Welcome to football season folks:) Nothing like having good eats to go along with the big game. In fact, there is no possible way NOT to have snackies during the big game.  Seeing as yesterday was LSU’s first game of the season (LSU vs UNC —- GEAUX  TIGERS!!), I made several snacks for us.  One of them was my daughter’s favorite, Fried Cheese.  I can only eat a few of these, but the rest were gobbled up… mostly by my Sare-Bear:)  They really are best right out of the pan so it’s not really a make ahead type food.  Give it a try, they are soooo nice and gooey:) Enjoy!!

OK, HERE’S What You Need:

Cheese – I used Cheddar Cheese Curds and Muenster

Eggs

Milk

Flour

Panko Crumbs (Italian)

HERE’S What You Do:

I used cheese curds, so I didn't have to cut any up. I also used Muenster cheese. It came in a block. If you have to cut your cheese, make sure the chunks are pretty nice side (size of the curds). If your cheese chunks is to small, the cheese will disappear. Pour your Panko and flour into separate bags.

Whisk a couple of eggs.

Shake your cheese chunks in the flour bag.

Dip the flour covered cheese into the egg wash and then shake in the Panko crumbs.

Fry in veggie oil until golden brown:) Drain on paper towel. Mmmmmmmmm all that gooooey goodness!!!

It’s a gorgeous day!  Temps in the lower 70′s. Windows open. PERFECT day to do some cooking:)  I have a friend, Monica, who is going through nursing school. This semester is proving to be even crazier than normal for her.  She is the mother of 5 very active boys – ages  5 – 15!! Her boys are all into football and soccer… not even mentioning their homework, her homework, housework, husband etc. Needless to say, the family schedule and cooking don’t really happen easily, so I thought I’d try to give her a break. I fixed a big old tray of spaghetti, garlic bread and salad and took it over.  The recipe I use is one that my sister in law showed me years ago.  It’s so good … and it takes no time at all (even better:)   Give it a try.  I make this and freeze it in batches. Kids LOVE it:) Enjoy!!

OK, HERE’S What You Need:

1 1/2 pounds of Ground Round (or chuck) (I doubled the recipe to take to Monica)

3/4 cup onions, chopped (I use the frozen ones as much as possible)

1 pound can of Crushed Tomatoes

2 small cans Tomato Paste

Salt, Pepper, Garlic Powder, Italian Seasonings

1/2  -  3/4 pkg of Angel Hair Pasta (cooked)

HERE’S What You Do:

In a large skillet, season and brown your hamburger meat (along with your onions)

When your meat is browned, add the crushed tomatoes and the 2 small cans of sauce.

Taste. Adjust salt, pepper and garlic powder. Add a nice pinch of Italian Seasoning. Simmer while you get your spaghetti started.

Drain your spaghetti and add to your sauce and toss (ooohhh, lookie there! I was a poet and didn't know it!:)

*** Once it’s tossed you can either serve or let it cool and put into freezer containers/bags and freeze. ***

I spread this batch out into a casserole tin and threw some mozzarella cheese over it before I put the foil over (so the cheese can get all nice and gooey:) Monica said the pan didn't last 20 minutes! I'm telling ya, it's delicious!

Ok, HERE’S You Need:

• 1/2 T. margarine (I use butter)
• 1 T. vanilla
• 9 inch pie shell
• 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
• 3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• 2 cups milk
• 1 T. corn starch
• 2 T. sugar
• 1 pkg vanilla pudding (not instant)

HERE’S What You Do:

Take your pie crust...

rub you some Crisco or butter over the crust (I used butter)

Stick it in the oven and bake til nice and golden

In a bowl, mix together 1/3 cup peanut butter and 3/4 cup powdered sugar

I used my hands to get it to this mealy consistency

Take your pie shell out of the oven and let it cool a bit. Then sprinkle 2/3 of the peanut butter mixture onto the bottom of the shell.

In a bowl, whisk 3 egg yolks with 2 cups milk; add 1 T corn starch, 2 T sugar, 1 T vanilla and 1/2 T butter. Mix well and pour into a boiler.

Add your pkg of vanilla pudding and stir constantly until it thickens.

Now, pour your lovely thick pudding filling over the peanut butter crumbly bits:) Mmmm getting tempting huh?:)

Top with meringue and sprinkle the rest (or as much of it as you can) of the peanut butter crumblies on top and bake at 350 F for 15 to 20 minutes - or until the top of the meringue is all lovely and golden;)

Taaa daaaa!!! I hope that your family will include this in their happy memories as well:)

Hello all:)  Growing up, our Sunday lunch was always beef roast, rice, gravy, peas, etc;)  Paul’s English Sunday lunch was (and still is) a roast chicken, roast potatoes and Bisto gravy.  Mum will usually make little green peas and carrots to go with it; however,  Paul isn’t fond of the later 2 so it’s usually just chicken and potatoes here. It’s so easy to make and always makes him happy:)  So that’s what I’m sharing with yall today. Hope your weekend was great. Have a wonderful week!

OK, HERE’S What You Need:

1 Whole Chicken  - I usually get a  4 pound chicken

Yukon Gold Potatoes – I use about a pound and a half

Salt, Pepper and Veg Oil

HERE’S What you Do:

Take out the giblets and wash your chicken well. Pat dry inside and out. Salt and pepper the inside and out generously.  Place the chicken (breast side up), in a roasting pan of your choice that has a bit of veggie oil in the bottom.  Drizzle a little oil over the chicken and place into a 350 degree oven for 2 hrs.

Meanwhile, peel and cut (into 2×2 pieces). Place them in a boiler, cover with water and salt.  Boil until juuuuust almost tender.  You don’t want them falling apart. Drain. This is where I scuff them up a little bit. Place the colander  over the top of your boiler full of potatoes.  Shake up and down a little to make the outer potato scuffed. This makes the potatoes crispy when you roast them.  Coat a roasting pan with oil. Drizzle potatoes with oil and place in the same oven as your chicken.  Continue roasting both for the duration of the 2 hours (chicken cooking time).  By the time the 2 hours is up, if your potatoes are not as brown on top as you’d like, just turn your broiler on and let them brown up quickly (don’t turn your back on them! It won’t take long at all once you are at this point).

Put a nice salad on the table and you’re done:)   Eat, enjoy your family time and then, when it’s over, make the kids wash up:)

Saturday, I made a big batch of chicken salad. It’s my simple way. I didn’t have almonds or pineapple on hand so it’s just plain. I love it this way though. So here is my way:) Yall enjoy!!

OK, HERE’S What You Need:

5 boneless skinless chicken breast

Salt, pepper, garlic powder

3 stalks of celery

1/2 yellow onion (this was on the smaller side)

about a cup of Mayonnaise

HERE’S What You Do:

Place the 5 boneless chicken breast on a foil lined pan.

Season - salt, pepper, garlic powder (or your fav seasoning)

Seal the foil. Bake at 350 F until done. About 45 minutes or so. My chicken was frozen so I had to cook longer.

Meanwhile, chop your celery and onion

Let your chicken cool for a bit.

Chop your chicken into 1/2 inch chunks

Shred the chunks a bit. Not to much though.

Add onions, celery and Mayo (1 cup) to your chicken. This is where you can also add pineapple or almonds... OR BOTH! If you do add pineapple, you might want to cut back on your mayo because the juice.

***MIX. Taste and adjust your seasoning***

I love it on the white bread that sticks to the roof of your mouth it's so fresh:) OR, you can just eat it right out of the bowl! However, if you added the other ingredients, you might want to be a bit more civilized and serve it on pretty bread or a crisp lettuce leaf. Anyway you serve it, it's going to be SO goooooooood:)

1 lb of ground beef (I like to use ground round)

1 small onion cut up (if you don’t have one, just use dried minced onion)

salt, pepper, garlic powder

1lb button mushrooms (or 1 small can, DRAINED sliced up mushrooms)

1 can Cream of Mushrooms (or Chicken) soup

8oz sour cream

Serve over white rice or egg noodles

HERE’S What You Do:

1 pound ground round

Season w/ salt, pepper,dried onions,garlic powder & brown

***Now, drain your meat and put it to the side to keep it warm. Do not wash out your skillet.  Add about 1 T. butter to your skillet**

Mushrooms (small can drained or you can use fresh - I like fresh:) Instead of slicing, I like to break them up into quarters with my hands - nice chunky pieces.

Saute' your mushrooms in the skillet with butter and little bit of drippings left over from the hamburger meat.

Meanwhile, start your noodles - or rice (I use my rice cooker when I make the rice) Here I just made egg noodles.

Once your mushrooms are all nice and goldeny (like that word?:) browny, add your beef back to your skillet

To your meat/mushrooms, add a can of Cream of Mushroom Soup (or Cream of Chicken) and 8 oz of sour cream

Sour cream and Cream of Mushroom soup - mix into meat/mushrooms and simmer on low til warmed through.

***Remove noodles from heat and drain***

Serve stroganoff over noodles and ENJOY!:)

My husband, Paul, is from England.  He has a few favorites that I make for him. Last night I made a couple of dishes. One of them was Shepard’s Pie. Now, he is a pretty simple guy when it comes to his ingredients. So here is his favorite way that I make it:)   Oh, btw, it freezes/reheats really well!

OK, HERE’S What You’ll Need:

1 pound of beef (I use ground round)

1 small onion, chopped (I didn’t have one so I used dried onions)

salt, pepper, garlic powder

button mushrooms (about 4 oz sliced up)

brown gravy mix (follow directions)

Mashed potatoes  - I used about 1 1/2 pounds and used a lot of butter;)

Butter – we use Kerry Gold Irish butter. It’s soooooo good

Preheat oven to 375(f)

HERE’S What You Do:

Into the skillet - Ground Round (1 pound)

Season - salt, pepper, garlic powder, dried minced onion

Start your mashed taters - place in water with salt - boil (1 1/2lb)

Brown your meat

Get your baking dish ready - These are Paul's favorite for this dish;)

Cover the bottom of your baking dish(es) generously with beef

You can use either fresh or a small (drained can) of mushrooms.

**Ok this is where you can add other assorted veggies if you would like. Paul used to like corn in his but he’s kinda gone off it. Other veggies you common – corn and little green peas.  But my Englishman is simple:)**

Place sliced mushrooms on top of beef

Make your brown gravy - We use Bisto

Gravvvyyy

Pour your gravy over the beef and mushrooms

Going back to the potatoes - drain

Trick to great mashed potatoes is the butter - Kerry Gold!

add butter (LOTS of butter:) and mash

Potatoes on top - trail your fork to make ridges (they get crunchy:)

Bake until it bubbles around the sides (about 35 minutes). If it’s not brown enough on top, run it under the broiler until you get your desired color.

Done:) Nice and crispy on top!

Well, we have kittens!:) Friday morning, Angel had 5 of the sweetest little babies:) I thought it was weird that she was under Matthew and Jamie’s bunk beds. Then we heard her crying. Paul had to pull the bed out to get to her. He got her to the half bath where he had put a box for her, just in time! We have 2 black, 2 white/creamy, and one sweet little black and white one:) Angel is doing well. She’s a bit nervous but she’s a first time mommy.  She’s a very good mommy though:)I don’t know how we are going to part with any of them.

So did everyone have a good weekend? Our’s was good. Rained a lot though. Paul was off Friday. We had breakfast with Maria and did a little shopping. Thursday and Friday were absolutely gorgeous.  Saturday morning, Sarah, Monica and I had a ‘girls’ morning:) We picked Monica up and went to grab a coffee then it was off to get pedicures:) Sarah had a blast:) The place we went was really gorgeous. One wall was a waterfall. The ceilings were painted like the sky and they had beautiful chandeliers.  It was really very pretty and relaxing.  Sarah chose blue and I got Dutch Tulip:) She has a little flourish of black and I have pretty little flowers on her/my/our big toes:)  She saw a little friend there getting a mani-pedi:) So I am sure they will have a lot to talk about. Next time, maybe we’ll both do mani-pedis.  When we left the temp felt like it had dropped a good 20 degrees and it began to rain. It rained alllll night until yesterday afternoon. We even had tornado warnings out. Yesterday morning, I took Matthew, Jamie and 2 of Jamie’s friends to a Pokemon event. Then I took them to McDonald’s for lunch. The kids went to Aunt Kathy’s house to watch Mary Poppins yesterday afternoon. We picked them and Aunt Kathy up about 5 and we all went  to Bennigans for supper. So it was a very nice weekend:)

Today, I need to go run pick up things to make up treat bags for Math Bowl Team for tomorrow. They have their competition after school tomorrow. Jamie isn’t going to be on the panel. He’s missed to many practices because of migraines. He’s ok with that though. He’s just happy to be part of the team. He really enjoys Math Bowl. I’ve run the cleaning cycle on my washing machine and washed a couple of loads of clothes this morning; unloaded and loaded the dishwasher; tidied the front room/dining room and had my coffee. I need to keep the momentum going so I am off:)

Yall have a wonderful day!

take care,

~kat

RecipesUnlimited.com

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The birds are just a singing singing singing this morning:) I’m hearing birds that I have not heard since last summer:)  We are up to about 54 atm (it’s 10:30 a.m. here).  Our high today should be in the 60′s:) It’s quite windy out though. Thankfully, it’s not making it colder. I sent Sarah to school in a dress with leggings under it and a sweater. Hope that’s going to work for her.  I called the school and asked them if they were going to send them out if they could put some rocks in her britches because the wind is gusting up to 35mph-she may blow away!

It’s so nice and peaceful atm.  But I’m sitting here looking at my tulips that Paul brought me. The white ones losing their petals unfortunately. The pink ones are still just a beautiful as they were. I think I may have to re-arrange today.

Oh! I lost 2 more pounds this last week *yay!*:) My total so far is -9.2 pounds:) *dances around so happy*:) I went and met Paul for lunch yesterday. We went to the Water Tower Place downtown. They have the downstairs that has Food for Life. I got this yummy Asian salad with almonds, walnuts, oranges, chicken, wonton crispies and plum dressing. Yum-O!. Not real sure how many points that was, but my weigh-in days are kind of a loose day for me. After we had lunch, we went to the American Girl place and picked up a birthday gift for one of Sarah’s little friends, Jackie.  Then it was off back home to pick up the kids. Sarah threw on her dance leotard and tights unde her clothes and it was a mad dash over to the party for an hour. Then we left here a bit early and made another mad dash to dance. Left there and raced over to church to Kids Club. By this time, Sarah was worn out and didn’t want to go so the boys stayed there and she came home with me. She never wants to miss Kids Club but I think she had just rushed rushed rushed and needed a break.

Well, I need to get up and get moving. Hope yall have a wonderful day:)

take care,

~kat:)

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