Welcome to the weekend, my friends! It’s hard to believe that Thanksgiving is the week after next. (Unless of course, you’re Canadian and Thanksgiving was celebrated a month ago. In that case, Happy belated Thanksgiving, friends!) Wasn’t it the first of September just yesterday? 

I’ll be spending time this weekend immersed in the oh-so-exciting tasks of cleaning out the pantry, refrigerator, and freezer to make sure we’re ready to go for the holidays. While I’m at it, I should probably make sure that we get the patio furniture put away before the first snow arrives too.

ON THE BLOGS THIS WEEK: Ground beef Philly cheesesteaks are a tasty, convenient twist on the classic Philadelphia sandwich. This skillet version is prepared using ground beef instead of thinly sliced ribeye or sirloin steak, making it a quicker and budget-friendly option.

If you want something a little different for your Thanksgiving this year, this roast turkey with herbs and wine is a great way to go. Using this method, you can cook a 12-pound turkey in under an hour.

This homemade brown gravy is delicious on turkey, chicken, beef, potatoes, poutine, and more – best of all, it’s easily made without any meat drippings.

When you combine crisp, tender green beans with earthy artichoke hearts, and bathe them in a garlicky cream sauce, the result is a whole new kind of green bean artichoke casserole that is certain to be a win on your holiday table.

These roasted Brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes (with bacon!) combine savory, sweet, and smoky flavors perfectly.

Pieces of fudge and chocolate-covered peanuts dance through swirls of rich fudge sauce in this tin roof sundae ice cream.

All the awesome buttery sweet pecan pie goodness of the classic pie in a cobbler-style dessert that you can stir together in just a few minutes? Absolutely! This Pecan Pie Cobbler was a HUGE win from the very first bite.

What I’m CRAVING: My friend Gina’s Tuna Waldorf Salad caught my eye this week and it sounds like the perfect lunch for after church tomorrow. I’m going to grab some grapes and more apples at the store tonight.

My FAVORITE THINGS this week are these tiny reading li

Paula Deen Banana Pudding

Not Yo Momma’s Paula Deen Banana Pudding is a fluffy mixture of creamy pudding and whipped cream with cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk. Plus it’s served with Chessman Cookies on the bottom and on top!

I loved banana pudding anything as a little girl. If lip smackers had been smart when I was entering jr high they would have made bank off of a lip gloss for banana pudding anything. 

Did you buy Lip Smackers as well? Something like, white cake batter, or Dr Pepper? Those were the good ol’ days. 

Paula Deen’s Not Yo Mama’s Banana Pudding 

Paula Deen Banana Pudding, or the full name, Paula Deen’s Not Yo Momma’s (or Mama’s) Banana Pudding is a little bit deceiving so I just want to get this out of the way first, it’s not a banana pudding recipe. 

I mean, it is. There are banana slices under the pudding. But the actual pudding is a french vanilla pudding whipped up with sweetened condensed milk and cream cheese. 

That’s a legit pudding dessert. 

Ingredients for Not Yo Momma’s Banana Pudding

Here’s your quick grocery list to make your banana pudding with Chessman Cookies. 

• Chessman Cookies: traditionally used in a classic recipe for banana pudding and can be found on the cookie aisle
  • Fun Fact: This recipe is sometimes known as Chessman banana pudding!
• French Vanilla Instant Pudding Box: make sure it is instant pudding and not cook & serve pudding
• Cool Whip: if you can’t find a 12oz tub of Cool Whip, use 1 and half of the 8oz tubs
• Cream Cheese: make sure it is room temperature so that it doesn’t get lumpy
• Sweetened Condensed Milk: adds sweetness and creaminess to the dessert
• Milk: combines with the pudding mix the create the pudding
• Bananas: ripe bananas are the best for their sweetness and bold banana flavor

The measurements for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post.

Substitute for Chessman Cookies

Vanilla Wafers are the best substitute for Chessman cookies if you can’t find them. Chessman Cookies are usually by the Pepperidge Farm brand so look by the Mint Milano cookies.

How to Make Paula Deen Banana Pudding  

1. Set the Cool Whip in the fridge or on the counter for a faster thaw.
2. Whisk milk and the instant pudding mix together in a small bowl. 
3. In another bowl, blend the cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk with a handheld electric mixer.
4. Fold the Cool Whip into the cream cheese mixture. 
5. Stir together the vanilla pudding mixture and cream cheese mixture. 
6. Layer 1 bagof cookies on the bottom of a 9×13 dish, top the cookies with a layer of bananas. 
7. Pile on the pudding.

Weekly Menu Plan – Nov. 13 to 19

Here is your menu plan for the week!

Monday: 10-Minute Garlic Butter Chicken

Tuesday: Southern Mac and Cheese

Wednesday: French Dip Sandwiches

Thursday: Sausage and Peppers Gnocchi

Friday: Pizza Night!

Saturday: Chicken Noodle Soup

Sunday: Apple Chutney Pork Chops

READ: Weekly Menu Plan – Nov. 13 to 19

Chopped fudge pieces and salty, chocolate-covered peanuts dance through swirls of rich fudge sauce in this Tin Roof Sundae Ice Cream.

Tin Roof Ice Cream

This was my Grandpa McGinnis’ favorite ice cream. I never really liked tin roof ice cream much as a kid, as peanuts in ice cream just weren’t my thing. But, as an adult, I sure do love this homemade version.

Maybe it’s that the peanuts are covered in chocolate. Maybe it’s the decadent fudge sauce. Or, maybe it’s the chewy chunks of fudge. But, when you put all three of them together, there’s no maybe about it. Each spoonful is magical.

With this tinroof sundae recipe, you can use pretty much any fudge you may have on hand. At my house during the holidays, that makes this recipe a very appealing choice in the fall and winter seasons.

If you don’t have fudge on hand, I’ve got you covered. You can whip up a batch of this incredible homemade fudge in just 5 minutes. Just leave out the pecans, and it will be perfect for this ice cream.

With over 70 ice cream recipes here to choose from, there’s sure to be an ice cream for everyone! If you’re new

Raspberry Pretzel Jello Salad

Some things just belong together…like raspberries and summertime or raspberry pretzel jello salad and your next BBQ! Three layers of jello salad joy.

Now I don’t know if this is a salad or a dessert, but it is so delicious that it doesn’t matter! It has a sweet and salty pretzel crust layer, a sweet cream cheese filling layer and a fruity tart jello layer on top.

I’m realizing people have a bigger opinion on berries than I ever knew. Are you a lover of raspberries and hater of blueberries? 

If you had to pick would you go strawberry or raspberry?

Our strawberry pretzel jello salad brought up so many requests for one vs the other and since I happen to love both, I tend to pull for team strawberry, but I really had no choice but to create a raspberry pretzel jello version. I mean, it’s all in the name of research, am I right? 😉

Plus it tastes like cheesecake but you serve it as a side dish. Who in the world is the genius that brought this first to Thanksgiving dinner?

Ingredients Needed for Raspberry Pretzel Salad

Here is your grocery list for each of the three layers of this salad:

Pretzel Layer

• Pretzels: any brand or shape of pretzel will work great since they crushed into small pieces
• Butter: helps bind the crust together and adds rich yummy flavor
• Brown Sugar: adds flavor and sweetness
• Sugar: adds more sweetness

Cream Layer

• Sugar: adds sweetness to the creamy layer
• Cream Cheese: make sure it is softened to room temperature so it doesn’t get lumpy
• Cool Whip: adds sweetness, structure and creaminess to the cream layer

Jello Layer

• Raspberry Jello: you will follow the instructions on the Jello box to make this layer
• Water: used to make the Jello
• Raspberries: fresh or frozen can be used and will work great

The measurements for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card below.

How to Make Raspberry Pretzel Salad

The steps for making this recipe are simple. Here they are broken down by layer:

Pretzel Layer

• Preheat oven.
• Combine all the ingredients well.
• Press into baking dish.
• Bake and let cool completely.

Cream Layer

• Beat the sugar and cream cheese together.
• Fold in Cool Whip.
• Spread over cooled pretzel layer.

Jello Layer

• Mix the jello powder and boiling water until the powder is dissolved.
• Stir in the rasp