Lately..

Four days after my last blog post, we welcomed Owen in to our life three weeks early. It was a whirlwind and pretty much has been since then. A wonderful whirlwind, for sure. Our wonderful friends and family took great care of us and provided us with so many great meals over the past three months. It's just about time to go back to school, so meals will need to be planned and made and all that, so I'll be revisiting a lot of old recipes.... hopefully updating some terrible pictures, too!

(Freezer) Fake-out Starbucks Breakfast Sandwiches

As I was looking for freezer recipes, I figured I should probably do something other than just "dinner" type foods. I made some pancakes (they're great reheated in the toaster) and a double batch of these breakfast sandwiches, which Norris says are amazing (he is my eager taste tester). I used the whole wheat 100 calorie English muffins and the baked 9x13 pan of eggs method here and it worked so great. I know I will appreciate a breakfast that is filling and full of protein. I am sure these will be made again!

Fake-out Starbucks Breakfast Sandwiches (links to recipe)

from Thriving Home Blog

(Freezer) Ranch Cheddar Burgers

Another item to add to the freezer stash. I froze half and cooked half for dinner. Norris said they're really good, so I'm looking forward to trying them in a month or so! I followed the freezer instructions on these, also. Norris says the only thing to change would be to add more ranch flavoring next time, so I guess there will be a next time! Much better than those frozen burger patties (although those definitely aren't a terrible thing!).

Ranch Cheddar Burgers (links to recipe)

from Once a Month Mom

(Freezer) Mexican Chicken and Rice

We are within a few weeks of meeting our little man, so whenever I have enough energy and not too much swelling going on (so that combo doesn't happen too terribly often!), I am trying to get a meal stashed in the freezer. Norris keeps reminding me that he can cook for us, but I know we'll both appreciate having some things stored away to just pull out and heat that doesn't include frozen boxed pizza.

I can't attest to the flavor of this dish yet as it is in my freezer still, but I am already looking forward to eating it. I do know that the rice is awesome! I froze cooked rice for the first time recently and it reheated perfectly, so I am excited to have this (x2) in our freezer. I followed her freezer directions and this was really quick and easy to prep for the freezer. I think it would also be good in the crockpot if you don't have/don't want to use a grill.

Mexican Chicken and Rice (links to recipe)

from Once a Month Mom

Pea Salad

Yes, I do still exist. If you have seen me lately, you know I am definitely still eating, too! For a few weeks, I didn't get it together to make lunches for the week and have been eating a lot of cucumbers, hummus, and Greek yogurt (guess it could be worse!), but I got myself in gear this week enough to make this. Will be eating with a piece of fruit every day and maybe a few crackers. This would be a great cookout side dish this summer!

 

 

Fresh Pea Salad

adapted from Closet Cooking

Yield: 4 side dishes

2 cup peas
2 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/4 cup cubed cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons chopped red onion
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

Mix everything and chill in the fridge.

Creamy Parmesan Orzo

This is a quick and excellent side dish recommended to me by a wedding friend! You could sub rice instead of orzo (it's cheaper and more readily available), dried basil instead of fresh, etc. and still get great flavor. Not quite the same as fresh and orzo, but still a great side dish!

 

Creamy Parmesan Orzo

Good Old-Fashioned Pancakes

I think this is my favorite "regular" pancake recipe I have ever made. Nothing will ever beat my dad's pancakes, but these were good stuff, super simple, and made with ingredients most people have in the kitchen. I like all the oatmeal, fruit, wheat, etc. pancakes, but I celebrated snow day #4 (are we really still celebrating or ready to go back to school and get this done??) with pancakes.

Good Old-Fashioned Pancakes