Momma's Christmas Wish List

Since I'm doing so much more baking, cooking and experimenting here's what would make my life easier. 

Dear Santa::

I've been a good girl this year and I'm requesting a stand mixer (red would be cool but I'm not picky),

a family size food processor

cake decorating tips, 

 

yup, a book.  Even with the age of the internet and book readers...  I'd like a book.

 

 

a cake decorating stand (sure would make things easier)

 

and a dutch oven

 

Recipe-Honey Pork Chops

  Copied and pasted from a friend's facebook.  Don't know where her original recipe came from.

 4 servings (serving size: 1 pork chop and 1 tablespoon glaze)

Ingredients: (I've been doubling everything but the meat, lately)

¼ cup honey
 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
 ½  teaspoon ground ginger
 ¼  teaspoon ground cinnamon
 1/8  teaspoon ground cloves
 Cooking spray
4-(4-ounce) boneless center-cut loin pork chops (about ½ inch thick)
 ½ teaspoon salt
 ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

-Preparation:Combine first 5 ingredients in a bowl.
-Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper; cook 2 minutes on each side or until browned.(This is what I do different from the recipe.  After the chops are browned, I remove them from the pan, add sliced onions and saute them till they are really soft, then continue with the rest of the recipe)   Reduce heat to medium-low; add honey mixture. Cook 10 minutes or until done, turning pork once.

Menu-September 22

Honey Pork Chops/stuffing/baby carrots (from a friend's FB page.  Follow the jump to her recipe)
Chicken Enchilladas/Spanish Rice and red beans (Jimmy's recipe, will post when I find it-remind me if you want it)
Home made tomato sauce/noodles/garlic toast/zucchini (I'll shred some zucchini and hide it in the sauce)
Buffalo Chicken Fingers/onion rings/corn (using Anchor Bar medium sauce) (Jimmy will make a coating and fry them)
Chicken Parm/noodles
Home made pizza dough/pepperoni and hot sausage (I'm not making the pizza from this recipe.  Just the dough)
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Breakfast menu:
sausage, egg and cheese cups
oatmeal breakfast bars (cookies for Sonyea's sake)
Dr Seuss' Pink Yink Ink Drink

Review-Ratatouille

Tonight's dinner was Ratatouille.  I made a bunch of changes though.  I forgot the mustard.  Oops.  It wasn't "soupy" enough for me so I added a beef cube with 4 cups of water.  I didn't want it too "beefy" tasting.  I needed to use or throw out a pound of hamburger so I browned that up and tossed it into the pot. 

I used the entire eggplant because I didn't want to throw half of it out.  I used 2 zucchini because I had to use it or throw it out.  I used a can of petite diced tomatoes because I remember the last time I followed the recipe there wasn't enough for my liking.  When I cooked the zucchini I put in 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar because I had it.  Didn't really add anything to the recipe that I noticed though.

I think this turned out to be more like veggie soup.  Sonyea ate half a bowl without too much trouble and Zia didn't touch it.  (I wonder if it's teeth again? She hardly touched her lunch.)

There's a million and 2 recipes on the web for ratatouille.  Go find one that works for you and your family and try it.  I picked this one because it's so super easy.  You can't taste the difference between the zucchini and the eggplant.  I will make this again. 

Review-Double Chocolate Mint Brownies

I found these by accident and finally got to make them today.   I had Sonyea help me.  She's so good at cracking the eggs into a bowl so I can fish out the shells.  I got smart by having her do them into a different bowl after trying to fish shells out of a white cake mix once.  Of course, our favorite part about baking is licking the spoons and the bowls.  You should have seen the chocolate mustache and beard she had. 

After our evening out we finally got around to making the frosting so we could eat it.  I don't know what I did wrong but I mixed the ingredients together for the mint layer and it was not a frosting at all, it was still powdery.  I added about a tablespoon of water and mixed.  It was better, then I added a tablespoon or so of milk and it was perfect.  Oh and I accidentally used a full teaspoon of mint extract instead of 1/2.  Jimmy and I and Zia really really really liked it.  Sonyea didn't much care for the frosting though.  OH and I used a ton of food coloring instead of 3-4 drops.  I like my colors to be vibrant and out there! 

Layered them out and poured on the milk chocolate chips (I didn't buy the minis though) and shared some with the girls.   

Review-Lemon Pepper chicken

So it turns out the Lemon Pepper chicken seasoning I had was old and clumpy and I didn't want to use it.  So I made my own.   Cut the chicken up into large chunks and marinaded it in some olive oil (just poured some on), lemon juice from the bottle and sprinkled pepper onto it.  I was afraid it was going to be too much lemon juice and too much pepper.  Jimmy cooked it all up and the girls scarfed it down, ate every last piece.  I thought it was kinda bland.  Tried my hand at some home made dinner rolls and they were kinda bland and heavy so I'm going to try a different recipe.  Pioneer Woman's this time.  Also added some corn and mac-n-cheese.  This dinner was a huge hit with the girls probably because it was simple and not too different.   Here's where I got the idea for this dinner.

Review-Slow Cooker Applesauce Chicken

All I have to say is Oh So Easy and Oh So YummY!!!!!  I really really loved this!!  I wish I had made more.  I want more.  The only problem with this recipe is that it's like eating Chinese Food.  You are hungry an hour later.  Zia ate a little bit of rice, Sonyea tasted two bites and spit them out.  Jimmy said "it's alright."  I loved it.  I hate applesauce!!  I hate the texture alone but when you added it to this oh, yummo!

When I made the rice, I used 1.5 cups applejuice and 0.5 cup water.  Gave the white rice a nice flavor.  I did not make it with squash, I opened a can of baby carrots and stuck it in the crockpot because Sonyea says she loves carrots.  She didn't touch them.  I don't know what to do with this kid lately. 

Review-Buffalo Chicken Burgers

Here's the recipe I used.   The taste was awesome.  I used Anchor Bar Medium sauce (yea, THE Anchor Bar from Buffalo, New York.  They sell it at Wegmans near the hot sauces/BBQ sauces.)  Oh and I didn't have any parm cheese so I didn't add that.  They fell apart on the grill.  The flavor was awesome!  You have to buy the Bleu Cheese from the produce section.  There's no other bleu cheese out there good enough unless you get it from the restaurants. 

I don't think Zia touched it.  She only ate the bleu.  (insert rolling eyes here!)  Sonyea did take a bite, chewed it and then spit it out.  I don't think it was spicy at all, they've both eaten much spicier and loved it.  No idea what the problem was here.  Next time I'll make them bigger and leave some plain for them. 

I made roasted sweet/white potatoes (thanks again Heather).  Drizzled them with EVOO, salt, pepper, garlic salt and garlic powder.  Roasted in the oven for about 30 minutes uncovered.  I slice them super thin so it doesn't take nearly as long to cook.  And I added a can of peas on the side.  I'm stuffed.

Review-Pineapple Chicken Chow Mein

The original recipe I intended to make is still in my library but I made this last night because I had the ingredients on hand.  I left out the sprouts because I've heard they are usually full of salmonella and I don't want to give that to my kids.  I also didn't have chicken bouillon so I used beef.  When I cooked the chicken, I boiled it so I'd have some broth.  I added that instead of plain water and put the rest in the freezer for another time.  I didn't have cornstarch so I just used flour.  Same difference really, right?  Is soya sauce the same as soy sauce?  I used Soy.  I also cut up some broccoli and youcouldn't even tell it was in there. 

I LOVED IT, had a huge helping for dinner and seconds.  Had a huge helping for lunch today and there's still more for tomorrow.  YUM!!  I put on crunchy noodles and it was even better. 

Sonyea didn't touch it, she seems to be boycotting any pasta that doesn't have red sauce on it.  Zia tried it, had a few bites and that seems to be it.  Not sure why. 

housekeeping

I added a search box on top. 

What else do you think I need to add to make life easier for everyone? 

Menu-September 9th

Slow cooker applesauce chicken
Lemon Pepper chicken (grilled)
Cajun chicken pasta
chicken chow mein/pineapple casserole
Buffalo Chicken burgers
Ratatouille (I LOVE THIS)
Grilled Polish sausage and peppers
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do you really need me to post the grocery list?? 

Review-Velveeta Egg and Veggie Bake

This was soooooo good.  I followed the directions but added some hamburger.  What can I say, we are meat eaters around here.  I will make this again and will probably use either breakfast sausage or ham and add more cheese.  With the addition of the meat it drowned out the cheese a little.  Zia scarfed it down, I loved it, Jimmy took left overs and Sonyea ate a few bites.  I think the broccoli turned her off.  I'll do it again but chop the broccoli smaller so she can't identify it.  Really, try it.  It was good.  I read through the reviews on the original website and many said they had to cook it longer, I did not.  Even with the addition of the meat.  40 minutes was all it took

Review-poor mama's lasagna

There's no link for this one.  I just made it up.  Went with things that could empty out our cupboards (even more than they already are) and we had everything needed for this.

Thawed out the pasta sauce and hamburger.  Browned meat and added sauce.  Grated a zucchini and let sit for awhile.  Meanwhile, cooked lasagna noodles according to box.  Layered it all in a 9x13 pan and baked for 15 minutes at 400 degrees. 

The girls scarfed it up, pasta is always a hit here.  Jimmy said it was good but he missed the ricotta cheese.  Maybe next time.  =) 

Review-Huevos Rancheros

Muh, dinner was ok.  I made "home fries" with cumin, paprika, garlic and celery salt.  They were mushy.  The Huevos Rancheros was ok.  It was missing something.  I followed the directions and put it on toast.  I think I prefer my scrambled eggs on the side, my toast buttered or jellied and my home fries to be made by either a little hole in the wall diner or Jimmy. 

Zia ate it up, Sonyea ate a few bites but she had already eaten a bunch of times today.  I will not be doing this dinner again.

Review-Crisp/Creamy Baked Chicken

We all enjoyed dinner together tonight.  I got out of work early and it was a joy to sit around the table with everyone again. It's been too long.  Jimmy made the Crisp and Creamy baked chicken and it was ok.  I bought cream of chicken soup instead of celery.  A few reviews said it wasn't very good with the cream of celery like the recipe called for.  I gobbled it right up but I think the "soup"  (read gravy) was missing something.  Needed some spicy pepper or I don't know what...  The instant brown rice was missing something as well.  Just needed to give it a kick of some kind.  So you have been warned.  HA  If you decide to try this, it was good, don't get me wrong, make sure you do something to jazz it up a bit. 

Zia ate the chicken, even dipped it in the sauce a few times.  Sonyea had to be convinced to eat the chicken and the corn and was bribed with Humdinger!  Neither of them touched the rice.  Left overs will be eaten by me for lunch tomorrow.

Review-Cheesy Ziti

I worked again tonight so Jimmy and the girls were on their own.  He chose the cheesy ziti (recipe found here).  He added some spicy Italian sausage and O-M-G!!  YUMMY!!!!  When I asked him what he thought about it his reply "It was f&%$in' awesome"  And yes, I have to agree.  I loved it!!!  However, we've found that Sonyea refuses all pasta unless it's a red sauce and for whatever reason, Zia didn't eat either.  So for me and Jimmy, YUMMO and we have lunch set for tomorrow.  Zia only ate the peas that we had with it.  It's so very easy to make and you should try it.  I bet it would be really good with chicken or pork too!  Hell, even hamburger would be good but you would miss out if you don't use the spicy sausage!!!

Review-Chicken Nachos

So Julie asked for reviews.  I can do reviews.  Jimmy made the chicken nachos (link found here)tonight.  So yummy.  Just sayin'.  As I sit here typing away about it, I remembered I forgot to put the jalapenos on it.  Poop!  We don't like olives in this house but you can surely add them to it.  I like these better with the fixin's in a bowl and then I scoop it all out with the chips.  I hate when my chips get mushy or when you get to the bottom and there's no fixin's left.  I think next time we make these I'll make a salad type out of it.  Add in some shredded lettuce, won't forget my jalapenos this time and maybe more tomatoes.  The Rotel was good but seems like it needed more tomatoes.

When you make this, go wild.  Be creative.

August 31, 2010

Cheesy Ziti with spicy sausage
Chicken nachos
Poor momma's lasagna.  (using lasagna noodles from the cupboard, sauce and hamburger)
Huevos Rancheros and homefries. 
Lemon Pepper Chicken
Baked potatoes topped with chili
Slow Cooker Applesauce chicken
Crisp and Creamy baked chicken
Velveeta egg and veggie bake
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every dinner item will include a veggie of some sort and/or rice/pasta depending on the dinner.
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here's my grocery list for the next 9 days
5 pound bag potatoes                                              can black beans
2 large zucchini                                                        can kidney beans
small tub mushrooms                                                applesauce
small bunch broccoli                                                 cream of chicken soup
velveeta                                                                    miracle whip
2 blocks cheddar cheese                                          can petite diced tomatoes
unsalted butter                                                         can Rotel
sour cream                                                              shake-n-bake
ready to bake pie crust                                            apple cider vinegar
OJ                                                                          cinnamon
whole milk                                                              cereal
ff milk                                                                      breakfast bars
pop
tortilla chips
salsa
3 cans corn
3 cans peas