Monday, July 26, 2010

Weekly menu 7/26-7/31

I have found a new crockpot blog and I am loving it! She has some wonderful recipes on there and I will be trying a couple of them this week!

Mon: BBQ Beef Sandwiches and fries
Tues: Tuna Noodle Casserole
Wed: Alfredo Tomato Chicken
Thurs: Leftovers
Friday:Pizza
Sat: We will be in hubby's hometown for the weekend

Monday, July 19, 2010

Weekly menu 7/18-7/23

I have been so busy with my little girl but the last few weeks I have gotten back in the kitchen! I can't believe she is already 2 months old...time is really flying!

Sun: Chicken wrapped in bacon, mac-n-cheese, corn on the cob
Mon: Something with ground beef and mashed potatoes
Tues: BBQ chicken on the grill, homemade fries, green beans
Wed:
Thurs: Leftovers
Fri: Calzones for my hubby
Sat: Hubby is taking me out to eat

Monday, June 21, 2010

Weekly Menu 6/21-6/26

Mon: Salmon patties, mac n cheese, green beans
Tues: Pasta with meat sauce
Wed: Crockpot chicken, mashed potatoes
Thurs:Leftover night
Fri: Hamburgers on the grill, chips
Sat: Out, maybe depends on when my hubby gets home from 4 wheeling

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

My med free birth

Hello Everyone! Well the last almost 48 hours have been crazy! I'm gonna do in a timeline.

8:45 went for an ultrasound and was told my fluids were good at an 8 but Julia would not move to save her soul. I had ate some yogurt and drank some OJ which had made her move but it had been about 45 mins at this point.

9:45 saw my OB and she was like well it looks like we are having a baby today and sent me to L&D!

11:00 I'm now hooked up to everything including pitocin and am measuring at a 3 still.

12:00 OB comes in and checks me and I'm up to a 4cm and breaks my water.

2:00 Nurse checks me and I'm at a 5

at around 5:30 the doc who was gonna deliver me came in and I was at a 6 and she pushed on things to get them moving. we talk about pain med options but I really didn't think I needed them and didn't want them

at 8:00 I was finally at a 7after several checks

at 10:00 I was at an 8 and this is when things really started moving.

at 10:30 I was a 9 and I was really starting to hurt!!!

at 11:00 I was a 10 and they were getting everything set up for delivery

at 11:30 I was ready to push, and when I say ready, I was beyond ready, I had so much pressure down there I actually got sick and my contractions were off the chart. I wouldn't have made it without Kevin, he really was my rock! I was sitting on the edge of the bed and would put my face in his chest and he would remind me to breath.

after 20 mins of pushing we had our little girl! She is the most gorgeous child I have ever seen (I'm not prejudiced at all), and has just the right mix of her dad and me!

Some say I am crazy but I wouldn't of changed a thing! Plus it's only been like 40 hours and I am home now and feel great!


Monday, May 10, 2010

weekly menu 5/10-5/15

Tonight: pork chops in apple juice in the crock pot w/ asparagus and mashed potatoes

Tomorrow: Lazy lasagna w/garlic bread

Wed: 3 year Anni, we are going out!

Thurs: leftovers

Fri: Pizza night!

Sat: No clue, maybe doing steaks on the grill!

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Slow Cooker Steak Tacos

I was on the hunt for a slow cooker recipe for steak tacos for Cinco De Mayo. So I turned to my girls on the What's Cooking board and once again they didn't fail me! This recipe made my steak so tender, it was literally falling apart as I tried to cut it! We used some sour cream, cheese, and rice in the taco's, oh man it was so tasty!


Adapted from Jaime Cooks

About 3 pounds of Charcoal Steak
1 packet reduced sodium taco seasoning
2 Tbl minced garlic
1 cup water

Monday, May 3, 2010

And an A+ from me


I love tomatoes and I am so glad summer is here! I have planted some in my yard, but stumbled across this recipe tonight on Hyvee.com. Man am I happy I did. I had these for my side while hubby had green beans.

Ingredients
1 firm medium tomatoes
2 tbsp mayonnaise or salad dressing
1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp chopped fresh or 1/4 tsp dried basil leaves (so excited that I got to use fresh)
1 tsp Dijon mustard (did not use)
1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese124931

Preparation1. Heat oven to 350°.

2. Core tomatoes. Cut crosswise into 3/4-inch slices. Place in single layer on rack in broiler pan. (I just place these on a baking sheet)

3. Mix mayonnaise, 1 tbsp cheese, the basil and mustard. Spread about 1 teaspoon mixture over each tomato slice. Sprinkle 1 tbsp cheese over tomatoes. Bake about 8 minutes or until hot.

4. Set oven control to Broil. Broil tomatoes with tops 6 inches from heat 2 to 4 minutes or until topping is golden and bubbly.

An A+ from my hubby!


Our local store, Hy-Vee, had a recipe for Sour Cream Chicken last week, but when I got home the paper was already taken to the recycler. So I googled it and this is what I came up with! This was seriously simple and oh so good, I would recomend serving it with noodles to sop up some of the delicious sauce!

From Cooks.com

CHICKEN BREASTS IN SOUR CREAM

4 chicken breasts
1 (3 oz.) can sliced mushrooms
1 (10 oz.) can mushroom soup (used cream of chicken)
1/2 soup can sherry (didn't have so I didn't use)
1 c. sour cream
Paprika
Salt & pepper

Arrange chicken in single layer in shallow pan. Salt and pepper. Cover with mushrooms. Mix soup, sherry, and sour cream until blended. Cover chicken with mixture - dust with paprika.
Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours.

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Mother's Day 2010



We are doing Mother's Day a weekend early because my parents will be out-of-town for my sisters graduation from her Masters Program! So this menu was made from things my mom asked for: Giada's Parmesan & Breadcrumb baked mashed potatoes, her recipe for Stuffed Porkchops, Green Bean Casserole and for dessert what I am hoping is a wonderful recipe from Paula Deen, Chocolate Bread Pudding. She did not request but I know this is one of my mom's favorite desserts! I will update after tomorrow with pictures, but for now here is the world's best potatoe recipe from Giada!

Baked bread crumb and parmesan mashed potatoes
Ingredients
1 tablespoon butter
4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons plain dry bread crumbs
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon of butter and set aside.

Cook the potatoes in a large pot of boiling salted water until they are very tender, about 15 minutes. Drain; return the potatoes to the same pot and mash well. Mix in the milk and melted butter. Mix in the mozzarella and 3/4 cup of the Parmesan. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Transfer the potatoes to the prepared baking dish. Stir the bread crumbs and remaining 1/4 cup of Parmesan in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the mashed potatoes. Recipe can be prepared up to this point 6 hours ahead of time; cover and chill.

Bake, uncovered, until the topping is golden brown, about 20 minutes.


I also made my Mom's Peachy Stuffed Pork Chops and the good old Green Bean Casserole!


Paula Deen's Chocolate Bread Pudding


Ingredients
1 loaf French or Italian bread, cut into cubes (about 15 cups)
3 cups milk
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup coffee flavored liqueur
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons pure almond extract
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
6 eggs, lightly beaten
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
Pecan Rum Flambe Sauce, recipe follows
Directions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Lightly grease a 13 by 9-inch baking dish fill with bread cubes.

In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, cream, and liqueur. In another bowl, combine the granulated and brown sugars with the cocoa powder and mix well. Add the cocoa mixture to the milk mixture and whisk to combine.

In a medium bowl, add the vanilla extract, almond extract, and the cinnamon to the beaten eggs. Combine the egg mixture with the milk mixture and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour the mixture evenly over the bread cubes; let stand, stirring occasionally, for at least 20 minutes, or until the bread has absorbed most of the milk mixture. Bake the pudding for 1 hour, or until set; a cake tester inserted into the center of the pudding should come out clean.

Serve the pudding warm or cold, with Pecan Rum Flambe, dessert sauce.


Pecan Rum Flambe Sauce:
1 stick butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup dark rum

In a large skillet, melt the stick butter and add brown sugar, stir together. Add the pecans and cook until sugar has caramelized over medium-high heat. Turn off the stove and pour in the rum. Stand back and carefully light with a long lighter. Be careful; a flame will shoot up above the pan. As the alcohol cooks out, the flame will die down. Serve over chocolate bread pudding.

Friday, April 30, 2010

Weekly menu 4/30-5/6

Tonight: Pizza and a movie

Sat: KC strips, corn on the cob, potatoes all on the grill

Sun: We are doing Mother's Day: Stuffed pork chops, baked mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, chocolate bread pudding!

Mon: Sour cream chicken, asparagus, bread

Tues: Hamburgers on grill, chips

Wed: Mexican night, steak tacos, fiesta rice, chips & salsa

Thurs: Leftover night

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Super Easy Quiche


1 Deep dish frozen pie shell
4 eggs
1/2 c milk (I used 1%)
1/2 c sour cream (this is a Martha tip, makes it thicker)
2 cups cheese (calls for 1 cup cheddar and 1 cup swiss, I used all mexican)
1 box prebaked bacon (recipe calls for 8-10 slices, there are 15 in a box)
2 tbl flour
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Mix cheese and flour together, then add bacon). In another bowl break up eggs, whisk in milk and sour cream and the s&p. Add in the cheese mixture then pour into pie shell! Bake for 40-45 mins.

This recipe came from my momma and there is no tellin where she got it! This is super simple to make and very versatile! I'm going to make it with a seafood combo and try out different veggies!

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

DIY Nursery Stuff


My mom and I have been busy crafting for Julia! My mom made some flowers to use on the mobile that was given to me!

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Weekly menu 3/7-3/13

Sunday: Steaks on grill, cheesy potatoes, green beans
Monday: Spicy chicken with cornbread
Tuesday: Venison brats, hot dogs, chips
Wednesday: Cannelli bean and cheese tortellini soup w/ garlic bread
Thursday: Leftover night
Friday: pizza night

Monday, March 1, 2010

Picture 26 weeks 2 days, nursery

We had another great weekend! We got to go down and see hubby's family and visit then on Sunday my parents came over and we worked on some finishing touches! My mom came up with a great idea to put some fabric on the backboard on the bookshelf, and it looks AWESOME!!!


She also helped be hang some things on the wall and decide where I want the other things hung! She brought the framed piece with her and it's from her baby blanket, it says "little kittens have lost their mittens" I just love it!


My mom also made me a sign with Julia's name on it, she got the colors perfect!


My mom also brought a shelf she wasn't using to go in the nursery to put things on, which I promptly did placing a little ceramic carriage she brought with her that I remembered my grandma having, it's perfect!


Our friends Kathy and Norman had a few things to let me borrow! One of them is this bassinet, there's a swing (but the cloth is already off of it to be washed) and an outside play area!

Last put not least is a picture hubby took of me tonight!

Monday, February 22, 2010

Menu 2/21-2/27

Sun: Chili-hot dogs
Mon: Stuffed pork chops, green beans, homemade bread
Tues: Goat cheese chicken, mashed potatoes, corn
Wed: Tacos
Thurs:Leftover night
Fri: Friday night pizza night
Sat: More than likely out!

Monday, February 15, 2010

Cheesy Potato Soup


I'm not gonna lie, I use my blog for a recipe book for all the recipes I've made and we liked it! Throughout this pregnancy I haven't had energy but tonight I did so I made this with some homemade bread machine sweet bread! Yum!

Ingredients -
8-10 medium Red Potatoes
Water to cover potatoes
1 Green Pepper
1 large Onion
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 package Bacon, cut into 1" pieces
1 cup Milk
1/3 package Velveeta, cut into 1" cubes
1 teaspoon Celery Seed
Salt and Pepper, to taste


Preparation:
Quarter and cut potatoes into small pieces. You can peel them or scrub and leave skin on. You may leave the skin on for red or new potatoes, and peel if using others.
Place potatoes in large pot and cover with water; add salt. Boil, covered until tender.

While potatoes are boiling, place bacon, onion, garlic, and green pepper in another large pot and sauté until bacon is cooked, green peppers are tender, and onions are clear.

Drain bacon fat, except for about 1 tablespoon. Add celery seed, salt, and ground pepper and sauté for 1 more minute.

Add sautéd ingredients to undrained boiled potatoes. Turn heat to medium.

Add Velveeta and stir soup until cheese melts. Add milk, and stirring constantly, heat until soup is hot.

Be careful not to burn it.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Thanks friends and family!

I just want to take an opportunity to thank a few friends and my mother-in-law! My friends have been wonderful during this pregnancy. My friend Melissa knitted me a baby blanket in pink and green, it's GORGEOUS!

My best friend Ashley gave me a diaper stacker that sits on the changing table! Love it!

and my Mother-in-Law made us a crib skirt, recovered the cushions on the glider and made valances and curtains!


Thank you all SO much!

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Nursery Completion and 23 week picture!

Well my awesome husband has worked all weekend (with a sick wife) on getting the nursery done! Here are some pictures we took this afternoon:





Thanks to our neighbor we were able to get the rest of the furniture up! She helped move the changing table up and hubby got the rocker and toy chest moved in!




Here is my 23 week picture!

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Weekly Menu

Sat: Leftovers
Sun: Chili
Mon: Pretzel Chicken with honey dijon sauce
Tues: Pork Loin, Mashed potatos, veggie
Wed: GDC-Buffalo chicken lasagna, salad, garlic bread and oreo pie for dessert
Thurs:Potato Soup
Fri: Pizza Friday

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Farmer's Casserole

One of the girls on the Bump board posted a list of recipes for make ahead freezer meals, I am trying them out! This is the first one I've tried, hope it's yummy!

Farmer's Casserole
3 cups frozen shredded hash brown potatoes (24 oz bag)
3/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese (3-4 oz)
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (3-4 oz)
1 cup diced ham or Canadian-style bacon
(5 oz)1 4.5 oz can mild green chiles (optional)
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
4 beaten eggs (or 1 cup frozen egg product)
1 12 oz can evaporated milk
1/4 t pepper
1/8 t salt

Cooking day instructions:

Grease a 2 quart square baking dish. Arrange potatoes evenly in bottom of dish. Sprinkle with cheeses, ham, green chiles, and green onions. In medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk, pepper and salt. Pour egg mixture over potato mixture in dish. (If not freezing, cover and chill several house or overnight, then follow serving day suggestions.) Freeze.

Serving day instructions:

Thaw completely. Bake uncovered in a 350-degree oven for 40-45 minutes or until center appears set. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. If you prefer extra shredded cheese can be sprinkled on top during the last 15 minutes of baking.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Nursery Update

My wonderful daddy came to help with the nursery today and he got the chair rail hung and the chandelier put up!

This first one is just of my dad working on his grand-daughter's room!

Then he started on the chandelier which is so pretty!

I took several pictures on my dad working on it, I think I'll get them made in black and white and put them up on the wall!!!

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Crystal's chicken creation


This entire pregnancy I have craved beans and I needed dinner the other day for me and the hubby so I opened up the pantry and fridge and this is what I came up with:

1 can rotel
1 can corn
1 can white beans
3 frozen chicken breasts
1 bottle of Italian dressing (I used light/zesty)
1/4 box of chicken broth

Put everything in your crockpot and cook on low for about 6 hours!

I served this with some Krash potatoes, and it was oh so good!

Blueberry Chocoloate Chip Muffins


Thanks to my mom who made a wonderful lunch yesterday, making egg salad, fruit salad and Amy's Organic Tomato Soup, I am still hungry for Egg Salad. So while I got the eggs on to boil I made these muffins, which came about because I made blueberry-chocolate brownies for our lunch yesterday! I found this recipe on Cooks.com:

1 - 1 1/2 c. strawberries, blueberries or chocolate mini chips, etc.
3 c. flour
1/2 c. sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. melted butter
3 lg. eggs
1 c. milk

Mix all dry ingredients together. Combine liquid ingredients and stir into dry ingredients until just blended. Fold in berries or chips, very lightly. Spoon into well greased muffin tins. Bake 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. 20-24 muffins.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Weekly Menu 1/30-2/5

Sat: out with hubby

Sun: ham & bean, cornbread, fried taters

Mon: Roasted chicken with corn and potatoes

Tues: Spaghetti casserole, garlic bread

Wed: Potato soup

Thurs: Farm Casserole ( with hashbrowns and ham)

Friday: Pizza Friday

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Nursery update #3!

Well my BFF came over today, for the last time during her vacation from school. It was soooo nice to spend a last day with her! I want to take this time to tell her that I am so very proud of her! But I also want to send out a huge thank you to her mom, Linda, for suggesting her beautiful home for my shower! I love you girls!

We were able to get all of the paint done today, touch ups, stripes, EVERYTHING!!! So now my daddy is going to come install our chair rail and my hubby gets to pull the carpet up! We'll paint the baseboards and just enjoy our work!



Also I had her take a belly update so here ya'll go!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

The nursery #2



Well today my BFF came over to help with the nursery and we got all the stripes measured off and taped! It is looking great! We are doing 4" white, 3" pink and a 1" green. I am so excited to be done with it, and she took a picture of me while we were at it! Here I am a little over 20 weeks!

Monday, January 18, 2010

Weekly Menu 1/17-1/22

Sunday: Creamy Chicken Enchiladas (didn't make last week)
Monday: Breakfast for dinner, pancakes, sausage, poached eggs
Tuesday: Shredded pork sandwiches, fries
Wednesday: Chicken in the crock pot, potatoes
Thursday: Soup and grilled cheese
Friday: Chuck e cheese for our nephews birthday
Saturday: We'll still be it at in-laws so who knows!

Thursday, January 14, 2010

#1 Project 365 picture

I have seen alot of stuff on Project 365 on the blogs/boards and have decided to participate. It mans over the next year you will see lots of pictures from me. This first one is from our new nursery. I am sure this is just first of many so all of you can follow our decorating process with this!



We are going to make a stripe below, a chair rail in the middle and need to paint the doors the bright white and all the trim!

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Weekly menu 1/10-1/15

Sun: Delicious Meliscious's skyline chili over spaghetti with cornbread
Mon: Chicken with fried rice and veggies
Tues: Leftover night (it'll be a big day, we find out what bean is!!!)
Wed: Leftover chili--this time put on pizza
Thurs: Roast Chicken and potatoes
Fri: Sub sandwiches

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Buffalo Chicken Crockpot Lasagna

So my fellow May Nestie posted this on her blog and I just knew I needed to make it. I am so happy I did, it will stay in the rotation, for sure!

Uncooked traditional lasagna noodles
4 cooked chicken breast halves, cut up (mine were frozen, I dethawed them so I could cut them and then tossed, they were cooked through all the way)
Jar of prepared pasta sauce
1 c. buffalo wing sauce (I used Franks Buffalo sauce)
3 red, yellow, or orange bell peppers (didn't use, DH doesn't like them)
15 oz tub ricotta cheese
2 c. shredded cheese (I left this off)
1/2 c. bleu cheese crumbles (I didn't use since they say bleu cheese is bad if you are pregnant)
1/4 c. of water (Used but I don't think it needed it, I will leave off next time)

Spray a 5 qt crockpot thoroughly or use a crockpot liner. (it’s important to have your crockpot at least 1/2 full.)

Combine the cut-up chicken, pasta sauce, and wing sauce in a large bowl. Ladle a big spoonful of the sauce into the bottom of your crockpot. Cover with a layer of uncooked lasagna noodles, breaking to fit the shape of the crockpot as needed.

Add a smear of ricotta cheese to the top of the noodles (I just dropped it in) Add a layer of chopped bell pepper, followed by a handful of shredded cheese.(left out)

Repeat layers until you run out of ingredients.

Add the bleu cheese crumbles, if desired. Put the 1/4 cup of water into your empty pasta sauce jar and shake. Pour the liquid over the top of the entire lasagna.

Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours, or on high for 4-5. When cooking time is complete, unplug and take off the lid of the crock. Let it sit for 20 minutes before cutting into

***Picture to come***

Whatever Meat & Cheese Braid

Well while making this DH looks at me and says "you could use any meat you wanted, couldn't you" and I suppose he is correct. It was really really good and we will make this with different meats and cheeses. Already thinking about a Turkey/Brie/Apples combination!

I saw this in my new Pillsbury Annual recipes cookbook. Here is one I found on Pillsbury.com, but really try different combinations, then come back and tell me what you have tried!

3/4 lb cooked ham, chopped (2 1/4 cups)
1 cup Green Giant® Select® frozen broccoli florets, thawed
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese (4 oz)
1 jar (4.5 oz) Green Giant® sliced mushrooms, drained
1/2 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing
1 tablespoon honey mustard
2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls or 2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury® Crescent Recipe Creations® refrigerated seamless dough sheet
1 egg white, beaten
2 tablespoons slivered almonds

DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray. In large bowl, mix ham, broccoli, cheese, mushrooms, mayonnaise and mustard.
2. If using crescent rolls: Unroll both cans of dough into 2 large rectangles. Place dough with long sides together on cookie sheet, forming 15x12-inch rectangle. Press edges and perforations to seal. If using dough sheets: Unroll both cans of dough into 2 large rectangles. Place dough with long sides together on cookie sheet, forming 15x12-inch rectangle. Press edges together to seal.
3. Spoon and spread ham mixture lengthwise in 6-inch-wide strip down center of dough. With scissors or sharp knife, make cuts 1 1/2 inches apart on long sides of dough to within 1/2 inch of filling. Twisting each strip once, alternately cross strips over filling. Tuck short ends under; press to seal. Brush dough with beaten egg white. Sprinkle with almonds.
4. Bake 28 to 33 minutes or until deep golden brown. Cool 5 minutes. Cut crosswise into slices.