Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Simple Egg and Cheese Hashbrown Waffles

by 12 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

When it comes to kitchen appliances, I’m sure most of us would agree that we don’t want any gadgets that only serve one purpose. Never shall I own a Quesadilla Maker or a Hot Dog Toaster (yes, that is a real thing).

But a waffle iron? Sure, we can assume they only make waffles and therefore wonder if they are worth the purchase because of the single job they perform. But guess what? I’ve been on a “what else can I make in my waffle iron?” kick lately, and I’m here to share some delightful waffle iron hacks!

The Waffle Iron: Good for so much more than just making waffles. Check it out…

eggs and cheese hashbrown waffles2

It looks like a regular waffle. But it’s eggs, cheese, and hashbrowns, and it’s ridiculously good.

Why Waffle Iron Experiments?

Perhaps it’s the ease of making food in a waffle iron, the fact that I can easily offer a “made to order” option for picky eaters, and that I can make as many “waffles” that we need as we need them. Using a waffle iron instead of an oven on a hot day is also a huge perk because it doesn’t heat up the house!

And the best part: it’s fun. Somehow making food in the shape of a waffle is more fun than making food in the shape of normal.

Earlier this week I shared how you can make Waffle Omelets (otherwise known as Womelets). Later I will show you how you can make Waffle Muffins (perhaps we will call them Wuffins, though we hesitate to get carried away). And who knows what else this summer will bring as we avoid turning on the oven and test our waffle iron to the limits.

Today, I show you how to make Egg and Cheese Hashbrown Waffles. These are hearty and filling, naturally gluten/grain free, can be adapted for each family member’s preferences, and are fun to serve. The only difference is that there is no obvious way to cleverly rename these because saying Washbrowns is just weird.

Simple Egg and Cheese Hashbrown Waffles

Simple Egg and Cheese Hashbrown Waffles
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 6 eggs
  • 1½ pounds frozen hashbrowns (or freshly made, see link below)
  • 2 cups shredded cheese
  • Sea salt and pepper to taste
  • Add in options: chopped meat, chopped veggies such as onions, pepper, mushrooms, or asparagus
Instructions
  1. Whisk eggs and stir in all other ingredients.
  2. (For picky eaters, leave the add-in options separate to add to each waffle individually.)
  3. Scoop ½-3/4 cup of egg/hashbrown mixture into waffle iron.
  4. Top with add-ins.
  5. Close waffle iron and cook for 3-5 minutes until brown and crispy.
  6. Serve as is or with hot sauce if desired.

Want to make your own hashbrowns to keep in the freezer? Learn an easy method here!

Simple Egg and Cheese Hashbrown Waffles

Recipes for your Waffle Iron

Have any ideas for me? What creative ways have you found to use your waffle iron?

If you haven’t picked up your copy of The Prayer Mugs we’d love for you to get this 96-page parenting prayer packet full of lessons, stories, encouragement, printables, scripture, study guides, and prayer prompts! (Read more about this beautiful resource here.)

PrayerMugsprev

[wp_eStore_fancy1 id=25]

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

Simple Waffle Omelets – perfect for any meal!

by 7 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

We might as well just call these “Womelets” because that’s what keeps coming out of my mouth when I try to talk about Waffle Omelets. I’m excited to share this recipe idea with you, but I’m sorry for causing all of you to be in this tricky verbal situation.

The cool thing is that these Womelets (I’ve given up on  trying to say it correctly) really are fun to make and super tasty.

waffle omlet2

Here are some Waffle Omelet highlights:

  • You can make everyone’s Waffle Omelet to fit each person’s preferences.
  • These are super quick and simple to make.
  • You can make Waffle Omelets for a quick dinner when/if you forgot to thaw meat to prep for your meal.
  • You can prepare ingredients ahead of time and store them in the fridge to pull out and make Womelets at the spur of the moment.
  • These are inexpensive!

By the way, have I ever told you what a messy cook I am? Truly. If there are three people standing side by side putting together making food, you will be able to tell which cooking station was mine because of all the food that had been dripped, drizzled, slopped, and spilled in my area.

I am especially good at making a mess of these Womelets, as I often overestimate how much liquid to pour into the waffle iron. Out of the iron the egg mixture will spill, causing a huge mess of slime down the sides and all over the counter-top. Have I no shame?

In addition, you should see me try to take the Waffle Omelets out of the waffle iron without tearing them to bits. Notice, above, how I finally gave up and took a picture of the omelet directly in the waffle iron? It was better this way.

I finally figured out that if I use hot pads and pick the waffle iron up, then dump the omelet onto the plate, it actually comes out easily and pretty. How about that? No mess! (You’ll see below that it folded itself in half while being dumped, but it was the best I could do.)

waffle omlet

I’ve finally learned that for my waffle iron, it takes somewhere between 1/2-3/4 cup of egg mixture to make one nice waffle omelet without spilling over.

Fill your mixture with any combination of meat, cheese, and chopped veggies that you like! I suggest mixing the eggs, milk, and salt in a bowl, then you can add your “fillings” as you make each individual waffle omelet so you can make it according to taste!

Simple Waffle Omelets

Simple Omelet Waffles - perfect for any meal!
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 10 eggs
  • 3 Tablespoons milk
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt (more or less to taste)
  • Any variety of chopped meat, diced veggies, and shredded cheeses you like.
Instructions
  1. Whisk together eggs, milk, and salt.
  2. Heat and grease waffle iron.
  3. Scoop egg mixture into waffle iron to fill the bottom about ¾ full. (Mine takes ½-3/4 cup of mixture).
  4. Add in any fillings you like.
  5. Close waffle iron and cook for 3-4 minutes until eggs are cooked through.
  6. Serve right away.

Simple Waffle Omelets

More Simple Recipes

Join Simple Meals

Make life even simpler when you sign up to receive our weekly Menu Planning Packets. One tiny price, loads of weekly help. Read about this and sign up here!

simplemeals300

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

Simple Tex-Mex Creamy Chicken

by 23 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

I have made a decision. It is a big one and I appreciate your support. Thank you in advance.

As of now, until further notice, I shall not soak and cook my beans.

tex mex chicken1

Canned beans for the Simple Meals win.

I know. This news is big. But my beans and I have valid reasons for such a drastic change in our relationship.

Indeed I used to be a faithful bean soaker and cooker, but the demands of working full time while homeschooling teens, chauffeuring teens, feeding teens, supporting teens, and finding a tiny moment in my day to say hello to my husband have led me to kick bean-prep off my priority list. It’s either buy canned beans or become a beanless family. Long live the bean.

I am well aware that bean-cooking is not difficult. A child could do it. But I found that I almost never remember to soak beans ahead of time because I’m too often in my car running my kids to all of their social/church/work/sports/ministry outings. (And by the way, if one more person says something to me about homeschoolers not getting enough socialization I shall happily throw my van keys and event calendar at them and make them take my kids to all their social events so they can see the truth and laugh as they realize they most definitely never had a need to worry. Said person shall need a nap after this feat, but there’s no time for one – and this is why I don’t soak my beans.)

I can hear what some of you are saying. “Get an Instant Pot!” But we’ve been through all of this so I’ll have to ask that you cheerfully support my decision and let me open my cans of beans in peace.

This post has a point (thank goodness). And also a recipe. It will come as no surprise to you when you see that said recipe includes a can of black beans.

Substitute canned beans with those you have soaked/cooked yourself if you like. Best news of the day: I did the math and learned that when I buy canned black beans by the case it does not cost me anymore than if I were to buy dried beans and make them myself. I had no idea! You might also like learning that this dish I am about to share with you costs around $2.00/serving for my family. Not too shabby for a real food meal that sufficiently fills teenage boys.

Bet you’re hoping I’ll just go ahead and share the recipe already.

Simple Tex-Mex Creamy Chicken

Simple Tex-Mex Creamy Chicken
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds boneless chicken thighs or breasts
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 Tablespoon chili powder
  • Sea salt to taste
  • 16-ounces salsa
  • 15-ounces black beans
  • 2 cups corn
  • 2 cups sour cream
Instructions
  1. In a skillet, brown chicken pieces in olive oil, seasoning them with chili powder and salt.
  2. Once chicken is cooked through and through (about five minutes on each side) add salsa, black beans, and corn.
  3. Simmer for about two minutes.
  4. Remove from heat and stir in sour cream.
  5. Serve over brown rice, pasta, or tortilla chips

Simple Tex-Mex Creamy Chicken

Note that adding sour cream to this makes the chicken mixture thick and creamy without any effort to make a cream sauce. That’s what makes this recipe so simple!

A huge time and money saver for our family (and many others!) has been our great Simple Meals program. Join us and be amazed at how this simplifies your life – plus you’ll love the easy, healthy, real food you’ll be putting on the table so quickly each day. We’ll welcome all who soak their beans and all who don’t, because we’re all friends and no one shall be beanless. Check it out and join here!

728x90

More Simple Recipes

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

Honey Sweetened Peanut Butter Cups You Can Feed Your Family for Breakfast

by 26 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

This is how I begin every day:

fat-bombs-easy-and-delicious

And also this…

life1

They all go together for me now. I begin each day (if at all possible) with time in my chair with my Bible, my coffee, and a Chocolate Peanut Butter Fat Bomb.

Can you think of a better way to start the day? I think not.

I think the coffee and Bible are obvious, but you might be wondering – a Fat Bomb? For breakfast?

Absolutely, yes. I’ve gone from avoiding fat at all costs (in my teen and young adult years) to eating as much good fat as possible. In fact, I’ve discovered that the more good fat I eat, the better I feel. When I start my day with a Fat Bomb, I start my day with energy and a clear brain that actually functions.

I usually eat another Fat Bomb mid-afternoon, and sometimes at night before bed. I need the fat. You probably do too. Healthy fat is so very good for our bodies and minds.

Well, that’s my Fat Bomb story (thank you for asking), but what about everyone else in my family?

My husband eats a Fat Bomb here and there, loving them as much as I do (though he can eat most anything he wants without feeling crummy, so he doesn’t seem to crave these or need them like his fat-seeking wife). And our boys? Well, they just don’t like stevia-sweetened food. It’s okay. I probably wouldn’t have either when I was their age.

But here’s the thing: These sons of mine are growing to be enormous man-sized people. If I don’t have eggs and/or some kind of meat on the table every morning for breakfast, they pleasantly ask, “Is there something we can eat with protein?”

Yep, gone are the days they would eat a muffin and fruit and be fine for a few hours. These men need their meat. {mmm…bacon}

Thus, I have been playing with my Fat Bomb recipe to see if I can make them more palatable for my kids, which offers them protein and fat in the morning but keeps us from eating too many pigs (there’s no other way to say this).

Now, my youngest won’t touch these Fat Bombs because they have peanut butter in them. (He’s slightly allergic, but mostly, he can’t stand the taste.) But my other boys love these and as my 17-year old said, “Why would I ever need a regular peanut butter cup with all the sugar? These are phenomenal!”

So I now present to you a slightly altered Fat Bomb, sweetened perfectly with honey, and a fantastic choice for breakfast or a filling snack. What a great way to start the day! (For the record, I’m sticking with the stevia-sweetened Fat Bombs.)

Honey Sweetened Peanut Butter Cups

5.0 from 1 reviews
Peanut Butter Cups You Can Feed Your Family for Breakfast
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 12
Ingredients
  • ½ cup coconut oil (I use expeller pressed so the coconut flavor didn't overpower.)
  • 1 heaping Tablespoon cocoa powder
  • 4 Tablespoons butter
  • ½ cup natural peanut butter
  • 2-3 Tablespoons honey
Instructions
  1. In a small saucepan, heat and stir together coconut oil, cocoa powder, butter, honey, and peanut butter.
  2. Pour into 12 muffin lined muffin tins. (I prefer silicone liners for these.)
  3. Freeze for 20 minutes or refrigerate for 2 hours.
  4. Store in fridge and eat as needed.

These Silicone Muffin Liners are a rock star for this recipe.

Have you tried the Fat Bombs? Are you a stevia lover or a stevia hater? Think you might prefer these sweetened with honey?

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

Simple Green Chile Chicken

by 14 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

My husband has a prayer lunch with a few other guys every Tuesday at noon. Sometimes he takes his full lunch with him, and some days he takes just a light snack, then eats more when he gets home. One day recently, he had plans to eat light at his prayer lunch, then come home and eat this Simple Green Chile Chicken.

If only I’d told the boys of his plans.

I’d eaten my share of this lunch right after I pulled it out of the oven, but in the hubbub of finishing school assignments throughout the morning, the boys trickled into the table later, little by little. Just a few minutes before Matt was to arrive home, I heard one of the boys say, “Glad Dad already ate since I just had the last of this chicken.”

Oops. Sorry, Matt.

green chile chicken

The good news: This chicken is so good, the whole family will eat it without complaint (and not leave enough for Dad).

The other good news: This recipe is so easy I can actually find time to make it even on a busy school/work morning! Of course, that means it’s quick to make in the evening for dinner too. (Often during soccer season we have our bigger meal at lunchtime – but who am I kidding? We have big meals three times a day.)

Simple Green Chile Chicken

Simple Green Chile Chicken
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 2-3 pounds boneless chicken thighs or breasts
  • 8-ounces softened cream cheese
  • 1 cup shredded cheese (any variety)
  • 4-ounces green chilies (no need to drain)
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Place chicken in a 9x13 inch dish.
  2. Mix remaining ingredients (I do this quickly in my Blendtec), and spread the mixture over the chicken evenly.
  3. Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Simple Green Chile Chicken

What you might notice about this recipe is the simplicity of blending all the cheese sauce ingredients together before spreading it over your chicken. This is great for a couple of reasons:

  • Making it this way saves time and effort. (Toss ingredients into a blender, mix, then pour over chicken. Easy!)
  • Blending the peppers into the sauce makes picky eaters enjoy this without complaint.

Note to self: Always double this recipe so there is enough for everyone in my family to eat some. (Why I hadn’t already thought of that I do not know.)

And with that, I will present you with our ever-growing list of Simple Recipes that will provide your family with real food that is super delicious, but will make your kitchen efforts minimal!

More Simple Recipes

Join Simple Meals

Make life even simpler when you sign up to receive our weekly Menu Planning Packets. One tiny price, loads of weekly help. Read about this and sign up here!

simple-meals

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

Simple Oven Roasted Rotisserie Chicken

by 8 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Brace yourselves. Today we’re going to learn to butter up a chicken and rub him down with herbs and spices. This might not be the most precious moment of your day, but I guarantee you will find it to all be worth it after you taste your delicious Oven Roasted Rotisserie Chicken.

simple rotisserie chicken

Now, I’ve buttered many a slice of bread in my day. I would even venture to say I’m pretty good at it. But never before had I buttered a bird – until the first day I made this chicken.

Recipe research told me to “brush on the butter.” But that would require that I melt butter in a saucepan and dirty up a pastry brush. In the name of lazyness simplicity, I just slapped butter on my bird with a butter knife.

Did it work? Meh, good enough. I figure what didn’t get spread on smoothly will just melt and drizzle itself over the skin while baking.

Now, beyond the butter, we’ve got to do a little chicken massage for this recipe too. Don’t freak out about this because your hands will wash up just fine afterward. Sure, rubbing spices over a raw piece of meat in the shape of well, a chicken, will feel strange. But you can do this.

Here’s why the buttering up and the rubbing down are well worth your few minutes awkward chicken moments:

  • You will create a most delicious meal for your family. This chicken is incredibly juicy and flavorful.
  • All the “effort” you put forth to create this chicken will take less than 10 minutes.
  • You’ll save money, because making this chicken at home costs less than buying one pre-made.

So gather up your chickens and let the fun begin.

Simple Oven Roasted Rotisserie Chicken

5.0 from 1 reviews
Simple Oven Roasted Rotisserie Chicken
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 3-4 pound chicken
  • 3 Tablespoons softened butter
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon thyme
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
Instructions
  1. Place chicken in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
  2. Remove gizzards from the cavity. Discard them or save them to make broth later.
  3. Spread or brush butter over the chicken.
  4. Mix herbs and spices in a bowl, then rub them all over the chicken.
  5. Bake, uncovered, in a 300 degree oven for 2½ hours.

Oh yes. I failed to mention the “reach up into the ‘cavity’ of the chicken and pull out the little bag of gizzards.” I guess I was trying to stop while I was ahead so as to avoid scaring you away from this recipe. But alas, this task cannot be avoided.

I’ve found it’s best to go ahead and say “eeeewwww” while completing this gizzard removal step, because that’s how I feel and it truly is helpful to express oneself verbally during moments of trouble.

So before you butter and rub your chicken, get the gizzard step over with. After that, you will feel empowered to do anything. All hail queen/king chicken preparers. We are all super heroes.

Simple Oven Roasted Rotisserie Chicken

Keep this meal simple by serving this chicken with tossed salad, a steamed veggie, and fresh fruit (like strawberries, pineapple, or cantaloupe).

Make your life simpler by joining Simple Meals. Then you won’t even have to think about what to cook or what to buy because we do the work for you every single week!

728x90

Check out how long this list of Simple Recipes is getting!

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

Simple Build-a-Spanish-Rice-Bowl

by 9 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Sometimes I think I have picky eaters at my house. Then I realize that my kids eat a huge variety of foods and I should be grateful.

I mean, when I was a little girl, I liked exactly two varieties of fruits and vegetables: green beans (canned) and apples (with the peeling off). Somehow this kept me alive, I made it to college, and learned to eat salads (to avoid the Freshman 15, of course). Later, I got married and found out about a thing called broccoli. Little by little through the years, I’ve tried and liked dozens of fruits and veggies, expanding my repertoire many times over.

Though I still don’t like jicama.

It’s okay though because I often sit in my recliner snacking on raw spinach, which isn’t even weird, not even a little bit, am I right? I can’t figure out why my teenagers tease me about this.

Well anyway, my kids aren’t really picky, I’m realizing, because they like and eat a big variety of fruits and veggies. But still, we all have our preferences. Some of us really like cheese and some of us think it’s fun to snack on spinach.

Because of our wide variety of preferences, sometimes, instead of making a meal that everyone has to eat whether they like it or not, it’s fun to instead set out a big buffet of choices and everyone can build their own plate or bowl.

I love this idea so much that I include a category for this every single week in our Simple Meals plans. Build-Your-Own buffets are a huge time saver and make for a really fun meal too!

Today’s idea is Build a Spanish Rice Bowl.

I used to make Spanish Rice all in one pot, but some people like corn and some don’t. Some like black beans and some don’t. Some want sour cream and some don’t. I have found it easiest to simply set out all the fixin’s and let everyone build their bowl the way they like.

We each pile in our favorites:

spanish rice bowl41

Then stir it up and dive in.

spanish rice bowl11

The bowl above has a lot of greens (bet you can guess which mom that belongs to), no rice (can we even still call it spanish rice?), a whole lotta ground beef and black beans, and a dollop of sour cream.

But this one got piled up with rice, meat, beans, corn, and salsa without the greens and sour cream.

spanish rice bowls21

So it got stirred up to look like this.

spanish rice bowls31

At the end of the meal, everyone was satisfied and happy because their bowl was filled with everything they wanted and nothing they didn’t want. Of course, many participants in this meal filled their bowl more than once, which is also fun because they could either choose to fill it the same way as the first time or create something new the second (or third) time around.

Build a Spanish Rice Bowl

5.0 from 1 reviews
Simple Build-a-Spanish-Rice-Bowl
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 1 pound ground beef, seasoned with chili powder, garlic powder, and salt
  • 2 cups cooked brown rice
  • 1 can black beans
  • 1 can sliced olives
  • Shredded cheese
  • Sour cream
  • Salsa
  • Fresh greens
  • Cooked corn
Instructions
  1. Set out any or all of the ingredients listed above, along with anything else your family might like.
  2. Allow each person to fill their bowl the way they like.

Those are just some of the foods you might want to set out for your Build a Spanish Rice Bowl buffet. I’d love to hear of any add-in ideas your family might like.

Build a Spanish Rice Bowl

Want to enjoy more Simple Recipes? You’ll never have to work hard at cooking again!

728x90

Join Simple Meals here – we’d love to have you on board!

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

5 Top Family-Friendly Recipes

by 9 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

I suppose it’s obvious that if I’m sharing a recipe with you here, it’s because my family loves it. But what I really enjoy is when you try a recipe and send me feedback about how much your family loves it too!

Here are some messages I’ve received recently. I’m sharing them here because everyone needs to know how these recipes save time, money, and are a hit with families! If you haven’t tried these yet, here are a few reasons you should. :)

About Simple Pizza Chicken Bake, Pam said: I made this for our small group last night, and they scraped the pan clean. My husband asked me to make it again. It was a hit! Thank you so much for your fun and easy recipes.

pizza-chicken-bake

About Last Minute Creamy Bacon Spaghetti Amber said: I’ve made this 3 times now, and it’s definitely a family favourite! I always double the cream cheese, because… cream cheese. Yum! So good. Thanks for another great recipe!

And Tara said: Laura, I just made this tonight after we spent an extra long time at the park. We ran home and got in the door at 5:30pm, and I had nothing planned for dinner. Thankfully I had bacon and cream cheese, so I threw this together and steamed some broccoli, and served it with a side of applesauce. It was on the table at 6! So easy, and it was a big hit with everyone in the family—including the 3 year old twins that are very picky these days.

bacon-spaghetti

 

About Simple Chicken Cheeseballs with a Kick with a Kick, Megan said: These were SO GOOD tonight that we all just called them “amaze-balls”. Thank you!

simple-chicken-cheeseballs1

About Homemade Vanilla Wafers, Jennifer said: This is definitely a keeper! Hubby kept going on & on about how ‘good these vanilla wafers are!’ He had a hard time not eating them. This comes from someone who likes his white flour, white sugar type cookies. Thanks!!! But thanks from all 6 of my children, too.

vanilla_wafers

 

About Simple 3-Cheese Crock Pot Pasta, Tosha said: My 3 year old son made this today! He added spinach because that is his favorite vegetable! I love that even he could do this with a little supervision from mama!

crock pot pasta2

 

Have you tried any recipes here recently that you love? I’d love to hear how they worked for you.

Also, it’s been really fun to hear feedback from Simple Meals subscribers. If you get Simple Meals Planning Packets in your inbox every week, share here what you love about them!

 

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

Simple Barbecue Beef Roast (2 Minute Prep!)

by 5 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Before I tell you about the easiest Barbecue Beef Roast on the planet earth, I must ask this:

How did we ever get through life without knowing how to make the Easiest Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes?? I don’t even know.

Well, I guess I do know. I had given up on making mashed potatoes altogether. Never able to fit it into my schedule, or not wanting to mess with the mess if I did have time – I just stopped making them. We’ve been through all this.

But now that I know I can make them like this and it takes almost no effort, time, or clean-up? I’ve made them for my family at least once each week since.

My children are so happy. My husband is so happy. But I am the happiest because I feel like a great big champion when I’ve made not just a delicious, wholesome dinner but fantastic mashed potatoes too. I feel like a rock star. Mashed potatoes have made me a rock star.

I obviously measure success in ways that no one else does. Everyone else can have their fame, fortune, fancy boats, big houses, and cool cars. We have our mashed potatoes. This is what dreams are made of.

bbq roast beef

Well, perhaps it’s time to move on to information about the Barbecue Beef Roast?

This new recipes is even easier than the potatoes, which of course, is saying something. So if you happen to have two crock pots, you can make both of these on the same day and your family will stand up at the table and give you an ovation.

The first time I made this roast, I did this:

  • Walked to the freezer and got out a roast. (30 seconds)
  • Opened the package and put it into a crock pot. (20 seconds)
  • Got out some barbecue sauce and dumped it on the roast. (20 seconds)
  • Grabbed and onion, pulled off the outer layer, rinsed it, and quartered it, then threw it in with the meat. (40 seconds)
  • Plugged in the crock pot, turned it on low, walked away. (10 seconds)

This, my friends, is how we make dinner in 2 minutes.

My kids scrubbed the potatoes for me and we got those started in our second crock pot a couple hours later. At dinner time, we mashed the potatoes (2 minutes), steamed some green beans (30 seconds of “work”/5 minutes of cook time), and got out a bowl of fresh pineapple.

This dinner is glorious.

P.S. I considered making gravy but decided I had “worked” hard enough to make this dinner. So I chose to simply use the juice in the crock pot. That was still perfection.

Simple Barbecue Beef Roast

5.0 from 1 reviews
Simple Barbecue Beef Roast (2 Minute Prep!)
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 3-4 pound beef roast, frozen or thawed
  • 1-2 cups BBQ sauce
  • 1-2 medium onions
Instructions
  1. Place roast in a crock pot (frozen is fine).
  2. Douse the meat with barbecue sauce.
  3. Quarter the onion and place in the crock pot.
  4. Cover and cook on low for 10 hours if frozen or 8 hours if thawed.

Simple Barbecue Roast Beef

Get more Simple Recipes here…

728x90

Better yet, grab a Simple Meals subscription. It will save you time, energy, money, and brain power. So many are loving Simple Meals!!

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

Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole

by 6 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Of all the Simple Recipes I’ve been sharing around here, this Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole has proven to be the very simplest. Get this: No cooking necessary to make this recipe. A two-year-old could make this. Or a very busy adult. Either one will do.

pizza casserole1

This Simple Meal requires one dish (a crock pot) and thirty-seconds of prep (dump/stir/plug in). Your meal cooks itself.

As you can see from the above picture, I even cheated on my veggie side dish by simply setting out mixed greens and grape tomatoes. Therefore absolutely nothing about this meal took any work or actual cooking.

Now, you can add other cooked meats to this if you want. You can chop in some mushrooms and peppers if you want. None of those tasks take long, but they do take a few more minutes of prep. Sometimes I throw those veggies onto the table as side dishes, along with a can of black olives. Or, in a pinch, sometimes I skip it all and just throw out the mixed greens.

Either way, this meal is completely effortless, very inexpensive, and ridiculously good.

This spring, we’ve found this meal great to throw together before leaving for the soccer field. When we get home, we immediately get to sit down to an awesome, warm dinner. (Spring soccer is cold. I have done this cold soccer season for 15 years. When does it end?! Good thing my kids are worth it. Good thing I have a really great coat, and hat, and gloves, and fuzzy blanket. Good thing I can come home to warm comfort food at the end of my wind-blown, drizzly soccer cheering experience.)

Look how effortless this is —>

Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole

Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole
 
Save Print
Author:
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 16-ounces UNCOOKED whole grain pasta
  • 50-ounces pizza or spaghetti sauce
  • 2 cups shredded cheese
  • 6-ounces pepperoni
  • Optional: additional cooked meat, sliced olives, chopped sweet pepper, and/or sliced mushrooms
Instructions
  1. Stir uncooked pasta and pizza sauce in a crock pot.
  2. Cook on low for 3-4 hours.
  3. Stir.
  4. Top with shredded cheese and pepperoni.
  5. Cook for an additional 10 minutes on low to melt cheese.

Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole

Will your family love this, or what? But trust me: no one will love it as much as you. Because this recipes allows you to cook without cooking. It provides you a great meal without working for it.

And now, if we could all find ourselves such a thing as a Self-Cleaning Crock Pot. (Tip, I soak my crock overnight and everything comes clean easily in the morning. No need to scrub when soaking does the hard work for us, am I right?)

Want to enjoy more Simple Recipes? We’ve got a bunch!

728x90

Make the Simple Recipes even easier!

Join everyone who is LOVING Simple Meals! Your meal plan, recipes, and grocery list will be sent to you every single week. All you have to do is execute to super simple plan. Win back your family time! Eat well. Love the simplicity! Read about it here and join us!

simplemeals300

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