Bisquick/dinner/Recipes

A Bad Romance

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment
I’m absolutely in love with Bisquick! It is the best cheater ingredient ever.

Last night for dinner, I decided I wanted some type of bread along with what we were having. I searched “Bisquick quick bread” on my phone and came up with a super fast and easy breadstick recipe. As I’m sure you can guess, I made a few changes, but they worked wonderfully with our dinner, and Mr. Gray and I brainstormed variations as we ate. 

Bisquick Quick Breadsticks

1 cup Bisquick
1/4 cup cold water 
1/2 stick butter
  • Preheat oven to 450 degrees
  • Melt the butter in a microwaveable bowl
  • Mix Bisquick and water until soft dough forms
  • Flatten mixture onto floured surface
  • Cut into 1/2 inch strips (I sort of rolled mine into a worm at this point)
  • Place on jelly roll pan or cookie sheet with sides
  • Use a basting brush to brush butter over and around each stick
  • Bake at 450 degrees for about 10 minutes
One suggestion for these was to add cheese to the flour when rolling them out. These would be awesome with some cheese. I might also use this dough for a pig-in-the-blanket variation sometime. I am not sure drop biscuits would work well with this dough due to the quick, high heat baking. 

I might have made mashed potatoes as part of this meal. They may or may not have contained butter, cream, and cream cheese. If I did that happened, I bet they were good.
TV

TV Land

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 1 Comment
I miss old black & white TV shows. I miss when TV Land and Nick at Nite (yes, I spelled that correctly) actually had shows that weren’t on in my lifetime (or were from early in my life). I also like shows from when I was younger (yep, still). I rarely watch live TV. Usually, I catch any shows I’m interested in on hulu or Netflix after the fact. I even watch current shows this way. 

If I could create a programming line-up, here’s what it would have: 

Boy Meets World
I Love Lucy
Family Affair
Mary Tyler Moore
Bewitched (I only like one Darrin, though)
The Torkelsons 
Saved by the Bell: The College Years 
The Brady Bunch
The Dick Van Dyke Show
Eight is Enough
Three’s Company (with Suzanne Somers)
The Wonder Years
Growing Pains
Blossom
Clarissa Explains it All
Home Improvement
Grace Under Fire

Maybe there are more, but those for sure. Yes, those say a lot about me. Ugh. I’d really be unproductive if I could watch old sitcoms all day.


What shows would be in your perfect line-up? 

freezer/money/planning/Recipes/saving/shopping

It’s a Plan, Stan

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 1 Comment
I mentioned in yesterday’s post that I only go to the grocery store once a week. I started meal planning a few years ago, and it’s made a HUGE difference in our evenings, our finances, and my stress level. It’s super easy, and it saves so much time in the evening. 

On Sunday, Mr. Gray and I look at our calendar, see what we have going on, and decide what we’re going to eat on the nights we will be home. I make a list based on what I need to make those things as well as any staples (read: things we use every day or pretty close to it, not stand-by, pantry groceries) we ran out of the previous week (usually those are already on the list; we try to put them on the list as they run out). 

Mr. Gray and I each have the Zenbe app on our iPhones, so we can both add items to the grocery list and sync it so we have the same list. It has a “check” feature, so you can check the item off as you place it in your basket at the store. You can also arrange the list, so I often put it in order by the layout of the store. Having the list on my phone makes it so easy to add things as we go through the week. We don’t have lists all over the house that gets left when we actually go to the store. Again, it simplifies things.

As we plan our meals, I try to account for what we will have leftover, what ingredients I can use in more than one recipe each week, how long things will keep, and whether or not I can freeze the leftovers. Here is a sample of what our week might look like: 

Monday: enchiladas, rice, beans
Tuesday: Heart Group 
Wednesday: spaghetti
Thursday: leftovers
Friday: out to eat

I know I split ground meat to make enchiladas and spaghetti. Tuesday we will snack at Heart Group or grab something on our way if we have time. We will have leftovers of both to eat Thursday. I don’t cook on Fridays. 

If I cook things that freeze well, I might cook all three nights we are home: 
Monday: roast, potatoes, & carrots
Tuesday: Heart Group
Wednesday: chicken & dumplings
Thursday:  stew & cornbread
Friday: out to eat
I can use the carrots in all three meals; the potatoes can be used on Monday & Thursday; the meat from Monday can be used in the stew Thursday. You get the idea. I also plan meals in accordance to how fast the ingredients spoil (since I only go to the store once at the beginning of the week).

Meal planning has literally changed my life. It is very rare that we stray from whatever we plan to eat. It is even more rare that I go to the grocery store more than once a week. This has saved me TONS of money. I make a list and mostly stick to it. I replace things we use often, but I do not keep a pantry or refrigerator full of food that can expire before I get to it. Plus, we hardly ever have the, “What do you want for dinner?” conversation, which makes it all worth while!
baking/bread/dinner/Pioneer Woman/Recipes/Willow House

Back in the Saddle

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 1 Comment
Since Baby Gray’s arrival, I don’t feel like I have really cooked. I mean, I have cooked many dinners, but it seems like we eat the same thing over and over. I haven’t gotten to get in my kitchen and cook. I was playing on The Pioneer Woman’s website last week, and I came across a recipe for Shrimp Pasta in a Foil Package. It looked really good, and easy enough to manage during a nap or once Mr. Gray got home.

I only grocery shop once a week (that’s a story for another day) so I had to wait until this week to make it. I got what I needed this morning at the store; all day I was super excited about getting to cook. When Baby Gray went down for his afternoon nap, I chopped and prepped everything so I could just throw it together when it was time to whip it up. I also had some ciabatta bread mix I had been wanting to try, so I made it to go with the shrimp dish. Thank goodness I thought about that plenty early because it had to rise twice before baking. 

I only made half the shrimp dish because Pioneer Woman’s version served eight, and we’d be eating it for weeks. It was so good, and definitely manageable with Baby Gray at home. The ciabatta mix made very good bread. Mr. Gray ate almost a whole loaf before, during, and after dinner. It was so moist and yummy. 


Mr. Gray isn’t usually a fan of meatless pasta dishes, but he really liked it. Then again, I don’t think I’ve used a Pioneer Woman recipe that he hasn’t liked yet.
Baby Gray/Papa

More than a Memory

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment
Papa passed away in July. I have missed him each day since. At the Houston Rodeo, they had a memorial up for veterans to be honored. My uncle had the opportunity to have Papa included in the memorial.
He was such a handsome Sea Man. It’s no wonder he made Grammie swoon! They were so cute together (I wish I had a photo to post.)
I know he’s smiling down on us now and getting to watch Baby Gray each day. I still wish he could have held Baby Gray just once, though. Poor Papa was always surrounded by girls–he would’ve loved a boy to fish & golf with!
homemade/simple

Simple

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment
Too many times we want to have that over-the-top touch added to things. Sometimes we have to dial it back and remember to keep it simple. (As much as I don’t like to admit it sometimes.)
I had a near-perfect morning this morning, simply because of a cup of cocoa with homemade whipped cream on top. Mr. Gray didn’t even use my favorite mug for his coffee, so that made it even better! (And, yes, I keep heavy cream laying around just in case I need it for an event like this morning.) 
YUM! This was the perfect start to a gorgeous Saturday.
Speaking of gorgeous, our weather has been absolutely amazing lately. (Gosh, I must be getting old, talking about the weather!) I have been so grateful for a wonderful stroller to walk with Baby Gray on these great afternoons. I could get used to seventy-degrees, sunshine, and a slight breeze! (Don’t worry, I’ve lived in Texas long enough to know better.)
coupons/saving/texts

Right on Target

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 3 Comments
I was at Target this morning (this is true more days than I would like to admit), and as I went to check out, the cashier was explaining Target’s new debit card to the customer in front of me. A while back, Target switched their Red Card policy to include 5% off your total purchase each time you use your Red Card. I am in Target a lot, but I don’t do credit cards. I don’t even do credit cards to get 5% back several days a week. 
This debit card business really peaked my interest. It’d be just like using my debit card straight from my checking account. It literally took me three minutes (maybe) to get signed up, and I got to start getting 5% off today. 
I also had some Target mobile coupons (which are the COOLEST things–you can’t lose them, you don’t have to clip them, and they’re AWESOME) to use in addition to my 5% off. Yay, saving! Sign up for mobile coupons here. They send a text message to your phone and the cashier scans it straight from your screen. I’m a super lazy couponer, so this works perfectly for me! My friend over at A Little Slice of Life is a much better couponer, so if you’re interested in saving much more, check her out!
fast/Revolution

Not So Fast

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment
Thursday evening concluded our fast. Several Rev partners were going to continue their fast until Friday, but Mr. Gray and I decided to end as planned. My calorie intake was pretty low, so I was not producing much milk. This created a fussy, clingy Baby Gray. To conclude our fast, Mr. Gray brought barbecue home after his class, and I baked brownies for myself (he’s not into brownies). Mostly, I just wanted the batter. Healthy, I know. 
It was a great experience, and I’m so glad we were given the challenge to learn more about fasting and its role in our life. I love that we are part of a church that helps us grow and learn more about our faith! To listen to the sermon from Sunday, you can click here.
Baby Gray/pacifier/thumb

Rule of Thumb

Posted on by Mrs Gray / 2 Comments
Baby Gray entered this world ready to suck his thumb. I had to plead with the nurses to let me give this breastfed baby a pacifier before he was two weeks old (it was more like two hours old, really). Let me tell you, he was really deterred from eating by that pacifier… NOT!
I had a horrible fear of a child who sucks their thumb based on the few bad stories I had heard and some experiences of my own. When I was teaching third grade, I had a student who still sucked her thumb. When I was teaching kindergarten (and we still had rest time), I had several who still sucked their thumbs while they napped. My brother and aunt both sucked their thumbs until they were way past thumb-sucking age. I didn’t want the weird, thumb-sucking kid. 
As time has gone on, Baby Gray has continued to suck his thumb in the absence of a pacifier. He loves his paci, and he holds it, chews on it, sucks on it, and whatever else, but he uses his thumb to self-soothe. It took me a while to see it, but kiddos who suck their thumb are, in a sense, taking care of their own needs. He is showing me he knows he is comforted by sucking, and that’s a way he can do it himself. 
Plus, he’s so stinkin’ cute while he sucks this thumb anway! I’m pretty sure I’m over my thumb-phobia. (On a side note, I visited with the pediatrician about it, and she said most children give it up naturally with praise rather than resistance. Dually noted.)