Fall Accompaniments

We've finally hit some Fall like weather up here in the Rockies.  It has been so unseasonably warm here it really was Summer until a few days ago.  I was beginning to worry that we'd go straight from Summer to Winter, & skip my favorite time of the year- Fall.  But with cool weather & rainy days I'm beginning to believe that we will be able to enjoy our beautiful Fall weather. 

Part of what makes this season so wonderful for me is the smells & the food.  Of course I love the colors & the crisp air (I believe 60's & 70's are the perfect temperatures).  But the wonderful smells that are associated with Fall like apples & pumpkin spice are by far my favorite scents.  & the food of Fall..oh, the food of Fall.  Soups & warm bread, turkey & potatoes, apple & pear desserts... they can't be beat!  They are comfort food at its best.  I've shared my most favorite soup ever, Turkey, Mushroom, & Sage soup.  If you've never tried it, whip up a batch.  Use fresh sage & I guarantee you won't be disappointed. 
But today I want to share with you the king of all comfort foods, the captain of all soups, the agent of warming the soul- homemade chicken noodle.  So easy & flavorful, you can't go wrong with this soup.  It's the perfect accompaniment to a crisp Autumn day.  Here's the skinny...
Ingredients
10 Cups chicken stock

2 cups cut up cooked chicken 

1 1/4 cups sliced carrots

1 cup sliced celery

1/4 cup chopped parsley

2 cups uncooked wide egg noodles 

Salt to taste

Directions

Bring  chicken stock to a boil & add chicken, carrots, celery, parsley.  Let boil until carrots are almost tender.  Add egg noodles & continue to boil until noodles are cooked.  Turn heat down & add salt to your liking (this varies widely depending on your taste & what kind of chicken stock you use.  If you make your owns stock it will need more than if you use store bought stock.  Just add a little at a time & taste in between).  Serve warm with a good bread.  Enjoy!

Quick Meals

All moms have a dire need for a recipe box of quick meals.  This is never more true than when you live in the boonies, like I do.  See, we use to live right in town, one block away from a gyro place, Subway, & Hoagieville (local fast food drive in... kind of like a Sonic) & six blocks from Dairy Queen.  And of course pizza was always an option if the night was getting late & I hadn't planned dinner.  But now, if I don't cook dinner we are plain stuck with cold cereal.  So I have brushed up on a few quick meals.

The first one is Sloppy Joes.  I would like to dedicate this one to my friend Kylie who is not sure that sloppy joes qualify as a meal (or even "real" food).  Well, Kylie, come on down to my neck of the woods & try one out. Now, I'm not talking about adding a packet or can of sloppy joe mix to some ground meat (I say meat because I use deer or elk, but a lot of people use beef or turkey.  So I'll call it meat.)  The recipe I'm going to give you is from scratch, taste great & is super easy & fast to prepare.  Plus, you probably have all the ingredients in your pantry.  My family loves sloppy joe night, so I've had some practice.  I think sloppy joes get a bad wrap because they are a typical hot lunch menu item.  But these ain't your lunch lady's sloppy joes!  I also like to put these on dinner rolls & make them into sliders, perfect for the little ones.

Sloppy Joe Recipe

My second quick dish is homemade Chicken Noodle Soup.  Another crowd pleaser & super easy & fast to make.  Once again you most likely have all the ingredients in your pantry ready to be whisked together in the all time comfort food dish.  Get yourself some good rolls & your done with dinner.

Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe

Now it's your turn.  I need more quick meal ideas (don't we all).  So, put your quick meal idea in the comments section below.  If you have a full on recipe you want to send me that would be even better & I will post it in the Mixing Bowl page.  Send recipes to j.yphotography@yahoo.com

More Quick Meal Ideas:

Chicken Strips

Spaghetti
(Whenever I make spaghetti sauce I do a double batch & then freeze half of it.  Then when I'm in a pinch all I need to do is thaw it out & boil some noodles.)
Quesadillas & Spanish Rice

Grilled cheese & tomato soup

Stir Fry Noodles
(Using frozen stir fry veggies makes this a quick fix.)

Breakfast Dinner
(That's what Maddie calls it.  It's her favorite, but sausage must be involved or she is not happy)
Meatloaf
Tacos
Frozen Pizza ;)

Happy quick cooking!http://nestingcorral.blogspot.com/2011/07/sloppy-joes.html