I was able to fit in a little more cooking last week. And I even tried a new recipe! That I forgot to take a picture of! That annoys me. I am often so immersed in eating dinner with my family that I forget to take pictures. That’s a win for the family. I just wish I would remember to take a picture before we start eating.

 

I did remember to take pictures of the venison roast I made in the slow cooker.

 

Believe it or not, I had some left over. So the next night, I cut up the meat, put it back in the gravy, and served it over mashed potatoes. There were some carrots left, so I served them with gravy, too. I served it with corn, too. Serving leftovers over mashed potatoes, or some kind of pasta or rice, is an easy way to stretch leftovers into another meal.

 

And my family will pretty much eat any thing served over mashed potatoes. lol

 

 

I went to a college open house with my daughter and we stopped for cake afterwards. She ordered plain cheesecake. I ordered this 7 layer chocolate cake. It was huge! I, a admitted chocoholic, could not finish it! The slice was at least 4 inches wide. Huge! But oh, so good!

 

 

I have another new recipe on the menu this week. A pan fried venison steak with pan gravy from a venison cookbook that I have. I think the family will like it. If not, it’s a good thing I’m serving it with mashed potatoes! lol

 

 

 

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?

 

Saturday – quick & easy- Dinner out

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Fish fillets with homemade tartar sauce, french fries, sugar snap peas

Monday – chicken or turkey – Chicken strips, macaroni & cheese, stir fry vegetables

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Spaghetti & meatballs, peas, salad

Wednesday – Taco Night- Venison roast with potatoes, onions, carrots

Thursday – pork or beef – Skillet Sausage Pasta, green beans

Friday – venison  – Old Fashioned Venison Steaks with Pan Gravy, mashed potatoes, corn

 

 

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday

 

 

We still had easy meals last week, but I added some new meals to the menu.

 

While at the hospital at found some easy recipes to try. Since we stopped at the store and did our weekly shopping on the way home, I tried one recipe that very night. Veggie Mac & Cheese. It uses boxed mac and cheese, and frozen vegetables. I deviated a little from the recipe, since some of the kids didn’t want the veggies mixed in the mac & cheese. Instead of cooking the veggies in with the macaroni, I cooked them separately. Those that wanted them mixed in, did it themselves.

 

 

It was very good. Even though I’m not a fan of boxed mac & cheese. Easy to make, and was nice with the fish fillets. Some of the kids had chicken, since they don’t like fish. I have a feeling, though, that some of the kids will be asking for boxed mac & cheese all the time now.

 

One of my families favorite meals is homemade meatball subs.  Last week, we had semi-homemade meatball subs. I bought frozen meatballs, jarred sauce, and sub rolls from the deli. They are seriously easy. Dump the meatballs and sauce in a pan. Heat until meatballs are hot. Serve on bread with cheese. We used provolone and parmesan. Because 2 cheeses is better than 1! lol

 

 

I have another new, easy recipe on the menu this week. Orange Pepper Steak. Hope the family likes it!

 

 

 

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?

 

Saturday – quick & easy- Fish Filets with homemade tartar sauce, Veggie Mac & Cheese

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Homemade Meatball Subs, we had some leftover from the other night

Monday – chicken or turkey – Chicken strips, tater tots, green beans

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – pizza, carrots & celery

Wednesday – Taco Night- Venison roast with potatoes, onions, carrots

Thursday – pork or beef – leftovers

Friday – venison  – Orange Pepper Venison Steak, oven roasted potatoes, broccoli

 

 

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday

 

 

I have been so busy going to the hospital, and doing everything else I have to do, that I didn’t take any food pictures last week! We did eat every day. Promise. lol

 

I did share a recipe last week, Easy Chicken Curry. I have been making this recipe for a couple for years, but never shared it here. It’s easy to make, flavorful, and it’s not too spicy. My family loves it.

 

 

This week looks as busy as last week for me.  So we are having mostly easy meals again. Easy meals get boring after a couple of weeks. I sure do miss spending time in the kitchen trying new recipes!

 

 

 

 

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?

 

Saturday – quick & easy- Deer steaks, homemade macaroni & cheese, corn

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Pizza

Monday – chicken or turkey – Chicken strips, tater tots, green beans

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Skillet Sausage Pasta, broccoli

Wednesday – Taco Night- Venison roast with potatoes, onions, carrots

Thursday – pork or beef – leftovers

Friday – venison  – Venison Steak, oven roasted potatoes, broccoli

 

 

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday

 

 

 

I’ve been using this Easy Chicken Curry Recipe for a couple of years now. I just recently realized that I hadn’t shared it here!

 

It’s a fairly quick and easy recipe to make. It’s a favorite with my family, too. It has a spicy flavor, but it’s not spicy hot. I don’t like spicy hot food, and this recipe is perfect to me.

 

 

 

Easy Chicken Curry Recipe

 

2 tablespoons oil, divided

1 onion, sliced

3 tablespoons red curry paste

2 chicken breasts, cubed

Salt and pepper to taste

1 1/2 cups chopped carrots

1 1/2 cups broccoli florets

3 cloves of garlic, minced, or 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 cup chicken broth, I use water & chicken bouillon paste

1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes

1 1/4 cups coconut milk

 

In a large skillet, cook the onions and curry paste in 1 tablespoon of oil. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for 5 minutes.

Add remaining oil, cubed chicken, and season with salt & pepper.

Cook the chicken until golden on all sides. Add carrots, broccoli, garlic, & basil. Cook & stir for 2 minutes.

Add chicken broth, tomatoes, and coconut milk. Bring to a simmer.

 

 

Let simmer for about 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and sauce has begun to thicken.

 

Serve over rice.

 

 

This recipe serves 6-8 people when served over rice.

If you  happen to have leftovers, it’s good the next day, too!

 

 

The most important thing that happened in my kitchen over the last two weeks was a birthday dinner! Mine! haha

 

We grocery shopped on the way home from visiting my mother in the hospital that night, so I bought a frozen lasagna for dinner. Since we arrived home at dinner time, dinner was late that night! lol It takes forever for a frozen lasagna to cook! I guess I would know that if I ever bought frozen lasagna. lol So we had a late, but good dinner that included Garlic and Herb bread knots from the store. They came in a foil bag, and you put the whole bag in the oven, shaking before serving to distribute the garlic and herbs. They were really good!

 

 

My daughter made cupcakes for my birthday! Happy Birthday to me! lol

 

 

One night my son cooked before I got home from the hospital. He made chili and poured it over macaroni. It was good. And so nice to not have to cook!

 

 

Our pizza nights have consisted of frozen pizza lately. No time to make the pizza from scratch. I always serve it with carrot sticks or celery.  With Ranch dressing, of course. Plus, pizza crust tastes good dunked in Ranch, too!

 

 

I put some venison in the slow cooker one morning before going to the hospital, along with some taco seasonings. Not from a package. I stand there and pour some of this and some of that in, until it smells like a taco. lol One of my daughters prepped the taco fixings. So I had it easy when I got home from the hospital that night, too. I made myself a Taco Salad, while the rest of the family had tacos.

 

 

So while we have still been eating quick and easy meals, we have been eating good! Of course, we need more vegetables. My husband and I eat more than the teenagers. Teenagers are worse about eating vegetables than toddlers!

 

 

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?

 

Saturday – quick & easy- Tacos

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Leftovers

Monday – chicken or turkey – Chicken strips, tater tots, corn

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Pizza, carrot sticks, celery

Wednesday – Taco Night- Venison roast with potatoes, onions with mushroom sauce, carrots

Thursday – pork or beef – Venison Steak, oven roasted potatoes, broccoli

Friday – venison  – Homemade Chicken Soup with noodles

 

I’m changing up the meal plan this week to better fit our schedule. Menus are a tool. If it’s not working, change it!

 

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday

 

 

I had some chicken and rice left over last week. Leftover chicken and rice can be rather boring. So I threw together a casserole type dish.

 

I used two cooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, each one cut into 4 pieces. I laid those around the edges of a small roasting pan. I put the about 3 cups of leftover rice in the middle and spread it flat. I then placed some thinly sliced raw onion over the top of everything. I sliced it really thin so it would cook quickly. I seasoned with salt, pepper, and a little onion powder. You can never have too much onion flavor! Unless you are asking my 15 year old son who hates onions. lol

 

For the sauce, I mixed about a half a cup of water with two teaspoons chicken flavored bouillon. I then filled the measuring cup up to the two cup mark with heavy cream, stirred it all together and poured it over the chicken and rice.

 

I baked it covered for 30ish minutes.

 

 

I served it with broccoli and my family practically licked the pan clean! Easy and tasty. My kind of meal!

 

 

 

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?

Saturday – quick & easy- Leftovers – Chicken and Rice, broccoli

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – Breakfast!

Monday – chicken or turkey – Skillet Sausage Pasta, peas

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Pizza, carrot sticks, celery

Wednesday – Taco Night- Venison Tacos with all the fixin’s

Thursday – pork or beef – Spaghetti & meatballs, green beans

Friday – venison  – Venison roast with potatoes, onions with mushroom sauce, carrots

 

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday

 

 

I was stuck in the house for most of last week due to snow and ice. So I had time to do a little cooking!

 

One night, while the family was having leftovers, I felt like having a big salad. Romaine lettuce, roma tomatoes, celery, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, tuna, and french salad dressing. Yum!

 

 

I usually cook our roasts in the slow cooker. Since it was so cold out, I cooked it for a couple of hours in the oven. It came out perfect. My husband made the mashed potatoes! He was bored stuck in the house. lol

 

 

We all love lots of butter on our mashed potatoes. My daughter made me laugh when she made this mashed potatoes tower. She sealed the butter in so it would melt. lol Hey, it worked! lol

 

 

I made breakfast for supper one night. We had turkey bacon, fried potatoes, eggs from our chickens, toast, and orange juice. Always a family favorite.

 

 

Since I was snowed in, I had time to try a new recipe. Pizza Pasta Skillet Dinner. It was a hit with my family! In fact, we sat around the table talking about what we could do to make it better with different variations. Look for the recipe  coming soon!

 

 

How do you know that I am a real person that cooks all this food myself in my kitchen? You can tell by the tomato splatters on my stove! lol That’s real life! lol

 

 

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?

Saturday – quick & easy- Venison Roast with onions cooked in the oven, mashed potatoes, broccoli

Sunday – soup & sandwich day – leftovers

Monday – chicken or turkey – Oven Baked Chicken, rice, beets, peas

Tuesday – pizza/pasta – Pizza, carrot sticks, celery

Wednesday – Taco Night- Venison Tacos with all the fixin’s

Thursday – pork or beef – Spaghetti & meatballs, green beans

Friday – venison  – Venison roast with potatoes, onions with mushroom sauce, carrots

 

For more ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday