Believe in the Magic Traci Diary

Recipes, Travels, and Stories

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  • Ten Quick and Easy Meals for Busy Families

    As a busy family, I often struggle with figuring out what to feed the family.  So I came up with a list of possible meals that are easy to put together.

    On days the Wee One or the Imaginative One asks me what’s for supper, I can show them this list.  Then they can choose a meal from the list.

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  • 7 up Pork Chops

    image

    I originally posted this recipe in September of 2010.  However, I did not have a picture of the pork chops.  Since we had them for dinner tonight, I made sure to take a picture of the chops.

    Last night I baked these pork chops.  Hubby ended up being called into work early so he came back to get the food during his break.  The manager where he works saw his dinner and asked if there were any pork chops left over.  It so happened that the Wee One did not want his chop because it was too big.  Hubby made a detour to our house and got his manager the remaining chop.  The manager loved the chop!  Score!

    IMG_0340

    7-up pork chops

    Stars of the recipe:

    • 4 to 6 pork chops
    • 12 oz. can 7 up, Sprite, or lemon lime soda
    • 1 envelope onion soup mix

    Steps:

    1. Place chops in baking dish.
    2. Pour soda over chops and sprinkle with dry soup mix.
    3. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
    miz-helen-badge-alt5

    Happy eating,
    Traci

  • Mom, What’s For Dinner? – February 15, 2016

    This week’s a weird week for us.

    I was supposed to have parent teachers conferences last Tuesday.  We had a snow day on Tuesday, so we had to reschedule the conferences until this Tuesday.  Hubby is in charge of dinner.  I put sausage on the menu, but more than likely, he’s going to serve them the remainder of the chicken from Sunday night’s dinner.  My principal feeds us dinner, so I only need to worry about lunch for myself.

    Then we have Lenten day soup supper on Wednesday.  I’m in charge of the dessert, so I’m baking/ making the dessert today.

    Friday is the Sweetheart Dance at my school.  Hubby is going to bring the boys out to my school.  We will hit one of the fast food places close to my house for dinner.

    Week of Feb. 14

    Have a great week!

    For more menus, please visit Menu Plan Monday at I’m An Organizing Junkie and At Home With Mrs. M.

    Happy Eating,
    Traci

  • Cherry Cake with Cherry Buttercream Frosting

    I have another Valentine’s Day recipe.  This one is for dessert.  If you have the ingredients on hand, it’s easy to put this cake together.

    Warning:  It has a very cherry flavor, especially in the frosting.  If you don’t want that much cherry flavor, don’t use the Kool-Aid in the buttercream frosting.  Instead, use red food dye to make it a pinkish color.

    IMG_0290

    Cherry Cake

    adapted from Mix and Match Mama

    Stars of the recipe:

    • 1 yellow or white cake mix plus the ingredients needed to make the cake batter
    • 2 packages of cherry Kool-Aid powder

    Steps:

    1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
    2. Spray a 9 by 13 baking dish with cooking spray.  Set aside.
    3. Prepare the cake mix according to the directions on the box.
    4. Sprinkle the Kool-Aid powder over the prepared batter.  Mix until well combined.
    5. Pour into prepared baking dish.
    6. Bake according to the directions on the box.

    Alternatives:

    • Use strawberry-flavored Kool-Aid instead of cherry.
    • Add chocolate chips to the batter.  Fold into the batter.

    IMG_0288

    Cherry Buttercream Frosting

    Adapted from Betty Crocker

    Stars of the recipe:

    • 3 c. powdered sugar
    • 1/3 c. butter, softened
    • 1 package of cherry Kool-Aid
    • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
    • 2 to 3 Tbsp. milk

    Steps:

    1. Whip or mix together the powdered sugar, butter, and Kool-Aid.
    2. Stir in the vanilla extract and a 1 Tbsp. of the milk.
    3. Gradually add the milk until the frosting is spreadable.
    4. After the cake has cooled, spread the frosting over the cake.
    5. Decorate with sprinkles, conversation hearts, or mini chocolate chips.

    Adaptation:

    • If you are using strawberry in the cake instead of cherry, change the Kool-Aid flavor to strawberry.
    miz-helen-badge-alt5

    Happy Valentine’s Day and Happy Eating,
    Traci

  • Chocolate Covered Strawberry Granola

    Happy Valentine’s Day!

    I’ve been in the mood for homemade granola, so I decided to experiment.  With Valentine’s Day approaching, I thought chocolate-covered strawberry granola would be a great version.

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  • A Week of Meals – Slow Cooker Version

    I have Valentine’s Day present for you. I’m giving you a free slow cooker menu plan. All recipes are from this blog or my slow cooker blog.

    I sometimes have problems with menu planning, so I thought this would help you. If you click on the menu, it will take you to a Google doc of the menu. Then you can click on the meals in blue to get the recipe from my blog.

    This menu has two main protein sources – whole chicken and ground beef. The ground beef will be used to make tacos and baked potatoes topped with leftover taco meat. The chicken will be used for sweet and sour chicken and quesadillas plus as meat course on Sunday.

    Four of the meals utilize the slow cooker. Three of the recipes utilize leftovers. There is a fourth if you count the salad at the end of the week.

    A Week of Slow Cooker Meals

    So what about breakfast and lunches? For breakfasts, I have two great resources on my blog. You can visit 6 Easy Breakfast ideas or DIY Breakfast Edition. If that doesn’t appeal to you, toast and cereal are great options.

    Lunch can be leftovers or sandwiches such as peanut butter and jelly or ham and cheese.

    What about dessert or a sweet treat for this week’s menu? How about homemade brownies. That seems like it would be complicated to put together. But they don’t take long. These brownies are one of our family’s favorite treats.

    If you like this menu, please let me know. I can then create more of them.

    I already have some ideas for other menus.

    Happy Eating,
    Traci

    P.S.  Here is a blank grocery list. Click on it to get a Google doc of the list.

    Grocery List

  • Some Updates

    This week I finished going through all the recipes on this blog.  I’ve created a spreadsheet with all the recipes and links to the recipes.  Then I broke them down into categories.

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  • Pressure Cooker Mac and Cheese

    One of my favorite comfort food is macaroni and cheese.  I have shared my favorite slow cooker mac and cheese, healthier mac and cheese, and makeover mac and cheese.  Now I’ve found another favorite macaroni and cheese.

    This recipe takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish.  Yum!

    I use an electric pressure cooker.

    Pressure Cooker Mac and CheesePressure Cooker Mac and Cheese

    adapted from Dad Cooks Dinner

    Stars of the recipe:

    • 1 lb. elbow macaroni
    • 2 Tbsp. butter
    • 1 Tbsp. mustard
    • 1 – 2 tsp. salt
    • 4 c. water
    • 1 (12 oz.) can of evaporated milk
    • 2 c. cheddar cheese (I used sharp cheddar.)

    Steps:

    1. Place the macaroni, butter, mustard, salt, and water in the pressure cooker.  Put the lid on the pressure cooker.
    2. Set it to a pressure cooker for 5 minutes.  When it’s finished, quick release the pressure.
    3. Switch the setting to saute.  Add the evaporated milk.  Taste one of the macaroni noodles.  It should be al dente and cooked throughout.  If not, let it simmer for a few minutes.
    4. Slowly add the cheese.  Stirring each time you add the cheese.
    5. After adding all the cheese, let the macaroni and cheese sit for 5 minutes.

    Enjoy!

    This post has been linked to Miz Helen’s Cottage’s Full Plate.

    Happy eating,
    Traci

  • Sweet and sour chicken (or pork)

    I’m not going to post a Menu Plan Monday because I am loosely following a menu I have created to share with you on Saturday. In preparation for that menu, I went through my old posts and found this oldie but goodie. When I looked at the blog post, I noticed no picture of the finished dish. So I’ve decided to remedy that.

    Today begins the Chinese New Year. Rather than ordering Chinese food from a restaurant, I decided to cook up one of our favorite dishes at home. I think the two biggest differences were the chicken was not battered, and there was no red sauce. This dish was still big in taste.

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    This is a simple 15 minute meal if you used already cooked chicken or pork!  When my hubby tasted it, he told me it was better then the sweet and sour chicken that you get in Chinese restaurants.  Now that”s saying a lot.

    Stars of the recipe:

    • 1 lb of diced-up chicken or pork (already cooked)
    • 1 Tbsp oil
    • 1 cup green pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces (I used red pepper.)
    • 1 cup of onion, cut into thin wedges (I cut mine into bigger pieces today.)
    • 1 (15 oz.) can of pineapple chunks in juice
    • 1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
    • 1/4 cup white vinegar
    • 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
    • 2 Tbsp. soy sauce

    Steps:

    1. Preheat oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat.
    2. Stir fry green peppers and onion in hot oil for 2 to 3 minutes or till crisp-tender.
    3. Remove from wok or large skillet. Add more oil, if necessary.
    4. Reheat chicken or pork in a skillet.
    5. Drain pineapple, reserving juice.
    6. In a small pan, combine the juice, brown sugar, vinegar, cornstarch, and soy sauce. Bring to a boil; cook for about 1 minute or till thickened, stirring constantly.
    7. Return green pepper and onion to skillet. Stir in pineapple and the thickened sauce.
    8. Cook and stir until heated through.
    9. Serve with rice, if desired.

    This post is linked to Eat at Home’s Ingredient Spotlight.

    This post is linked to Miz Helen’s Cottage’s Full Plate.

  • Sausage Pasta Skillet

    Here is another easy recipe that I found in my Evernote account.

    This is an easy skillet dish. Enjoy with easy peasy garlic bread.

    sausage skillet pasta

    Sausage Skillet Pasta

    Stars of the recipe:

    • 1/2 box of penne pasta or any other small pasta
    • 1 pound sausage (Italian, mild, or hot)
    • 1/2 onion, diced
    • 1 (15 oz.) can of crushed tomatoes
    • 1 Tbsp. sugar
    • 1/4 c. sliced black olives
    • 1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
    • 1/4 c. Italian cheese blend or Parmesan cheese for serving

    Steps:

    1. Cook pasta following the directions on the box. (You can use any small shape)
    2. In a separate pan, brown sausage. (I used mild.)
    3. After it’s almost fully browned, add diced onions. Cook until the sausage is fully browned.
    4. Add crushed tomatoes, and sugar to cut the acidity of the tomatoes and 1 Tbsp. Of Italian seasoning, and sliced black olives.
    5. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
    6. Add the cooked pasta.
    7. Sprinkle Italian cheese blend or Parmesan cheese over pasta and sauce.

    Happy eating,
    Traci