The Joy of Love...

Dear Blog,

I have been seriously neglecting you and myself. I blog for one reason and one reason only…to capture all the little moments in my life that I don’t want to take for granted. Therefore, to get myself back in the groove of blogging and focus more on the “love” in my life…I have joined Willette’s the joy of LOVE class. With this FREE 28 day class participants will receive daily email prompts/photo assignments with some tutorial/instruction built into a daily email lesson.


I love the month of February and I look forward to capturing my life in a month of photos… don’t be surprised to see a few of my assignments here on my blog!

P.S. Blog, I have missed you and promise to do better!

Happy Cooking...

If you read my previous post you know I’m trying out new recipes this week. Luckily, my family is not too picky. I don’t include Zane’s opinion…he’s only two and his taste buds are set to love only things sweet! However, luckily he will gag a few times and continue eating...I’m one lucky mom! However, I can honestly say all my family members LOVED the last two recipes I made and ate EVERY SINGLE BITE on their plates.

Crunchy Garlic Chicken

2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, melted
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives or parsley
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon garlic powder
2 cups cornflakes cereal, crushed (1 cup)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
½ teaspoon paprika
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, melted

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Grease rectangular pan, 13 X 9 X 2 inches.

2. Mix 2 tablespoons butter, the milk, chives, salt and garlic powder. Mix cornflakes, parsley and paprika. Dip chicken into milk mixture, then coat lightly and evenly with cornflakes mixture. Place in pan. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons butter.

3. Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.

This recipe is from my Betty Crocker Complete Cookbook. I served it with Rice A Roni Long Grain Wild Rice, steamed carrots, and green onions. It was a big hit!

The next recipe and picture are from my Taste of Home Church Supper Cookbook.

This recipe is not me…I’m not a big meat eater but I knew my family would enjoy it. Geeze…the sacrifices a mom will make. Boy, was I shocked when I really enjoyed this meal. It was really something I would not normally eat and I think I needed that…it hit the spot! When I originally picked out this recipe, I did not realize the meal was completely made in the microwave. My husband will die if he reads this. He loved the meal but HATES a microwave. He will only use it as a last resort…like when I’m not home to feed him and he has to fend for himself. I’m not lying when I say this meal took me 15 minutes start to finish to make. If you made the meatballs beforehand you could have dinner ready in 10 minutes max! This meal serves 12 so I cut it in half. The sandwiches are VERY FILLING. Joey could only eat one.

Meatball Sub Sandwiches

2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup dry bread crumbs
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning
2 pounds ground beef (I used lean ground beef)
1 jar (28 ounces) spaghetti sauce
Additional Parmesan cheese, sliced onion, and green bell peppers, optional
12 sandwich rolls, split

1. In a large bowl, combine the first eight ingredients. Crumble beef over the mixture and mix well. Shape into 1 inch balls. Place in a single layer in a 2 quart microwave-safe dish.

2. Cover and microwave on high for 3-4 minutes. Turn meatballs; cook 3-4 minutes longer or until no longer pink. Drain. Add spaghetti sauce.

3. Cover and microwave on high for 2-4 minutes or until heated through. Serve on rolls.

I used wheat sandwich rolls. I split them and toasted them with butter and garlic powder. For Joey and me, I added the meatballs and topped with purple onions, green bell peppers, jalapenos, and Parmesan cheese…YUMMY! I served these sandwiches with potato chips and fruit for the kiddos. Happy Cooking!

What's For Dinner???

Do you ever feel like you’re in a food rut? Nothing sounds good to eat; you cook the same meals week after week. Well, I have felt like this lately and decided to do something about it. I pulled out all my dusty cookbooks and vowed to cook something new each night for the next seven days. I sat down and made a menu and grocery list. I tried to find recipes that had ingredients that I already had at home or that were on sale at the grocery store. Last night on facebook I posted that I was making stuffed cornbread and bacon pork chops and creamy corn and avocado salad. I had several people ask for the recipe…hence this blog post. Both of these recipes were easy and can be made in advance for an easy late night supper. When I saw the stuffed pork chop recipe it sounded so good; however, I was a little reluctant to try it because it was not a cooking technique I’m familiar with. I was presently pleased to find out how easy it was to make. This picture and recipe are from the Betty Crocker Complete Cookbook.


Corn Bread and Bacon Stuffed Pork Chops

6 pork rib or loin chops, 1 to 1 ¼ inches thick (about 4 pounds)
4 slices bacon, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 medium onion, chopped (½ cup)
1 small green bell pepper, chopped (½ cup)
1 cup corn bread stuffing crumbs
½ cup water
½ cup shredded Cheddar cheese (2 ounces)
½ teaspoon seasoned salt
½ teaspoon dried marjoram leaves
¼ teaspoon pepper

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees

2. Make a pocket in each pork chop by cutting into side of chop toward the bone.

3. Cook bacon in 12-inch skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp. Stir in onion and bell pepper. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are crisp-tender; remove from heat. Drain. Stir in stuffing crumbs and water until well mixed. Stir in cheese.

4. Sprinkle both sides of pork with seasoned salt, marjoram and pepper. Fill pockets with about 1/3 cup corn bread mixture. Cook pork in same skillet over medium heat, turning once, until brown. Place pork in ungreased rectangular pan, 13 x 9 x 2 inches. Cover tightly with aluminum foil.

5. Bake 45 minutes. Uncover and bake about 15 minutes longer or until pork is slightly pink when cut near bone.

The corn salad recipe and picture are from the Taste of Home Church Supper Cookbook.

This recipe serves 12. So, I halved it and we ate the leftovers today as a dip with tortilla chips. It was even better the next day and the avocados did not discolor.

Creamy Corn and Avocado Salad

6 cups frozen corn, thawed
3 cups chopped seeded tomatoes
1 cup cubed avocado
2/3 cup sweet red bell pepper
2/3 cup green bell pepper
Dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

1. In large bowl, combine the corn, tomatoes, avocado, peppers and onion.

2. In a small bowl, whisk the dressing ingredients.

3. Pour dressing over salad; toss to coat.

4. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes or until chilled.

Overall the new dishes were a big hit. If you don’t count the gagging sounds that came from Zane every time he got a piece of onion in his mouth. I hope this motivates you to pull out your cookbooks and try something new for dinner tonight!