Meal Planning with Connie

Smashed Potatoes Smashed Potatoes These potatoes are very similar to the ones served at J. Alexander’s restaurants, which are absolutely delicious! J. Alexander's Smashed Potatoes are probably my favorite restaurant potatoes! Play around with the ingredients until you find the combination your family likes best! I usually go light on the butter and milk, allowing the potato flavor to come through and the texture to be a bit on the dry side, for mashed potatoes. This makes them taste more like J. Alexander’s potatoes - to me. Russet Potatoes, 1 large potato per person Cube unpeeled potatoes into 1 - 1 ½ inch pieces. Boil potatoes until tender: drain. Smash with a hand-held potato “smasher,” leaving nice ¼ -inch pieces in the potatoes. Gently add a combination of these ingredients to taste: salt white pepper freshly chopped or dried parsley grated Parmesan cheese butter half and half and/or milk

Our Favorite Meatloaf Our Favorite Meatloaf I think all Southern cooks have their favorite meatloaf recipe, usually their mom's or grandmother's. This is our favorite. It is just one I've tweaked over the past 20-plus years. It fairly fills a 9x13-inch baking dish. I sometimes cook half of the mixture in an 8x8-inch baking dish and freeze the other half. I really like cooking the individual meatloaves. I usually cook four of the mini loaves and freeze the four. One of my favorite meals is this meatloaf served with Smashed Potatoes , green beans and homemade biscuits. 2 pounds ground beef 1  teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 2 eggs, lightly beaten 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes with onions and pepper, undrained 1 cup quick-cooking oats Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Mix all meatloaf ingredients well. Shape into a loaf and place in prepared baking dish. Topping: 1 cup ketchup 4 tablespoons br...

 Peanut Buttery Brownies Peanut Buttery Brownies 1 box family-size (9x13) brownies, prepared according to package directions. Peanut Butter Icing (recipe below) desired amount of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, chopped Peanut Butter Icing: 1 cup creamy peanut butter (do not use old-fashioned or freshly ground) 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature 1 cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 3 - 4 tablespoons milk Combine peanut butter and butter in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat until smooth. Add powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Beat until smooth. Spread frosting evenly over brownies in pan. Sprinkle peanut butter cups over frosting, gently pressing the candy into the icing. Cut into squares.

Herbed Butter Herbed Butter  This is a great little spread, with many uses. Recipe doubles easily ! ½ stick butter, softened 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon dried parsley Combine butter and seasonings. Spoon into a small bowl or ramekin. Spread on French bread and toast. Brush on tops of biscuits. Spread on hot corn-on-the-cob. Brush over pizza dough before adding toppings.

 Chicken Ranch Pizza Braid Chicken Ranch Pizza Braid This is recipe that I created for my kids. It's a favorite! I make Hidden Valley Ranch dressing and use chicken from my freezer, which I’ve pre-cooked and frozen. If time is short , you could use canned chicken, bottled dressing, pre-cooked bacon and  just make a regular pizza by spreading the ingredients over the entire pizza dough in the given order and eliminating the braiding. 1 can Pillsbury refrigerated pizza dough 2 cups chopped chicken 1 cup ranch salad dressing 4 - 6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled 1 - 1 ½ cups shredded pizza blend cheese pizza sauce and/or additional ranch dressing Olive oil, Herbed Butter, or Garlic Butter for brush dough (optional) Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. Unroll dough and shape into a rectangle. Combine chicken and ranch dressing. Spread chicken mixture down middle of dough. Sprinkle with bacon. Sprinkle with cheese. Using a sharp...

Romans 8:31 If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Romans 8:38-39 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Best wishes for a wonderful week!! Monday Chicken Ranch Pizza Braid Tuesday Our Favorite Meatloaf . Wednesday Breakfast For Supper Thursday Shrimp Scampi Stuffed Potatoes 4 large baking potatoes olive oil kosher salt Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash and dry potatoes. Prick potatoes on each side with a fork. Rub potatoes with olive oil; sprinkle with kosher salt. Place potatoes directly on oven rack with a  foil covered pan on a lower rack to catch any drips. Bake potatoes...

  Bacon Quiche Tarts Bacon Quiche Tarts My sweet friend, Donna, treated our Sunday school class to these yummy treats this morning! They were delicious and received lots of compliments!  Thank you, Donna!! 5 slices bacon 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened 2 tablespoons milk 2 eggs 1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese 2 tablespoons chopped green onion 1 (10 ounce) can refrigerated flaky biscuit dough Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease 10 muffin cups. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until crisp and evenly brown. Drain, crumble, and set aside. Place the cream cheese, milk, and eggs in a medium bowl, and beat until smooth with an electric mixer set on Low. Stir in Swiss cheese and green onion, and set aside. Separate dough into 10 biscuits. Press into the bottom and sides of each muffin cup, forming 1/4 inch rims. Sprinkle half of the bacon into the bottoms of the dough-lined muffin cups. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the crea...