A Simple Start

Once I went back to working full-time, I was worried about how everything was going to get done.  Well guess what?  Sometimes it just doesn't!  I have found several ways to simplify things that I used to do in the past in half the time.

Today I am going to start with the big C word....COOKING.  Yes, that's right I said it and I said it out loud!  Whether you are a working mom, stay at home mom or even just someone looking for some quick help, here are some steps that I have found really helpful.  I am not going to lie, it was tough for me getting back into the mood to cook when all I wanted was to just sit down and hold Parker when I got him home from daycare.  I can proudly say it is now easy for me to provide at least 3 wholesome meals a week on the table.  If my week is rocking, then look out you may see 4 or 5!  

Here are a few steps that I took to make things a little bit easier for us (on our pocket book too):

• You need to have your kitchen organized.  The more organized your kitchen is, the easier it is for you and your spouse to get around and actually get some cooking done.   This is a huge key in saving you time while preparing your meals. 
• Stock your pantry and freezer.  Don't be afraid to overload on those staple items.  Call me crazy but a little birdy told me about an awesome lady named Lori that has been kind of enough to email me her secrets on over stocking on these special items which won't hardly put a dent in your budget.  (I will blog about this another day ...)  I will start you off with a small list of pantry staples: Pastas, canned tomatoes, beans, rice, variety of season packets, canned broth, soup, and canned fruit.  Freezer Staples:  Stock up on protein and vegetables.  Consider shopping at a wholesale store where you may be able to find things in bulk and maybe cheaper.  For me, I buy almost all my frozen vegetables from Sam's Club.  I can by a 5 lb bag of frozen green beans for about $5.00, you will pay way more if you buy individual bags at the grocery store. 
• Take inventory of everything you have in your refrigerator, freezer and pantry and try to plan your meals around what you already have. 
• allrecipes.com has saved my life.  I became a member on this site to share and gain new recipes.  Before the weekend arrives, I sit down and look through my recipe box of meals that I have saved that we would like to try.  My goal is to prepare three meals for the week.  I pick two off of the website and usually my last meal consists of one of  Brett's favorites  (pizza, tacos, spaghetti, broccoli cheese soup).  I then start a shopping list which can easily be done on this site by clicking on the recipe you would like to make and adding it to your shopping list.  I then go in an altar the list by adding what other things I may need for the week/weeks.  What is so awesome about this list is you can easily print this and take it right to the store with you and everything is neatly categorized for you.  Once printed I take a black marker and mark through the items I already have because you will see things like a 1/2 ts salt ... well most people already have this at home =). 

• Once my list is all printed I quickly search a coupon database for some of my name brand items.  For all you Wal-Mart shoppers, I normally will buy their Great Value brand unless I can't find it.  My savings is huge when I do this.  I can literally walk into Wal-Mart needing $160.00 worth of groceries and easily walk out spending only $90-100.  

I know what you are thinking... "I am so confused", "I am feeling overwhelmed", "What the heck just happened here?"

Trust me, you will get this.  The key is planning.  I seriously mean what I say, when I say.... "Allrecipes.com seriously has made my cooking a breeze"  I feel that flipping from recipe to recipe and writing down all your ingredients is the hard part.  This website literally does it for you!

With all of this being said, I have a few recipes to share with you this week.  Try them out, let me know what you think! If you can't start with 3 meals a week, shoot for making just one.  You can do this!  Take out is for chumps... work the kitchen and show your family what you are made of!

"Nearly everyone wants one outstanding meal for the day" - Duncan Hines

 "White Chicken Chili"

Cook Time 25 Minutes

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into cubes 1 tablespoon chili powder 2 (10.75 ounce) can Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup (Regular or 98% Fat Free) 1 can of shoe peg corn

2 cups water 2 pouch Campbell's® Dry Onion Soup and Recipe Mix 2 (15 ounce) cans white kidney beans (cannellini), rinsed and drained Shredded Cheddar cheese Sliced green onion

Directions:

1.	Heat oil in saucepan. Add chicken and chili powder and cook until browned, stirring often.
2.	Add chicken soup, water, corn and soup mix. Heat to a boil. Cover and cook over low heat 10 minutes.
3.	Add beans and heat through. Garnish with cheese and onions.