Baked Spaghetti

Tonight
left overs redone
I took my spaghetti from Monday night
added a ton of cut squash
some beet greens
some cottage cheese
some sour cream
I didn't end up using the peppers
in the end


throw the leftover spaghetti
and all the cut veggies
into a large bowl
mix


than add the cottage cheese
and about 1/2 the tub of the sour cream
mix again


spray the dish you are going to use
this made enough for me to freeze
an extra meal
that is a fantastic bonus
I always write the date and
cooking instructions on any meal I freeze
you just never know who is going to reheat it


I threw my meal in the oven
at 350 until it bubbled
and the cheese browned
serve it up for some goodness in your belly



my rockstar husband enjoyed the meal
he is wearing his sunglasses at dinner
because he had some followup lasik done
after his contact lens implants 3 months ago
he's in some pain
but not to much to finish dinner


and my kidlets
seem to have found my cellphone
I wonder who they were calling
the girly had a lot to say
to whom ever it was she was talking to

Slow Cooker Indian Chicken Stew

Tonight was a new recipe
Slow Cooker Indian Chicken Stew
I came across this recipe
in the better homes and garden magazine
it wasn't my magazine
so when I got home
I found it online

My husband and I really enjoy
Indian food
my kids
not so much
but they will eat it eventually

I followed the recipe
Mostly
I read the comments
and added some extra spices
2 cans of diced tomatoes
2 can of chickpeas
1 can of chicken stock
curry powder
ginger powder
cumin
coriander
cardamon
bay leaf
1 onion
4 cloves of garlic
4 large chicken breasts
cut into pieces
2 tblsps lime juice
some handfuls of spinach


the cardamon didn't make it into the picture
here is what dried cardamon looks like
it smells good
you just need to remember
to take the pods out and not eat them
they are small so they are hard to find
but you'll know if you hit one


everything goes into the slow cooker
with the exception of
the lime juice and spinach


I served this on Quinoa
with some Naan bread
we really really liked this
I think I'll play with the spices
a bit more next time
adding a bit more of most of them
I think it will even taste better tomorrow


my husband is off this week
our plan is to get the yard
cleaned up for winter
and our trailer cleaned and stored away
we are all enjoying our time with him

Garlicky Hasselback Potatoes

Today was pan fried sole
with Garlicky Hasselback Potatoes
if you have read my blog
you know my hate/hate relationship with fish
however
this pan fried sole
I can somewhat stomach
every so often

Garlicky Hasselback Potatoes
I found the recipe over at
Tasty Kitchen
one of my favorite sites to use

Here is how I made them...
I use grapeseed oil in place
of extra virgin olive oil
I prefer the taste of the grapeseed oil
that said
3-4 tsp grapeseed oil
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp seasoning salt
1 tsp dried basil
lots and lots of garlic
1/2ish cup of Parmesan cheese
2 tspish butter


I followed the instructions
and let me tell you
cutting those potatoes
on the wooden spoon
genius!
I did put a piece of garlic
in between each slice


sprinkle with the cheese
and top with some butter
then bake
for sure an hour or more


these took some time to make
my family liked them
but didn't love them
I was glad for a new way to try them


did I mention
we seem to have a sign on our house
that brings in stray cats
here is our newest one
with our little Lily


and my girly
she carts this new kitty around
and the kitty puts up with it

Menu Plan Monday

We had a decent week last week
we celebrated my husbands birthday
I even was able to make
him homemade cupcakes
with cream cheese icing
he was thrilled
the picture however
my kidlets had just woke him
he works graveyards
but the kids couldn't wait any longer




and a fun fact
the girly
had blue coming out of her nose
the entire next day
fun fun

NOW
Menu Plan Monday

Monday (tonight) - we had spaghetti
my kids love it
I don't think to make it often enough

Tuesday - pan fried sole with potatoes
I didn't make this last week
and I have potatoes to use up


Wednesday - slow cooker Indian chicken stew
I saw this recipe in
better homes and gardens
it looks like something
we'll enjoy

Thursday - spaghetti pie
I have left over spaghetti
on purpose
so I'll remake it
and make something yummy

Friday - cheater stuffed baked potatoes
I need to use up potatoes



Saturday - Chili
I picked up a package
at the farmers market
we'll see how that turns out

Sunday - Pancakes

for many more amazing ideas
check out the Organizing Junkie

Siblings

These are my kids
today
loving each other
I had to take a picture

these are my kids
today
fighting
it's a more common site

in fact it's such a common site
I can stop to take pictures

this is how I prefer to see them
either way
I love them
more than I can ever imagine

Gift Giving

I struggle with buying gifts
I'm not a shopper
I strongly dislike trying to decide what to get
I think giving cash or gift cards
is a cop out

I have ended up giving
cash and gift cards
that is if I remember to get them at all
I'm terrible
I'm a few gifts behind for birthdays
I carry a lot of guilt over this

I also think in our society
we have too much
I don't NEED anything
I find most anything I want to get
for someone else
they generally already have it
I also worry if they will like it or not
I would prefer to not
buy or get gifts

In saying these negative things
about gift buying and giving
I'm actually 3/4 done
my CHRISTMAS shopping
WOW
I decided this year
I was going to buy things
that were not only gifts to my people
but they benefited others as well

Love Guatemala
they have items they are selling
from Guatemala
some beautiful handmade items
when you buy there things
you are also supporting their ministry
these are gifts I can feel good about giving
the pictures I posted here
are just a sample of what they have
if you are interested in buying or checking out
what they have available you can contact
Love Guatemala
Let me just tell you
the coffee......you will have nothing better

Other than gift shopping
my little girly was helping me cook today
or rather she was taste testing
and my food was good
according to the girly anyway

my little man was getting lessons
on building airplanes
by his dad
it was so sweet to watch

this week has been tough
kids are fighting
screaming
biting
yelling
and seem to not have listening skills
it's emotionally draining
however
I remind myself that this
is normal
my kids are not extra good
at being bad
I've been praying a lot
as I'm sure you can imagine
let me just say
if you are a mother of more than 2 kids
you are my hero

Have a great Wednesday night all!

Menu Plan Monday

Last week
Monday was Sweet and Sour Chicken - YUM

Tuesday, Ham with mashed potatoes - always a big hit with my hubby

- also I tried out cooking with Fennel

Wednesday left over Ham mixed with Gravy and we tried Quinoa for the first time

Thursday I was not in the cooking mood - Linguine with Alfredo sauce and chicken tenders

Friday we celebrated my niece's birthday

Now, on to this week...

Monday - tonight we had BBQ ribs with Spaghetti Squash and Roasted Veggies

Tuesday - my husband has asked that I make the Sole I made the other week so I'll make that with Quinoa I think

Wednesday - Chicken Fajitas

Thursday - homemade hamburgers

Friday - Spaghetti with a tomato sauce

Saturday - dinner at my in laws

Sunday - we have a lunch at my sisters and our small group that evening, so likely it will be popcorn or something easy as we don't tend to be very hungry after a Sunday family lunch

So more menu plans and tons of ideas, check out The Organizing Junkie!

Randomcity

the cats are finally
getting along
this is always a nice thing
when you introduce a new cat
we found a home for our diego kitty
who is now named LULU Belle
and due with kittens any day

I've been MIA
my power cord
died
Yeesh these cords
are PRICEY

we celebrated my nieces
19th Birthday
oh, man, this makes me old
we went for dinner
my kids love her
and my girly loves
my nieces boyfriend

the little man
he loves cake
and his cousin
but cake too

the kidlets and I
were busy on Saturday
there were so many things
going on in town
we picked two
FREE things to check out
a local small town fair
where I forgot to take pictures
and we didn't stay long
rain was on the way
the second event
was the Multi Cultural Fair
I loved seeing all the different cultures
I really enjoyed seeing so many people
dressed in their cultural garb
as they all checked out the different sites
some great friends of mine
had a Guatemala booth
they have a close attachment to Guatemala
their daughter moved there over 11 years ago
and they started Love Guatemala
once they saw the needs of the people
they also have started to reach out
the people of Mexico

we had a very nice weekend
I`m going over meal options
for my menu plan this week
so check back very soon
to see the wonderful menu
at least I hope it will be wonderful