Faith, Food and Family

I know it's summer but it hasn't been as hot here and I was wanting chicken noodle soup. My tummy hasn't felt great today. Not sure if it was something I ate or a virus. And one of the things I like to eat when my tummy doesn't feel as good (once I feel like eating anyway) is potatoes diced and boiled in chicken broth. So I thought why not chicken noodle soup! I decided to use my crockpot because I like to make a large amount at a time. That also helped not heat the house up so I can enjoy soup. My favorite noodles to use in chicken noodle soup is the real homemade dried noodles. I found these at Kroger. They're a bit more expensive so we don't eat them often. When I make this soup, I've never used a recipe. So amounts are not exact and can be played with depending on your liking. Chicken Noodle Soup 3 cans of chicken broth 3-4 cups of water 2-3 tbsp of chicken base 2-3 cups of diced potatoes 16 oz bag of frozen veggies 2-3 cups of extra veggies of your choi...

Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! Welcome to the Bargain Meal of the Week. I am enjoying this and hope you all are too. Check out even more great recipes and bargains at $5 Dinners ! Food Lion's ad is available online so be sure to check your local ad. I noticed that they had on sale bone-in pork chops $1.99/lb Minute premium rice 14oz box 2/$4 campbell's cream of soups 5/$5 broccoli $1.69 a head I found this recipe that sounds really yummy! Pork Chops with Mushroom Onion Gravy 6 pork chops 1 tablespoon dried marjoram 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup 3/4 cup water 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 onion, chopped 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 2. Heat a small amount of oil in a large skillet, add chops and brown on both sides. When chops are almost done, sprinkle marjoram on both sides. 3. Stir together half the can of soup, water, salt and pepper. Pour int...

A good friend of mine brought by 2 large zucchini that she had. I had been wanting to make zucchini bread for awhile but never bought any for that purpose. So when she offered some extra produce she had I was excited! This is the recipe I decided to try. It's adapted from this recipe at Allrecipes . Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread 3 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon 3 eggs 1 cup vegetable oil 1 cup white sugar 1 cup of brown sugar 3 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 cups grated zucchini 1 cup chopped chocolate chips Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Add choclate chips and toss them around in the flour mixture. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini until well combined. Pour batter into pre...

Tonight we had our Mom's Night Out with MOPS and our theme was Christmas in July. So we all brought special Christmas themed dishes. It was a lot of fun! Our host even decorated her house up for the occasion. I decided to make Cracker Barrel Coca Cola Cake. It's one of my favorite cakes and very easy as well. Sorry the picture isn't the best. I hated to cut a piece before I took it to the get together. So I took a picture of it whole. It is very good though! Cracker Barrel Double Fudge Coca Cola Cake Ingredients: 1 C. Coca-cola 1/2 C. oil 1 stick Margarine 3 Tbsp. cocoa 2 C. sugar 2 C. flour 1/2 tsp. salt 2 eggs 1/2 C. buttermilk 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. vanilla Preparation: In a sauce Pan, Bring Coca-Cola, Oil, Margarine, and cocoa to a boil. In a bowl, mix the sugar, flour and salt. Pour into the boiling liquid and beat well. Add the eggs, Buttermilk, baking soda and vanilla. Beat well. Pour into a greased and floured sheet cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 min...

I have had a big can of pumpkin in the cabinet for while now. So I thought about pumpkin muffins, but then decided why not make Pumpkin Pie? So I did! I made a mix for two pies but decided to only bake one right then. I was going to bake the other one later. This turned out to be a very good thing and I will explain why. Since my daughter has been begging to help me in the kitchen I decided to let her help. Then the boys kept coming in and out of the kitchen and I was a bit stressed. The kitchen is kind of my zone and the more people in an out of it while I'm cooking just stresses me out. We did finally get the one pie in the oven. However, while it was baking I remembered I never put the sugar in it! When it was done I tasted it and it's amazing what that sugar does for pie! LOL I was really disappointed but then added sugar to the next batch of mix and baked it up Tuesday night. It turned out very yummy! I'm trying to get over being stressed out so easily in the kitchen ...

Hi! My name is Amanda. I love this idea of a Blog Hop! I would sure love to be at BlogHer so this is a nice idea for those of us who can't go. Thanks to Robin from Pensieve and Musings of a Housewife for starting this! I'll tell you a bit about myself. I'm a 30 year old stay at home mom in Tennessee. I've been married to my husband, Mike for 10 years. We have three sweet children. Princess is 9, Rocket Boy is 6 and Monkey is 4. I love the Lord and want to grow closer to Him and for Him to guide me in all I do. Cooking is a big love of mine as well as my family and friends. I haven't been blogging for long but I am really loving it! Please come back and see me again! Thanks! God bless, Amanda Don't forget to link your blog at the Blog Hop !

I love hash brown casserole. It's crispy on the outside and then there's that yummy cheesy goodness inside. Years ago I tried a recipe and the sour cream was just overwhelming to me. I like sour cream but it was most of what I could taste. So I never tried to make it again. Then I was at church one Wednesday night and they had hashbrown casserole. It was sooo good! And no sour cream taste. So I got the recipe and made it tonight. Absolutely perfect! It was hard to stop eating this one! I also made chicken tenders (just marinated in italian dressing, then seared and baked), green beans and per my daughter's request- cream style corn. It was a yummy meal! Hashbrown Casserole 2 cups of cheese (I used cheddar) 1 10 3/4oz can of cream of chicken soup 1 cup of sour cream (I only used a little over a 1/2 cup) 1/2 cup onion (diced) 1/4 cup of butter 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper 1 32ox bag of shredded hashbrown potatoes (it seems most bags are 30oz now and that was what I used) Prehe...

......with my crockpot! I used it yesterday to cook 4 pounds of chicken breast (bone-in, on sale for .99 a pound!). When I was taking it off the bone last night, I tried a bite. So tender! I usually boil my chicken on the stove or bake it in the oven. But nothing can beat how tender it was out of the crockpot! I had been very frustrated lately because every time I've cooked chicken it's been kind of tough. I probably do overcook it a bit because I am always wanting to make sure it's done. But I just haven't been happy with the texture. I know most of y'all have already been sold on crockpot cooking but I am truly amazed at how well things turn out in the crockpot. If you haven't tried it yet, please do so! Happy Eating!

Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! Welcome to the Bargain Meal of the Week. I am enjoying this and hope you all are too. Check out even more great recipes and bargains at $5 Dinners ! Food Lion's ad is available online so be sure to check your local ad. Stuffed Bacon Cheeseburgers Tyler Florence Ingredients * 1/2 cup shredded Monterey jack * 4 slices cooked bacon, chopped * 1 pound ground chuck * Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper * 4 large hamburger buns, split * Ketchup, mayonnaise, and mustard, for serving * Lettuce, sliced tomato, onion, and avocado, for serving Directions Combine the jack cheese and chopped bacon in a bowl. Put the beef in another bowl and season with salt and pepper; use a rubber spatula to mix it in. Flatten 1/4 of the meat mixture in the palm of your hand. Squeeze together about a tablespoon of the cheese and bacon mixture to make a little nugget; put it in the center of the ground beef. Bring...

I love these chocolaty, peanut buttery no bake cookies. You can't get much easier than these and so yummy. I have tried a few different recipes and this is my favorite. This one always sets up for me. I usually just pour it all out on a cookie sheet that I've covered with wax paper. Then break it apart into pieces. But for you guys, I made a few cookies for a nice picture. :) No Bake Cookies 2 cups sugar 4 tbsp of cocoa (I usually make these heaping because you can't have too much chocolate) 1 stick of butter (this time I used smart balance 50/50 sticks and they worked great!) 1 tbsp of vanilla (I always leave this out. You can add if you like but vanilla is expensive and I'd rather save it for something I can really taste it in. I've never noticed a difference with/without it) 3 cups of oatmeal (I use 1-minute quick oats) 1/2 cup of milk 1 cup of peanut butter (I like to use crunchy sometimes) In a heavy saucepan, bring to a boil the sugar, cocoa, butter and ...

The last couple weeks of the month is usually the tightest for us. Especially since I'm out of work right now. So I'm trying to implement one night every week of breakfast for dinner. Tonight we had french toast. I just added three eggs, a tsp of vanilla, some cinnamon and some milk in a bowl. I didn't measure the milk. There are some recipes I'd like to try for french toast but tonight was just going to be quick so I didn't have time to find the recipes. Served it with powdered sugar and cinnamon on top. My daughter had a little syrup on hers. Everyone really enjoyed it so I am going to have to make it more often. So here's a cost breakdown... milk- .25 cinnnamon- .05 vanilla- .25 three eggs- .25 half a loaf of texas toast- .60 (bought on sale at kroger) So about a $1.40 for that. Now, that was only for three people. My husband had eaten a bit before and wasn't hungry and my 4 year old ate a hot dog). But even if you double it for 6 people let's say, i...

One of my favorite meals is at a place called Huck Finn's in Pigeon Forge, TN. I love the "vittles" they bring out to you, served family style all you can eat. White beans, cole slaw, hush puppies, pickles and onions. I love their catfish as well. I haven't been there in a long time. Yesterday I decided to make white beans, coleslaw and corn cakes (instead of hushpuppies). I served it with dill pickles and sliced tomatoes. It was a frugal yet yummy meal! I hadn't cooked beans in the crockpot before but I looked a bit online and it seemed easy enough. This is what I did. Crockpot white beans 2 16 oz bags of white beans water bacon paste (from Soupbase.com) 1 packet of onion soup mix (I only used 1/2 and it definitely could have used a whole pack if not more) salt Look through beans and discard any stones, broken beans, etc. Rinse beans and place in crockpot. Add water (go about 2-3 inches above beans), bacon paste (I used about 2 tsp, you could use more or use so...

Sorry I've been missing for a few days. Last week got a bit busy. Then Friday and Saturday our MOPS steering team had a retreat to plan the coming year. It was so much fun! I just decided to become a discussion group leader around April. I'm very excited about the coming year of MOPS! So have you heard of MOPS? If you haven't you can go here for more information. It's for moms with kids from birth through Kindergarten. MOPS International is now offering (as of this year) a group for moms with school age children. That's definitely exciting as well! I highly encourage you to see out a MOPS group in your area if you have children. It can be such a blessing in your life and the lives of others! God bless, Amanda

Wow! Kroger has some awesome deals this week! I went today and got many good buys. I spent $60.74 and here's what I got. 3 tombstone pizzas purity milk (gallon, not pictured because the kids had already put it in the fridge) 5 smart balance 50/50 butter sticks (this was a steal! On sale for $1.49 on the mix n match 10 items thing, but had .55 coupons on each!) 1 pkg of keebler cookie (we never get these but at $1.49 it was hard to pass up!) 2 pkgs of quaker chewy dips peanut butter granola bars 2 welch's jam 1 A-1 Sauce Colgate toothpaste 3 yoplait yogurts 3 kroger brand yogurt (3 for .99!) 4 healthy choice steamers frozen dinners (I haven't tried these before but there were in store coupons that made them $1.29 I believe so I got a few to have on hand) Minute Maid Pomegrante Blueberry Juice 10 Jif Peanut butters (this was a stock up for us, you can't beat $1.49 a jar!) 2 pkg of kroger pretzels bananas texas toast wheat bread blackberries The receipt says my total savin...

Our Sunday School class got together Friday night to celebrate one of our sweet sister's birthday. So I brought brownies but decided to make them a new way. They were really delicious! Especially while they were still warm. But divine leftover as well! German Chocolate Brownies 1 box of brownies (9x13, family size box- I used low fat) 1 can of coconut pecan frosting (german chocolate) 1/2 cup of chocolate chips ingredients for brownies (on the box) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan. In a large bowl, empty the brownie mix. Add chocolate chips and toss them around in the mix. Then add ingredients for brownie (mine were oil, water and one egg but your box may vary). Mix well. Pour into pan and bake for time on box. Mine was 28 minutes. Then while the brownies are still hot, spread frosting over them. I used the whole can. Serve and enjoy! I had such a good time at the party! Lots of fun fellowship and yummy food! Then we played pictionary and that was a lot of fun. It was...

I did try this one other week but I don't think I got a good deal so I didn't post it. However, this week was different and I am excited about doing this more often. Now, since I'm new at this I messed one thing up and had to refund. Plus, there were no signs for any of this stuff so it was hard to tell which thing was the ECB's. I'm sure I'll get better at it each time. Signs being up would have helped as well. :) Here's what I got: 1st transaction: 2 rulers 1 school glue Pd with 2 ecb's OOP total- $1.06 earned $2.97 ecb's 2nd transaction: 3 pks of 8pk pens pd $2.97 in ecb's OOP total $0 earned $2.97 in ecb's 3rd Transaction: scissors pd with $2.97 ecb's OOP total- $0.02 earned $2.99 in ecb's 4th Transaction: scissors pd. $2.99 ecbs OOP total- $0 earned $2.97 in ecb's 5th transaction: 3 1 subject notebooks pd 2.97 in ecb's OOP total- $0 earned $2.97 in ecb's 6th transaction: 1 5 subject notebook school glue pd $2.97 in e...

On Saturday, I took the boys to Lowes for the Build and Grow clinic. We were supposed to all go but hubby and daughter were very tired and stayed home. The boys had a great time! They built a pirate treasure chest. It was so much fun and we'll definitely be going to the next clinic they have. I highly recommend these clinics. Check with your local Lowes and see what they have going on. And make sure to get there a little extra early on the day of the clinic. They only have 50 kits each time and once they're gone, they're gone. They were out by 10:30am and it started at 10am. And best of all, it's free!

When I made the pork fried won tons , I had bought a whole pork loin because they were on sale for $1.49 a pound. I put two meals of chops in the freezer. Then used one pound and had them grind it for the won tons. Then I roasted the rest in the crockpot. We had it for dinner that night and then ate it for lunch a couple of times. Then one night for dinner, my husband wanted quesadillas. Now my husband is the king of picky with our youngest son coming in right behind him. So he just had chicken and cheese on his. Our 6 year old had his that way too. But my daughter and I decided to do something different. Why not use pork? Pork and sauteed onion quesadillas leftover pork (I used probably 1/2 a cup or so, shredded or chunked one vidalia onion, quartered and sliced 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp fajita seasoning (I use McCormick) colby and monterey jack shredded cheese 4 tortillas butter Start heating pan over medium heat. Add about a tablespoon or two of butter in the pan. I always try to use as lit...

These are so cute! I love little burgers like this and what kid doesn't? The direct sales company that I work for had a recipe for these and while I didn't use that recipe (didn't have the ingredients on hand), I made my own version. I wanted mine pretty thin, so I used a very large jelly roll sheet pan. I ended up with 24 burgers. Very yummy! Homemade Sliders 24 ct mini burger buns (mine were made my Lewis Bakeries, I think the same people who do bunny bread. I found them at Kroger) 2.75-3 pounds of ground beef 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce 1-2tsp season salt (I basically just eye ball this, just do it to your preference) sliced cheese dill pickles mustard whatever other toppings you might want (onions, tomato, mushrooms, etc) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, mix meat, Worcestershire sauce and season salt together. In a large jelly roll pan, pat out the meat to cover the entire surface. Sprinkle a little extra season salt on top. Place in oven and bake for about...

Today was cow appreciation day at Chick Fil A. If you dress like a cow, you get free food! So what's a litte humilation for some free food, right? LOL We went tonight. I got a picture of us before we left the house. Husband refused to dress up. :) Once we got there, my husband and I start laughing so hard. I think he was a little embarrassed to be seen with us! LOL I decided to go late. We got there at 9pm. I'm thinking, they won't be busy. Well there was quite a few customers in there. None of them were dressed up. So our daughter started getting embarrassed and then our 6 year old did too. The youngest just really didn't mind. LOL Some younger guys were in there and started asking about the cow appreciation day. They didn't have any cow stuff on but the employees said that they could run around the restaurant, flapping their arms and mooing. That would get them a free milkshake. Okay, I thought it was embarrassing to be dressed like a cow but I'll take dressi...

Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! Welcome to the Bargain Meal of the Week. I am enjoying this and hope you all are too. Check out even more great recipes and bargains at $5 Dinners ! Food Lion's ad is available online so be sure to check your local ad. This week they have bone-in chicken breast on sale for .87/pound. I plan on going and stocking up. Meal #1 I don't have a recipe for this but I think what I'd like to do is get some white potaoes they have on sale (5lb bag for $2.99) and a pound of green beans ($1.49/lb). Wash and cut up 2.5 pounds of white potatoes and layer them on the bottom of the crockpot. Wash and trim the green beans and layer those in also. Salt and pepper a bit. Then top with 4-6 chicken breasts (little more salt and pepper). I think I'd be tempted to add about 1/2 cup-1 cup of liquid but I don't think you'd have to. 2.5 pounds potatoes $1.49 1 pound of green beans $1.49 2 pounds of chicken $1.74 Entire meal ...

I love my crockpot! I have had a crockpot for years and never really used it.That is until I tasted a boston butt pork roast that my friend cooked in hers. It was so tender and yummy! I couldn't believe that's what happened in a crockpot! So I decided I was going to dig out my crockpot and make one too. I made a boston butt pork roast in mine and it was really good. I do my roasts in there if I can. I never want to put another roast in the oven! Last night I cooked a pork loin in there (on sale for $1.49/lb!). It turned out so yummy and just so tender. It was delicious! And one of the best parts, it didn't heat up my house! Which is wonderful during the summer. I got my electric bill yesterday and was shocked how much it jumped from last month's. It was way more than we had planned for so any savings in electricity is very good! I have to admit, I haven't tried much other than roasting meats in it. I'd like to try some other recipes in my crockpot since I now l...

One of our favorite meals at Disney World last year was 'Ohana. It was at the Polynesian Resort and it was very yummy. We had a wonderful seat right next to the window that night and had a great view of the nightly fireworks. It was really awesome. So we decided to recreate that meal at home. First up we have Terryaki Chicken and steak tips. Now at 'Ohana, they serve everything off these skewers and everything is grilled but we don't have a grill right now. I cooked the chicken in the oven with bottled marinade on it. They don't have terryiaki chicken but I thought since we weren't grilling it would add additional flavor. For the steak tips, I put a little oil in the pan and dry the tips, then flip them over. I let them cook for a bit and then I add about a cup of beef stock and let them simmer until the liquid has evaporated. I used eye of round because it was on sale and it turned out very tender! Next up is the Pork Fried Wontons. They were so yummy! It was my fi...

I hope you all have a wonderful 4th! Enjoy your family and friends and take time to think about what an amazing thing history can be! As well as, appreciate those who have served our country so that we can remain the land of the free! God bless, Amanda

Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! Welcome to the Bargain Meal of the Week. I am enjoying this and hope you all are too. Check out even more great recipes and bargains at $5 Dinners ! Food Lion's ad is available online so be sure to check your local ad. Using chicken breasts on sale for $2.45/lb Bird's Eye frozen Veggies B1G1F (broccoli) ($1.25 a bag) yellow onions 3lb bag $1.99 Kraft shredded cheese 8oz for $1.99 Chicken Divan Chicken Divan 3-4 cups cooked chicken, cubed 20 oz frozen broccoli 7 oz fresh mushrooms 8 oz cheddar, shredded 2 Tbsp onion, minced (I use dry minced) 2 Tbsp butter 1 cup chicken broth 1 cup heavy whipping cream 1/4 cup mayonnaise 1/2 cup parmesan cheese Cook broccoli according to directions. In cooking pan, saute mushrooms and onions with butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add the cream and boil on med high heat and gradually whisk in mayo. Let it cook for about 4-5 mins until t...

I made a double recipe of this for our Ladies Home Fellowship last night. We get together once a month and usually have a themed get together. Last night it was hawaiian cruise. Our host, Wendy, did an awesome job turning her back deck into a cruise deck for us. The slight breeze made me really feel like we were in Hawaii. Well, at least I can pretend! :) Once the sun went down it was totally awesome with lights and candles. Had a great time! Here's how to make this yummy recipe. Fiesta Salad 2 cups of corn (last night I used fresh and sauteed it a bit, you can use canned, frozen, etc.) 1 avocado, diced 4 roma tomatoes, diced 1 small vidalia or red onion diced 1/2 tsp lime zest juice of half a lime handful of cilantro, chopped 4-6 tbsp of ranch dressing (just use what you want for your desired creaminess) can of black beans, rinsed and drained salt and pepper to taste Just combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix together well. This yummy and simple recipe definitely Works For Me ...