Tasty Tuesday: Crescent Chicken

Any recipe involving crescent rolls is usually a winner and this one was no exception. I found it while browsing Pinterest (where else?) and made it last night for dinner with scalloped potatoes and corn. It was hearty, filling and the perfect meal to warm up with on a cold winter’s night.


Crescent Chicken

Ingredients:
1 (8 or 6 jumbo count) package refrigerator crescent rolls
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can of milk (using soup can)

Directions:
1. Boil chicken and cut/shred into pieces
2. Cook soup with 1 can on milk on stove top
3. Preheat oven to 350
4. Lay out each crescent roll and place 3-4 bite sized pieces of chicken and about 1Tbsp of cheese in the center of each triangle.
5. Roll each one up and gently seal off all edges
6. Place rolls in a 9×13 baking dish and pour soup mixture over top (salt and pepper, if desired).
7. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday: Lasagna Soup

I don’t know about you guys, but it has all of the sudden become freezing around these parts. What better way to warm up than with a bowl of delicious Lasagna Soup! I originally found the recipe on this blog and thought it would be perfect for a chilly night.



Ingredients:
1/2 Lbs. Fafalle Pasta (cooked about 1/2 way)
1 Jar 26 oz. Garlic Onion Pasta Sauce
1 Lbs. Ground Beef (cooked)
2 C. Beef Broth
2 1/2 C. Water
1 Tbs. Oregano (dry)
1/2 Tbs. Salt
2 Tbs. Italian Seasoning
2 Tbs. Steak Seasoning
7 oz. Ricotta Cheese
1 Tbs. Parsley
1/2 Tsp. Pepper
1 Egg
1/4 C. Parmesan Cheese

Directions:
1. Cook pasta 1/2 way
2. Brown ground beef
3. In a soup pot, add the ground beef, beef broth, pasta, pasta sauce, water and seasonings.
4. Cook over medium high heat for about 20 minutes.
5. While the soup cooks, in another bowl mix together the ricotta, parmesan, parsley, pepper and egg.
6. After the 20 minutes of the soup cooking stir in the ricotta mixture and cook for another 10 minutes, stir to combine the cheese mixture well.
7. Serve this soup along with salad or garlic bread (optional)



This was absolutely delicious and the leftovers were just as good.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday: Sour Cream Chicken

Here’s another delicious dish that I found browsing around Pinterest. All of my new recipes as of late have come from there and I have yet to find a dud.

This chicken was creamy, tender and 100% delicious. Chicken can get a little boring, so this was a perfect way to change it up.



Ingredients:
2 pounds chicken breasts or tenders
1 1/2 cups of Pepperidge Farm Herbed Stuffing, the crumbles not the cubes
1 cup (approximately) of sour cream
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
Garlic powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cubed

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Lay the chicken close together on a foil lined baking sheet
3. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
4. Coat with a thick layer of sour cream.
5. Top that with the seasoned Pepperidge Farm breadcrumbs and then dot with the butter.
6. Bake at 375 for 35 minutes for chicken tenders or up to an hour for chicken breasts.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday: Bubble Up Enchiladas

This recipe has been passed around Pinterest, but I was completely sold when I heard Ashley raving about it on Twitter. I was floored to find out that it’s a Weight Watchers recipe, because it’s delicious for being reasonably healthy.

Bubble Up Enchiladas



Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground turkey
1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 can reduced fat refrigerator biscuits
1 1/2 cups shredded low fat Mexican Cheese

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Brown turkey and drain if needed.
3. Add can of enchilada sauce and can of tomato sauce and stir into meat mixture.
4. Cut the refrigerated biscuits into fourths and stir them in the meat mixture.
5. Grease 9x13 casserole pan add the mixture.
6. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle cheese on top. Bake an additional 10 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Yields 6 servings. WW P+: 8 per serving

File this under easy weeknight meal, because it’s simple and sure to please everyone.

Enjoy!

I’m THANKful for My Favorite Thanksgiving Recipe!

It’s Day 6 of the Plenty To Be Thankful For Blog Challenge & Swap



Today’s topic is our favorite Thanksgiving recipe.

My aunt makes one of the best sides with our Thanksgiving dinner every year. It’s something I’ve never had up until she made it for the first time a few years ago and it’s her Baked Pineapple Casserole.

It’s sweet with a little bit of savory (from the cheese) and a nice little addition to the typical Thanksgiving plate with some turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes.

Source: ezrapoundcake.com via Anne on Pinterest

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients
1 (28-ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups Ritz cracker crumbs
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
2 cups (8 ounces) grated cheddar cheese (plus 1/4 cup for topping)

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Pour the crushed pineapple (juice and all) into a small saucepan, and warm it over low heat. Add sugar. Heat until the sugar is dissolved, and then remove from the heat.
3. In a casserole or baking dish, layer the pineapple mixture, cracker crumbs, butter and cheese. Repeat until you have three to four layers. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup cheese on top of the casserole.
4. Bake uncovered for about 20 to 25 minutes, until bubbly and golden brown.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday: Cheesy Enchilada Casserole

Pinterest has been my latest obsession and with that comes a load of recipes I’ve pinned to make at some point. I finally started last night by making something that has been making my mouth water just from looking at the photo and it’s the Cheesy Enchilada Casserole. This dish was voted the #1 Casserole for the year at Taste Of Home. I figured that it had to be a home run (and it was).

Here’s the recipe, originally found here and pinned on my boards on Pinterest here.


Cheesy Enchilada Casserole


Cornbread

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean)
1 large onion, chopped or season with Onion powder or minced onion
2 1/2 cups salsa
1 can (15 ounces) black beans or red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup reduced-fat Italian salad dressing
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium taco seasoning
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
4-6 flour tortillas (8 inches)
1 small can of drained corn, or about 1 1/4 cups of frozen corn (optional)
3/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 cups (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Mexican cheese blend
1 cup shredded lettuce (I didn’t use lettuce)
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro (I added 1/4 cup of fresh chopped cilantro to the meat mixture instead and added some extra on top for garnishment/added flavor)

Directions:
1. In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.
2. Stir in the salsa, beans, corn, dressing, sour cream, taco seasoning and cumin.
3. Spoon a generous layer of meat mixture on bottom of 2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle with grated cheese.
4. Place a flour or corn tortilla on top of meat mixture. Layer with half of the meat mixture, and cheese. Repeat as many layers as you like.
5. The last & final layer should be a healthy dose of grated cheese.
6. Cover with foil that has been sprayed with Pam or other and bake at 400° for 25 minutes, or until hot & bubbly.
7. Let stand for 5 minutes before topping with tomato and cilantro (and lettuce if you decide to use it).

Yield: 8 servings

I also whipped up some cornbread and that went really well with it. This was a huge hit and something I will make again and again. There were also plenty of leftovers.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday - Beef Taco Bake

I've been craving Mexican lately and found an easy, but tasty recipe that was another hit in our house. This is one I'll definitely be keeping in the rotation.



Ingredients:
2 cups Original Bisquick® mix
2/3 cup water
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 pound ground beef
1 jar (16 oz) Old El Paso® Thick 'n Chunky salsa
1 can (11 oz) Green Giant® Mexicorn® whole kernel corn with red and green peppers, drained
1 cup shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese blend
Sour Cream, if desired

Directions:
1. Brown ground beef
2. Heat oven to 450° F. Grease 9x13-inch pan. In medium bowl, mix Bisquick mix, water and cilantro until soft dough forms. Spread in bottom of pan.
3. In large bowl, mix beef, salsa and corn. Spoon beef mixture over dough.
4. Bake uncovered, 22 to 28 minutes or until edges are golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately sprinkle with cheese. Let stand 1 to 2minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with sour cream.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday – Snake Bite Chili Dip

I saw this recipe on Katie’s blog a couple weeks ago and knew I had to try it. I’m so glad I did, because it was a hit and so delish. This would be perfect for any party and I can see myself making it a lot during sporting events at our house.

Ingredients:
1lb of sausage, either hot or sage (I used hot)
1 8 oz block of cream cheese at room temperature (you can use fat free, but I did not)
1 cup of cheddar cheese shredded (reserve 1/2 cup)
1 cup of shredded monterey jack or pepper jack (reserve 1/2 cup)
1 jar of Peach and or Mango Salsa (I couldn’t find any fruit salsas, so I used cilantro)
Cilantro, chopped

Directions:
Cook sausage, and then drain off fat.
Add Cream cheese to sausage, stirring to incorporate.
Add cheeses (1/2cup of each) until melted.
Stir in Salsa. Mix well.
Sprinkle in some cilantro.
Pour mixture into a 8x8 (or 9x9) baking dish.
Sprinkle with remaining cheese.
Bake at 350 for 10 minutes until cheese is bubbly
Serve with tortilla chips or Fritos

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday – Biggest Loser Enchilada Chicken

I decided to whip out the old Biggest Loser cookbook in search of the perfect, healthy chicken recipe. It was tender and full of flavor, which some healthy recipes lack. This one hit the mark without a doubt and I’ll definitely be making this again.



Ingredients:
4 (4-ounce) trimmed boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 teaspoons salt-free Mexican or Southwest seasoning (I couldn’t find this, so I used one from Emril that unfortunately wasn’t salt-free)
Olive oil spray
4 tablespoons medium, mild, or hot enchilada sauce
2 ounces (1 cup) finely shredded Cabot's 75% Light Cheddar Cheese (any brand will do)
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Season each chicken breast evenly on all sides with the seasoning.
Place a large ovenproof nonstick skillet over high heat (I used a regular pan and transferred it to a baking sheet).
When hot, lightly mist with the olive oil spray and add the chicken.
Cook, turning once, for 1 to 2 minutes per side, or just until the chicken is golden brown on the outside.

Remove the pan from the heat and top each chicken breast with 1 tablespoon of the enchilada sauce, followed by one-fourth of the cheese and one-fourth of the cilantro. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for 4 to 6 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink inside and the cheese is melted.

Makes 4 servings

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday: Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

Last week I had a pound of ground chicken and didn’t know what to do with it. Enter Rachael Ray with her Buffalo Chicken Meatballs recipe. I realize this is more of an appetizer, but it worked. This would be something great to make for entertaining around the holidays.



Ingredients:
1 pound ground all-white-meat chicken
1/2 small onion, grated (I used the whole thing)
2 cloves garlic, grated
1/2 cup parsley, chopped (I used dry parsley)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), for drizzling
2 tablespoons butter (I used margarine b/c we didn’t have butter)
1/2 cup hot sauce, such as Frank's brand
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles
3 scallions, green and white parts thinly sliced, for garnish
A couple of handfuls of celery sticks
A couple of handfuls of carrot sticks
Toothpicks, for serving

Directions:
Pre-heat the oven to 400ºF.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground chicken with the onion, garlic and parsley and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Flatten out the meat in the bowl and score it into four portions using the side of your hand. Shape each portion into four balls you should have sixteen meatballs in total.

Wash your hands after handling the raw poultry.

Arrange the meatballs on a nonstick sheet pan and drizzle them with EVOO. Place in the oven and bake until the meatballs are cooked through and golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.

While the meatballs are baking, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the hot sauce and whisk to combine. Toss the baked meatballs in the hot sauce to coat.

Mix together the buttermilk, sour cream, blue cheese and most of the chopped scallions.

Transfer the meatballs to a serving platter and spike each one with a toothpick or serving fork. Place the blue cheese dressing in a small serving bowl and garnish with scallions. Serve the meatballs with the blue cheese dressing, celery and carrot sticks alongside.

Tasty Tuesday – Taco Soup

Best.Soup.Ever. This is the recipe for the taco soup that I made the weekend before last. It was a huge hit and I cannot wait to make it again, especially during the cold winter months.



Ingredients:
1 lb. Chicken Breast, boiled and shredded
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 cup diced Onion
1/2 cup diced Green Pepper
1 tablespoon Minced Garlic
1 pkg Taco Seasoning (I used the cheesy version from Old El Paso)
1 8oz. jar Salsa
1 14oz. can Whole Corn
1 16oz. can Ranch-style Beans (Cannellini)
2 6oz. jars Tomato Paste
2-14oz. cans Chicken Broth
3oz. Cream Cheese (I used half of a regular package about 4-5 ounces)
Corn chips (I used Fritos and this is optional but recommended)
1 Package Monterey Jack/Cheddar Cheese (optional but recommended)
Sour Cream (optional but recommended)
1 small can Black Olives (optional – I didn’t use them)

Directions:
1. Boil chicken and then shred
2. Sauté onions and green pepper in a small amount of olive oil
3. Add chicken, taco seasoning, salsa, corn, beans, tomato paste and chicken broth
4. Stir and bring to a slow simmer for 20 minutes
5. Place cream cheese in a bowl; spoon some hot soup over it to melt it and dump back into soup (this is because it is impossible to make sure all clumps are dissolved).
6. Simmer on low for another 10 minutes

Serve with corn chips, sour cream, cheese and olives on top.



I also made homemade cornbread with splenda instead of sugar (because I ran out) and it turned out really well. Here is a link to the recipe for that.



Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday – Dinner & Dessert

This recipe was on Annie’s blog and it looked too delicious to pass up. I actually made this a week ago and it lived up to my expectations with plenty of leftovers to spare. Mine turned out more like a Stromboli rather than a roll, but it was still really good.



Bacon Cheeseburger Roll Up

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef
4 slices Bacon, chopped
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/2 pound VELVEETA, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 (13.8 ounce) package refrigerated pizza crust

Directions:
1. PPREHEAT oven to 400 degrees F. Cook ground beef, bacon and onions in large skillet on medium-high heat until ground beef is evenly browned, stirring occasionally. Drain; return meat mixture to skillet. Add VELVEETA; cook until completely melted, stirring frequently. Cool 10 min.
2. UNROLL pizza dough onto baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Press into 15x8-inch rectangle. Top evenly with meat mixture. Roll up dough, starting at one of the long sides. Rearrange, if necessary, so roll is seam-side down on baking sheet.
3. BAKE 20 to 25 min. or until golden brown. Cut diagonally into six slices to serve.



Diet soda cake

A few ladies asked me about the diet soda cake that I made over the weekend and here is the easy and delicious recipe for that:

Ingredients:
1 box cake mix any flavor. I went with Pillsbury Strawberry Cake
1 can diet soda any flavor. For fruit flavored cakes it is always best to go with Diet Sprite or Diet Sierra Mist. Diet Coke/Pepsi or Diet Dr. Pepper work well for chocolate cakes and Diet Cream Soda works well for vanilla.

Directions:
1. Empty cake mix into bowl
2. Pour in can of soda and mix well. Do not add any other ingredients.
3. Bake according to directions on box and viola, you’ve got a diet soda cake!

I’ve used a homemade splenda frosting in the past, but this time I used Pillsbury Reduced Sugar Frosting

Pink & Green Thursday

Welcome to another edition of Pink & Green Thursday hosted by Trish at Pink Preppy Lilly Lover. If you have not been to her blog, you will not be disappointed. The posts she puts together are beautiful and make me forget about reality for a little while.

First up, remember this Pink & Green Thursday post? Lis spotted this and delivered. She sent this adorable market tote to me with my monogram for my birthday. I’ve been meaning to post about it and though it would fit perfectly into the Pink & Green Thursday theme.



These napkins are something I also originally saw on Lis’ blog. I finally spotted them at Pier 1 Imports and got a set for myself.



How great would these napkins be with a Lilly Key Lime Mojito? There is still plenty of summer left to enjoy one of these cocktails.



The Stella & Dot Fall collection has been released and I’m really loving these Ladybug Stud Earrings. They’re so ladylike and pretty.



It is definitely time to start getting organized and I really need to get myself one of these pretty Lilly Pulitzer 18-month planners. Now, if I could only decide between these two patterns...



I fell in love with the turquoise top that Ali wore on The Bachelorette when Frank ended things. I found it, but it was sold out in that color. Planet Blue does have this pretty pink one though. I think this would look great with some white shorts and sandals. You could do your swimsuit underneath or a tank top/cami.

Tasty Tuesday

The weather has been less than stellar the past few days, so I decided to whip out the crockpot. I saw a recipe for Chicken and Dumplings over at The Juice is Worth the Squeeze and knew that it would be a hit.

Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients:
4 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 TB butter
2 Cans condensed cream of chicken soup (I used 1 cream of chick/1 cream of celery)
1 Can chicken broth
1 Small onion, finely chopped
1 12 oz tube refrigerated biscuit dough torn into pieces
2 Cans peas/carrots drained (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste (optional)

Directions:
Place chicken, butter, soup, chicken broth, veggies and onion in crockpot.
Cover and cook 5 to 6 hours.
About 60-90 minutes before serving shred the chicken and place the torn biscuit dough in the slow cooker.
Cook until dough is no longer raw in center. (I kept the cooker on low until I added the dough, then switched to high for the last hour).

Another tip that I must give is that I love using Reynolds Slow Cooker liners. You just throw the bag out when you’re done and clean up is so easy.



I also made a Strawberry Shortcake using the Bisquick recipe that my grandmother used when I was a child. It was tasty, but I forgot the whipped cream!

Bisquick Strawberry Shortcake

Ingredients:
2 1/3 c. Bisquick mix
1/2 c. Milk
1/2 c. Sugar
3 Tbsp. Butter (melted)
4 c. sliced Strawberries
Cool Whip

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425
In medium bowl, mix together the strawberries and ½ cup sugar.
In another medium bowl, mix together the Bisquick, milk, butter, sugar until a soft dough forms. Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet 6 spoonfuls (I put all of the batter into a cake pan and spread it out)
Bake 10 to 12 minutes until golden brown. Remove and split warm shortcakes; fill and top with strawberries and top with whipped topping (I don’t split it, I just cut it like pie pieces).

Tasty Tuesday – Cola Chicken

This is a Weight Watchers recipe and so delicious. I got it a long time ago from a co-worker. It’s quick and very easy.

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
1 cup ketchup
1 can diet soda (I used Diet Dr. Pepper)

Directions:
1. Put chicken in non-stick skillet
2. Pour ketchup and diet cola over the top
3. Bring to boil
4. Cover, reduce heat and cook for 45 minutes
5. Uncover, turn up the heat and continue to cook until the sauce becomes thick and adheres to the chicken

It turns into the most incredible BBQ sauce and it's only 4 points per serving.



I served this with broccoli in cheese sauce (Green Giant) and polenta.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday – Buffalo Chicken Meatloaf

Last week, I made a recipe from the Biggest Loser cookbook. It was Buffalo Chicken Meatloaf and it was tasty! I added a little extra hot sauce to spice it up and give it a bit more flavor. It thought it turned out really well.



Ingredients:
Olive Oil Spray
2/3 c. Old-fashioned oats
1/2 c. Fat-free milk
2 1/2 Tbsp buffalo wing sauce, or more to taste
1 pound extra-lean, ground chicken breast
1/2 c. Finely chopped celery
1/4 c. Shredded carrot
1/4 c. Finely chopped sweet onion
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
1/4 tsp. salt
2 oz. Crumbled reduced-fat blue cheese

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a 9x5 loaf pan with olive oil spray (I use my misto for this).
2. Combine the oats and milk in a medium mixing bowl and stir to mix. Let standfor 3 minutes, or until the oats begin to soften.
3. Stir in the wing sauce until well mixed.
4. Add the chicken, celery, carrot, onion, egg whites and salt. With a fork orclean hands, mix the ingredients well.
5. Add the blue cheese and gently mix to combine.
6. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and spread so that the top is flat. Bakefor 35 to 40 minutes, or until the chicken is completely cooked through and nolonger pink. Cut into 8 slices and serve immediately.



I didn’t have a loaf pan, so I formed it the best I could with a baking pan. It was very filling and even with my mom over for dinner, we had plenty of leftovers.

Makes 4 servings

Per serving: 263 calories, 6 g fat, 74 mg cholesterol, 485 mg sodium, 14 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 35 g protein.

Enjoy!

Random Friday

This morning for breakfast I finally made something I saw on Lisa’s blog, oats in jar. You can really toss in whatever you want, but I did ½ cup oats, l tsp pumpkin butter, butter lite syrup, cinnamon and the rest of the pb in the jar (probably about 1 tablespoon). I cooked the oats in the microwave first and then tossed them into the jar with everything else. It was so filling and delicious that it was hard to finish. Next time, I think I’ll get some bananas to toss in.


Oats in a jar

Will you be watching Molly & Jason’s wedding? I used to be upset about them being together after what happened to Melissa, but I’m over the whole thing now. They’re happy, she’s happy…it’s a win win (even though what he did was still wrong). I'll probably watch this on Monday. It can’t be anymore cheesy than Vienna & Jake dancing to “On the Wings of Love” during After the Final Rose, or can it?


Molly & Jason

Tasty Tuesday

Last night, I made spaghetti for dinner and we had leftovers. Geof decided to give a spaghetti noodle to the dogs and I swear it was just like this scene from Lady and the Tramp.

Mandy kind of looks like Lady

Okay, onto Tasty Tuesday:

Geof made this Shepherd’s Pie last week and he was very proud of himself. He called me at work and said he was making a surprise for dinner and that it could either be a delicious success or an epic failure. Luckily it was the former. He made it up himself and it was so good.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 box of cheesy garlic mashed potatoes
1 can of mix vegetables
½ cup of shredded cheddar cheese

Directions (according to Geof):
1. Brown the meat and add vegetables
2. Make the potatoes according to directions on package
3. Spread the meat/veggie mixture on the bottom of a baking pan and add cheese on top
4. Add potato mixture to top
5. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes

Geof's Shepherd’s Pie

Weekend recap

Friday, we had lots of errands to run and headed to Best Buy for Geof to get some of his laptop issues sorted out and then ran to Bed, Bath & Beyond to make a return. We got to the gym late and it was actually nice going on a Friday night, because it wasn’t very crowded. After the gym, we came home and relaxed.

This pic cracks me up. Geof using the pink Snuggie as a blanket and the dogs taking a rest too.

Saturday, we had ice skating and when we left it was snowing really bad. It came out of nowhere and I wasn’t expecting that at all. We took the drive nice and slow and grabbed a late lunch at Subway. Once we got home, I prepared for dinner and my mom came over. I made spaghetti with homemade turkey meatballs and we watched This Is It. I saw it in the theater with my mom when it was out, but Geof never saw it. He liked it.

Turkey Meatballs

Mmm...dinner!

Sunday, we stayed in and I caught up on blogs and some shows. Geof made a delicious dinner from some of the Omaha Steak goodies his boss sent him for Christmas and we watched the Grammy’s.

2 of my favorite ladies

Weekend recap

Friday, my mom and I braved the King of Prussia Mall for Black Friday. We headed up there in the early afternoon hours and missed some of the early-bird madness. The mall was still very crowded. Police were directing traffic and there were even lines for the ladies room. Overall, it was a fun trip. People were in good spirits and deals were popping up all over. I purchased a few Christmas gifts and even got some things for myself. We shopped over 4 hours and were beat. After shopping, we went to Charlie Brown’s for dinner and just got the salad bar and dessert.


Some things from Old Navy, Ann Taylor Loft, Sephora and a bracelet from Express


Love this grey sweater from Ann Taylor Loft. It is nice and long and will be great with skinny jeans. Headband and some jewelry from ATL and Old Navy.

I don’t know how I had the energy, but Friday night Jess came over and we went to the Clifton Inn and met up with some of our friends. I had never been there, but it was a total dive bar that had cheap drinks, a pool table and a jukebox. I got to catch up with my friends Tim, Dan and Steven. We had a nice time and ended up getting a late night bite at Denny’s.

Saturday, I had ice skating and then came home, cleaned a bit and relaxed. I got sucked into watching Honeymoon with Mom on Lifetime and it was cheesy, but good. My mom came over to keep me company since Geof is traveling.



Sunday, I had a much needed lazy day. I slept in late and got sucked into 2 more Lifetime movies. I watched, I Me Wed and I Do (but I Don’t). They were both cute and perfect for watching on a relaxing day. My mom came over again and I made us an easy dinner of grilled cheese and tomato soup. For dessert, I finally made the soda cake that I had wanted to try for months. I used strawberry cake mix and Sprite Zero. I also made a low calorie frosting for the cake, but really I could have just used whipped cream. It tasted better than I expected, and I don’t know if I’ll make a normal cake ever again.

Cake fresh from the oven

Frosted! Next time I'll add some more Confectioners Sugar, since the icing was a little thin.

I hope everyone had a nice, long weekend!