Avenida had a tea for the ladies a couple weeks ago and one of the ladies ask the group what were some of the things we rememebered from years past. Someone mentioned that they always had just plain sliced bread on the table at every meal, to which we all agreed that our homes had the same. Fast forward to today and when I was trying to figure out what to have for dinner, I remembered how good sliced bread always tasted with gravy! So tonight we relieved days gone by with fried chicken baked with gravy, rice and sliced bread with gravy, fried okra and a fresh tomato just because it made the plate look pretty! They didn’t have much flavor but added color to the southern meal! We both enjoyed the familiar flavor of just good ole sliced bread with gravy! Brought back so many memories….one of which was my mom always saying “Trudy K no more, you have already had 3 slices! You don’t need anymore!” And that is maybe why one of my nicknames was Ms Pleasingly Plump!

We have been on a Chinese food kick for a few days. After discovering how good PF Chang’s frozen Orange Chicken was, I bought another package of it along with Tai Pei frozen veggie egg rolls! Before adding the Orange Chicken to the skillet, I sautéed Purple onion, zucchini, red and green bell pepper, sliced carrot and mushrooms in a little hot oil until the veggies were almost done then added the frozen Orange chicken (the sauce is included with the chicken) and cooked according to directions on bag! Movie the Boil N Bag of rice, I cooked one bag for us so we could pour the chicken rice mixture over the rice! I wish I had taken a picture of our dinner but it was so good, we gobbled it up quickly ! While the chicken was cooking in the skillet I placed the egg rolls in the oven and baked according to directions. It was the best frozen Chinese dinner we had ever had and the egg rolls were delicious! Was exciting to know that we can have a great homemade easy Chinese meal at home without having to run to Panda Express plus have the veggies we prefer! Wanted to share a very easy Chinese chicken meal with y’all!

Yesterday we were listening to a morning program while we were having a cup of coffee (yes in cool weather sometimes I forgo my Dr Pepper for coffee that has a ton of coffee mate so I don’t actually taste the coffee) that had an author of a children’s book called “Good Morning Sunshine”. For some reason that got me in a sunshiny mood every time I thought of that expression! I thought about it all day and woke up today thinking of how those three words truly changed my attitude! How can three simple words really change my attitude? When I thought about how it made me feel if I woke up everyday and simply said to Randy “Good morning Sunshine”, how might it make him feel as well instead of

“Good morning, are you ready for coffee” or “how did you sleep” or “well, what’s on the calendar for today?”

It is hard to say Good Morning Sunshine without smiling, which, as we age gets harder to do first thing in the morning! We have to get all the stiffness, cricks, and aches out and under control before having breakfast, read our Bibles and dress! But yesterday, I felt the Lord using those 3 words really convicting me, as a Christian, should I not be living each day with that attitude? When days sometimes find us in a valley or circumstances overwhelm me, should I not remember that God has, is and always will be the SONSHINE of my soul! When I’m feeling out of sorts, instead of feeling self pity or discouraged, why don’t I remember how He had always provided and protected me! Before getting out of bed in the mornings, I try to make it a habit of giving my day to the Lord and asking Him to use me according to His will. But then sometimes, by the time I get breakfast made and dressed, something happens and I loose my motivation to live in a way that I had just ask the Lord to help me do! Why is that? It’s because we allow the news on TV or radio to darken our mood, are we hear or read about a loved one getting a bad diagnosis, or sometimes, if I admit it, jealousy creeps from news of a friend getting something we want but can’t have! Daily hurts and disappointments seem to have such an influence over our attitudes if we allow it! But God….He is not only our strength and Savior, but wants to be the SONSHINE of our hearts! So today, if you find yourself walking around with some much needed joy, try saying those three simple words every time you come face to face with someone! It will not only bring a smile to your heart , but you never know what it might bring to others who hear it! Sounds simple, doesn’t it!

Psalm 16:11

You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in Your Presence with eternal pleasures at Your Right Hand.

Since the weather is still running a little cool, potato soup sounded like it would taste good today! I had some hash browns in the freezer that had the bell pepper and onions already included (I think they call that O’Brien potatoes?)

So decided to use them for a quick pot of soup. This is a recipe that I will now keep! It was so quick and easy and cooked in Clementine (the Crockpot) while Randy and I were downstairs for a meeting for about an hour or so!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon bacon grease

2 cups of cubed hash browns

1 carrot sliced thin

1/2 small onion, chopped

1/2 cup of chopped celery

2 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 package of Pioneer Country gravy added to 1 cup of water

Salt, pepper, garlic powder, 1/2 teas thyme

1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

Heat the bacon grease and sauté the onion, celery and potatoes for 3-4 min over medium heat.

Pour chicken broth in crockpot. Place sliced carrot into broth. Add the potatoes/veggie ingredients to the broth. Cook on high for about 2 hrs or until carrot and potatoes are tender!

Mix the gravy mix with 1 cup of room temp water until smooth and pour into crockpot, stirring until well mixed. add the cheese and stir! Place lid back on crockpot and cook for another 20-30 min on low! Ladle soup into bowls and serve with crackers of choice!

About two years ago , I made a rather large investment of $13 and purchased a 1.5 qt crockpot! It is perfect for a single or a couple that don’t want to eat the same food for 3-4 more meals.

This cute little crockpot has been used more than any cooking utensil I have ever owned; well except my mixer that is almost used on a daily basis making dessert, but that is another story. Yesterday I had a chicken breast that I had cooked on Sat hoping to make chicken tacos but we ended up eating out all weekend. Please don’t judge us, we just kept thinking about Menas, Fish Shake and of course one of the best hamburger places, (ok I have to be completely honest here, we had a gift card) Kenny’s Burgers. So since I had this chicken breast already cooked and a cold front was coming at us last night, green chile chicken soup just sounded like a great dinner! It is so easy and the flavor was truly delicious. I used the chicken broth from cooking the chicken and added a regular size can (forgot to look before I threw it away but it is around a 14 ounce can) of chicken broth. Here is rest of ingredients BUT…I put a little different spin on the veggie prep.

1/2 large zucchini , cut small cubes

1/2 small onion, chopped

2 carrots, sliced

1 large celery stick

1/2 green bell pepper

1/2 small can of mild green chiles

Garlic powder

Fresh cilantro

No salt seasoning (picture of this is below!

Sauté the celery, onion and green bell pepper in about 1/2 tablespoon of heated bacon grease about 5 min (this adds a little extra flavor that is so yummy)

Add chopped chicken, onion, celery, pepper and broth to the crockpot! Add the sliced carrots, zucchini, green Chiles and garlic, cilantro and black pepper.

Cook on high for 3-4 hours until vegetables are tender.

I used basmati rice from boil in bag and cooked it for 11 min! When ready to serve, place a spoonful of rice in the bottom of serving bowl and top with a ladle of the chicken soup over the rice! This is a very flavorful soup and we will have enough today for lunch. (The rest of the rice was added to the soup for our lunch today!)

Then our adorable little crockpot is then cleaned and ready for whatever pops in my mind for tomorrow’s lunch or dinner! Since we are going to watch our granddaughter play ball tonight, we will stop on way home for pizza and give Clementine (the crockpot) some rest before plugging her in again tomorrow!