November 16-22, 2014

*There will be no blog next week because of the Thanksgiving holiday and all of the plans we have with family.  Feel free to check out the pages above to search through some of the recipes listed here on our menus.  I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Sunday:  Dinner with our Small Group

Monday:  Chicken Cordon Bleu Crescent Rolls with Salad

Chicken Cordon Bleu Crescent Rolls

·          It’s dinner wrapped up in a crescent roll, so it has to be delicious!  J  I used some rotisserie chicken I had on hand and followed her recipe.  However, I rolled mine up lengthwise, so my rolls were much smaller, which was actually better for my kids.  Either way, they were wonderful!  I served ours with some Dijon and honey sauce I had in the fridge from the previous week.  (And yes…we ate on paper plates...just keeping it real!)  J

Tuesday:   Tilapia with Fresh Vegetables

·          Chad was gone for the evening, so the kids and I had some tilapia and vegetables.  A pretty easy meal is sometimes the best option!  I made a salad for myself.

Wednesday:  Parmesan Baked Pork Chops, Roasted Broccoli & Sweet Potatoes, & Rice

Parmesan Baked Pork Chops

·          These were simple, crispy, and delicious.  I actually prepared them earlier in the day and then just placed them in the oven to be ready in time for dinner.  For those of you who don’t enjoy pork, this would also be yummy for chicken or turkey.  J

Thursday:  Venison Steak, Mashed Cauliflower, & Spinach Salad

·          Chad grilled some flavorful venison steaks that were amazing!  My mom was over for dinner too, and we all enjoyed it.  I can’t put any recipe here because Chad took charge of this meal.  J

Friday:  Creamy Crockpot Tortellini Soup

Creamy CrockpotTortellini Soup

·          This was a favorite of ours last fall, and I’m glad the cooler weather reminded me of it again.  It takes a little bit of time to chop the vegetables, but once that’s done, it’s incredibly easy to toss together in your crock pot.  It makes quite a bit, so I prepped all the ingredients, but I only made half of it.  The other half I froze except for the broth, water, and spaghetti sauce.  I’ll add those in when I make it another time.

Saturday:  Pasta with a Venison & Marinara Sauce, Roasted Broccoli, & Garlic Parmesan Crescent Bread Sticks

Chad brought home deer meat from his last hunt, so now we have a freezer full of different cuts of venison.  It’s so lean and healthy, and I’m happy to have it…especially since Chad cooks anything he kills.  J  He chose to make some of it into ground venison, so he made pasta using the venison in place of beef or sausage in the pasta sauce.  Yum! 

We wanted some garlic bread, so I used some crescent roll dough to make garlic Parmesan bread sticks.  I laid out the dough and pressed together the seams to it was just one large rectangle.  Then I melted butter and added fresh-pressed garlic to it.  After brushing the butter and garlic on the dough, I sprinkled it with Italian seasoning and fresh Parmesan.  I baked it at 375 degrees for about 9 minutes.  They were quite tasty!

November 9-15, 2014

Sunday:  Chicken Parmesan with Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Zucchini

·          The kids and I had just arrived home from an 8.5 hour road trip, so Chad made us a wonderful, home-cooked meal!  It was delicious, and very appreciated after a day of eating in the car.  J  He breaded chicken and fried it in a little oil on the grill burner outside.  He made a sauce with marinara and mushrooms to go over the chicken, then sprinkled on some freshly-grated parmesan.  I ate every bite!

***As a bonus, Chad made these wonderful one-cup pumpkin pies for the two of us after the kids went to bed...so good!

Monday:  Chicken & Waffles with Eggs

Chicken & Waffles

·          We had some leftover breaded chicken from the night before, so I wanted to use it in some way.  Our kids were all in different stages of being sick or getting over it after our weekend travels, so I also needed a dinner they would eat.  Chicken and waffles to the rescue!  I found this wonderful recipe for whole wheat pancakes and a maple honey mustard dressing from Sarcastic Cooking.  Both were so delicious!  I just gave the kids waffles, chicken nuggets, eggs, and fruit, but Chad and I had sliders as the blogger suggests.  They were wonderful!

Tuesday:  Rotisserie Chicken & Roasted Veggie Tortellini

Rotisserie Chicken & Roasted Veggie Tortellini

This recipe is great because you can really add any vegetables you have on hand.  It's a one-dish meal that has everything tossed together.  Using a rotisserie chicken makes it super easy and delicious!

Ingredients:

- 1 rotisserie chicken

- 2 small zucchini

- 1 tomato

- 1 head cauliflower

- olive oil

- Italian seasoning

- 9 oz package of cheese tortellini

- 4 Tbsp pesto

- parmesan cheese

Cube the zucchini and cut up the cauliflower.  Put them on a foil-lined cookie sheet (for easy clean-up!) and toss with a little olive oil and the Italian seasoning.  Roast at 400 degrees until they just start turning golden brown - about 15 minutes depending on size.  Sprinkle with some freshly grated parmesan when done.  Meanwhile, remove the chicken from the bones and dice up the tomato.  Make the tortellini according to package directions.  Toss the chicken, roasted veggies, tomato, pesto, and tortellini together.  Enjoy!

Wednesday:  Slow Cooker Pot Roast with Salad & Bread

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

·          I pinned the recipe on Pinterest from Joyously Domestic, and I was so pleased with how it turned out!  The outside is a bit spicy because of the steak seasoning, so I made sure to give the kids only roast from the middle.  But, adding the thyme and rosemary is such a tasty change from my regular roast…I’ll definitely make this again!  The leftovers will make a delicious base for a stew, so I placed ours in the freezer for a meal later on.

Thursday:  Chili from a Friend

·          A dear friend of mine brought dinner over.  J

Friday:  Dinner Out

Saturday:  Breakfast for Dinner – Pancakes, Eggs & Fruit

·          Chad and Ranger were hunting for the weekend, so I had lots of fun with just Callen and Payton.  They asked for breakfast for dinner and Rio 2, so a breakfast picnic it was! 

November 2-5, 2014

** The kids and I are traveling for the next few days, so here is the menu a bit shorter and earlier than usual.  Have a great weekend!

Sunday:  Leftover BBQ Pork Sandwiches

·          This pork was from Halloween night…perfect for a quick Sunday lunch or dinner!  J

Monday:  Chicken & Butternut Squash Bake with Roasted Broccoli

Chicken & Butternut Squash Bake

·          I had some boneless, skinless chicken thighs and some butternut squash, so I just typed in those two ingredients in Google and found a recipe that looked yummy!  This recipe was the 2^nd one I read, and I decided it was easy enough and looked quite tasty.  It did not disappoint on either account!  It took about 5 minutes to put together (my butternut squash was already peeled and cut from CostCo) and then I just stuck it in the oven. 

I was careful with the red pepper flakes since this was for my kids also.  The chicken ended up tasting just like a rotisserie chicken, so my kids gobbled it right up.  The boys ate their veggies without convincing, and Payton….well, she’s Payton.  ;-)  I definitely agree with Laura that you need to use dark meat or bone-in chicken breasts for roasting chicken this way.  It will keep it from being dry and powdery.  This recipe will be one I make again this fall!

Tuesday:  Dinner with Mom  J

Wednesday:  Pizza Night (With Homemade Whole Wheat Pizza Crust)

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

·          This is a simple dough recipe that can be used for pizza or focaccia bread.  It’s enough for 2 decent-size pizzas.  The recipe says regular flour, but I substituted whole wheat this time.

1 package dry yeast

1 ½ cups warm water

1 teaspoon salt

3 cups flour

2 tablespoons olive oil

Dissolve the yeast in the water.  Mix together the flour and salt in a bowl, make a well in the center and add the water and oil.  Begin to stir with a fork, bringing the flour in a little at a time until all flour is incorporated.  Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.  Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm spot to rise.

When ready to make your pizza, roll out dough on an oiled baking sheet (I used my fingers).  Add whatever toppings you like and bake in a 500 degree oven for 10-12 minutes until the crust is brown around the edges and the cheese is bubbly.  Don’t place it too close to the top of your oven.  J

October 26 - November 1, 2014

Sunday:  Crock Pot Honey BBQ Meatloaf with Steamed Veggies

Crock Pot Honey BBQ Meatloaf

·          Our family fave in a crock pot!  Why have I never thought of this before??  I prepared the meatloaf as I always do (recipe here), but this time I lined my crockpot with a couple of layers of foil and placed the loaf in.  I cooked it on low for about 4 hours.  When we arrived home after church, it was ready and delicious!  To make things even simpler, I made a bag of the microwave steam veggies, and our meal was all set in no time.  Because I lined the crock pot with foil, clean up was also a breeze.  It also made great leftovers for my lunch for a couple of days!

Monday:  Baked Buttermilk Chicken with Pesto Potatoes & Green Beans

Baked Buttermilk Chicken

·          I made this quite a long time ago and recently came upon the recipe (from Group Recipes) again.  This time, I decided to make my own homemade version on Cream of Mushroom Soup! 

I’ll just say that I will ABSOLUTELY make cream of mushroom soup from scratch again.  It was so flavorful and delicious all on its own…not to mention how tasty it was in this dish.  I feel a little silly for being afraid to try it before.  I actually had some fresh mushrooms frozen that I thawed a bit before dicing up, sautéing with diced onion and then adding to the soup.  For those of you who don’t like mushrooms, this soup would be good without them….the flavors of the butter and onion would be wonderful on their own.  In reading the comments, this recipe for cream soup also seems adaptable for those families on a gluten free or dairy free diet.

Pesto Potatoes

·          I diced up red potatoes into bite-sized pieces and then tossed them in a bowl with some prepared pesto (storebought J).  Then I roasted them in a 425 degree oven for about 15 minutes.  I tossed them around and roasted them for an additional 12 minutes or so, until they were golden brown on the edges.

Tuesday:  Breakfast for Dinner! 

Wednesday:  Baked Tacos with Green Salad

Baked Tacos

·          I’ve made these a couple of times, and we always enjoy them!  This time I did make the homemade taco shells as she (Jillee) suggests.  Thankfully I remembered to line the bottom rack of my oven with foil because the taco shells will drip a little bit as they are cooking….so don’t forget!  I’ve done it in the past with store-bought shells, as well as with both homemade and store-bought taco seasoning…we like them however they are prepared.  These are really great tacos for kids as the mixture stays stuck inside the shell instead of falling all over the place!  As a default, I made a green salad again.  It’s an easy way to have veggies on our plates that the kids will eat.  J

Thursday:  Dinner at Mom’s

·          Chad had a work dinner, but the kids and I didn’t just pine away while he was out…we had a pumpkin decorating party at Nonnie’s!

Friday:  Halloween!!  J

·          Our kids have been so excited for Halloween!!  My mom and Chad’s parents came over for dinner and trick-or-treating, so I made BBQ Pork in the crock pot…easy peasey!

Saturday:  Family Day at the Lake with Our Church