Smokey Mountain Chicken

Don't know what to make for supper tonight?  Try this yummy, yummy chicken.  You know you can always count on chicken when you don't know what else to make!  Seriously though, this recipe is so easy and delicious.  It came in handy last week during one of those "What do I make tonight" days.  The best part is that the sauce it's baked in makes a delicious sauce for rice.  I usually make something green for good measure and wal ah...dinner is served.  Hope it comes in handy for some of you!  It comes from one of my favorite cookbooks...Fix-It and Enjoy-It 5 Ingredient Recipes.

This is all it takes folks:

Slice a giant onion and spread on the bottom of a 9x13 pan

Lay chicken on top of this.  I usually use thighs.

Mix together 1/2 cup ketchup, 1/2 cup maple syrup (I used pancake syrup), 1/4 cup vinegar, 2 TBL mustard.

Spread sauce over chicken pieces

Bake uncovered for 45-60 minutes @ 350*

Serve over rice

Hope you enjoy it!  It's a hit with our family, even my anti rice hubby!

Here's the short version:

Smokey Mountain Chicken
1 onion sliced
3 lbs chicken pieces: legs, thighs or breast pieces
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup vinegar
2 TBLS mustard

Place onions in the bottom of 9x13 pan.  Arrange chicken over onions.  Combine remaining ingredients pour over chicken, covering completely.  Bake uncovered at 350* for 45- 60 minutes, basting serveral times.  Chicken is finished when juices run clear after meat is pierced with a fork.

Ohhhh Reuben

Ok so before you start assuming there's a new man by the name of Reuben in my life...think again!  The only man in my life is my hubby dear!  Well..other than my dad and brothers and..ok you get the drift. 

So the sandwich Reuben always kinda grossed me out.  Then I discovered I LOVE sauerkraut and then one day when my hubby and I were out to eat, he ordered a Reuben.  When his sandwich came I persuaded him to let me try it.  OH MY WORD.  It was SO yummy!  Now, it's one of my favorite things to eat. 

A few months ago I came across a recipe for Reuben Casserole and thought I had to try it.  It was delish.  Last week, my hubby said "Hey, sometime when you need an idea for supper, make that good Reuben Casserole again".  I LOVE when he does that.  So often I ask him what I should make and he says..."Whatever you make, is absolutely fine with me".  I love that he's not picky and eats anything I make, but sometimes it would be good to know if he's hungry for anything in particular.  Since he suggested it, it went right on my menu plan.  Ok, in reality I don't have a menu plan per say but would love to be that organized.  But I do kinda plan them in my head.

 

Here's the recipe.  Super simple and so so yummy!

Spread a 2lb bag of sauerkraut (rinsed and drained) in bottom of lightly greased 9 X 13 pan

Put a layer of corned beef on top of sauerkraut

Spread dressing on this

Layer of swiss cheese

Scatter buttered Rye bread cubes over the cheese. 

Bake at 350* for about a half hour-45 minutes

My mom has been saying that they want to come for supper one of these nights so I called her and asked if they like Reubens.  She was totally into it, so we had guests for supper tonight.

I also made 2 pies.  Lemon sponge and a chocloate chess pie.  They were both so good and I was a teeny bit proud of myself! : )

This is all that was left of the Reuben Casserole by the end of the night.  Everyone loved it! 

RECIPE:

2 lb. bag or can of sauerkraut

1lb. cooked corned beef, sliced thin

1 cup Thousand Island Dressing

1lb.  Baby Swiss Cheese (thick slices)

12 slices Rye bread, buttered and cubed.

Lightly grease a 9 x 13 pan.  Rinse and drain the sauerkraut.  Spread on bottom of pan.

Layer the corned beef evenly over kraut

Spread the dressing over the beef, top with cheese slices

Scatter the bread cubes over the cheese.  Press down in pan

Bake at 350* until heated through, about 35-50 minutes.

ENJOY!

Favorite Casserole

One of the things I was most scared about when I got married was the cooking.  The very idea of planning a meal every night was so intimidating to me and I was sure I would fail miserably at it!  I was much more of a "baker" growing up, and only when Mom went away would I attempt cooking.  My brothers and dad always seemed to be ok with and seemed to enjoy any cooking I did. Usually after the meal the conversation would go like this...

Me:  So what did you think

Guys:  It was good

Me: But did you like it

Guys:  It was good

Me: Should I make it again

Guys:  It was good

I am seriously laughing my head off as I type this!  It really didn't go like that but it kinda sorta did!  To them it was food and it was good.  That's all that mattered.  I could usually tell if they really liked it though.

Thennnnnnn I got married and thankfully, my husband is the world's most unpicky eater!  At least for hot cooked food that is.  Not so much a dessert man because he's not fond of fruit.  Any dessert with fruit in it is out of the question except apple pie.  He loves apple pie.  Do you have any idea how hard apple pie is to make?  I wouldn't know because I've never tried to make it, but the thought alone is intimidating!  Another very good thing about cooking for my husband is that after living on his own for 10 years and surviving on Burger King and Subway for supper and the occasional ring balogna and ice cream, he was thrilled to have a cook in the house.   I think he married me so I would cook for him!  Just kidding!  But he did hear my fears about cooking and pretty much shattered them....

I absolutely LOVE cooking for this man!  He loves anything I make and lets me know how much it means to him that I cook for him.  He loves when I try new things.  One day as he was leaving for work, I warned him that I don't know how supper is going to turn out because I'm gonna experiment and throw some things together.  He said "Go for it!  I can't wait to come home and see what you made".  I don't even remember what I made, but I do remember that it WAS good.  I really need to start writing my experiments down so I can make them again!  I love twisting recipes around and making them my own.  Bottom line...I pretty much love cooking.  Ok, I do get sick of coming up with meals all the time but the good thing is that Hubby loves leftovers too!  One meal lasts us 2 or 3 so basically I cook about 2 or 3 times a week!

I'm not really a casserole person but do love a few of them.  One of my friends brought this as a meal after one of my miscarriages and we both loved it.  I looked around in my cookbooks till I found a similar recipe and now I make it alot.  Not every week alot, but probably like every month!  I also make it for the old couple I take care of.  In fact I just made it today and that's what made me remember that I had wanted to blog about it.

I love when people post recipes with pictures.  I also love when people post simple recipes on blogs or facebook etc.  That's why I thought I would  put this on here.  It really is so simple and delicious...

6 Layer Casserole (taken from Weavertown Cookbook)

Start out by peeling a few potatoes.  I usually do about 5 potatoes and also whatever veggies I want.  I often use beans or peas instead of carrots.  For these pics I used carrots because that's what the recipe calls for!

While I'm peeling veggies, I also am frying the hamburger.  Don't ya just love being a woman and being able to multitask?!

The fun thing about this casserole is layering everything. Layer a bunch of potatoes, then the carrots and then some chopped onion. And another thing I LOVE is that you don't have to cook the veggies!

Then the hamburger, a sprinkle of pepper,

and then a layer of Velveeta cheese slices

After that use a can of cream of mushroom soup and put it over everything.  Then I also sprinkle some parsley on it.

Doesn't it look so pretty from the side?

Then cover it and pop it in the oven for 1 and 1/2 hours

Yummo....

Mine got a little burnt but we like it crispy!

Enjoy and keep it simple!

6 Layer Casserole

2Cups Potatoes

2Cups Carrots

1 medium onion, chopped

1 lb. ground beef, fried and drained

Velveeta Cheese slices

1 can Cream of Mushroom soup

Layer ingredients in order given in a casserole dish.  Bake at 350* for 1 1/2 hours 

Fiber Balls

Did you ever, all of a sudden, get a craving or an urge for something? A few weeks ago, out of the blue, I thought about these things called "fiber balls". My sis and I used to make them alot when we were younger. Since my hubby is not a fan of peanut butter, which is probably a good thing since it is a weakness of mine, it's been a while since I made them. I put off making them because I knew they would either have to be given away or they would sit in the fridge calling my name. I would've been on my own to finish them off. Not a good thing, trust me! Not that they're really bad for you and they probably are a much better choice than say, peanut butter eggs which are screaming my name these days. They are the best at Easter.

It came to me that maybe if I got my husband to "help" me make them, he would like them! Isn't that what they say about kids? If they help to make it, it's likely that they will try it! Not that my husband is a kid or anything, but it might work. And guess what? It did! It worked! He loved them. He helped me roll them all out and then tried them and declared that they would make a wonderful addition to his lunch! SCORE!

Sooo, I have been making them every now and then. It's such a win-win. I absolutely love them, and hubby does too! Plus, they are chock full of fiber which is good for you, and in my opinion healthier than cookies. They are also easy to make and fun for kids to help with.

Start out mixing 1 cup honey with 1 cup peanut butter. Sticky, sticky.

In a separate bowl, combine 3 c. oatmeal, 1 c. choc. chips (I use mini), 3/4 c. bran, (I use oat), 1/4 tsp. salt. 1 c. cocunut and 1 c. raisins.
Mix it all together and roll into balls about the size of a walnut. This gets very sticky and your hands will kinda glump together after a while.

YUMMO!

They are best kept in the refrigerator or freezer.

Enjoy!

Fiber Balls:

1 cup honey

1 cup peanut butter

3 cups oatmeal

1 cup choc. chips

1/2-1 cup bran (I use 1 cup of oat bran)

1/4 tsp. salt

1 cup coconut

1 cup nuts or raisins

Mix honey and peanut butter together, then stir in remaining ingredients. Shape into balls and freeze or refrigerate.