Chicken Penne

McCormick has started making recipe & seasoning mix packets. 

You know me, I'm always into simple and delicious meals and this is one of them. 

All the seasonings come in the packet you just need to purchase the rest of the ingredients: penne pasta, chicken tenders, petite diced tomatoes, cream and parmesan cheese (the exact amounts are listed on the back of the packet).

Dinner was ready in less than 30 minutes and tasted delicious! 

Would you like S'more?

The weather has definitely started to change here in Jersey. With this change, we have started doing the "last" of things before the summer ends and the school year begins.

The kid's summer evening treat has tended to be ice cream but the last two nights we have switched it up and had s'mores. 

Now I do have a confession, we have not been using the grill or a fire pit for cooking these treats. We have been using the microwave.  Let me tell you they taste just as good!

It is a little sad to be doing these "last" things but times they are a changing and we must change with them. 

A Sweet Dessert for Dad

Watching the filling get mixed

Today Dave had to work and I was still trying to get as many of my craft projects done as possible seeing I did take yesterday"off".

Emily of course wanted to do "something" fun and was disappointed that our schedules weren't jiving with her desires. 

We did decide that before I got busy with my work, we would make a dessert to go with tonight's dinner. A while ago, I purchased a Jello "No Bake Lemon Meringue Pie mix". Lemon meringue is Dave's favorite pie so that was what we decided to make.  Because of the new learning life skills "program" we are instituting here in the house, I had Emily take the lead on this dessert.  Technically I was her sous chef.  She did well I just had to make some technical corrections and remind her to read her directions.  We had a fun time!

In order to keep it a surprise to Dave, Emily posted a sign on the fridge so he wouldn't see it until the end of dinner. 

We tend not to eat dessert right after dinner but did have Dave close his eyes and brought it out for him to see.  He was very surprised to see lemon meringue.

The pie tasted delicious.....cannot believe it came from a box.  Dave was very surprised at how good it tasted too!! The only one who didn't try it is Matt because he "doesn't like pie". As you can see, we have plenty left if anyone is interested. 

Emily's sign

It tastes good!!

Choices, choices, choices.......

For a while now, instead of buying cookies we have been making them. Now I am not going to make it sound like I've become Betty Crocker making homemade cookies BUT I will admit I use Betty Crocker. Thankfully Betty Crocker has a wide variety of cookie mixes. You can tell just by the variety we have here at home - chocolate chip, molasses, pumpkin spice, oatmeal chocolate chip and peanut butter. The reasons I like to use these are: the ease of making - butter, oil and eggs are the only things I need on hand; the mixes only make usually 2 1/2 dozen cookies - so you don't get sick of them before they are finished; the bags have at least one and some times two Box Tops - which the kid's school collects.

Surprisingly for mixes the cookies are yummy but then again we are a talking Betty Crocker....this woman knows her stuff. So in the future when I say we are baking cookies you'll know our "trick".