Meal Planning with Connie

We all really, really liked the fajitas! They're a keeper! I bought the meat already cut for fajitas at Piggly Wiggly. I marinated ours from about lunch time to around 6pm. The meat was very tender, and we think the flavoring from the marinade is fantastic. This is a great meal for putting together the night before. The longer the meat is marinated, the better. Once you have your meat and veggies prepared, the rest of the meal comes together really quickly. I did use only green peppers. The red peppers do add a nice color, but one red pepper was around $2.50. I got two green peppers, which were really still in good condition, but were reduced for quick sale, for $0.69 for both peppers. I tried a little something different for our salad dressing. I made a dressing from one of the Hidden Valley dry mix packets for dip. It got a thumbs up from everyone. A bottle of Hidden Valley Fiesta Ranch Dressing was $3.68. I bought the dry packet for only $1.68 and added my own mayo an...

It's Thursday!! Meal planning day!! I've posted our menu plan for next week below. I hope it will inspire a meal or two for your table! I've also added the new cooking quotes and kitchen, baking and recycling tips of the week in the left sidebar. In case you haven't noticed, I move all the previous quotes and tips further down the sidebar into their respective categories, so they are all still viewable. Don't forget to tidy your fridge and sort your coupon binder before putting together your meal plan for the week! Please don't forget to register for our July Giveaways. Details and photos are in the sidebar, as well. Many Blessing and Happy Cookin' ~ Connie Christ is the head of this House, The unseen host at every meal, The silent listener to every conversation. A plaque with this inscription hung above my childhood kitchen table for years. Monday - Creamy Italian Chicken, Easy Ranch Caesar and Garlic Bread Creamy Italian Chicken This recipe was ins...

Chicken-N-Skillet, Fresh Crowder Peas, Corn Salad, and Corn Bread Muffins We really enjoyed our supper from tonight's meal plan! The kids especially enjoyed the Corn Bread Muffins. It could have been partly because I substituted a stick of melted butter for the 1/2 cup of oil called for in the muffins. (I'm doing my part for the dairy farmers, Donna!) We did have an addition to our meal plan - crowder peas! What a treat!! We stopped by Judy's for a while yesterday, and she was "puttin' up peas." She gave us a lovely bag of her crowders that she had ready for the freezer. If you've never picked peas, shelled them, looked them, wash them, blanched them, cooled them, and put them into a freezer bag, you probably don't understand the generosity of her gift! So many memories flooded me when Judy talked of having her peas "spread-out" in her music room. When your peas are "startin' to come in," there's not just a few of t...

Pizza Casserole Sour Cream Rolls We loved both the Pizza Casserole and Sour Cream Rolls! The Pizza Casserole was the perfect size for the four of us. Be sure to double the recipe if you have a larger family, or you want to have left-overs. The Sour Cream Rolls are really good! I actually made them last night for our supper with George and Judy. It makes about two dozen rolls. You can half the recipe if you don't want this many. They re-heated really well. Pizza Casserole 6 oz. fettuccine, broken 1 (3 ½ ounce package) sliced pepperoni, cut in half 1 (15 ½ oz.) jar pizza sauce 2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese 1 (4 oz.) can sliced mushrooms, drained 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese 1(2 ¼ oz.) can sliced black olives, drained Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta and return to pan. Add pepperoni, pizza sauce, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, and olives to noodles. Pour into a baking dish spray...

Since July is prime homemade ice cream making time, I thought I'd share ice cream recipes as our Desserts of the Week this month. Larry made this last night to eat with the Easy Fresh Strawberry Cobbler. It is really good! He is a great ice cream maker!! Judy said the recipe reminded her of Larry's mother's homemade vanilla ice cream. Larry's mom and Judy worked together for a while, and both thought the world of each other! Larry's Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream Larry's Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream 2 cups sugar 2 cans Eagle Brand Milk 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 pint whipping cream whole milk (not quite a full gallon) This recipe is for a 6-quart freezer! Pour sugar into a large mixing bowl. Add enough milk to make the sugar dissolve when whisked together with the milk. Slowly add both cans of Eagle Brand Milk as you whisk. Add vanilla; whisk well. Add whipping cream; whisk well. Pour mixture into ice cream freezer. Add enough whole milk to rea...

Proverbs 18:24b There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. ~ NIV A true friend sticks by you like family. ~ The Message Yesterday was just a great summer day! Because he was off from work, Larry and I got to do two of our favorite activities together: walk and cook. We started our day with a nice long walk, and checked in with Dude for a few minutes. When we got home, Larry did some yard work, and the kids and I cleaned the house. After lunch, Larry and I went to the grocery store and got the ingredients we needed to prepare supper. George and Judy were coming to eat with us! Y’all know, we all have family that God gave us by virtue of our sharing a common set of genes. Then there’s family that God gives us that are just a gift. While there’s no intertwining of our genetics, there is a very strong connection of spirit. George and Judy are family of the latter nature and have been one of God's greatest blessing in our lives! Some of our favorite years w...

Cheesy Sausage Biscuit Muffins I think we have found a new Sunday School favorite! My kids have added this to their favs list, too! This recipe was inspired by one in the BMH Relay for Life Fundraiser Cookbook. It was submitted by Gladys M. Gladys and her husband, Danny, are some of the sweetest people you'll ever meet. Gladys is a wonderful cook, too!! The BMH Relay for Life Fundraiser Cookbook was so successful, it sold-out and was reprinted, maybe more than once. My understanding is that there are none left. Be sure to register for the copy we're going away this month!! It's a great cookbook!! Cheesy Sausage Biscuit Muffins 2 (10-count) cans flaky refrigerted biscuits 1 lb. sausage, browned and drained 1 (8-oz.) jar Cheez Whiz 2 tablespoons melted butter Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 20 muffin cups with cooking spray. Combine browned sausage with Cheez Whiz. Seperate first can of biscuits, pressing on half of a biscuit into each of the 20 mu...