September Challenge Over, onto October!

Well, I would have to say that my September Challenge can be considered a success!

We ate out 5 times throughout the month, which is way better than our usual 8-10 times!

I enjoyed it so much, that I wanted to do another challenge for October, I have been thinking of what to do for the last few days, and decided that my new October Challenge will be Crock Pot meals for 5 our of 7 days!

We will be having a Date night each Saturday as well.

If you joined in on the September Challenge, let me know how you did!

Day 30 -Copycat Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli Soup

This is the last day of my September Challenge, we are having Copycat Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli Soup  Here is the link for the recipe.

Day 29 -Date night!

Tonight we had soup and bread from Panera Bread. So yummy!! :)

Day 28- Italian Chicken Bake

Italian chicken bake, so easy, and yummy!

2 chicken Breast sliced
1 can Green beans
1 can New Potatoes
1 cube melted butter
1 packet of Italian Dressing Seasoning mix

Place Chicken Breast in middle of casserole dish, put potatoes, and green beans on each side of the chicken.  Sprinkle the dressing mix over the dish, cover with the melted butter.

Cover and Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour

Day 27- Stew over mashed potatoes

Trevor loves Stew, and I am always trying to find different ways to prepare it.  This was very good.

Stew Meat (Browned in frying pan)
1 cup carrots
1 cup celery
1/2 cup onion
1 cup peas (frozen or canned)
1 can beef broth
1/2 tbsp Parsley
1/2 tbsp Thyme
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup water

Put all ingredients except for peas in the crock pot on high for 4-5 hours.  Add peas 15 minutes before serving.
Prepare Mashed Potatoes (prepare either instant, or regular)

Day 26 -Soup

Tonight we are having canned soup.  My poor hubby isn't feeling all that good, and he asked if we could have a simple dinner.  (I also lost my recipe for the Bean Soup I had planned for tonight).

Day 25- BBQ Pulled Pork

This was really good. I used Pork Chops. I put them in the crock pot with BBQ sauce for 4 hours on low. Then, I pulled them out and shredded the pork and put it back in for an hour. I served with Mashed Potatoes, green beans, and toast.

Day 24- Taco Salad

Taco salad is so simple, yet do good! You can't go wrong. Pile on your favorite veggies, sour cream, meat, and black beans with some tortilla and you have an amazing dinner!! :)

Menu for Last week of September

Well, we have come up to our last week of September. I didn't do as well as I wanted to as far as cooking every meal, however, we did cut out a lot of eating out, so that makes it a success.  I am going to be working on a few ideas for an October Challenge, I'm not exactly sure what I want to do with that yet, I am thinking that maybe it will be something to do with my Crock pot, like every meal, or 5 meals a week out of it...not exactly sure yet. :) 

Here is the Menu for the coming week.

24, Mon)  Taco Salad
25, Tue)   BBQ Pulled Pork
26, Wed)  Bean Soup
27, Thur)  Stew & Mashed Potatoes
28, Fri)     Italian Chicken Bake
29, Sat)    Date night with Husband
30, Sun)   Olive Garden Pasta Soup  

Day 23 - Birthday dinner

Last night, Trevor and I went out to a wonderful dinner at a wonderful restauraunt to celebrate my birthday.  They treated us like royalty, and even complimented us with a slice of chocolate cake with a candle!  I must say, it was a wonderful night.

Day 22 chicken fried chicken

One of Trevor's favorite meals! :)

Day 20- Crock Pot Chicken

This was called Forgotten Chicken on the recipe I started, but I changed it up a little, so I changed the name. :)

Ingredients:

1 can Corn (drained)
1 can Kidney beans (drained)
1 can Black beans (drained)
1 can Diced tomatoes
1 can Chicken broth
2 cups Water
2 tablespoons flour
1 packet Taco Seasoning
2-3 Chicken Breasts

Open cans and place in crock pot.  Pour taco seasoning into the mixture, and blend.  Add chicken Broth and water, and mix.  Place Chicken broth on top of the mixture, making sure they are covered by the liquid.  Cook on high for 4-6 hours.  Take chicken out and shred and mix back into the mix.

Serve with favorite toppings, sour cream, shredded cheese, and tortilla chips.

Day 19- Cheese and Potato Casserole

Cheese and Potato Casserole

 

 

3 cups potatoes, peeled, boiled and cut into cubes when cool, approx. 1 lb

4 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons flour

2 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper  

2 cups shredded cheese

1 kielbasa sausage

1/8 teaspoon paprika

 

Cut skinless smoked sausage in half, lengthwise, and then chop into 1/2 inch "half moon" cuts. Cook in a frying pan for about 15 minutes, turning frequently to SLIGHTLY brown.

Meanwhile, put cooked & diced potatoes in 2 quart casserole. Add cooked meat and give it a gentle toss.

Mix all remaining ingredients (except for 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese & the paprika) in a saucepan over medium heat until warm, melted and smooth. (Use a whisk and stir constantly.).

Pour white/cheese sauce over potatoes and meat. Sprinkle shredded sharp cheddar cheese on top, and then sprinkle paprika evenly over the top.

Bake in preheated 350°F oven for 35-45 minutes (watch, until golden brown on top).

 

 





Week 3 Menu

Hey all, sorry that I didn't get the menu up on Saturday, I had a crazy weekend, Friday was a disaster with our cable that took all afternoon to fix, so we ended up ordering Pizza, and Saturday Trevor had to work, so my day was crazy.  Sunday night I had planned on making Hawaiian Chicken, but the chicken I had set out seemed to smell funny, so I didn't want to chance it, so again we went out...(UGH) 

Anyways, so here is the Menu for this week, I am still including what we had on Monday and Today.

Monday 17)          Hawaiian Chicken
Tuesday 18)         Spaghetti & Meatballs
Wednesday 19)     Forgotten Chicken
Thursday 20)        Cheese &Potato Casserole
Friday 21)             Italian Crock Pot Chicken
Saturday 22)         Pot Roast
Sunday 23)           Pasta Soup

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week.

Day 18 -Spaghetti and Meat Balls

This was a very simple dinner, with regular Spaghetti noodles, and Prego Roasted Garlic Sauce, Along with the left over Meatballs from last week.  I topped it with shredded cheese.  Very tasty. 

Day 17 - Hawiian Chicken

Hawaiian chicken was so easy to make, and very yummy.  I put 2 chicken breast into the crock pot with 1 can Pineapple chunks with juice and 1 bottle of Hawaiian BBQ Marinade.  I let it cook for 5 hours, and then added Broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots.  I topped it with Swiss cheese and let it melt.  Served over rice.

Day 15 -Corn Chowder

Corn chowder is an amazing fall dinner that I love to make, because it is so easy to do. 

10 oz Frozen corn
1 large onion, diced
1 1/2 lbs baby red potatoes, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
6 oz bacon, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
4-5 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
6 cups chicken stock
2 cups milk
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons minced parsley
2 teaspoons minced thyme
1 heaping tablespoon sugar
salt and pepper to taste

Chop the bacon into smaller pieces.  In a large stock pot or dutch oven,  cook bacon until most of the fat has rendered off and it is starting to get crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Remove the bacon and set aside. Reduce heat to low and add the onions and butter. Cover and cook until onions have softened, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes.

Add the garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes. Make a roux by sprinkling the flour over the onions and whisk for a minute or two until the flour has heated and is combined with the butter and onions. Slowly whisk in the stock and bring to a simmer.

Add the potatoes, seasonings, whole milk, and 1/2 the cooked bacon(saving some for topping). Bring back to a simmer and cook over low heat for about 15-20 minutes, until potatoes are nice and tender. Add the corn and heavy cream, bring to a simmer again, and cook until corn kernels are tender, about 5-10 minutes. Serve topped with the chopped bacon and even some grated cheese.

Day 13 - Baked Meat Balls

Incredible Baked Meatballs

 

1lb hamburger, 2 eggs, beaten with 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup grated Parmesan , 1 cup panko or bread crumbs, 1 small onion, minced, 2 cloves garlic, minced, 1/2 teaspoon oregano, 1 teaspoon salt, freshly ground pepper to taste, 1/4 cup minced fresh basil Mix all ingredients with hands. Form into golfball sized meatballs. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Day 12 - Crock Pot Ribs

These were quite easy to do.  You can either do a rib rack, or boneless ribs.  I chose boneless ribs, because I don't like to eat meat off the bone. 

2 lbs Ribs
1 bottle BBQ sauce (You decide on Flavor)
1/2 tablespoon worchestire sauce
1 cup water

In a container with a lid put the ribs, BBQ sauce, worchestire sauce, and water.  Mix together, and place in the refrigerator overnight to marinate.  In the morning, put contents into the crock pot.  Cook on Low for about 8 hours.

Choose your sides.  We had Green Beans, Fried Okra, Coleslaw, and French Bread.  If you try this, let me know what you think!

Day 11 -Beef stew

Tonight we had beef stew. So amazing, and easy!  Here is the recipe.

Beef Stew:
Chop (1) Onion and Chop
(2) Cloves of Garlic
1lb stew meat
(2) whole carrots chopped
(2) celery stalks chopped
(3) Red Potatoes chopped
(1) can diced tomatoes 
(1) cup frozen green beans
(1/2)TBSP Worcestershire
(1/2) cup Beef Broth
(1) TBSP Parsley
(1) tsp Basil
1/2 tsp Thyme
(1/2) tsp salt
(1/2) tsp pepper
(1) TBSP Sugar
*Brown meat with garlic and onion in skillet
*Place in Crockpot with 1.5 cups of water and 15 oz Beef Broth. Cook on LOW 8 Hours.

Day 10 - Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Okay, so this was a bit of a dud....too much salt...I followed the directions, but I guess that's the way it goes.
The following recipe is how I should have done it:
2-3 chicken breasts cubed and cooked with pepper, and a dash of garlic powder.
4 slices Swiss cheese
2 cups cubed ham
2 cups cooked rice
1 can cream of chicken
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream
2 cups crushed crackers
In 8x8 pan spread rice, next layer is te chicken, next Swiss cheese, next ham, next mix cream of chicken with milk and sour cream place over the ham, top with crackers.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes

Week 2 Grocery Shopping

I went grocery shopping today, and did very well, I stuck to my list, and stayed at budget $75.98...I know it is .98 over budget, but, I haven't been using a budget to grocery shop for the past few months, so this was actually a great start!  I think I forgot about the difference between tax in Idaho, and Texas! LOL.

I am also doing a correction to my Menu for the week.  While putting groceries away, I noticed that I still had ham that needs to be used, and some Swiss cheese as well, so I will be making the Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole tonight, and the Crock Pot ribs on Wednesday!  I will make the correction on my Menu post.

I hope you are all having a wonderful Monday.

Day 9 - Mini chicken pot pies

Today we had a very easy meal. Mini pot pies, which actually are corn muffins with meat and veggies inside. I was nervous that they might be gooey inside, however they were really good. The only thing we should have done was to top them with chicken gravy. We had sweet potatoes, but I forgot to take a picture of them.



All you need is:
1 package corn muffin mix (small bag or box will do depending on how many muffins you want)
2-3 breast of chicken
8 oz frozen broccoli
8 oz frozen corn
(you can use any type of veggies you think would be tasty)
1/2 cup shredded cheese
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 Tspn Italian seasoning
1 clove garlic minced
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook chicken with garlic in skillet, add broth, broccoli, corn, and seasoning. Summer for 10 minutes, strain out broth (keep for topping/dip or gravy, add cheese to chicken mix. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix muffin mix as directed on package. Grease muffin pan, put a Tspn of muffin mix into each muffin add 1/4 cup of chicken filling. Cover each muffin with muffin mix. Cook for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Week two of September Challenge! - Menu Days 10-16

Hey everyone!  I had a wonderful time cooking last week, we had some amazing food!  So, here we are on week 2.  I hope you are doing this challenge with me, and having as much fun as I am.

 

September 10-16

 

 

Monday 10th-            Crock Pot Ribs

Tuesday 11th-           Beef Stew

Wednesday 12th-       Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Thursday 13th-          Baked Meatballs

Friday 14th-              Cheese and Potato Casserole

Saturday 15-             Hawaiian Chicken

Sunday 16-               Corn and Potato Soup

 

 

I am also doing a different challenge to myself this week.  I want to see if I can do this for under $75.00....We will see how close I get to it.

Day 8 - Cruch wraps

Hey guys, We had Crunch wraps tonight, they were amazing! Here is the link for the recipe.  I found it off Pinterest.  Very good!

Next weeks recipe list will be posted tomorrow, I have been under the weather for the last 2 days, and haven't felt much like looking at food ideas.

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend.

Day 7 - A night off...

Hey guys, so, my hubby decided I needed a night off from cooking, so we are going to have Domino's, and watch us some Star Wars! Happy Friday! :)

Day 6 - chicken and dumplings

This was so easy, and amazing!!

Day 5 - Orange chicken with asparagus

Forgot to Take a picture of this, but it was amazing! :)

Here is the link for the recipe. 

September 4 - Cream Cheese Spaghetti Casserole

This was amazing!

September 3 - Southwest Chicken Egg Rolls and Tostadas

Hey guys! So, day 3 has been amazing!  I had planned on doing Southwest egg rolls and Ham and Swiss Crescents, however, the egg roll recipe was huge, for the 2 of us it would have been way too much food.  I put the left over filling on a corn tortilla shell and topped with cheese and tomatoes.  Trevor dipped his Egg rolls in Salsa, and I did Peppercorn Ranch.  AMAZING!! :)

Recipe: Southwest Egg rolls-
3Cups             Chicken breast
8oz                Frozen Corn
1can              Black Beans
1/2                Red Bell Pepper Diced
1/2Cup           Green onion diced
1/2tsp            Cumin
1/2tsp            Parsley
1/2tsp            Pepper
1/2tsp            Garlic
4-6                  Flour Tortillas
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-Mix all ingredients together in a skillet.  Cook 5 minutes.  Set out tortilla shells put a few spoonfuls into the shell and roll up like a burrito.  To close you can use toothpicks to hold shut.
-Place on a cookie sheet.  Cook 5 minutes, flip over, and cook additional 5 minutes or until golden brown.


Enjoy! :)

September 2 - Fresh Atlantic Tilapia and Salmon

Today was an amazing day with my husband.  We found a great price on Salmon, and Tilapia (a cheaper version of Halibut.)

Preheat oven to 300 Degrees.  Both Tilapia and Salmon were prepared the same way.  Six slices of Lemon put on a piece of aluminum foil (Salmon was placed skin side down) top with Garlic Powder, Salt, and Pepper along with desired amount of butter.  Fold the foil covering the meat.  Place on a cookie sheet.  Cook for 25-35 minutes depending on how big the slices are.

Sides are pretty easy to decide on for these.  We made Asparagus, and Mashed Red Potatoes.  We really enjoyed this meal, and I am so excited to continue on our challenge.

September 1 -Lasagna rollups

Well, day 1 of the challenge was a success! We had these Lasagna rollups here is a link for the recipe: http://ivillage.com/chicken-and-cheese-lasagna-roll-ups/3-r-60638

It is amazing! :)

Day 1 of September Challenge

Alright everyone! It is the first day of September, which means it is Day 1 of our September Challenge!! I hope you are as excited as I am! :)  I went grocery shopping this morning, and go so many goodies!! I can't wait to make dinner! 

Every Saturday I will post a Menu of the week to come.  I am including the first 2 days of September on this post, following posts will be for Monday-Sunday.

Day 1-9 Menu

1)Saturday          Lasagna Roll ups with Corn on the cob
2)Sunday            Halibut and Salmon with Asparagus
3)Monday           Southwest Egg rolls and Ham and Cheese Crescent melts
4)Tuesday          Orange Chicken with Asparagus
5)Wednesday      Baked Cream Cheese Spaghetti Casserole
6)Thursday         Chicken and Dumplings
7)Friday              Cruchwrap Supreme
8)Saturday          Crock pot Mexican Chicken
9)Sunday            Mini Chicken Pot Pies


I hope everyone has a safe, happy, and relaxing Labor Day weekend.