I bounce back and forth between being an uber organized meal-planner and a fly-by-the-seat of her pants microwaver. A couple of weeks ago it felt like we'd been in a rut, scrambling to come up with last minute meals so I hit up my Invited to the Party in My Tummy board on Pinterest for inspiration. What followed was a week of busy chopping and mixing, trying new ingredients, and chowing down! Not all of the recipes were worth the effort and there were a few I will make changes to next time. Here's what I cooked.
The Winners
In no particular order...
So, this picture looks awful but I forgot to take a pretty picture before we SCARFED it all down. If you need a pretty picture, definitely follow the link to the recipe. I really loved this recipe; it was savory and homey. The recipe called for poultry seasoning or sage but I chose to add both. I also had some mushrooms that needed using so I threw them in there, too. We ate it with biscuits and corn on the cob. This one's a keeper.
This was a super simple recipe that my mom suggested I try. All you do is mix up a can of pumpkin and a box of yellow cake mix. I was not so sure that was going to be tasty enough so I added in some chocolate chips. I saw another recipe that suggested you smush a little Nutella in the center, and I think that would be divine. It would probably also be yummy with nuts or cranberries mixed in.
My kids were skeptical about trying these but quickly ate them up. I saw a quote earlier this week from a kid who said something along the lines of grown ups get away with eating cupcakes for breakfast by calling them muffins. I definitely thought these leaned heavily to the cupcake side but, heck, lets call them muffins!
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| Those white flecks? That's where I got tired of stirring because the batter was so thick, ha ha! |
I cannot tell you how much I loved this meal. It was completely and totally delicious, and you need to try it. It really only serves about 4 so if you have a big family (or want leftovers for lunch!), definitely double the recipe.
This chicken salad made a delicious lunch! I omitted the avocado and cilantro simply because I don't like them but think I might leave in the avocado next time because even though this had a lot of tasty ingredients, no single thing had an overpowering taste. We used flour tortillas to turn this salad into a wrap, crunching the chips up over the top before wrapping up (crunchy tortilla strips would be great for this).
These were a delicious side item! I probably added more cheese than what the recipe called for because I like them really cheesy. I think they would also be yummy with some wild rice instead of all white rice.
Loved this but would definitely make one change next time: all that brown rice was a little too much for me. If you're used to eating brown rice, I'm sure you'd love it. If you're used to white rice, it's going to taste a little too "healthy" for you, ha ha. Next time I'll probably do half brown, half white. Other than that, we loved it! Oh, but I did add more cheese than it called for. Because we like cheese. = ) It was delicious served with a dollop of sour cream on top and scooped up with tortilla chips.
A while back we got some baked potato soup at Outback and loved it. So, the girl who posted this recipe said, "Outback ain't got nothin' on me!" I'll try it, I thought. Outback, it ain't, but it was still really easy and pretty good. I think it would be good with chunked up red potatoes instead of simply frozen hashbrowns but dumping a bag of hashbrowns in there was pretty easy. = ) Serve it with your favorite baked potato toppings and mmmmmmmm. Jackie did mention that it wasn't all that filling. It might make a better appetizer or side rather than the entree. We liked it, though!
Sorry, no picture for this one (check the link, though). Another two ingredient sweet treat! This was totally easy and totally delicious. I loved the pineapple flavor and was delighted to see that you can also mix it with other fruits; I'm trying blueberry today! Just put a dollop of whipped cream on the top and it's perfect.
The Loser
This was a Martha Stewart recipe so I really would have expected better. The meat wasn't bad but it had a lot of ingredients and took a good bit of time to prepare. Apparently, I pressed my patties out too thick so it took forever to cook, and we were all starving by the time I finally got it on the table. The onion gravy never thickened for me, and it was VERY onion-y. Overall, I just didn't think it was worth the effort. Perhaps if I toned down the onions in the gravy and got it to thicken, this would be a good freezer meal but don't make this unless you have a good hour to prep this one item.
We served it with the broccoli cups and baked potatoes so the night wasn't a total loss. And, hey, with a week's worth of new recipes one loser is pretty good in my book.
The Jury is Still Out
This spaghetti sauce is in the crock pot for tonight. I haven't tasted it yet but, let me tell you, it smells heavenly! I found myself wishing that I had more veggies to put into it, though. It would be great with zucchini or eggplant or mushrooms or all of the above tossed in. I can't wait to try it tonight!
What Pinterest (or otherwise) recipes have you tried lately? Do share!
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