Back to school planning

 French Toast Bake- Lily

Protein Muffins- Lily

Crepes- Chloe

Pancakes- Chloe

Yoga Protein Balls- Katie

Alli's Baked French Toast with lemon curd

Baked French Toast 

serves 8

For the French Toast: 
Butter, for greasing
1 loaf crusty sourdough or French bread ( I added an additional 1/2c of leftover crushed cereal)
8  whole eggs
2 c. whole milk (egg nog instead)

1/2 c.  heavy cream

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

2 tbsp.  vanilla extract

1 t salt ( I added, it was not from original recipe)

For the Topping:
1/2 c.  flour
1/2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 tsp.  cinnamon
1/4 tsp.  salt
Freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
1  stick cold butter, cut into pieces
Warm syrup, for serving
Butter, for serving
1 c. 
fresh blueberries, for serving

You assemble it the night before and let it sit and get even more luscious in the fridge overnight

1. For the French toast: Grease the baking pan with butter. Tear the bread into chunks, or cut into cubes, and evenly distribute in the pan. Crack the eggs in a big bowl. Whisk together the eggs, milk, cream, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla. Pour evenly over the bread. Cover the pan tightly and store in the fridge until needed (overnight preferably). Or you can make it and bake it right away---delicious no matter what!
2. For the topping: Mix the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and some nutmeg in a separate bowl. Stir together using a fork. Add the butter and use a pastry cutter to mix it all together until the mixture resembles fine pebbles. Store in a plastic bag in the fridge.
3. When you're ready to bake the casserole, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the casserole from the fridge and sprinkle the topping over the top. Bake for 45 minutes for a softer, more bread pudding texture or for 1 hour-plus or more for a firmer, crisper texture.
4. Scoop out individual portions. Top with butter, drizzle with warm pancake syrup, and sprinkle with blueberries.

Some comments from readers-

Caramelized some bananas and brown sugar

doubled the cinnamon

generally double the topping because people always ask for more of it

fried apples

12/22/21 made it in the morning and didn't have it soak overnight. Turned out delicious. I had 3 different types of leftover breads and they all tasted and worked out well together. I mixed half plain yogurt and half whipped topping for one of the toppings and frozen blue berries

Can add Lemon curd (pudding) to the top of the cooked French toast- makes one cup

Lemon Curd

Dbl    Original Recipe
1c        1/2 c. 

granulated sugar

1/2c    5 tbsp. 

unsalted butter, diced

1/2c     1/4 c. 

fresh lemon juice (from 3 lemons)

6          3 

large eggs + 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

1/2t      1/4 tsp. 

kosher salt

Combine the sugar, butter and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook just until the butter melts. Whisk in the eggs. Cook, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, 6-8 minutes. Do not let the mixture bubble. Pour then press through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl. Press plastic wrap over top and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.

Breakfast burritos

Makes 8 burritos

Once Upon A Chef

FOR THE AVOCADO-TOMATO SALSA-

• 1 large avocado, peeled, pitted, and diced
• 1/2 cup diced seeded tomatoes, from 1 to 2 tomatoes
• 1 small shallot, minced (about 2 tablespoons)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced

• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, from 1 lime
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

Egg Burrito- 

1 onion chopped and sauteed
8 eggs
30oz hashbrowns
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 lb spicy sausage (such as chorizo, Italian, or anything you like), removed from casings

• 1-2c (6 oz) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

• 4 (10-in) burrito-size flour tortillas

• Vegetable oil

 Cook hashbrowns in oven 400, spray pan with oil, put frozen browns on top, drizzle oil and salt and pepper on top.  cook 40-50 min

Cook sausage on stove top.
In bowl combine- eggs, paprika, salt. 
On stove top, Cook  the egg mixture. In the middle of the flour tortilla layer sausage, hashbrowns, cooked egg mixture and salsa , top with cheese. Roll up 3 sides of the tortilla.

1. Lightly coat the pan with oil and set over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the burritos, seam side down. Cook, covered, until the bottom of the burritos are golden brown, about 3 minutes. Flip the burritos over and continue cooking, covered, until golden, a few minutes more. Serve warm.

8/10/21

made 15 burritos- 15 eggs

Can freeze tortillas without the salsa. Fill the tortillas and roll up and wrap  individually with saran wrap. To reheat put in oven 350 for 15-20 min

#2 Overnight French Toast

Epicurious

YIELD- 

Makes 6 servings

INGREDIENTS
For the french toast:                                                                                                                                  1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, room temperature
12 3/4-inch-thick French bread slices
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
Powdered sugar
                                                                                                                                                                    For the maple syrup:
2 cups maple syrup
1 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

PREPARATION
To make the french toast:Spread butter over bottom of heavy large baking pan with 1-inch-high sides. Arrange bread slices in pan. Beat eggs, milk, sugar, syrup, vanilla and salt to blend in large bowl. Pour mixture over bread. Turn bread slices to coat. Cover with plastic and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake French bread 40 minutes. Transfer cooked toast to plates and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve immediately, passing Maple-Walnut Syrup separately.
To prepare maple syrup:
Combine syrup and walnuts in heavy medium saucepan. Bring to simmer. Serve syrup hot. Makes about 3 cups.

This could be doubled and freeze one for a later time in the freezer.

Easy Noodle Stirfry

Oil
1/2-1 lb sausage and or ground beef
2 c cooked spaghetti noodles
1/4 head of sliced cabbage
3 sliced carrots
1 chopped onion
2t- 2T soy sauce
1 garlic clove
salt and pepper
Could serve with freshly squeezed lemon and/or chopped green onion or cilantro.

I cooked this all up in the morning. Then reheated it for dinner at 4pm
I used my iron pan and Brown the onion first.
Then add the meat cook till done.
Add the spaghetti noodles till they get toasted and browned. The noodles did start to stick to the bottom of the pan but I added a little more oil and that loosened them up. Also you can put the lid on the pan and that loosens the noodles on the pan.
Add carrots for 7 min, then add cabbage cook for 3 min.
Add soy sauce, garlic, and salt and pepper.
Way easy and tasty.

Serve with fruit salad, veggie salad and slices of french bread.

THE BEST EVER BAKED OATMEAL

How Sweet Eats

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 1/2 cups quick oats
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups milk (whatever you like! dairy or nondairy)
• 3/4 cup canola oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds
• 1/3 cup flaked coconut (toasted if you’ve like!)
• 2 tablespoons hemp hearts
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• milk or cream, for drizzling

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9×13 inch baking dish with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl, whisk together the oats, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined. Pour the mixture in the dish.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and set. Remove the dish from the oven and place the chocolate chips on top right away (so they kind of melt!). Top with the coconut, almonds, hemp hearts and chia seeds. Let cool slightly, then cut into squares and serve with a drizzle of milk or cream.

General Conference

I love conference and love to make it special with food and activities. Its so nice to be home, relaxed and listening.

We like to set up a small tent like King benjamin, faced their tents to him and lots of blankets for a fort. Lots of random coloring pages, cross word puzzles, a possible quilt to tie, 

printables for small kids,  #1 teenager notebook, #2 teenager notebook. 

More challenging wordsearches   

Learn to paint Watercolor beaches/ocean

One time the girls tallied up specific words (Jesus, testimony, church, scriptures, etc...) that were spoken, that really got them listening to the words the speakers were saying, I think we even gave them a penny for each time they recorded it.  They were really motivated.

A week before - buy the groceries for everything

                        - make the chex mix, fruit and veggie dip the week before conference.

Thursday or friday  - assemble the breakfast french toast and let sit in fridge 

                                - cut fruit and veggies

                                - cut carrots, potatoes, onions for beef roast

 I like to have mostly healthy snacks-

Veggies

1. red and orange peppers
2. celery
3. carrots
4. baby tomatoes
5. cucumbers
6. with veggie ranch dip

Fruit

1. strawberries
2. grapes
3. oranges
4. bananas

5. kiwis
6. apples- prepare a few days before- I like to cut 5-10 apples in advance and let them sit in a ziplock bag with lemon juice, then they don't go brown.
7. any type of berries- raspberries, black berries
8. caramel to dip apples in

9.  Coconut Fruit Dip ((added 9/28/21))

Snacks

1.  Chips and guacamole- 1 avocado, dash lemon juice, salt and pepper, 1/4t diced tomatoes, cilantro,
garlic

2. crackers, beef log, and cheese

3. chex mix (added 9/28/21)

and with some treats and some BREAKFAST
1. Pumpkin Muffins
2. Baked Whole Apples
3 .Baked sliced apples
4. Baked Apple Oatmeal or the other Best Baked Choco Chip Oatmeal

5. I've made whole wheat cinnamon rolls,

6. Alli Baked french Toast


Dinner
Pumpkin Chili
Beef Roast

10/6/24

This was the first time Katie was gone at college and lily went with a friend (Anne Marie Fry) to Idaho. So it was chloe, luke, dad and i. 

Chloe wanted- fruit platter, fun pages to color, deviled eggs
Lily likes to have- neef roast, cinnamon rolls, strawberries and fruit dip, beef stick and crackers, smoothie bowls, roasted potatoes

Chia Breakfast Pudding/Snack

Unconventional Kitchen

Makes 1 serving, double or triple for more
1 C almond, coconut or rice milk
1 C plain Greek yogurt
2 Tbsp pure maple syrup, or honey
1 tsp vanilla
⅛ tsp salt
¼ C chia seeds
ground flax
Fruit, fresh or frozen (I love berries, bananas, pineapple or mango in it)
Almonds or granola for topping


Preparation
Mix milk, yogurt, sweetener, vanilla and salt until just blended.
Whisk in the chia seeds.
Let stand for 30 minutes. Stir to distribute the seeds. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning top with fruit, almonds, etc. and serve.  You can even drizzle more honey or maple syrup on individual servings if you want it a little sweeter.

Overnight Baked French Toast

10/3/21 I made it and it was delicious. Next time double it for our family of 6

Our Best Bites

DBL  SLG

16     8 eggs
4       2 cups half and half (one pint)
2       1 cup milk (whatever kind you have on hand)
3/4c  6 tablespoons brown sugar
3t      1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1t      1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (a little less if using table salt)
2       1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2       1 lb loaf of french bread
softened butter for greasing baking dish (2-3 tablespoons)

Topping
4 tablespoons packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons cold butter

For Serving
melted butter
maple syrup
powdered sugar
berries
whipped cream

Can prepare a couple days before hand.
Crack eggs into large mixing bowl and whisk to combine.  Whisk in half and half and milk.  Add brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and vanilla.  Set aside.

Use softened butter to butter bottom and sides of a 9×13 baking dish.  Cut bread into  1 inch chunks and place in dish.  Whisk egg mixture one more time and then pour evenly over bread.  Use a rubber spatula to very gently toss bread, moving bread on bottom to top, and making sure all of the piece on top get dipped in egg mixture.  Spread out evenly, cover dish, and place in fridge overnight.

To make topping, place brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl and stir to combine.  Cut cold butter into very small pieces and add to bowl. Use clean hands to break up butter and combine mixture until crumbly.  Cover and place in fridge until morning.

When ready to bake preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Remove plastic from dish and sprinkle topping evenly over top.  Bake for 40-50 minutes or until top is golden brown.  You can stick a knife or skewer in the casserole to make sure the egg mixture is set on the bottom.  *Note I have left a generous baking time window because it varies on ovens and the size of your bread cubes.  I used to cook this closer to 60 minutes at my old house, but in my new convection ovens it’s done closer to 45.  Keep an eye on it and let me know how long yours takes to bake!

Let cool for 5-10 minutes before cutting into squares.  Drizzle with melted butter and syrup, top with berries, whipped cream and a sprinkle of powdered sugar if desired.

Sausage-Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole

12/20/17 It was okay, I'm not much of a casserole for any meal.

My Recipes

1 pound mild ground pork sausage

1 onion

1 chopped red pepper sauteed

1 (30-ounce) package frozen hash browns
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
6 large eggs
2 cups milk

Can assemble and prepare a couple days before hand. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit in the fridge. Then cook the day you want to eat it.
Cook sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat, stirring until sausage crumbles and is no longer pink. Remove sausage and Saute onion in sausage oil for 5 plus min, then add red pepper for a few minutes.
Prepare hash browns according to package directions, using 1-1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. I put hashbrowns in oven at 400 on a oiled cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheet with hash brows in the preheated oven and cook for 15-30 minutes. After 15-30 minutes, remove from the oven, and give them a toss. Place back in the oven and cook another 15 minutes, or until crispy.
Stir together hash browns, sausage, and cheese. Pour into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish.
Whisk together eggs, milk, and remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Pour evenly over potato mixture.
Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes.

optional- Top with sliced avocados, pico de gallo, and a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle with green onions.

Stuffed french toast

Original recipe serves 5, DBL(double) recipe serves 10

1 loaf of bread (I've used whole wheat, and white and even cinnamon bread)
2 loaves of bread for double batch

Egg Mixture-

DBL       Original-
6            3 eggs
2t          1 t cinnamon
2           1T hemp seeds/powder
2           1 T flax
1/2        1/4c milk
2           1 banana mashed (optional, I just had one going bad so I added it)
Mix everything 


Filling-
2           1 package of cream cheese, softened
1/2c      1/4c any type of jam

This time I had extra thick slices white bread.  I cut each slice of bread, in half and spread the filling in the middle.
Then coated the outside of the bread with the egg mixture. and cooked for a few minutes on each side

Chinese Egg rolls

Steamy Kitchen

Serve with Oyakodon

1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with ¼ cup of cool water to seal egg roll

Cooking oil, for frying
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 pound ground pork or leftover  cooked or uncooked meat
1 shredded head of cabbage  (or could use leftover salad)
6 fresh sliced shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded
1 cup julienned carrots
2 cloves garlic, very finely minced
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine (or dry sherry)
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Freshly ground black pepper
sauteed onions

I had leftover seasoned shredded pork.

Heat a wok or large saute pan over high heat. Add the cooking oil and swirl to coat. Add the marinated pork/meat and stir-fry until no longer pink, about 2-3 minutes. Turn heat to medium-low, push the meat to one side of the pan. Add the garlic, cabbage, carrots, ginger and the mushrooms and stir-fry for 1 minute, until the vegetables are softened. Add the rice wine, soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil and black pepper. Continue to stir-fry for another minute. Scoop out the filling to a baking sheet and spread out to cool. Prop up one end of the baking sheet so that it tilts and will allow all the moisture to drain to one end. Let cool for 15 minutes.

 Discard all of the accumulated juices. Use paper towels to blot the filling to rid of extra oil or juice. Now, you're ready to wrap (see photos for instructions on how to wrap).

IMPORTANT: Only use 1 heaping tablespoon of filling for each egg roll. These are slender egg rolls, the width of the egg roll should only be 1.25" diameter.

Keep the rolled egg rolls in neat, single layer and covered with plastic wrap to prevent drying. If you want to stack the egg rolls, make sure you have layer of parchment paper in between the layers to prevent sticking. Keep wrappers also covered with plastic wrap to prevent drying. Refrigerate up to 4 hours until ready to fry or freeze.

 To fry the egg rolls, fill a wok or pot with 2 inches of high-heat cooking oil. Heat the oil to 350°F (175°C) or until a cube of bread will fry to golden brown within 10 seconds. Gently slide in or lower the egg rolls, frying 4 to 6 at a time, turning occasionally until golden brown about 1½ minutes. Place on wire rack to drain and cool.

NOTE: To fry frozen egg rolls, do not defrost the egg rolls – just add them to the oil frozen, frying 4 to 6 at a time. Add an additional 1½ minutes to the frying time since they are frozen.

2/12/25  I made these egg rolls. I sauted some on the stove and cooked some in the oven at 440 degrees on a greased cookie pan.
I had extra filling leftover so I made Fried rice. 
 -Cooked rice, sauteed rice . 
-Added the leftover sausage cabbage ( egg roll filling) to the rice and 
-scrambled and cooked 4 eggs. 
-Added frozen peas

Camping

Prepare as much as you can before camping-
-cooked chicken at home before hand  and left in 1c at least of the liquid to keep it moist, then froze it and added it to the chicken curry and quesadillas
-every day it seemed we needed to empty the cooler of the melted ice. Every 2 days we needed to buy new ice to keep the food cold
- we used a two burner camping stove and I had three different pans- one a medium size pan for boiling water (and for a bowl to mix pancake mix), a griddle to cook pancakes & bacon, and a frying pan
- Shred cheese before you leave (quesadillas, pizza, tortilla pizza, canned chili, egg mcmuffins)
- i loved having a whole head of lettuce to randomly eat whenever, it stayed crisp, I was impressed
- put all the items you are using in the cooler, in individual good quality ziplock bags, To keep the melted ice away from the food items and to keep some sort of organization to the mess.


1.  We made japanese chicken curry(it comes in a small box), with celery, carrots, onions-
2.  Tuna Sandwiches with lettuce
3.  Frozen green smoothies- only lasts about 2 days, so you got drink it all up in the first 2 days
4.  Boiled water for hot chocolate and oatmeal- added ground flax, raisins
5. Made pancakes and bacon, added ground flax (break a few eggs in a ziplock bag, then you don't have to worry about the eggs breaking.
6. Camping quesadillas- use the same cooked chicken and shredded cheese (Chloe made)
7. pizza- store bought baked dough, pepperoni, mozzarella, canned spaghetti sauce (Lily made)
8. canned soup - we take the lid off the can and put the can in the fire and it heats up quick
9. sausages/hotdogs over the fire (Katie made)
10. Logan made from the left over pizza ingredients tortilla pizzas that were much more successful than the original pizza that I made. I bought 2 bags of tortillas b/c sometime we like to use those instead of bread with peanut butter & jelly
11. canned chili- we take the lid off the can and put the can in the fire and it heats up quick. Add fritos, chopped tomatoes, shredded cheese.
12. peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
13. cereal with milk for breakfast
14. egg mcmuffins- egg, sliced meat, cheese, bread, plain, bagels or english muffins. I'd love an avocado on it too.
15. sliced lunch meat for sandwiches and on egg mcmuffins

Snacks
-2 bags of bread
- trail mix (almonds, peanuts, cashews, raisins, cranberries)
-beef jerky
-7 to 10 apples
- 10 oranges
-3lbs carrots
-1 head of celery
- cheese sticks

- head of lettuce

Spinach Dip

1 T oil
1 small onion chopped
2 garlic cloves
2-3 cups chopped spinach
1/2c milk
6 oz cream cheese
1/2c mozzarella
2 dashes Worcestershire
salt and pepper

preheat oven 425 degrees
Saute onion till soft add garlic for a minute. Add cream cheese and let it slowly melt, add Worcestershire, milk stir with a whisk. When the cream cheese is melted and every thing is mixed well add: spinach, mozzarella and salt and pepper to taste.
Could be heated up in a crockpot over 3-4 hours.

Bake in oven for 20-25 minutes. serve with olive oil glazed toasted french bread

Funeral Potatoes

Doubled- freeze half  in 8x11 pan and 5x5 pan cook half

1 chopped sauteed onion
2-3 cloves of garlic
salt and pepper
1c plain yogurt
white sauce or 1 can of cream of chicken soup (1)
1/4c mayo
1 lb shredded cheese
6 baked potatoes- chopped small
3 c frozen chopped potatoes
corn flakes with drizzled melted butter to go on top



Saute onions till soft, add garlic.  then add white sauce, yogurt, mayo and salt and pepper to pan to warm it up and mix well.
Add potatoes, sauce, and cheese. Separate into different greased pans, add corn flakes and butter to top. freeze one and cook one
350 degrees 45-60 minutes


(1) (TO make white sauce- saute onions and celery, melt butter, add flour and salt and pepper)

Crockpot Kalua Pork

All Recipes
Original recipe 12 servings

1 (6 pound) pork butt roast (or chicken)
1 1/2 tablespoons Hawaiian sea salt
1-3 tablespoon liquid smoke flavoring (depending on the strength of the flavor you want)

1 onion and celery (3 stalks) Chopped (optional)

Pierce pork all over with a carving fork. Rub salt  over meat. Place roast in a slow cooker. Add chopped celery and onion.
Cover, and cook on Low for 16 to 20 hours, turning once during cooking time. A few hours before the meat is being served I add liquid smoke.
Remove meat from slow cooker, and shred, adding drippings as needed to moisten.

Serve with rice

Serve with either Macaroni salad or green lettuce salad

To serve (20-30 people)
3 pork boneless roasts weighing about 4 lbs each
2 onions and celery (3 stalks) Chopped (optional)
salt
2 containers of liquid smoke

For our extended family we made this.  Begin cooking a whole day before the event.  Put pork, salt, onion, and celery in the crockpot on high the first 8 hours then put it on low for 8 more hours. A few hours before the meat is being served I add liquid smoke (b/c it makes our house liquid smokeyness).

 I have used butt roast or shoulder roasts before and it works out just fine.

Leftovers!!!!!  (day 1) Kalua pork, served with sticky rice & mac salad; 

(day 2) Pulled pork - add BBQ sauce & nuke, serve on buns; 

(day 3) Carnitas - crisp up the pork in a skillet with a squirt of juice from a plastic lime, sprinkle of cumin, & fresh cilantro if I have it, served with guacamole & salsa. 

Serve Macaroni Salad with this pork/chicken recipe

Manicotti

1 box (8oz) manicotti
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 chopped onion
1 garlic clove
12 oz mushrooms (I would've loved these but I knew my kids wouldn't, I left them out)
12oz cottage cheese or ricotta
salt and pepper
12 oz spinach
1 c parmesan

Preheat oven 400
Boil manicotti 7 min, when it is still a little firm
Saute onion in skillet, add garlic and mushrooms.  Chop spinach and add it to the skillet.
In a seperate bowl mix cottage cheese, salt and pepper, and 3/4c parmesan. Mix the onion & garlic mixture with the cottage cheese mixture.
In a 9x13 pan lay down foil and grease foil. Place half of spaghetti sauce on bottom of pan. In manicotti add the mixture and set in pan.  Spread the red of the sauce on top of the manicotti.
Cook 30 min

Next time we could add some ground beef or sausage to the cottage cheese mixture. Also shredded mozzarella cheese would be delicious.
Could double this next time and make two 9x13 dishes

Lauren's Minestrone

1 lb bulk italian sausage
1 large onion chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 medium leek, chopped
3 garlic cloves
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2 pieces
1/4 fresh green beans, cut into 1/2 pieces
6 c broth
2 can diced tomatoes, with basil, oregano and garlic
2 c shredded cabbage
1 t dried basil
1 t dried oregano
1/2t pepper
2 T parsley
1 can garbonzo beans drained
1/3c parmesan
1/2 c uncooked small pasts shells



Option #1 cooking- quicker, cooking with in 30min
Cook sausage and onions. Stir in carrots, celery, leek, garlic cook 3 min. 

Add Everything else except pasta shells till 20 min before serving.

Option #2 cooking- longer term crockpot cooking
In the morning- Brown sausage, garlic, and onions put in crockpot or large soup pot on low. Add diced tomatoes, broth,  garlic, cabbage, basil, oregano, pepper, parsley. Let cook in crockpot for a couple of hours.  

Cook pasta shells separately and store in fridge till soup is ready.

20 min before you serve- add: 

carrots, celery, leek, zucchini, green beans.

add  noodles and parmesan right when you eat 

Logan Chili

1lb black beans rehydrated
1lb garbonzo beans (freeze half of the garbonzo beans for other uses)
1lb kidney beans
1 can corn
2 cans of crushed tomatoes (or 15 chopped tomatoes)
1-2 chopped sauteed onions
3T garlic
1T Chili powder
1 t cayenne powder
salt and pepper

Pressure cook the one pound beans one at a time.  They soften at different time frames.

I soaked the black beans so they went smooshy faster than I expected when I cooked them.  The Kidney beans weren't soaked and they cooked with in 5-7minutes, I was suprised how quick they cooked, I thought the kidneys would need more time b/c they are bigger beans.  The garbonzo beans weren't soaked either and they cooked for about 10 minutes.

Let everything cook for a couple hours.

I made alot so I could freeze some for future dinners.

HERB AND CITRUS OVEN ROASTED CHICKEN

Comfort Cooking

1/4 cup olive oil

4 cloves of garlic, minced

2 tablespoons sugar

2 whole lemons, one juiced and one sliced

2 whole oranges, one juiced and one sliced

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

10-12 pieces (about 4 1/2 lbs.) bone-in chicken parts (thighs and legs are best), pat dry

1 medium onion (any kind), thinly sliced, I sauteed it b/4 adding to dish

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon dried rosemary

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

I mixed everything the night before and put in a 9x13pan.  In a small bowl whisk together olive oil, garlic, sugar, lemon juice, orange juice, Italian seasoning, paprika, onion powder, red pepper flakes, sliced onion, thyme, rosemary and salt and pepper.

Place chicken in a rimmed 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Place parts skin side up and spread them out evenly in the pan. Pour olive oil mixture all over chicken, turning pieces to coat all sides. (If you marinated the chicken in this mixture, still add it all in). Arrange slices of lemon, orange and onion around and under the chicken. 

Bake uncovered for about 1 hour, or until chicken is cooked and juices run clear. Remove parts to a serving platter and garnish with additional chopped fresh herbs, if desired.

Enjoy!

Roasted Potatoes and a salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing