Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Easy 4-Ingredient Chocolate Crunch Bars

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I’m guessing you already have all or most of the needed ingredients on hand to make these Chocolate Crunch Bars. So what are you waiting for? You NEED to make these pronto!

I could go on and on about how delicious these are. They taste like fudge with a wonderful crunch! I make a double batch for college kids and the plate is empty in no time. :)

The fact that they are super easy to make is a great bonus. And the wonderful crunch in these makes you feel like you’re eating a candy bar!

Watch Brayden (age 5) help me make these super easy Chocolate Crunch Bars —>

I personally like to use Bittersweet Chocolate in this recipe so the sugar content is much lower. But you can use any of your favorite chocolate chips.

So let’s see, you’ll need:

  • chocolate chips
  • coconut oil
  • nut butter
  • rice krispie cereal

You’ll put the first three ingredients into a pan to melt and stir together.

Once the mixture is melted and smooth, you’ll stir in the cereal.

Then you’ll spread it into a dish and put it into the fridge to chill.

See how easy? And yep, they taste as good as they look!

Easy 4-Ingredient Chocolate Crunch BarsYum

Easy 4-Ingredient Chocolate Crunch Bars
 
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Serves: 16
Ingredients
  • 12-ounces bittersweet or dark chocolate chips (any chocolate chips will work!)
  • 1 cup nut butter (I like almond butter for these)
  • ¼ cup coconut oil (I prefer refined coconut oil in these because it's flavorless)
  • 2 cups crispy rice cereal
Instructions
  1. In a medium-sized saucepan, melt and stir the chocolate chips, nut butter, and coconut oil.
  2. Remove from heat and stir in the rice cereal.
  3. Pour mixture into an 8x8 inch pan.
  4. Chill for at least one hour before cutting and serving the bars.

During this busy time of year, you’ll find that these Easy Chocolate Crunch Bars are perfect for a snack or even to make and take to a holiday party!

Chocolate Hint:

Do yourself a favor and order any of the Cocoa Powders, Chocolate Chips, or Chocolate Chunks from Olive Nation. (And use the code home to get 20% off!) I can’t tell you what a wonderful difference these cocoa powders and chocolate chips have made in my chocolate recipes. The quality is MUCH better, and they do not cost more than I was spending on the lesser varieties.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Simple Ham and Cheese Soup

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One of my favorite ways to cook is to turn leftovers into a brand new meal. That’s how this Simple Ham and Cheese Soup came to be.

Did you see the recipe I recently posted for Easy White Queso? I simply took that recipe, added three more ingredients, and turned it into a most delicious and flavorful soup!

But you don’t often have leftovers, you say? Oh, I hear you. That’s why I often double recipes so that I create leftovers on purpose! That way we can have a Taco meal with White Queso one night, then have Simple Ham and Cheese Soup the next night with very little effort!

Simple Ham and Cheese SoupYum

5.0 from 2 reviews
Simple Ham and Cheese Soup
 
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Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 8-ounces cream cheese
  • 16-ounces pepper jack cheese
  • ¾ cup sour cream
  • 1 cup half-and-half or whole milk
  • 10-ounce can Rotel (diced tomatoes and green chilies)
  • 1 pound ham, diced or cut into small bites
  • 3-4 cups frozen hashbrown potatoes
  • 32-ounces chicken, beef, or vegetable broth
Instructions
  1. Whisk the cream cheese, pepper jack cheese, sour cream, half-and-half, and Rotel together in a large pot over medium heat until cheeses are melted and mixture is smooth.
  2. Add diced ham, potatoes, and broth.
  3. Cook and stir until soup is bubbly and potatoes are tender.

For the record, I don’t add garnish because as pretty as that is, who has time for garnish? So when I make this, it looks just like what you see in this picture except for the pretty green garnish. #realmom

Note: If your family doesn’t prefer much spice, substitute your favorite cheese (cheddar or Colby jack maybe?) for the Pepper Jack cheese. You can also skip the Rotel. We prefer both the Pepper Jack and the Rotel for the awesome flavor those add to this soup!

What to serve with Simple Ham and Cheese Soup

Need some ideas for tasty breads to serve with this soup? Here are a few ideas:

Want More Simple Recipes?

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Homemade Chocolate Pudding Recipe

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Apparently, it is the week for pudding! We’ve shared our Homemade Vanilla Pudding recipe, a great idea for a Pudding Parfait in a Jar, and today our Homemade Chocolate Pudding Recipe!

Just like our Homemade Vanilla Pudding recipe, this one is tried and true and worth another share. We wanted to highlight it again as another school year is approaching (I know, I don’t want to talk about it either!). This is a great recipe for an after school snack or to pack in a lunch.

How should you pack it in a lunch, you ask? Well now, check out this fun idea for How to Make Your Own Pudding Cups!

And get our other homemade pudding recipes here so that you can mix and match!

Homemade Chocolate Pudding RecipeYum

Homemade Chocolate Pudding Recipe
 
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Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 2½ cups milk
  • 3 egg yolks
  • ¼-1/2 cup real maple syrup
  • ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 4 Tablespoons arrowroot powder or cornstarch
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
  1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk, egg yolks, maple syrup, cocoa powder, arrowroot powder, and salt.
  2. Cook over medium heat, whisking/stirring CONSTANTLY until pudding begins to thicken.
  3. Stir over the heat for about 15 more seconds.
  4. Remove immediately from the heat, and continue to stir until pudding is creamy.
  5. Add vanilla and continue to stir until mixed.
  6. Pour into serving dishes and serve warm, or chill for two hours and serve cold.

Need some Homemade Whipped Cream to eat on top of your Homemade Chocolate Pudding? YES, you really do! It’s super easy to make and well worth the small amount of effort so that you can enjoy the additional treat of whipped cream on top of your homemade pudding! Get our Homemade Whipped Cream recipe here.

 

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Homemade Vanilla Pudding Recipe

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Want a Vanilla Pudding Recipe that you can make from scratch? But you’re afraid it will be too difficult? Check this out!

We shared this recipe years ago here at Heavenly Homemakers. But as delicious and simple as it is, I felt it was worth another share. A tried and true recipe like this one that we’ve made at our house for years and years is worth a repeat!

Homemade Vanilla Pudding is fantastic comfort food, and with its eggs and milk, it also offers nourishment. Eat it warm right off the stove, or let it chill so you can eat it cold.

Want to take it to go?

Check out our fun post that describes How to Make Your Own Pudding Cups!

Homemade Vanilla Pudding RecipeYum

4.0 from 2 reviews
Homemade Vanilla Pudding Recipe
 
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Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 2½ cups milk
  • 3 egg yolks
  • ¼-1/2 cup real maple syrup
  • 4 Tablespoons arrowroot powder or cornstarch
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
  1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk, egg yolks, maple syrup, arrowroot powder, and salt.
  2. Cook over medium heat, whisking/stirring CONSTANTLY until pudding begins to thicken.
  3. Stir over the heat for about 15 more seconds.
  4. Remove immediately from the heat, and continue to stir until pudding is creamy.
  5. Add vanilla and continue to stir until mixed.
  6. Pour into serving dishes and serve warm, or chill for two hours and serve cold.

Want your pudding more or less sweet? Adjust the amount of maple syrup in the recipe to your family’s preference!

It goes without saying that topping your Homemade Vanilla Pudding with fresh fruit it an additional wonderful and nourishing idea.

Want more homemade pudding recipes?

I’ll be updating our Chocolate Pudding Recipe next. And stay tuned for an awesome Pudding Parfait in a Jar idea coming soon too!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

No-Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites – (Gluten and Dairy Free)

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You might notice that this No-Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites recipe looks identical to our No-Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bars recipe. This one is a fun one to make with your kids!

Yep. You figured it out. Same recipe. One shaped into bars. One shaped into balls. We are so creative, are we not?

Speaking of creative, we’ve got three other simple varieties of this recipe here. Just a few ingredient variations will give you one of these!


Grab the No-Bake Cookie Dough Bite recipes here:

Need Coconut Flour?

I found a great price here!

Need Almond Butter?

It’s hard to find a good price on this! Aldi has been my best option, if and when I can make it there to shop. (I live an hour away from the closest Aldi, boo!) Try to find one without added sugar. Or better yet, if you can find a good price on almonds, make Homemade Almond Butter!

Need Honey?

I much prefer and recommend buying local honey! Otherwise, I recommend buying a big jug from Azure Standard if that is an option for you.

Need Chocolate Chips?

My very favorite chips are these Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips! They are usually more expensive in the summer as they don’t ship well in the heat. So watch for them to go down in price in the fall and winter months, then stock up!

Need Vanilla Extract?

Oh how I love making it myself! Unfortunately, the price of vanilla beans has gone up over the years. Boo. Still, I think it’s best to make it ourselves if we can! Learn how here!

And now, grab your kids and let them help you make these awesome little treats!

No-Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough BitesYum

No-Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites - 5 Ingredients
 
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Serves: 12-15
Ingredients
  • 1 cup natural creamy almond butter
  • ¼ cup honey
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup coconut flour
  • ¼ cup mini chocolate chips
Instructions
  1. Mix the ingredients together in a bowl until well combined.
  2. Roll the mixture into teaspoon-sized (or whatever sized) balls.
  3. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes before serving.

We like using a cookie scoop like this one to make these Cookie Dough Bites.

Looking for more help as you pull your kids into the kitchen with you?

If you really want to go all in and teach your kids to cook this summer, I encourage you to invest in Katie Kimball’s Kids Cook Real Food eCourse. I used this course with Malachi and plan to use it with Bonus Boy too. It is FANTASTIC!!! Get the details here. And pick up her awesome FREEBIE —>

 

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

The Easiest Frozen Yogurt Cups

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When I say that these are the Easiest Frozen Yogurt Cups, I truly do mean that they are the easiest!

The “recipe” I’m about to share with you is going to entirely amaze you. Where has this been all of our lives? Why have we never thought of this before? We should have been making these for years!!

This is the time where you gently interrupt and say, “Laura, I figured this one out a long time ago. You are the only one who didn’t know. Bless your heart.”

Heh.

Well, either way, let’s all talk about making these Frozen Yogurt Cups right now. It’s the easiest thing in the world. And the result is super fun and refreshing on a hot day!

The job of making these Frozen Yogurt Cups has been turned over to our 5-year old. He’s thrilled to be our biggest kitchen helper, and we love that he is starting to learn basic cooking skills!

Of course, in the case of these Frozen Yogurt Cups, there is no cooking involved. This is perfect for a 5-year old!

I do need to interrupt myself now and say that I have actually made a variety of these Frozen Yogurt Cups before. But now I’ve discovered a cheater way to make them, which is why the 5-year old has found himself a kitchen job, and why I am left wondering why I never thought of this before now.

What’s the cheater way to make these Frozen Yogurt Cups?

Well, as you know, I’ve started buying a few cheater foods at the grocery store. Why? Well, now that our family is doing foster care and have started over raising Littles, all while keeping up with the Bigs, and navigating all the meetings and such involved with foster care – my time in the kitchen is more limited than before. And that’s saying something.

So yeah. Sometimes I buy ready-to-serve yogurt. It’s sweeter than what I could or would make myself if I always made or bought it plain and added our own good ingredients. But I’m pretty happy with the pre-made Whole Milk Yogurts I’ve found. So for now, we settle for this yogurt compromise.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

——> Need some re-assurance that compromising on perfect foods is just fine and dandy? Read my post called Beyond the Free Range Chicken. Be encouraged! Be free! Buy the yogurt. (Or not. Because we’re all in a different place and God will lead us each in how to feed our families.) <——-

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, in the land of store-bought yogurt and 5-year old chefs, may we now present to you the lovely idea you are going to thoroughly enjoy this summer!

First, if you don’t already have them, I highly recommend that you invest in these lovely silicone muffin cups. With these jewels, you can make this Frozen Yogurt Cup “recipe” and many more. I love them and don’t know how I got by without them!

Other Recipes to use with your Silicone Cups:

Simple No-Bake Cookie Cups

Simple Strawberry Cheesecake Cups

Honey Sweetened Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

Healthy Peppermint Patties

The BEST Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups


There you go. Just in case you didn’t believe me when I told you that I use my Silicone Cups very frequently!

Now, where were we? Ah yes…

The Easiest Frozen Yogurt CupsYum

While this is hardly a recipe, I’ll write it in recipe form, just for fun and ease. Hand this one to your kids and let them enjoy making this awesome treat!

The Easiest Frozen Yogurt Cups!
 
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Ingredients
  • Your favorite yogurt
  • Muffin Cups or Silicone Muffin Cups
Instructions
  1. Spoon 3-4 Tablespoons of yogurt into muffin cups.
  2. Freeze for about 2 hours or until frozen solid.
  3. Store in a freezer bag or freezer-safe container.

P.S. Want to help your kids learn to cook? Great!

Need some resources to help you know where to start?

We have this great eCookbook package that is a huge help!

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Better yet,  I highly recommend this incredible Kids Cook Real Food eCourse! We used it with Malachi and it was a lifesaver!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Simple Seasoned Potato Wedges

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If these Simple Seasoned Potato Wedges are healthy to eat, they must be free of fat and flavor, right? Otherwise they couldn’t possibly be healthy, right? Wrong. It’s time to pull out the fryer, my friends.

I love that when made with good oils, fried food can be healthy. I mean, fried food tastes sooo good!

(Let’s be real. Don’t tell me you prefer fresh broccoli over fresh French fries. Okay then.)

No doubt, we need balance, and plenty of fresh green veggies too. But how sad to think we have to avoid chicken strips and French fries simply because they are fried.

Obviously, not all fried food is created equally – and many fried foods are unhealthy for our bodies. But the only thing that makes them unhealthy is the oil that they’re fried in. IF you fry your food in Coconut Oil or Palm Shortening/Oil – oils that can withstand high frying temperatures without compromising their health quality – you can enjoy fried food without guilt.

And I do mean enjoy. C’mon now, fresh French fries?? There’s almost nothing better.

If you don’t have a fryer, you can brush these Simple Seasoned Potato Wedges with oil and bake them in the oven, as they are super tasty that way too! I have and use this fryer, given to me by my men for Christmas several years ago. But either cooking method works great!

Make as many or as few as you would like, generally about one potato per person.

Simple Seasoned Potato WedgesYum

Simple Seasoned Potato Wedges
 
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Ingredients
  • Yukon gold potatoes (any potato variety works, but these taste much better!)
  • Refined coconut oil or palm shortening
  • Seasoned salt
Instructions
  1. Wash and cut potatoes into 8-10 wedges each.
  2. Fry in hot oil for 6-10 minutes or until wedges are as crispy as you prefer.
  3. Remove from oil and sprinkle liberally with seasoned salt.
  4. OVEN METHOD:
  5. Melt coconut oil or palm shortening (about 1 Tablespoon per potato).
  6. Cut potatoes into wedges and spread them out in a single layer on a cookie sheet.
  7. Brush melted oil over each wedge.
  8. Sprinkle liberally with seasoned salt.
  9. Bake in a 425 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until potatoes are golden brown and crispy

Grab our Seasoned Salt recipe here. Otherwise, you can purchase some like this.

Not sure where to find healthy oils to use in frying? Here are some quick links:

Want some tasty recipes to serve alongside your Potato Wedges?

‘Fess up! What are your favorite fried foods?

Some of these links are my affiliate links.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Is This Better Than Milk?

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On a chilly morning, when we need something filling but easy, when we feel the need for extra comfort: We have found this to be better than milk.

Yum

Our Warm Vanilla Soother recipe has been around for a while. If you’re a Heavenly Homemakers veteran, you’ve likely tried it a time or three. But just in case you’re new, or in case you’ve been around a while but need to be reminded, we wanted to highlight our Warm Vanilla Soother today!

Our 5-year old Bonus Boy is a milk-drinking-machine. He loves his milk, and didn’t bat an eye when he moved in with us and we started serving him our farm-fresh raw milk. He guzzles it down until we tell him “that’s all for now.” So I wondered how he’d like our Warm Vanilla Soother. Oh…he likes it. He likes it very much. And he likes the chocolate variety too. Who wouldn’t?

So what’s better than a milk mustache (worn very often by our 5-year old)? A Warm Vanilla Soother mustache, of course.

Better Than Milk: Warm Vanilla Soother

Is This Better Than Milk?
 
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Serves: 3-5
Ingredients
  • 3 cups whole milk
  • 4 egg yolks
  • ¼ cup real maple syrup
  • 2 Tablespoons arrowroot powder or corn starch
  • 1 Tablespoon butter (optional, but delicious!)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk, egg yolks, maple syrup and arrowroot powder.
  2. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly (I use a whisk) until mixture begins to thicken.
  3. Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla.
  4. Stir until creamy.
  5. Pour into mugs and serve warm.

Here are a couple other fun varieties we’ve created!

If you live in a colder climate as I do, it’s recipes like these that are getting us through these “it’s almost spring but still very chilly” days. We will make it through until warm weather finds us!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Simple Saucy Parmesan Meatballs

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If it seems too simple, that’s because it is. Today I am sharing what is so obvious, you probably already thought of it yourself. Still, it is worth taking the time to mention the idea to take the Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs, add sauce, and make the meatballs into a brand new meal of Simple Saucy Parmesan Meatballs!

Oh how I love food that is versatile like this. When we can make one recipe, but turn it into whatever we need it to be – now THAT is a recipe to keep in our back pockets!

Like literally. Print this out and put it in your back pocket. Later, you’ll reach in and say, “Oh! I have something in my back pocket. Could it be a $5 bill I forgot about? No? It’s a recipe for Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs? Well that’s even better than surprise cash!”

Yes, that is exactly the scenario that will happen when you put this recipe in your back pocket.

Now my friends, watch and see how easy it is to make a delightful (and ridiculously obvious) variation to our newly beloved Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs. We shall now add sauce, serve them with our favorite pasta, and make everyone in our family very happy. But no one will quite be as happy as we are because we are the ones cooking the food and we are the happiest about the ease of this recipe idea!

Simple Saucy Parmesan Meatballs

Simple Saucy Parmesan Meatballs
 
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Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 1-2 pounds of pre-made Parmesan Meatballs*
  • 16-ounces of our favorite pasta sauce (red or white!)
  • 12-ounces cooked pasta
Instructions
  1. Reheat or bake meatballs* as directed.
  2. Pour sauce over meatballs and simmer until heated through.
  3. Serve over your favorite prepared pasta. OR
  4. Serve with rice or potatoes if you like!

* Here’s our recipe for Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs.

Another of our favorite ways to enjoy these Simple Saucy Parmesan Meatballs? With this 10-Minute Instant Pot Mac and Cheese. Along with a salad and veggie, of course.

Want More Simple Recipes?

We’ve got a huge list, and it keeps growing!

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Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs

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Who gets excited about something silly like Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs? This girl. Indeed, I get very, very excited.

I like beef. I like meatballs. I like anything that can be made ahead of time. No. Scratch that. I LOVE anything that can be made ahead of time. And if it’s also made from beef, well, that makes me one happy girl!

You can make this recipe ahead and store the meatballs in the fridge or freezer UNBAKED. Or you can PRE-BAKE up a huge batch and pull out a few as needed to reheat quickly. This recipe is flexible to meet your family’s needs!

Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs

Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs
 
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Serves: 16-20 meatballs
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds ground beef or turkey
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 Tablespoons dried minced onion
  • ½ cup shredded (or grated) parmesan cheese
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
  1. Mix all ingredients together until well combined.
  2. Scoop any size balls out onto a cookie sheet (I use a large scoop).
  3. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30-45 minutes or until the meat is no longer pink.
  4. Serve right away, or refrigerate or freeze baked meatballs to easily reheat for a meal later.
  5. OR, freeze the prepared meatballs UNBAKED, thaw as needed, and bake as directed.

I love serving these Simple Make-Ahead Parmesan Meatballs with:

Meals like this are truly satisfying, extremely delicious, and still very simple to put together!

Want More Simple Recipes?

We’ve got a huge list, and it keeps growing!

Join Simple Meals!

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We love how Simple Meals has been saving family time for so many, and helping people put great food on the table each night! Join us for just $1/week!

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