 1 (5 ounce) bottle hot pepper sauce* 1 teaspoon garlic powder Directions Trim the roast of any excess fat, ...

I can't believe this recipe hasn't been posted! YIKES! I was at the store, looking at the blog for the recipe because I needed to make sure I had all of the ingredients . . .and it wasn't there! Oh my! This soup was served at one of my bridal showers. At the time, I had never had this soup before and it was delicious! We've been making it every since! Pasta Fagioli 2 lbs. ground beef, cooked and drained* 1 can Rotel tomatoes 2 cans RanchStyle beans 3 cans Campbell's condensed Minestrone soup 1 can tomato juice Place all of the ingredients in a large stock pan and heat. You can also place all of the ingredients in a crock pot and have a hot soup when you come home. Serve with a side salad and breadsticks or cornbread. When my family cooks the meat, we add chopped onion with it.  We also lightly salt and pepper the meat too. There ya go!  Dinner's ready!

 A very long time ago, I was watching "Regis and KathyLee." That tells you just how long ago "a very long time ago" was . . . Kathy Lee gave a recipe for a chicken dish.  It's so very easy!  You can cook it in the oven or the crock-pot.  You can use bone-in or boneless and skinless chicken. You can use full-fat dressing or reduced-fat dressing, without compromising the taste. Best of all, it's great left-over! While you're grabbing the ingredients for this recipe, grab double; cook one now and put the other (all mixed up) in the freezer for another meal!  Make it easy on yourself! Cranberry Chicken 8oz bottle of Catalina dressing (or Russian) 1 pkg. dry onion soup mix 1 can whole-berry cranberry sauce 4 chicken breasts (I like to use bone-in with skin) Place the chicken in a baking dish or crock-pot.  Mix the dressing, soup, and cranberry sauce together and pour over the chicken. Oven method:  bake uncovered at 350 ...

This is easy. This is tasty. This is my boy cherub's kind of meal!  Meat 'n gravy with mashed potatoes!  OK, broccoli too, but especially the meat! Throw it in the crock pot in the morning and have a satisfying meal that evening! Taste of Home's Picture Cube Steak with Gravy 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 6 beef cubed steaks (4 ounces each) 1 tablespoon canola oil 1 large onion, sliced and separated into rings 3 cups water, divided 1 envelope brown gravy mix 1 envelope mushroom gravy mix 1 envelope onion gravy mix Hot mashed potatoes or cooked noodles Place flour in a large resealable plastic bag. Add steaks, a few at a time, and shake until completely coated. In a skillet, cook steaks in oil until lightly browned on each side. Transfer to a 3-qt. slow cooker. Add the onion and 2 cups water. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until meat is tender. In a bowl, whisk together gravy mixes with remaining water. Add to slow cooker; cook 30 minu...

We love Mexican food. We could eat it every day . . .really! It's delicious! One thing I like are the beans.  But I'm not too hip on the refried beans. They'll do -- as in "if I'm starving and it's been three days since I've eaten" kind of do. But truthfully, that's never happened! But Charro beans -- that's a different story. A few weeks ago, we had a house-full for dinner.  Mexican food, of course!  One, because it's easier, and two, it's our favorite.  When looking at what all we had, I thought we might need one more item to help it all stretch.  I whipped up this easy version of charro beans. The crock was empty at the end of dinner! Easy Charro Beans 1 pound dried pinto beans 1 can Rotel, drained 2-3 cloves garlic, chopped 1 onion, chopped 1 can beef broth salt and pepper to taste Sort and rinse beans.  Place in a large bowl and soak for about an hour.  Drain off all water and place beans, chopped gar...

I haven't cooked dinner since last week! Doesn't mean we haven't eaten at home. Just means I haven't cooked anything that makes sense! With the end of school just around the corner -- as in next week and baseball games and VBS meetings and dance practices, it's been a little hairy! Today is no different. I'm tired of eating weird things on the run (like pita chips and hummus or cereal or sandwiches!) so I pulled out the crockpot for an easy dinner tonight. If I remember to snap a picture before we run out the door, I'll show you how yummy this is. If I forget, just trust me! Cheesy Chicken in the Crockpot 4-6 chicken breasts, boneless/skinless 2 cans cream of chicken soup* 1 can cheese soup a bit of garlic powder egg noodles Place chicken, soups, and garlic powder in a crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until done. Shred chicken with 2 forks while still in the crock.  Cook desired amount of egg noodles and drain. ...

OH!  This is so wonderful!  Today "we" . . .and yes, it's "we!" are out of school again!  This time, though, we knew before we headed off to bed so "we" . . .and here, it's more "us" as in the adults!  . . . were able to take advantage of sleeping in!  It's been great except for the rolling black-outs they are conducting!  You know, when it's a bone-chilling 16 degrees -- a few minutes with your heat off doesn't take long for your fingers to start turning blue!  Not to mention, we have no carpet in our house!  These hard-surface floors get cold in a hurry!  Lucky us, we have a frozen pipe in our bathroom!  With the space heater plugged in and blowing hot air on it, hopefully we'll escape without any trouble.  "We"  . . .and yes, it's "we" keep checking to see if school is cancelled for tomorrow too!  I've told the kids 100 times -- and you know that's no exaggeration, that it won't ...