The Queen B

I Barely Had A Plan A

I usually plan our meals for the week on Sunday.

Then I go to the grocery store on Monday.

I plan 5 meals.  

I'm kind of flexible on which day I fix which meal.

My favorite meal day is a day that involves the slow cooker.

So this morning, I dropped the The Princess at school and went to the grocery store. I rushed home to throw some chicken & stuff into the slow cooker.  I decided today was the slow cooker day because tonight we had a sweet friend coming over to take some family photos and OH MY WORD THE STRESS OF GETTING US READY FOR THOSE would not need to be coupled with the dinner preparation.

The chicken & stuff cooked all day and smelled great.  It would be served over a nice bed of spaghetti.

But this is The Palace.

So this happened when I was draining my noodles.

 

THE ENTIRE BOTTOM OF MY COLANDER FELL OUT & THE NOODLES WENT DOWN THE DRAIN.

 

Just like that.

My dinner was down the drain.

And, of course...

 
 
I was totally out of noodles.

Have you had any dinner disasters recently?  Or does your life go as planned...?

There's Nothing A Good Meal Can't Fix

Now that we've covered books, my other favorite subject is food.

Whatever.  It is my first favorite subject. 

A few weeks ago, The King & I had to have some blood work done for insurance stuff. Guess whose blood sugar came back a little too high?

No, not me.

The King.

His doctor told him he needed to lose 40 pounds.

The King can't do anything in a small way.  We had to completely restructure our eating.  

I don't love restructuring our eating.

But I was trying to be "supportive", so we restructured.  No red meat.  Lots of fish. Veggies in mass quantity.  Very, very limited sugar.  

Like, I might as well not even bother, it is so limited.

While he was wrecking our eating, The King thought it would be a good time for me to eliminate the Diet Mt. Dew.  

I questioned his love for me. 

Smack dab in the middle of the La P fiasco, I'm starving and dehydrated.  Let your imaginations wander at my disposition.  

After 10 days of no DMD, my confidence of his love was reestablished.  He came home with a 24 pack of the blessed nectar and suggested that the best plan for me might be having one a day.

Those are 10 dark days that can never be returned to me.  

Where was I going?

Oh yes.  The starvation.

So.  The King has lost 21 pounds. 

Me?  One.  

That stinks.  Completely and totally stinks.  It is unfair and it stinks.

My stomach is always growling.  Always.  I'm starving.  I don't go 10 minutes without thinking about a Kit Kat.

And don't even think about commenting that it is good for me.  I mean it.  Resist. The.  Temptation.

The key to The Great Food Restructuring is planning.  It is essential that I plan everything that goes into my mouth or I will blow it.  

I plan our meals for the week and stick to them.  I do give myself flexibility on which days I fix each meal, though.  

I thought I'd share my favorite resources for meal planning.  

Cookbooks:

The Moms' Guide to Meal Makeovers is my all-time favorite.  Not only are the recipes very tasty, but there are so many good ideas for healthy cooking.  The Moms' also give great information on which brands of packaged foods are best for times when only mac & cheese will do.  Though, in The King's restructured world, mac & cheese will never do.

I've gotten some great ideas from The Vegetarian Family Cookbook.  I even feel super healthy when I'm just reading it.

I just bought Nourishing Traditions.  It scares me a little.  I'm really close to almost reading it.

Trisha Yearwood's Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen is another one of my faves.  They are not necessarily healthy recipes, but they are delicious.  And with a few substitutions (and The King on vacation), they can qualify.

Blogs:

Laura at I'm An Organizing Junkie is so helpful with meal planning.  I usually check her site on Sunday evening to see what we're having for the week.  

One of my friends, who may or may not be related to the doctor who started this mess, has recently started a recipe blog, What's Cookin'?! Every recipe of hers that I've tried has been excellent.  Her fish recipes were the first signs of light at the end of my hungry tunnel.  Go tell her hi.  And that I'm hungry.

Remember.  Don't even think about telling me this is good for us.

Weekend Wonderfulness: Backwards Edition

My mother-in-law, Nana, is a really great cook.

However, she's a fly-without-a-recipe kind of gal.

That is usually a positive.

Except for the no-bakes.

Every holiday/event at Nana's brings out the ginormous cookie & bar display.  She always makes the familiar favorites.  There are some new ones thrown in each time, but the standards are always available.

Here's the issue:  You know the chocolate oatmeal no-bake cookies that have been made by generations for millions of years?

Nana's lost her no-bake mojo.

She used to rock the no-bake.

(Key words = used to)

She's had some problems with dryness.  I think that each family member has brought her 12 different versions of the recipe, trying to get back what we've lost.

It hasn't worked.

No one is more frustrated than Nana.  I am pretty sure that it is constantly in the back of her mind.

So.  Because the entire King family is in desperate need of a solution, Nana has requested your help.

She recalls that her original recipe - The Good One - required bringing the cocoa, milk and sugar to a boil (she thinks for 3 minutes).  After the (possible) 3 minute boil, the mixture was removed from the heat and THEN (apparently this is where all other recipes fail) the butter is added.  Also added are the peanut butter, vanilla and oats.

She has no recollection of the measurements.

If any of you have a no-bake recipe that could heal the wound, please let me know.

PLEASE.

Or if you have a different no-bake recipe that is consistently NOT DRY, she'll try it.  

We'll make her.

Thank you for your support.

Weekend Wonderfulness

The Weekend Wonderfulness Reunion Tour almost stopped before it started.  I forgot about it until 5 minutes ago.

I'd say you might not want to get used to the recipes appearing on a regularly scheduled basis.

Shelley asked for a chocolate cake recipe.  I think that is my 2nd request in 18 months. 

I want to give you Nannie's Texas Sheet Cake.  But I can't find her recipe.  And I don't think Nannie would appreciate a call at 7 a.m. on a Saturday.  So we'll do that another time.

I'm going to share a really yummy cake that I have made for years.  It is super rich. Which, in my opinion, is a requirement for a chocolate cake.  If you don't like them rich, go eat a cookie.

Milky Way Cake

8 Milky Way bars (1 lb.)  (Yes.  I said 1 lb. of Milky Way bars.)

3 sticks of butter (Yes.  I said 3 sticks of butter.)

2 c. sugar (You get the picture?)

4 eggs

2 1/2 c. flour

1/4 t. baking soda

1 1/4 c. buttermilk

1 t. vanilla

1 c. chopped pecans

Melt bars with 1 stick of butter.  Let cool.  

Cream the other 2 sticks of butter.  Add the rest of the ingredients.  Beat well.

Pour into 3 greased & floured round cake pans.

Bake at 325 for 30 - 45 minutes.  (You have to watch it like a hawk after 30 minutes.)

I'm so sorry that this makes a 3 layer cake.  I know that it is a big pain in the patootie.  

If you want to do something different, be my guest.  I think it could work in a 9 x 13, you'll just have batter left over.  And you'll probably have to cook it longer, but what do I really know?

Frosting

2 1/2 c. sugar

1 c. evaporated milk

1 stick butter

1 c. marshmallow cream

6 oz. pkg. chocolate chips

1 c. pecans

The directions get a little troublesome for me at this point.  My recipe says to cook the sugar & evaporated milk in the microwave for 10 minutes at 70%.  

I'll just tell you that I cannot do that.  I wish you all the best in your microwave endeavors, but it ain't happenin' for me.

If you so choose to microwave, then add the rest of the ingredients to the scorched goo after the 10 minutes and stir until frosting-like.  Good luck with that.

I cook the sugar & evaporated milk on the stove.  The way God intended.  I don't know how long.  Until it is thicker than it started.  Use your best guess.

Then I remove from the heat and add the other stuff until it is frosting.

This cake is wonderful.  It is best for your waistline to make it when you are going to have a lot of people at your house to eat it.

Happy Weekend.

Keep those requests coming.

Weekend Wonderfulness

I'm so sorry to have neglected the recipe sharing for so long.

I was in a rut.

I didn't think you'd want to be a part of that.

I will try to do better. 

If there is a particular category of recipe that you'd like to see, please let me know.

I live to serve.

Ok.  

This recipe is from my most recent copy of Taste of Home's Simple & Delicious magazine.  We tried it this week and everyone loved it.

The King even asked what it was called so that he can ask for it again.

Which would be rare.  Usually he just responds to my "What would you like this week for dinner?" with "Whatever".

That gets old.

Loaded Spaghetti Bake 

12 oz. uncooked spaghetti

1 lb. lean ground beef (I used turkey)

1 c. chopped onion

1 c. chopped green pepper (I didn't do this.  Nasty.)

1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce

1 can (4 oz.) mushroom stems & pieces, drained

1 can (2 oz.) sliced ripe olives (I didn't do these nasties, either.)

2 c. shredded cheddar cheese, divided

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 carton (10 oz.) refrigerated Alfredo saucce

1/4 c. grated parmesan

1/2 c. cornflake crumbs

Cook spaghetti, drain & set aside.

In a big skillet, cook the meat, onion & pepper.  Add the spaghetti sauce, mushrooms & olives.  Add the spaghetti (why you needed the big skillet).

Put it all in a greased 9 x 13.  Sprinkle with 1 cup of the cheddar.  

In a bowl, combine the soup, Alfredo sauce & parmesan.  Spread it over the cheddar.

In another bowl (or the same one, if you are me) combine the cornflake crumbs and the rest of the cheddar.  Sprinkle over the top.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30 minutes.

I have to tell you that the cornflakes did not make the impact that I'd hoped. Maybe you can figure out what would make that part better.  Personally, I think it needed a little butter or something.  But I really have no clue.  

I just follow the recipes.  I don't create them.

This is very good.  I served it with a bagged salad and french bread.

Oh, who am I kidding.  We didn't have salad.

Enjoy.

(Shelley, I'm working on your chocolate cake recipe.)

C Is For Cookie, That's Good Enough For Me

So you know that title is from a song, right?

Cookie Monster...Cookie Cookie Cookie Starts With C?

Anyway.

I'm a day late to Fuschia's cookie party. 

Typical.

My most favorite cookie is one that we only make at Christmas.

One time.

There is some chopping involved.  And some melting.

And a few other cooking type skills that make it a project.

We like to make these cookies as a family...The King chopping, The Princess stirring, me doing everything else.

Again, typical.

The King also likes to lick the utensils and bowls, if that counts as a skill.

I don't have a picture of these cookies because it has not been The Day We Make The Cookie yet.

 

White Chocolate Christmas Cookies

8 oz. white baking bar

½ c. butter

1 c. sugar

1 t. baking soda

¼ t. salt

2 eggs

2 ¼ c. all-purpose flour

½ c. red plum jam

3 oz. white baking bar

½ t. shortening

 

Preheat oven to 375. 

Chop 4 oz. of white baking bar; set aside.  In a small saucepan, melt the other 4 oz. of white baking bar over low heat while stirring constantly; cool.

In large mixing bowl, beat butter on med-high speed until softened.  Add sugar, baking soda and salt.  Beat until combined.  Beat in eggs and melted white baking bar until combined.  Beat in the flour a little at a time – you may have to stir in the last little bit with a wooden spoon.  Stir in the chopped baking bar.

Drop dough by rounded teaspoon on parchment lined cookie sheet.  Bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges.  Cool on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes and then cool on a wire rack. 

Just before serving, melt the jam in a small saucepan over low heat.  Spoon ½ tsp. on the top of each cookie.  In a small saucepan, combine the 3 oz. of the baking bar and the shortening over low heat, stirring constantly.  Drizzle this melted mixture on the top of the jam. 

Eat.

These cookies are some kind of good.  Don't let my laziness scare you from them. Making them once a year kind of adds to the fun for us.  

Thanks, Fuschia!  I'm going to blame you for about 7 pounds!

Weekend Wonderfulness

I don't really have a recipe for you this weekend.

But, y'all. I tasted the best stuff ever this week.

Oh. My. Goodness.

I don't play around about food. I don't give unnecessary props to average tastes.

This was divine.

It was mixed with cream cheese. We enjoyed it with tortilla chips and crackers.

The jar comes with recipes...I am pretty sure that I saw one for chicken enchiladas.

How delicious.

It can only be purchased from Harry and David.

I will be ordering some immediately.

And you should, too.

Weekend Wonderfulness

I've had a few requests for the Pumpkin Cake.

It is delicious...even if the party poopers didn't eat it.

Pumpkin Cake

1 box yellow cake mix
1 can pumpkin (NOT the pumpkin pie filling)
1 1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup oil
1 t cinnamon
1/4 t nutmeg (I usually throw in pumpkin pie spice, because I'm not a fan of the nutmeg.)

4 eggs

1 stick butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pecans

Mix the first 6 ingredients with a mixer for 1 minute. Add the eggs and beat for another minute.
Pour into a greased Bundt pan.

Place the butter and brown sugar in a sauce pan and melt over low heat. Add nuts. Pour half of this mixture on the batter in the Bundt pan.

Bake 1 hour at 350.

Cool for 15 minutes. Invert. Pour the other half of the glaze over the cake. (You will probably need to reheat it to make it saucy.)

Yummy. You will love it.

Feel free to tell me how much you love it. I'm having some Pumpkin Cake confidence issues after the whole leave-half-the-cake-episode on Thursday.

It's No Wonder I Need To Lose A Few Pounds

Um. I made enough.

For an army.

I had plenty of cake left.

And I left the dip(s) at their house.

What up with people not eating cake?

Health nuts.

Anyway, because you were all so nice to give me encouragement and recipe ideas, I am going to have a cookbook giveaway!!

Leave me a comment with a way to contact you, and I will randomly pick a winner on Sunday.

I haven't tried this cookbook. I have no idea if it is good or not.

But it is called The Food You Crave. So it can't be all bad.

Now then. I'm going to have a piece of cake.

What Ever Shall I Bring?

Ok. I need some help.

What do you take when you--in a moment of weakness--signed up to bring "snacks" for a small to medium sized group?

I'm good with dessert. I love to bring dessert.

I am not so good with the appetizers. I do not love to bring appetizers.

And bringing all the "snacks" is a little confusing for me.

Here's my assignment: Bringing "snacks" for 20 people that will be gathering for Bible Study from 6:30 - 8:30.

You know that most people won't have had supper.

But I'm not taking them to raise.

My working plan is...

Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake
Artichoke Dip
Cream Cheese topped with Pepper Jelly
Pita Chips

I am not sure that is enough.

What would you do?