Baked Pineapple!

Dinner tonight is a pretty simple meal. Ranch chicken (recipe already on this blog), bowties in alfredo sauce, green bean casserole, and baked pineapple. I have to admit, we don't eat like this every night! Usually we have a main dish & maybe one side. But the good thing about slow cooker meals is when you want to make some for a friend, too, you can just add some more in! And since we're already taking some friends some chicken, I figured we may as well make a whole meal out of it tonight! (I know Josh & Isaiah will at least be glad!) This is my first time making baked pinapple. I've had it before, but never made it. Still, though, it's a simple recipe. Surely it can't be bad, right?

Baked Pineapple

2 (20 oz.) cans undrained crushed pinapple

2 c sugar (although I ran out of sugar, so mine's going to be 1 c sugar, 1 c splenda)

4 eggs, beaten

4 Tbsp cornstarch

butter

cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350. Mix first 4 ingredients and then pour into a greased 9x13 pan. Dot with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake for approximately 1 hour, until golden. Enjoy! :)

Meatloaf!

So who out there's a fan of MEATLOAF?! Yeah, I know. I'm not that big a fan, either. But you do what you've got to do when you're trying to cut back on your grocery bill. Meatloaf's a really affordable and filling meal to make! And this is actually a pretty good recipe for it, too. Early in our marriage, Josh asked if I could fix his mom's meatloaf. So I got the recipe, and that's the kind I've been making ever since. Elijah won't touch it, surprise surprise. (He actually gags when I make him try new foods. Anyone else have that trouble with their kids??) It's been a while since I've fixed this, but I think Isaiah will eat it as long as I give him ketchup, too. (Ketchup. Sigh. Messy anyway, but much more so with a cast!!!)

MeatLoaf and Sauce

Meatloaf Sauce:

1 small onion

1 can tomato soup

1 can water

3 Tbsp brown sugar

5 Tbsp ketchup

salt & pepper to taste

Mix sauce ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, and cook 5 min.

Meatloaf:

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef (we usually use venison, though)

1 c bread crumbs

1 chopped green pepper

1 small can tomato paste

1 egg

Mix all of the meatloaf ingredients in a baking dish, and add about 1/4 c of the sauce as well. Mix well. Bake 1 1/2 hours at 350 and serve with remaining sauce. Enjoy! :)

Elijah stuck to his peanut butter sandwich. But Isaiah enjoyed it so much, he had 3 slices! :)

Chicken Pot Pie!

My goal was to be better and more consistent with posting on this blog. HOWEVER... where would I even start? Jonah's had bronchiolitis and we were having to do breathing treatments. Jonah, Isaiah, and Elijah all had ear infections, one after the other... Isaiah had been super sick, ear infections, sinus infection, virus... and now he's got a broken arm. So consistency? Not even close! I'm sorry about that! But what can I say? Family first!
Anyway, all that aside, dinner tonight is Chicken Pot Pie! Josh's response? "I don't like chicken pot pie." That's the first I've heard about it! But I've made this before, and he liked it. I told him he can like it or not, but he's going to eat it! So we'll see how that goes. :)
This recipe is from my friend Kim, and it's super easy. It's also really yummy! Let me know what you think! Two quick side notes about the chicken... First, if you're pressed for time, you can always just use a can or two of chunk chicken. Also, if you're going to go ahead and boil/chop chicken anyway, if you want, you can just go ahead and double it and save it for another chicken recipe. We're trying to cut back on our grocery bill some, and one way we're doing that is by eating a LOT of chicken...

Chicken Pot Pie

3-4 chicken breasts

1 1/3 c chicken broth
1 c self-rising flour
1 can cream of celery soup
1 c milk
can(s) peas, carrots, corn, etc.
medium onion, chopped
2/3 stick butter

Boil & chop chicken. Combine chicken, broth, cream of celery soup, veggies, and onion, and place in 11x7 or 9x9 baking dish. Mix flour and milk and pour over chicken mixture. Dot with butter. Bake at 400 for 45 min. or until dough is browning. Enjoy!