Finding My Posting Groove (again)

Life happens.  So much that sometimes things get away from us.  Everyone always has something going on and we have to schedule and plan weeks in advance to be able to accomplish things at times.

This is where I am now.  Having begun in my full-time class schedule again, I am once again re-learning to find my new routine to accomplish all my work and make sure my life outside of college is not left in a void.  My intentions were pure and true in the post from Jan 21st about posting once a week.  As I had even made a picture showing what was on the menu for that week:

It just hasn't worked itself correctly into my planner (Erin Condren Life Planner "ECLP"- this is how I was able to stay on track and get my AA Degree with Honors) This leads me into I need to work it into my planner.  I have added it and have carved out a time for it to happen. Yay me! This past month was also odd for me because I made two trips south to Georgia; one to pick up my grandson (keep him for 3 weeks) and then return him to his parents and meet my new granddaughter. So, there was that dinner that ended up like this:

 The very last picture shows how I use my monthly spread in my ECLP to keep up with what we had for dinner.  I normally do not like to serve/make/prepare/whatever the same meal twice in a month.  However, January was a touch odd because I shared with my mom and daughter how I make the Chicken Penne Pasta meal we had already in the month.  It was a touch different this time, as my mom made a Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing to have along side of it and as always, my Dad wanted garlic bread.  It rounded the meal out nicely and will be added to my Menu Book. (That's carrots on the salad, not cheese. Cheese would have tasted weird with the dressing.) 

Notes from the shared menu above: Poppy Seed Dressing - My mom just randomly Googled a recipe and combined several of them to make this dressing, so that means at this time, I do not have a recipe or link to share with you.  It is on my todo list, because I really want to make it again. Can't remember if I have shared this before or not; the Chicken Penne Pasta DOES NOT make good leftovers.  It is edible, but not something that you'd really want as a leftover.

Garlic Bread - This changes a bit depending on what spices I touch in the cabinet.  Basically, it begins it's life loosely based on the recipe from this post from 2010. However, it is still nice to make Cheesy Garlic Bread every now and again.
Venison Tacos - I used my grinder on my Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer on some deer I pulled from the freezer, added salt & pepper, taco seasoning, and a touch more of cumin after browning the meat.  The flour tortillas were good just seriously time consuming.
Papa's Spaghetti - I have seen him make this hundreds of times - it changes just a tad each time, so it never taste exactly the same, but really close and it is REALLY good. I have tried doing this and it does not work for me. My daughter watch him this time so, maybe the magic of this recipe skips a

generation?  The ciabatta bread was sliced, drizzled with EVOO, sprinkled lightly with salt & pepper then baked at 350 until lightly golden brown.  

Spaghetti & Meatballs - I had some 'meatloaf' mix (ground beef, pork & veal) in the freezer, so I added some of this and some of that from the spice cabinet, rolled the meatballs, fried them up, dumped a jar of Bertolli's Tomato & Basil Sauce on it and severed with angel hair pasta.

I know the writing is light on my January monthly menu, but I do it in pencil.  The red * mark the new recipes we tried in the month.

What Goes with This?!?!? Making a Meal out of Random Recipes

   I LOVE my cookbooks. I LOVE for searching and collecting for recipes online.  However, one of the things I run into the most, is not knowing what to pair with what or what else to serve with a dish I've chosen.  One of the things I am personally working on is creating a meals that are new (to my family) recipes plus some ideas that I come across when I see the same recipe continually float up on my FB.
   I have in the past made an entire meal from one cookbook (see WWF Cookbook Meal) and it turned out pretty good.  I even did it two Christmases ago.  It was fun.  But I can't do that EVERY MEAL with the other stuff going on in my life.  So, I am going to start small and TRY to remember to share once a week with the meals we had this week so that I can possible help others who may get in a rut and not know what to serve with what.  Maybe in the process, I will research and see what some of the others in the food industry say about pair foods together at a meal.
   Changes to the recipes I have linked:
Honey-Lime Shrimp: I used 1lb of medium shrimp, 5 drops of Young Living Lime Essential Oil instead of fresh lime juice and sautéed them instead of grilling this time.  Fried rice is homemade and is still in the process of getting it where I want it.  It was good, but I want it better.
Chicken Penne Pasta:  I make it all on the stove top in a dutch oven.  I use a can of fire-roasted tomatoes and break them up, use veggie broth in place of chicken broth but the rest of the pasta part I do pretty much as written.  I don't even follow the recipe anymore.  I do the chicken on the side for those who like chicken.
Balsamic Glazed Chicken: I also make pork since I don't like chicken.  After it comes out of the oven, I reduce the glaze more on the stove top then pour it on the meat.
*Recipe links are under the menu but above the pictures*

Honey-Lime Shrimp
Chicken Penne Pasta
Balsamic Glazed Chicken