Mega Menu Planning!

This whole post would have been WAY more impressive had I actually posted it when I started thinking about it...  When we were three weeks out from our June 4th C-section date, I did some major menu planning along with a massive grocery shop!  Honest, this was all put together weeks ago ;)

Before I share our list of "last" meals, I want to rant and rave about homemade microwave popcorn!!!  Josh and I had seen an episode of "Good Eats" in which Alton Brown showed how to make your own microwave popcorn.  I also saw an idea on Pinterest for something similar.  We decided to give it a try, and it took a few different trials before we found the perfect recipe.

Perfect Microwave Popcorn Recipe

1 microwave safe plate

1 brown paper lunchbag

1/4c popcorn kernels

1t vegetable oil

salt and butter to taste

Place the brown paper bag on the plate.

Add popcorn kernels and oil and shake bag to combine.

Fold over the top two inches of the paper bag.

Place plate and bag in the microwave for about 3 minutes, but stop popping once the pops become spaced out.

Empty into a bowl and add salt and butter to your taste :)

I can't remember each of the recipes we tried, but we learned that you definitely should NOT staple your bag shut as some recipes suggest and the plate keeps the oily mess off of your microwave "floor!"

There was some tweaking, but here is the original list:

Monday: Sweet and Sour Chicken with rice--this was YUMMY!

Tuesday: Italian Sausage Pizza Bake

Wednesday: Leftover chicken

Thursday: Leftover Pizza Bake

Friday: Leftovers from freezer

Saturday: Chicken Parm Bake with salad, fruit, and Chocolate Break Pudding

Sunday: Mother's Day Make-Up: Qdoba :)

Monday: Friends over after golf outing--Burgers and hotdogs on the grill with fruit, potato salad, chips, chips and salsa/guac, and Chocolate Chip Pound Cake (recipe below)

Tuesday: Leftover burgers and salad

Wednesday: Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps (I used ground beef this time, and it was quite tasty!  It will be even better next time when I remember to mix in the taco seasoning like I had planned...) with salad (I was quite proud of what I did with the salad--I bought the bag of Dole Ultimate Caesar Salad, but I added grape tomatoes and mixed salsa with the dressing--yummy!)

Thursday: Leftover Chicken Parm Bake 

Friday: Leftover Southwest Wraps

Saturday: I can't remember now--but it was probably easy ;)

Sunday: Thai Cilantro Grilled Chicken, Three Cheese Potatoes on the grill (SOOO GOOD), and fruit

Monday: Steaks on the grill, Texas Roadhouse Rolls with Honey Butter (these were REALLY good, but I wouldn't use as much honey in the butter next time), and fruit

Tuesday: Buffalo Chicken Meatballs with leftover rolls

Wednesday: Avocado Pasta

Thursday: Slow Cooker Orange Chicken with rice

Friday: Leftovers

Saturday: BBQ at the Sacbibits'

Sunday: Last Meal before we are a family of FOUR!!!

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

1 box of yellow cake mix

3 eggs

1 cup sour cream

3/4 cup oil (I substitute applesauce)

3/4 cup water

1t vanilla

1 small box instant chocolate pudding

1 bag chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients and then add chocolate chips at the end.

Pour into greased and floured bundt pan (I used a 13x9 pan because I don't have a bundt pan, and it worked fine!)

Bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes.

Enjoy :)

There are a few recipes I have tried in the recent past that I wanted to share too:

French Dip Crescents

Slow Cooker Chicken Caesar Sandwiches

Top Ten Tuesday: Things I Love About Valentine's Day!

I was never a big fan of Valentine's Day in high school since it seemed to be hijacked by couple-y types.  I vowed even then to not become "That Girl" once I did have a boyfriend/husband!  I have kept my promise, and Josh finds the holiday even less appealing than me--good match :)  We did start a little tradition years ago of going to Chipotle for dinner (I think they used to do a good Valentine's coupon?), and last year it shifted over to Qdoba.  Cards and burritos--what more could a girl ask for?

Having kids makes holidays SO much more fun!  Valentine's Day is the holiday that needs the most oomph from my children since it's my least favorite holiday.  Being me, I pretty much love all holidays :)  I have been looking forward to Valentine's MUCH more this year, mostly thanks to my cute decorations, I think...  So, here is a list of 10 reasons I am enjoying Valentine's Day more this year!

 1.  Getting Jackson excited for the holiday!  He was so excited to make Valentines!

2. Year #2 of a date night of sorts with the Yanceys at their church.  The youth group puts on a "romantic" dinner AND provides childcare!  Susie, Joe, Josh, and I got to enjoy a yummy Italian dinner complete with dessert while Rachel and Jackson played in the nursery.  The proceeds from the dinner go to summer mission trips for the youth.  Win, win, win!  (Of course, I didn't get any pictures of this fun event :()

 3. These three faces :)  The Bascoms came to spend most of the day on Sunday, and Jackson, Maddie, and Brodie played SO well together!  Jackson and Maddie had quite the dinner conversation going on, and Jackson LOVED practicing being a Big Brother to Brodie :)

 4. Front of the house decorations: I think our Smith Welcome sign is one of my favorite decorations!  It came with quite a few seasonal "charms" to change out on the bottom, and there is one for every holiday!  I also love all of my garden flags--they just make me smile when I pull up to the house :)

 5. Before I ordered our Smith Welcome sign, I accumulated a collection of seasonal door decorations.  They all have been packed up and moved a few times, but I found a new spot for them under the arch in the front room right by the stairs.  I think this LOVE one looked perfect!

 6. These letter blocks are my new decoration this year--I LOVE the $1 bin at Target (well, $2.50 bin in this case).  The back of this arrangement has Xs and hearts :)

 7 & 8. I bought this adorable heart tree at Kohl's last year right after Valentine's Day.  I think it was $4?  SOOO cute!  It actually sits in the middle of the island, but I moved it over by my new Subway Art frame for a photo shoot.  I recently discovered Subway Art at my friend, Kim's, house this winter.  She had an adorable Christmas print framed on her kitchen counter.  I honestly thought it was a pieces of wrapping paper or scrapbook paper!  She introduced me to the world of Subway Art, specifically the site: eighteen25, which has a bunch of FREE printables!  I plan to switch out the art to match the season, of course ;)

9. Chai Latte Cut-Out Cookies with Royal Icing (pardon the leftover Super Bowl plate!).  I have been wanting to experiment with cut-out cookies, but am not a huge fan of sugar cookies.  I came across this recipe and thought they would be just right for Valentine's Day!  Jackson helped me mix them up, and then I rolled them out, cut out the hearts, and decorated later :)  I think they are pretty delicious!

10. My littlest Valentine (for right now)!  We had a really fun day that ended with our special dinner at Qdoba and exchanging cards with the neighbors and Daddy :)

Menu Plan Monday: Super Bowl Recipes!

Monday: Homemade Eggs Benedict for a late lunch and then soup for me and leftovers for Josh, I think--I wasn't feeling so hot...

Tuesday: Chili and cornbread
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Quesadillas and rice
Friday: Leftover chili
Saturday: picked up pizza
Sunday: SUPER BOWL!

Bloomin' Pizza Bread
Fat Dip--This was AMAZING!!!  Super easy too: Combine in Crock Pot--2 packs of sausage browned, 2 packs of cream cheese (8oz each), 2 packs of chive and onion cream cheese (8oz each), and 2 cans of Rotel with chilis.  Let it melt together and get all gooey.  Dip chips, veggies, or anything else you can think of!  SOOO good!!!
Lots of cut up veggies
Wings in the Crock Pot
Meatballs with a variety of dipping sauces
Black Forest Brownie Pecan Pie

For more yummy recipes, check out Menu Plan Monday at Org Junkie!

Keswick Forest

We continue to LOVE our new house and neighborhood!!!  We really lucked out in the neighborhood department.  It's almost like there was a screening process--younger families with kids.  I love turning into our neighborhood, and I especially love hitting the cul-de-sac because I love the houses Focal Point built.  These are pictures from our first real snow--it was really pretty!  It was also gone in about 24 hours--I sure love Virginia for this reason ;)

Our neighbors are awesome!  Our whole family benefits in different ways.  I have made a few really good girlfriends with some of the other stay at home moms.  I didn't realize what a nice perk this was until I had it!  Our neighbors were nice enough in our old neighborhood, but we didn't really know each other past a wave-and-say-hello-when-outside level.  We have socialized with three different families other than hanging out outside while our kids are playing, and I LOVE that!  How convenient to just walk down the street to have dinner together or enjoy a fall fire on the deck???  Jackson LOVES having so many friends to play with!  There is a wonderful mixture of babies, toddlers, pre-schoolers, elementary-agers, and middle-schoolers.  He gets so excited when he sees other kids playing outside--I love watching him hurry to put on his shoes and jacket to go play with his friends :)  The pictures below are of Jackson and Avery (she lives two houses down and is in Kindergarten) playing outside last week :)

This picture was taken in Hallie's backyard (they are three houses down, and she has Izzy who is 4 and Mary who is 2 1/2).  Toni is on the right and lives next door to Hallie--she is in 3rd grade and SO sweet!  She just loves Jackson and he loves her back :)

We have done a few Date Night swaps, during the day childcare swaps when someone has an appointment, and I have been lucky enough to have neighbors keep Jackson while we go to our doctor's appointments!  The day of our housewarming party, Aimee (across the street-ish) called and asked if she could borrow some paprika.  I was THRILLED!  I loved that she was asking to borrow something, because that meant, most likely, she would be willing to lend me something when needed!  It sounds silly, but if you are out of ONE thing, it is so much easier to have a nice neighbor to borrow from than to load your toddler up in the car and run out for one thing! A few of us have continued to borrow things, exchange recipes, share baked goods, and just hang out :)

Last week Aimee (she lives across the street from us) hosted a Yay! We Made it Through the Holidays Luncheon!  It was SO fun, and such a nice treat during the week to visit with friends.  She made a delicious lunch consisting of top-your-own salad, bread with a delicious dipping sauce, and a pear bread topped with strawberries, kiwi, and greek yogurt.  The recipes are listed below:


Dijon Apple Salad

Dressing:
mix well and chill:
1/2 c canola oil
1 tsp salt
1/4 c sugar
4 Tbs red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp dry mustard
2 Tbsp minced red onion
1 Tbsp dijon mustard

Salad:
1 head grean leaf lettuce
1 head red leaf lettuce
1 c craisins
1/2 c feta cheese
1/4 toasted pinenuts (in pan or under broil - watch carefully)
1 large apple (I used gala) chopped



Bread Dipping Blend
1 Tbsp minced fresh basil
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parlsey
1 Tbsp minced fresh garlic
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground black pepper (fresh ground is best)
½ tsp minced fresh rosemary
½ tsp ground sea salt or kosher salt
¼ tsp crushed red pepper
½ tsp olive oil
1/8 tsp fresh lemon juice

1. Combine all the ingredients, except oil and lemon juice in a small
food processor or coffee bean grinder. Chop briefly until all
ingredients are about the same size.
2. Stir in oil and lemon juice.
3. To serve, combine about 1 teaspoon blend to 3 or 4 tablespoons
extra virgin olive oil on a small dish. Dip sliced bread in mixture.

Makes about ¼ cup blend
I often add fresh Italian parsley

Pear Bread with Topping

2/3 cup flour
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 c packed brown sugar
3/4 tsp cinnamon
(the original recipe calls for 1 tsp fresh ground ginger, but I didn't add that)
1/2 c chopped walnuts (optional, I don't usually add them)
2 tbsp canola oil
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup plain yogurt (I used plain, non-fat Greek yogurt)
1 egg (or 1/4 c liquid egg substitute)
1/2 c pear, peeled and finely diced (I grate the pear) --about 3-4 pears

Preheat oven to 400 degrees for muffins and 350 degrees for a loaf. Mix all
ingredients, just until moistened. Spoon batter either into 1 loaf pan or into 1
muffin pan. Top batter with a sprinkling of cinnamon and sugar. Bake muffins
for 20 min, and a loaf pan for 40-45 min, or until loaf or muffin springs back when
touched lightly in the center. Remove from pan immediately. Place on a wire
rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Topping for Pear Loaf:
Chop and Mix:
strawberries (about 1 - 2 cups)
kiwi (2-4)
mix in a few tablespoons of:
sugar, OR orange juice concentrate OR Jam (like strawberry, raspberry, peach,
orange marmalade. I used peach jam)

Top with vanilla yogurt (I used Greek)

This was ALL SOOO tasty! I think I could eat it every day...

Menu Plan Monday: Double Issue

Sunday: Steak seasoned with salt and pepper topped with avocado butter and roasted red potatoes as a side.  S'mores Cheesecake for dessert!  The avocado butter was ok.  Josh thinks it would be better on chicken or pork...  The cheesecake, however, was yummy :)

Monday: Stuffed Belgian Endive with rice.  We just discovered the Food Network show Ten Dollar Dinners, and this was the first episode we watched.  Everything about this dish was yummy...except the endive!  LOL I am not a huge cabbage fan--texture or taste.  We are thinking of trying this recipe but with potatoes instead of endive...

Tuesday: Chicken Parmesan Casserole--DELICIOUS!!!  I can't wait to make this again!  SOOO easy, too:)  The only thing I didn't like about this recipe was that the website posts the list of ingredients, but you have to watch a video to get the instructions, including the cooking temperature and time :(

Wednesday: 15 Minute Creamy Avocado Pasta--SOOO yummy!  Can't wait to make this again!

Thursday: Leftover Chicken parm

Friday: Little Ceasar's $5 Hot and Ready :)

Saturday: Dinner at The Yanceys': Pan-Fried Chicken with a DELICIOUS sauce, green beans, and mashed potatoes.  Then, Susie made S'mores Brownies for dessert:

I'm pretty sure this was the recipe:
Lay graham cracker sheets on bottom of 13x9 pan.
Top with brownie mix prepared according to box directions.
Bake according to directions on the box.
Sprinkle mini-marshmallows and chocolate chips on top of the cooked brownie.
Bake under the broiler until marshmallows start to brown.

Sunday: Out of town

Monday: Hamburgers and homemade fries

Tuesday: Buffalo Chicken Soup with biscuits

Wednesday: Dan Dan Noodles--this was really yummy!  Next time we plan to try it with chicken or shrimp mixed in.  I only put in half the garlic, which I think was a good decision.  Josh even said he would not add as much chili oil.

Thursday: Leftover soup

Friday: Leftover soup with grilled cheese

Saturday: Date Night :)

For more yummy recipe ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday!

Recipe Roundup

So...Menu Plan Monday sort of got put on the back burner once I became pregnant and all I wanted to eat was Ramen, mac-n-cheese, pizza, pasta, and eggs.  I didn't think that all needed to be highlighted ;)  BUT, over the last few months I HAVE tried some yummy recipes, and I still wanted to share!

Some of these I already posted, but I wanted to report on which pumpkin recipes I made off of my original list of ten I wanted to try:
Chocolate Chunk Pumpkin Cookies--I couldn't find the pumpkin kisses anywhere, so I just used chocolate chips--still yummy!
Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies--not super pumpkin-y, but yummy!
Mini-Pumpkin Tiramisu--I was a bit disappointed in this one.  The homemade cool whip was delicious!  The pumpkin filling was a little rich.
Pumpkin Dip--delcious, and the possibilities of what to dip are endless!
Pumpkin Cinnamon Chip Scones--SOOO good!!!
and one that wasn't on my original list: Chocolate Chip Oat Pumpkin Cookies

Holiday Treats We Baked
Peppermint Whoopie Pies--I realized I'm not a huge Whoopie Pie fan :(  The filling was amazing, however! I think I would bake some chocolate-chocolate chip cookies next time and put this filling in the middle.
Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies--these are now one of my favorite cookies!
Mountain Sky Banana Bread--delicious--I think the cream cheese it what makes this one stand out!
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Shortbread--so easy and so yummy = a lovely combination :)

Miscellaneous
Good Eats' Pretzels--we LOVE these!  We have made many batches and just started experimenting with flavors.  We sprinkled on cinnamon sugar on one batch and that was super yummy!  Then we tried another round with
Root Beer Roast--I tried this with a piece of beef, and I will definitely try it with pork next time.  There was a bad combination of pregnancy horomones and appetite combining here to make it so I barely ate any of this!  The recipe sounds SO good, but poor Josh was left to eat pretty much the whole thing in leftovers by himself :(
Corn Waffles--this recipe was invented by our neighbor, Aimee.  I think they are delicious!  Josh likes them but doesn't think they are as amazing as I do ;)  Here's the recipe:

2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 stick butter--melted
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking soda

Mix all ingredients and ladle on to pre-headed waffle iron!

Baking, Baking, and More Baking!

We have been busy baking!!!  We even packed my KitchenAid mixer in the car to make the trip to Evanston with us :)  HA HA HA!  Josh did not hesitate in making pretzels as soon as we arrived.  We made plans to hang out with our cousin, Beth, and she asked if I thought Jackson would like to bake while we were over.  Of course he would!!!

Beth pulled out the book Pretend Soup by Mollie Katzen and we made popovers with Jackson!  I have seen this book before, but never appreciated the special tips it includes for cooking/baking with toddlers!  The first thing Jackson did was use a pastry brush to "paint" the cups in a muffin tin with melted butter.

The milk jug was heavy, so Beth helped support it, but by placing a measuring cup IN a wide, shallow container Jackson was able to do most of the pouring since the mess would be contained.

We used the same technique for the flour and put the whole bag of flour in the dish.

Beth showed Jackson how to level off the measuring cup with a knife.  The book also showed a good technique for cracking eggs on a more independent level.  Jackson had a BLAST!  Each recipe in the book is written in pictures so Jackson could check to see what the next step was.  This book would make an excellent gift with an apron, cooking supplies, or baking mixes!

This past Sunday was a baking marathon at Mimi and Bampa's house!  We had hoped to head into the city to the Field Museum, but then we remembered there was a Bears' game, and that just didn't sound fun to fight all the traffic and parking issues...  So, we baked!  We started with Better than Crack Brownies, which turned out AMAZING!  I had been eyeing this recipe on Pinterest for a few weeks, and I thought it was the perfect thing to bake to take to the Cocallases when we went for dinner the next night!  I think the key is purposely under-cooking the brownies a bit so they are really gooey...

Next we made more pretzels, this time doing half kosher salt and half cinnamon sugar--excellent decision!  Then we made Cinnamon Chip Scones with chocolate chips instead of cinnamon chips :)

After he was finished being my helper, Jackson turned down his apron, put on his shades, and had a little dance party to some Christmas music--isn't he hilarious looking???

Top Ten Tuesday: Pumpkin Recipes

I LOVE pumpkin!!!  I decided I wanted to try a different pumpkin recipe each week for this fall season :)  Here is a list of my top runners, in no particular order:

1. Pumpkin Cheddar Biscuits
2. Double Pumpkin Kissed Chocolate Chunk Cookies
3. Pumpkin Cinnamon Chip Scones
4. Pumpkin Cheesecake Cobbler
5. Faux Pumpkin Shake
6. Pumpkin Dip
7. Mini Pumpkin Tiramisu
8. Chocolate and Pumpkin Pie Bars
9. Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies
10. Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

As a bonus, here is my FAVORITE recipe for pumpkin (it is quite possible the BEST pumpkin bread/muffin recipe EVER!)


3 1/2 c flour
2c dark brown sugar
2c pumpkin puree
1/2c vegetable oil (I always sub applesauce for this in addition to the applesauce it already calls for)
1/2c applesauce
2/3c coconut milk (Thai Kitchen is my favorite kind so far)
2t baking soda
1t salt
1t nutmeg
1 1/2t cinnamon
1c chopped walnuts (optional)
1 bag of chocolate chips (optional)


Mix all of the ingredients together except for the nuts and chocolate chips.  Fold those in last.  


For bread, bake at 350 for 1h 15m.  
For muffins, bake at 350 for 20m.


Linked up to Top Ten Tuesday at Oh Amanda!

Menu Plan Monday

We were on vacation most of last week, so this is the previous week's menu (we were lucky enough to have friends make us dinner and have us over when we got back, so there really was no cooking for me last week!).  I also threw in the two pumpkin recipes I made yesterday :)


Monday: Pizza and fries
Tuesday: Chicken Parm Subs with salad
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Tacos and rice
Friday: Burgers, hotdogs, salad, chips, and grilled peaches with ice cream for dessert
Saturday: dinner out at BGR
Sunday: First day of Virginia Beach vacation!!!


Extras:
We made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins toward the end of the week to take on our trip :)  Recipe coming later...


I also forgot to post that I made Fruit Salsa when Mom was here, and I cheated a little and used applesauce instead of whole apples.  It turned out really well, and was super fast to make!  I think my next move might be to try substituting some faux sweeteners...


Pumpkin Snickerdoodles--delicious!  They weren't as pumpkin-y as I had hoped they would be, but they were a good, lighter cookie.  RecipeGirl said she left out cream of tartar which is in most snickerdoodle recipes, but she WOULD add it next time.  So, I looked up a few standard snickerdoodle recipes and went ahead and added 2 teaspoons of cream of tartar to my batch--seemed to work fine!


Pumpkin Dip--YUMMY!  Believe it or not, I've never had pumpkin dip!  I made it to take to book club last night and everyone seemed to like it :)  I brought bananas, strawberries, nilla wafers, and pretzels as dippers.  But, the possibilities are endless!


For more yummy recipes ideas, head over to Menu Plan Monday at Org Junkie!

Menu Plan Monday

Picture Credit: http://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2011/07/bloomin-pizza-bread.html

Monday: Baked Prosciutto and Egg Cups for breakfast while Mom was still here and Grilled sausage and chips for dinner after she was gone :(
Tuesday: Grilled Salmon and Asparagus with Balsamic Butter
Wednesday: Trader Joe's Orange Chicken with rice
Thursday: Leftover soup from the freezer with Bloomin' Pizza Bread to accompany--this was A.MAZ.ING!!!  I told Josh we should have it once a week for dinner with a salad ;)
Friday: Taco Bar at our neighbors' house--I made Nutella Marbled Banana Bread to bring (I also made Shoo Fly Pie per Josh's request.  He really likes it!  I'm apparently not a huge molasses fan, therefore I don't care for it.  But, it was super easy...especially because I used a store-bought crust...)
Saturday: Hawaiian Grilled Chicken with coconut rice and grilled pineapple--everything was SOOO good!  The chicken recipe explains how to make coconut rice, and it was delicious!  The marinade for the chicken looked and smelled amazing, so we boiled it down and made a reduction to pour over the chicken and rice--YUM! (I also only used 1.5 cups of soy sauce and water instead of the recommended 2.)
Sunday: Chili with biscuits made from the recipe on the back of the baking powder!!!  They were quite yummy :)  Our neighbors brought us these amazing cookies tonight, so I just needed to share: S'mores Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

Check out more yummy recipes at Menu Plan Monday hosted by Org Junkie!

Menu Plan Monday!

***DISCLOSURE: This was NOT a fancy week!  There was Labor Day at the beginning of the week, and then my mom flew into town Thursday around lunch.  But, here is the menu anyways!

Monday: grilled steaks with baked potatoes
Tuesday: Used FREE pizza code for Papa John's--YUM!
Wednesday: Pigs in a blanket with fries
Thursday: We tried out dinner at Wegman's after Mom got into town
Friday: Ocean Spray Blueberry Bran Muffins for breakfast and then we found an excellent Chinese place just down the street: Montclair Chinese Cuisine
Saturday: Grilled pizzas and salad 
Sunday: Tim's Rivershore Restaurant with Prosecco Raspberry Gelee (This was sadly disappointing :(  I do love Prosecco, but something went wrong with the gelatin and just last night we finally saw a little "gelling."  We poured our "sauce?" over some angel food cake, but I found the whole thing too alcohol-y for a yummy dessert.)


For more yummy recipes, visit Menu Plan Monday at Org Junkie!

Menu Plan Monday!

 Monday: (Joe's birthday so Josh helped him cook dinner using his new toy...I mean, grill!)  Steaks topped with Bacon Butter (I'm not sure if this is the recipe they used, BUT it is the same ingredients and this particular recipe looks beautiful!!!) and accompanied by grilled asparagus and texas toast.  Dairy Queen for dessert :)  
Tuesday: Pizza Bake and salad
Wednesday: Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas with rice and watermelon
Thursday: Leftover Pizza Bake and salad
Friday: Leftover Enchiladas and watermelon
Saturday: Potomac Nationals Game!!!
Sunday: Japanese BBQ Lettuce Wraps (recipe in THIS blog post), fruit, and Quad-Chocolate Ice Cream Cake!!! (Pictured above!  Similar to THIS cake, but here are the specifics: Brownie "crust," crumbled Oreos, hot fudge, vanilla ice cream, Cool Whip, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and maraschino cherry topping.)


For more yummy recipes, check out Menu Plan Monday hosted by Org Junkie!

Menu Plan Monday!

This past week was CRAZY!!!  It started out pretty calm, and then we had houseguests for Thursday and Friday.  The Buerstattes were getting their house packed up and the truck loaded to head to Mississippi, so we offered to let the kids hang out at our house so they stayed out of the way :)  They all slept over both nights since their stuff was all packed up--it was great to have such together time right before they left :(  (I meant that in all sincerity!!!)  I enjoyed making a more extensive menu plan to include more substantial breakfasts and lunches for everyone to grab on their way out in the mornings and afternoons!


Monday: Taco Bell :)
Tuesday:  Book Club for me so Josh had to fend for himself ;)  I made Margarita Cake Balls to take for dessert...  They turned out a bit key-lime-pie-ish, which is not a bad thing.  I was just not in the mood to make them and the candy coating gave me a little trouble this time.  They were tasty, but I just wasn't that satisfied :(
Wednesday: Philly Cheesesteak Kabobs
Thursday: Freezer Meal!  Crock-Pot BBQ Chicken and Veggies, sweet potato waffle fries, salad, and Chocolate Pudding Cake
Friday: Krusteaz Cranberry Orange muffins and bananas for breakfast (it's been a long time since I made muffins from a box since I got my KitchenAid, but these are SO yummy!), chicken salad made from a Wegman's rotisserie chicken, and then Grilled BBQ Salmon, grilled corn on the cob, fruit, and leftover cake for dinner
Saturday: Pioneer Woman's Sonic Breakfast Burritos and then dinner at The Bascom House
Sunday: Five Guys and Dairy Queen to properly welcome Joe back home!!!


The Philly Chesesteak Kabobs were pretty darn awesome, as was the grilled salmon!  Brandi did an experiment with some freezer meals for the Crock Pot, and our conclusion was they are a bit tricky.  The veggies were pretty mushy, and we needed to add extra seasoning even though she added some originally.  We are thinking it might be better to focus on preparing the meat part of the meal for the freezer and adding the spices and veggies day-of...  


For more yummy recipes, head over to Menu Plan Monday hosted by Org Junkie!!!

Menu Plan Monday

We didn't have anything TOO spectacular for dinner this week until my dad got into town this weekend, but then we had some really yummy things :)


Friday: Ooey Gooey Chocolate Butter Cookies
Saturday: Overnight Cinnamon Rolls for breakfast with bananas, coffee, and juice
Sunday: Individual French Toast Stratas with Fruit Salsa and Cinnamon Chips for brunch with coffee and juice

We LOVE the Ooey Gooey Butter Cookies, so I thought I'd substitute a box of chocolate cake mix for the yellow.  They were yummy, but they didn't have quite the same ooey-gooey-ness or addictiveness.  Maybe a good thing???


The Individual French Toast Stratas paired PERFECTLY with Fruit Salsa!  I highly recommend it :)


For more yummy recipes, click over to Menu Plan Monday hosted by Org Junkie :)

Menu Plan Monday: Mega Edition

Several weekly menus and recipes shared at once...because I've been a bit behind... :)

Monday: Pizza Bake

Tuesday: Book Club night, so Josh had leftovers.  I took Fruit Salsa and Cinnamon Pita Chips for dessert to BC

Wednesday: I ate out for a friend's birthday, so Josh has leftovers...again :/

Thursday: 

Friday: dinner at neighbors'

Saturday: BBQ Salmon, Corn with mayo, chili seasoning, and Parmesan cheese, and Tahitian Coconut Bread (recipe below) with Homemade Peanut Butter Frozen Yogurt (recipe below) for dessert

Sunday: Red Robin for Brandi's birthday dinner with Chocolate Stout Cupcakes for dessert

Monday: Pigs in a blanket with fries

Tuesday: Date Night :)

Wednesday: Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken

Thursday: leftover BBQ chicken sandwiches

Friday: BBQ chicken quesadillas with salad

Saturday: Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Lasagna with salad and Chocolate Bread Pudding for dessert

Sunday: We spent the day in Annapolis, MD!

Tahitian Coconut Bread (this is a recipe we got at the Polynesian Cultural Center while in Hawaii!!!)

2c coconut

4c flour

2t baking powder

1 1/2c sugar

1 1/2c water

1.  Combine coconut, sugar, and water

2.  Blend flour and baking powder

3.  Mix all together into a doughy mix adding a little flour so it's not too sticky

4.  Form individual loaves, and wrap each loaf in aluminum foil and bake.

5.  Bake at 350 for 1-1 1/2 hours

Homemade Peanut Butter Frozen Yogurt

Plain Greek Yogurt makes a great base for this dessert--I used the Chobani brand.  For each two cups of yogurt, mix in 1/2 cup of peanut butter and 1/2-1 cup of powdered sugar.  

1.  Mix to your desired peanut-buttery-ness and sweetness.  

2.  Freeze

3.  Thaw on counter for about a half hour before serving.

4.  Fresh fruit is really yummy as a topping!  I've tried it with peaches so far, but there are tons of choices!

For more yummy recipes, head over to Org Junkie for Menu Plan Monday!

Menu Plan Monday

Monday: Sloppy Buffalo Joe's and fries
Tuesday: Dinner at the Buerstattes': Macaroni and Cheese Soup and Buffalo Fries
Wednesday: Dinner at the Yanceys'
Thursday: Leftover Sloppy Buffalo Joe's and chips (way too hot to turn on the oven!)
Friday: Chicken Parm Subs, fries, and salad
Saturday: Housewarming Party!!!  We served Buffalo Chicken Dip with veggies and crackers, chips and salsa, pretzels, hot dogs, hamburgers, pasta salad, watermelon, grapes, pickles, Ooey Gooey Cookies, and Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cucakes
Sunday: Sonic Breakfast Burritos for breakfast and leftovers from the party for dinner


Mac n'Cheese Soup
Makes  about  7 cups
Total time:40 minutes
11/2  cups dry  elbow macaroni (6 oz.)
1/2 cup minced  onion
1/4 cup minced  celery
2  Tbsp. unsalted  butter
1/3 cup  all-purpose  flour
1/2 cup  dry white  wine
2  cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/8 tsp. ground  nutmeg
1/8 tsp. cayenne  pepper
2 cups whole milk
4 cups shredded  sharp  Cheddar
1 Tbsp.  fresh lemon juice
Salt to taste
1/4  cup  crumbled  blue  cheese
2  Tbsp.  minced  fresh chives

1. Cook macaroni  in a pot of salted water according  to package directions;  drain  and  set aside.
2. Sweat  onion and  celery  in butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until  soft, about  5 minutes.
3. Stir in flour to coat and cook 1 minute. Deglaze  with  wine  and simmer  until nearly evaporated.
4. Stir  in broth,  mustard.  nutmeg, and  cayenne.  Simmer  until slightly thickened,  5 minutes, then whisk  in milk  and warm through.  Do not let boil or base may become  grainy.
5.  Add  Cheddar,  1 cup  at a time, allowing  it to melt completely
before  adding the next  cup.
6. Stir in macaroni,  lemon  juice,  and  salt; remove from  heat.
7. Combine  blue cheese  and chives  in a small bowl. Garnish  each  serving with  blue cheese  mixture.


Buffalo Ch icken " Fries"
Makes  4 servings  (1 lb.)
Total time:20 minutes
1/3  cup  hot  sauce  (such  as Frank's)
 1/2 stick  unsalted  butter, melted
1  Tbsp. honey
1  lb. boneless, skinless  chicken breast  halves,  sliced lengthwise into 1/2-inch-wide  strips,
seasoned with salt  and black pepper
1/3  cup  all-purpose  flour
1/4 cup vegetable oil, divided

1. Whisk together  hot sauce,  butter, and  honey  in a large bowl.
2. Toss  chicken  strips with  flour in a large  resealable plastic  bag until coated;  shake  offexcess  flour.
3. Heat 2 Tbsp.  oil in a large saute pan over medium-high;  add half the chicken  strips, saute until  browned about  2 minutes per side, then transfer  to hot sauce  mixture and toss  to coat. 4. Repeat  with remaining oil and chicken strips.

Visit Org Junkie for more yummy Menu Plan Monday ideas :)

Menu Plan Monday: Memorial Day Week

 Our Memorial Day dinner crowd :)

Monday: Chipotle Lime Soft Tacos with Corn and Black Bean Salsa, Oaxacan Grilled Corn, watermelon, and grilled peaches in sundaes for dessert

The shrimp is in the middle, all skewered and ready to be taco-ed.  The corn is still all wrapped up, but the recommended mayo, parm, and chili powder topping was AMAZING!  We are thinking of making it as a paste to just brush on next time...

Our grilled peaches sundae bar!

A delicious finished product example :)

Tuesday: Nutella Marbled Banana Bread

Wednesday: Baked Acorn Squash Filled with Italian Sausage and Pasta

Thursday: Leftover filling from night before

Friday-Sunday: Out of town in Covington visiting Josh's grandmas

For more yummy meal ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday at Org Junkie!