So sad!!  My company came and that is not sad, but because 5 of them came there was a need for groceries.  So off to the store they went and bought, bought, bought :).  That's ok!

So for one more day we will continue to have family visiting and we will be enjoying their company.  So, I'll be back at my mission shortly there after :)

Day twenty-six mission "Cabinet Dinner"

It is really hard not to post something about friends again!!  Here I had beef burrito's planned for our Friday night, traditions you remember.  When all of a sudden my text alert on my phone goes off!!  Of course I check it, I may miss out on something.  It's one of our dear friends, texting to see if I had cooked dinner yet.  My response tonight was no because I was preparing my house for the 5 family members who are coming from Arizona to see our new digs!  Then the phone rings, "Don't cook anything I made some Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli and I am bringing you a casserole."

Being a friend who does things unexpectedly is a pretty high mark in my book!!  Just don't forget to pay it forward on your part :)

Thanks for dinner!! It was yummo!!

Day twenty-five mission "Cabinet Dinner"

HaHaHa!!  ELK!! First and foremost www.mantestedrecipes.com is the BEST!!  Thank you for your recipe ideas and tonights meal is where I got it.

Now if you read yesterday's post you'll remember that the daughter HATES elk.  That's not good when you have 1/4 of an elk in the freezer. :(  I took suggestions and searched the web, here goes nothing!!

This recipe took 2 days to prep.

Ingredients went as follows:

1 Elk Chub
2 cups Milk
1 tbsp Salt
1 tbsp Garlic
1 tbsp Rosemary
1 tbsp Pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder/flakes
1 (12ounce) Beer

So, I took the Elk out one morning to thaw, once thawed I placed in a bowl with milk and let soak overnight.  The next morning I placed all the rest of the ingredients in a one gallon ziplock, sliced up the elk meat and placed the meat in the bag.  Left that in the fridge until the following evening for dinner.  Got hold of my trusted ribbed cast iron skillet and on medium heat grilled up the elk.  Threw some rice in the cooker and some frozen veggies in the microwave.

Comments from Family:

Daughter- With a wrinkled face, she took her first bite!  2 piece of meat later she finally went for her rice and veggies!!  HOMERUN!!
Hubby- A little spice but can't taste the elk at all!!
Me-Very impressed with this recipe, I felt like I was eating beef!!  Thank you mantestedrecipes!!! I will be visiting your site often as I have a lot more elk!!

Day twenty-four mission "Cabinet Dinner"

Proud of me....took out a package of elk meat(which we have been avoiding because the daughter does not like)!  I was told by a dear friend that if you soak it overnight in milk it helps the taste.  So that is just what I did, so what next?  Off to the computer I went and thanks to www.mantestedrecipes.com I found TONS of amazing recipes!!  However, all marinades require an overnight soak :(  Very sad!!  Now what for dinner? 

LEFTOVER Beef Stew!!  I love it when a plan comes together! 

Day twenty-three mission "Cabinet Dinner"

YIPPEE!!  I found the last package of our cow in the bottom of the deep freeze!  Labeled "Soup Bones"  It snowed here ALL DAY, so soup is in order.

Ingredients went as follows:

1 pkg Beef Soup Bones
2 Cans Beef Broth
4 Cans Water
Potato's
Carrots
Celery
Onion
2 tbsp Thyme
2 tbsp Rosemary
1 tbsp Sage
Salt and Pepper
Oil

I went, let's see, EVERYWHERE trying to figure out something different to make with these bones!  Well Beef Stew is it.  Not very much meat on these bones :(  Place all the chopped veggies in a bowl and use some of the herbs to coat them, don't use it all. Take some Olive Oil and some herbs and rub the bones.  In one deep dish baking dish place the soup bones and all the chopped veggies in it.  Baked in the oven for one hour at 400 degrees.  Meanwhile place the Beef Broth and Water in stock pot turn heat to low and let that sit until veggies and bones are done.  If you have any leftover herbs, put them in the pot.  Put the veggies and bones in stockpot bring to boil, then let simmer until all veggies are soft or ready for eatin'!  You may need to cut any meat that is on your bones and remove the bones.  Don't forget to serve your favorite rolls with it!!

Comments from Family:

Daughter - Too busy talking with our guest to comment!
Hubby - Ate 2 bowls!!  Said it was very tasty and good.
Me - Not happy that there wasn't more meat on it and next time I will put garlic in it.  Otherwise, it was warm and filling in the tummy!
Guest - Thanks for dinner it was really good!!  He ate 3 bowls!!!

Day twenty-two mission "Cabinet Dinner"

Today I believe you will find out just how "redneck" our lil family is.  If you remember I had taken out pork chops for last night, however my hubby and daughter had other plans.  So Pork chops we are going to have.  You will probably agree with me, pork chops on the grill are yummo!!  Slight hiccup in this equation.....ITS THE DEAD OF WINTER outside!!  No worries I dug out my trusty cast iron ribbed frying pan!  Here's the redneck, I use it on top of my glass top range :)  I guess I'll learn when my glass breaks, until then makes for a great indoor bbq!

Ingredients went as follows:

3 Pork Chops
3 tbsp Orange Marmalade
1 tsp Thyme
3 tbsp Dijon Mustard
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
1/2 head chopped Romaine Lettuce
1/2 head chopped Iceberg Lettuce
1 can Mandarin Oranges
Pine Nuts

Paper towel dry your pork chops and olive oil, salt, and pepper, rub them over.  Grill these both sides until they have grill marks.  In a small bowl combine 2 tbsp Orange Marmalade and Thyme, mix well.  Brush this on the pork chops, let chops cook the remainder of the way threw(both sides).  In a large salad bowl add Romaine, Iceberg Lettuce, and oranges.  In another small bowl combined 1 tbsp Orange Marmalade, Dijon Mustard mix this together slowly.  Once your pork chops are cooked threw cut those up into small pieces, I let mine cool for a few minutes, then I added them to the lettuce.  Now for the final step, the bowl of mustard and marmalade slowly pour in 1/4 cup of olive oil, once mix together well pour over your salad!  Add desired amount of pine nuts to each serving.

Comments from family:

Daughter - This is the best ever Mom!
Hubby - It's ok.  (I personally think the mandarin oranges were not his favorite.)
Me - At first I thought the mustard would overpower the meal, but it came together very well.  Not a fan of the mandarin oranges, so if I had regular oranges I would use those next time.

Day twenty-one mission "Cabinet Dinner"

SURPRISE!!  I love surprises!!  So, my dinner plan was a package of pork chops, however, my hubby came up with his own plan.  Between him and my daughter they took out on an adventure!!  Homemade tortilla's.....Was kinda worried about this because we are not at all Spanish and we have always bought tortilla's.  They took the the leftover chicken, rice, and beans and made me a burrito dinner!  I know I know we just had that, but I didn't have to make it and it cleared out some leftovers!!

The greatest part, my daughter learns right along side either one of us and these are life lessons she can take with her anywhere. :)