It is Soooo Good

Can this Paleo Diet be this good and this good for you and the same time?

Here’s proof! Tell me!

I say a resounding YES!

This is probably one of the easiest and most tasty I’ve done.

Crockpot Chicken Vegetable Soup

3 skinless chicken leg quarters

1/2 lb. baby carrots

4 stalks of celery, cut to your preference

1 yellow onion, julienned

Water, just to cover

No Salt, Pepper, Mrs. Dash to taste just sprinkled over top, layered according to order I listed.

I let it cook about 3 hours on high, then added 2 cups of hot water with 2 bouillon cubes dissolved, poured in at the side, then let it cook about another hour on low.

I let it cool enough then to dish up in a souffle casserole dish and refrigerate overnight.  Had this for lunch….the next day.  Excellent.  My husband made a pot of rice on the side to have with his.  I love it just the way it is.  It’s breakfast time right now as I type this.  May have that instead of eggs. Hmm. Well, maybe I’ll have it for lunch after Church!

(Oh, I know it’s not tomorrow but I had that post in my Drafts a couple days and didn’t realize it.)

Bless us O Lord, in these, Thy gifts, which we are about to receive.  In Thy Bounty, through Christ our Lord, Amen! (a table blessing we often said during my childhood)

Butternut Squash Soup

For lunch…

Recipe…

1 4-5 lb. Butternut squash cut into chunks

1 yellow onion julienne sliced

3 celery stalks thinly sliced

1/2 bell pepper chopped

Fresh Chives, several sprigs cut with kitchen shears

Few sprigs of Italian Oregano

Original blend Mrs. Dash, Black pepper, No Salt to taste

2 Chicken bouillon cubes dissolved into 2 cups water

2 cups water

Blend all together, cook down, and I thought about purée, but decided against it, just used a hand held vegetable masher.  Oh my is it ever good.  Just right!  Made it up as I went along.
And for dessert.. Blueberry Lemon Cream Cheese pound cake..

Recipe…

1 BC Lemon Cake Mix

3 eggs, room temp

8 oz. cream cheese

1/2 c. Canola oil

Using mixer blend till smooth, about 2 minutes.

2 c. Fresh Blueberries rolled around in flour to evenly distribute fruit

Bake @ 350 degrees for 1 hour.  I turn 180 degree turn every 15 minutes of cooking.

This recipe was in the local newspaper from my childhood/early adult life and I grabbed it, used ever since.  I bake it for Cake Auctions for Youth Fundraisers.  Until last year $28.00 was the top price raised,  another record $55.00!  The hometown I earlier referred to is Hattiesburg, MS and in the past couple years  I learned that a friend there does the same thing with this very cake.  She must’ve gotten the same paper..JS
Make it!  Enjoy!  Raise funds for your Youth Group! See folks saved for eternity!

Throwback Cream Soup Recipe…Well, ‘Sort Of’

A few days ago I used some small Pork Cutlets with rice, some chopped veggies and yes, taboo I know, Campbell’s Cream Soups.  There are 3 of us, I had 12 Cutlets, so I’m expecting a couple meals from this at least.  Two guys, son is soon to be 18 and hubby just loves my cooking.  When I went back to the casserole … Let’s say..all that will be available is the rice.  Must’ve been okay. Passed with 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟!  What can I say!  (BTW) just 2 cutlets on top of rice first day..2nd day rice. Only!

  
Recipe:

I each green & red pepper, chopped

1 bunch green onions (I like to use a good bit of the green), thinly sliced

3 celery sticks, sliced

I small can pimiento, chopped

2 can Campbell Cream soups, Celery & Golden Mushroom, Healty Choice because they’re lower in sodium

1 can diced tomatoes

Combined all above, stirred well with 1 1/2 c. uncooked rice, 2 1/2 soup cans hot water and some No Salt, black pepper and placed in a 13×9 baking dish sprayed with oil.  Sprinkled original blend Mrs. Dash on each side of Pork cutlets.  Baked at 380 degrees, uncovered, about an hour, or more just to be sure rice was completely done.  I did turn cutlets over about half way through…yes, a big hit!

Shrimp Alfredo with ‘Shrooms on the Side

Our sweet child is fond of many things, however mushrooms does not make that list, so I sautéed them in garlic & butter to serve a la carte.

Fettuccini noodles were my choice of pasta for this meal, and since I have a potted plant of Chives growing at the front door I cut some of them adding with EVOO and folding over, adding some minced garlic there, too.  No Salt & Pepper to taste as well.

Fresh shrimp (3 lbs.), one each red, yellow & green bell pepper, 1 lg. onion and garlic.  After peeling & cleaning shrimp, I sautéed onion & bell peppers in EVOO adding Shrimp in the last few minutes also minced garlic, about 1 tsp.  Seasonings I used are No Salt, pepper, Mrs. dash, Italian Seasoning.

I made an Alfredo sauce with canned Evaporated milk, corn starch for thickener, No Salt, pepper, Basil.  As the sauce thickened I used 2% milk whisking away to blend with no lumps!

Since the mushrooms were a la carte I decided to follow suit with noodles, Shrimp & Veggie mixture, Alfredo sauce and grated Parmesan cheese.  As much as my hubby loves grilled shrimp with Cocktail Sauce I had some of that just in case.

Everyone came away with clean plates!

  
   

Awesome Midweek Meal

  
Multi Layer dip for some new awesome tortilla chips I found; ie. Sweet Potato & Multi Grain with Quinoa, Sesame & Sunflower Seed, among other things I’m excited to try.  Of coarse our teen is not one to try Tortilla chips other than either white or yellow corn, so those are there, too.  The dip had refried beans on bottom, then Guacamole, slice black olives, sour cream, salsa and last layer Mexican Cheese.  

Thawed & sliced 3 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken tenderloins, chopped 1/2 large onion and sautéed in EVOO till done (browned)!  Served with small white corn soft tortillas.  

I haven’t had these carrots in a good long time, but yes, with this meal, we enjoyed them.  Love getting these big fat locally grown carrots, cleaned outside with vegetable peeler then thickly sliced about 5-6 carrots, poured French Dressing, maybe half bottle, over them along with 1/2 Juliene cut large onion, stirred to mix well, covered with aluminum foil & baked in 400 degree oven about an hour.  So delish & tender.

Green Beans are Steamables that I just added Mrs. Dash & EVOO to.   We love the whole beans. 

Fresh unsweet tea.  

Excellent midweek meal.

Dr. Pepper Roast, Oh My!!!

Last week a Facebook friend posted about making a Dr. Pepper Roast for her hubby’s Birthday celebration! I was intrigued and decided I should do so!  We had purchased and excellent bargain at a local grocer, $1.69 lb. for a HUGE Pork section.  I had a 5 lb. section set aside for a special meal, hubby cut up maybe 3 lb. for an upcoming Outback Stew, still 2 2.5-3 lb. roasts to be creative with in freezer.  I had most ingredients to throw this awesome meal together, so just got a couple things.

Recipe:

5 lb. roast

3.5 c. Dr. Pepper

1 15oz. Can Tomato sauce

3 fat carrots, thickly sliced

1 yellow onion, julienned 

No Salt & Pepper, to taste

Sprinkle top with dried Parsley

I assembled all of the above in my Slow Cooker, let cook all day, and couldn’t get it out of my mind all day. When I got home, carrots were still too firm for our liking so I cooked 1.5-2 hours more but on Hi after turning roast & reserving 2-2.25 c. liquid for gravy making.  Then I also prepared rice with both water & liquid from roast.  What a feast fit for a King & Queen.  Little effort.  Little out of pocket expense.  Big flavor.  Big enjoyment.  Great health benefits.  

  

I was in NEED of some Fresh

   
 

I also noticed my sweet Hubby had taken some bacon from freezer and had thawing in fridge, so I made sure t get the Tomatoes in photo plus some Lettuce.  He was certainly a Happy Camper! 😉. He’s so much a Meat & Potatoes Guy, so we got a small bag of potatoes…

Those Brussels Sprouts were fresh & locally grown so I cut them in half lengthwise, nestled into EVOO, S&P, a light sprinkling of Lemon & Pepper, I cut a few sprigs of Chives & sprinkled some Italian Seasonings. Baked on each side 20 minutes, total of 40 minutes.  When I turned them out into serving bowl I lightly sprinkled Nutmeg over & then stirred over a couple times.  So De~Lish! 

  

TTFN 

Fresh Veggies Oh My

We have a great Farm not very far from and I just love to peruse their fare.  Yesterday I was able grab some beautiful, crisp, dark green peppers, some small red potatoes, and some green, turning and red, red tomatoes.  There are only 3 of us and usually only 2 who eat veggies so I really didn’t need much.  What an awesome bounty!  Thank You LORD!  Before coming home I stopped at a friend’s house with the purpose of signing up as a Plexus Slim Ambassador and did.  As I was gathering my things to leave my sweet friend bagged up some wonderful cucumbers and acorn squash.  The LORD has blessed!  What an awesome couple skillets of natural foods.  I mean to tell you, I just don’t know what could be better.  I’ll prepare some seared Salmon in Olive Oil with onion & bell pepper.  With 4 large female peppers still to use I’ll stuff them.

   

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Ain’t Nothin’ but a Quiche ~ Oh My!!!

This gallery contains 6 photos.

Let me just tell you, Friday was an extremely busy day!  An awesome friend, kindred sister, you name it, we’re cut from the same mold, etc. etc. etc.,  whose niece is a novice Premier Designs Stylist, I along with several other friends are devoted to investing into her life by hosting shows, buying from each […]

My little garden of herbs.  Yep, that’s really my garden of herbs.  Just a few in a pot all scrunched together.  A friend gave me some Chives she had separated from some of what she had, I got a small plant of Sweet Basil and of Oregano and had to have a small plant of Marigolds.  Well, I am so NOT the best gardener in the world, understatement for sure.  I had this in the kitchen window and of course it was just not doing well, so I put it outside by the front door.  Yep, that did the trick and I never fail to water it everyday (hot & humid)!  Doing well now.  I cut from it several times a week and boy is that good for it.

This is where I get the herbs I use in so many of my recipes.  Now you know, a little goes a long way.

Just thought you’d like to know.