BakeAwayGirl

 Definitely the hit of the season. Easy, quick, cheap, and SO delicious. This is definitely going to be a favorite in our house. Notes: it is enough for us for now... but in the near future, we will need a lot more. The rice is delicious because the chicken cooks in it, so unfortunately, we can't just make more rice. It could be done in the oven, though, so you could easily bake a second dish. Cilantro Lime Chicken & Rice Adapted from here 2-3 tbsp olive oil 4-6 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on Salt Pepper 3 cups chicken broth 2 cups jasmine or basmati rice 2 tbsp butter Garlic powder 2 limes, juiced 1/3 cup cilantro, finely diced Coat the bottom of the Dutch oven with oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper liberally over both sides of your chicken. Arrange the chicken in the oil of the Dutch oven, skin side down. Turn on medium heat. Cook chicken 8-10 minutes, untouched, or until skin releases easily from pan. Flip and cook an additional 3-5 minutes. Remove chicken from pot and turn he

 More Dutch oven.  Why not? It's absolutely delightful and so easy. First of all, this calls for "stew meat." What is stew meat? Google says round steak or chuck steak. Take your pick. We tried this 3 ways over the course of the winter. First we added the potatoes into the stew as the recipe suggests. That was fine. Unremarkable but fine. Then we skipped the potatoes in the stew, made a separate bowl of mashed potatoes, and served the stew over those. Oh yes, this is how it was intended to be. The pure definition of warm comfort food. Last, we put the stew over white rice made separately. That was Jeff's favorite. Ultimately, my suggestion is to skip the potatoes in the stew and make whatever starch you want for your bowl, whether it's mashed potatoes or rice. Beef Stew Adapted from here 1 tbsp butter 2lbs stew meat, diced 1/2 cup flour Salt Pepper Garlic powder Paprika Thyme 1 cup dry red wine 1 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 small can tomato paste (about 2-3 tablespoon

 I'm on a Dutch oven kick. Why not? I can cook the entire meal in one pot, usually on the stove, and it looks pretty too.  It helps that it's so cold outside. I have no measurements for my seasonings. I season with my heart. I season until my British Isles ancestors roll in their graves. Chicken & Dumplings Adapted from here Soup 2 tbsp olive oil 1lb chicken breasts 1 medium onion, diced 1 cup diced carrots 1/2 cup diced celery Salt Pepper Thyme Garlic powder Onion powder 4 cups chicken broth 1/4 cup heavy cream Dumplings 1 cup flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 egg 1/2 cup milk 2 tsp dried parsley 1 tsp salt Dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Heat olive oil in Dutch oven. Add chicken and onion. Season as you stir. Cook for 5 minutes. Add carrots and celery, cooking for another 3-4 minutes. Pour in broth and season again. Reduce heat to a simmer and cover. Cook for 15-20 minutes until veggies are soft. Add cream. In a separate bowl, mix the dumpling ingredients together with

 Our neighbor brought us a basket of fresh picked strawberries, and while our kids inhale strawberries, we had just picked up a bunch from the grocery store. There was no way we could eat them all.  Well, there was, but it would be ridiculous. So instead, I headed to Pinterest for ideas. This particular recipe was so delicious that we immediately made it again, substituting the strawberries for raspberries and lemon. It was way more tart with the raspberries and lemon, but I also went hard with lemon, so it's possible to sweeten it up.  The point is, you can use most berries in some form. It's worth noting that this does go bad relatively quickly when left at room temperature, even when well wrapped.  We didn't quite finish the last pieces of either version before they went bad... and we ate it fast. So either store it in the fridge, or bring it to share within a day or two. Strawberry Oatmeal Bars Adapted from here 1 cup rolled oats 3/4 cup flour 1/3 cup brown sugar 1/4 ts

Homemade Cornbread Adapted from here 1 cup yellow cornmeal 1 cup whole milk 1 cup flour 2/3 cup sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 large egg 1/3 cup unsalted butter melted Preheat oven to 400* Mix the cornmeal and whole milk together in a mixing bowl. Allow to sit for 10 minutes. DON'T TOUCH. After 10 minutes, stir in the rest of the ingredients. Make sure you stir well to incorporate all of the ingredients. Pour into a greased 8x8 pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.