Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

What to do with All the Zucchini

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Trying to figure out what to do with all the zucchini?

what to do with all the zucchini

Yum

It’s zucchini season! I didn’t grow any this year. Sad. But other people did and around this time each year people are giving them away because when a zucchini plant does well, it does well. And when it doesn’t, we all curse the vine-borer grubs in unison and praise God for grocery stores and our friends who somehow fought off the nefarious and disgusting grubs. Ah-hem. Back to the yummy part.

What to do with all the zucchini?

Zucchini might be one of our favorite versatile vegetables. Here’s what I do with it:

  1. Chop it up and pan fry with salt and pepper and other stuff to make a quick skillet dinner: a.) garlic, onions, mushrooms, shrimp. b) garlic, onions, beef, cabbage. c.) garlic, onions, tomatoes, parmesan cheese. You get the idea: cook it and eat it for dinner with some meat and garlic and onions.
  2. Shred (or use the food processor to chop) and bake it into muffins, brownies, pancakes, waffles, breads, etc. Some people freeze the shredded zucchini to use for later. I have done this and I NEVER have good luck with it later. It gets all weepy and soggy and then I get weepy and never use it. Best of luck to you if you decide to freeze it. I’d rather bake the bread and freeze that instead.
  3. Cut in half, scrape out the middle and make pizza boats. (Broil, then melt on your pizza toppings. Dip in pizza sauce.)
  4. Slice in half, or chop, and roast, broil, or grill with oil, salt, and pepper and just eat it!
  5. Use a zoodle thingy and make noodles. Easy Alfredo and shrimp used to be my favorite with this.
  6. Have I ever been tired of zucchini? No, I have not.
  7. This is my announcement: I will take your extra zucchini.

Don’t let all the zucchini go to waste, let’s start baking!

Of course, Laura already put together many of her favorite zucchini recipes, but that was ages ago and you may have forgotten about it. Click through some of those recipes or search “zucchini” on this site for more great ideas.

Are you a zucchini lover like me? I used to only be a zucchini bread (which is usually cake, let’s not kid ourselves) kind of girl. But then I grew up and realized that as a vegetable it can take on the flavor of butter and garlic and I do so love butter and garlic. Here are some great recipes for you to try as the zucchini crop comes in.

Simple Oven-Baked Pizza Nachos

Finely chopped and baked over the nachos is a great way to sneak more veggies into this meal.

Last Minute Stir-Fry

Frozen chopped zucchini will be a little soggier than fresh, but it holds up better than shredded, OR just add a few fresh ones to your frozen veggie bags.

Zucchini Waffles

This is a pumpkin recipe. I know. You can sub one squash for the other. It will be fine. Really. Many popular baked zucchini recipes have so much sugar in them they may as well be cake… try a less-sugar option and top with just a few drops of maple syrup, honey, or nut butter.

Have zucchini for breakfast!

Why have we decided that most vegetables are for lunch and dinner? Here’s a quick breakfast that I’ve made many times already this summer: In a hot skillet I melt butter, fry up a chopped summer squash (yellow or green), add in a can of chicken (because it’s breakfast and people are hungry for the food), salt and pepper and (here’s the secret ingredient), a tablespoon or so of lemon juice. You must not forget the lemon juice. Once the chicken is warmed and the lemon juice has sizzled for a few seconds, we eat and dance and go about our day warm and well-fed.

In hindsight, I will need to make that one into an actual recipe post for you. You will need to be reminded of it again because it is so delicious.

Do tell, what is your favorite way to eat this amazing and versatile vegetable?

book cover of bluebird on the prairie Tasha Hackett is a friend of Laura and author of Bluebird on the Prairie, a historical romance set in an 1879 Nebraska town. Zeke has his sights set for California, but Eloise prefers the quiet safety of her home. Is it possible they’re both searching for the same things? Find this heart-warming romance wherever books are sold.

To find out more about Tasha and her world of historical fiction, connect with her at www.TashaHackett.com.

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

Easy Orange Julius

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This Easy Orange Julius is a perfectly refreshing summer treat!

You guys. I totally cheat now when making so many of our meals and snacks. I only make whatever is the easiest and fastest because there are people to love and we just wanna play outside.

I’ve made Orange Julius for our family for years and years. But this little “cheater” idea came about after a local church had offered a food distribution to our community. They had several boxes leftover at the end of the day, and since we have so many kids, they thought of us. How kind and fun! They piled five boxes of food onto our porch, and we were super grateful!

Some of the items included in the box? Vanilla Yogurt, Milk, and Oranges

Does that sound like a delicious Orange Julius to you? Indeed it does. Brayden thought so too. :)

With a huge pile of oranges rolling off of our countertops, we started with an “Orange Peeling Party.” Our kitchen smelled citrus-y good, and soon we had several bags of these frozen orange slices:

Then, I took those frozen oranges and blended them up with the vanilla yogurt and some milk. Easy Orange Julius perfection!

So, if you find yourself with an abundance of oranges, freeze them like this. Then blend them up with yogurt and milk and grab yourself a straw!

Easy Orange JuliusYum

Easy Orange Julius
 
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Serves: 6 cups
Ingredients
  • 2-3 cups frozen orange slices
  • 2 cups vanilla yogurt
  • 2 cups milk
Instructions
  1. Blend the three ingredients together until smooth.
  2. Serve right away!

Don’t want the added sugar in the yogurt? I usually don’t either, but hey, it was free food! You can make this treat with plain yogurt and honey or maple syrup if you want to cut down on the sugar content. This will be just as delicious and even better for ya!

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Decadent Simple Paleo Pudding

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Decadent Simple Paleo Pudding

by Tasha Hackett

I was Surprised by my Love of Paleo Puddings 

I’ve been eating a paleo diet since December 20th. Do some math there—it’s been a few days! And for most of that time, there was no pudding. Truthfully, I was blindsided at first: No sugar of any kind, no grains of any kind, no legumes of any kind, and no dairy of any kind. Quickly I discovered a whole new world of food that has brought delight to my family as well. One of our favorites is Salisbury steak with a mushroom gravy and mashed potatoes and asparagus. I’m drooling just typing about it. 

coconut vanilla pudding

Yum

paleo vanilla pudding

And Then There was Coconut Vanilla and Pumpkin Pudding

Most winters I make Laura’s vanilla and other flavored soothers for my family. Instead of hot chocolate when they come in from the snow, they get a protein packed healthy version.

My paleo version, I believe is even healthier, doesn’t have any dairy, hardly any sweetener, and a solid amount of healthy fat for growing kids and all of us using up so much energy trying to stay warm this winter. 

Dairy-Free Paleo Pudding Special Ingredients

Coconut Cream  

I ordered a case of this from my local grocery store for a small discount. It’s not cheap. But I found I can get it for much cheaper from Azure Standard. (Currently $2.30/can.) Though I haven’t tried the Azure ordered cans yet, it will be coming on the truck in a couple weeks! Canned coconut milk has a higher percentage of liquid and less of the fat/oil. You can use that in this recipe instead of canned coconut cream, just factor in the extra liquid. You may need to add more thickener. 

Coconut Milk in a jug

I buy the jug in the cold aisle and go through about one a week. Be sure to buy unsweetened and check labels if there are options at your grocery and get one with the fewest amount of added ingredients. I use this in my coffee, smoothies, baking, and pudding! It is much yummier than almond milk. I’m just going to pretend I didn’t even mention almond milk, because I like to pretend it doesn’t exist. Almond Milk in my opinion is one of the most disgusting . . . blech. So, don’t even. Get yourself some unsweetened coconut milk from the jug. 

Egg Yolks

You can make this recipe with whole eggs, but I’ve had better luck just using the yolks. Egg whites will curdle and get chunky if you heat past 165* and nobody in my family wants to eat curdled pudding. Save the whites in another bowl because you can use them in baking or scramble with a few other eggs. Go ahead and store them in the fridge for a few days. 

Arrowroot Powder

I ordered a bag of this years ago and use it in place of cornstarch. If you’re not on a restrictive diet, cornstarch will work. Or you can skip this entirely if you want to drink your pudding. A healthy gelatin powder, or collagen works to thicken puddings, but they thicken upon cooling. To recap: if you use gelatin to thicken pudding, it will not thicken on the stovetop!

Sweetener

My preference is maple syrup. For the vanilla pudding recipe, I only used one tablespoon. I think the natural coconut cream is quite sweet. The vanilla extract needs the sweetener, I think. If you wanted to try this with NO syrup, I suggest going very easy on the vanilla extract. The pumpkin recipe calls for two tablespoons to counter the spices and vanilla. Start with less, you can always add more. Feel free to experiment with honey or stevia or other sweeteners of your choice. 

Simple Paleo Vanilla Pudding

  • Four egg yolks
  • One 13.6 oz can of coconut cream
  • 13.6 oz of coconut milk from the jug (use empty can to measure)
  • A couple dashes of salt

Mix those three together in a pot and then turn on the heat. Be careful not to boil.

Scoop out a ¼ cup of pudding and mix a slurry with ¼ cup of arrowroot powder and stir it back in the pot.

Once it begins to thicken, turn off the burner and add in:

  • One teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • One tablespoon of maple syrup. 

Taste and adjust sweetener if necessary. 

Either drink warm or chill for pudding. 

Frequently I serve this chilled for breakfast with toasted shredded coconut and pecans, blueberries, sliced bananas, apples, or any other toppings to create a full breakfast. We love this for a make-ahead breakfast. My kids can’t get enough. 

Simple Paleo Pumpkin Pudding

The same as the vanilla pudding, except add in:

  • A can of pumpkin,
  • 2-3 teaspoons of pumpkin spice
  • An extra tablespoon of maple syrup to counter the spices 

I poured this one in a paleo pie crust and pretended I was eating pumpkin pie for breakfast and had enough for six small servings for the next day. (No, it wasn’t as thick as a traditional pumpkin pie. But it was just as good!)

paleo puddingpumpkin puddingpumpkin paleo pudding

Psssst! All of these great ingredients can be purchased from Azure Standard!

Paleo isn’t a Prison

Clearly I’m not saying everyone must eat the way I do, but I have found it to be more freeing than I ever expected. My motivation for staying on this diet is different than most. If you’re curious about that, ask any questions you have! I’d love to chat about it. I’ll just briefly explain, though some people have found great success losing weight with this meal plan, that is not my goal. I’ve suffered headaches for over a decade, and recent lab results show evidence of chronic inflammation and infection among other things. In a nutshell, the paleo diet eliminates all foods that are prone to causing inflammation, as well as cutting out any processed foods that add toxins that prevent my body from healing itself. 

God is Greater than Paleo

While I 100% agree that love is better than food and who even cares about free-range chicken anymore? I know I’m on the right path. Laura spent years developing simple recipes and then they were there for her when she needed them! I believe the same has happened to me, for the first time in my life I have the budget to purchase more meat, vegetables, and nuts, to fill in the extra calories I’m no longer receiving from grains and beans and other “cheap” fillers.

Honestly, two years ago I fed my family on $200 a month. Six months ago it was about $450 a month. Paleo food for six (thankfully three of them are still tiny) is costing me $900 a month. If a doctor had told me to eat this way three years ago I would have cried. Point is: Food isn’t everything. Do what you can. Love your people. Love yourself.

Right now, for me, loving my people and myself means spending more time in the kitchen figuring out how to make paleo simple. For Laura, it means spending less time in the kitchen and more chicken nuggets. And we are not trying to confuse you. Ha! 

toddler messes

And just in case you think I have my act together, this salad-dumbing disaster, in some form, happens daily. Canned chicken on salad is a go-to lunch for us and that is not the face of a repentant toddler.

What’s your greatest struggle in the kitchen right now? Are you spending more or less time in the kitchen these days? Have you ever been put on an elimination diet of some form?

Paleo Coconut Vanilla Pudding
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Breakfast
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1 13.6 OZ can of coconut cream
  • 1 13.6 OZ of coconut milk from the jug (use empty can to measure)
  • A couple dashes of salt
  • ¼ C arrowroot powder
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 Tablespoon real maple syrup
Instructions
  1. Mix egg yolks, coconut cream, and coconut milk, in a medium-sized pan.
  2. Add a few dashed of salt.
  3. Heat mixture on the stove being careful not to boil. Stir constantly.
  4. Remove ¼ cup of the mix and make a slurry with the arrowroot powder. Mix it all together in the pot.
  5. Keep stirring and just as the mixture begins to thicken, turn off the burner and add in the vanilla, and maple syrup. Taste and adjust sweetener if necessary.
  6. Drink warm or chill for pudding.
  7. Serve chilled pudding with a variety of toppings for breakfast or snack: sliced apples, bananas, cherries, blueberries, toasted coconut, pecans, etc.

Try both and tell us your favorite!

Paleo Pumpkin Pudding
 
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Prep time
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Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Breakfast / Snack
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1 13.6 OZ can of coconut cream
  • 1 13.6 OZ of coconut milk from the jug (use empty can to measure)
  • 1 can of pureed pumpkin
  • A couple dashes of salt
  • ¼ C arrowroot powder
  • 3 teaspoons of pumpkin spice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 Tablespoon real maple syrup
Instructions
  1. Mix egg yolks, coconut cream, and coconut milk in a medium-sized pan.
  2. Add a few dashes of salt.
  3. Heat mixture on the stove being careful not to boil. Stir constantly.
  4. Remove ¼ cup of the mix and make a slurry with the arrowroot powder. Mix it all together in the pot.
  5. Keep stirring and just as the mixture begins to thicken, turn off the burner and add in the vanilla , spice, and maple syrup. Taste and adjust sweetener if necessary.
  6. Drink warm or chill for pudding.
  7. Serve chilled pudding with a variety of toppings for breakfast or snack: sliced apples, bananas, cherries, blueberries, toasted coconut, pecans, etc.

 

 

Tasha HackettTasha Hackett, friend of Laura and author of Bluebird of the Prairie, a Christian romance releasing Spring 2021, is fueled by sunshine, paleo pudding, or hot chocolate—whichever is more readily available. Though she often pretends to be a ballerina while unloading the dishwasher, her favorite thing is writing with hope and humor to entertain and encourage women. Her time is spent with four chatty children and an incredibly supportive husband. They give her the kind of love people write books about. You can connect with her at www.tashahackett.com or Instagram @hackettacademy or for Laura @heavenlyhomemaker.

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

Simple Green Beans in the Air Fryer

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I love how simple and tasty it is to make green beans in the air fryer!

Do you have an Air Fryer? If no, you might consider putting it on your Christmas wish-list. Here’s how I’ve found it to save a lot of money. Not to mention it turns out some super fun foods, making us feel like we’re eating a treat meal from a restaurant!

So green beans in the Air Fryer? Well, these are super healthy and our kids gobble them up because they’re so delicious. They take about two minutes to prepare, so you can’t go wrong there.

Simple Green Beans in the Air FryerYum

Simple Green Beans in the Air Fryer
 
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Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 12-ounces frozen fine green beans
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
Instructions
  1. Pour green beans into a bowl (or cheat by cutting open the bag of green beans to use it as a disposable bowl!)
  2. Add olive oil, salt, and garlic powder.
  3. Toss with a spoon or tongs to coat the green beans.
  4. Cook in your Air Fryer at 400 degrees for 7-10 minutes, tossing them half-way through cook time to make sure they are cooking evenly.

These have an awesome crunch. And did you see that simple hack I shared in the recipe? I simply open a bag of frozen green beans and use the bag as a bowl! Drizzle in the olive oil, sprinkle in the seasonings, shake the bag, and pour the coated green beans into the air fryer. No dishes!! NO DISHES!!!! That is my favorite part, besides of course, the fact that we can make this awesome vegetable in the air fryer. Nourishing and fun all in one!

P.S. I have this Air Fryer and we’ve been very happy with it!

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Simple Honey’d Italian Chicken and Potatoes

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This Simple Honey’d Italian Chicken and Potatoes will take you just a few minutes to prep!

Our amazing across-the-street neighbors decided in the midst of April quarantine to start raising and butchering chickens. They generously asked if we wanted in on it.

Wellllllll. Yes. We wanted some chickens, most definitely. But we knew nothing about raising them and butchering them, and we didn’t have time to commit to it. They assured us that they’d take care of the hard part (which sounded more fun than hard to them). So how could we say no?!

We helped pay for feed and other supplies, saved all of our food scraps for the growing chicks, and best of all? Our littlest guys learned to stop whatever they were doing outside to holler “doodle-do!” across the street whenever their roosters started crowing. Cutest. Think. Ever.

So now we have several locally grown chickens in our freezer (can it possibly get more local than ACROSS THE STREET?!). They even went so far as to cut legs and thighs off for us during the butchering process.

I’ve been using the thighs in this Honey’d Italian Chicken recipe and not only is it incredibly simple to put this all together, but it is also super delicious! I can quickly slide this into the oven to bake, then steam a veggie and get out mixed greens to go with it. So easy!

Simple 4-Ingredient Honey’d Italian ChickenYum

Simple 4-Ingredient Honey'd Italian Chicken
 
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Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds boneless or bone-in chicken thighs or breasts
  • 2 pounds yellow or red potatoes
  • 3 Tablespoons honey
  • ¾ cup Italian Dressing
Instructions
  1. Place chicken in a baking dish.
  2. Scrub potatoes and cut them into wedges, placing them in the dish with the chicken.
  3. In a small saucepan, mix honey and Italian dressing over low heat until combined.
  4. Drizzle dressing mixture over the chicken.
  5. Bake, uncovered, in a 425 degree oven for 45 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.

If you prefer to use boneless chicken in this recipe, cut the baking time down to 25-35 minutes.

If you like simple recipes like this, you will love our Simple Real Food Recipes Cookbook. These are my go-to recipes now!

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Special (Easy) Breakfast: Chocolate Syrup on Pancakes

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If you want to turn a regular breakfast into a special breakfast, simply pour chocolate syrup on your pancakes! Here are two chocolate sauce recipes for you (one is dairy-free and low in sugar!).

I have all sorts of recipes for you, actually.

  1. First, we’ll talk about pancakes.
  2. Then, I’ll give you these great chocolate sauce recipes.
  3. Then, I’ll share different homemade whipped cream recipes to top everything off!

What’s great about this idea is that it turns ordinary pancakes into something super special! And if you’re hesitant about putting chocolate sauce on your pancakes because of the sugar, might I remind you that maple syrup is straight sugar also (even if it’s pure maple syrup)? ;) Not only that, if you make the Dairy Free Chocolate Sauce recipe below you’ll actually have a lower-sugar option to pour (or spread) all over your pancakes!

Pancake Recipe Ideas:

Chocolate Syrup for PancakesYum

Hot Fudge Sauce

Chocolate Fudge Sauce
 
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Serves: 2 cups
Ingredients
  • 1 ½ cups heavy cream
  • 1 cup brown sugar or sucanat
  • ½ cup cocoa
  • 1 stick butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
  1. In medium saucepan, stir together cream, sugar, cocoa and butter.
  2. Cook on medium heat until butter is melted and ingredients are thoroughly combined.
  3. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

 

Dairy Free Chocolate Sauce

Dairy Free Chocolate Sauce
 
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Serves: 2 cups
Ingredients
  • 13.5 ounce can of full fat, unsweetened coconut milk
  • ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • ¼ - ½ cup sweetener (honey, sucanat, or brown sugar)
Instructions
  1. Mix ingredients in a small saucepan, cooking and stirring on medium heat until well combined.
  2. Serve warm or cold.
  3. Store this sauce in a covered container in the refrigerator, rewarming on the stove-top as needed. It will keep for up to a month in the fridge.

Drizzle or spread these onto your pancakes and you’ve got an amazing feast. But really, it’s thousands of times better if you then top it all with whipped cream!

Whipped Cream Recipes:

Still want more ideas?

Bonus Pancake Topping Recipes:

What’s your favorite way to top a pancake?

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

Simple Homemade Pizza

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Pizza might be one of my favorite meals, so of course, we need to have Simple Homemade Pizza recipe options!

Confession: I order pizza more often than I used to now that we have little ones again. Ok, that’s not really a confession, it’s just truth, but I don’t actually feel that it needs to be confessed. As if ordering pizza is evil??

Sure, I don’t make every single thing from scratch anymore. Sure, not everything we eat is top-notch anymore. We still strive to eat nourishing foods so we can stay healthy. How else are we going to keep up with this tribe?! But God’s strength is bigger than ours, and that’s the real way we’re thriving through this journey.

So. I order pizza sometimes. Guilt-free. I praise God for this option on busy days I have to be at court hearings or team meetings while juggling littles and bigs.

Also, we eat it on paper plates. This is a beautiful thing.

Well anyway, pizza. The homemade kind. It truly tastes better, and we have fun building it to our liking. Here are my top three homemade pizza methods, from easiest to hardest. But the hardest way isn’t really hard, because do you even know me at all?

How to make simple homemade pizzaYum

  1. Buy pre-made crusts. Keep them in your freezer. Add toppings and bake. SO EASY. Plus cheaper and better tasting than ordering pizza.
  2. Make crust from Stir and Pour Bread recipe. Flour your hands and press it onto a pan. Add toppings and bake. VERY EASY.
  3. Make Whole Wheat Pizza Crust, because it is the most delicious. Make crusts ahead and freeze them if you’re as ambitious as I used to be and may be again sometime. Add toppings and bake. STILL EASY.

Here are the crust recipes for you!

Stir-and-Pour Pizza Crust

Simple Homemade Pizza
 
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Author:
Serves: 2 large pizzas
Ingredients
  • 4 cups whole wheat flour (I use freshly ground hard white wheat)
  • 2 teaspoons active rise yeast
  • 2 Tablespoons sucanat or sugar or honey
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 cups warm water
Instructions
  1. Stir all ingredients together.
  2. Cover and allow it to sit for 30 minutes.
  3. Spread dough on two *well-buttered* large pizza pans (three if you want a thinner crust)
  4. Bake in a 375° oven for 10 minutes.
  5. Pull partially baked crust out of the oven and top it however you like.
  6. Bake for 10-15 minutes more or until cheese has melted and becomes bubbly.

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

Simple Homemade Pizza
 
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Author:
Serves: 2 large pizzas
Ingredients
  • 5 cups whole wheat flour (I use freshly ground flour from hard white wheat)
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 4½ teaspoons active dry yeast (or 2 pouches)
  • 2 cups warm water (The water should feel warm, but not hot.)
Instructions
  1. Mix all ingredients together, knead for 3-4 minutes, then allow the dough to “rest” for about 10 minutes (give or take).
  2. This dough makes 2 large pizzas, or 18 mini pizzas.
  3. Shape dough into desired pizza sizes and place on baking sheets.
  4. Bake in a 375° oven for 5-7 minutes.
  5. Remove crusts from oven, allow them to cool, then freeze in freezer bags.
  6. Or, top hot pizza crusts with desired pizza toppings.
  7. When you're ready, bake the pizzas at 375° for 10 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and beginning to brown.

What’s your favorite kind of pizza?

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

Potato and Bacon Foil Packs on the Grill

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Make yourself some Potato and Bacon Foil Packs for the grill! You will not be disappointed!

I may have to make this every week of the summer! The flavor is unbelievably good. And of course, these are really easy to make!

I like to prep them in the afternoon while the babies are napping. Then at dinnertime, we throw them on the grill. While they cook, we steam some veggies. And the meal is perfection!

First things first, make yourself a batch of this Ranch Dressing Mix. I like keeping a full jar of this mix in my pantry to use in recipes like this!

Second, consider making a batch of Bacon Bits like this. I love having these ready to grab and use in recipes!


If you’ve got those prepped ahead, you can make these Potato and Bacon Foil Packs super quickly!

Ready to put yours together?

Potato and Bacon Foil Packs on the GrillYum

Potato and Bacon Foil Packs on the Grill
 
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Author:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • Heavy-duty foil
  • 5 pounds baby red potatoes
  • ½ pound cut and cooked bacon
  • 4 Tablespoons ranch dressing mix (or 1 pouch)
  • 1 stick of butter, cut into 12 slabs
  • Shredded cheese and sour cream for serving (optional)
Instructions
  1. Wash potatoes and slice them into very thin slices.
  2. Place them in a large bowl.
  3. Stir in cooked bacon and ranch dressing mix.
  4. Prepare foild packets using a double layer of foil filled with potato mixture. (I try to make my foil packets thin so they will cook faster on the grill. So I make this recipe into 3 large, flat foil pouches.)
  5. Top potato mixture with slabs of butter.
  6. Close pouches securely for the grill.
  7. Cook pouches on the grill for 15-30 minutes, turning occasionally for even cooking.
  8. When you can easily poke a fork into the pouches, you'll know the potatoes are thoroughly cooked.
  9. Pull potato pouches off the grill and serve with cheese and sour cream!

 

Need more recipes for the grill? Here’s a great list!

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

Tasha’s New Favorite Books for Homeschool

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I’ll take my turn to share my favorite books for homeschool too! For today, check out Tasha’s excitement, experience, and enjoy her encouragement!

Tasha’s New Favorite Books for Homeschool

by Tasha Hackett

I’ve just stumbled upon an amazing homeschool resource! Beautiful Feet Books is my new favorite. Is it weird that I’m already looking forward to the next nine years with my firstborn so I can read more of these books for homeschool?

Do you ever look at a homeschool mom and wonder, “Wow. How does she do it?” Or maybe it’s cringe-worthy and you think, “Jeez, why would someone choose to hang out with their kids all day?”

I get it. Maybe it’s not for everyone. But boy, when all the pieces line up and you get to see the one-year-old crawl into the eight-year-old’s lap for a book and a snuggle and the three and five-year-old are busy cutting paper for a project they’re developing on their own… that’s where the magic happens. I homeschool for a variety of reasons, but one is the gift of learning with them through the reading of great books.

Round two looking for homeschool books

Second generation homeschooling mom here. I always knew that I would homeschool my kids before I even had them. Today, I can tell you, I’m in it for the long haul! This year I have a 3rd grader, a Kindergartener, and an almost four-year-old that doesn’t want to be left out. (Oh! And the one year old will be getting into everything in the meantime.) But things haven’t gone as smoothly as I’d hoped.

My firstborn went to Kindergarten and fall semester of First Grade at the public school before I committed (again, for real this time) to homeschooling. It’s been a journey, to say the least. But I am beyond excited for school to start this year. Only five weeks left! I’m just waiting on one more order of books to arrive from Beautiful Feet Books and then I’ll have everything in place. Am I organized this year or what!?

You’ve Got This

If you are jumping into homeschooling, whether by choice or necessity, just breathe. And smile. You will be amazing! Your kids will think they have the very best mom who loves them so much. Just think, you get to be the one to witness the  “ah-ha!” moment when it just clicks.

When  “Just carry the one!” finally makes sense, you get to be there to celebrate with him. You get to have slow mornings and hot chocolate whenever you want. Imagine taking the time to snuggle for a picture book at 10:30 am. You also get to sit side by side with your older ones and dig into Algebra again, but You Can Do This!

You’ll be great. Especially with all the great resources available to us now. (Keep reading for a promo code to my new favorite bookstore!)

kids watching printer

This is how homeschool kids have fun. Haha, just kidding!

Thanks, Mom!

My mom, bless her heart, did the best she could with what she had, ya know? When she started homeschooling me, she had not been dreaming of it for years like I’ve been doing; there was no internet or Facebook homeschool groups. She had a daughter who was struggling, picked on by teachers, physically sick, and shy to the point of anxiety. (Hey! That was me. I’ve overcome mountains of insecurities. Thanks Mom for doing what was best for me.)

Point is… she had a paper curriculum catalog, and a once-a-year book fair. She figured it out on the fly mid-year with three girls under eight. (I turned out great by the way.)

Now I’m planning my kid’s school-year and I have the entire world’s resources available to me and sometimes it’s just too much. I know about Charlotte Mason, and Classical Conversations, and Montessori, and Waldorf, and Unschooling, and Wild and Free, and Traditional, … and wait a minute! You mean you can’t just get History, Math, Language Arts, and Science textbooks and just go with it anymore?

looking at books

Textbooks are out, living books for homeschool are in.

Dear fellow mothers, I am bursting with excitement. I want to tell you ALL THE THINGS about homeschooling, but I really need to focus here. Just the facts, ma’am. I was homeschooled with textbooks. I sat at the table (or the couch, or my bed, or the car) and I read my textbook, I took the quiz, I took the tests.

What if I told you there’s a better way?

I’ve found some of the true joys of homeschooling with the Charlotte Mason idea of using “Living Books” for much of my curriculum. A well-written biography of George Washington that reads like a novel is going to leave a longer-lasting impression than a chapter on George Washington in a History textbook.

I have researched and researched and researched such books and finally stumbled upon Beautiful Feet Books. They sell “curriculum” packs that are not textbooks, but a collection of books in a theme at varied grade levels. For this fall, I ordered the EARLY AMERICAN HISTORY PRIMARY JUMBO PACK: over 20 books for only $210. Believe me when I tell you this is the cheapest price you will find for these books. I price checked the individual books at three other sites. (And you know I did. I spent two hours price checking. So… you’re welcome.)

kids playing together

Spend less time researching books and more time playing in the sprinkler this summer.

You can customize your pack.

Beautiful Feet Books allows you to adjust your book packs. If you already own a few of the books in the pack, or (like me) you don’t want to bother with the lesson book that accompanies because you already have a separate curriculum you’re using, it’s no problem, just click the option “Customize your pack.”

Or, you have the option of purchasing the books individually. You get the idea. We are focusing on American History this year, so I was glad to find a ready-made pack of American History stories for K-3rd. It will fit into our year perfectly.

What if I told you the books are already homeschool mom approved?

I let my order sit in the cart for three days deliberating if I should place the order or not! In the end, I went for it after reading at least thirty reviews from other homeschool moms. Being able to pick a book out of a stack and know that it’s preapproved, at grade-level, interesting, historically accurate, and appropriate is a huge weight off my shoulders.

Later this month I’ll tell you more about what I’m planning for Hackett Academy this year. For now I’m working on getting the papers and binders and pencils all in their places. Five weeks is plenty of time… but I’m doing my best to start out on the right foot.

Homeschool = Flexibility

One of the joys of homeschooling is how easily it adapts to your life. I had a baby last year. We spent more time loving on a newborn than we did learning about George Washington, and I have no regrets about that. With so many little ones who aren’t strong readers, trying to juggle multiple subjects in multiple grades would be impossible, I’m looking forward to learning with my kids all about our country’s history, and doing it all together. I’m beyond grateful someone else took the time to find these amazing books and put them in a collection for me. Now all I have to do is open it up!

Want to check out Beautiful Feet Books?

Beautiful Feet Books is a digital storefront that sells living books in all grade levels, from the illustrated Leif the Lucky to Beowulf. Purchases can be made individually or in a curriculum pack with a teacher’s guide (or customize your pack by removing the books you don’t need). Have a look and tell me what you think! Use the code BFB2020 for free shipping during the month of July.

Are you a homeschool family? What are you excited about this year?

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Simple Spicy Cheesy Chicken

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This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

If you sense a theme going on, it’s because I’ve become obsessed with this Simple Spicy Chicken Cheese Dip and I keep tweaking it to make it into different dishes. This one becomes a very Simple Spicy Cheesy Chicken, simply by…well. You’ll have to read the recipe below to see.

Forgive me, friends, for bombarding you with so many variations of one basic recipe. I am sorry – not sorry – for making your meals so delicous without much effort.

Here’s what you’re going to do. You’re going to make this dip recipe – but instead of stirring in shredded chicken, topping with cheese, and baking it to eat as a dip, you’re going to spread the cheesy mixture over boneless chicken, and bake it to serve as a main dish.

Incredible. We just took the exact same ingredients and turned them into a brand new meal. Give yourself a round of applause. You just learned a brand new easy recipe and you can make it without thinking or working hard. What did we ever do before figuring out these simple recipes?

Speaking of Simple Recipes – you do you this cookbook don’t you? If not, run with haste to get yourself a copy forthwith (haha, if you watch Blue Bloods, you will laugh with me over this funny choice of words). It is FULL of delicious recipes that are made with real food and take only a few minutes to prepare. You will love it!

And now on to today’s simple recipe:

Simple Spicy Cheesy ChickenYum

Simple Spicy Cheesy Chicken
 
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Author:
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 8-ounces softened cream cheese
  • ¼ cup hot sauce (your favorite)
  • ½ cup ranch dressing
  • 1 cup shredded cheese (we use Colby jack)
  • 2 pounds bone-in or boneless chicken thighs or breasts
Instructions
  1. In a blender or with a hand mixer, mix together the cream cheese, hot sauce, and ranch dressing until smooth.
  2. Fold in shredded cheese.
  3. Place chicken into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
  4. Spread cream cheese mixture over the chicken.
  5. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30-50 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. (Shorter time needed for boneless chicken; longer time needed for bone-in.)

We like to fry leftover baked potatoes or Stick of Butter Rice for a delicious and easy side dish. We also serve this chicken with mixed greens and a steamed or roasted veggie!

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