My Weekly W's

What's top of my mind:  Enjoying this wonderful time of year.  Our Christmas vacation started yesterday, and we celebrated by making our gingerbread house and attending the Lights at Cedarhurst.  The gingerbread house came out OK. We have a long way to go before anything spectacular comes from us.  But I do think this will be a new tradition because we had fun doing it.

The lights were as fantastic as always.  It was a little chilly but not cold, and the hot chocolate was abundant, so it was a good night for the two-mile walk. I won't bore you with all of the photos again this year, but here are a few.  

Where I've been:  I worked all week.  Ran to Kroger on Friday morning for fresh fruit, veg and dairy.  We also went out to eat twice this week, which is very rare for us, but it is the holidays.  After Cedarhurst we drove around a bit to see more lights.

Where I'm going:  I'm baking all of my cookies today so tomorrow I will be making deliveries.  Friday we'll be getting together with family.  The rest of the time is wide open, and it feels so good to know I'm done with work until after the New Year.  

What I'm watching:  A LOT of Christmas movies.  It's been a mix of old favorites and new movies.  The Holiday, The Family Stone, Christmas Vacation, Love Actually, A Christmas Story and so many more are a yearly tradition to see.  

What I'm reading:  The Bookshop of Hidden Dreams by Karen Hawkins is the latest in the Dove Pond series that I love.  I'm halfway through and enjoying it as much as the others. The next book up is Wintering by Katherine May.  I'm excited to read it.

What I'm listening to:  Christmas music and Christmas movies.

What I'm eating:  SO many treats from friends.  I'm excited to try the Monkey 47 Schwarzwald Dry Gin from Poland.  And these chocolates were absolutely decadent.  

Dinners this week:

BIG salad times 2 on the nights that we had lunch out.

Chicken fajitas, rice and cheese roll ups

LO Beef chili loaded with jalapeno poppers 

Fried chicken strips, baked potato and salad

Lamb cheeseburgers with sweet potato fries

LO Brunswick stew and cornbread

Who needs a good slap:  On pause for the Holidays

What's making me smile:  SO many people and things have been making me smile.  TBG bringing two tubs of this Port Wine Cheese brought back so many memories.  My Mom used to buy this around the holidays and make me a large plate with it, crackers, pickles, turkey or ham and so much more.  It was her version of a charcuterie board, and it was so delicious.  She's the reason we have heavy appetizers every New Years Eve.

I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the season.  The holidays are bittersweet sometimes but there is still a lot of joy and more memories to make.

My Weekly W's

I hope everyone that celebrates had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We're in full Holiday mode now and I couldn't be happier.

What's top of my mind: The Christmas season.  TBG and I sat down and decided what things were a must to put on the need to do list this year.  

1.  Visit Cedarhurst to see the lights. Enjoy this holiday season with family at "The Lights" at Cedarhurst!

2.  Make a gingerbread house.  I have vague memories of making one when I was young, but we've never made one as adults. I found this kit and thought it would be perfect for our first attempt.  If we decide to keep this tradition, we can get more creative.

3. Multiple Christmas movie afternoons and nights.

4. Multiple board game breakfasts.

5. Be a secret Santa for someone.

6. A cozy lunch with friends at Pinky's.  Can anyone else appreciate a heated igloo?  Pinky's

7. Drive around to see lights in town.

8.Decorate the inside of the house.

9. Make Christmas cookies

Where I've been:  We live in a town with about 13,000 people or less and most hard-core black Friday shoppers go to the larger cities, so we felt confident to run to a couple of places and we were not disappointed.  We went out for a good breakfast and then we went and ordered a new refrigerator that was half off the regular price, plus we can always use a tax credit. I'd rather get something for my money instead of just handing it to the IRS.  Last year was the first time in years that we actually had a federal refund, and it was all because we bought the new heating and cooling system and water heater.  

Where I'm going:  It's back to work this week but no other appointments so that is good.

What I'm watching:  We finished the Great British Baking show and was happy with the winner.  This was one of my favorite seasons in a while.  

What I'm reading:  Nothing much worth writing about.

What I'm eating:

Breakfast this morning was French toast for TBG and he said it was delicious.

Deconstructed stuffed poblanos over rice with a cheese roll up.

LO beef tips, mashed potatoes and asparagus.

BIG salad x 2

Thanksgiving meal.  Turkey and all of the traditional sides.  With pumpkin and sweet potato pies.

Beef cheeseburgers and 'fries'.

The traditional pot of Brunswick stew and garlic cheddar biscuits.  Culinary Adventures with Lori: Thanksgiving Leftovers

Who needs a good slap:  Mean and rude people.  I've seen a lot of keyboard warriors posting comments on a few different blogs lately and I just don't get it.  What is the point?  What could anyone possibly get out of it?  

What's making me smile:  We had a wonderful 5-day holiday break.  I truly have so much to be thankful for.  Then today I woke up to our first snow.  It was just gorgeous out.  This is the view from our bedroom window.

I hope everyone has a lovely week ahead and remember to put a little love in your heart.  Everyday, but especially this time of year.

Cardinal Versus Binx

I came home from work yesterday and TBG told me they had a pretty eventful afternoon.  According to him, about 15 minutes before I arrived at home, this happened and I'm so thankful he was able to get a video.  Binx is as crazy as this cardinal was bold.

                                            

My Weekly W's

What's top of my mind:  The holiday season is upon us here in the US!  This week is Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve is one month from today.  I'm excited to celebrate a little bit each day between now and New Years.  

Also on my mind, my brother raises turkeys for all of us to enjoy and apparently the black variety of turkey compared to the white variety is moister and juicer.  We're doing a taste test, and I'll let you know.  This is some of them before they went to the processor last week.  Check out that awesome chicken coop my brother built.  He wants to build one for me to start raising chickens, but I politely said no thank you.

 

Where I've been:  I had an eye appointment My vision hasn't changed much at all over the last two years.  I did a bit of shopping and scored some really good deals on a couple of things for us. I also wanted a new winter coat and found the exact London Fog coat that I was looking for at Kohls.  It was originally 160.00 and I saved 70.47 between the sale price and rewards making it 98.17.  Can't beat that for such a nice coat. I let my gas tank get quite a bit lower than I usually do and I was pleasantly surprised when I had .60 off a gallon making the gas 2.39.  So, I ended up spending much less than I had anticipated.

Where I'm going:  I only work Monday and Tuesday this week.  I have no appointments, so the options are endless.

What I'm watching:  We caught up on Villans and British Bake Off.  Other than that, I didn't watch much TV.  I am noticing that a lot of trees are bare of their leaves and it's looking close to winter.

What I'm reading:  I didn't read much this week either.

What I'm eating:

This week I used a lot of leftovers to make freezer space for Brunswick stew after Thanksgiving.

LO chili made into chili mac with Texas toast.

Chicken pot pie and salad

LO chicken soup with garlic cheese biscuits

LO chicken pot pie and salad

BIG salad

I have beef strips cooking in the crock pot but haven't decided exactly what I want to do with them yet.  I have a couple of options stirring around in my mind.

Who needs a good slap:  Honestly everyone I came in contact this week was kind so no slaps.

What's making me smile:  I watched Sunday Morning on CBS this morning.  It was their annual food show and it was really good.  If you get a chance, watch it.  They had a young girl on their Renad Attallah from Gaza who does cooking segments on Instagram using what food they can get.  Her spirit is contagious.

I hope everyone is well and has a lovely week.  Remember to embrace each day!!

Chicken Pot Pie - One dish comfort food

I love a good chicken pot pie on a cold night.  There is just something very comforting about them.  I'm sad to say I couldn't remember actually when I had last made one and with the recent cold front that hit us, I decided it was time.

This is a very forgiving meal with many options.  You can do a double crust, a top crust only.  You can use homemade pie dough or frozen, packaged.  I've had them with biscuits on top or puff pastry.  They can also be made into 6 individual small pie pans, one pie, round or square.  You decide.  This time I made one whole 9 inch round pie and it turned out amazing.

Ingredients...

1 pound cooked chicken-chopped

1 cup sliced carrots

1/2 cup sliced celery

1/3 cup unsalted butter

1/3 cup chopped onion

2-3 garlic cloves-diced

1/3 cup ap flour

34/ teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

1 teaspoon dried thyme-or use fresh

1 3/4 cup chicken broth/stock

2/3 cup half and half (I used whole milk this time and it worked well)

1 cup frozen peas

Egg wash for top of crust

Prepare your pie dough and keep refrigerated until ready to use.

Sautee carrots and celery until fork tender.  Set aside.

Combine the butter, onions and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat.  Stir occasionally and cook until the onions are translucent, and the butter is beginning to brown.  Whisk in the flour, salt, pepper, thyme, chicken broth and half and half or milk.  Continue to whisk until no lumps remain, then simmer over medium-low heat until it thickens.  This takes about 10 minutes.  You want the gravy very thick so simmer longer if necessary.  Remove from heat and set aside.

For a 9 inch pie pan, preheat the oven to 425.

If doing a double crust, place the bottom crust in the pan now.

Spoon the chicken and vegetable mixture into the crust and scatter the frozen peas on top.  Then pour the gravy evenly over the top.

Add the top crust. Press down just a bit and then crimp and slice a few spots for the steam to release.

Bake for 30-35 minutes.  The top should be golden brown.  I haven't had any trouble with the edges getting too dark but if you notice this happening cover with pie crust shield or aluminum foil.

Remove from the oven and cool for at least 10 minutes.  

The leftovers are wonderful reheated, and this freezes very well.

My Weekly W's

 

What's top of my mind:  How good it feels to check things off of my to do list.  Yesterday we tackled the garage to give it a good cleaning before winter.  We really don't have that much out there so it only took a couple of hours.  Today both vehicles got a scrub inside and out.  So that completes everything we needed to do before it gets cold.  It sounds like we finished just in time because this week the temperatures are supposed to drop and there is talk of snow.  

Where I've been:  Kroger had a number of items that we use regularly on sale for great prices, so I made a trip there.  Luckily everything I wanted was available and I ended up saving 45.73.  Not too shabby.

Where I'm going:  I have an eye appointment this week.  I don't think anything has changed but insurance pays for a pair of glasses every two years so it's time.  I like having spares.  I also want to go and stock up on a few household items and bath and beauty items.  My plan is not to enter a store during December or January unless I just want to which probably won't happen.  I can send TBG to get any dairy or produce we get low on. 😀

What I'm watching:  We watched last week's episode of British Bake Off.  I'm really enjoying this season.  I hope to watch one more Monday and then we'll be caught up.  We also watched Marth on Netflix, the documentary about Martha Stewart.  I used to enjoy watching her shows in the late 80's early 90's.  I think she is amazingly talented and creative, but her perfectionism always hit me hard.  My mom was a serious perfectionist, and I had to work hard for a number of years not to be the same way. 

What I'm reading:  Sadly, I didn't take the time to read much this week other than a little bit of Israeli Soul.  I really love that cookbook and SO many things in it.

What I'm eating:

Beef meat loaf, mashed potatoes and a salad

Chicken sausage with green peppers and onions, mac and cheese and salad

Moroccan lamb meatballs with rice and naan

LO chicken soup and garlic cheese biscuits

Big Salad

lamb meatball 'empanadas' or hand pies and a small salad.  These have quickly become a favorite for both of us. We had the two leftovers for lunch today. (That's a lunch size plate so they really aren't THAT big)

I've been thinking about the holidays and so far I've come up with Christmas Eve.  Either lasagna or stuffed shells with a big winter salad and this puff pastry pesto Christmas Tree.

Doesn't this look delicious and so cute?  I saw it in this month's Kroger magazine and knew instantly I wanted to make it for Christmas Eve.

Who needs a good slap:  I actually thought about this for 10-15 minutes and couldn't come up with anyone.  It helps that I don't do social media, mainstream news or get out much.  There was one contender with a woman in system payroll but I'm actually so tired of even thinking of their absolute lack of common sense that I decided to let it go.  Now that I just typed that out, maybe I didn't. 

What is making me smile:  The full moon this week has been absolutely gorgeous and so have the sunrises and sunsets.  Today the sky was so red and orange it was just beautiful.  I love the Fall and Winter skies.  

I hope all is well with all of you and that this next week brings nothing but joy and happiness to you and your loved ones.

Stretching the food and the dollars

I do a lot of "planned overs" for our meals and I have fun using ingredients to see how many different dishes and meals I can make. I don't like to eat the same thing night after night or even twice a week so variety is my key to happiness in our house. I knew it also saved money doing this but I had never really broken it down to see how many meals we could get for how much money.

Last week I decided to do an experiment to see how many meals a whole chicken could produce and how much it cost.  I rounded up a bit on things like two buns, BBQ sauce, etc. because that is a bit hard to pin point. 

The first meal was whole roasted chicken with mashed potatoes and sliced tomatoes.

Whole organic chicken    $13.00

Spices, celery and lemon for roasting      $1.25

Mashed potatoes with butter and sour cream and chives      $1.50

Sliced tomato    Free 

Made dinner for two

The second meal was BBQ shredded chicken sandwiches with zucchini fries.

BBQ sauce        .50 cents

2 buns                .50 cents

zucchini 'fries'    Free 

Made dinner for two

And the last meal was a large pot of my chicken soup with cheese and garlic biscuits.

White norther beans        $1.89

All veggies and spices    $2.00

Chicken broth                 Free (made from the chicken carcass) 

Cheese and garlic biscuits recipe makes 6 we ate 2        .50 cents

Made dinner for two with 4 large servings of soup left over for the freezer.

So for around $21.00 this produced 5 meals for 2 people.  10 meals total, not bad at all.  I understand that this price is lower due to having a stocked pantry with everything needed so I didn't have to go buy spices, etc.  

Do you enjoy planning meals with left overs?  I can't be the only one that makes extra mashed potatoes so we can have cheesy pan 'fried' potato patties another night.  

My Weekly W's

What's top of my mind:  Mindfully enjoying every moment of every day.  Time goes by so quickly on its own I don't want to rush things.  I want to enjoy every season to the fullest.  I have seen Christmas decorations in the stores for months and I just want to enjoy Fall and all it has to offer. We've passed our leaf color prime but there is still a lot of color to enjoy on our walks and the cool morning weather is just invigorating to me. 

Where I've been:  I had a hair appointment this week and had him cut a couple of inches off.  My hair grows so quickly but I guess that is a good thing.  TBG and I found a new breakfast spot and it was delicious.  We've enjoyed lunch there multiple times and now they recently started serving breakfast.  I can't remember the last time I had a Denver omelet that was this good.  It came with hashbrowns, toast and it was all just amazing.  

Where I'm going:  Outside of work, I don't have anywhere I really need to go.  No appointments which is always a good thing.  The possibilities are wide open.

What I'm watching:  The British Baking Show.  This season is a lot of fun with great bakers.  My favorite did get kicked off last week.  She seemed like such an awesome person.  I kept thinking, "I wish we were friends".  Do you ever see people like that and think yes, I need this person in my life?

What I'm reading:  Cookbooks.  I dug out The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook to revisit it and look for something new.  I remember my mom buying this book and I was fascinated by it.  I was so happy years ago when she passed it on to me.  

What I'm eating:

BIG salad with chicken strips

LO Chili with cornbread

Roasted chicken, mashed potatoes and sliced tomatoes

Shrimp and grits

Shredded BBQ chicken sandwiches with zucchini fries

My soul soothing chicken soup with garlic, cheddar biscuits.  I've tweaked this recipe over the last few years, and it is really delicious.  I'll post the updated version one day this week.

Who needs a good slap:  43 monkeys escaped from a lab in South Carolina.  Whoever is responsible for that needs a few slaps.  I have a lot of questions.  What does this lab do?  Why are we still using animals for various testing?  How did they escape.  I've watched all of the Planet of the Apes for this not to be a bit concerning on many levels.

What's making me smile:  All of the simple moments during the course of a day.  A smile from a coworker, a compliment from a stranger.  Small things like this really do add up and brighten a day.

Enjoy your Sunday and the week ahead!!

My Top 5 Food NO's

I am a very adventurous eater. So when I was thinking of what is a hard pass for me it took quite a while to come up with 5 things I won't eat but here they are.

1.  Hot beverages.  I don't have anything against coffee, hot chocolate or tea, I just don't care for hot beverages. It could be freezing cold and I may drink three or four sips but that's all I can handle.  I can't explain it other than to say I've been that way my entire life.

2. Organs.  I just can't make myself eat them.  Liver, hearts, brains, etc. Many years ago a I went with a friend of mine to a truly authentic Mexican place in Florida where they only spoke Spanish and the menu was in Spanish.  I ordered a dish that looked pretty good.  I took one bite and it was NOT something I found enjoyable to say the least.  I asked her what the hell is this and she replied cow brain. (Taco de Sosa's)  That was the day I decided to learn to read and speak Spanish.

3. No soggy pasta.  I don't think this needs an explanation.

4. Kale.  I've tried it multiple different ways and I just don't like it.  

5. Couscous.  I think it's a textural thing.

Any food that you just really never want to eat again?  Enquiring minds want to know.  Have a great day!!

My Week

 

The last week of October was a pretty good week aside from the brutality of Monday at work.  I made it through though, so I call that a success.

Tuesday, I took the day off because I had a dentist appointment, and I've learned from the past that something always comes up at work if I try to leave for an hour.  It was nice having the rest of the day off to work around the house.  I've been working on updating a couple of rooms.  I've found that after you live in a house for a number of years you develop new interests and let go of some things you used to do, and it is good to take a look at how you need a room to function.  Between our office and the spare bedroom, I'm looking at how each can function better for us now. 

TBG carved one of the Halloween pumpkins Thursday and it turned out so cute.  We had a lot of trick or treaters, which made it a fun night. 

Friday, I went to the last Farmers Market of the season to pick up a few tomatoes, zucchini and cured sweet potatoes. It was bittersweet saying have a good winter to my two favorite farmers and their families. On the way home I decided to stop by the courthouse and place my early vote.  It was a well-organized process at our small-town polling place.  We still use paper ballots, and they did verify my signature before letting me vote. No ID required though which still boggles my mind.

This week dinners were...

Fried chicken strips, mac and cheese and a salad

I thawed out some left-over pasta sauce, boiled some penne pasta and then baked it in the oven with mozzarella on top with a big salad.

BBQ chicken, garlic rosemary potatoes and sliced tomatoes

Halloween was our traditional chili bar with cornbread

BIG salad

Beef cheeseburgers, with all the toppings and 'fried' potatoes

This week should be a good week too.  The only appointment I have is a haircut Thursday and who doesn't enjoy that?

With the new month here, I decided to go back to tracking all of our spending on groceries, bath and beauty aids and household products like I used to. I think we're still below average, but I want to see the actual numbers.  I'm also starting to plan the food and activities for the last two months of the year.  We're still keeping it simple this year and focusing on making memories.

A friend of mine brought me back a couple of treats from her vacation to Branson.  We haven't tried them yet but who doesn't enjoy food gifts?

I broke my own rule about NO Christmas movies until after Thanksgiving and started watching them.  There are just so many awesome Christmas movies I needed more time than just a few weeks.  Longer nights just scream light a candle and watch a heartwarming movie to me.

I hope everyone is doing well.  Stay safe and for all of my US friend, remember to vote! (No political comments please.  Just a reminder to make your voice count.)  Have a great Sunday!!  

Time to Catch Up

Good Morning!  I can't believe it is already the last Sunday of October or that I haven't blogged in over a month. Things here in my little world have been really good and pretty busy.  So I'll catch you up on what's been going on.

We took down all of our old, raised garden beds.  They were made of cedar and were over 10 years old, so it was time.  I wasn't going to replace them until Spring but was reminded that now is actually the perfect time when I read a post from My Tireless Retirement.  I found really nice 8x4x1 metal beds marked down from 160.00 each to 36.00 dollars each.  BIG savings.  So they are all set up and ready for spring.

We decorated the front porch for Halloween and all of the candy and treats are ready for the little goblins this week.  We've had very little rain this month but of course Thursday it is forecast for rain.  If that happens his TKD students and my department will be the lucky backups to enjoy all of the treats.

To celebrate the fall season we've watched Hocus Pocus one and two a couple of times, Practical Magic and Scream 1 and 2. My days of watching gory movies have passed.  I've made sweet potato pie, pumpkin pie and an amazing Carmel Apple Bundt cake that I found on Barbs blog. Barb's Blog . . . Where the Best Journey, Always Brings You Home: Embracing Fall . . . (sweetheartsinlife.blogspot.com)   THIS cake is amazing!!  We've also been taking a lot of walks and visited Garden of the Gods a few weeks ago and Louisville KY last month for a weekend get-away. I hope to get some pictures of our area this week because we are almost at the peak of fall colors.  It's just gorgeous.

This week on the dinner table...

BIG salad

Lamb meatballs, rice and naan

Chicken nachos.  When I make them for the two of us, I like to make them in individual pans.  Super easy clean up too.

I used the left-over lamb meatballs and made hand pies. I cut up the meat, added diced boiled potatoes and gouda cheese and wrapped in my pie crust and bakes.  They were SO good I was really sad that I only made four.

The next night I used the left-over rice and made chicken stir fry and rice.  It was good too.

The freezer and pantry is stocked and ready for the next few months and all of the outside/inside work is done so I'm hoping I'll have more time now to post and to visit you.  I've missed hearing what everyone is up to.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday!!

My Weekly W's

 

What's top of my mind:  This is the beginning of my favorite time of year.  I love Fall and Winter and all of the holidays that they bring.  Last year our holidays were minimal because of TBG's health issues.  This year, we're going to celebrate like we've always done.  TBG is very artistic, and he always does our pumpkin for Halloween.  My task is always a special Halloween treat.  We both found our inspiration for this year, and I'm super excited.  Below are the photos of our inspiration, and I'll post our creations next month when we do them so you can let us know how we did. Yes, even if their an epic failure, I'll show you. 

Where I've been:  We went to fund raiser around noon today at our local Elk's so we enjoyed their famous fried chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, salad and roll.  When it comes to this meal, they are the best in town.  Other than work all week, I didn't venture out anywhere.  Work was enough.

Where I'm going:  I plan on running to the craft store to pick up a few things.  The farmer's market is on my list, because the season is coming to a close so I want to enjoy fresh tomatoes, cucumbers and zucchini while we can.  I'll be working Tuesday thru Friday and I'm preparing myself because it is going to be brutal.

What I'm watching:  We finished Master Chef Generations.  It was fun watching and I was happy with the one that won the final cook. I've had Gilmore Girls on while working in the kitchen.  I can't even tell you how many times I've seen the entire series, and I still enjoy it.

What I'm reading:  This week I plan to start The Bookshop of Hidden Dreams by Karen Hawkins.  I've read the entire series and loved each book so I'm excited to start this one.

What I'm listening to:  A lot of BS from a company that was hired by Corporate to make everything wonderful.  

What I'm eating:

BLT and zucchini 'fries'

My sooth your soul chicken and bean soup with cornbread.  I really do think this soup is magical.  You just feel so good after eating it.

BIG salad X 2

Chicken with peppers and onions and spicy rice with a roll up and green sauce. 

Beef cheeseburger with a special sauce and pickled onions with zucchini 'fries'

Since we had a big lunch, we're having left over soup for dinner. It will hit the spot.

I did bake TBG a sweet potato pie this morning, and it filled the kitchen with scent of fall.  😍

Who needs a good slap:  Anyone that believes one size fits all.  It doesn't.  What works for some will not work for others.  If things are working well, with wonderful outcomes, don't try to 'fix' a problem that doesn't exist by creating more problems than you can imagine.  

What is making me smile:  SO many things.  TBG is feeling back to normal and doing so well.  Binx, continues to grow into such a smart, loveable, crazy cat.  I have people in my life that I love and appreciate more than I can ever say.  And even though the world feels like it is crumbling all around us sometimes, we're doing well.  I have many reasons to smile and for that I am very thankful.

I hope everyone is doing well and is able to see the reasons in your life to smile.

Have a wonderful Sunday and a fabulous week!!