Food on Friday on Sunday

This is for you, My Friend.  You will never know how much that request meant to me.  Thank you.

In the olden days of this blog, I would post some food thing on Fridays.  It was fun for me and since I really do enjoy making others feel good through food, it was amazing therapy for me.  I think maybe I need to see about being a cooking therapist.  You know, like a recreational therapist or music therapist, only for cooking and delivering it to people.

Last night, Mike and I were on our own for dinner.  Tempting to call Pizza Hut, right?  But no.  We'd been to church, stopped to visit with a friend and then headed to the store.  We decided that we would have Skillet Ham Casserole.  That's our name for it, although it does have an official name--'Joyce's Stovetop Ham Casserole'.  As usual, I have taken the original recipe and made adjustments to suit our family.  For example, the original recipe calls for swiss cheese.  My kids call swiss cheese 'butt cheese' because they are certain it tastes like butt tastes...say if you have ever tasted butt.  Don't ask me--they are their father's children.

The original also only calls for one can of cream soup, but I use two.  And I double the sour cream because it comes in a 16 oz. container and I am not measuring out 8 oz.  I  make this in my really big skillet.  One pan--very little work.

Skillet Ham Casserole

2 cups (or more) cubed ham

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of celery soup

16 oz. sour cream

16 oz. package of spiral noodles

1/2 cup celery

1/2 cup onion--or as much as you want

2 cups of colby jack cheese--or butt cheese

1 stick of butter

I melted the butter and cook my ham.  I know it's already cooked but I like to 'sweat it' down.  It's so much better.  Anything cooked in butter is all good.  I then add my onions, celery and put the lid on the pan.

Cook the noodles to your preference of doneness.  We like ours a lot on the firm side.  

Once the noodles are done, drain them but don't rinse them.  Add the soups and sour cream to the ham mixture and stir.  Add the noodles.  Mix well--but gently.  Cover with the cheese, put the lid back on the pan and let it sit until cheese is melted.  

I served it with a vegetable, maybe a fruit salad and Texas toast. 

And of course, being Mom of the Year, I put some in the freezer for my favorite Student Teacher.  

Before you think I am playing favorites, Frick gets it as leftovers and Frack doesn't love this meal.  

Food on Friday on Sunday.  Just sayin'.  

Dinner Anyone?

We sent three kids to college in the fall.  3 college tuition's.  College Girl is in her very last semester and will graduate in 2 months.  I say her very last---but she's headed to graduate school in January.

Frick decided that he wanted to live at home and commute.  All good.

Frack decided to live in the dorm.  All good.

When I announced to my husband and my son that I wouldn't be cooking on weeknights, the earth shook just a teensy bit.  I don't think they believed me. I told them I would make big meals on the weekend so we would have leftovers or they could eat whatever they found available to them.  

In fact, I think they thought I was bluffing.  I rarely cook in the first three weeks of school anyway, so no big deal.

I was never more serious in my life.

I have not made one meal on a weeknight since school started.  Not.  One.  We have had good meals on the weekend, for the most part (there was that one weekend when I didn't make a thing) and my system of making big meals has worked.

We have had:
Mexican (this is my GO TO meal)
Lasagna
Chicken and Rice casserole
Chicken enchiladas
Beef and noodles
Tater tot casserole
Taco Soup
Potato Soup
Chicken and Noodles
Homemade mac and cheese with pigs-in-a-blanket
Chicken noodle soup

Nobody is starving.  And they just keep coming home, so it can't be all bad. 

There was some clarification in what days are considered the weekend.  Apparently, if you are a Hays Man, Friday counts as the weekend.  

And yes.  I should be grading papers.  Just sayin'.



 

Sunday Nights

Procrastination.  It has become my middle name.  Why do anything that could be put off until Sunday night? 

Laundry.
Vaccuum.
Social media.
TV. 
Text.
Bake cookies.
Buy lightbulbs.  And toilet paper.
Clean the bathroom. 

Now you know I am desperate.  I did all of those things and a few more. 

Anything but what needs to be done--which is school stuff.  Admittedly, I am a little  overwhelmed by my latest teaching assignment.

There.  I said it. 

So I tried to fix my header picture between sets of papers.  No luck.  Anybody got any ideas on how to make it go clear across the page like it used to?  Help me.

I can do this.  I can.  Just sayin'.