Last week I shared about our family vacation and that we ate our meals in our condo. It was simplified in that my girls and I divided up the meals and volunteered to fix the food for that meal. I chose to make the breakfasts for all three days, and also for our Sunday supper. I didn’t want to spend lots of time cooking while we were there, so I prepped as mush as I could ahead of time and stuck it in the freezer, wrapped so it would be fresh. Let me share what I made and how I worked ahead to simplify things.
I’m so happy to share another Ina Garten recipe with you. We’ve had more hot days, so I searched for more shrimp recipes! Even if it’s not a summer day, this recipe is a perfect quick meal that can even be made ahead of time. It’s one of those dishes that is so savory it tastes like it came from a fancy restaurant
Wow! What a special Easter week this was! Good Friday’s service was such a blessing as we were reminded of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross in our place. Then Sunday we rejoiced and worshiped and sang and had sweet fellowship with our church family as well as our physical family.
After our morning service we gathered in our home with our girls and their families, and also some dear friends. My daughters and I collaborated on the meal, and it was so much fun to work together and put out a spread we all enjoyed. Here’s the menu:
Glazed Ham Gourmet Potatoes Corn Saute’ Green Salad with peaches and Craisins Deviled Eggs Cheddar Biscuits Coconut Cake ~ Chocolate Fudge Pie
My contribution was the cake, ham and potatoes. These Gourmet potatoes have a long history in our family. They are perfect for a busy meal because they are all made up ahead of time and then just slid into the oven to bake for 30 minutes.
Gourmet Potatoes 6 medium potatoes 2 C shredded cheddar cheese 1/4 C butter 1 1/2 C sour cream (I used light) 1/3 C chopped onion 1 t. salt paprika
Peel the potatoes. Leave them whole. Cook in boiling water ’til tender. Cool. Shred potatoes coarsely. In medium-sized saucepan, melt butter and cheese. Stir ’til melted. Remove from heat; blend in sour cream, onions and salt. Fold in potatoes and pour into a 2 qt. casserole dish. Sprinkle with paprika on top. Refrigerate overnight. Bake @ 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
The meal was all so good, and it was such a blessing having help with the meal. What fun it was to work together in the kitchen with my girls.
Teach your daughters to cook! It is so rewarding! Do you enjoy having help while you’re cooking? Have you taught your daughters to cook, too? I’d love ot hear!
My pictures on my site here are still an issue, so please go to my Instagram ~ Refreshherblog and you’ll find pictures of our Easter dinner and celebration. If you’re not following me on Instagram, what are you waiting for? It’s where I post most often! You can click to Instagram by scrolling all the way down to the bottom of the page if you are reading on your phone. Look for the camera icon for Instagram.
In case you need a little inspiration for your upcoming Thanksgiving celebration (or for Christmas), I’m going to share some of my favorite recipes for special holiday meals. That doesn’t mean they’re difficult or fussy, they’re simply delicious!
Everyone needs a great start to the day. What will you serve for breakfast? Here are a couple delicious breads:
Breakfast
Nutty Orange Coffee Cake 3/4 C Sugar 1/2 C chopped pecans 2 tsp grated orange rind 8 oz. pkg reduced-fat cream cheese 2 (11 oz) cans refrigerated buttermilk biscuits 1/2 C butter or margarine, melted 1 C sifted powdered sugar 1 T orange juice
Combine first 3 ingredients in a small bowl; set aside.
Place about 1 tsp cream cheese on half of each biscuit; fold biscuit over cheese, pressing edges to seal.
Dip biscuits in melted butter, and dredge in sugar mixture; place, curved side down, in a lightly greased 12-cup Bundt pan, spacing evenly. Drizzle any remaining butter over biscuits; sprinkle with any remaining sugar mixture.
Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until done. Immediately invert onto a serving plate.
Combine powdered sugar and orange juice, stirring well; drizzle over warm coffee cake. Serve immediately. If you’re fixing this ahead, warm in oven or microwave before serving.
Now some other suggestions for your Thanksgiving Dinner:
Breads:
These are my favorite biscuits. They’re Angel Biscuits done lighter! Now you can have another piece of pie!These are my favorite rolls. You can make them ahead of time and stick them in the freezer to bake on Thanksgiving Day! So easy!!
Salad:
This is a great salad that is also made ahead of time. It has all the cranberry goodness that a Thanksgiving dinner needs!
Another easy Cranberry relish is to simply pour a can of Whole Berry Cranberry sauce into a pretty dish and break it up with a spoon. Top with a drained can of Mandarin oranges, then topped with chopped walnuts. So easy and so good!
Sides:
Here a few of my favorites:
Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes make for an easy way to cook the potatoes while the turkey is in the oven. You’ll mash them after they’ve been in the crockpot and just before it’s time to eat. Leaving mashed potatoes in the slow cooker will make them runny…not the best. But the instructions on the page I’ve linked makes it super simple and delicious! Corn Cheese Bake is the best creamed corn you’ll ever taste! Broccoli Corn Scallop is creamy and a nice change from the usual casserole.
Dessert: Can we talk PIE???? This Peanut Butter Pie is over the top! It’s also really easy! If you want a show-stopper then Peanut Pie with Peanut Crust is for you! Kentucky Derby Pie is our family tradition. Someone might die if this isn’t on the counter when it’s time for dessert!I’ve shared LOTS of pumpkin recipes you can search here on my blog, but among the favorites for most people is the Pumpkin Roll. My recipe shows step by step instructions. You can do it! An easy cake is the Pumpkin Crunch Cake. It comes together in a few minutes and will remind you of a pumpkin pie in cake form! Yum!!
Whether you’re doing the whole meal or just bringing a dish for the meal, you can cook with confidence with any of these recipes! You know what else will help? Pray and ask the Lord to help you make the most of your time, your resources and your heart!Whatever your plans are for Thanksgiving, I pray you will give thanks to the God Who allowed you the blessings you enjoy. He is a God who loves you and has given His Son so you can enjoy more than a happy turkey day – He wants you to enjoy a personal relationship with Him and an eternity in heaven through trusting Christ as your Savior. What joy He brings to my life every day!
So, I had a little accident last week. I decided to make my French Bread recipe for a meal I was preparing for guests that were coming the next day. We were having a Bible Conference at our church and I thought I had plenty of time to get the bread baked before it was time to leave. Well, I misjudged the time and realized after I’d made the dough and had it rising in the bowl for the first rise that I wouldn’t have time to bake the bread and still be on time for the service. Ahhhh! I was frustrated at myself for not calculating the time correctly!
Then I had a thought…
I wonder if I can freeze the dough after it rises in the bowl?
So often when I wonder if something would freeze well, I simply let my mind wander the aisles of the frozen goods at the grocery store. Then I realized, “Yes! I know they sell frozen frozen loaves that are ready to set out and rise, so surely I could shape these loaves and freeze them before I leave for church!”
I took the bread and shaped it into the French loaves and placed them on a greased baking sheet.
I covered them with Syran Wrap and put them in the freezer and headed out for our Bible conference at church. Then before I went to bed that night, I took the loaves out of the freezer and placed them in the fridge to thaw overnight.
When I was ready to bake them, I set them on the counter where they rose for about 30 minutes. Then I finished as the recipe says, and cut the slits on top and baked them as usual.
They rose beautifully and my husband told me they were better than any other time I’ve made them!
This was a really happy accident! Now I know I can work ahead and get the dough made way ahead of time. It’s nice to know I can just have bread loaves hanging out in the freezer until I need them! Working ahead is my favorite way to prep meals!
So, first of all, let me say that this recipe is super easy! Now you know how to prep the first part and freeze them. Then when you’re ready for a hot loaf of homemade French Break all you’ll need is about 45 minutes total to let them rise and bake them! It doesn’t get fresher than that!
Have you tried freezing bread dough? Here’s a roll recipe that freezes great too, and is our favorite for special meals like Thanksgiving!
RefreshHer 