Football and Food

Two of our favorite appetizers....both delicious and crowd pleasers for sure!!

Lil Pigs in a Blanket

1 tube Crescent Dough

1 Pkg Lil Smokies

Unroll Dough. Pinch and seal seams. Cut into strips and wrap in a figure 8 around the lil smokies. Place on sprayed baking sheet and bake @ 375* for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

Mini Turkey Puffs

1 tube Crescent Dough

2.5 oz Turkey lunchmeat - chopped fine

1/2C Shredded Cheese

2TB Green Onion - chopped fine

1 Egg

1/8tsp Pepper

1 1/2tsp Dijon Mustard

Unroll dough. Pinch/seal seams. Cut dough into 24 squares. In mini muffin pan (lightly sprayed) lightly press squares into muffin wells (tart shapers make this super easy). Combine remaining ingredients and evenly spoon into muffin wells. Bake @ 375* for 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned.

Coupon Sunday

Off to Albertsons, again. They had 3 'double your manufacturers coupon' coupons in todays paper and I got some great deals!!

The 2 best deals I got were: 2 - 32oz Coffee Mate Creamers for $1.00 each & 4 rolls of crescent dough for $.92 each.

I'm crossing things off my Christmas list:)

New Camera

Do you think I could get my husband to get me a new camera and better lighting in my kitchen so my pictures would turn out better? Humm, maybe I should ask Santa:)

Parmesan Baked Mahi Mahi

I made a favorite last night, of my husband and I that is. The kids took one look and said "eeew what is that". This is so simple and so delicious plus you can use any white fish you have on hand.

Parmesan Baked Mahi Mahi

4 - 4oz Mahi Mahi fillets

2/3C Mayo

1/4C Grated Parmesan

1/4C Green Onion - chopped

1tsp Worcestershire Sauce

Place fish on sprayed cookie sheet (stoneware works great too). In small bowl combine remaining ingredients. Spoon evenly over fish. Bake @ 400* 15-20 minutes or until top is browned and fish is cooked through.

Crockpot Chicken Pot Pies

They did turn out yummy so here they are. I have another easy recipe for chicken pot pies that we liked a little more, its creamier. I don't know if this will get made again but it was nice to let the crockpot do all the work!!

Chicken Pot Pies (recipe from Pillsbury)

1.25lbs Chicken Thighs - boneless/skinless (I used Chicken Breasts)

1/2C Onion - diced

1/2tsp Poultry Seasoning

1/2tsp Dried Thyme Leaves

1/4tsp Pepper

1 Jar Chicken Gravy 12-18oz

2 Stalks Celery - chopped

1 Bag (12oz) Frozen Veggie Mix

1 Tube Refrigerated Biscuits

Spray crockpot with cooking spray. Place chicken in crockpot. Top with onion, poultry seasoning, thyme, pepper, gravy and celery. Cover and cook 8-10 hours on Low.

Stir in frozen veggies. Cook on High for 30 minutes. Bake biscuits as directed.

To serve put about 1C chicken mixture on a plate and top with split biscuits. Serves 6.

Granola Bar Sale

Safeway had a coupon in the paper for Quaker Chewy Granola Bars for $.99 a box and I was lucky enough to have 2 more coupons ($1 off 2 boxes) so I ended up getting 5 boxes of granola bars for only $3!!

Yea me.

Mini BBQ Chicken Pizzas

My meal plan was pretty interrupted last week so I never got to try any new recipes. I didn't even really cook. We had sandwiches one night, leftovers and take out. Not great on the belly or the pocket book. I have the crockpot cooking away with Chicken Pot Pies....if its yummy you'll be seeing that later.

For now here's a yummy recipe we made a few weeks ago.

Mini BBQ Chicken Pizzas

1 Tube Refrigerated Pizza Dough

Chicken - cooked/cubed

Shredded Cheese - your choice

BBQ Sauce - bottled or homemade

Red Onion - diced

Black Olives - sliced

Mushrooms - halved/sliced

Do not unroll the pizza dough and slice it into 12-15 disks. Lightly press to flatten and seal the seams, to keep them from falling apart after cooking. Place the disks on a cookie sheet (I use stoneware instead of metal). Top each disk with a teaspoon or 2 of bbq sauce, chicken, onion, olives, mushrooms and cheese. Bake @ 425* for 12-15 minutes.

I didn't pay much attention to quantities I was using but this is a great recipe for leftover chicken. The pizzas are so small you don't need much of any ingredient. 1 chicken breast half and less than a cup of cheese should make all the pizzas.

More Albertsons Savings

They've had some great deals lately...too good to pass up even though my pantry is full of extras (think 5 jars of peanut butter etc).

On the 13th I went and got $50.68 worth of groceries for $19.96, a $30.72 savings!!

And today I got $32.26 worth of groceries for $17.46, a $18.08 savings!! I didn't need anything but the deals were too good so this trip was for my Mom who needed to get food for some local food drives she wanted to donate to.

I'm quite proud of myself, I think this coupon clipping and ad shopping is really going to pay off:)

Crockpot Raviolis

It doesn't get much easier than this! And it was very good.

Crockpot Portabella Raviolis

Diced Red Onion - about half of a medium

1 Small/Medium Clove Garlic - minced

1 Jar (26oz) Four Cheese Pasta Sauce (Prego, Regu or Classico)

Tomato Sauce - 7oz

1/2tsp Italian Seasoning

1 Package (25oz) Frozen Portabella/Cheese Stuffed Raviolis

1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese - shredded

Parmesan Cheese - fresh grated

Cook onion and garlic in small amount of oil or butter over medium heat until onion is tender. Add pasta sauce, tomato sauce and italian seasoning. Stir to combine.

Spray inside of crockpot with cooking spray. Place about 1/2C sauce in bottom of pot. Add half of the frozen raviolis and top with half the shredded cheese. Repeat layer with remaining raviolis and cheese. Pour the remaining sauce over the top.

Cook on low for 5.5 - 6.5 hours. Top with parmesan cheese before serving.

**Recipe can be doubled and freezes well too.

Dinners this Week

M: Raviolis (crockpot) w/ crescent rolls and green beans

T: Manwich w/fries and corn

W: Book Club night out to Twigs - woo hoo!! I love this place!!

T: Potato Crusted Mahi w/smashed potatoes and corn

F: Spaghetti w/garlic bread and green beans

S: Twins Club Auction - soup buffet

S: Apple Glazed Chicken w/pasta and green beans

Kind of a mix this week. Some old and some new. I'm really interested in the mahi mahi and the glazed chicken, I haven't made either before so hopefully they taste as delicious as they sound. But most of all I'm looking forward to that trip to Twigs!!

Meal Planning

Ok so here's how I do it. I plan and shop for about a month at a time so I only have to major grocery shop once a month, which makes the rest of the month a lot easier only needing to pick up fruit/veggies, bread/milk etc.

First I look though the calendar so I can plan easy meals on nights we're already busy. Second I peek through the freezer to see what's already there (meat and leftovers). Third I hit the pantry and take a look. Then I start figuring out what I want to make and look through recipes. After that I make a big list of everything non perishable I can get for the entire meal plan and make smaller lists of the fresh ingredients I'll need. And lastly I've been trying to be that Coupon Queen so I start looking through the ads and coupons to figure out where to shop.

It can be a bit time consuming but I figure over the month I'll probably spend less time than I would if I only planned a week in advance. And I know I spend less time and money at the grocery store doing it this way. The only downside is planning a month out doesn't leave much room for the last minute things that pop up so we don't always make it through all the dinners I've planned. But in those cases I just end up making them the next month since I have all but the fresh ingredients.

Can you tell I spent the morning meal planning?!

Albertsons Savings

I am trying to become a Coupon Queen....it's a little confusing but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it. I'll spare you all the details for now and just highlight the huge savings:)

My pre-coupon total was $45.61 and the after coupon total was $19.05.....a $26.56 savings is pretty good!!

Taco Soup

Why not start with one of my favorites?! I got this recipe from a lady in my Twins Club, I changed a thing or two, and it became more of a chili consistency....its a huge hit. Not only is it delicious but it makes a ton....serves 12-16 people and freezes too!!

Taco Soup:

SOUP:

2lbs Ground Beef (I personally use Venison mostly)

1 Large Red Onion - Diced

1 Can (15.5oz) Pinto Beans

1 Can (15.5oz) Kidney Beans

2 Cans (15.25oz) Black Beans

1 Can (15.25 oz) Corn

1 Can (14.5oz) Mexican Stewed Tomatoes

1 Can (14.5oz) Diced Tomatoes

1 Can (14.5oz) Tomatoes with Chilies

2 Small Cans Diced Green Chilies

2 Small Cans Black Olives, sliced

1 Pkg Taco Seasoning Mix (More may be needed, to taste)

1 Pkg Ranch Salad Dressing Mix

GARNISH:

Grated Cheese

Green Onion - Sliced

Sour Cream

Frito's

Drain and rinse all beans, corn and olives. Dice stewed tomatoes and tomatoes with chilies. Brown beef with diced onions and drain fat. Combine all soup ingredients in slow cooker. Cook on low 6-8 hours.

To serve....put Frito's in bottom of bowl, top with soup and garnish with desired amount of cheese, green onions and sour cream.

A little bit about me....

My husband and I have been married since October of 2000, I worked for various companies as a production scheduler but am now a stay at home Mom to 4 year old twins (boy/girl) and I love to cook. I'm happiest in my kitchen making yummy things to warm the bellies of my friends and family. Unfortunately my children to do not share my passion for food (if they only knew what they were missing out on). But my husband does....he should consider himself lucky. He may not enjoy all the food/recipe chatter like I do but I know he enjoys the results.

I used to be a horribly picky eater.....you know the kind of person who never tried anything new, who always ordered the same thing from the same old tired restaurants.

I used to be a mess in the kitchen, I'd find a way to mess up the simplest dishes. I was always the one who'd come to potlucks bringing chips and store bought dip. I had no idea where to even start in the kitchen.

Somewhere along the way it all changed and I found my passion. Maybe it was not working during my pregnancy and spending my days watching the Food Network channel, I don't know. But I am now the type of person who will not order the same dish twice, I'm always looking for new restaurants to try (even though I don't get to often), I love to read recipes and look for new dishes, I do not make the same dinner twice in a month and a lot of times I do not make a recipe more than once....there are just too many things to try.

So now I've decided to share with you all my love of food. It may come in recipes or restaurants or grocery store sales.....who knows, we'll just have to see where this lil blog takes us.