21 Years…

Happy 21st Anniversary to my lover, my life partner, my confidant, my friend, and baby daddy. May God bless us to see 21 more years together my love. Let us continue to work towards having a marriage that is...

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a (HCSB)

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind.
Love does not envy,
is not boastful, is not conceited,
⁵ does not act improperly,
is not selfish, is not provoked,
and does not keep a record of wrongs.
⁶ Love finds no joy in unrighteousness
but rejoices in the truth.
⁷ It bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things.
⁸ Love never ends…
 

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a (KJV)

⁴ Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
⁵ Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
⁶ Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
⁷ Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
⁸ Charity never faileth:
 

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a (ESV)

⁴ Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant ⁵ or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;  ⁶ it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.
⁷ Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
⁸ Love never ends.

Salsa Chicken

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

Ingredients:
1 lb. chicken breasts
1 package taco seasoning
1 cup of salsa
1 cup of frozen corn
1 can black beans rinsed and drained
8 oz. cream cheese, cubed
cooked rice

Toppings:
shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese
tortillas or chips

Directions:
Wash and drain chicken breasts. In a 6 quart slow cooker add chicken. Sprinkle taco seasoning all over the top of the meat. Add in salsa, corn, and beans. Cook on LOW for 6 hours. Remove chicken from crockpot to a plate or dish. Stir cream cheese into hot corn mixture until well combined. Shred chicken then add back to warm slow cooker. Toss everything together. Serve over quinoa or rice. Sprinkle on cheese. Can also wrap in tortillas or eat with tortilla chips.

Easy Lasagna Soup~ crockpot recipe

Easy Crockpot Lasagna Soup

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef or Italian sausage, cooked
1 yellow onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
24 oz. jar pasta sauce
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
2- 14.5 oz. diced tomatoes (regular or any Italian seasoned ones work well)
1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. sugar
5-6 cups beef (or chicken) broth
ricotta cheese (optional)
8 oven ready lasagna noodles, broken up

Topping:
shredded mozzarella or Italian blend cheese
grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
If you haven’t already browned your meat go ahead and do that now. While you’re at it throw in those onions and garlic halfway through to cook all together. If your meat is already done just sauté your onions and garlic in a skillet in some EVOO for about 5 minutes on medium heat. In a 6 qt. or bigger crockpot combine everything except the cheese and noodles. Cook on LOW 6-8 hours. Stir in broken up noodles 30 minutes before soup finishes cooking. Once done you can stir in a little ricotta cheese for creaminess or use as a topping with your mozzarella and Parmesan cheese in your bowls.
Serve this with what you normally would eat regular lasagna with. Garlic bread or flavored crackers tastes great with this. YUM

 

New Year’s Day Fun

Although we are 5 days in I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year. For the past few years, my family and I have adopted a new tradition for New Year’s Day. It all came about when hubby took me out on a date to the Melting Pot a few years ago. It was so much fun! I can remember everything about it. I loved spending alone time with my love. We have lots of fun together. Now the meal is a bit pricey, but oh so worth it. On our son’s birthday, I decided to recreate a Fondue dinner for a surprise. He had never been to the Melting Pot before so we thought we’d bring it to him. He absolutely loved it! I did it again as a surprise the next year for him and hubby on Valentine's Day. By the end of that year, we decided to have a Fondue Party for New Year’s Day. It was requested that from that point on we’d Fondue on New Year’s Day from now on. That’s how our tradition began 3 years ago. We have different things each time which makes it so interesting. So what did we have this time? Let’s take a look…

It all started with a cheese course. We had Swiss and Mozzarella Fondue. Our dippers were baguette cubes, green apples, grape tomatoes, leftover holiday shaped pretzels.



Next, we had our meat course. We had chicken, beef, port, steamed veggies, and portobello mushrooms. The day before I prepared some dips to use. We had Sriracha Aioli, Creamy Mustard Sauce, Red Pepper and Pineapple Habanero sauce, and Parmesan Garlic sauce.



Last we had our dessert course. I made white chocolate and peanut butter sauce. Our dippers were green apples, banana slices, pineapple chunks, graham crackers, and holiday pretzels.



This is a very fun meal to have when you’re bored with the norm. I like that you can use whatever you desire for cheese, sauces, and dippers. You’re only limited by your imagination .  One word of caution. Expect to get FULL when eating a meal like this. We ate breakfast and a snack earlier in the day but saved our appetites for this meal. Hubby and I learned this after our date night at The Melting Pot. They were not lying about a little going a long way.

If you have never had Fondue and a trip to the Melting Pot is not in your budget, I encourage you to Google recipes and ways to do it at home. It’s great for getting together with friends, family nights, date nights, and parties.