That’s what happened last week when I was trying to recreate the Lobster and Shrimp Enchiladas that I enjoyed at Big River Grill in Chattanooga. Lobster can be expensive, but lobster tails go on sale at our grocery store fairly frequently. By the time they did go on sale and I went to purchase mine the store was sold out. I already had my sauces made, so it was time to punt. I substituted a high quality imitation crab and the resulting Seafood Enchiladas were delicious. I made them twice last week to make sure there weren’t any big problems with the recipes for both the enchiladas and the sauces that I used, and was very happy with the results. They were served with Salsa Rice and black beans.

On that same visit to Big River Grill Michael once again ordered their Grilled Italian Meatloaf. He was a little disappointed to find that this time they had eliminated the tangy sauce. I had copied that recipe as best I could last year, so we grilled some of our version last Sunday. I’ll have to make another meatloaf to replenish our stock.
Meatless Monday wasn’t meatless. Emily sent us a text at 3:00 that afternoon to tell us that Kelton had a baseball game that evening. Freezer food to the rescue! I pulled a package of chili out and doctored up a package of corn muffin mix. In no time at all we had Tamale Pie for dinner.
Tuesday we splurged on a new seafood restaurant where I tried the shrimp and grits. Although they did use tasso ham, which I have been unable to find in any of our local stores, I found their sauce to be too runny and lemony for my taste. The grits were on the dry side and didn’t have much flavor. I like my recipe better, but to each his own.
Both Wednesday and Friday I worked on the Seafood Enchiladas. Yumm. Can you guess what my favorite type of food is?
Thursday I had planned to pull some Chicken, Broccoli, and Mushroom Stuffed Shells out of the freezer, but noticed that pork cutlets were on sale. We indulged in Country Style Pork Cutlets instead. Any meat simmered in gravy isn’t the healthiest, but we do enjoy it on occasion.
The strawberries are in at Brown Farms! I’ll be busy with strawberry recipes next.
Be thankful for what life gives you.

I think Spring is my favorite season of the year. I love how everything starts anew, especially the promise of a newly planted garden. Come mid-summer, when I spend hours on end processing all that fresh produce, I may question why I felt that wonderful anticipation, but when our garden has stopped growing I will happily harvest the fruits of our labor straight from the freezer.
A few years ago, Michael built a raised bed out of landscape blocks for our tomatoes. Inspite of all the benefits, the one drawback to a raised bed is that it sometimes drains too well.  We have tried many watering methods, including soaker hoses, but I have yet to find any way that is truly efficient.  This year we are borrowing an idea from an older man we know who is a very successful gardener.  George uses perforated PVC piping buried at an angle under each tomato plant to deliver water right to the roots.  I am eagerly anticipating that this may be the best way yet.  After the days get a little warmer and I  add a planting of pink eyed peas to the bed, I’ll have to top-water those, but pink eyes are more drought tollerant and don’t require as much water.

Along with gardening time, it’s baseball season, and that complicates my menu planning. Some of Kelton’s game are at 5:15 or 7:15 on weeknights. That’s right in the middle of our dinnertime. I have a hard time getting dinner ready any earlier than that, so I guess quick and easy is best. I need to work on simplifying our meals. Zucchini and Caramelized Onion Quiche was good on Meatless Monday when I had some time to cook, and  the quiche made planned leftovers for Wednesday’s game night. Planning is what it’s all about!
Be thankful for what life gives you.

This last week was probably the busiest of the spring when Easter Sunday and Michael’s birthday both happened the same week.  Almost all of my recipes for the week started with Easter dinner and morphed from there. Pictures were few, as usual when I’m busy,  but there were plenty of recipes prepared.
Easter dinner started with a batch of Deviled Eggs, this time prepared by Emily. It has become an Easter tradition to make these from the eggs that the kids dye.

We also enjoyed Caramelized Onion Spread and an Easy Cheese Ball that I shaped like a carrot, rolled in more finely shredded cheese, and added green onions for the stem.
The main event of course featured a Baked Ham. We all have been thinking of reducing our carb intake, particularly the white ones. As a contribution to that effort, my Brown Butter Cauliflower Mash stood in for the usual mashed potatoes and the Easy Creamy Mac’n Cheese was made with reduced carb pasta. Simply seasoned green beans rounded out the sides and Aaron and Jen contributed a loaf of artisan bread.
Michael’s birthday was celebrated with a Rich Coconut Layer Cake, another cake that is reserved for special occasions.

I keep a stash of numeral birthday candles, but neglected to check for the required numbers, so you’ll have to guess how old the birthday boy is!
After dinner the kids all scrambled to hunt for filled eggs, and I do mean scrambled, since some of the eggs are filled with candy and some with money. Michael made sure there were plenty to go around.
A plate of Rice Crispies Treats were shaped like eggs by using on of the plastic eggs as a mold. They held a surprize malted milk ball egg inside.

I have an unfounded fear that I will not have prepared enough food for everyone when we entertain. As a result, we eat leftovers for days. This time was no exception. Leftover ham is excellent when sandwiched into a Sweet Potato Biscuit.
Michael’s actual birthday broke the leftover cycle. We enjoyed lunch at the Big River Grill in Chattanooga. Michael ordered their Grilled Italian Meatloaf and I tried the Lobster and Shrimp Stuffed Enchiladas. Michael has gotten the meatloaf in the past, and I made an attempt to recreate it at home. We think the resulting recipe is pretty close. The enchiladas are new to the menu, and I may try to duplicate them as well. The trick will be in the lobster’s cooking method. I’m not sure which way to go on that. We’ll see.
In case you’re wondering where all those spring fevered stickies jumped to, they jumped to next week’s menu. The leftovers nudged them out.
Be thankful for what life gives you.

I haven’t even written about last week. I surely don’t know where all my time goes!
Here’s a recap…
The Sticky Menu Plan was called into action on Sunday. We were supposed to have grilled Bacon Cheeseburger Rolls, but the rain wouldn’t give us a break. I just swapped out the stickies with Tuesday’s choice, Emily’s Chili Rellanos II, and we were good to go. The rain didn’t spoil our plans and nothing was wasted.

For a change, Monday actually was Meatless last week, and low-carb to boot, with an Asparagus and Mushroom Crustless Quiche.  Michael was a bit skeptical when I mentioned there would be no crust, but the quiche was so flavorful the crust was barely missed.

Artichoke, Shrimp, and Mushroom Casserole rounded the week out nicely on Friday night.  Storms are predicted for this Friday (April Showers?), so it looks like the tuna for grilling Spicy Tuna Steaks will stay in the freezer for another week and we will enjoy the portion of that shrimp casserole that I froze, instead.
With the exception of Friday’s grilled tuna, this week went according to plan.
We started the week on Sunday with Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu. We do eat a lot of chicken, and while this recipe takes a little more work than most, it’s deffinitely worth the effort. Michael’s comment was “You can make this again!” and so I will.

Meatless Monday was again truly meatless when I served my Quinoa Confetti Stuffed Zucchini, but with a twist. I had no zucchini in house, but I did have red bell peppers that needed to be used. I guess that quinoa stuffing is good in just about any veggie. I might try portabella mushroom caps next time.
A couple of weeks ago I made a big batch of Not So Sloppy Joes.  I told Michael that I would save one portion for later in the week, rather than packaging it for the big freezer. When the appointed day came those Sloppy Joes were nowhere to be found. Both of us searched all of the freezers to no avail and wound up with different freezer food. Tuesday that little container turned up in the only place we hadn’t looked. As I got out a container of frozen basil, there it was. We enjoyed them that night.

There are a number of recipes in which we enjoy carameized onions, and the last time we had Patty Melts I used up what I had.   Basic Caramelized Onions can be something of a pain to make, requiring a long time of constant stirring.  I decided to try to avoid all that stirring by using the slow cooker, and it worked.  I did have to transfer the onions to stove top at the end, as they were too juicy.  However, it didn’t take long to cook off the excess liquids and required almost no stirring.  As soon as I get the recipe out of my head and into the computer I’ll post it. The onions were a tasty topping for our Best Beef Burgers  on Wednesday night.
Thursday had been labeled “Undecided”. We decided we hadn’t had a Mexican fix for a while and off we went. We have to stop doing that! Not only is eating out expensive, it’s fattening. Oh well, you only live once and you can’t be good all the time.
Be thankful for what life gives you.
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Forty two years ago Michael and I went out on our first date, and we celebrate that night every year. The restaurant he took me to is no longer there, it got blown away in a tornado, but we go out to dinner anyway. This year we pigged out at Red Lobster. It’s a long way from beach food, but we do enjoy it.
As if our huge Sunday dinner wasn’t enough, the seafood trend continued Monday on a lighter note with Cajun Shrimp and Pasta. It’s a delicious combination of shrimp and cajun sausage with a few veggies thrown in for good measure. This dish is still not diet food, but at about 500 calories per serving, much better than fried.

Tuesday was St. Patrick’s Day, another day for celebration even if we aren’t exactly Irish. Nothing else would do but a Slow Cooker Corned Beef Dinner. I look forward to it every year, and the leftovers aren’t bad either.
Somehow, Meatless Monday’s Eggplant Parmesan got bumped down to Thursday, and on its way morphed into Eggplant Lasagna. I had intended to make two meals of it, but because the eggplants were on the large side, three pans were over-flowing.

Even though we had already eaten seafood twice in one week, Fishy Friday was observed with Shrimp Quesadillas, prepared fajita style with peppers and onions. For a variation, I may try spinach and mushrooms next.
Spring is almost here, and with it will come the desire for lighter fare. I’m ready!
Be thankful for what life gives you.

Anyone who hasn’t lived in North Alabama could not believe how crazy our late winter weather can be. One day a couple of weeks ago the afternoon temperatures were in the high 50’s. We woke up the next morning to 5 to 8 inches of snow, depending on your exact location.

A week later we hit the 70’s in the afternoon, and the next morning awoke to an inch of ice and freezing sleet. Go Figure!
The best thing I can say about this crazy weather is that being practically house bound creates the perfect opportunity for cooking things like a big pot of slowly cooked Brunswick Stew.  I like to serve this hearty soup with a pan of my Iron Skillet Cornbread for a warm and filling meal.

I think the weather got to my brain when I decided to make a Stuffed Pork Tenderloin. The recipe is written for two tenderloins.  I merrily prepared the whole recipe of filling, but only one tenderloin was to be stuffed, so we had over-stuffed pork tenderloin. Being over-stuffed made it hard to work with, but it was tasty anyway, and a little extra spinach never hurt anyone.  Easy Potato and Cheese Pierogies went well as a side dish. As the name tells you, these really are easy to do. Instead of a time consuming roll and cut pierogie dough, this recipe is made with store bought egg roll wrappers. They were a nice change from basic mashed potatoes.
Often when I prepare pork loin or tenderloin I trim off the irregular pieces and use them for stir fry. I intended to do so with this pork tenderloin, but since I had so much stuffing, that didn’t happen.  Although I didn’t have any trimmings, Pork Fried Rice still sounded good to me, so I just substituted a boneless chicken breast. I think the protein in any stir fry is interchangeable.

The Asian trend continued with a dinner of Pepper Steak. I prepped extra rice and veggies when I was doing the fried rice and used a small sale-bought strip steak for the beef. I may have just gotten lucky that night, but all the textures were perfect. The beef was tender and the vegetables were neither too crisp nor mushy. I love it when that happens!
Be thankful for what life gives you.

I’m more than greatful not to be fighting the horrible snow and ice storms that some of you are facing, and I’m more than greatful not to have the worries of trying to get to work or get children to school. However, there is a down side to living in the South in the winter. On the rare occasion that we do get snow or ice, almost no one here really knows how to drive in the mess, but most of the fools who are on the roads think they do. You take your life into your hands if you get out there with them. Most of the schools and many of the businesses just close down anyway, so there’s no reason to do so.
OK, I’ll get off my soap box and on to the week’s menu.
I’m still hamming it up, literally. I’m trying to find ways to use up all the ham I baked last week. Meatless Monday we took a break from the ham and I baked a Veggie Pizza on a Whole Wheat Pizza Crust. I think the crust could have used more liquid in the mix because it was a little dry. The dough for the crust  is made and kneaded in the food processor, so it’s not easy to tell when you’ve passed the sticky stage and added too much flour.   Still, the pizza was a quick and easy change from most of our meatless meals, and it used up the last of the Pizza Sauce from last years tomato harvest.

Tuesday it was back to ham with a new recipe, Ham Tetrazzini. As I often do, I split the recipe for 8 servings into three meals and froze two of them. There are no guaranties when it comes to freezing ham. I’ll have to wait and see how the Tetrazzini does.
Wednesday’s other new recipe for Cauliflower Baked Shells and Cheese will be put to the same test.

I never let a good ham bone go to waste. Fat-free Ham Broth makes use of that treasure and frees up the last of the ham that clings to the bone. I used half of the broth as a starter for a pot of Bean and Ham Soup for Thursday and the other half will go into Brunswick Stew. I never will have an empty freezer!
As I’ve been writing this post it’s been snowing a little, but so far there is nothing on the ground. The weather folks are predicting the snow will change to freezing rain and ice, and the schools that did open this morning will be closing early to get people off the road. Tomorrow it’s supposed to be in the fifties. That’s North Alabama weather for you!
Be thankful for what life gives you.

My goodness, how did that happen? I didn’t feel old when I turned 40, or even 60, but having a 40 year old daughter is something else again! There’s nothing I can do about it, though, so I might as well just be greatful that we’ve all made it this far and keep on doing what we do.
We celebrated her birthday a few days early with a dinner featuring Country Fried Steak with Gravy  with plenty of sides (and plenty of leftovers). I made the mistake of asking Emily what kind of cake she would like. Her first answer was a joke, Red Velvet Cake! If you don’t get the joke, read my post from 01/08/2015, OK, I think I’ve caught up, and you’ll see what it means. Any way, after I got thru laughing, I told her to guess again. That was a bigger mistake! She requested a Black Forest Cake, which is just as much of a treat, but also just as much work.  Oh well, once a year it’s worth it, especially for a 40th birthday.
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Later in the week I baked one of my favorite semi-boneless hams. These hams are smaller than a standard half ham and easier to carve. I don’t know how they do it, but this version bakes and tastes just the same as the larger one. Even though it is smaller, this Baked Ham still is more than two people can eat. It was time to dig through all my ham recipes.

Michael always enjoys Savory Scalloped Potatoes and Ham, so those were first up. Unfortunately, scalloped potatoes don’t freeze well. That recipe only used up enough ham for one meal and one of leftovers. Three breakfast meals came from a recipe of Garlicy Grits and Ham. This casserole reheats well in the microwave. Watch out though, it’s garlicy.
A couple more ham recipes are in line for this coming week. You will be able to see the results in my next post. I don’t believe there can ever be too many recipes for all that wonderful and economical baked ham. I think I’ll go make a sandwich now.
Be thankful for what life gives you.

It seems like I’m always trying to catch up,and sometimes when the week isn’t anything remarkable it just sort of slides by. The first week of February was kind of like that, except for one recipe,  a baked Spinach and Artichoke Spread.

Superbowl Sunday it was just Michael and I. It’s not that we don’t enjoy having company, we certainly do, but when it comes to football (and the Superbowl commercials) we prefer to concentrate on the show. We tend to get so wrapped up in entertaining our guests that we miss most of the action. The down side to not having company is that there are only two of us to consume all the football food, and there is always an over abundance. I can’t help it!  Spinach and Artichoke Spread makes 24 servings. Even when I set aside half for Emily’s upcoming birthday party, there was way too much for the two of us. It is a splurge food. We knew better than to over-indulge, and we didn’t, but then what to do with the rest? I dutifully stashed more than half of the dish in the fridge until I could figure it out. As often happens, the answer came to me during the night. Meatless Monday’s dinner became Spinach and Artichoke Pasta! All I did was thin the spread out with a little milk to use as a pasta sauce and it was delicious! We even had part of the baguette left from Sunday to serve on the side. I made sure to add our
House Salads to round out the meal. Even Michael enjoyed that Meatless Monday more than most of the vegetarian dishes I offer him.
Be thankful for what life gives you.

That’s the sound of The Sticky Menu Plan doing its job! I started the week with good intentions, but as early as Monday everything started to slip. Stickers slid down the calendar as if the were on the slide at a children’s playground.
We started off the week with a traditional Sunday Dinner of Simple Roast Chicken with a pan sauce. Low-Carb Mixed Potato Mash stood the place of the usual mashed potatoes,and I pulled some Summer Squash Casserole out of the freezer as well.

Michael isn’t particularly fond of Meatless Monday, and that’s when the menu started to change. Somehow, pork chops made it to Monday’s dinner table. I don’t know what I did differently when I cooked them, or if they were just inferior chops, but they were not at all good. Flavorless might be an accurate description.
Monday’s Butternut Ravioli II slid to Tuesday and were much more satisfying than the pork chops. I cooked the ravioli with a little bacon and caramelized onions and sprinkled them with Parmesan cheese. Technically, adding the bacon made this dish no longer meatless, but it sure did add to the appeal. I need to work a little on that recipe variation.  I had some Basic Caramelized Onions stashed away, but I don’t always keep them on hand.  I think I should develop a short cut for the caramelized onions.  I do think revising the recipe will be worth the effort.

Tuesday’s planned leftovers slid to Wednesday. Last Saturday I started a pot of My Chicken and Dumplings, another true comfort food that we really enjoy but do take a little time to prepare. Chicken and dumplings seem to be one of those stews that are good the day you make them, but are even better a day or two later, and they certainly were delicious on Wednesday.
Thursday and Friday were a total wash. We ate out both nights. Thursday’s dinner was pretty much in the plan, since it was a “Doctor Day”.  Friday we wound up going out to celebrate Kaij’s twelfth birthday. Originally we were to join Emily, Kaij, and Kelton on Sunday. What were we thinking, or forgetting!?  Sunday is the Super Bowl and we have to stay home and watch the commercials.
Be thankful for what life gives you.