Weekly Menu Plan – Oct. 30 to Nov. 5

Web Admin 0 117 Article rating: No rating

Weekly Menu Plan – Oct. 30 to Nov. 5

a photo of a menu plan with recipes listed for each day of the week

Here is your weekly menu plan for this week! Happy Halloween!

Monday: Skillet Sausage and Peppers Penne

Tuesday: Instant Pot Chili – perfect for Halloween night!

Wednesday: Baked Chicken Taquitos

Thursday: Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Friday: Date Night!

Saturday: Creme Brulee Baked Oatmeal

Sunday: Authentic Italian Bolognese

READ: Weekly Menu Plan – Oct. 30 to Nov. 5

Louisiana Crawfish Boil

Web Admin 0 276 Article rating: No rating

Step-by-step photos and instructions for a Louisiana-style Crawfish Boil loaded with vegetables and so much flavor!

So. Much. Fun. There are a whole lot of adjectives I could use to describe my introduction to a crawfish boil, but WOW sums it up nicely.

I’m laying out all the steps here so you can set up and cook a Louisiana seafood boil with shrimp or crawfish. Spoiler alert – doing a Louisiana-style seafood boil on the stove is much simpler than you might think. (I’ll be sharing directions specifically for a shrimp boil at home next week!)

Heads up – this is going to be a long one. If you are just here for the instructions, hit that handy “jump to recipe” button at the top of the post.

boiled crawfish in serving boat

Crawfish Boil

While in Louisiana for Sean’s family reunion, our cousin Rick volunteered to do a Louisiana-style crawfish boil for us. And oh, there really aren’t words for how excited I was to experience this for the first time.

As far as eating crawfish goes, if you aren’t familiar with them already, they taste like a cross between their crustacean cousins lobster and shrimp. What’s not to love about that?

I was thrilled we were able to be there from start to finish and learn from the master. And yeah, Rick is a legit master of the seafood boil. Don’t miss the custom skimmer, the crawfish on his belt and his hat, and the very cool stirring paddle in some of the photos for evidence of his passion for it all.

giant pot filled with a Louisiana style crawfish boil

Crawfish boils are a social event in Louisiana – and wherever else you might be lucky enough to enjoy one. This isn’t just a meal shared with friends or family. It’s an experience. (Have I stated that clearly enough?)

Ha, and here’s a pro tip for you: Don’t wear white, friends. That’s a rookie move and your Tide stick will be put to good use after the boil.

Teriyaki Chicken Casserole [+ Video]

Web Admin 0 158 Article rating: No rating

Teriyaki Chicken Casserole [+ Video]

a photo of a dinner plate full of a teriyaki chicken casserole including fried rice, large chunks of chicken and assorted vegetables with chopsticks sitting on the side.

This classic baked teriyaki chicken casserole recipe is easy to make and the perfect crowd pleasing recipe for a busy weeknight dinner or potluck.

It’s everything you love about takeout without leaving your house! Casseroles are great for dinner because they’re easy to throw together and comforting to come home to. This casserole combines chicken with a sweet savory glaze mixed with tasty fried rice and loads of healthy vegetables!

Before You Begin…

I know, this is kind of like a souped up fried rice, but I’m still calling it a casserole since we are adding in a few extras. We start with our ham fried rice recipe for the base of this casserole. If you haven’t already, you’re going to want to read that post because there’s a secret to making perfect fried rice. Both the fried rice and the teriyaki sauce can be made a day or two ahead of time.

How This Recipe Came to Be

One night after we made a huge batch of the fried rice, our fridge died. And I mean, died. We went just over two weeks without the dang thing while we waited for parts to come in. That first day I knew I needed to throw together a casserole because we didn’t have anything for dinner that night, so the teriyaki chicken casserole was born and what a blessing in disguise because it turned out awesome-sauce!

Well, there were a few months that were bitterly cold and we were feeling so grateful for a warm house. Because almost two weeks after the fridge died our furnace went out. Yaaaaaay. (Can you hear my sarcasm?). What a blessing it was that it was winter so we were able to keep condiments, butter, and such outside.

We learned that we can survive without the fridge. It changed our eating habits and was quite hard, especially for a food blogger, but it just took creativity for meals and helped us to remember to be grateful for our modern day conveniences.

And in the end we made a killer rice casserole recipe with teriyaki chicken, broccoli, fried rice and extra sauce. So maybe in the end the whole fridge debacle was worth it. Because this teriyaki chicken casserole is that delicious. 

Where Does Teriyaki Chicken Come From?

Teriyaki is a cooking technique where foods are grilled or broiled in a glaze of soy sauce, mirin and sugar. It is usually associated with Japanese cuisine, but the technique is used in many Asian cuisines. Teriyaki chicken is a Japanese-American cuisine.

What’s in Teriyaki Chicken Casserole? 

For this easy chicken casserole, you’ll need fried rice, a chicken breast, a packag

Lunch Lady Brownies

Web Admin 0 228 Article rating: No rating

Thick, chewy, fudgy brownies with generous chocolate icing are enticing enough to have me eating these Lunch Lady Brownies for dinner. 

This post was originally published eight years ago. I remade these brownies earlier this year while thinking about my friend Joan. I reshot them at the time, knowing that I wanted to share this post again on the 8th anniversary of her passing.

chocolate frosted brownies stacked on white plate with red and white napkin

Chocolate for Joan

My chocolate-loving friend Joan would most definitely approve of eating brownies for dinner! This Lunch Lady Brownie recipe is one of hers that has become a family favorite for us as well.

Joan passed away unexpectedly on October 22, 2015. While crying and grieving the next day, I decided to bake in memory of her. I spent that weekend making many of her favorites and then shared the sweets with friends.

Joan was passionate about her desserts and I imagine that she would have gotten a kick out of being remembered with an abundance of chocolate.

dark chocolate brownies on parchment lined tray

Lunch Lady Brownies

You’ll need the following ingredients to make the brownies:

  • butter
  • cocoa
  • light brown sugar
  • white sugar
  • eggs
  • vanilla extract
  • all-purpose flour
brownie batter in parchment lined pan
Read more

The Best Apple Crisp Recipe [+ Video]

Web Admin 0 149 Article rating: No rating

The Best Apple Crisp Recipe [+ Video]

a photo taken over the top of a bowl filled with a serving of apple crisp topped with a melting scoop of vanilla ice cream.

We’ve tried a lot of recipes out there but this is hands down the best apple crisp recipe we’ve found and it can totally be made ahead or frozen.

The apples are coated in a heavy cream and flour mixture to make them all saucy and caramel-y (no, that’s not a word but go with it) and then the oat topping is like a giant, cinnamon oatmeal cookie. It’s wonderful — this is seriously the BEST apple crisp recipe

Creating This Apple Crisp Recipe

There are probably 5 million recipes out there for apple crisp and this is certainly the season for all of those recipes to be all over Pinterest. Maybe we are a tad crazy to be posting this, but I happen to absolutely love hot apple crisp with a scoop of creamy, melty vanilla ice cream. Cade likes to drizzle a little caramel sauce or dulce de leche over the top of his ice cream but I’m a classics girl so I like it just how I grew up with it. 

My family loved crisps and cobblers growing up almost as much as we loved our musicals. Tell me you love them too. What’s your favorite? If you haven’t watched any, well you better get on that or I’m going to be knocking at your door. Seriously. And while you watch them make this homemade apple crisp.

Homemade Apple Crisp Ingredients

This apple crisp has two main parts: the apple filling and the crisp topping.

For the filling, you’ll need:

  • Apples
  • Butter
  • Flour
  • Lemon Juice
  • Heavy Cream
  • Vanilla
  • Brown Sugar
  • Granulated Sugar
  • Cinnamon
  • Nutmeg
  • Salt

For the crisp topping, you’ll need…

  • Flour
  • Old-Fashioned Oats
  • Brown Sugar
  • Cinnamon
  • Salt
  • Unsalted Butter

We didn’t want to deviate too far from the classic apple crisp recipe, because why mess with a good thing, right? The measurements for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

RSS
First4344454648505152Last