It’s been a long time since I truly sat down to watch a football game. Since High School in fact. I was a die hard Raider fan. I know, I know but I’ve always liked them. My husband doesn’t usually watch football routinelyeither (since I’ve known him) but he’s a 49ners fan. And because they were in the Super Bowl both he and our 12 year old son sat down for some male bonding time. So for dinner, I thought this fun dish might be appropriate. I originally was going to make this in a baking dish but since it was the Super Bowl, I wanted to make a finger food dish.  Either way you make it, it will taste good!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound Ground Beef
• 1 small onion diced
• 1-2 cups of BBQ Sauce (use as much as you like)
• 1/2 of a large green pepper pepper diced
• 1/2 cup of chopped sweet potatoes (I used canned–great way to sneak this vegetable in )
• 2 1/4 cups of Homemade Baking Mix (another frugal recipe sharing  soon)
• 2/3 cup of Milk
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°
2. Add beef and onion to skillet and cook until done.
3. Lower heat to simmer and mix in BBQ sauce, green pepper and sweet potato.
4. Mix baking mix and milk in a bowl.
5. Drop a spoonful of dough into a muffin tin. Repeat until you’ve used all the dough.
6. Bake biscuits for about 2 minutes, then take out of oven and add a large spoonful of the meat mixture to each muffin tin on top of the biscuit dough. Press the spoon down making a little cup for the mix.
7. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake for another 8-10 minutes.

Today is my first day of our family vacation. I decided to take the extra day off to get some last minute things done around the farm, tidy up the house (nobody likes to come back from vacation to clean) and double check everything I packed in the suitcases for the family before we leave tomorrow night. I think the feeling of being overwhelmed feeling by Christmas, presents and the surprise trip to Disneyland has finally passed. Our daughter now keeps whispering in my ear… “When are we leaving?” It’s finally hit her she’s going to the Magical Kingdom.

For our dining next week, I’ve got our vacation meal plan in place with some ready made meals and I’m bringing one of my crock pots to tackle the cooking while we’re at the park. This week, I’ve joined in with Sara from Finding Joy In My Kitchen (along with many others), in counting down to 2013 with a look back highlighting some of our family’s favorite recipes from Noel’s Kitchen Tips from 2012.  We’ve highlighted a different category each day. Here’s a look at what we’ve shared so far:

Wednesday: Breakfast

Thursday: Bread and Soup Recipes

Today’s category is Main Dishes….These recipes I’ve chosen are ones that make my busy weeknights simple. I try and do as much of the  meal prepping on my weekends so that I don’t need to worry about it during the week.  I make a little extra so I can add a meal to my freezer inventory. It’s definitely saves a busy mom time! Here are a few of those dishes my family enjoys:

Chicken Pot Pie

Crock Pot Shredded Beef

Smothered Burritos

Chunky Chicken and Noodle Bake

Homemade Italian Meatballs

Be sure to head on over for a visit to Finding Joy in My Kitchen today to see tons of other great main dish recipes from 2012…and check back the rest of the week for more of our family favorites!

It’s crock pot season! What better way to cook those Fall comfort foods we all enjoy than in the crock pot. There’s just something so comforting about a meal that’s been slowly cooked. I mean who hasn’t sat down with something delicious made in their crock pot and been lifted to new heights. This week, I’m creating some comfort foods in the crock pot this week for Fall that I think you’ll enjoy! What Gather your family around the table with delicious comfort foods for Fall. Starting off with this recipe for Crock Pot Chicken and Brown Gravy.

This is a family pleasing recipe that tastes great and it’s a slow cooked comfort meal which is perfect for any busy weeknight. The chicken was nice and moist and you could serve this with rice or noodles like I did with broccoli as a side dish. Serve with roasted potatoes if serving with rice and a nice garden salad.

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

• 4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 10.5 ounce can cream of chicken soup
• 1 10.5 ounce can of water
• 3 Tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 packet brown gravy mix
• 1 Tablespoon dried parsley flakes
• Ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Place the chicken breasts and the onion in the crock pot.
2. In a medium bowl, stir the cream of chicken soup, water, soy sauce, gravy mix,parsley and pepper together. Pour over chicken and onion.
3. Cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 5-6 hours.

A family meal is all about sharing. It’s a chance to step back in our busy everyday lives, everyday worries and focus on what really matters. FAMILY. I decided to start sharing Sunday Suppers Sunday Weekly Family Supper~Dinner Around The Table theme again. It’s one night of the week you really shouldn’t miss gathering around the table for dinner. Sunday Family Suppers start the week off with a fresh new and positive look at the week ahead.

I chose ribs for tonight’s meal because it’s not only a hearty meal, it slow cooks in the oven and is perfect in allowing me to finish up some last minute chores around the house. Side dishes are Potatoes Au Gratin, corn and watermelon slices to round up a satisfying meal for the whole family.

Perfect Barbecued Ribs 

Serves: 4-8

Ingredients:

• Fresh Rack of Pork Ribs
• Dry Rub
• brown sugar
• Homemade BBQ Sauce (recipe posting later)

When I was working 10 to 12 hour days, I was usually exhausted by the time I walked in the door. Between work, school activities, and household duties, I was glad when I was out of the kitchen and had dinner on the table in 15 minutes. It meant more time with my family. My work schedule has changed quite a bit since then.

I have a bit more flexibility when it comes to making dinner now. If I choose to make a 30 minute meal on a weeknight,  I can without having the fear that I won’t get to spend time with my family and I don’t have to worry the kids won’t be in bed on time. For the nights we have the family activities like our 4-H meetings, I am able to throw a 15-minute meal together and we are to our meetings on time without having to rush through dinner.

This simple meal is one of those quick 15-minute meals that you can make on any weeknight or when you know you have any weeknight activity or meeting. And it’s a great recipe to use leftover rice from a previous meal.

Tex-Mex Skillet

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 pound bulk pork sausage
• 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 12-ounce can whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 hot red pepper, seeded and diced
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 Tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 cup cooked rice

Directions:

1. In a medium skillet, cook the sausage till brown. Drain off fat. Stir in tomato sauce, corn, red pepper, water, chili powder and onion powder. Bring to a boil.
2. Stir in cooked rice into the skillet mixture. Remove from heat. Let stand about 5 minutes before serving.

Note: The red hot pepper adds just a bit of heat to this dish without the seeds but you can substitute a sweet pepper for the red hot pepper if you chose. This recipe can be adjusted to make 6 to 8 servings or another weeknight meal.