Us, Lately!

We've been busy the past few weeks during my unintended blog silence. Here's a little peek at what we've been up to!

::ONE::

Way, way back a month ago, we spent spring break at my parents' house. If you had told me when I was 16 that I would actually plan and enjoy a spring break in my hometown, I would've called you crazy. Yet that's exactly what we did. We played at the great community park (with a real retired fire truck that's been retrofitted for kids to crawl all over!), hung out with Sugar and Granddaddy, and ate snow cones. It was great!

::TWO::

Speaking of my parents, last weekend they treated us to Disney on ice last weekend. It was so much fun!


Side note: I often find myself telling Jack to stop making the exact same face I'm making in that family pic. I have been baffled until now on where he picked it up. Poor kid.

::THREE::

The first nice day with nothing on our calendar, we high-tailed it to the Fort Worth Zoo. They have an exhibit on right now called GIGANTABUGS which is quite like it sounds: gigantic replicas of bugs. Especially creepy ones are the scorpion and tarantula. The tarantula is hairy and probably as big as two mid-size SUVs. And they all move. {Shudder}

Not everyone appreciates a good selfie on the train.



::FOUR::

I've still been going to Pure Barre religiously. Back during the Olympics, they were having a contest regarding social media check ins and attendance, so I was checking in on Facebook everyday. My friends were like "did you stop going?!?" Nope! I'm still there almost every day, but I only post sometimes. Right now I'm dying (exaggeration) over these blue Splits59 crops and waiting for my studio to get them in.


::FIVE::

I cooked my first whole chicken using this recipe from Fort Worth Moms Blog. It reminded me of cooking a pot roast, once I got past the mental block of sticking my hand inside the chicken. Maybe I should stick to pot roast. The chicken was delicious though!

Party Recipes

Today I wanted to share a couple of recipes I used for Annabelle's party.

Chicken Salad
I used this recipe for chicken salad and really liked it. The onions in it made it different from others I've made before. It had almost a French onion taste, while still being chicken salad. I used grapes and left out the walnuts.

Using a rotisserie chicken was genius. After de-boning it, I shredded it in my stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Both of these items combined to make the chicken salad a snap.

Party Sandwiches
For the party sandwiches, I made these that I've mentioned before. They're always a hit, so I keep on making them. I assemble them the night before, cover and refrigerate, then make the glaze and bake about 30 minutes before the party. They come out at the perfect time to be warm but not finger-burning at the start time.

Fruit Dip
And then there was the fruit dip. I ran out of time to make the fruit dip because I forgot to set out my cream cheese, so I made it the day after. Otherwise, it takes approximately five minutes to make. So easy, and so incredibly delicious. Only three ingredients. We ate it with a spoon when we weren't dipping strawberries in it.

Must Make Cut Out Cookies

Nearly every time I make cut out cookies, I use a different recipe. My favorite cookies in Fort Worth are by a bakery called J. Rae's, and I'm always comparing to theirs because they are delicious! The best part is their frosting, which has the perfect amount of almond flavoring in it. But I digress.

I make frosted sugar cookies every year for Valentine's Day. I think I've documented them on here every year too. I even had a former co-worker message me last week saying she was missing them. So sweet of her!


My helper
This year I used a recipe from All Recipes called "The Best Rolled Sugar Cookies." The are delicious. Couldn't get enough of them delicious. Diet was on hold until they were gone delicious.

You will notice that the first step is to cream 3 sticks of butter with two cups of sugar, so that's probably the secret duo of ingredients right there. They are decadently sweet, but worth it for a special sweet occasion. I used canned strawberry frosting because I love it.


My not fancy frosting job
I would put these close to J. Rae's in terms of deliciousness of the actual cookie. Now if I could just figure out their frosting!

Fresh Green Beans {Recipe}

I know fresh green beans are really in season during summer, but nothing makes a house smell more like a home than a big yummy pot of green beans with bacon simmering on the stove.

OK, maybe it's really the bacon that makes the house smell like a home.

Either way, this smells good.

My mom came to stay with us one week last summer while Mr. G was traveling and brought beans from my dad's garden. She snapped them and made this, and I've kept making it because it's semi-healthy (green beans, right?), easy, and also, bacon. I posted a pic on Instagram a few weeks ago and had several inquiries for the recipe. You'll notice I don't really have any measurements. No wrongs, just right on this one. And my preschooler loves helping me snap the beans, which I suppose is also working on those fine motor skills.


Before adding chicken stock
You'll need...

1 lb. fresh green beans, snapped (or as many as you like)
5 small red potatoes, cut up (or as many as you like, broken record)
bacon, strips cut into smaller pieces (I use half of a standard store size package)
1/2 onion, diced
Chicken stock - enough to cover your vegetables
salt and pepper to taste

In the bottom of your pot, cook your bacon pieces done but not crispy. Place green beans, potatoes, and onions on top, then cover with chicken stock. Add in salt and pepper, and bring the pot to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cover. When beans and potatoes are tender, it's ready. This is usually about 25-30 minutes for me.

On nights where this is our main dish, I make sure to start with a LOT of bacon and add cornbread muffins alongside it. Enjoy!

Too Easy To Mess Up Banana Bread

My favorite tea room in Fort Worth is the Rose Garden, located in the Fort Worth Mercantile tucked into the traffic circle over on the west side. It's twinkly, sparkly atmosphere, and I love to lady lunch there with friends. Or I lunch with my littles and just me. My usual order is a combination of everything delicious about tea rooms in general: a small bit of chicken salad, a cup of the soup du jour, a sliver of quiche, fruit, and they throw in two little delicious tea sandwiches that are basically pumpkin bread with cream cheese in the middle.

I used to be able to feed the little guy right off of my plate--we'd just split each thing because it's more than enough food. And then, he discovered the little pumpkin bread sandwiches. He would eat every single last bite and beg for mine! Now he gets his own order of sandwiches.

While I do like pumpkin bread on occasion, I don't like pumpkin flavored stuff in general, and cooking with pumpkin puree kind of grosses me out. (I know, I know--throw me out of the lovers of fall club and all that.)

I do, however, love banana bread (without pecans--I don't like those either. I know, I know.) Jack loves bananas too, and inevitably we have extras going a little past their prime probably once a month. And thus, I came up with another little treat to pack in the little guy's preschool lunch. Tiny banana bread sandwiches, similar to our tea room faves.


I've been using this easy recipe, which is simple enough that I can whip up a fresh loaf of bread in the morning before we leave for school. I use the lesser amount of sugar and 3 bananas. One slice of banana bread, cut in half, spread with a thin layer of cream cheese on one side, then smash the second side on it makes a great little half banana bread sandwich. He loves it, and I feel like it helps fill his belly, better than something like crackers or goldfish.

I make a second one for myself while I'm at it!

Party Recipes

Sign inspiration from Sarah's blog, Life {Sweet} Life
I had very good intentions of making chocolate chip cookies, but by the time Thursday came around I decided to go with storebought. What can I say? It is my heritage and is also likely to be my legacy.

But as for the other stuff, one of the major hits of my holiday season party circuit were these small sandwiches, and I thought they'd be perfect "little man-wiches." There are all kinds of variations of this on the internet. Here's how I did it:

Sweet Ham and Turkey Sandwiches
1 12-count package of King's Hawaiian sweet rolls
3 slices of deli turkey, quartered
3 slices of deli ham, quartered
3 slices of swiss cheese, quartered
1 stick of butter, melted
3 T. sugar
1 T. poppy seeds
1 T. onion flakes
1 T. honey mustard

Spray the bottom of a baking dish with cooking oil. Slice the rolls and prepare the sandwiches with a quartered piece of turkey, ham, and cheese. Melt butter and add sugar, poppy seeds, onion flakes, and honey mustard. Drizzle over sandwiches evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 or until golden brown.

{I quadrupled this recipe on Saturday, which used an entire package of deli turkey, ham, and swiss cheese.}

I've tried to make Pioneer Woman's mac and cheese multiple times now, and each time, although my roux tastes great, the resulting mac and cheese is gritty. And that is gross to me. This one comes to us from recipes.com, by searching "easy macaroni and cheese." It's so easy. And my little Jack loved it, so it will be making appearances at my table often.

Manly Mac 'N Cheese
16 oz. macaroni
16 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, sliced (I used mild but will try with sharp next time. Also, I bought pre-sliced.)
salt and pepper, to taste
1 can of evaporated milk

Cook macaroni. Layer a third in the bottom of a greased casserole dish, topped with 1/3 of the cheese slices. Repeat this two more times. Pour the can of evaporated milk over the entire dish and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until brown and bubbly on top.

Secret Family Recipe Revealed.

My weekending post will be up later today. I've been pondering being a working mother since Friday from all the of the clicking I did over at Kelly's blog. What I have to say is not ground breaking. It's simply a memory I have of my own working mother here at Valentine's Day. I thought it might help out some of you ladies short on time this evening.

My mom worked at the neighborhood elementary school I, and then my brother, attended. (We're 6 years apart.) Back in the day when children could have parties in school, one Valentine's Day I wanted to take treats at last minute. My mom marched into the grocery store, bought pre-made sugar cookies, then iced and decorated them. While you may think that's too semi-homemade, I thought it was brilliant.

I still do.

So on this day before Valentine's Day, I'm letting you in on the little secret family recipe. I still take these in to my Co-Workers every year for my "party at school." Feel free to make your own sugar cookies, use a mix, or just buy them pre-made in the store. Add a can of strawberry frosting and some of those Valentine hearts that will probably be picked off and tossed aside (at least, that's what I do with them.)

My mother (and dad too!) never missed a beat when it came to my brother and me. She was just "mom" to us, and I never gave a thought to whether she was working or not. Every year when I make these cookies, I'm taken back to a much simpler time in my life.

So if you're in a hurry tonight and need treats for tomorrow, you'll find this simple, delicious, and quite festive!

Happy Pink Cookies.

I love to bake this time of year, but I pretty much only stick to pink cookies. The chocolate chip bar cookies I made over the weekend were just to give some chocolate variety. But those pink cookies? They are delicious! And strawberry! And made from every woman's secret homemaking weapon...the boxed cake mix.


You've probably had these before. They taste great from a chocolate cake mix, but my favorite is strawberry, which is what those happy pink cookies all in a row up there are made from. If you use a cherry cake mix, they taste similar to Collin Street Bakery cherry ice box cookies (that's my hometown, world-famous bakery), and they're also pink.

{Yay, pink.}

Cake Mix Cookies
1 (18.25 oz.) box of your preferred flavor cake mix
1 egg
1/4 c. water
1/4 c. oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients and drop by teaspoonful onto cookie sheet. I used parchment for the first time ever to bake these, and I wanted to hug the genius who invented it. They bake for around 15 minutes. Mine made about 2 dozen so I grabbed a second box and made more.

An often forgotten about, super easy, perfect for Valentine's Day recipe to make. YUM.

Peanut Butter Cup Cake

Someone's got a birthday tomorrow.
We're celebrating with friends tonight--that means cake!


Recipe found {HERE}.

Chicken and a Vegetable

Back in our first months of marriage, I was making great efforts to wow my new husband with my amazing cooking skills. I took pride in creating healthy meals and even trying some new things. One of his favorites (apart from the velveeta-laden chicken spaghetti) we very originally named "chicken and a vegetable."

He was terribly impressed. He praised my fabulous entree as though he had never eaten baked chicken in his life. I didn't have the heart to tell him how easy it was because--you know--I liked hearing it! And then one day, I was running late leaving work and instructed him on how to prepare it.

He discovered what I had known all along--that this is the easiest meal in the world. I take a boneless skinless chicken and marinate it with one of the Target Archer Farm branded marinades, then bake it for about 15 minutes. Heat a can of whatever vegetable is in the pantry with a little Tony Chachere's, and voila--chicken and a vegetable.

Now that we're in a house, chicken and a vegetable has become grilled chicken and a vegetable on the back patio. We always have the ingredients on hand in a pinch. I'm glad I revealed my secret because now I can turn it over to the grill master!

So tell me, what's your go to meal? I need quick and easy!

Brunch Casserole

This casserole has been making the baby shower and work potluck breakfast circuit for a couple of years now. Recently, it showed up at our New Year's breakfast, so I thought I would post the recipe. I made it from the trial and error of combining other casseroles and just plain ol' personal preference, but I'm sure there are many recipes similar to it out there on the information super highway or your mom's church cookbook. I've given it a creative name for your enjoyment. (I have no excuse other than I am tired.)

Breakfast Casserole
2 1/2 cups of seasoned croutons
1 lb. pork sausage
6 eggs
1 pint half and half
1 can cream of mushroom soup
3/4 package frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1 can Rotel
2 cups shredded monterrey & colby jack cheese

First, let's butter or grease your 9x13 casserole dish. Spread the croutons in the bottom of the dish. Brown the sausage, drain, and layer on top of the croutons. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and pour in the half and half. Combine the cream of mushroom soup, rotel, and cheese with the egg mixture. Finally, stir the drained spinach into the eggs & co. and pour it over the sausage in your casserole dish. Refrigerate overnight.

Bake at 325 for 1 hour, once the egg mixture is set and browned on top. It serves best if you let it sit for 5 minutes before dishing it up.

A personal note on this dish: I'm not a huge fan of spinach, so that's why the measurement is 3/4 of the bag. I was afraid all of it would be a little too spinachy for me, so feel free to dump it all in there if you prefer. The color goes so well with the happy Rotel tomatoes. Enjoy!

I Love A Rainy Night

If you were anywhere in our area last Monday night, you know that it downpoured all night long. It started when I got home from work and didn't let up until around 4 am or so. Don't ask why I know that or why I am so tired this week. (It will sound like pager blah blah batch job blah blah. It's a boring story.)

Due to the weather, we decided to tuck ourselves in at home for a cozy MNDN. It was my night to plan, so I decided to bring back an oldie, but a goodie--taco soup.

Taco Soup

1 lb. ground beef
1 envelope of Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing dry mix
1 envelope of taco seasoning
2 cans of hominy
2 cans of Rotel
2 cans of Ranch Style Beans

Brown the ground beef and drain. Grab a large pot and add the beef, all the canned ingredients (without draining the liquids), the ranch dressing mix, and the taco seasoning. Add a couple of cans of water and heat the whole thing up to your desired soup temperature.

Easy as can be and incredibly delicious, and a great excuse to pull out my favorite soup bowls! I also mixed together a box of Jiffy cornbread muffins. They are the perfect complement.

Live Blogging from Thanksgiving Eve

We're watching the Aggies in the NIT semi-finals, and currently, they're winning!  My mother is whipping up the dish she's supposed to take to my Grannie's for lunch tomorrow.  It's a Thanksgiving/Christmas lunch staple in our family--cream cheese corn.  In honor of the high calorie holidays, here's the recipe. It's easy to make, and easy to reheat, which makes it especially perfect for potluck style gatherings.

Cream Cheese Corn

3 cans of shoe peg corn

8 oz. cream cheese

1 stick of butter or margarine

1/4 cup of milk

1 fresh jalapeno, diced

1/2 cup of grated cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Over low heat, melt together the cream cheese and butter combined with the milk.  Drain the corn.  Mix with the cream cheese mixture.  Add the jalapeno, then top with the grated cheese.  Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

Have a happy Thanksgiving!

Fiesta Night at the Gentrys'

This weekend we had a nice relaxing time in town doing some of our favorite things--hanging out just the two of us and entertaining our friends.

Friday night we had some of our Fort Worth friends over for Fiesta Night. I tried a new recipe my mom gave me which went over pretty well! She told me that it makes a lot of food, which might have been the understatement of the year. We'll be eating leftovers through the middle of the week, and that was after feeding 8 people! Below is the recipe...we'll call it Fiesta Casserole.



Fiesta Casserole

2 lbs. ground beef (I used about 1.5 lbs...was afraid it wouldn't all fit in my dish!)
1 onion
2 cans Ranch Style Beans (don't drain!)
2 cans mushroom soup
2 lbs. shredded cheese (I bought the Mexican blend pre-shredded)
1 can Rotel (don't drain)
2 T. chili powder
1 t. garlic powder
corn tortillas, cut into strips - enough for two layers

Spray a deep casserole dish with Pam (I used my 9x13 corningware). Brown the ground beef with the onion and drain the grease. Combine all the other ingredients with the beef. Place a layer of the corn tortilla strips in the bottom of the casserole dish. Add a layer of the beef mixture on top of the tortilla strips and top with 1 lb of cheese. Repeat with tortillas, beef mixture, then cheese.

Bake on 325 for 1 hour, and you and Santa Anna's army are ready to eat.

We added a salad and some of the Lipton's Mexican rice (boil the water, add the pre-mixed packet) to the meal, and rounded it out with a sopapilla cheesecake. Oh, and let's not forget the pre-meal salsa and guacamole. Leave your calorie counting at the door!

Welcome to the Infirmary

Today, instead of making homemade ice cream to take to a church fellowship, we have been sitting at home. Sick. Both of us. B has some unfortunate food poisoning, and I have either developed an allergy to my hometown, or I have what is known as the common cold. We have been laying around all day co-miserating.

So since we didn't think that anyone at our church should be eating anything that came out of this house today, I'm passing along my mom's homemade ice cream recipe we were going to make. The key is lots of salt on the ice to make it freeze faster--at least that's what I'm told.

Mom's Vanilla Ice Cream

6 eggs, separated
2 cans of evaporated milk
2 cups of sugar
1 Tablespoon of vanilla
Whole milk (we'll get to the amount in a sec)
Ice (probably should buy 2 bags)
2 cans of salt

Beat egg whites with a mixer until forthy. Beat the egg yolks separately. Pour both into the ice cream freezer. Add the two cans of evaporated milk to the freezer, then add the sugar followed by the vanilla.

Stir all of this together with a long handled spoon. Finish the freezer up to the fill line with the whole milk. Stir it again.

After assembling your ice cream maker and the freezer, add ice to the bottom, then layer with lots of salt. Continue adding ice and salt. Be liberal with the salt. Add more than you think it needs. The salt on the ice somehow makes it freeze faster.

And just for a personal pick me up, here we are on a better day.

Mama's Fish House, Maui