PLUS: BONUS RECIPE BELOW!!!

SUNDAY: LEFTOVER PIZZA

My BFF's Bethany and Meghan came over Saturday night to celebrate Beth's birthday (the big two-eight). We had some pizza...and may or may not have made up a dance to Aaliyah's "Tell Me Your That Somebody" feat. Timbaland. So Sunday night, the husband and I just had leftovers.

HINT: Place a small cup of water in the microwave with your pizza when reheating to keep the crust from being dry and chewy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY B!! LOVE YOU SO MUCH!

MONDAY: JAMBALAYA

CLICK HERE for my previous post for Jambalaya with Conecuh sausage. I picked this recipe for Monday because I have a tennis match, and it is SO EASY that my husband can cook it himself!! So, ladies, don't be afraid to put those men to work ;)


TUESDAY: CHEESEBURGER PIE

I thought I'd get creative and make a collage of the different steps I took in making this easy and delicious recipe...you're welcome...

- 1 lb. ground beef (I like 80/20 and it's cheaper)
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 small can diced green chiles
- EITHER 1 can Rotel (which I did not have, so I made up this option...) OR 1 can chopped tomatoes, or chop up a fresh tomato yourself, and add a few dashes of cajun seasoning
- Salt & pepper
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup Bisquick
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg

Preheat oven to 400F. In a large skillet, add beef, onion, chiles, tomatoes, salt & pepper until meat is brown and veggies are softened. Drain and pour mixture into a greased pie plate. Layer cheese on top of meat mixture. In a small bowl, whisk together bisquick, milk, and egg until smooth. Pour into pie plate over other layers. Bake at 400F for approx. 25 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.
NOTE: I would have loved to add bacon as a layer on top of the cheese, but I didn't have any :(


WEDNESDAY: FIREHOUSE SUBS

We have prayer meeting on Wednesday night at church, so we're just going to grab some Firehouse with our friends, the Bly's.


THURSDAY: TACO SALAD

Who doesn't like tacos? Seriously? It seems like every time we've tried to have "taco night", we find ourselves out of shells really quickly and end up making "nachos" instead... so we finally decided to just skip the shells and go straight to the nachos. Quick. Easy. Delicious.

- 1 lb. ground beef

- 1 taco seasoning packet

- Tostitos Bite-Size Rounds

- Shredded lettuce

- Shredded cheddar cheese (or sometimes we will get fancy and buy the queso dip)

- Salsa

- Sour cream

- Jalapenos

In a large skillet, make your taco meat according to directions on the seasoning packet. Starting with the tortilla chips, layer your plate with the chips, meat, lettuce, cheese, salsa, sour cream, and jalapenos.

FRIDAY: STEAK, POTATOES, & ASPARAGUS

My husband can grill a steak...for real y'all... I had to get instructions from him because I honestly never touch the grill. My job is to handle the sides - he does the grilling (and of course the dishes! seriously, though...)

We made some delicious, large ribeyes -- the picture shown above was the smaller HALF of ONE steak. I ate the other half later ;)

- Steaks

- Meat tenderizer

- Italian dressing

- Southern Flavor original charbroil seasoning

- Baked potatoes with desired toppings

- Asparagus

According to the hubby, he starts off by poking holes in the steak with a fork and sprinkling meat tenderizer on them. Then marinate them in a Ziploc bag with Italian dressing. Get the grill hot and sear them on the flames for approx. 1 minute per side. Then take them off the flame to continue cooking to desired temperature. When you take them off the flame, sprinkle some of the Southern Flavor seasoning on there.

While he was grillin' it up outside, I threw two baked potatoes in the microwave and put my asparagus in the oven on 350F with some olive oil and kosher salt for approx. 5 minutes. I know the menu says slaw, but I forgot to pick up the lettuce, so we had asparagus instead...

BONUS RECIPE: ITALIAN PASTA

I will be taking an off week from blogging next week because I'll be out of town for work, so here is a bonus recipe for y'all:

- Arnone's Italian sausage (find at the Piggly Wiggly - it's the best...)
- 1 can diced Italian tomatoes
- 1 jar Bertolli's Vidalia Onion pasta sauce (because I had it in the fridge - you can use whatever red pasta sauce you prefer...)
- 1 box Rotelle or Rotini noodles
- Shredded Mozzarella cheese

Cook noodles according to package. While noodles are cooking, brown and drain sausage in a large skillet. Add sausage back to pan along with tomatoes and sauce (the hubby does not prefer a lot of sauce, so I don't use a whole jar). At this point, if I have it around the house, I also add in 1/4 tsp minced garlic, salt, pepper, and some Italian seasoning as well, but it's not crucial to the dish. Drain noodles, add to skillet and stir to mix all ingredients together. **TIP: sometimes my sauce will be too thick, and I will reserve a little of the noodle water and add in to thin it out a little. Top with cheese and pop in the oven (if you have an oven-proof skillet) under broil for just a few minutes to melt cheese and get that nice brown "char" look on top. I like to sprinkle some parsley on top to finish it off and make it look pretty :)  ENJOY!!

SUNDAY: FULL MOON BBQ

My 'Tis So Sweet girls and I have been meeting periodically while we are in between life group semesters just to catch up and keep up with one another's lives. We met at Full Moon and I got a chicken BBQ potato, ate half of it, and brought the rest home for the hubby.


MONDAY: GRILLED CHICKEN, ROASTED POTATOES & GREEN PEAS

CLICK HERE for my previous post with the Caribbean Jerk Grilled Chicken recipe.

For the peas, I just simply open a can of Le Sueur Very Young Small Sweet Peas, drain about 1/2 way, toss into a pot on medium-low heat, add a squirt of butter and a few dashes of Cavender's All Purpose Greek Seasoning, stir, and let them warm through until we're ready to eat (only takes about 5 mins).

Now, let's talk potatoes. Remember that bag of petite reds we used last week in the beef stew? Well, now it's time to use the rest of them so that they don't spoil.

"ROASTED" POTATOES
- 5 to 6 Publix Petite Red Potatoes, washed and cubed
- A few squirts of butter
- 1/3 packet Roasted Potato seasoning mix

This packet can be found in the produce section of Publix. I don't like to have to spend 40 minutes waiting on them to cook in the oven, so I "cheat" a little...

Preheat oven to 375F. Cube potatoes, making sure they are all similar in size for even cooking. Place cubed potatoes in a pot. Fill with cool water until water covers approx. 1 in. above potatoes. Bring water to a boil. Boil potatoes for approx. 10-12 mins until you can test one and it is soft (should be able to give it a firm squeeze and it start to crumble a little). Drain and place potatoes on baking sheet covered with aluminum foil (for easy clean up). Toss with butter - I use squirt butter for ease. Sprinkle approx. 1/3 seasoning packet and toss to coat evenly. Cook in the oven for approx. 5-10 mins just to crisp them up a little. Sometimes I even turn it to broil for 1-2 mins at the end.


TUESDAY: BEEF KEBABS WITH COUSCOUS

I got this idea from a Food Network show I saw, and they suggested using bottom round in order to save money. Personally, I found it to be tough, maybe it was that particular cut of meat I used. I think next time I'll go for the sirloin. Overall, still came out delicious! Definitely going on the menu again...

KEBABS:

- 2 tbsp olive oil (or canola oil...it's cheaper)

- 1 tbsp minced garlic

- 1/2 cup plain yogurt (I used greek...and I don't even like greek yogurt, but I PROMISE you can't taste it)

- 1 tsp ground cumin

- 2 tsp hot sauce (I prefer Frank's)

- 1 tsp salt/1 tsp pepper
- 1 lb beef, cut into 1 in. chunks
- 1 medium onion, sliced into chunks
- 1 to 2 green bell peppers, sliced into chunks
- 1 box cherry tomatoes
*NOTE: if you use wooden skewers, be sure and soak them in water first so they don't burn on the grill

In a bowl, stir together oil, garlic, yogurt, cumin, salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Reserve half the marinade in a covered bowl and refrigerate. Add beef to remaining marinade, cover, and refrigerate for anywhere from 30 mins to overnight. Preheat grill pan or grill to medium high heat. Be sure to oil the grill surface before grilling the kebabs. Thread beef cubes and onion pieces onto skewers, alternating beef and vegetables.

Place skewers on the grill and cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side for medium-rare. Drizzle with some of the reserved marinade and serve. FYI...I used the remaining "marinade" as a dipping sauce for not only the beef, but also some leftover grilled chicken I had for lunch. It's versatile and delicious!

COUSCOUS:

1 box of couscous cooked according to directions. Here's the kind we used this week...I actually added in a little more olive oil and some sriracha for a little kick!

WEDNESDAY: SUBWAY...EAT FRESH!

We have prayer meeting at church Wednesday night so we're just going to grab some Subway on the way home.

THURSDAY: CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA

Remember that bag of Publix frozen chicken tenderloins that I used last week in my buffalo chicken casserole and chicken bacon ranch pizza? Yep...same bag. I just finished it off by throwing them in this yummy CROCKPOT recipe.

- 5 to 6 frozen chicken tenderloins (you can put them in there frozen or you can use boneless chicken breasts as well)

- 1 jar alfredo sauce

- 2 to 3 tbsp cajun seasoning (I use none other than Tony Chachere's)

- 1 can Rotel or some other type of chopped tomatoes with green chiles (I use Publix brand)

- 1 can corn, drained (optional)

- 1 box Rotini noodles (or whatever noodle you have laying around the house...I happened to have Rotini)

In the crockpot, stir together chicken, alfredo, and cajun seasoning. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours. Cook noodles according to package. While cooking noodles, remove chicken and either shred or cut into chunks. Add back to sauce. Stir in tomatoes and corn and let warm through. P.S. I like to add corn to pretty much everything that I possible can, so you don't have to. It kind of turns it into a "mexi-cajun" dish if you do, which I like :)

Serve over noodles and enjoy!

FRIDAY: DATE NIGHT

That's right...date night again! This guy makes me happier than a camel on Wednesday...

SUNDAY: SAUSAGE "STROGANOFF" OVER RICE

If you all remember, last week I had my wisdom teeth out, so I'm still in the process of transitioning from mashed potatoes and jello to real food. So my sweet Mommy made us dinner Sunday night. We have a quick and easy "stroganoff" recipe that floats around our family (I think it originated with my brother-in-law) and is perfect for yummy dinner in a snap. We usually make it with egg noodles, but we voted on rice because of my teeth since it's smaller.

- 1 lb hot or mild sausage, browned and drained
- 2 cans cream of chicken
- 1 (8 oz) tub sour cream
- Egg noodles or rice

Brown sausage and cook noodles or rice according to package. While cooking those, warm cream of chicken in a medium pot. Add cooked sausage and mix well. Right before serving, add sour cream to meat mixture, mix well, and warm through. Serve meat mixture warm over rice or noodles.


MONDAY: DINNER WITH THE BLY'S

We had dinner over at a friend's house. Had a great time visiting with this sweet couple. Love them! They cooked us some fresh grouper and some delicious sides, and we brought rice and slaw from Zoe's and Steel City Pops. According to Casey, peach is DELICIOUS!

TUESDAY: BUFFALO CHICKEN CASSEROLE

I can't remember where I came across this recipe originally (probably Pinterest), but it's definitely a household favorite. Just a few ingredients, easy clean up, takes a little longer to cook in the oven than I typically prefer, but overall it's a winner. Plus it makes a TON, so there's plenty of leftovers -- especially when you're just cooking for two.

- 1 to 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (I actually used about 5 Publix frozen chicken tenderloins and stuck them in the fridge the night before to thaw...cheaper route and worked great)
- 1/3 cup Frank's hot sauce
- 1 (32 oz) bag frozen southern-style hash brown potatoes, thawed (I used Publix brand...you could probably get away with using about 3/4 of the bag. Sometimes it seems like a LOT of potato, but it's up to you)
- 1 cup light ranch dressing (or blue cheese if desired)
- 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 (10 oz) can condensed cream of chicken soup
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- A few handfuls of finely crushed corn flakes (you can make the crust as thick or sparse as your prefer)
- 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

In a large bowl, stir together the potatoes, ranch dressing, cheese, soup, salt and pepper; blend well. Spoon into a 9x13 greased baking dish. In the same bowl, stir together chicken pieces and hot sauce to coat. Arrange chicken pieces over potato mixture. Top with corn flakes and butter. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 20 to 25 minutes longer or until the potatoes are tender and chicken is no longer pink when centers of thickest pieces are cut. Broil for 1-2 minutes to make crust crispy.


WEDNESDAY: BEEF STEW & CORNBREAD

Who doesn't like hearty beef stew? I don't care if it is 100 degrees outside, I love beef stew. And you know what I love better than that? Using my beloved crockpot. I will seriously find any excuse to use my crockpot.

BEEF STEW:
- 1 1/2 lb beef stew meat (at Publix they have it already chopped up for you to just dump into the crockpot)
- 1/2 of a 1 lb bag of Publix baby carrots
- 5 to 6 Petite red potatoes, washed and quartered
- 1/2 large onion, chopped into fairly large pieces or else they will just dissolve
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Worcestershire sauce to taste
- 2 packets (1 box) Lipton Recipe Secrets Onion Recipe Soup & Dip Mix
- 1 1/2 cup water
- Cornstarch and water to thicken gravy, if desired

Place all ingredients except cornstarch into crockpot and cook either on low for 3-4 hours or low for 7-8 hours. If desired, you can remove the meat and veggies and thicken up the gravy with cornstarch at the end.

CORNBREAD:
CLICK HERE to see my previous post for jalapeno cheddar cornbread. When I make it with beef stew, I do the same exact things, but just skip the jalapenos.


THURSDAY: HOMEMADE CHICKEN, BACON, & RANCH PIZZA

When the husband lived in Tuscaloosa during college, we used to order this chicken, bacon & ranch pizza from a place called The Snappy Tomato. It was seriously the best pizza I have ever eaten. We tried to order it a couple of years ago, but found out that they closed. That was a tough blow for us. Please pause for a moment of silence for The Snappy Tomato pizza *tear*. Anyway, we tried to make it ourselves. It's definitely no Snappy Tomato, but it's an ever-evolving recipe that we try and perfect each time. The crust could definitely use some work - I go the cheap and easy route and use Pillsbury but it always seems to turn out chewy...

- 1 tube refrigerated Pillsbury pizza dough
- 1/3 cup ranch dressing
- Italian seasoning to taste
- Cooked chicken, cubed *See NOTE below
- Bacon pieces (about 3-4 strips, cooked)
- 3 medium or 2 large tomatoes, sliced thin
- 1/2 large green bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 red onion sliced
- 2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese
- Salt and pepper to taste

*NOTE: I thawed out about 3-4 Publix frozen tenderloins, threw them in a skillet with some olive oil, sprinkled some salt, pepper, and McCormick chicken seasoning, and cooked on medium to medium-high heat until the thickest piece was no longer pink in the middle. Some other options would be to use some pieces from a rotisserie chicken, or Oscar Meyer and Tyson sell pre-cooked chicken pieces close to the deli meats.

Pre-cook pizza dough according to package (I think it says pre-cook for 8 minutes, but I would cut it down a minute or two, bc by the time I fully cooked the pizza, the edges got a little burnt). Top with ranch dressing and sprinkle some Italian seasoning on top. Layer with tomatoes, onion, pepper, bacon, about 3/4 of the cheese, salt & pepper, then chicken, and top with remaining cheese. Finish cooking according to package, then turn to a quick broil and watch carefully at the end to give the cheese that "pizza oven char" look and flavor.


FRIDAY: DATE NIGHT

Sorry peeps...y'all are on your own! Everyone needs a date night every now and then...especially when you're married to this stud ;)

SUNDAY: CHICKEN POPPYSEED CASSEROLE WITH ASPARAGUS & GARLIC BREAD

My beloved Paw Paw passed away not too long ago, and when he did, a sweet couple from our church brought us this delicious chicken casserole. The husband and I scarfed it down so fast you would think we have never eaten before in our lives!

Anyway, a dear friend of mine recently had a baby so when I was trying to think of something to bring her, that delicious casserole came to mind. Knowing how delicious it is, I went ahead and doubled the ingredients at the grocery store and made one for us at the same time (below ingredients are for one casserole).

- 4 to 6 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped (or you can do what I did and use 1 rotisserie chicken)
- 8 oz sour cream
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 1 stick butter
- 1 sleeve Ritz crackers, crumbled
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Poppyseeds as desired
- Served with asparagus and garlic bread (if you don't have frozen garlic bread handy, you can use regular bread, butter, and garlic salt)

Casserole: Preheat oven to 350. Mix sour cream, cream of chicken soup, and salt & pepper with cooked chicken. Place in 9x13" baking dish and sprinkle poppyseeds on top. Crumble sleeve of crackers over top then melt butter and pour over top. If you are taking this to a friend, you can freeze as is and they can cook later for 30 mins at 350F. If you are making for yourself then, go ahead and place in oven for 30 mins at 350F. *NOTE: Also good if you add in more soup and serve over rice or you and add broccoli on the bottom.

Asparagus: Wash and dry. Lay on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Place in oven with chicken casserole for last 5-7 minutes.

Garlic bread: Either purchase frozen and cook according to package, or butter a piece of bread, sprinkle with garlic salt, and put in the oven on broil for approx. 4-5 minutes.


MONDAY: GRILLED CHICKEN SALAD & HUMMUS

You may notice that we have grilled chicken salad a lot. This week we did something a little different - honey buffalo chicken! (thanks to the in-laws for introducing us to this)

CLICK HERE for past post with other grilled chicken salad ideas.

- Boneless skinless chicken tenders/cutlets
- Frank's red hot sauce
- Honey
- Salad and desired toppings
- Pair with hummus and pita bread or pita chips

Mix Frank's and honey together to taste (some like it spicier, some like it sweeter...). Marinade chicken in sauce mixture and grill. During grilling, use a pastry brush to add additional mixture on top of chicken for more flavor. Add cooked chicken to salad and top with your favorite toppings. I would suggest blue cheese crumbles or ranch dressing to compliment the "buffalo chicken" flavor.

We had leftover pita bread that I got on sale and it needed to be used up before it went bad, so I bought some hummus to go with the chicken salad and use the pita bread pieces for dipping. We love the Supremely Spicy or Roasted Red Pepper flavors by Sabra.


TUESDAY: ITALIAN SAUSAGE WITH PEPPERS & ONIONS OVER BROWN RICE

The husband loves this dish!

- Arnone's italian sausage (I find mine at the Piggly Wiggly)
- 1 to 2 green bell peppers
- 1 large vidalia onion
- 1 tsp butter
- 1 tsp teriyaki (preferred) or soy sauce
- Garlic powder, onion powder, salt & pepper to taste
- 1 1/2 cups brown rice (Minute Rice)

Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and add sausages. Cook over medium-high heat until browned (approx. 5 mins), turning links often. Reduce heat to medium-low and carefully add 1/2 cup water to skillet. Cover and simmer for 12 minutes or until cooked through.

While simmering sausage, cut your peppers and onion length-wise into thin strips. Once sausage is done, remove from pan and let rest. Wipe water out of pan carefully, then place back on hot eye and turn to medium heat. Add chopped peppers and onion to pan with butter, teriyaki sauce, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt & pepper. Mix well and stir occasionally until peppers and onion are cooked through and soft.

While peppers and onions are cooking, prepare rice according to package and cut sausage. Once peppers are done, turn to low, and add sausage back to mixture in the pan. Serve mixture over warm rice and enjoy!


WEDNESDAY: MEXICAN SKILLET

Ever have one of those nights when you just stick a pot or skillet on the stove, dump a bunch of stuff in, and cross your fingers? Yeah, me too, and this was the result:

I call it "Mexican Skillet". I made it one night right after we got married when I really had no clue what I was doing in the kitchen and it ended up being pretty yummy, so it stays in the rotation on the menu :)

- 2 chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
- 2 cups Bird's Eye frozen pepper stir fry (or you could use fresh peppers, but I choose the lazy route)
- 1 can Southwestern corn, drained
- 1 can chicken broth
- 8 oz (1/2 jar) Pace Medium chunky salsa
- 1 1/2 cup Minute white rice
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Wickles banana pepper rings, optional (but highly suggested!!)
- Jalapeno peppers, optional
- Salt & pepper to taste

Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in large skillet. Add chicken, stir fry peppers, and desired amount of banana peppers & jalapenos. Cook until chicken is done. (NOTE: The frozen peppers being thawed/cooked may cause more liquid than desired in the skillet; just drain it or soak it up with a paper towel out of the skillet. You don't have to get it all out; it will cook into the rest of it.) Add corn, broth, salsa, salt & pepper. Stir and bring to a boil. Stir in rice, remove from heat & cover for 5 minutes (NO LESS). Fluff with fork & add cheese. *NOTE: If I happen to have an extra taco seasoning packet lying around, I will sprinkle about half of that into the chicken and peppers while they are cooking for a little extra flavor.


THURSDAY & FRIDAY: ON YOUR OWN

So I've been putting off getting my wisdom teeth out for oh....10 years now, and I've finally decided to bite the bullet. The husband is on his own while I suffer through Jello and mashed potatoes for a few days...

This week, I literally went through EVERYTHING we had in the pantry, fridge, and freezer to try and come up with recipes from our existing food and save from having to buy groceries because we were on a tight budget this week. Here's what I came up with and I only spent $40 (including things not on the menu like water, diet mtn dew, sandwich meat for lunch, etc...)

SUNDAY: SPAGHETTI & MEATBALLS + CIABATTA BREAD

• 1 pack frozen meatballs
• 1 jar marinara sauce
• 1 box noodles
• 1 box New York frozen ciabatta bread

As you may can tell by now, I'm not very technical with recipes and measurements. I apologize to all my Type-A friends out there, but I like to just "throw it in a pot and see what happens" : )

So, just about every time Publix puts pasta and pasta sauce on buy 1 get one free, I grab it up. I pretty much always have some type of noodles and sauce (either marinara or alfredo). It's just quick and easy, so I like to make sure I'm stocked up and only paying 1/2 price. A couple of weeks ago, Publix had frozen meatballs on BOGO, so I grabbed a couple of packs thinking I can always use them as a quick party appetizer, or in this meatball sub casserole I've been wanting to try. This week, I decided I would use them for spaghetti & meatballs (a classic)...although the only noodles I had handy were fettuccine, so it was really fettuccine & meatballs, but who's judging! I also decided to use the crockpot because, well, I could...

DIRECTIONS: Add meatballs and sauce to crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. I also tossed in a couple of shakes of salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and Italian seasoning just for good measure... (note: my sauce cooked a little too much and got thick and sticky so I think next time I may add a little bit of water to thin it out before it cooks). When meatballs are done, cook noodles and bread according to packages. I like to put the noodles down first, top with sauce and meatballs, then sprinkle some mozzarella cheese and parsley on top to make it pretty!

MONDAY: GRILLED CHICKEN (x2), COUSCOUS, SWEET POTATO FRIES

• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• KC Masterpiece Marinade (Caribbean Jerk flavor)
• 1 box Near East Pearled Couscous (Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil flavor)  
• 2 sweet potatoes

Around our house, my husband does all the grilling, so I can't give you directions on how to do it, but what I CAN tell you is that you need to try this marinade. It is so good! He not only marinates the chicken in it before he grills it, but he also brushes it on the chicken as it's cooking on the grill to keep it moist. While he's grilling, I'm whipping up the sides in the kitchen and VOILA! Dinner is ready!

HELPFUL TIP: While he was grilling, I had him make an extra batch of chicken to use another night (see Wednesday).

For the couscous, just cook it according to the package. No additional ingredients required except a little olive oil. For the sweet potato fries, Chip got a me a food processor that slices and I've been playing around with it. I like to peel the potatoes, throw it in the processor and slice it up, then put them on a cooking sheet, drizzle some olive oil over them, shake some cinnamon sugar on them, and bake on 400F for about 20-25 minutes. I keep an eye on them and flip about half way through (and coat the other side with oil and cinnamon sugar). They come out looking like this:

You don't have to use the slicer in the food processor. You could also cut them up with a knife and make fries or smaller sized chips.

TUESDAY: JAMBALAYA WITH CONECUH

• 1 box Zatarain's Jambalaya mix
• 1 package Conecuh original smoked sausage
• Some type of bread (see below for what I came up with)

I thought I was going to have a tennis match this night, so I planned something so simple EVEN THE HUSBAND CAN MAKE IT!

Cook Conecuh on George Foreman grill on Medium for approximately 15-20 minutes until done. Let rest before cutting (or you'll lose all the flavor). You can also cook this in the skillet - I think instructions are on the package. Cook Jambalaya according to package - it's a "just add water" type box and the flavor is really good. Once it's done, chop up the sausage and add it to the mix. We don't usually need the entire sausage and will set some aside for later. 

For a quick bread side item, I had an extra hamburger bun in the pantry, so I took the two pieces, spread butter on top, sprinkled garlic salt on them, and popped them in the oven on broil for about 3-4 minutes. These WILL BURN QUICK if you don't watch them. It's a great way to get use up your leftover buns before they get old. You can also use hot dog buns:

WEDNESDAY: GRILLED CHICKEN SALADS

Monday night, I had the husband grill extra chicken so that when we got back home from church Wednesday night, we could throw a salad together. Here is what we had with ours:

• 1 bag Publix Italian salad blend
• Grilled chicken (caribbean jerk flavor)
• Fresh tomato from my in-law's garden, chopped...or you can buy a tomato, but it's just not the same :)
• 3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled (I already had this handy from making my breakfast wreath for Tis So Sweet Sunday night...I made extra)
• 2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
• Italian shredded cheese
• Naturally Fresh Lite Ranch dressing

Of course you can add whatever toppings your heart desires! Some examples may include:

• Strawberry/cranberries/pineapple/oranges, almonds, feta/blue/goat cheese, vinaigrette dressing
• Blackbeans, corn, tomatoes, onion, avocado, lime juice, chipotle ranch dressing, corn chips
• Tomato, cucumber, onion, olives, radishes, chickpeas, etc.

THURSDAY - ON YOUR OWN...

The husband "feeshed" (a.k.a. fished) a tournament and I had a work-thing where we were eating dinner, so I just left him to fend for himself...with ample warning time of course :)

FRIDAY - CHICKEN FRIED CUBED STEAK, MASHED POTATOES, & BLACK-EYED PEAS (the food, not the band...)

• Cubed steak (we use deer meat, but beef works just fine)
• Approx. 2 cups vegetable oil
• Flour
• Garlic powder
• Salt and pepper
• Montreal steak seasoning
• Crystal hot sauce
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1 - 2.75 oz pkg Southeastern Mills Old Fashioned Peppered Gravy Mix
• 1 pkg Idahoan mashed potatoes
• 1 can Margaret Holmes seasoned black-eyed peas

In a baking dish, create your flour mixture by blending flour, garlic powder, salt & pepper, and montreal steak seasoning based on your taste (it should be primarily flour, but you should also see a pretty good amount of the thick pepper in the montreal seasoning). In a separate bowl, mix the egg, milk, and about 4-5 good shakes of the Crystal hot sauce. Mix well so that the egg is completely blended. Pour the vegetable oil into a large, deep skillet and heat to about 6 (med to med high) on the stove top such that the oil is almost to a boil. Set up your dipping station with you flour mixture and egg mixture. With each cubed steak, dip into flour mixture on each side and cover well, then dip into egg mixture, and then again into the flour, covering well each time. Place each covered cubed steak into the hot frying pan carefully and cook approx. 4-5 mins on each side until golden brown and crispy. Meanwhile, make gravy according to package directions and serve warm with hot gravy. Also, the mashed potatoes and black-eyed peas only take approx. 10 minutes. Cook according to packages.

SUNDAY - Hot dogs & Alison's Chili Cheese Dip

      

• 1 pkg Oscar Meyer weenies
• 1 pkg hot dog buns
• 1 - 8 oz pkg cream cheese, softened
• 15 oz can Hormel chili
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• Fritos scoops for serving

Hot dogs are always easy, quick, and this particular dip is a great side because I used it to put it on top of my hot dog. Publix had Oscar Meyer weenies on sale so I bought a pack and threw them on the George Foreman on medium heat for about 10 minutes, turning frequently. My hubby used the remaining dogs for lunches the next couple of days.
Chili cheese dip:

Evenly spread the softened cream cheese into the bottom of an ungreased glass pie dish pan or other round baking dish. Spread chili over the cream cheese. Top with shredded cheddar cheese. Microwave for 4 minutes. Check to see if the cheese is melted and microwave another 1-2 minutes until the cheese is completely melted. Serve warm with Fritos.


MONDAY - Breakfast

Who doesn't like breakfast for dinner! This is also a good one that I throw in the mix a lot because it's so easy that my husband can cook it ;)

You can cook your favorite breakfast items whether it be eggs, bacon, sausage, hashbrowns, biscuits and gravy, biscuits and jelly, pancakes, muffins, etc. Here is what I had handy this week:

• Biscuits and gravy (white pepper gravy)
• 1 lb. hot Jimmy Dean sausage - made 8 sausage patties and used some of them to crumble in the gravy
• 4 eggs - we fried them and had two each

TUESDAY - Holly's Mexican Spaghetti (with a twist) & Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread

Yep, there's that "twist" I was referring to! The original recipe calls for spaghetti noodles, but I had rotini noodles handy, so I went with that. I also decided to make it a lot easier on myself and, as usual, utilized the glory that is...THE CROCKPOT.

Holly's Mexican Spaghetti (with a twist)

• 2 medium or 3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Approx. 1 cup salsa (I had Pace Medium on hand)
• 1  - 10 oz can Rotel
• 8 oz Velveeta (I think they typically come in 16 oz blocks, but I happened to find a small one that was 8 oz and it was perfect for this dish...you can cut 16 oz block in half if you can't find the small one)
• 1 box Rotini noodles

Place chicken and salsa in the crockpot and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours (I just put the salsa in there to keep the bottom from burning. You may not have to use 1 cup...just use your judgment). Shred chicken and place back in crockpot with salsa. Add Rotel and Velveeta and turn crockpot to low. While Velveeta is melting in the crockpot, boil the noodles according to package. Drain noodles and add to crockpot to complete the dish, stirring until thoroughly mixed together.

This makes a lot. I did that on purpose because I needed some extra to take a friend dinner. We also took some for lunch the next day.

Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread

• 1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3/4 can creamed corn
• 2 "forkfuls" diced jalapenos...I'm really technical with measurements ;)
• 2 handfuls of shredded cheddar

Preheat oven to 400. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, and pour into either greased muffin tins or greased pan or cast-iron skillet. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown TIP: the creamed form can make it a little dense so I like to sprinkle a little Wondra flour into the mixture to help fluff it up.

WEDNESDAY - Subway...Eat Fresh!

We have our couples class at church Wednesday nights and I had worship team practice, too, so I just figured we could grab some Subway after church.

THURSDAY - Katie D.'s Honey Bourbon Chicken over Brown Rice with Field Peas

This works well for us on Thursdays because Chip has fishing tournaments on these nights and it only takes 1 1/2 hrs to cook this chicken in the crockpot. If you don't have that kind of time, or don't have a crockpot with a timer, you can make this on Sunday instead!

• 1 to 1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs (approx. 5)
• 1 cup honey
• 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• Garlic powder & onion powder
• 1/2 cup diced onion (optional)
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• Cornstarch
• Sesame seeds
• 1 1/2 cup brown rice (I use Minute Rice)
• 1 can field peas

Place chicken thighs in crockpot and sprinkle with salt & pepper on both sides. Top chicken with honey, soy sauce, ketchup, oil, garlic powder & onion powder (just give them both a few shakes) & red pepper flakes. Stir to combine well & cook on low for 3-4 hours or high for 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours. When done, remove and cut into chunks. Before putting chicken back in the pot, combine some cornstarch in water and whisk into the crockpot to thicken up the sauce a bit. Throw chicken back in and stir to recoat with the sauce. 

Cook rice and peas according to package. Serve chicken over a hot bed of brown, or white, rice and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.


FRIDAY - Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, & asparagus

My husband hunts and we tried a few new ways to get the meat processed this year. One of them was meatloaf. They go ahead and season it for you, so all I usually do is add some onion, green pepper, and a little BBQ sauce. Since I know not everyone has pre-seasoned venison meatloaf, I'll put a standard beef meatloaf recipe here!

MEAT MIXTURE

• 1 1/2 lb ground beef (I prefer lean)
• 1 small vidalia onion
• 1 small green pepper
• 2 slices of bread (to make bread crumbs)
• 3/4 cup Sweet Baby Ray's Original BBQ Sauce
• 2 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbsp spicy brown mustard
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp honey
• Salt & pepper to taste

GLAZE

• 3/4 cup Sweet Baby Ray's Original BBQ Sauce
• 1 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp honey

OTHER

• 1 package Idahoan mashed potatoes (we like roasted garlic & parmesan flavor)
• Asparagus

Preheat oven to 350F. Toss the bread slices in the food processor to make fresh bread crumbs. Chop onion & green pepper. In a large bowl, mix all ingredients above to make meat mixture. In a small bowl, mix all ingredients above to make glaze. Shape meat mixture into a loaf and add glaze on top (reserving some for dipping). Bake in oven for 45 minutes.

NOTE: Approx. 10 minutes before it's done, I like to drain the juice out of the bottom of the pan and add a little more glaze on top. I also like to put it on broil for just a minute before I pull it out to give the glaze on top a little more thickness. You can also spend the last 10 minutes boiling water for your potatoes and popping the asparagus in the oven with the meatloaf. I wash it, spread out on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with Kosher salt.