Lauries Kitchen

Sunday, November 18, 2012

A new recipe!

I think my MSAN (Mandatory Sunday Afternoon Nap) went to a new level today! I fell asleep on the couch and fell into a deep coma. I think it helped my allergies, though so I am thankful! I don't remember the last time I slept that hard. We had a blessed day at church this morning. Then came home to lunch in the oven, which was a new recipe. I have no name for this recipe, so if you come up with one, please feel free to share it! Coy actually found this recipe a couple years ago in a magazine. I forgot out it and lost it. Then I ran across it the other day and decided to try it. Pretty inexpensive but good! I think next time I am adding three cans of soup, though. The taste was spot on. Pretty easy, too!

Cook 1 package extra wide egg noodles.
Stir in 2 (or3) can Campbell's Chunky Vegetable soup.
Heat in 350 oven til hot.

I didn't add any extra water, beef broth or anything and it was still good.

I'm off all this week. while Coy and  the girls get off Tuesday at lunch.  Tomorrow I get the pleasure of taking Coy's truck in to Lakeside Collision to get it repaired since I backed into it.....yeah, not a good day last Sunday. At least I have time to do it and have access to a great place to get it fixed. Then I have to finish grocery shopping and getting things ready for Grace's birthday. She wants cookies tomorrow night then brownies when her friends come over to play games on Wednesday. We'll probably go out to eat tomorrow night since both girls have a home game. It'll beJoGail's first game of the season. That will be fun to watch.

Grace went to a UIL meet on Saturday (thanks to Coach Brown for letting her miss a basketball game) and placed 6th in Ready Writing. I laughed at her, though, because she said she wasn't wearing her letter jacket (that has her patch on it from going to Regionals last year) because she wanted to sneak up on people and not let them know she was any good at it! She still hasn't quite figured out the 'game' in editorial writing, but I'm confident she will. She says she never places because the teachers who grade the papers don't like her view points....she says the topics are usually about school stuff and she tries to answer them like she thinks her daddy would....she said that Saturday she wrote something like, 'making TEA mad is never a good idea'. 

Since we were home yesterday, we got a lot of pesky chores like laundry, mowing, etc done. We are about ready to put Christmas decorations up this coming weekend. Always a fun time, I tell ya! Coy is meticulous out in the yard and it drives the rest of us crazy! I usually try to hide and JoGail gets yelled at the most! We will have a new addition this year, so be sure and drive by if you get the chance! Also, if anyone knows where I can buy more plastic figurines, that would be helpful. It's getting harder and harder to find them. Grace likes them because she says its different than what most people have out in their yard. That reminds that I need to get some extra light bulbs tomorrow! There's always one figurine that somehow has a lightbulb go out in between last Christmas season and this Christmas season!

I hope everyone has a thankful Thanksgiving!


Laurie










Monday, October 29, 2012

Wow! Its been over a month!

Wow! It's been over a month since I have posted! I would say I have been busy, which I have, but I haven't posted mainly because I haven't been a bundle of energy. Most days I have come home and crashed (as in out like a light) before 7:00. Just exhausted. I finally went to the doctor who did some blood work and my B12 is low. I started shots today, so hopefully everything will be on the upswing. Yes, I know I could give myself the shots, but some reason B12 shots and diabetic shots aren't the same in my mind. I think it has some thing to do with the needle size. My doctor said I am young (hehe) to need B12, but given the ole family history (both my dad's dad and my dad both had to get them) plus one of my diabetic medications is known for blocking B12 absorption. Hence, why I have to get a shot and not a pill.  I get a shot every day this week, so I should be full of B12 by Saturday! I'm just hoping I get more energy. I have done well this afternoon/evening but am slipping fast (but hey it's 6:40 so I may make it to 8:00 tonight!).

I tried a new recipe tonight and all liked it. I found it in a cookbook I have had for years. I have no idea why I never tried it before tonight. It was really good though!

Pork Chops and French fried onions

1 package boneless pork chops
a little oil
1/3 cup flour
 creole seasoning
 1 can cream mushroom soup
1/2 cup sour cream
2/3 cup chicken broth 1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon rosemary
french fried onion

Heat oven to 375. Heat oil in cast iron skillet. Get it really hot.
Combine flour and seasoning in a bag. Shake each piece of pork chop to coat. Sear both sides. Set pork chops on a plate and wipe out oil from skillet. In a bowl combine cream of mushroom, sour cream, chicken broth. Stir gently til combined. Stir in ginger and rosemary. Put pork chops back in skillet. Pour sour cream mixture over all. Bake about 30 minutes. Add french fried onions on top and bake 10 more minutes or until crunchy.

All liked them, even though Grace complained there was 'gravy' on her pork chops. There was absolutely nothing left in the pan, though! Coy absolutely loved this recipe. The Pork chops were really tender-he cut his with a fork.


I made this apple thingy from pinterest for dessert. It was really good, too. Very easy to make!

Apple Dessert
1 can crescent rolls
1 can apple pie filling
4 oz softened cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 stick butter melted
cinnamon sugar

Heat oven to 350. Spray 8x8 pan with pam. Line bottom of pan with half of the crescent rolls. Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla together and spread over crescent rolls. Spread apple pie filling over this. Put remainder of crescent rolls on top. Pour butter over and sprinkle all over with cinnamon sugar. Bake for 30 mins.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

4 new recipes!!!!

I've tried 4 new recipes lately and we have liked them all! One of them, Corn and broccoli bake is going to get some revisions just because I want to try it, but it's still good the way it is!

Lazy Day Cake is simple. I made it this morning before church so we would have it for dessert at lunch.

1 yellow cake mix (I used butter)
1 stick melted butter
1 package chocolate chips
2 beaten eggs

Mix all together and sperad in 13/9 pan sprayed with pam. Bake at 350 for 20 mins or til it starts to get golden brown on top.


Arkansas Green Beans are also simple! I have no idea why they are called Arkansas Green Beans. You basically take an otherwise very healthy can of green beans and make them as unhealthy as you can....that being said, they are great!

1 large can green beans drained
4 pieces bacon cut in to small bite sized pieces and cooked in the microwave (save grease and stir in!!)
1/2 c brown sugar
1/3 cup soy sauce
Mix all altogether adn bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or til hot.

Like I said, pretty unhealthy but AWESOME!

Corn and Broccoli bake is something I found in a cookbook I have had for years. For some reason I flipped through it the other day and I landed on this and thought it sounded good. I like it because it doesn' t have any 'cream of soups' in it !

1 can regular corn drained
1 can ceram style corn
1 package steamfresh frozen broccoli
1 box chicken in a bicuit crackers
5 Tablespoons melted buttrt

Crush crackers and mix with butter. Line bottom of baking dish with this, reserving some for the top. Partially cook broccoli in microwave (I cooked mine for about 3 minutes)  Mix 2 cans of corn with broccoli. Pour over crackers and put reserved cracker butter mixture on top . Bake at 350 for about 30 misn or until heated throughout.

Variations Coy and I want to try: Using ritz crackers instead of chicken in a biscuit and then omitting the crackers and using a box of stove top stuffing.

I'll keep you posted as to how they come out!


I also had a neato frito salad Friday at work.    Sounds weird but everyone liked it!

I'm just cutting andpasting straight from the email I got the recipe from...Tabitha Hale brought it..again....sounds like weird ingredients but they are awesome mixed together!


2 cans of corn drained

1 green bell pepper chopped
1 bag (2cups) of shredded cheese
1 small purple onion chopped (I leave this out because I don't like onions)
1 bag of Frito chili cheese chips
Mayo or Miracle whip

Directions from Tabitha:
I mix all ingredients together except the chips (they will get soggy if you do). I add chips and stir right before serving. I use mayo to taste you can make it really thick, I like mine thin.



Friday, August 24, 2012

I'm feeling funny....

I thought it would be fun to answer some questions  from another blog post....hope you get to know me a little better....it's a finish the sentence thingy.

1. I hate....when I am hungry and can't figure out what it is I want! I'm a good cook but there are still lots of nights I want to eat something but can't figure out what it is I want! That's when the family gets cereal or sandwiches! (Can you tell I'm hungry and can't figure out what I want???) Homemade potato salad by my mom would always hit the spot, though!

2. I have never been to....New York City. I don't have much desire to go, either. from what I hear there's way too many people and everything is expensive. I prefer my quiet nights at home on the netbook thank you very much.

3. The hobby I love the most is......well, right now I do not have  hobby unless it's called chasing the girls from sport to sport. I do enjoy watching my girls enjoy sports. I tend to be a little loud (Grace says she never hears me, but really, how could she not???) but I get over it. I used to paint t shirts but haven't done that in about 16 years!

4. My favorite store to shop at is....umm I don't have an answer for this one. I am really not much of a shopper. I might be transformed if I had an unlimited supply of money, but....I don't so life goes on and stores make money from everyone else but me. I do prefer Target over wal-mart and HEB is probably my favorite grocery store chain that I have been to.

5. I clean my house.....when I deem it dirty enough and not a minute sooner. I figure if Coy can stand it so can I.....

6. I always wanted to marry.... a coach and someone who had the qualities on my checklist....Coy's first day as a principal was the week after we got married.....sigh.....and the only characteristic on my list he didn't meet was that he had a mustache. I gave in on that one!

7. I see God's blessings.....when I look at my kids. They are true miracles and joys to me.

8. The last thing my husband did for me was......encourage and go with me to workout this afternoon. Really didn't feel like it, but we went and it helped with him there (I'm not as apt to cheat when he's there....)

9. If I had twins I would name them...........oh I don't even want to go there! But when we used fertility drugs Coy wanted twins, before he found there was only one.....He wanted to name them Kimberly Rebecca and Rebecca Kimberly.....true story.....I'd never get their names right if that had happened!

10. My week.....has been long. Actually the past two have been. Back to work and 2 back to back volleyball tournaments, with a school board meeting and lots of church meetings splattered in between. I'm ready to slow down, cook some good meals and stay in the slow lane awhile!




~Laurie

Friday, August 17, 2012

Taco cups and more!!!

I have been so blessed this week!!!! I got to visit with 2 good friends yesterday and it ABSOLUTELY made my day! Then I went to a volleyball game and sat with more good friends. I felt SOOOO social!!! (hehe for those that know me!)   My sister thinks I'm on a record breaking roll this summer for dinners with friends and get togethers with friends.....well maybe I am!

I cooked tonight for the coaches room at the volleyball tournament. I bought and took pizza yesterday but was informed by Grace that they WANT me to cook something g(she thought that was funny). So I cooked tonight. Cheesecake bars and taco cups. I have been making cheesecake bars since before we had the girls. I got the recipe in a 50cent cookbook magazineMawMaw Cole bought me at a dollar store. It is the only recipe in the book I use, but I do use it. It's one of Coy's favorites. Then I found a Taco Cup recipe on pinterest. I modified it of course (after all, I do work in Special Education and everything there is modified). They turned out awesome.  JoGail had one and was begging to eat more. I'll make her some more tomorrow since I had leftover fixings.

Taco Cups

wonton wrappers--I used 24
1 pound ground meat-I used turkey-browned and seasoned with taco seasoning
1 can black beans drained and rinsed
cheese salsa (it's by the salsa in the grocery store)
grated cheese for on top
muffin pan

Preheat oven to 375. Spray muffin tin with pam. Lay 1 wonton wrapper in each muffin cup. making sure its flat on the bottom. put 1 tsp cheese salsa in each cup. Next put 1 teaspoon meat, then black beans. Top with grated cheese and bake 20 mins.

I can envision other toppings such as jalapenos, guacamole (added after it cooks), etc. But I didn't have any of that. The cheese salsa is what makes these really good in my opinion!


can you tell I'm tired from working all week??? I'm kind of giggly!



Sunday, July 29, 2012

Blessings

Blessings, blessings, abound, even though its been a tough week. A best friend from college has had her world turned upside down, a best friend from work is moving on, and another one at work HAS moved on. (Jill Beall that would YOU). I totally understand the moving on and am in fact a little jealous. I don't understand why young mothers get stage 4 brain cancer though. One day they are fine, the next, normality is gone for their whole family. Kind of like when Denise had her wreck that changed her life forever. One night she was baking chocolate chip cookies with her son, and the next night she was paralyzed. I'm concluding that there are something we aren't supposed to understand and that has to be enough. It's kind of like trying to figure people out. Some you can't, others you have no chance of-for whatever the reason. Those of the ones I spend endless hours trying to figure out, too. I shouldn't. I should simply TRUST HIM. He never promised I would understand the why of everything and everyone else's business. He has promised to love me like no one else can. One thing I am learning through Sunday School....in the book of Judges for those who use the same curriculum....is that there are always consequences. Yes, God loves me and yes he forgives me when I ask, but he doesn't take away consequences. There are temporal and everlasting consequences of the things I choose. While I don't have what most people would call  'serious' sins, to ask forgiveness for, I do sin. Sin is sin. Period. Sin means there will be consequences, whether I like it or not, whether I WANT it or not. At that point I just have to accept it and GO ON. Staying where I am and griping or pouting only makes for more consequences (from my experience).

Blessings

1. Leigh Ann and Cassie--we may not see each other alot, but I am so thankful we keep in touch and text and facebook! Leigh Ann we love you and are here for you. One step at a time, sweet sisters.

2. Air conditioning (and Gary Smith who fixed ours). It's just plain hot here. Over 105 today. Way too hot to get out and do anything. Just laying on the couch in the dark with the curtains closed is the best thing to do while its so hot.

3. The little snow cone stand we discovered in Mabank. Sort of like Mr. G's in Brownsville but without the mango and tamarindo flavors! Coy's favorite so far is pink bubble gum. I think mine was the strawberry lemonade flavor.

4. Television-especially during the Olympics. I just like the Olympics and watch it nonstop-even what Grace calls the 'dorky' sports such as handball, ping pong, field hockey, water polo, and synchronized diving. I really don't even understand how to even play those sports!

5. Coy working me out in the gym. Yes, I actually typed that. My workout today was kind of wimpish, but others have not been. He tells me what to do then leaves me to do it. I enjoy that he isn't constantly critiquing me. I am overweight, so I'm not the picture of a healthy body yet. My blood sugars have done well, too. I have to eat something before I work out, otherwise it gets whacko on me. My knee is trying to be a pain but I'm determined to not let it stop me. I ice after every workout and take advil. That seems to help (til the advil wears off).

6. Christian friends. Friends that show me how to stand up for what's right. I have a friend who was in a difficult situation. Her friends were all telling her to divorce her husband but she refused-said that was not what God intended when they got married. That made me really stop and think. Looking for the easy way out is not always the right way out. Friends that listen to me and love me despite my downfalls and insecurities. Friends who don't care if my house is clean or what I make for supper. They just love me because I'm me!

7. Food to cook and experiment with. I am blessed to be enthralled with recipes and blessed to have enough money to go get what I need when I truly want to try a recipe. Lots of people in the world can't do that. God has blessed me in this area. We have enough to eat and often enough to share.


~Laurie

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

This dinner is so easy it isn't funny! I got the stuff, threw it together then we went and worked out. Came home to a great smelling and great tasting dinner! It's fairly cheap, too. Everyone liked this, just as it is, so it'll start making our 'rotation' (if there really is such a thing). I stole the recipe off pinterest. There was a picture there and a recipe, but no link. So I'm not sure really where this came from. I just had a thought that this would make a great Sunday lunch. Set the oven timer and come home to a cooked lunch!

Oven Baked Chicken Dinner

4-6 chicken thighs (really any kind of chicken would do)
1 large can Allen green beans (drained really well)
6-8 red potatoes (washed and sliced into equal size peices)
1 stick melted butter
1 package Good Seasons Garlic and Herb dressing mix
13X9 pan

Preheat oven to 350. Spray pan with pam. After draining green beans, line them on one side of pan. Put chicken in a row down the middle. Put sliced red potatoes on the other side. Spread seasoning mix over all, but really focusing on the chicken in the middle row. Pour melted butter over all. Bake at 350 for an hour.

Coy roughly calculated this at 400 calories, that's with getting 2 chicken thighs and 1/2 cup each of the red potatoes and green beans.