Projects from the new book Homestyle Quilts
How much time do you set aside each month, each week, each day to quilt? With schedules, commitments, and responsibilities aplenty, finding moments to devote to creativity—simply for creativity’s sake—can feel like an impossible challenge. Creative pursuits often go missing as we sift through our day-to-day obligations. But there are ways that we can carve out moments to dedicate to our passion—moments that offer benefits far beyond a finished quilt.
Kim Diehl, a six-time bestselling author, and Laurie Baker, a designer and writer who’s also edited many quilting books (including several of Kim’s), feel the same time-crunch in their own lives. The pair became friends while working together on Kim’s book Simple Seasons. Now they’re collaborating in Homestyle Quilts, a book dedicated to not only inspiring you with easy scrappy quilt patterns, but offering you simple dinner recipes to fix and forget. Because although family feedings may be a daily must-do, moments in your sewing space are just as important to create and keep.
Read how Kim and Laurie formed their time-saving alliance, and how they’ve designed patchwork quilts that you—yes, you!—can make in brief bits of time. Their key message? Plan ahead. Make time to quilt. And then, just do it.
See more quilts from the book in the slideshow at the bottom of this post.
Kim Diehl and Laurie Baker
“We” are Kim Diehl, an Idaho quilt and fabric designer and the author of Martingale’s “Simple” series of quilting books, and Laurie Baker, an editor and writer with more than 20 years of experience in the quilting, sewing, and crafting industries, who lives in Illinois. While working together on Kim’s book Simple Seasons several years ago, we became more than just colleagues . . . we became fast friends. And although we live more than a thousand miles apart, we remain in touch almost daily, sharing a passion for quiltmaking and a love of delicious meals—especially meals that can be prepared easily and don’t tear us away from our sewing rooms and busy schedules for long.
“Crossing Paths”
Comparing quilting projects and swapping recipes is something we do frequently, and one day as we were visiting, we figuratively put our heads together and realized that there are scads of other quiltmakers who are just like us. We all love gathering up our fabrics and diving into a brand-new quilt project, and we really love quilts that are quick and doable and don’t eat up months of our life. And because we also love delicious meals but don’t have time to spend hours in the kitchen preparing them, we create and search out recipes that are tasty and mouthwatering, especially those that can practically cook themselves. What better way to free up time so that we can fit more into our busy days?
“Easy Peasy”
Our goal as we worked together on Homestyle Quilts was to create a well-rounded collection of quilts—projects that feature a simple blend of patchwork and appliqué but don’t sacrifice style—only the long-term commitment needed to make them. And yes, we’ve found that even quilts containing appliqué can be “quick quilts.” Our quilts feature appliqué with gentle shapes and a limited number of pieces . . . we’re quite proud to say we used restraint!
With today’s modern piecing techniques and Kim’s easy invisible machine-appliqué method, any quilt in this collection can be made in about a weekend. This means that you can cut out your pieces and sit down to sew on a Friday afternoon and have a completed quilt top as your Sunday afternoon begins to wind down. Of course, stopping to admire your handiwork or taking numerous chocolate breaks may affect your progress, but we’ll leave that entirely up to you.
“Paint the Sky”
And while we’ve seldom met a quiltmaker who doesn’t love a good meal after a long day of stitching, we’ve yet to meet one who wants to spend hours preparing it. So what could be better than turning on the slow cooker or throwing together a quick casserole or soup and letting it fill your home with delicious aromas while you stitch? To help you maximize your sewing time and spend a minimum amount of time cooking, we hope you’ll give some of our favorite tried-and-true recipes a whirl. Your family will think you spent hours in the kitchen, and we certainly won’t tell!
It’s our heartfelt wish that you’ll treat yourself to some much-deserved stitching time, some simple but yummy dishes, and a rainbow of beautiful quilts.
Have Kim and Laurie inspired you to make time to quilt? You can start accruing sewing minutes (or even hours) right now with this quick dinner recipe from Homestyle Quilts, taste-tested and approved by the designers themselves!
So, what’s your favorite go-to meal that makes more time for quilting? (Share your recipe if you’ve got it!) Tell us about your high-speed supper or other dish in the comments for your chance to win a copy of the Homestyle Quilts eBook! We’ll choose a winner one week from today and let you know by email if you’ve won.
Order Homestyle Quilts right now and instantly download the eBook for free—whip up a quick recipe from the book and make more time for stitching today.
Comments are closed for this post.
Thanks to all who entered the drawing! The randomly chosen winner is Bonnie, who writes:
“LOL, while I think it is great that some people think far enough ahead to do crockpot meals when it is a ‘sewing day,’ I just run to my sewing room and start on some project that I have been dreaming about. Meals are what you find in the fridge. I would love to be that organized but would rather sew than spend time throwing stuff in a pot… I tend to grab a piece of cheese and munch while I study my board to see what I need to move around this time. My husband works a microwave very well on sewing days. When I am really lucky, I travel to another state and visit my sister; breakfast is the only meal we fix – we head straight to the sewing room after that.”
Bonnie, we’ll email you about your free eBook. Congratulations!
I rely on my crockpot for those quick but yummy meals. Our favorite is risotto made this way.
—DebrafromMD on November 1, 2012Pork Barbecue
I put the pork tenderloin in the crock pot the night before with just enough liquid to not burn the meat and cook it until bedtime. I then put it back on in the morning and by noon or so it is cooked enough to add the barbecue sauce. By evening we have our dinner ready and our appetites wet from the wonderful smell all day.
—Cherry on November 1, 2012What a great idea! Quilts and food! Who’d have thunk it? My fast dinner is Pork Ternderloin in a crockpot. Apricot jam + cranberry whole fruit gel. Stir equal amounts together and pour over the porkloin in the slow cooker.Cook on low about 4-6 hours. High for 4. Season to taste with S&P on the cutting board, slice 1/2″ pieces. It’s good with just a dab of the cooking juices on top of the sliced pork. Serve with just about anything you like.
—Susan W on November 1, 2012I use my crock pot all the time and this is one of my favorites.
—Mary Ann on November 1, 20123-4 lb Chuck Roast
2 cans of Campbells Golden Mushroom soup
2 chopped onions
4-6 whole carrots
4 potatoes cut in half
1/2 tsp pepper
Put all vegetables on bottom of crock, then chuck roast and cover with both cans of Golden Mushroom soup. Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp pepper.
Cook for 8-10 hours on low. The meat and vegetables are tender and delicious. Enjoy!
Loving all these Crockpot recipes! My husband recently went on disability and is now home 24/7. Although he’s a lousy cook, he IS capable of throwing things into a Crock Pot! here’s our favorite recipe:
Chicken Chili: Put 4 chicken breasts, 1 can of Ro-tel Tomatos, 1 can of black beans, 1 can of corn (undrained), 1 envelope of Ranch Dressing mix, 1 tsp cumin, 1 Tbsp Chili powder and 1 tsp onion powder into the pot. Cook 6-8 hours-but the last hour or so, mix in an 8 oz pkg of cream cheese. Shred the chicken with two forks. It’s fabulous!
~Cornelia from Martingale
PS: Don’t worry, I’m not eligible for the free book drawing!
—Cornelia on November 1, 2012My favorite meal is anything my husband will cook.
—Vicki Krausz on November 1, 2012I like to make foil dinners. They take only a few minutes to prep. WHile they bake, I can knock out a few blocks of my quilt!
FOIL DINNERS
Med. onion, sliced
Carrots, cut into chunks
Potatoes, cut in thin slices
Hamburger patty, 1/4 to 1/3 lb. patty
3 T. catsup
Salt and pepper as desired
Aluminum foil
Cut a layer of aluminum foil approximately 12 inches in length. Cover the central area with hamburger patty. Top with the sliced onion, carrots and potatoes on top, then add the catsup and seasoning. Fold the aluminum foil and crease the seams so juice doesn’t leak out. Bake at 350 degrees or grill until hamburger is done and vegetables are tender, approximately 45-60 minutes. A meal for 1 person.
—Sharon Pratt on November 1, 2012LOL, while I think it is great that some people think far enough ahead to do crockpot meals when it is a "sewing day" – I just run to my sewing room and start on some project that I have been dreaming about. Meals are what you find in the fridge. I would love to be that organized but would rather sew than spend time throwing stuff in a pot…..I tend to grab a piece of cheese and munch while I study my board to see what I need to move around this time. My husband works a microwave very well on sewing days. When I am really lucky, I travel to another state and visit my sister; breakfast is the only meal we fix – we head straight to the sewing room after that.
—Bonnie on November 1, 2012I like using my crock pot. Especially on those days I need to keep sewing. Some of our favorites are Vegetable Beef Soup, Chili, Pot Roast and Split Pea Soup.
—Lori Smanski on November 1, 2012Split Pea Soup
(If using dry split peas, soak over night first)
1 lb split peas
2 qrts water
1 lb meaty ham bones
salt to taste
3 whole peppercorns
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 chopped onion
1 bay leaf
Put all ingredients into crock pot. Cover and cook on low 10-12 hours. (high 5-6 hurs) I prefer low. It seems to bring out and meld all the flavors. Also I think the peas soften much better on low.
It’s just me and the cat so I can be pretty lazy or naughty, quick eggs/toast and ice cream bar are my standby–worse yet is a bowl of cereal. However, I’m reading the recipes and vow to try some of them-well at least one and you can quiz me.
—carol on November 1, 2012PS-I’m addicted to the blog and free offers so always have to say something.
Carol
I am another fan of the crock pot. One of my current favorite recipes is Cranberry Chicken. Put 4 or 5 boneless chicken breasts in the crockpot.
—Lisa Marie on November 1, 2012Add 2 or 3 cups of chopped vegetables like onions, red or green peppers, carrots, celery. Top with 1 cup barbecue sauce and 1 can of whole berry cranberry sauce. Cook on low about 5 hours. I often put the chicken in when it’s frozen and just let it cook all day. I serve this with jasmine rice.
Not a crockpot recipe but it goes together fast. Cook spaghetti in well salted water. In a large skillet brown 4 italian sausages (removed from skins).. Add 1 diced onion, and 4-5 cloves chopped garlic. When onion is slightly tender add a large can tomatoes and a couple big spoonfuls of tomato paste. (I keep leftover tomato paste in a baggie in the freezer and cut off hunks as needed.) Break up tomatoes into large chunks. Add cooked spaghetti, diced fresh mozzarella and basil to taste. If basil is dried add earlier in the process. The fresh mozzarella is key. It melts into strings and makes this sooo yummy! Serve with garlic bread and a salad if you like. Great company dish but in our house it serves 2. My hubby loves pasta. I came up with this recipe as a way to use the Roma tomatoes from my garden. But canned work well when tomatoes aren’t in season. Enjoy!
—Diane on November 1, 2012My favorite recipe, and one which I use for our kids and grandkids’ visits is a 5-hour Stew. The great thing is it’s made the day before, refrigerated and then put into a 250-degree oven for 5-hours – hence the name! That gives me an entire afternoon to quilt while the stew is simmering away just tenderizing all those little chunks of meat! Here goes:
—Barbara on November 1, 2012We love soup, so I pull out my big ole soup pot and toss in a fryer chicken, bag of frozen mixed veggies, chopped onion and green pepper,bag of frozen stew veggies, lots of chopped garlic, red pepper flakes for pizzazz, chopped celery, a little basil, and enough low sodium chicken broth to cover the chicken. Once it all comes to a boil, it sits on the back burner for a couple and simmers , minding its own business while I sew. We have a big healthy bowl of soup for supper with plenty left over to freeze for other quick meals. PS- I don’t measure anything.
—Melody on November 1, 2012I don’t have a favorite go to meal, I have a husband that takes care of all the cooking so I spend my time in my sewing room. He retired first and took over the household chores I let him keep the cooking part after I retired. He doesn’t seem to mind. Love the book reviews.
—LeAnn on November 1, 2012My favorite recipe, and one which I use for our kids and grandkids’ visits, is a 5-hour Stew. The great thing is it’s made the day before, refrigerated and then put into a 250-degree oven for 5-hours – hence the name! That gives me an entire afternoon to quilt while the stew is simmering away just tenderizing all those little chunks of meat! Here goes: 1# stew meat, potatoes (4 medium) – cut in chunks, peeled carrots
—Barbara on November 1, 2012(3 medium) in 1″ pieces, 16 oz. can green beans (or 1 small can peas), 1 can stewed tomatoes, 1/2 package Mrs. Grass onion soup mix, 3 T. tapioca. Spray 9 x 13″ pan with Pam. Place ingredients in layers. Sprinkle with onion soup mix and tapioca. Cover tightly with foil. Refrigerate overnight. Bake 250 degrees for 5 hours. And you can quilt your little heart out – no need to stir the pot or even peek. A family favorite.
I don’t so much have a favorite recipe, but I often have dishes in the freezer I can take out to warm up. I make extra chili, taco soup, sloppy joes, spaghetti sauce, and freeze some, to take out when time is of the essence! You always hear that soup is better the 2nd day, so that is another good way to plan ahead, make soup the day before you "need" the time to sew, and it is much better that day!
—Jodi Daniels on November 1, 2012Love your chicken recipe and anything else tasty that can be cooked in slow cooker while I’m having fun sewing. This book is wonderful!
—Tanya on November 1, 2012Like Kim I am a fan of Chicken and my family loves my baked Chicken Parmigiana. It’s so easy. Just throw your chicken breasts (skinless) in a plastic bag with some flour and S & P. Toss together to lightly coat the breasts. Then brown breasts very slowly in a tiny amount of olive oil. (just enough so they don’t stick). Meanwhile make your Neapolitan sauce. Fresh tomatoes, garlic, herbs, onions & capsicums ( all from the garden), and red wine. Simmer for 10 mins. Throw the chicken in a baking dish, cover with Neapolitan sauce and then grated cheese. Go and sew while dinner. Bakes slowly for the next hour. Serve with fresh vegetables such as broccolini & corn and mashed potato. I steam my vegetables in the microwave so they are cooking while I am setting the table and serving.
—Lynne Anderson on November 1, 20121 lb. lean ground beef, browned & drained
2 cans black beans, drained
1 can Rotel
1 can tomato sauce
Combine ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes in a covered skillet, or cook in crockpot on low 2-3 hours. (I save more time by browning, draining, and freezing ground beef when I bring it home from the store–ready to use it just a minute or two.) Serve over rice, with grated cheddar or jack cheese and sour cream to go on top.
—Joana on November 1, 2012I don’t have a crock pot but I make a spaghetti with tuna and tomato sauce in no time. Just cook the spaghetti, use some a can or bottle of good quality tomato sauce and open two tuna fish cans ( portuguese tuna is awesome). That’s it, a good meal in less than 30 minutes.
—Teresa on November 1, 2012Yum. Thanks for all the great recipes, ladies. In a double wrap of tin foil place one boneless skinless chicken breast, drizzle of olive oil,
—DianeH on November 1, 2012salt & pepper, a lump of pesto, some sliced zucchini, chopped green onion and a slice of tomato. For fun sprinkle with parmeson cheese then fold up packet and seal well. Bake in 350 F oven for about 35 minutes.
Quick and easy chicken recipe. Thanks for the fun – really love Kim Diehl.
I’m a crock pot fan but another one of my quick meals is stir-fry. With frozen chicken tenders and pre-sliced mushrooms dinner can be on the table by the time the rice is cooked. Not much faster than that!
—Ellie on November 1, 2012i make soup all winter long. this week i simmered a chicken carcass, put in the fridge overnight to skim off the fat. remove the bones and add carrots, onions, potatoes,celery,spinach and whatever else is looking sad in the veggies drawer.add garlic, parsley, and enjoy. YUM!
—Shannon on November 1, 2012Southwest Chicken
—Sherry Killebrew on November 1, 20121 or 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breast
1 medium Jar of Picante Sauce
Put chicken breast in small slow cooker
Pour Picante Sauce over chicken
Cook on high for 6 to 7 hours, shredded with fork when done.
Serve on flour tortilla
You can add sour cream, onions, bell peppers, grated cheese, etc.
Make it your own and Enjoy!
My favorite Quickest Sewing Day Meal we all love is CROCKPOT TACO CHICKEN SALAD. I throw 3 large frozen chicken breasts into the crockpot with an 18 oz. jar of salsa. Cook all day (or at least 8 hours), remove chicken to a large dish when ready and shred with 2 forks. We layer each serving into an individual pie plate: Broken up tortilla chips, chopped lettuce, chicken & juice from crockpot, sour cream, onions, shredded Mexican cheese, sliced black olives (if someone else volunteers to slice them). Mmmm. Yummy and healthy! Serves 4-6
—Brenda L. Pedersen on November 1, 2012PS-We use this for salad instead of tacos because it’s neater to eat.
We also make foil packets, freqently using vegetables only–potatoes, onions, green peppers, a few carrots(husband doesn’t like carrots), tomatoes or any vegetable that needs to be used up. Salt and pepper or seasoning of choice and 1 ice cube. Seal packets well by folding foil over several times. These can go on the grill for 20-25 minutes, turning once. Can be made in the oven also at 350 but takes a little longer. Love the quilts in this book.
—Norma on November 1, 2012mine too uses the slow cooker……slow cooker chile con carne. put everything in the pot in the morning and then the basmati rice in the rice cooker in the evening and it’s ready for a hungry crew at dinnertime!
—Wendy B on November 1, 2012even better on a sewing day is when hubby decides to cook his chicken spaghetti…..simmers all day on the stove…he wont tell me his ‘secret’ recipe but it’s wonderful not having to do anything…..until after dinner when the washing up’s due to be done. Seeing he’s ‘worked’ in the kitchen all day, he gets to sit and watch tv whilst I clean up……sometimes I think it’s better to use the crockpot rather than clean up after a man’s cooked dinner!!! LOL
My favorite go to meal is an easy. We call it our Smorgasbord meal. We take out every leftover in the fridge, line it up on the counter and warm up whatever we want in the microwave! Just like going to a buffet. Except I can run down right afterwards to quilt in my studio!! hee hee
—Paula Coleman on November 1, 2012I’m making "Chili-etta" so I can quilt all day tomorrow. Brown 1 pound ground beef with 1 small diced onion, salt & pepper. Add 1 tsp. chili powder. Pour into greased 9 x 13 pan with 1 1/2 cups cooked spaghetti noodles. Add and mix in 1 can red beans. Mix 2 cups tomato juice, 2 T. catsup, 1 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper together. Pour over meat/spaghetti mixture and bake 40 minutes in 350 degree oven.
So about 40 minutes before you want to eat, pop this in the oven and you’re good to go!!
—Ann Boehm on November 1, 2012MacDonald’s, Burger King, or Wendy’s works for me.
Keep smiling,
—Lynnita Shipman on November 1, 2012Sharon Pratt’s FOIL DINNERS; we made during camp outs. Follow her recipe making sure foil is tightly creased. Place Foil containers on the bottom of your camp fire hole (we, sometimes, lined ours with small rocks to hold in the heat), add wood and anything else you want to burn like your paper trash. Hole keeps anything on the ground that might catch fire. Light the fire and go on a hike or short canoe trip. Fire dies down, leaves behind cooked dinners when you return. You’re camping, who wants to cook?
Keep smiling,
—Lynnita Shipman on November 1, 2012I have food allergies, so I often miss out on the quick recipes that involve prepared food (canned soup, for example) that don’t have all their ingredients spelled out. A quick, healthy dinner for me would be baked potato, chicken breast, and microwave in a bag veggies. The baked potatoes go in 30 min before the chicken, and all is good! (Chicken can be either breaded, or, for a faster dinner, just sprinkled with spices. (Even faster? OK….just ONE spice… McCormick California Style Garlic Pepper is great on chicken!)
Even better…there are NO pots and pans to wash if you line your baking sheet with foil.
—Lyn on November 1, 2012When I want more time to quilt there are several things I do. The first thing is I make my crock pot chicken cacciatore. It’s easy and delicious. The other thing I do is when I am cooking things like meatloaf, soup, lasagna, mac and cheese I always make double and freeze the other portion. This way if I need time to quilt, I just have to take it out of the freezer and defrost. It works like a charm!
—doreen gabriellini on November 1, 2012Ordering in pizza. No one ever complains about that dinner and they’ll eat it as often as I’ll let them.
—lindawwww on November 1, 2012My crockpot is my friend, i use it for lots of meals. My favorite is beef strogonoff. Use one to two pounds of beef stew meat cut into bite size pieces. one can cream of mushroom soup one package of dry onion soup mix one 8 ounce container of sour cream and 2 to 3 tablespoons of natures seasoning. Put beef both soups and seasoning in crockpot add water until it is an inch above the meat stir well. cook on low for 8 hours ten minutes before serving thicken with three tablespoons of cornstarch diluted with some of the juice from the crockpot. Add the sour cream. Serve over rice or wide egg noodles. I serve this with a tossed salas and french bread. Enjoy. Happy quilting to all
—Sharon Meyer on November 1, 2012My quick meal is a slow cooker one. It only takes about 3 minutes to prepare. Put in some chicken drumsticks. Sprinkle a packet of french onion soup over. Then pour a large tin of apricot halves with the juice over the top. That’s it! All I have to do then is cook some rice which I do in the microwave. The kids love it and so do I!
—Christine M on November 1, 2012I found this recipe on a package of chicken many years ago. It’s called "Early American Chicken" and is pretty easy. Place a whole chicken (or cut up pieces) in a large pot with 4 cups of water, a stick of butter or margarine and salt and pepper to taste. Cover & simmer for about an hour and 15 minutes. Add 2 cups of uncooked rice, stir to make sure rice is covered, cover pot and simmer for another 45 minutes to an hour. The chicken will fall apart so watch out for bones. The rice absorbs a lot of flavor and while it may not be the healthiest meal, every so often it’s okay to have some comfort food. It tastes like you have been fussing all day.
—Chrys Morris on November 1, 2012Order out! Plus keep a large bowl of chopped veggies and hummus or peanut butter on hand for salads and snacking.
Egg Drop Soup
per person:
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup veggies*
1 beaten egg
Bring broth to a boil, add and heat veggies.
While boiling again, use a fork to slowly drizzle in egg.
Serve with sesame oil.
* Almost any combination of veggies will work: peas, corn, carrots, succotash, spinach, water chestnuts, chinese greens.
—Lynne on November 1, 2012Roast with potatoes,carrots and onion in crock pot or oven. Depends on how far ahead this thought came to me or my husband. Seasoned with season salt(Lowrys or something like that) and whatever else sounds good at the time.
—Peggy M on November 1, 2012It has to be taco soup. Brown hamburger with some onion, open a lot of cans of various bean, corn and diced tomatoes. Heat,add some fresh avocados and top with chips and cheese!
—Judy P on November 1, 2012I don’t really have a favorite go-to meal. I cook enough stew, meat sauce for pasta and other foods for 3-4 meals that freeze well. I like to do a bunch of cooking while I’m at it. I make good use of my microwave to thaw and heat the frozen foods.
—Valerie A. Clark on November 1, 2012Thanks
This is my "go to" quick & delicious soup recipe – it is called "Taco Soup" and I make it on the stove because it is so quick but you could put it in a crock pot – I hope you enjoy it & have time to sew your favorite quilt project also!
—Rhonda Dalton on November 1, 2012Taco Soup
2 cups of diced celery
2 small chopped or diced onions
1 1/2 lb ground beef
1 (16 oz) can pinto beans (drain & rinse)
1 (16 oz) can kidney beans (drain & rinse)
1 (16 oz) can whole kernel corn (drain)
2 (16 oz) cans diced tomatoes
2 cups of water
1 (8 oz) can of tomatoe sauce
1 pkg of taco seasoning (if spicy use half pkg)
1 pkg Hidden Valleu Ranch Seasoning
Saute onion & celery – brown ground beef & add celery & onion. Drain & rinse pinto & kidney beans. Drain corn also. Add beans, corn, diced tomatoes, water, tomatoe sauce, taco seasoning & Hidden Valley Ranch dressing to the beef mixture. Simmer unti completely heated through. Serve on corn chips & top with grated cheese
It is healthy and quick. Tilapia, seasoned and baked in my toaster oven for about 20 minutes. Kraft Velveeta Shells macaroni and cheese, and fresh kale steamed. Easy, fast and my husband loves it.
—Sarah on November 1, 20124-5 lb chuck roast cut up in large pieces – Salt and pepper to taste
—Marlene Rose on November 1, 20122 garlic cloves cut up
4 to 5 green onions cut up
2 pkgs dried ranch dressing
Water to cover above – Let cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Shred chuck roast and serve on buns. I use horseradish on beef once on the bun or heat up barbecue sauce and put on top.
This also is not a slow cooker recipe but has saved me many times when I just could not leave my quilting. Here goes :
Cook a packet of shell noodles and set aside.
—Carolyn on November 2, 2012Fry a packet of bacon, punnet of mushrooms and 1 or 2 leeks.
When above is cooked, add 2 or 3 green and/or yellow peppers and fry lightly.
Lastly add 2 tablespoons of bacon and mushroom sauce mix and stir in.
Add about a cup of cream or milk/cream and stir till thickened.
Serve over the shell noodles and enjoy!
10-15 minutes and you’re eating dinner.
I make the easiest, most delicious BBQ ribs. Slather your favorite ribs with your favorite BBQ sauce and put them in the crockpot for 6-7 hours. They raste exceptional; couldn’t be easier and your can smell them all day. Yum!!
—sue on November 2, 2012I’d have to say Chicken Wild Rice soup, made on the stove. It really doesn’t take that long to get it all together and it’s great to just heat up a bowl when you want to take a break. The new book looks "yummy", would be fun to win!
—Gail on November 2, 2012I have a bunch of apple juice boxes leftover from when my grandchild was here. So I wanted to make use of them. I’m a dump and throw cook, so measurements are a guesstimate.
Juice Box Pork Roast
The other night I made a killer pork roast using those apple juice boxes, onions, and sage.
Brown a small two-pound pork roast in a dutch oven with olive oil. My pot is cast iron, so I did this over medium heat. Cast iron really holds in the heat.
To the roast, I add two sliced onions*, and de-glaze the pot with three small apple juice boxes. Add some salt and pepper, @ 1/2-1 teaspoon of rubbed sage, and two very small bay leaves.
Simmer the roast on the stove for @2 hours (you can use a crock pot and do it all day).
Remove the roast from the pan (or pour the cooking juices into a saucepan on medium heat).
Take another juice box and a tablespoon or two of flour and whisk those ingredients together to make a smooth slurry. Pour the slurry into the pan juices and onions. Cook the pan juices and slurry down to make a gravy.
* * * *
I served the roast on a platter with some cooked egg noodles and topped it all with the yummy gravy. For a side dish, I served brussels sprouts.
* You could even kick it up even more by adding apple chunks with the onion!
—Jean on November 2, 2012My go to recipe would have to be chili. Once everything is in the pot it can simmer for a long time. As my husband says, it is even better the second day.
—Nancy (Cat Lady) on November 2, 2012My go to I really forgot to think about it meal is eggs, bacon, and cinnamon rolls from a tube. My husband will even fix it for me if I am still "almost done sewing" !
—lori on November 2, 2012Leftover night. I have many, many leftovers that I have thrown in the freezer. Usually it is a soup or casserole. Add some kind of bread,maybe garlic toast and a green salad and its ready. Microwave reheat is good.
—Diane W on November 3, 2012What better for a fall day than supper in the crock pot and the day spent quilting with a fire blazing in the fireplace. Oh yes, and a hot pot of tea at the ready. I like to place 4 skinless, boneless frozen chicken breasts in the bottom, over them place 1 purple onion chunked, diced chunks of 1 small fresh pineapple, a hand full of craisins, 1 cup orange juice with 2 T. cornstarch mixed in, 1/2 c. sweet n’ sour sauce, 3 T. low sodium soy sauce, 1/4 c. dark brown sugar, 1/2 tsp. fresh ground black peppercorns, 4 T. minced fresh picked herb combination of lemon thyme, tarragon & basil. After all are in crockpot, gently stir, place lid on pot, turn on high for 1 hr. then reduce to med. for 4 to 6 hours. One hour before this is ready, prepare enough brown,long grain w/ wild rice mixture to serve number of people you’re having for dinner or 15 minutes before eating prepare 2 to 4 servings of couscous. A side of fresh made cole slaw goes well with this supper. And the house is filled with wonderful aromas while quilting. This is meal that is very low in sodium, high in fiber, plus includes servings of all food groups.
—Cindy R. on November 3, 2012This book looks terrific! It combines two of my favorite things: quilt patterns and recipes. Tater Tot casserole is a quick, easy family favorite. My husband and son especially enjoy it.
*Tater Tot Casserole
Brown 1 1/2 lbs. hamburger with desired amount of chopped or dried, minced onion. Drain off fat. Put hamburger in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch casserole dish. Put 1 can each of cream of celery and cream of mushroom soups on top of hamburger. Place slices of American or Swiss cheese in a single layer atop soups. Then put a 2-lb. package of Tater Tots (one tot next to another) on top of cheese slices. Put casserole in a pre-heated 350-degree oven for 50-60 minutes or until Tots are done.
—JLouise on November 3, 2012My favorite meal is turkey soup the day after Thanksgiving. I put the carcass in a pot of water and simmer for about 4 hours then I strain out the bones and start the soup. I just throw in the leftover meat, vegetables, sweet potatoes sliced and if needed add some rice. It taste delicious and requires little work on my part. This leaves me free to start quilting a Christmas project for the holidays.
—Grace on November 4, 2012My favorite recipe gives me more than one meal – a real bonus!!! Put 2 lbs. mild or sweet italian sausage in a skillet, cover with water, and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain. In crockpot, put a 48-oz jar of spaghetti sauce, a 6-oz can of tomato paste, thinly sliced green pepper, Onion (if desired), 1 cup water, 1 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese and 1 tsp. dried parsley. Add sausage to crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. These sausages will be melt-in-your-mouth tender. The best part is that I cut up the extra sausage and freeze that along with the leftover sauce. I just pull the container out of the freezer and heat and serve over spaghetti noodles. The sauce tastes homemade!!
—Darlene B on November 5, 2012My meal of the day is lunch, so in the evening something simple suits me fine. A favorite is Ceasar salad. I keep Roamine sliced and ready in the crisper. Just toss with Cardini’s original dressing, chopped, fried bacon, shaved parmesan, and black pepper…..yum. I also like a simple plate of fresh french bread slices spread with Boursin. Oh, my mouth is watering! Thanks for the give-away. The quilts are beautiful.
—Cheryl Sedlar on November 5, 2012You’re making me hungry as I read through the recipes! Our quickest meal is to cut a green cabbage into wedges and place on steamer rack in large pot with a kielbasa sausage cut up in 2 inch chunks on top. Put enough water in the pot to reach bottom of steamer and bring to boil. Turn heat down to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes till cabbage is just fork tender. Serve with balsamic vinegar. Add a fruit and bread for a fast to cook and clean up dinner. I’m anxious to make some of the quilts and quick dinners in this newest book of Kim & Laurie’s
—Becky on November 5, 2012