Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings

I made crock pot chicken & dumplings on Sunday for our dinner.  They were super easy and super tasty! 

2 Family size cans of cream of chicken soup

3-4 raw chicken breasts

2 cups of water

2 chicken bullion cubes

Small bag of frozen mixed veggies

salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste

Put all of the above into a crock pot & cook for 3-4 hours on high

Add a can of jumbo refrigerator rolls

Tear up the rolls & mix into sauce

Cook on high for 1 more hour

Let sit for 15 minutes to thicken up after you turn off crock pot

I added fresh veggies to my crock pot instead of frozen veggies, since I had a bunch in the fridge. You can make some mash potatoes to also eat along side. Use some of the liquid as gravy on your mash potatoes.  This was very yummy the next day warmed up for lunch.

Wordless Wednesday!

Creamy Chicken Florentine

I found this recipe on the back of a package of Philly Cream Cheese Savory Garlic Creme.  I do the majority of my cooking on Sunday.  I made this on Sunday for us to have on Tuesday for dinner.  Art & I both had a bite and thought it tasted DELISH!!!!

  

Ingredients

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces  (I bought a rotisserie chicken, shredded it up and put the chicken in at the last minute)

1/2 cup halved red pepper strips

1 pkg. (6 oz.)baby spinach leaves

1 tub (10 oz.)PHILADELPHIA Savory Garlic Cooking Creme

2 cups hot cooked penne pasta

2 Tbsp. toasted pine nuts (I omitted this)

Directions

1. Cook chicken and peppers in large nonstick skillet on medium heat 5 to 6 min. or until chicken is done. Add spinach; cook and stir 2 to 3 min. or until wilted. Drain all but 1 Tbsp. liquid.
2. Add cooking creme; cook and stir 3 min.
3. Stir in pasta; top with nuts.

Favorite Burgers!

Friday evening I discovered a Five Guys Burgers was open near us.  I have seen people post on Facebook all the time about Five Guys & have been wanting to try them.  Unfortunately I discovered Five Guys at 8:30pm and wasn't hungry.  I told Art that we had to try them this past weekend.  I then started putting a list together in my mind of the best burger places.  Here is what I have come up with so far.  

1. Bob's Burgers - Bob's is by far the BEST place to get a cheeseburger!  I haven't found a place that even compares. They have locations in Fremont & Pleasanton, CA.  If you are ever near one you have to try them out!!!!

2. Barry's Burgers - Barry's Burgers is my dad homemade burgers.  My dad found some recipes for different type of burgers in a magazine & started making them for me & my friends.  He wouldn't let us see what the recipes were or what he put in them.  Everything had to be a secret.  Blue cheese burger and mushroom & onion burger were my favorites & the only ones I remember. One of my friends kept telling him he needed to open a Barry's Burgers.  He never did, but dad makes some GREAT burgers! 

3. In N Out - In N Out burgers are DELISH!!!! They also have a hidden menu and I love their neapolitan shakes!  These burgers are the best when they are super hot and animal style!  I am NOT a fan of In N Out fries.  I think the fries taste like dirt!  Every time my family comes to town their trip isn't complete without a stop to In N Out!

4. Nations - Nations burgers are yummy & close to In N Out.  People who looooove Nations wouldn't agree the burgers are similar.  Nations also serves pie!

5. Five Guys - I liked Five Guys menu because they offer lots of additional items to add on to your burger.  The patties were thick, well done, but still juicy.  They have the BEST fries!

What is your favorite burger joint?

GroopDealz

Today GroopDealz has an awesome deal.  $2 for a set of 3 vinyl #'s from Wonderful Wordy.  Check out the great deal here!!!!  Shipping is only $1 per household.  If you order 4 sets it still only costs $1! Go get yours before they are gone!

Menu Monday

Monday - Date night so we might go out to dinner at at Falafel or I might cook.  Haven't decided yet.

Tuesday - Creamy garlic chicken pasta  I will post this recipe later this week. Super delish!

Wednesday - Enchiladas

Thursday - Spaghetti & meat balls

Friday - left overs

Picture Time!

I asked Art if he could come take a couple pictures of me.  I need to update a picture of myself for the blog & other places. Here is what happens when I hand the camera over to my husband.

Instructions: Dear can you take a picture from here on up.  See my hands below indicating where he needs to take the picture from?

Instructions:  Can you zoom the camera in a little?

Here are the results when he zooms the camera in.....do you have any questions that I have hazel eyes?  Or that I need to pluck my eyebrows tonight? 

Then he starts giving me awful lines to say to the camera.

I finally take the camera back & I end up taking my own self portraits. I think they turned out pretty good!

Tomato Plants

Yesterday Art transplanted a large amount of the tomato plants from the starter kit to planters.  Once the weather is nicer they will all be transplanted to the planter boxes he built.  Here are some pictures of about half our tomato plants we have started from seeds.

Below are the plants in the "nursery" aka as the craft room!

Planter Boxes

Art made a planter box for our tomato plants.  We have 50+ tomato plants that are currently growing in my CRAFT ROOM!!!! He has turned the craft room into a nursery for plants.  Art tore apart a couple pallets to make these planter boxes.  He is planning to make 2-3 more. 

I want to be able to can salsa, stewed tomatoes, whole tomatoes, tomato sauce and speghetti sauce.  My goal is to can enough that we don't have to buy any at the store next year.

I will post pictures once we have tomato plants in the box.

Fresh Crab!

One of Art's client brought each of the guys at work a fresh crab.  The crab was alive & in a cooler to be taken home & cooked.  UGH!!!  The pincher's were rubber banded together; however, our crab was able to get one of his pincher's free.  Here is the process Art went through to cook our crab.  He printed off some directions on the internet on how to cook the crab.  We both like crab, but Art wasn't as fond of this one after it was cooked.  I melted some butter and enjoyed the fresh crab legs.

 Crab waiting in the freezer

 Art holding the crab with my rubber gloves.

 YUCK!!!! This part was NASTY & smelled horrendous!

Crab legs waiting for the butter!!!