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Simple Ham and Hashbrown Casserole

October 21, 2018 by Laura 1 Comment

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

I have a secret to tell you about why I keep sharing varieties of recipes like this Simple Ham and Hashbrown Casserole.

The secret? I found an awesome and healthy option for purchasing frozen hashbrowns at the store, and this discovery has my freezer stocked with a lovely convenience item that is still real food.

I used to always make my own hashbrowns, which truly was wonderful and definitely saved us money. I made them during a season in my life that I was home more and had more time (or at least used more time) for making most of our food from scratch.

As our kids grew older and became involved in more activities, then as God began to show us more about what He meant when He said, “Love me. Love your neighbor,” and as God has introduced more and more people into our lives to love including foster kids – well, I simply choose not to use my time making homemade hashbrowns anymore.

Do I compromise and use frozen hashbrowns from the store that have lots of added ingredients in them? (Seriously, read the labels on frozen hashbrowns. What is that stuff?) Nope. I discovered Mr. Dell’s frozen hashbrowns which contains one ingredient: Potatoes.

I stock my freezer with them, both the shredded and the cubed varieties. Now I can make Hashbrown Casseroles super quickly while still feeding my family real, nourishing food.

So there you go. Laura doesn’t make homemade hashbrowns any more. She has discovered hashbrown freedom. :)

So here’s the latest, and probably our favorite of all hashbrown casseroles. I typically use leftover ham for this, which is also fast and easy. I’ve written out an oven baking option as well as a crock pot option so you can make this in whatever way that works best for you!

Simple Ham and Hashbrown Casserole

Simple Ham and Hashbrown Casserole
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 3 cups ham cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 3 cups sour cream
  • 3 Tablespoons dried minced onion
  • Sea salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 (28 ounce) bag of frozen shredded hashbrowns
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar or Colby jack cheese
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, stir together ham, shredded cheese, sour cream, onion, and salt and pepper.
  2. Fold in frozen hashbrowns until all ingredients are well combined.
  3. Spread mixture into a 9x13 inch baking dish or into a large crock pot.
  4. Sprinkle with shredded cheese.
  5. Oven Baking: Bake uncovered in a 350° oven for 45-60 minutes or until casserole is lightly browned and bubbly.
  6. Crock Pot Method: Cook on low for 6 hours or on hi for 3 hours.
3.5.3229

 

Want more Simple Recipes?

  • Simple Baked Salmon and Asparagus
  • Simple Crock Pot Chicken Soup with a Kick
  • Simple Skillet Taco Pasta
  • Last-Minute Lentil Chili
  • Simple Sweet and Sour Baked Chicken Legs
  • 20-Minute Taco Soup
  • Simple Cheesy Baked Chicken
  • Simple Creamy Chicken Stew in the Crock Pot
  • Simple Italian Beef and Broccoli Skillet
  • Simple Bacon Ranch Chicken
  • Simple Hawaiian Crock Pot Chicken
  • Simple Taco Rice Dinner
  • Simple Last Minute Nacho Plate
  • Simple Chicken Cheeseballs with a Kick
  • Simple Beanie Weanies
  • Simple Crock Pot BBQ Spareribs
  • Simple Pizza Chicken Bake
  • Simple Italian Chicken and Green Bean Bake
  • Last Minute Creamy Bacon Spaghetti
  • Simple Hamburger Soup
  • Simple Parmesan Broiled Fish
  • Simple Overnight Saucy Crock Pot Chicken
  • Simple 15-Minute Meal
  • Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast
  • Simple 3-Cheese Crock Pot Pasta
  • Simple Oven Fried Chicken
  • Simple Honey Mustard Chicken Legs
  • The Easiest Mashed Potatoes in the World
  • Simple Garlic Butter Shrimp
  • Simple Crunchy Ranch Chicken Strips
  • Simple Crock Pot Shredded Ranch Chicken (for salad or tacos)
  • Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole
  • Simple Barbecue Beef Roast
  • Simple Spanish Rice Bowls
  • Simple Roasted Rotiserie Chicken
  • Simple Green Chile Chicken
  • Simple Tex-Mex Creamy Chicken
  • Simple Waffle Omelets
  • Simple Crock Pot Taco Pasta
  • Simple Grilled Chicken
  • Simple Hawaiian Beef Roast
  • Simple Crock Pot Creamy Stew Meat
  • Simple Cheese Stuffed Burgers
  • Simple Hashbrown Casserole (For Instant Pot, Crock Pot or Oven!)
  • Simple Lasagna Casserole (For Instant Pot or Crock Pot)
  • Simple Chili Mac
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole
  • From Burrito Bar to Casserole (a 5-Minute Meal!)
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Roll
  • Simple Garlic Parmesan Chicken Legs
  • Super Simple Lasagna
  • The Simplest White Chicken Chili
  • Simple Lentil Nachos
  • Simple Tuna Patties
  • Simple Banana Pancakes
  • Simple Crock Pot Applesauce BBQ Chicken
  • Simple Hashbrown and Egg Nests
  • Simple Cornbread Waffles with Chili
  • Simple Veggie Fritters
  • Simple Lemon Garlic Chicken Legs
  • Simple Noodle Soup
  • Simple Three Cheese Spaghetti
  • Simple Crock Pot Salsa Shredded Beef
  • Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups or Casserole
  • Easiest Beef Roast in the Instant Pot
  • Simple One-Dish Chicken Florentine
  • Simple Creamy Layered Enchiladas

Join Simple Meals!

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Simple Creamy Layered Enchiladas (For Oven or Crock Pot)

October 9, 2018 by Laura 1 Comment

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

How simple are these Creamy Layered Enchiladas? Well, I was able to throw them together in just five minutes before running out to church on a recent Sunday morning. So I’d say they’re pretty simple!

This recipe is simple in and of itself, but if you happen to have hamburger already cooked and waiting to be used, then you really can throw the rest of this together in just five minutes. (Or use pre-cooked chicken if you prefer!)

There are two great options for cooking this casserole: Crock Pot or Oven.

I use the Crock Pot on days I don’t want to heat up the house with the oven or on Sundays when I want to have our meal ready and waiting when we get home from church. I use the oven when I have these enchiladas made up ahead of time in a casserole dish. Then all I have to do is slide it into the oven and let it bake while I get other work done!

Simple Creamy Layered Enchiladas

Simple Creamy Layered Enchiladas (For Oven or Crock Pot)
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • sea salt to taste
  • 2 cups salsa
  • 1½ cups sour cream
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
  • 8 whole wheat flour tortillas (or corn tortillas)
Instructions
  1. Brown meat. Stir in salt, salsa, sour cream, and ½ cup of cheese.
  2. Lay 4 tortillas in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
  3. Spread half of meat mixture over tortillas.
  4. Layer again with the 4 remaining tortillas.
  5. Spread remaining meat mixture over tortillas.
  6. Top with 1½ cups cheese.
  7. Bake uncovered at 350° for 20-25 minutes.
  8. OR Layer ingredients into a crock pot. Cook on Low for 6-7 hours or on Hi for 4 hours.
3.5.3229

 

Want more Simple Recipes?

  • Simple Baked Salmon and Asparagus
  • Simple Crock Pot Chicken Soup with a Kick
  • Simple Skillet Taco Pasta
  • Last-Minute Lentil Chili
  • Simple Sweet and Sour Baked Chicken Legs
  • 20-Minute Taco Soup
  • Simple Cheesy Baked Chicken
  • Simple Creamy Chicken Stew in the Crock Pot
  • Simple Italian Beef and Broccoli Skillet
  • Simple Bacon Ranch Chicken
  • Simple Hawaiian Crock Pot Chicken
  • Simple Taco Rice Dinner
  • Simple Last Minute Nacho Plate
  • Simple Chicken Cheeseballs with a Kick
  • Simple Beanie Weanies
  • Simple Crock Pot BBQ Spareribs
  • Simple Pizza Chicken Bake
  • Simple Italian Chicken and Green Bean Bake
  • Last Minute Creamy Bacon Spaghetti
  • Simple Hamburger Soup
  • Simple Parmesan Broiled Fish
  • Simple Overnight Saucy Crock Pot Chicken
  • Simple 15-Minute Meal
  • Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast
  • Simple 3-Cheese Crock Pot Pasta
  • Simple Oven Fried Chicken
  • Simple Honey Mustard Chicken Legs
  • The Easiest Mashed Potatoes in the World
  • Simple Garlic Butter Shrimp
  • Simple Crunchy Ranch Chicken Strips
  • Simple Crock Pot Shredded Ranch Chicken (for salad or tacos)
  • Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole
  • Simple Barbecue Beef Roast
  • Simple Spanish Rice Bowls
  • Simple Roasted Rotiserie Chicken
  • Simple Green Chile Chicken
  • Simple Tex-Mex Creamy Chicken
  • Simple Waffle Omelets
  • Simple Crock Pot Taco Pasta
  • Simple Grilled Chicken
  • Simple Hawaiian Beef Roast
  • Simple Crock Pot Creamy Stew Meat
  • Simple Cheese Stuffed Burgers
  • Simple Hashbrown Casserole (For Instant Pot, Crock Pot or Oven!)
  • Simple Lasagna Casserole (For Instant Pot or Crock Pot)
  • Simple Chili Mac
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole
  • From Burrito Bar to Casserole (a 5-Minute Meal!)
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Roll
  • Simple Garlic Parmesan Chicken Legs
  • Super Simple Lasagna
  • The Simplest White Chicken Chili
  • Simple Lentil Nachos
  • Simple Tuna Patties
  • Simple Banana Pancakes
  • Simple Crock Pot Applesauce BBQ Chicken
  • Simple Hashbrown and Egg Nests
  • Simple Cornbread Waffles with Chili
  • Simple Veggie Fritters
  • Simple Lemon Garlic Chicken Legs
  • Simple Noodle Soup
  • Simple Three Cheese Spaghetti
  • Simple Crock Pot Salsa Shredded Beef
  • Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups or Casserole
  • Easiest Beef Roast in the Instant Pot
  • Simple One-Dish Chicken Florentine

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

Simple One Dish Chicken Florentine (For Instant Pot or Crock Pot)

September 27, 2018 by Laura 11 Comments

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

You guys. This entire, delicious meal takes me only 7 minutes of work to prepare. 7 minutes to make One-Dish Chicken Florentine. Meat, pasta, and veggie all in one dish. With 7 minutes of total prep time. Hoorah!

Now, I can’t say for sure because I don’t know the specific needs of the picky people in your life. But I dare say that even picky people might not mind the spinach in this dish. Why? Because you can’t taste it. It doesn’t really create a weird texture. It really just adds color variety (and hidden nutrients, shh!).

I personally like to serve a tossed salad on the side of this dish, because the more greens, the merrier. But in a pinch, just serve this quick-to-make dish all by itself and you’re golden!

Can we all stand and applaud the fact that we don’t have to precook our chicken or pasta when making this? That’s why it only takes 7 minutes of prep time! Raw chicken, uncooked noodles, dump it all into an Instant Pot or Crock Pot and dinner takes care of itself!

Simple One-Dish Chicken Florentine

Simple One Dish Chicken Florentine (For Instant Pot or Crock Pot)
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 1½ pounds boneless chicken thighs or breasts
  • 3 cloves fresh garlic, minced or 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
  • Sea salt to taste
  • 6 cups fresh spinach leaves
  • 16-ounces whole grain spaghetti (uncooked)
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
  1. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. (I use kitchen shears for this which makes it super fast!)
  2. Place prepared chicken in the bottom of your Instant Pot or Crock Pot.
  3. Sprinkle with garlic, salt, and spinach leaves.
  4. Break spaghetti noodles in half and place on top.
  5. Pour on chicken broth and cream.
  6. Top with shredded cheese.
  7. Seal Instant Pot and cook on the "Poultry" setting for 15 minutes, doing a quick release after the time runs out.
  8. OR Cook in a Crock Pot on low for 6 hours.
  9. Stir and serve.
  10. Garnish with grated parmesan if you like!
3.5.3229

Don’t have an Instant Pot? I held back for years before jumping on the bandwagon. But now that I have one I LOVE how much time and energy it has saved me in the kitchen. This Chicken Florentine is just another recipe to prove how great my Instant Pot makes my real food kitchen life.

But a Crock Pot works too, and will still allow you to create this recipe with just 7 minutes of effort, so use whatever you have!

Want more Simple Recipes?

  • Simple Baked Salmon and Asparagus
  • Simple Crock Pot Chicken Soup with a Kick
  • Simple Skillet Taco Pasta
  • Last-Minute Lentil Chili
  • Simple Sweet and Sour Baked Chicken Legs
  • 20-Minute Taco Soup
  • Simple Cheesy Baked Chicken
  • Simple Creamy Chicken Stew in the Crock Pot
  • Simple Italian Beef and Broccoli Skillet
  • Simple Bacon Ranch Chicken
  • Simple Hawaiian Crock Pot Chicken
  • Simple Taco Rice Dinner
  • Simple Last Minute Nacho Plate
  • Simple Chicken Cheeseballs with a Kick
  • Simple Beanie Weanies
  • Simple Crock Pot BBQ Spareribs
  • Simple Pizza Chicken Bake
  • Simple Italian Chicken and Green Bean Bake
  • Last Minute Creamy Bacon Spaghetti
  • Simple Hamburger Soup
  • Simple Parmesan Broiled Fish
  • Simple Overnight Saucy Crock Pot Chicken
  • Simple 15-Minute Meal
  • Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast
  • Simple 3-Cheese Crock Pot Pasta
  • Simple Oven Fried Chicken
  • Simple Honey Mustard Chicken Legs
  • The Easiest Mashed Potatoes in the World
  • Simple Garlic Butter Shrimp
  • Simple Crunchy Ranch Chicken Strips
  • Simple Crock Pot Shredded Ranch Chicken (for salad or tacos)
  • Simple Crock Pot Pizza Casserole
  • Simple Barbecue Beef Roast
  • Simple Spanish Rice Bowls
  • Simple Roasted Rotiserie Chicken
  • Simple Green Chile Chicken
  • Simple Tex-Mex Creamy Chicken
  • Simple Waffle Omelets
  • Simple Crock Pot Taco Pasta
  • Simple Grilled Chicken
  • Simple Hawaiian Beef Roast
  • Simple Crock Pot Creamy Stew Meat
  • Simple Cheese Stuffed Burgers
  • Simple Hashbrown Casserole (For Instant Pot, Crock Pot or Oven!)
  • Simple Lasagna Casserole (For Instant Pot or Crock Pot)
  • Simple Chili Mac
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole
  • From Burrito Bar to Casserole (a 5-Minute Meal!)
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Roll
  • Simple Garlic Parmesan Chicken Legs
  • Super Simple Lasagna
  • The Simplest White Chicken Chili
  • Simple Lentil Nachos
  • Simple Tuna Patties
  • Simple Banana Pancakes
  • Simple Crock Pot Applesauce BBQ Chicken
  • Simple Hashbrown and Egg Nests
  • Simple Cornbread Waffles with Chili
  • Simple Veggie Fritters
  • Simple Lemon Garlic Chicken Legs
  • Simple Noodle Soup
  • Simple Three Cheese Spaghetti
  • Simple Crock Pot Salsa Shredded Beef
  • Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups or Casserole
  • Easiest Beef Roast in the Instant Pot

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

The BEST Way to Make Mashed Potatoes in the Instant Pot

September 20, 2018 by Laura 10 Comments

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

Sometimes a girl thinks she is onto something when she learns to make Mashed Potatoes in the Instant Pot. Then her friend Leesa is like, “Girl, you have to try it my way instead.” And then you try making Mashed Potatoes Leesa’s way and you fall down dead.

How is it that the best foods we all love can actually taste even better when we tweak a few ingredients and methods? Can it be that these Mashed Potatoes take so little effort to make? And is it actually possible that making Mashed Potatoes in the way I am about to describe actually adds more nutrients to this delicious dish?

Yes. So these potatoes are better tasting AND better for us, all without any extra work. Hoorah!

The BEST Mashed Potatoes in the Instant Pot

What takes these great Mashed Potatoes in the Instant Pot from good to BEST? Chicken broth. Indeed, instead of simply cooking our potatoes in water, then draining and adding milk and butter later – we are going to cook the potatoes in chicken broth and milk. No draining needed! The nutrients and flavor absorb into the potatoes, we mash them and add butter and salt, then voila. Amazing Mashed Potatoes in the Instant Pot!

NOTE: Never fear the fat! These are full of good fats, so let’s emphasize the GOOD in that sentence. Broth, real butter, and whole milk are all good, nourishing foods. Our brains need good fats for good health. So give a cheer for mashed potatoes that taste amazing and offer great nourishment too!

Don’t have an Instant Pot?

Make these in the Crock Pot instead! Cook on low for 8-10 hours or hi for 5 hours. Mash, add butter and salt, and serve!

Wait. You don’t have an Instant Pot?

I was with you for years, putting it off forever, not wanting to jump on the Instant Pot bandwagon. Then so many worked to convince me that I finally jumped. I’ve found that investing in this lovely appliance truly has saved me time and energy in my real food kitchen.

I LOVE my 8-Quart Instant Pot (because I always make large amounts of food). Some prefer the 6-Quart Instant Pot because it comes to pressure faster.

Beyond the mashed potato, my favorite way to use my Instant Pot is to cook 5-7 pounds of frozen hamburger meat in 30 minutes. For real!

And now for my friend Leesa’s wonderful Mashed Potato recipe and instructions!

The BEST Mashed Potatoes in the Instant Pot

The BEST Way to Make Mashed Potatoes in the Instant Pot
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 5 pounds Yukon gold potatoes
  • 1 cup chicken or beef broth
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • Butter to taste (I use one stick)
  • Sea salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Wash and quarter potatoes.
  2. Put them onto the trivet inside your instant pot along with the chicken broth and milk.
  3. Seal and cook at high pressure for 10 minutes.
  4. Quick release the pressure.
  5. Don't drain the liquid!
  6. Add butter and salt to your liking (the more butter the better, I always say!)
  7. Mash with a potato masher and serve!
3.5.3229

These Mashed Potatoes are a must try! Let me know what you think!

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

Simple Baked Beans Recipe

September 16, 2018 by Laura 3 Comments

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

I love that Simple Baked Beans is such an easy side dish to put together and pair with so many great meats and veggies!

Truly, it is the simplest of foods that make our meals so much better! (Did you download our Simple Ingredients for Simple Meals list yet? It’s FREE! And oh so helpful!)

These Simple Baked Beans take little effort, and are just sweet enough to make us all fall in love. I love adding these as a side dish (along with other veggies and fruits) to a basic meaty main dish.

Consider these Simple Baked Beans when you decide what to serve with any of these Simple Meals recipes:

  • Simple Sweet and Sour Baked Chicken Legs
  • Simple Cheesy Baked Chicken
  • Simple Bacon Ranch Chicken
  • Simple Hawaiian Crock Pot Chicken
  • Simple Chicken Cheeseballs with a Kick
  • Simple Beanie Weanies
  • Simple Crock Pot BBQ Spareribs
  • Simple Parmesan Broiled Fish
  • Simple Overnight Saucy Crock Pot Chicken
  • Simple 15-Minute Meal
  • Simple Overnight Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Roast
  • Simple Oven Fried Chicken
  • Simple Honey Mustard Chicken Legs
  • Simple Garlic Butter Shrimp
  • Simple Crunchy Ranch Chicken Strips
  • Simple Barbecue Beef Roast
  • Simple Roasted Rotiserie Chicken
  • Simple Green Chile Chicken
  • Simple Grilled Chicken
  • Simple Hawaiian Beef Roast
  • Simple Cheese Stuffed Burgers
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole
  • Simple Bacon Cheeseburger Roll
  • Simple Garlic Parmesan Chicken Legs
  • Simple Tuna Patties
  • Simple Crock Pot Applesauce BBQ Chicken
  • Simple Veggie Fritters
  • Simple Lemon Garlic Chicken Legs

Phew, so many possibilities!!

If you haven’t joined Simple Meals yet, I encourage you to take the plunge! We do all the planning for you, then provide you each week with a beautifully laid out menu plan, grocery list, side dish ideas, bonus recipes, and so much more. Every week. For one dollar. Seriously.

Get a sample Simple Meals menu plan here.

As for these Simple Baked Beans, you’ll love having this recipe in your back pocket to add protein and goodness to your Simple Meals.

Ready for the super simple recipe? Soak and cook your own beans, or keep some canned beans on hand to throw these together at a moment’s notice.

Simple Baked Beans

Simple Baked Beans Recipe
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 32-ounces canned pork and beans (or soak and cook your own pintos or navy beans!)
  • ¼ cup ketchup (give or take)
  • 1 Tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
  • 3 Tablespoons dried minced onion
  • 1 Tablespoon honey or brown sugar (optional)
Instructions
  1. Stir ingredients together in a 8x8 inch baking dish.
  2. Bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until bubbly.
  3. (In a hurry? Cook in a pot on the stove for 10-15 minutes in a pinch!)
3.5.3229

I love that if I plan ahead, I can bake these in the oven. Or if I need to throw these together in less time (story of my life), I can simply stir this recipe into a pot and heat it to bubbly on the stove. So simple and good!

P.S. Make these beans into a main dish by adding leftover cooked hamburger and/or cooked bacon!

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

3 Big Ways I Cheat in My Real Food Kitchen (Without Compromising Taste or Health!)

September 9, 2018 by Laura 2 Comments

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

Want to hear the 3 biggest ways I cheat in my real food kitchen without compromising what actually matters? Come closer, my friends. Learn a little bit more about my crazy (or perhaps brilliant?) ways and methods.

First a story —>

Malachi (our 13-year old) had a friend over this summer who watched incredulously as I opened 7 pounds of frozen hamburger meat and put it into my Instant Pot.

Malachi’s friend: “What are you making with all that meat?!”
Me: “I’m not sure.”
Friend: “Uhhh???”

Just another day at the Coppinger house in which I affirm that Mama Copp is a little bit nuts.

While it doesn’t seem to make sense that I would cook a huge batch of hamburger meat without a firm plan, it actually makes perfect sense in my mind because when I have 7 pounds of cooked hamburger meat on hand, I can very quickly make up any of these 33 meals:

  • 20-Minute Taco Soup
  • Beefy Enchilada Bake
  • Calico Beans
  • Calzones
  • Cheeseburger Macaroni
  • Cheeseburger Soup
  • Cheeseburger Zucchini Boats
  • Cheesy Beef and Rice
  • Cheesy Salsa Enchiladas
  • Chili
  • Chili Mac
  • Simple Crock Pot Taco Pasta
  • Crustless Pizza
  • Hamburger Cream Cheese Dip
  • Hamburger Sauerkraut Dip
  • Italian Pasta Bake
  • Lasagna Casserole
  • Meat and Cheese Burritos
  • Pizza 
  • Pizza Boats
  • Pizza Casserole
  • Pizza Pockets
  • Pizza Soup
  • Real Food “Velveeta” and Rotel Dip
  • Simple Spanish Rice Bowls
  • Skillet Taco Pasta
  • Sloppy Cornbread Muffins
  • Sloppy Joes
  • Spanish Rice
  • Taco Corn Fritters
  • Taco Potatoes
  • Taco Quesadillas
  • Taco Rice Dinner
  • Taco Salad

Hmmm, seems that Mama Copp isn’t quite so crazy after all. (Except that she is, but hey, at least she has lots of good food on hand.)

That is just one of the ways I get ahead in the kitchen in order to make our real food life so much simpler. If you ask me, when trying to keep up with a busy family without having stress over those 3 meals a day everyone must eat, keeping it simple is THE ONLY WAY.

3 Ways I Cheat in My Real Food Kitchen (Without Compromising Taste or Health!)

1. Cook meat ahead of time (so you can throw together meals quickly).

I obviously just shared this above, but the same goes with chicken and other favorite meats that are easily stirred into casseroles or soups. Cook meat in large batches, then freeze or refrigerate in meal-sized portions. Meal prep goes so much faster and simpler this way!

2. Serve easy fresh fruit and veggie sides.

I cannot emphasize this enough (though if you’ve been reading my blog for a long time, you know that I do say it over and over!). It is ridiculously easy to wash strawberries and serve them with your pizza. It takes no effort to steam green beans, peas, or broccoli to go with your casserole. Make your simple main dish, then slice a few peaches and set out a salad. IT IS SO EASY.

3. Buy mixed greens so you don’t have to make salads.

Please allow me to remind you of the magic of a container of mixed greens. This fabulous container takes all the work out of making salads. Plus it provides excellent nourishment and did I mention that THERE IS NO WORK INVOLVED? No washing, no prepping, no work. Just set it on the table and have at it. Add baby carrots and grape tomatoes if you want more in your salad than just greens.

And there you have it. My three favorite cheat methods for putting great meals on the table without going to extra trouble or compromising on nourishment!

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

Why Eating Three Meals a Day is Hard (and What You Can Do to Make it Easier)

September 6, 2018 by Laura 1 Comment

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

Actually, it’s not very difficult to eat three meals a day. But cooking and serving and cleaning up after three meals a day? Every day? For an entire lifetime? For our family and family’s friends and our family’s friend’s friends? Well now, that is a lot of meals and a lot of food.

Food is a constant need and a never ending item on the to-do list. It’s kind of like the never ending laundry, only a bit more challenging because at least the hungry people can wear the same dirty socks. They cannot very well go without food.

I actually love to cook, and sometimes the three meals a day thing is still hard for me. So for all of you who don’t like to cook? I can’t even imagine how stressful it must feel to try to figure out dinner night after night when cooking is not fun for you.

So let’s talk about the challenge of feeding a family three meals a day. Then let’s talk about what to do to make it easier!

Why Eating Three Meals a Day is Hard

1. Because we make it harder than it has to be.

If you don’t like to cook and you spend a lot of time preparing difficult dishes and meals, you need to learn to pare down your work load and keep your meals simple. I love to cook, but I only love it when the food is simple to prepare and easy to clean up after. Complicated meals are for gourmet cooks, not for people who have to feed a family three meals a day, every day, forever and ever, amen.

How to make it easier: 

Choose recipes that are super easy, but still made with real food. I have been learning to make real food main dishes that take about 5 or 10 minutes of prep, and it has been amazing! Look through this huge list of over 60 Simple Recipe links. These recipes have saved my family dinner time and again! The simpler I keep our meals, the easier it is to keep my family fed well. (Pssst, we’ve got a FREE eBook offer below, which provides you with 40 super simple recipes. Keep reading!)

2. Because we’ve taken the joy out of food.

Seeerrrriously we have so many delicious foods available to us. Either we have forgotten to appreciate it or we haven’t tried anything new for a while. We’ve gotten stuck in a rut, eating the same boring foods over and over.

How to make it easier: Go to the store when you’re hungry and pick up a few awesome (real) foods that you haven’t eaten in a long time. A fresh peach, a pack of blueberries, a bag of shrimp…whatever real food you love that you can afford and haven’t eaten in a while. Make a simple meal or snack out of these delicious foods and be reminded of all the incredible food God provides for us!

3. Because we think we have to do it ourselves and we don’t ask our family for help.

I fight all kinds of bitterness and grouchiness when I’m running like a mad woman to keep up with all the responsibilities of the day and my family is lounging around playing games on their phones. For the love, this is terrible for us and terrible for our kids. Cooking (and all household responsibilities) should be a team effort.

How to make it easier: Establish a new normal in which everyone who is available and capable helps with meal prep and clean up. Hand out jobs, delegate, and teach your family to work as a team with you in the kitchen. Imagine never having to grate cheese or load a dishwasher again. Glory hallelujah.

4. Because our attitudes are bad.

We are a blessed people who have been blessed with many blessings! We’ve got to remember this truth and choose to appreciate the food that keeps us healthy.

A little perspective: I have a friend fighting for her life against cancer right now. I guarantee that she would much rather “struggle through the challenge” of figuring out how to feed her family three meals every day instead of enduring the suffering and pain and illness she is currently experiencing. Let’s keep perspective and know that our normal, daily grind is actually a beautiful thing and nothing to complain about!

How to make it easier: Pray for God to change your attitude and perspective on feeding yourself and your family. Praise Him for taking care of you and for providing. After all, He always does! Take that attitude with you into the kitchen. Is it really so hard to do normal tasks on a normal day to keep our families healthy? It really and truly is not so hard.

We CAN put three meals on the table every day and it DOESN’T have to be difficult or stressful. Let’s continue learning ways we can pare down our real food kitchen work load so we can enjoy our families and our food too!

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

We’ve Never Done This Before!

September 5, 2018 by Laura Leave a Comment

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

We’ve never done this before, or really anything close to it. But in an effort to help us all live healthier and KEEP IT SIMPLE so we can focus on loving God and loving our neighbor, drum roll please…

We included an entire years Simple Meals Subscription (worth $52) in this year’s Healthy Living Bundle. That means you can get your first year subscription for just $29.97! That’s almost half price. (Complete real food, simple menu plans every week for $0.58 each!!!!)

Ultimate Healthy Living Bundle 2018PLUS, your purchase instantly gives you 95 other Healthy Living resources that help you learn more about keeping yourself and your family healthy. And if that isn’t awesome enough, we decided to sweeten the pot even more by creating a brand new Simple Recipes eBook and giving it to you for…

FREE.

Yes. When you buy this year’s Healthy Living Bundle through our links,  not only will you be getting an entire year’s worth of Simple Meals complete planning packets for almost half price, you’ll get 95 other products (worth $2235), 6 bonuses…

Then you can email me and we’ll throw our brand new Simple Recipes for Simple Meals eBook into your inbox!

But I don’t want the Healthy Living Bundle!

Oh. Well, I think if you look at all that is included in this year’s brand new collection, you might change your mind about not wanting it. But hey, I get it. Sometimes the idea of having the entire bundle can feel overwhelming.

So say you don’t want the Bundle, but you DO want a One-Year Subscription to Simple Meals. And you want our new Simple Recipes eBook too. But of course. 

You can pay full price for both of those if you want to, but I suggest buying the bundle anyway so you can get Simple Meals for $29.97 instead of our regular $52. And you’ll get our free new eBook, regularly priced at $8.95.

(You’ll end up saving $31! Which is more than the cost of the entire bundle!)

Why is this worth it?

The best thing I can say is that we all want to feed our families well so we can be healthy, but there are more important ways to spend our time and energy than planning, shopping, and cooking for hours every week. It is much more important to love God and love people. We must turn our focus from work to love!

That is the inspiration behind Simple Meals. Every week our team creates and sends you super simple, real food menu plans, grocery lists, recipes, and more – so you can very easily put great meals on the table every night. You’ll be able to feed your family tremendous food while spending very little time in the kitchen. This will free you up for:

  • More family time
  • More time spent in ministry
  • More time to rest and find refreshment in God’s word

That’s more of everything that is most important. All while feeding your family well too.

Your kitchen life is about to make a big change for the better.

This Healthy Living Bundle offer is only good through Monday, September 10.

Take advantage right away! You’ll get immediate access to Simple Meals, and you’ll benefit from it for an entire year. Then email me ([email protected]) and I’ll email you a copy of our brand new Simple Recipes for Simple Meals eBook for FREE!

Then look through all the other (95!) products that are included in the bundle too. They are yours forever, so you can take your time in looking through them all.

Ultimate Healthy Living Bundle 2018

I can’t wait to connect with you through Simple Meals!

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

Simple Strawberry Fluff (Real Food Ingredients!)

August 30, 2018 by Laura 6 Comments

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

I don’t mean to be a lazy cook. Truly I don’t. In fact, I really love making wonderful food as a way to bless people. Can I help it that this Simple Strawberry Fluff is super easy to make? No. I cannot help it. There’s nothing I can do to make it difficult. It’s simply, well, simple.

I’m sure you’re dying to know how this Simple Strawberry Fluff came into being.

I had decided to make these Strawberry Cheesecake Parfaits for 20 people at our local mission. (We take turns with one other family to make a meal to serve there once each month.) I planned to make The Best Grilled Chicken, my friend was providing a salad and veggie, so the Strawberry Parfaits would round off the meal to perfection.

However, I began to get low on time, my kids weren’t home to help (how dare they go off to church camp and leave me to do all the cooking), so I began to brainstorm ways to cut down my prep time. This is no easy feat when I already do everything possible to keep my meals simple.

But…aha! It occurred to me that instead of building individual parfait cups, I could make one big bowl with strawberries and cheesecake parfait filling and stir it together into a salad. It was then that I realized I would be creating a cross between the Strawberry Cheesecake Parfaits and this Pineapple Fluff.

Would it work? There was only one way to find out. Make it and insist that my husband give it a taste test (life is hard at the Coppinger house).

Matt had no idea where my brain had been storming. He only knew that I put a pretty blue bowl in front of him and handed him a spoon. “Oooh, that’s good!!”

Now that I’ve tried this, I may never go back to making parfaits again. Why would I when making it this way saves a precious eight seconds?

Simple Strawberry Fluff

5.0 from 2 reviews
Simple Strawberry Fluff (Real Food Ingredients!)
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 8 ounces softened cream cheese
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 Tablespoons lime juice
  • ¼ cup sugar or 3 Tablespoons real maple syrup or liquid stevia to taste
  • 1 pound fresh strawberries, washed and cut into bite-sized pieces
Instructions
  1. Wash and cut strawberries into a large mixing bowl.
  2. In a high-power blender mix cream cheese, whipping cream, vanilla, lime juice, and sweetener of choice until well combined and smooth.
  3. In a bowl, fold strawberries into the whipped mixture.
  4. Chill for at least one hour before serving.
3.5.3229

The folks at the mission said lovely things about this salad. (One 12-year old girl at fourths. Her love for the salad made me happy but our sweet conversation gave me even more joy.)

I will now and forevermore go back and forth between these Strawberry Cheesecake Parfaits and this Simple Strawberry Fluff. They are both incredibly delicious, and they are both super easy to make.

Pack this fun salad/dessert into a jar to take in your lunch box and you’ve got one more to-go option!

Great lunch box additions to your Simple Strawberry Fluff

  • Quick Bread in a Jar
  • Veggies With Dip in a Jar
  • Flourless Brownie Muffin
  • Mini Crustless Quiche in a Jar
  • Chips with Guacamole
  • Burrito Bowl in a Jar
  • Tuna Salad with Crackers
  • Salad in a Jar
  • Popcorn Chicken with Ranch
Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Simple Meals for a New School Year!

August 1, 2018 by Laura Leave a Comment

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

It’s almost “Back to School” time and I can’t decide how I feel about it. Mostly I’ve just decided that here it is, ready or not. At least there are books involved, right? Lots and lots of delicious books!

My boys are huge and adultish now,
but I WILL make them pose in the school supply aisle for me again this year.

Oh, baby.

But speaking of delicious, it occurred to me that just like every other year at this time, I am doing everything I can to get ahead in the kitchen so I’m ready for a school schedule and soccer season schedule. Must. Be. Organized!!!

While I love Simple Recipes and the plans that come with Simple Meals all year ’round, I think I like them best in the fall when my schedule is the craziest and my need to be organized is the most important. Ironically though, I don’t always have TIME to get organized when I need it the most. So Simple Meals plans and lists SAVE MY LIFE and feed my family. :)

Simple Meals Subscriptions Include:

  • Complete menu plans for every week of the year
  • Seasonal food ideas
  • Incredibly easy recipes (seriously so, so easy!)
  • Tips to make your kitchen time efficient
  • Complete grocery list for each menu plan
  • Gluten Free adaptations
  • Ideas for meals on the fly
  • Bonus recipes for breakfast
  • Resource guide…

Download a FREE SAMPLE Simple Meals Planning Packet.

As a special Back-to-School bonus, for one week only we’re going to give you $10 off your first year’s subscription. This makes the cost of every Simple Meals plan a tiny little $0.81 each! Incredible!

Ready to get $10 off your first year’s Simple Meals subscription?

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Save time, save energy, save money. Put wonderful, simple meals on the table in the most efficient way possible, thanks to our Simple Meals Planning Packets. They’ll come to your inbox each Thursday morning. You’ll LOVE all they offer each week, from menus to recipes to time saving tips and more.

(Need to eat Gluten Free? The packets include adaptations needed to accommodate you.)

Hurry to take advantage of this discount offer!

Sign up below – While this shows up at the regular $52 price-tag, once you click to purchase you’ll see that the price you pay for your first year’s subscription is only $42! Enjoy the great discount and the wonderful meal plans this year!!

[wp_eStore_subscribe_fancy id=28]

Offer ends Wednesday, August 8.

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