In The Kitchen With Linda Archives

In the Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

December 28, 2021 by Linda @ Linda's Lunacy Leave a Comment

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Hello! this week I have a ton of pictures to share! So lets get started!

I need an easy dinner one night leading up to Christmas. Freezer Turkey Tetrazzini made from the Thanksgiving turkey to the rescue! And it’s good, too!

Making easy meals leading up to a big holiday should be the law, or something. lol I made Slow Cooker Chicken and Spinach Stroganoff. It was so good!

My anthropologist daughter has a birthday right before Christmas. This year I surprised her with skeleton cupcakes. They came out kind of cute. lol Even if I didn’t get the heads shaped right.

I made lasagna one night. One pan for us, and a pan to take to a friend that needed a meal. I prep lasagna noodles the easy way. lol

My husband and I teamed up to compete in a Gingerbread House building contest at church. I couldn’t decide which kit to buy when I was in the store, so I got the big “estate” house. lol It was basically a mansion. Then I found out after that we only had 1 hour to build and decorate the house. Yikes!

It actually came out kinda cute. And we won the contest! The prize is basically bragging rights. lol We did win a trophy “belt” that we bring back next year. We will be the judges for next years competition, and pass on the belt then.

I’m sorry to say that our gingerbread mansion didn’t make it home. About half way home, this happened. lol Oh well it was fun anyway!!

This year, I made chocolate cupcakes, with chocolate frosting, to pass out to a few people along with their Christmas card.

I used these boxes.

Everyone seemed to like them. So I guess it was a good idea. lol

I haven’t made Cranberry Bread for a couple of years. I forgot how time consuming it is to chop little cranberries. lol The bread is worth it, though!

I made Cranberry Bread, Banana Bread, Chocolate Chip Cookies, and Spritz Cookies to send to work with my husband. My husband said everything was basically gone by lunch time, so I guess it was a hit. lol

Oh yes, they got some cupcakes, too!

The breads sliced and ready to go! They didn’t get all the bread! I have one of each in my freezer!

I had tried this once before, and it seemed to work. But it did not work this time! I put a bowl of water right next to the cutting board while I cut a couple of cups of onions for the stuffing/dressing.

The water is supposed to draw the onion “fumes” away from your eyes. It didn’t work this time! I guess these onions were just too potent! lol

Have you ever tried this? Did it work for you??

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls have been a Christmas morning breakfast tradition for years. A couple of years I substituted store bought canned cinnamon rolls. This year I didn’t buy any. And I spent Christmas Eve with the family instead of in the kitchen by myself. So while awake during the night, I realized that I did not want to get up at 5 and make the yeast dough for the cinnamon rolls. So I did a search on my phone, and found this recipe for no yeast, no rise time, cinnamon rolls. I just could not keep the rolls together, the dough was so soft. So they weren’t the prettiest. lol

They were pretty good, though. Here’s the Quick Cinnamon Rolls Recipe I used. And yes, I used paper plates for breakfast! And dinner, too!!

Before we ate our Christmas Dinner, we packed up food for a family, and dropped it off to them. Then we ate. I had a stash of food containers from take out, so I used those to pack up all the food.

Here’s the Pumpkin pie, the Apple Pie, and a container of whipped cream. There was also chocolate pie, but it didn’t make it in the picture.

Mashed potatoes, stuffing/dressing, ham, turkey, corn, green, beans, and sweet potatoes.

Everything boxed up. A cold box, with the pies, whipped cream, and a container with cranberry sauce, and a stick of butter, on the left. The hot box with everything above, and some dinner rolls on the right.

If you have never taken a meal to someone that needs one, sickness, etc., I highly recommend you try it. Whether it’s lasagna, Christmas Dinner, or anything in between. Both of you will benefit from it!

I remembered to take a picture of our food! lol A couple of people had already gone through the line, but I remembered! lol

The silverware, napkins, and butter were already on the table.

We had an awesome Christmas day with family. And food. lol I sincerely hope you did as well!

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

Now…. to answer the question that I get asked about a hundred times a day……….What’s For Dinner?

Monday – chicken or turkey – Fish filets, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, peas

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Turkey Tetrazzini, broccoli

Wednesday – Taco Night- Chicken Fajitas

Thursday – pork or chicken – Sausage Pasta Skillet

Friday – Quick & Easy – New Year’s Eve game night with the family, and snacks! lol

Saturday – Quick & Easy or Husbands Choice – Venison roast in slow cooker, with potatoes, carrots, and onions

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Soup & sandwiches, or leftovers

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In the Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

December 13, 2021 by Linda @ Linda's Lunacy Leave a Comment

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I’m back again this week with what I’ve been up to in the kitchen.! Are you shocked? lol I am! lol

One thing I’m not shocked about though, is that fact that I had a Christmas party last night and didn’t take any pictures of the food! Ugh

But I am glad that I was so busy enjoying being with everyone, and playing a Christmas gift game, that I forgot pictures. I didn’t make all the food this year, like I have done in the past. I had everyone bring a dish. It was nice not to have to stress about the food! It was all family, so no one minded. But actually, even if it was friends, most friends wouldn’t mind at all contributing a dish.

In the Kitchen with Linda

We had pasta with meat sauce, green beans, and garlic bread one night. Ok, we usually have pasta every Tuesday night! lol Check out the garlic bread made from hamburger buns! It’s a great way to use up leftover buns. It works with hot dog buns, too! One of my daughters used to separate hot dog buns, and toast them. She called it dog toast. lol

Meatloaf is a family favorite. So is mashed potatoes. So this dinner was a hit. Yum!

I guess the theme of last weeks dinners was family favorites. Because on Thursday, we had another favorite. Jag. It’s a Portuguese rice dish cooked in one pan. You can use any kind of meat you want, even leftovers. My husband said the first time his family had it, the women that made it for them put fish in it. Here’s the Jag recipe I use, that’s from my Grandfather in law, and mother in law.

Last week I told you I had been on a grilled cheese kick. Here’s one I made last week. Grilled ham and cheese. The trick is to layer cheese, meat, cheese, so the cheese can glue it all together. I used shredded cheese, but slices work well, too. And yes, I often eat while working on the computer.

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

Now…. to answer the question that I get asked about a hundred times a day……….What’s For Dinner?

Monday – chicken or turkey – Baked chicken, baked potatoes, spinach

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Spaghetti with meat sauce, broccoli

Wednesday – Taco Night- Taco Casserole, tortilla chips

Thursday – pork or chicken – Sausage Pasta Skillet

Friday – Quick & Easy – Venison roast in slow cooker, with potatoes, carrots, and onions

Saturday – Quick & Easy or Husbands Choice – Dinner out or pizza

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Lunch at church today

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In the Kitchen With Linda

December 9, 2021 by Linda @ Linda's Lunacy 2 Comments

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I haven’t shared anything from my kitchen here in a very long time. The main reason? I can’t seem to take pictures on a regular basis. Ugh! So I’m really going to be intentional about taking pictures. And then post them regularly on Monday. You’ll notice today is Thursday. lol

In the Kitchen with Linda

Our little garden gave us so many tomatoes this summer. Before the first frost, we picked all the tomatoes left on the vine. We ate them as they slowly ripened. These tomatoes below? We ate them last week, the first week of December. What a treat to have garden tomatoes in December! So good!

A few months ago, I bought a new FoodSaver vacuum sealer. And I love it! I used it to vacuum seal 14 meal size packages of sliced green tomatoes from the garden for the freezer. Some of the family loves fried green tomatoes. So they are in for a treat this winter!

My husband harvested a deer during hunting season. We process the meat ourselves. I vacuum sealed 36 packages of venison for our freezer.

This Foodsaver worked like a dream for me. I highly recommend it, if you need a vacuum sealer.

In the Kitchen with Linda - My new FoodSaver!

Is there anything better than the smell of peppers and onions cooking?? Ok maybe….a chocolate cake….and a babies head! lol

I’ve been on a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch kick lately. I spotted some cooked bacon in my freezer, and thought that sounded good. So I warmed up the bacon in the pan, pulled it out and proceeded with the sandwich. Grated cheddar cheese, bacon, and more grated cheddar cheese.

It was so good!! I just might have another one for lunch today!

In the Kitchen with Linda - Grilled Cheese with Bacon sandwich

And last, but not least, my husband had a birthday. His favorite yellow cake with chocolate frosting. Not nearly as good as chocolate with chocolate frosting! lol

In the Kitchen with Linda - Birthday Cake

I’ll be back next week with more of what I’ve been up to in the kitchen. And hoepfully, I will get back to sharing my menu, too!

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Food and the Olympics

August 6, 2021 by Linda @ Linda's Lunacy Leave a Comment

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As part of using the Olympics as a learning experience, we always make food from the host country. This year 2020, happening in 2021, the host country is Japan.

Here are some recipes that we have used so far this year. with pictures of our food!

Food & the Olympics

I started with Japanese Zucchini and Onions. Very good! I served it as a side dish with burgers. Sounds weird, but it worked. lol Everyone liked it!

After starting my Japanese cooking endeavor with a side dish, I moved on to a main dish. Bone in Chicken Curry. There is no coconut milk in this recipe, so it’s different than an Indian curry. So good! And again, everyone like this recipe.

There is no coconut milk in this recipe, so it’s different than an Indian curry. So good! And again, everyone like this recipe. I’m not a fan of dark meat chicken, but really liked it in this dish.

I made a Chicken Stir Fry. I kind of followed my recipe for Left Over Stir Fry, except I diced up chicken breast, cooked it part way, added the frozen stir fry veggies, some soy sauce, a little chicken broth, and thickened it with a little cornstarch. Instead of adding the rice to the pan, I served the stir fry over rice. So, yeah, nothing officially Japanese about this dish. lol But it was yummy! lol

My daughter made these Japanese Savory Pancakes. They are not for breakfast! They are Japanese street food. And very good!

Another night she made Japanese Rice Balls. The whole family was glad she left off the sea weed. lol Of course we didn’t know until she told us. lol But thank you Hannah for not feeding us sea weed! lol She put salmon in these rice balls. Cooked! lol And served it with salmon filets, for those that wanted more salmon. She also served them with the green recipe below.

She made this Green Bean Gomaae recipe. It might look a little messy, but it’s really good!

I think it’s a given that we would have Japanese snacks while watching the Olympics! We went to the local Asian store for ingredients for these recipes, and snacks. Then as if that bin wasn’t enough, my daughter went online and bought a bunch of different snacks, too.

These strawberry covered chocolate biscuit sticks Pocky were our favorite flavor. Yum, yum, yum. lol

Last night, my daughter made the best recipe yet. Japanese Cheesecake. Oh my! It’s sometimes called a Soufflé Cheesecake. I think that if lemon cake and cheesecake had a baby, this would be it! lol It’s such a different texture. Unbelievably good! We polished off this cheesecake in one sitting. lol But there was 6 of us, so it’s not quite as bad as that sounded. lol

We are definitely going to make sure she makes this again! lol She will probably have to make 2 at a time from now on. lol

So it’s been fun trying out new Japanese recipes. And trying new Japanese snacks. We have a few more recipes that we want to try.

Like Cucumber Sunomono. And we have some Nama Chocolate chilling in the fridge.

Whether you are using the Olympics and food as a learning experience, or just looking for new recipes to try. I highly recommend these recipes!

Check out my Olympics Activities for Kids post for some fun, and educational, things for the kids to do.

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In the Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

March 1, 2021 by Linda @ Linda's Lunacy Leave a Comment

I haven’t shared what I’ve been up to in the kitchen in quite a while. But I’m still here. In the kitchen. Making dinner. lol I still make a weekly menu. It’s a sanity saver, for sure. If you don’t make a dinner menu, I encourage you to try it. It saves me from the what’s for dinner stress.

On Friday, we were given a lot of broccoli and cucumbers. And when I say a lot, I mean a LOT.

That’s like only half of what we had. I blanched and froze all of it. So expect to see broccoli on my dinner menu a lot. lol

I love how bright the green is after blanching.

Now that’s a LOT of broccoli! I forgot to count the packages before I put them in the freezer. I did some bags sized for a side dish, and some bags sized for casseroles, or when I will be serving more people.

I vacuumed seal most of the bags. I ran out, so had to finish 4 or 5 bags in regular freezer bags. I need a new vacuum sealer, I’ve worn mine out. It didn’t do as good a job vacuuming on some of the bags. Let me know what your favorite vacuum sealer is in the comments so I can start shopping.

We had 6 bags of cucumbers. We can eat a lot of cucumbers, since we like them for snacks, too, but can’t eat that many! So I started researching if I could freeze cucumbers. I found out you can! I made a batch of frozen cucumber salad to try. It tasted good before it went in the freezer, so we’ll see if we like it later this week. If so, I’ll make more!

I saw that you can freeze plain sliced cucumbers for putting in drinks, and for making dips. So I flash froze a large tray. Then repackaged in a bag when frozen. I froze the cucumber salad in bags, too, as they take up less room in the freezer than containers.

I read that the best way to store cucumbers is to wrap them in paper towels, and place them in the fridge in bags. so my husband helped me roll the cucumbers in paper towels and bag them. I left one bag alone, so I can compare them to see if the paper towel covered ones really last longer.

What have you been up to in the kitchen?

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

Now…. to answer the question that I get asked about a hundred times a day……….What’s For Dinner?

Monday – chicken or turkey – Chicken Broccoli Casserole

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Spaghetti with meat sauce, zucchini

Wednesday – Taco Night- Venison – not sure if it will be tacos yet though lol

Thursday – pork or chicken – Baked chicken, rice, beets

Friday – Quick & Easy – Venison roast in slow cooker, with potatoes, carrots, and onions

Saturday – Quick & Easy or Husbands Choice – Cheeseburgers on the grill with all the fixin’s, frozen cucumber salad, onion rings

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Potato soup with cheese and bacon, garlic bread

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday

In the Kitchen with Linda

January 11, 2021 by Linda @ Linda's Lunacy Leave a Comment

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It was a busy week in my kitchen last week. Our daughter gaves us this big bottle of maple syrup that is made in the town where she lives. So pancakes were in order. The syrup is so good! If you find it at a store near you, I highly recommend it!

We had venison steak one night from a deer that my husband got. It’s always a popular dinner here.

I made quinoa pilaf one night as a side. I cooked some onion in some butter then added some bouillon, the water and quinoa according to the package directions. When done, I stirred in some peas and carrots. It was really good. And a different way to eat quinoa.

I had looked at the weather when I was planning the menu and picked a day when it was supposed to be a little a warm. If you count 40’s as warm. Except it didn’t work out the way I planned it ended up only being in the 30’s that day. I grilled hamburgers for dinner anyway. Because it was on the menu. lol

Photographic evidence. lol

It’s always worth cooking burgers on the grill. They taste so much better than cooking on the stove. And no mess in the kitchen!

I made a pork tenderloin that I had gotten on sale. I used a dry rub on it and it was so good!

And since I had to go out on Friday I planned ahead and put a venison roast in the slow cooker. Along with carrots, onions, and potatoes. It came out great as always.

I haven’t made any desserts since Christmas. Guess I was having a nice break from baking. lol I have making brownies on my to do list this week, though.

What have you been up to in the kitchen?

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

Now…. to answer the question that I get asked about a hundred times a day……….What’s For Dinner?

Monday – chicken or turkey – leftovers!

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – OYO – I have all day appointments, so everyone is on their own!

Wednesday – Taco Night- Venison – not sure if it will be tacos yet though lol

Thursday – pork or chicken – Jag – a rice dish that is a family favorite

Friday – Quick & Easy – Venison roast in slow cooker, with potatoes, carrots, and onions

Saturday – Quick & Easy or Husbands Choice – We’re moving cabinets in the kitchen today, so probably take out!

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Potato soup with cheese and bacon, garlic bread

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday

*This post contains affiliate links. If you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission.

In the Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

November 2, 2020 by Linda @ Linda's Lunacy Leave a Comment

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I haven’t shared what I’ve been up to in the kitchen lately. But rest assured I have been hard at work in the kitchen. Well, some days. Some days, I choose quick and easy. lol

We cleaned our freezer out and found quite a few packages of venison left from last years hunting season. So we moved those to the top of the freezer so we could use it up. I vacuumed sealed it all, so it’s all still just like it was when I froze it last year.

I used just over two pounds to make venison jerky in the dehydrator. I sorta followed a recipe, sorta didn’t. lol All the guys liked it so I guess it was ok. I don’t usually eat jerky, but I tasted this, and I thought it was good, too. I’ll share the recipe soon.

With the 2 pounds of meat, I got a quart jar and a half, loosely packed. For longer storage, I vacuum seal it. But since I haven’t made any jerky since last year, I won’t have to worry about long term storage with this batch. lol

I had some prepared taco meat in the freezer, along with a bag of hash browns. So they became a Taco Hash Brown Casserole that my family loved! Recipe coming soon!

I played with my Sausage Pasta Skillet Dinner recipe to make the sauce separate from the pasta. It came out ok, but not just right. So I’ll try again another time. I want to perfect it as a sauce so the recipe can be made gluten free.

I made a venison stew in the pressure cooker over the weekend. It came out great! I made some homemade biscuits to go with it. The perfect dinner for a cold, windy, fall day.

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

Now…. to answer the question that I get asked about a hundred times a day……….What’s For Dinner?

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Jag

Monday – chicken or turkey – Herbed chicken with potatoes and carrots

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Cincinnati Style Chili, cornbread, green beans

Wednesday – Taco Night- Steak, rice, beets

Thursday – pork or chicken – pork roast, fried rice

Friday – Quick & Easy – leftovers

Saturday – Quick & Easy or Husbands Choice – I can’t decide! Guess I’ll let him pick that day lol

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday

*This post contains affiliate links. If you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission.

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

In the Kitchen with Linda

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

In the Kitchen with Linda

Food & the Olympics

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

In The Kitchen with Linda & Dinner Menu

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