Pancake muffins are all the rage on Pinterest. I decided to give them a try. To say they were a huge hit in my house would be an understatement. Big W couldn’t stop raving about them…or eating them. You could make these tomorrow morning if you have pancake mix and syrup.
Simply mix any pancake mix per usual. Add 1/4 cup maple syrup. [I didn’t have “real” maple syrup, so I used Golden Griddle.] Add toppings if you choose. I added chocolate chips, but bananas or blueberries would be delicious too. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
And there you have it. Pancakes for a family on the run. [Or for boys that don’t get out of bed on time and have to eat in the car on the way to school. Just saying.]
Our week of meals. I hope you can find at least one meal for your menu next week. And yes, I may have a small obsession with quinoa. You can always substitute rice in its place. {Do you have a friend that would find these plans helpful? There are easy share buttons at the end of the post. Please help me spread the love! Thank you so much for reading.}
Meal 1 :: Best-Ever Barbequed Ribs [sans the barbeque] These really are amazing ribs on the grill. We made them all summer. Big W begged for ribs, but I wasn’t about to step outside to the barbeque with the temp hovering around 45 degrees. They are pretty delicious right out of the oven too. [I used Rub with Love Smokey Barbeque Rub.]
These had a kick…in a good way. My kids don’t like “spicy”, so I left a few pieces out of the marinade and made them plain chicken fingers with the tortilla chip crumbs. It was an easy solution and we were all still eating the same meal! [You could easily use breadcrumbs and bake the chicken as an alternative to pan frying.]
Meal 3:: Breakfast for dinner. You choose. We had french toast and chicken sausage. Everyone loves breakfast for dinner in my house!
Meal 4:: Asian Fried Quinoa I modified this recipe a bit. I didn’t have a lot of time for dicing and shredding veggies, so I used a package of shredded carrots, cabbage and broccoli from the produce section. Tasted great, and saved a ton of time.
Meal 5:: Chicken and Dumplings {gluten free} This recipe uses gluten free Bisquick. The dumpling are light and fluffy, but you can use regular Bisquick and follow the directions on the box. I used fresh carrots and celery [instead of a frozen mix] and a rotisserie chicken from the deli. This was my husband’s favorite meal of the week!
We totally splurged on Easter dessert. I guess we felt like we hadn’t got our quota of chocolate eggs, so we had chocolate fondue after dinner. Using this recipe, the chocolate was ready in a matter of minutes. We kept it warm in a circa 1970 fondue pot [complete with Sterno cooking fuel] that my mother-in-law brought over.
Long forks in hand…..we dove in! Our dipping choices were pound cake, bananas, marshmallows, mini Reese’s peanut butter cups, and strawberries.
There were even a few left over chocolate chip cookies that found their way into the chocolate.
Our family brainstormed a few ideas for next time:
pineapple
mini snickers
rice crispy treats
grapes
pretzel sticks
cookie dough balls[made without eggs]
While fondue is not a dessert you do would do every day, for special occasions it doesn’t get much better.
This fondue pot is so retro fabulous! I absolutely love it. Guess what? [Lucky, lucky me. I got to keep it.]
Our week of dinners. My hope is that you can find one meal to make this week. {My absolute favorite this week was the Pot Sticker Burgers. Oh. my. goodness!] I am “off” next week. Spring Break = a week of no cooking for this mom. I will post again once I am back in the kitchen.
**This recipe calls for Coconut Aminos. This is a soy free substitute for soy sauce. Since we are gluten free in my house, this was a great find! I was too lazy to run to Whole Foods….Amazon Prime to the rescue. {Find Coconut Aminos here.}
Thursday:
Just plain old hamburgers. Dinner without a recipe or new ingredients was the perfect choice! Yes, there were frozen fries served for a side. Little Man was very happy.
I have recently been snacking on chia seed pudding in the afternoon. Chia seeds are packed with antioxidants, omega fatty acids and fiber. When added to milk [of any variety] they magically make pudding in a matter of hours. Skeptical? I get it. However, it truly is a great snack and this recipe really does taste good. I promise.
chia seed pudding:: 1 1/2 cups almond/coconut milk [Any type of milk will work.] 1/4 cup raw chia seeds [Buy here, if you can’t find them in a grocery store.] 2 Tablespoons honey 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix all ingredients together and place in fridge for 3 hours or overnight. Shake [or stir] the pudding a few times to evenly distribute the seeds. You may also have to adjust the amount of seeds in the pudding based on your texture preference.
Day 1– Quinoa and Roasted Pepper Chili I actually made this on Monday, but this would be ideal for Sunday dinner. [I prefer to keep prep for weekday meals under 45 minutes and this recipe took about an hour.] I could not find the tomatoes with chipotle chiles, so I just used fire roasted diced tomatoes. You could add one diced chipotle pepper if you want the heat.
Day 2– baked potato topped with left over chili Serve leftover chili on baked potatoes. Dress it up with chopped green onion, sliced avocado, sour cream and hot sauce.
Day 3– Teriyaki Chicken and roasted brussel sprouts My own recipe. Serve over your favorite rice. Chicken: Thinly slice a white onion and lay in bottom of 13X9 baking pan. Cut thin sliced chicken breasts into bite sized pieces [about 2lbs]. Lay on top of onions. Cover onions and chicken with your favorite teriyaki sauce. [Don’t have a favorite? Try one of mine.] Bake in oven at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.
Brussel Sprouts: Cut brussel sprouts in half. Drizzle with olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Roast in oven at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes – until some of the edges start to brown.
Day 4– Crockpot Carne Asada Tacos Anything in the slow cooker makes dinner a breeze on a busy day! These were yummy, with TONS of leftovers.
Day 5- Carne Asada Salad LEFTOVERS! There was so much steak leftover we got a second meal out of it. My husband stuck with the tacos, but I used the steak on a salad. I just added lettuce, tomatoes, red pepper, chopped green chiles, avocado, and salsa.
Hope you can find at least one meal for next week.
Candied pecans are by far my most favorite holiday treat to make and eat all year long. My sister-in-law shared this recipe with me years ago. [And I mean years ago. Back when you had to print the recipe instead of “pinning” it.] I whipped up a batch on Sunday to add to a cheese plate. It took me about 15 minutes.
These pecans are extremely versatile. Use them to top a salad, give them as a hostess gift, or simply have them on hand to snack on. I am telling you-they are irresistible!
Candied Pecans
1 pound chopped pecans [Find them in the baking aisle. It’s the cheapest way to buy pecans.]
1 cupwhite sugar
2 teaspoonsground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoonsalt
6 tablespoonsmilk
1 teaspoonvanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spread nuts in a single layer over a baking sheet. Roast for approximately 4-5 minutes, or until the nuts start to turn brown and the smell of roasting nuts fills the kitchen.
Stir together sugar, cinnamon, salt, and milk in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat for 8 minutes, or until the mixture reaches the soft ball stage of 236 degrees F (113 degrees C). [You will need an inexpensive candy thermometer.] Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla immediately.
Add pecans to sugar syrup, and stir to coat well. Spoon nuts onto waxed paper, and immediately separate nuts with a fork. Cool, and store in airtight containers. Mason jars work great!
With lives busier than ever, I felt like I needed to make myself a plan for getting dinner on the table. Winging it wasn’t working for me during the week. I thought why not share with all of you what we ate for the week? Hopefully you can get at least one idea for dinner next week. I plan to post on Saturdays. Let me know what you think.
*All dinner recipes are gluten-free. Because that’s how we roll!
Sunday: steak with mushroom sauce and cauliflower puree This recipe called for skirt steak. My grocery store didn’t have that available, so the butcher suggested flat iron as a good substitute. The mushrooms and wine sauce were delicious!
Monday: steak, mushrooms and wilted spinach Cut the left over steak into bite size pieces. Add sliced mushrooms and the steak in a skillet until mushrooms are cooked through. Last, add 1 cup of spinach to the skillet until wilted. Fast and easy. Tuesday: spicy chicken and hominy soup
Wednesday: skillet-poached huevos rancheros This was ready in less than 15 minutes. I had a kid distraction while poaching the eggs. They ended up cooked all the way through instead of being poached and this dish was still delicious.
Thursday: open faced sausage sandwich I had a evening meeting, so I left the sausage and the sauce simmering on the stove until my husband was ready to eat. I simply used a bottle of marinara, one [chopped] red pepper, and fully cooked [sliced] Italian sausage. Simmer all on low until warmed through. Serve on an open faced roll. Top with peperoncini peppers and mozzarella cheese.
Friday: Parents’ night out [can I get an amen!] I ordered pizza for my guys and the sitter, but came across this super idea for pizza in the crockpot. Might have to give it a try.
If you are trying to make every calorie count, but need a little sweet in your life…I have just the muffin for you! Wholesome goodness and easy to make.
{oats, banana & flax make this muffin hearty}
{quality chocolate chunks add just enough sweet}
{perfect for the on-the-go breakfast or mid-afternoon treat}
Ingredients: 2 cups almond meal/flour (Bob’s Red Mill is the easiest to find.) 1 cup oats 3 ripe bananas, mashed 1 cup almond milk
2 eggs 1 TBSP. baking powder 1 tsp. pure vanilla 1 TBSP ground flax seed 2 TBSP light agave nectar 1/2 cup {or maybe a bit more} semisweet baking chunks. (I used Scharffen Berger.)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all ingredients together. [Yes, it is that easy!]. Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray. Fill each muffin cup 3/4 full. Bake 20-25 minutes, until muffins begin to brown around the edges. Let cool and remove from tin.
I love to read. I love to cook. And I love to eat. [good thing I like to run.] Lucky for me the world seems to have gone cookbook crazy! While browsing in my local book store a few new cookbooks caught my eye…..
1 Savory Sweet Life by Alice Currah. [A book spinoff from Alice’s acclaimed food blog- Savory Sweet Life.]
2 What Katie Ate by Katie Quinn Davies. [A spin off from the blog What Katie Ate. The photos and typography had me the moment I opened the book! It is a work of art.]
3 More from Macrina by Leslie Mackie. [Favorites from a local Seattle bakery. Macrina for brunch, lunch or pastries. You can’t go wrong!]
4 The Truck Food Cookbook by John Edge [ Mr. Edge seems to have worked hard sampling food for this book. The food truck revolution makes me smile. This book promises 150 recipes from the best food trucks in America. I am all in.]
One cookbook was sold out on my visit….
I adore the Smitten Kitchen blog and cannot wait to own this cookbook. This blog is a must read. You must try this recipe for the best rice crispy treat you have ever had!
