hubby loves pork chops, to me they are just Ok but, decided maybe I just did not know how to cook them right...
been researching different recipes and came upon this one...
http://www.spendwithpennies.com/crock-pot-pork-chops/
and it sounded pretty good...besides, hubby had just bought a big pack of pork chops...
funny thing is, that this is the way I make one version of my swiss steak...
it came out really good and was very tender and it made me kind of change my mind about pork chops a little...
we paired it with some smashed potatoes that Tim made and some mixed veggies...
very yummy, you should try it, you will not be disappointed...
Saturday, August 27, 2016
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
Tuesday night lazy family dinner...Applebees copycat chicken salad
http://mandysrecipeboxblog.com/applebees-oriental-chicken-salad/
this is the recipe I basically follow and since I have made it many many times, I have tweaked a few things to make it our own...and what is funny that everytime I make this everyone says, " wow mom that really hit the spot..."
first of all I make it so much easier by buying Carl's Jr chicken tenderloins, for some reason I love their chicken and this makes it so much easier to buy the chicken already done for you...
then I basically follow the above recipe but we put ours in a tortilla wrap...
the dressing is to die for and I always make more of it, to last for other salads in the week...
yum you must try it...
I love this so much that even tho I can make it at home, every single time we go to Applebees I order this exact thing...
this is the recipe I basically follow and since I have made it many many times, I have tweaked a few things to make it our own...and what is funny that everytime I make this everyone says, " wow mom that really hit the spot..."
first of all I make it so much easier by buying Carl's Jr chicken tenderloins, for some reason I love their chicken and this makes it so much easier to buy the chicken already done for you...
then I basically follow the above recipe but we put ours in a tortilla wrap...
the dressing is to die for and I always make more of it, to last for other salads in the week...
yum you must try it...
I love this so much that even tho I can make it at home, every single time we go to Applebees I order this exact thing...
Monday night family dinner, BBQ roasted whole chicken
this BBQ of mine has gotten a really good work out this summer...more than it ever has before...LOL...in the old house, the back yard was kind of hard to get to and in the heat of summer, it wiped me out having to walk thru the whole house with meat in my hand to get to the back yard to the BBQ and then adding to that, if I wanted to watch it, I had to sit outside, in said heat...that just was not me...I have said many many times that heat and I do not get along at all...do not ask me how we ended up living in a place that sometimes reaches high triple digits...
so in the new house (where we moved in May) when you are in the kitchen preparing the meat for BBQing, the back yard is literally 2 steps to the back door and outside...so so so much better...as long as we have charcoal and lighter fluid, it is so much easier to BBQ than heat up my kitchen...the BBQ and the slow cooker have certainly been my best friends this year...what in the heck did I do what I did for 15 years living in the old house? I am so much happier with many things here, tho I do miss my old neighbors...
I do also have to say that having central air here, vs. having only window air sure has helped this summer pass better for me...a complete life savior...
tonight, anticipating sending some home with little kids, I prepared 2 whole chickens...I like to put some butter and some cut up onions in the cavity and also rub a spice mixture all over the skin...put them on grill using the side only slow cooking version that I taught myself to do...and it comes out wonderful...we had them on for approximately 2 hours...so moist and delicious...and we have lots of leftovers, even sending some home with littles...
paired with hobo potatoes...diced potatoes, seasoned, with some cut up onions, wrapped in foil and put with the chickens on the grill...also had broccoli...
a very good summer dinner...yum
so in the new house (where we moved in May) when you are in the kitchen preparing the meat for BBQing, the back yard is literally 2 steps to the back door and outside...so so so much better...as long as we have charcoal and lighter fluid, it is so much easier to BBQ than heat up my kitchen...the BBQ and the slow cooker have certainly been my best friends this year...what in the heck did I do what I did for 15 years living in the old house? I am so much happier with many things here, tho I do miss my old neighbors...
I do also have to say that having central air here, vs. having only window air sure has helped this summer pass better for me...a complete life savior...
tonight, anticipating sending some home with little kids, I prepared 2 whole chickens...I like to put some butter and some cut up onions in the cavity and also rub a spice mixture all over the skin...put them on grill using the side only slow cooking version that I taught myself to do...and it comes out wonderful...we had them on for approximately 2 hours...so moist and delicious...and we have lots of leftovers, even sending some home with littles...
paired with hobo potatoes...diced potatoes, seasoned, with some cut up onions, wrapped in foil and put with the chickens on the grill...also had broccoli...
a very good summer dinner...yum
Sunday, August 21, 2016
fried macaroni and cheese
at various restaurants, this is my absolute favorite appetizer, especially at CPK...and so I decided to try to make it myself and OMGoodness were they ever good...
I used Kraft deluxe macaroni and cheese (next time I make homemade mac and cheese, I will freeze some for these...)
and the trick to these is to freeze the pasta and then just slightly defrost...then dip individual "balls" into flour, then beaten egg mixture and then into panko bread crumbs (making sure every bit is covered)...and fry in small amount of oil...
next time I will add garlic salt and pepper to the flour...
otherwise, so so good
I used Kraft deluxe macaroni and cheese (next time I make homemade mac and cheese, I will freeze some for these...)
and the trick to these is to freeze the pasta and then just slightly defrost...then dip individual "balls" into flour, then beaten egg mixture and then into panko bread crumbs (making sure every bit is covered)...and fry in small amount of oil...
next time I will add garlic salt and pepper to the flour...
otherwise, so so good
Sunday night BBQ steaks
when we were first married, and I would ask hubby to BBQ, it never turned out the way I thought it should...the meat would be burned black on the outside and raw inside...I decided to teach myself to BBQ and over the years, I was so happy with myself that I did this...haha, this was in the days before computers and so what I did was go buy a "how to BBQ" cookbook...I love the slow cooking version of grilling...and of course everyone in the family is glad I taught myself to do this...
tonight?
we had some steaks in the freezer, I seasoned them yesterday and today I grilled them...the end...
perfection...LOL
paired with brussel sprouts, french bread and deli potato salad (at the end of the day, did not know what to make to go with steaks and sent Tim to the store...)
all in all a good meal, even though I do not care for steaks all that much...
tonight?
we had some steaks in the freezer, I seasoned them yesterday and today I grilled them...the end...
perfection...LOL
paired with brussel sprouts, french bread and deli potato salad (at the end of the day, did not know what to make to go with steaks and sent Tim to the store...)
all in all a good meal, even though I do not care for steaks all that much...
Friday night beef stroganoff...yum
this is Tim's all time favorite dinner, the one he asks for on his birthday and such...he is having a few problems, a little depressed and I wanted to surprise him with a good dinner...
I use the McCormick's seasoning mix for my usual beef stroganoff and I have never gone wrong using it...
today I decided to try it a little different, here is what I did...
I cut about 2 1/2 pounds of london broil into very thin strips, floured them and seared them...put them into a lined slow cooker, poured some beef broth onto the meat and cooked on high for about 4-5 hours...
I take 2 packages of the seasoning mix and stir into 2 cups of the beef broth and let thicken, added 16 oz of sour cream and stirred till no lumps...
served over buttered noodles and made peas and carrots to go along with it...
Tim was very happy
I use the McCormick's seasoning mix for my usual beef stroganoff and I have never gone wrong using it...
today I decided to try it a little different, here is what I did...
I cut about 2 1/2 pounds of london broil into very thin strips, floured them and seared them...put them into a lined slow cooker, poured some beef broth onto the meat and cooked on high for about 4-5 hours...
I take 2 packages of the seasoning mix and stir into 2 cups of the beef broth and let thicken, added 16 oz of sour cream and stirred till no lumps...
served over buttered noodles and made peas and carrots to go along with it...
Tim was very happy
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
slow cooker orange chicken and homemade chow mein
for dinner tonight, I wanted something different and orange chicken has been on my "I want to cook sometime" list for awhile...I just recently have started ordering orange chicken when we go out and I do like it...
now, hubby and Tim really like it and I wanted to surprise them with dinner tonight...
this is the recipe I used for the chicken:
http://www.averiecooks.com/2016/02/slow-cooker-orange-chicken.html
and since I have never even tried chow mein, but both guys love it, I decided to look for recipe and try it...
this is the one I used for the chow mein:
http://damndelicious.net/2014/07/02/panda-express-chow-mein-copycat/
everyone really liked both recipes...I invited Sam and Zoie over for dinner too, since they both like things like this and they were happy and props, Sam helped me cook too...
the one thing I would change for the chicken was I think it had too much cornstarch, so I would cut down on that...
and the thing about the noodles was, I would want them to be a little thicker...I had a hard time finding yaki-soba noodles, and I would not put brown sugar in it at all...
other than that, it was yummy and will be put on our regular rotation of meals...
now, hubby and Tim really like it and I wanted to surprise them with dinner tonight...
this is the recipe I used for the chicken:
http://www.averiecooks.com/2016/02/slow-cooker-orange-chicken.html
and since I have never even tried chow mein, but both guys love it, I decided to look for recipe and try it...
this is the one I used for the chow mein:
http://damndelicious.net/2014/07/02/panda-express-chow-mein-copycat/
everyone really liked both recipes...I invited Sam and Zoie over for dinner too, since they both like things like this and they were happy and props, Sam helped me cook too...
the one thing I would change for the chicken was I think it had too much cornstarch, so I would cut down on that...
and the thing about the noodles was, I would want them to be a little thicker...I had a hard time finding yaki-soba noodles, and I would not put brown sugar in it at all...
other than that, it was yummy and will be put on our regular rotation of meals...
Tuesday, August 16, 2016
sloppy joe dinner for a hot very hot evening
I made a huge batch of this tonight, so I could send enough home with the little kids...
I use the McCormick seasoning packet and paired them with tator tots, maple carrots and chopped salad...
yummy...
and just when I finished cooking, and sat down to eat, my a/c decided to play a joke on me and quit working...thought I would die...was ready to start looking for hotels...LOL
Tim figured it out, we had too many things going at one time and it just needed re-booting...
I use the McCormick seasoning packet and paired them with tator tots, maple carrots and chopped salad...
yummy...
and just when I finished cooking, and sat down to eat, my a/c decided to play a joke on me and quit working...thought I would die...was ready to start looking for hotels...LOL
Tim figured it out, we had too many things going at one time and it just needed re-booting...
spaghetti carbonara
http://lilluna.com/spaghetti-carbonara/
I was intrigued by this recipe, as it did not have the egg tossed in like so many other recipes...this one has cream cheese with seasonings added...
everyone in the family liked it except me...I did not really care for the cream cheesy taste...
I want to find the right one for me...to keep on looking...
I was intrigued by this recipe, as it did not have the egg tossed in like so many other recipes...this one has cream cheese with seasonings added...
everyone in the family liked it except me...I did not really care for the cream cheesy taste...
I want to find the right one for me...to keep on looking...
Sunday, August 14, 2016
slow cooker pot roast, mashed potatoes and egg salad
lately I have posted a lot about roasts...but I have a reason...ha...
I love to check the day old meats at Ralphs, and when I come upon a good piece of roast, I just cannot pass it up...(I mean who could, really?) and with the slow cooker they are so darn easy...and taste so good in many ways...who doesn't love a good roast beef sandwich? (my favorite) but, I also love a really good tender roast beef with homemade mashed potatoes and gravy...I have to say that I think this is one of my absolute favorite dinners...and growing up, I never had roast beef (who could afford a roast with 12 kids?) until I had moved out on my own...now, we have roast a couple of times a month if not more...LOL
my way is simply to coat the beef in a little flour, and sear on all sides, then I put into the slow cooker with 1-2 packets of Lipton onion soup mix and enough water to cover the beef and I cook on high most of the day...yummy
and my mashed potatoes, oh my....I love mashed potatoes...and to think growing up mashed potatoes meant the box variety...little boy also loves my mashed potatoes...
I always use red potatoes and cook them till fork tender, then add them to the kitchen aid along with a brick of cream cheese, a couple of spoons of sour cream and a couple of tablespoons of butter...also add garlic salt and a lot of black pepper...
yummy dinner tonight and thankfully there are enough leftovers for a sandwich later on...
first thing this morning I boiled almost 3 dozen eggs, knowing that we would need something good in this heat for sandwiches...
and I made the best egg salad for the whole week...
not much to mine, I grate very finely and add just enough mayo to moisten with a teeny amount of garlic salt and lots of pepper...
Tim has lunch for the week
I love to check the day old meats at Ralphs, and when I come upon a good piece of roast, I just cannot pass it up...(I mean who could, really?) and with the slow cooker they are so darn easy...and taste so good in many ways...who doesn't love a good roast beef sandwich? (my favorite) but, I also love a really good tender roast beef with homemade mashed potatoes and gravy...I have to say that I think this is one of my absolute favorite dinners...and growing up, I never had roast beef (who could afford a roast with 12 kids?) until I had moved out on my own...now, we have roast a couple of times a month if not more...LOL
my way is simply to coat the beef in a little flour, and sear on all sides, then I put into the slow cooker with 1-2 packets of Lipton onion soup mix and enough water to cover the beef and I cook on high most of the day...yummy
and my mashed potatoes, oh my....I love mashed potatoes...and to think growing up mashed potatoes meant the box variety...little boy also loves my mashed potatoes...
I always use red potatoes and cook them till fork tender, then add them to the kitchen aid along with a brick of cream cheese, a couple of spoons of sour cream and a couple of tablespoons of butter...also add garlic salt and a lot of black pepper...
yummy dinner tonight and thankfully there are enough leftovers for a sandwich later on...
first thing this morning I boiled almost 3 dozen eggs, knowing that we would need something good in this heat for sandwiches...
and I made the best egg salad for the whole week...
not much to mine, I grate very finely and add just enough mayo to moisten with a teeny amount of garlic salt and lots of pepper...
Tim has lunch for the week
Saturday night taco salad it is hot hot hot here
what on earth did I ever do before we moved to this house that has central air? I am loving being in a house where I am not melting...heat and I do not get along at all...it drains me and I get horrible headaches from it...
we are in triple digits here and I absolutely hate it...it severely affects the way I cook...I so want to try new recipes but it has to be slow cooker or BBQ (and even with that I still have to go outside, yuck...)
since hubby has been sick since we moved and mostly unable to drive, I get out first thing in the morning, when it still nice out and do all of my outside errands first thing and so it was this morning...I love Sunday mornings as I always go and get Tim and I our white chocolate mocha fraps and get what groceries I need at the same time, and then I go to Panera for muffins or bagels for our breakfast...this morning a little before 7am, I woke up our 2 little overnight "guest" had them do a few chores for me and made them walk up to the Plaza for my weekly tradition...I was surprised they got up so good and agreed to go with me...LOL...
Sian had never been to Panera, so I got both girls their breakfast and left them to eat while I did my shopping...these 2 love being given a little independence and were so happy to have breakfast by themselves...
so last night, I made taco salad and I am notorious for the way I like my salad...not sure why I call it a salad since I put no lettuce in mine at all...
here is how I make mine...
to browned ground beef (seasoned) I add some grated cheese, chopped tomatoes, green onions and some black olives...then I add some crushed tortilla chips and just enough ranch dressing to make it all come together and I LOVE it this way...well, yesterday I forgot to buy lettuce for everone else so everyone had to have theirs like mine, although hubby puts salsa in his...
Thursday, August 11, 2016
slow cooker sausage tator tot casserole
little boy is spending the night here tonight and I let him choose what he wasnted for dinner...he loves my cooking and says when he is bigger he is buying a bakery and I will be his cooker...LOL
he loves my usual recipe of hashbrown casserole, but with summer here I do not turn my oven on and I remembered seeing this recipe and it is very similiar...this did not disappoint...it was very yummy...
http://slowcookergourmet.net/slow-cooker-breakfast-tater-tot-casserole/
I used turkey sausage crumbles for this and it would also be great with bacon or ham...
so yummy you must try it...
he loves my usual recipe of hashbrown casserole, but with summer here I do not turn my oven on and I remembered seeing this recipe and it is very similiar...this did not disappoint...it was very yummy...
http://slowcookergourmet.net/slow-cooker-breakfast-tater-tot-casserole/
I used turkey sausage crumbles for this and it would also be great with bacon or ham...
so yummy you must try it...
Wednesday, August 10, 2016
smoked sausage with apples, onions and potatoes...with corn cakes
this was a very yummy dinner that everyone in the family ended up loving...this is a little different than what I am used to making but I will surely make it again...fairly easy to put together...
I cut up 2 packages of smoked sausage and browned them in a little butter, added diced onion, chopped apples (I used granny smith) and seasonings, stirred them and conitinued cooking until onions and apples were cooked...now I have a thing about potatoes not being done, so I roasted my diced potatoes first and then added them to the skillet...added parsley to the top...
so good...
for the corn cakes...this is the recipe that I used...
https://www.pomanmeals.com/cheddar-scallion-corn-cakes/
OMGosh these were so good...you must try them...might add some corn and bacon next time...
I cut up 2 packages of smoked sausage and browned them in a little butter, added diced onion, chopped apples (I used granny smith) and seasonings, stirred them and conitinued cooking until onions and apples were cooked...now I have a thing about potatoes not being done, so I roasted my diced potatoes first and then added them to the skillet...added parsley to the top...
so good...
for the corn cakes...this is the recipe that I used...
https://www.pomanmeals.com/cheddar-scallion-corn-cakes/
OMGosh these were so good...you must try them...might add some corn and bacon next time...
Monday, August 8, 2016
korean beef with rice and homemade egg rolls
http://www.jimmydean.com/recipes/appetizers/margarets-sausage-egg-rolls
this is the recipe I have used for years for egg rolls and they never disappoint...
http://damndelicious.net/2013/07/07/korean-beef-bowl/
a new family favorite...I made a lot extras for leftovers...this is so good you must try it...yummy, this was not even on my menu rotation for the week, but I woke this morning craving it...
Zoie my 15 year old was a huge help in the kitchen today...my little sous chef...
this is the recipe I have used for years for egg rolls and they never disappoint...
http://damndelicious.net/2013/07/07/korean-beef-bowl/
a new family favorite...I made a lot extras for leftovers...this is so good you must try it...yummy, this was not even on my menu rotation for the week, but I woke this morning craving it...
Zoie my 15 year old was a huge help in the kitchen today...my little sous chef...
Sunday afternoon dinner...grilled teriyaki chicken pineapple kebobs
I like Sunday afternoons when most of the family is here for dinner, we eat around 2 and it makes for a nice, easy restful afternoon...
today we grilled (Zoie, my 15 year old loves to BBQ) chicken, pineapple, broccoli and onion kebobs and finshed them off with a really good teriyaki sauce...
cheated and made chicken rice a roni with it...
yum...Tim was happy
today we grilled (Zoie, my 15 year old loves to BBQ) chicken, pineapple, broccoli and onion kebobs and finshed them off with a really good teriyaki sauce...
cheated and made chicken rice a roni with it...
yum...Tim was happy
Saturday, August 6, 2016
Friday night, turkey bacon tortilla wraps
the very first time I had ever eaten a wrap was at Disneyland...and it was so good...it had turkey, bacon, cheese, olives, tomatoes, lettuce with some kind of dressing (too long ago for me to remember, and I don't think they even serve them anymore...) and they served them with little tortilla chips in the shape of Mickey...
this was so good...
and the Rainforest Cafe serves a really good chicken cesar wrap that we love too...
so for many years I have made these wraps especially on a hot summer night...
I use the largest flour tortilla and spread a little of thousand island dressing on the tortilla and then everyone layers what they want on the tortilla...
tonight we served with tator tots made in the toaster over (no I did not turn my oven on in this heat...)
little kids came over while we were eating and they had never had a wrap before and declared these a very good idea...
this was so good...
and the Rainforest Cafe serves a really good chicken cesar wrap that we love too...
so for many years I have made these wraps especially on a hot summer night...
I use the largest flour tortilla and spread a little of thousand island dressing on the tortilla and then everyone layers what they want on the tortilla...
tonight we served with tator tots made in the toaster over (no I did not turn my oven on in this heat...)
little kids came over while we were eating and they had never had a wrap before and declared these a very good idea...
Thursday, August 4, 2016
ham, baked potatoes on the grill
I was so happy when I found ham on sale at Walmart for $1.00 a pound...I love me some ham...so of course I bought the biggest one I saw...
wrapped in foil and threw on the grill on indirect cooking with some foil wrapped baking potatoes...
it came out so good, will try this way again for potatoes for other meals...
paired with a nice green salad and garlic bread...
yum happy eating
wrapped in foil and threw on the grill on indirect cooking with some foil wrapped baking potatoes...
it came out so good, will try this way again for potatoes for other meals...
paired with a nice green salad and garlic bread...
yum happy eating
hamburger soup
it seems a little hot here, temp wise for a soup, but I have been craving this so much...and it is so good as leftovers the next day...
here is what I did...
5 cups of water
1 pkg of onion soup mix
2 cans of 16 oz of tomato sauce and mix all together
add...
1 pkg of frozen peas, carrots and corn
bring to a boil and add 1/2 pkg of ditalini
cook till pasta is al-dente...
so good, yum happy eating
here is what I did...
5 cups of water
1 pkg of onion soup mix
2 cans of 16 oz of tomato sauce and mix all together
add...
1 pkg of frozen peas, carrots and corn
bring to a boil and add 1/2 pkg of ditalini
cook till pasta is al-dente...
so good, yum happy eating
BBQ brisket, homemade potato salad
have been wanting to make a brisket for awhile now and Ralph's had 2 nice sized ones in the day old bin...I was so happy...I love to check their bin almost daily and see what they have to offer...
so, I brought the briskets home and I had bought the new Weber's smokey dry rub and generously rubbed both sides and covered them with foil and I let them sit for 24 hours...
then the next day, we slow roasted them on the BBQ and it was so good...
for my potato salad, which everyone loves...
red potatoes, cut into small chunks and then boiled until still a little firm, and let cool...I add cut up celery, green onions, dill pickles, hard boiled eggs, black olives and mix it up with some mustard, mayo and some of the pickle juice...also a lot of seasonings like garlic salt, pepper, onion powder and some celery salt...
it was so good tonight...
we served with glazed carrots and some garlic bread...
yummy happy eating
so, I brought the briskets home and I had bought the new Weber's smokey dry rub and generously rubbed both sides and covered them with foil and I let them sit for 24 hours...
then the next day, we slow roasted them on the BBQ and it was so good...
for my potato salad, which everyone loves...
red potatoes, cut into small chunks and then boiled until still a little firm, and let cool...I add cut up celery, green onions, dill pickles, hard boiled eggs, black olives and mix it up with some mustard, mayo and some of the pickle juice...also a lot of seasonings like garlic salt, pepper, onion powder and some celery salt...
it was so good tonight...
we served with glazed carrots and some garlic bread...
yummy happy eating
my version of taco casserole, slow cooker style
I have made this casserole ever since my own children were little and everyone always loves it but, I usually make it in the oven...this summer, I am not turning my oven on at all, it is way too hot here...
so here is what I did...
I browned up 2 1/2 pounds of hamburger
I added to it, 32 ounce can of tomato sauce
1 pkg of taco seasoning
1 pkg of frozen corn
sliced black olives
cheddar cheese
I put all of these ingredients into a lined slow cooker on low for about 3-4 hours...then I added crushed tortilla chips and some cheddar cheese to the top and turned to high for about 30 minutes...
it was just as good as the oven version...
yum happy eating
so here is what I did...
I browned up 2 1/2 pounds of hamburger
I added to it, 32 ounce can of tomato sauce
1 pkg of taco seasoning
1 pkg of frozen corn
sliced black olives
cheddar cheese
I put all of these ingredients into a lined slow cooker on low for about 3-4 hours...then I added crushed tortilla chips and some cheddar cheese to the top and turned to high for about 30 minutes...
it was just as good as the oven version...
yum happy eating
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