Down Home Chicken and Noodles

Ladies, I made this simple recipe tonight for the first time. It was delicious. Dh and dd went back for seconds, so no lovely leftovers for me tomorrow :( I served it with grilled cheese made with good ole healthy whole wheat bread and sliced Gala apples. Yum-o!

Down-Home Chicken & Noodles

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts

salt and pepper to taste

2, 10 3/4 oz. cans cream of chicken soup (I used one regular and one 98% fat free)

14 1/2 oz. can chicken broth (I used fat free)

16 oz. pkg. wide egg noodles, cooked

Place chicken in a slow cooker: sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with both cans of soup. Cover and cook on low setting for 6 hours, or until chicken falls apart. Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred, then return to slow cooker; add broth and cooked noodles. Mix well. Cover and cook on low setting for an additional 30 min. or until heated through. Serves 6

Menu for week of October 27th

Once again, I didn't get to everything on my menu last week. Some meals produced more than I thought, which means leftovers! Yipee! Yesterday we had an impromptu potluck after church so I didn't have to cook a meal just took a couple of side dish casseroles. Yesterday evening we at more leftovers. So here is my plan for this week:

Monday: Breakfast for Dinner
Tuesday: Down Home Chicken and Noodles Soup, Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, sliced Gala apples
Wednesday: Porcupine Meatballs, Spinach Sensation (new dish), mashed garlic potatoes
Thursday: Cheesy Scalloped Chicken, Tossed Green Salad
Friday: Homemade pizza night, veggies and ranch dip
Saturday: Hot Dog Casserole, Cole Slaw
Sunday: Out

Menu for week of October 20th

I didn't get to everything last week so some are moving to this week:

Monday: Country Pork Chops, Broccoli Casserole, Rice Pilaf, Cantaloupe
Tuesday: Spaghetti, Salad, Garlic Bread, Black Grapes
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Chicken Stroganoff, Layered Salad
Friday: Chuckwagon Casserole, leftover layered salad
Saturday: Chicken Breast Deluxe, Spinach Casserole, Glazed Carrots
Sunday: Homemade Pizza, veggies and dip

Another week has flown by!

Another week has flown by here at the Seay house. I start out the week with a to-do list a mile long, sometimes it seems. I never accomplish everything on the list. But it does feel good to check some items off. Another busy week is coming up. I have a dentist appointment, a mammogram appointment (really looking forward to that one-makes the dentist seem like a spa treatment!), I have a hair salon appointment, an appointment for dd with a new pediatrician, a small group meeting, a field trip (dh is taking on this responsibility this time) and weekly doings such as laundry, grocery trip, Walmart trip, etc. I hope I don't get called in to substitute teach at dd's school. I did two days this week. Oh and I have Southern Living products to deliver to my guests who ordered from my party.

Sometimes when I look at my schedule, it is no wonder my house is in CHAOS (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome). But I am determined to tackle it all. Here are my goals this week in between all my comings and goings: Dust and vacuum main floor, mop hard floors, thoroughly clean kitchen (well, where you can see-not in the cabinets, pantry of fridge at this time), finish thoroughly cleaning laundry room, try to get a start on decluttering master bedroom including dresser drawers and walk-in closet, thoroughly clean master bathroom if all decluttering gets done, take stuff to charity. This is a lot to do but if I don't get to it all it will get moved to next week. It is just a goal.

Now you see why dh is doing the field trip? :-}

Hoping you all have a productive week!

Pam

Pumpkin Pie, oh my!

Here is a recipe I made this week to satisfy my sweet tooth. I made it as sugar free as possible. My changes are in parenthesis.

Sensational Double Layer Pumpkin Pie

4 oz. cream cheese, softened (I used reduced fat)
1 T milk or half and half
1 T sugar (I used Splenda)
1 1/2 cups thawed Cool Whip whipped topping (I used the sugar-free version)
1 Graham cracker crust (6 oz.)
1 cup milk or half and half
2 packages (4 serving size) Jello Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding and Pie Filling (I used the sugar free/fat free Krogers version)
16 oz. can pumpkin (the real thing, not pumpkin pie filling)
1 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/4 t. ground cloves

Mix cream cheese, milk and sugar in large bowl with wire whisk until smooth. Gently stir in whipped topping. Spread on bottom of crust.

Pour 1 cup milk into another bowl. Add pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk until well blended, 1 - 2 minutes. (mixture will be very thick).

Stir in pumpkin and spices with wire whisk; mix well. Spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate at least 3 hours. Garnish with additional whipped topping and nuts, if desired. Makes 8 servings. Keep in refrigerator.

Dh and I ate this and really enjoyed it. Tastes like fall!

Pam

Menu plan week of October 13th

Monday: Good old lovely leftovers!

Tuesday: Low Fat Smoked Sausage (what an oxymoron), cooked with potatoes and cabbage, cornbread muffins

Wednesday: Turkey Burgers on whole wheat buns, sliced cantaloupe and pasta salad (another hubby favorite)

Thursday: Boxed stroganoff (I know not the healthiest!) but made with ground chicken, black grapes (a hubby and dd favorite!) I'm going to my Sunday School class' Ladies Night Out and I will be eating there. I hope I don't forget and eat before I go like I did last time. Duh!

Friday: Eating at the game - homecoming and tailgating

Saturday: Spaghetti, Salad, Garlic biscuits, more grapes

Sunday: Lunch-Crock pot chops cooked with carrots and potatoes, deviled eggs, green beans and some sorta yummy dessert (low calorie, low sugar, you know the good stuff!)

That's my plan and I'm stickin' to it!

Pam

Fall Break

It has been fall break time here. Dd spent a couple nights with my parents. It's hard to get in grandparent time during the school year so we fit it in whenever we can. I didn't have grandparents and I have always made sure to see that dd gets her share and mine too! : )

Today dd and dh have gone to Oak Ridge to visit the American Museum of Science and Energy. Dd has wanted to go back ever since visiting it on a school field trip. Dh thought today would be a good day.

While my family is gone I am making a pot of potato soup. Dh loves this soup. He likes to top it with cheese, bacon and sour cream and make it into a sorta stuffed potato soup. What's funny about this is that dh is not crazy about potatoes. Me? I could eat them anyway you fix them. But all those carbs! Wow wee, not good for me.

I'm enjoying the beautiful fall weather here. If I could only get fall to last a bit longer. I love the sights and smells of fall. I also love fall cooking. It's time for chili, soups, stews, baked breads, pumpkin, squash, etc. How about you?

Pam

Happy October!

Oh, how I love October. It's my most favorite month of the year, well, besides February. February is mine and my dh's birthday month and the month we got married and Valentines Day is in February and it is the shortest month, and, well you get it.

But, October. Well, I love the cooler temperatures. I love the rustling of the trees when the fall winds blow. I love the changing colors. Oh, how I love those maple trees in the fall. Here in the south the mountains turn into a quilt of orange, yellow, red, and green. It is absolutely gorgeous! Who knew that God was a quilter!

Also, the beginning of any month is a time for contemplating my "to do list". This month I have a class trip to take with dd. That should be fun. Dd has a doctor's appointment. I have a hair appointment. We have a school homecoming game. I think we are supposed to attend that. Better check on that one. I have a Ladies Night Out (church activity) to attend. Dh is in a photography class at UT once a week. We attend our Bible small group on Monday evenings. Our small group is going to try to atend the movie "Fireproof" this weekend. And in between all those activities, I am forever trying to get the clutter out of my home. I am always working on that project. Will it ever end? Please tell me it will. Pretty please...

So what about you? Do you like the first day of the month or the first day of the week as much as I do? Do you have high hopes that you will get to check those tasks off your list? I am always optimistic that this will be the month. The month I take my home back and get it under control. I can dream can't I?

Happy October to you and yours.

Pam