In Search of a Church

Saint Nicholas church at Georgioupoli, Crete, Greece
 photo credit: michalispolakis

When I was a kid I was raised going to church each Sunday. My dad was a Christian singer and my mom played the keyboard. Having our entire Sunday busy with church actives was familiar and a part of our family life. Discussing dreams and hopes for our children, the main objective is for them to know God on a personal level.

When our first baby girl Addie was small, some close friends of ours asked us to come with them to church. They knew we had not been a member anywhere and really need a church family. From the first time that we went we knew it was the place for us. Though based in a school building and brought alive each Sunday by people lugging things from a trailer, it did not matter. We were called there. For 4 years we experienced joy, made friends, saw God’s works firsthand. I was even baptized a second time in front of our church family.

This past year a few things changed in the church. Nothing and no one that we had any problems with. The changes just made us reevaluate where God wanted us to be. After all we were driving almost 20 miles each way every Sunday and every other Wednesday for small groups. All of our friends were there so get togethers and gatherings are always that way. It never bothered us before and still doesn’t (much). But our 11 month old (if she could talk) might tell you otherwise. She has issues riding in the car at night. We are working on this and I’m sure it’s just a phase.

So we have been on a search for a church closer to home to which we can call our church home. It has been so much more difficult than I ever could have imagined. Considering that we had only ever been to the one church as a couple and as a family, we have never experienced the church search before. And I never realized how picky that we are about what we want in a church. This post is merely a confession. I feel like talking about it for once and we would really love your prayers.

Prayers for my mind to be opened to churches that might be out of my comfort zone. Prayers for God to show us where we are meant to be.

Have you ever had trouble finding a church? What lead to your final decision? I’d love to hear your stories!

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Easy Taco Pizza

My littlest baby, Britton has begun to walk! And things are quickly changing around here. I’m running to take things out of her mouth that I wasn’t expecting her to be able to reach. I’m running to help her up when she stumbles. I’m basically, running. I love every minute of it. It’s so precious to see her starting her independence, but then come wobbling back to me so we can snuggle. I really love this age!

My other, on the other hand, is very much independent. She loves to help out in the kitchen and is finally helping out with cleaning her room. Well, that is with a little coaxing, bribing, and other shameless attempts to get her to clean. I do love meals that we can all make as a family so that everyone feels like they contributed.

Today’s recipe is a very simple one and you may already make this at your house. But if you don’t and want a quick and easy meal that everyone will love, you might want to make this soon! My mom and I have recently noticed that Dollar Tree carries 2 packs of smaller pizza crusts, for $1 of course. I’ve been experimenting with all kinds of things to do with these crusts because they are so darn cheap. I thought….Taco Pizza! My husband hadn’t had it in so long that he had forgotten what all it included, but he was thrilled to find out what went on these beauties….beans.

Yes beans are the single ingredient that make these pizzas taste like a taco. Well, that and the…..

Salsa. Those two take the place of your everyday pizza’s tomato sauce.

Then it’s just a matter of adding all the yummy stuff that your family likes on your tacos. A good amount of cheese, some tomatoes, and lettuce are a great choice. Even a dollop of sour cream.

You can either buy your refried beans or you can buy pinto beans and create your own with your own flavors. Heat up the pinto beans, place in a food processor with garlic, cumin, and chili powder. Either way, you should be able to find them for $1 or less. In fact, this whole meal should cost you less than $5 in total! I only had to buy 1 tomato to chop up for the top. I didn’t really even need that much since my family doesn’t really like them. But I enjoyed it.

You can most definitely make one big pizza with these ingredients instead of the smaller ones. I just have a very picky family so it’s easiest this way to please everyone.

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Easy Taco Pizza

Simple taco pizzas that the whole family will love!

Ingredients

  • 4 Small Pizza Crusts (or make your own!)
  • 1 Can Refried Beans
  • 1 Cup Salsa, Divided
  • 1 and 1/2 Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese + 1/4 cup for topping
  • 1 Cup Lettuce
  • 1 Tomato, Chopped

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees or the temp suggested by your pizza crust.
  2. Start by brushing your pizza crusts with olive oil.
  3. Equally disperse the refried beans among the 4 pizza crusts. Next equally disperse salsa.
  4. Add a layer of equals amounts of cheddar cheese to the tops.
  5. Bake pizzas for 8-10 minutes or the amount suggested by your pizza crust.
  6. When pizzas are finished, add equal amounts of lettuce and tomato to each pizza and top each equally with the remaining 1/4 c cheddar cheese.

Notes

There are endless possibilities to these pizzas. Add black beans, corn, chicken, taco meat, chilis, peppers, whatever you'd like! The refried beans are a must though!

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http://pennywisecook.com/easy-taco-pizza/

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Alfredo Pie

You’ll have to excuse the simplicity of this recipe’s name. I just couldn’t really come up with much more. Some days I can spout off big glamorous recipe names and others I am left bumbling like an idiot.

I’ve grown quite fond of my springform pan as of lately. Most people only break theirs out when they are making a cake or cheesecake or something sweet, but I have recently discovered that it has so many other uses in the savory realm too. I got the idea back in the winter while making Cappelini Al Forno from Giada’s recipe. We absolutely adore that yummy baked spaghetti so why not go the alfredo route and get creamy on it?

I tried to make this recipe as simple as possible with things that I’ve gotten cheap with coupons or that I had stockpiled. For instance, I didn’t bother making homemade alfredo, I used up jars that I had in the pantry. I also used Bird’s Eye Steamfresh Veggies and they were steamed and ready for the recipe in minutes! And of course, the pasta was next to nothing and I have oodles of that. Most everything else are things that you are bound to have in your pantry or refrigerator.

Don’t fret if you don’t have a springform pan. Using a round casserole dish or even a rectangular dish will work just fine too. It may not as pretty, but it will work! Just be sure to grease it really well.

I honestly just kinda made this up as I went along. You can definitely feel free to experiment with your own tastes and ideas. This turned out really fabulous this way. I couldn’t breathe when we got done with dinner. I ate way too much of this!

Go ahead, have a go at this one and you might even have your kiddos eating their vegetables.

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Alfredo Pie

Alfredo gets a makeover in this creamy pasta pie!

Ingredients

  • 1 lb Thin Spaghetti
  • 1 Jar Alfredo Sauce
  • 2 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
  • 2 Tsp Garlic, Minced
  • 1 Bag Frozen Mixed Vegetables
  • Bread Crumbs
  • 1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese
  • Mozzarella Cheese
  • 1 Egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 Tsp Parsley, Dried
  • 2 Tbsp Butter

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a skillet, cook chicken breast with garlic over medium heat until no longer pink.
  3. Meanwhile cook spaghetti just under 1 minute from what the package suggests.
  4. Cook frozen mixed veggies according to their packaging.
  5. When noodles are done, place them in a large bowl along with 1/3 c. breadcrumbs, egg, and 1/4 c. Parmesan cheese. Using tongs mix well.
  6. Add a sprinkle of breadcrumbs to the bottom of a greased springform pan.
  7. Place 1/3 of noodle mixture into the bottom. Pour 1/3 of the alfredo sauce over noodles.
  8. Next add a layer of veggies, then 2 tbsp of breadcrumbs, then 1/3 of the chicken, then sprinkle with layer of mozzarella cheese.
  9. Repeat this until you have 3 layers ending with mozzarella cheese.
  10. Bake 25-30 minutes or until top begins to brown.
  11. Let cool before removing sides of pan.
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http://pennywisecook.com/alfredo-pie/

P.S.- Have a recipe name suggestion? I’d love to hear it! Leave a comment below.

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Mini Cheeseburger Pies

When my husband and I were dating like a million years ago (or so it feels), we actually went on dates to McDonald’s. Not only were both incredibly cheap tightwads, but my husband had a crazy obsession with none other than…..dom dom dom, McDonald’s! Yes, he was (and still is) a cheeseburger fanatic. I even had a cheeseburger birthday cake made a couple years ago. Needless to say that he is all-American and loves his American food.

He’s not always easy to please, but as long as he gets his cheeseburger every now and then he’s good! In honor of him, I made up these amazing Mini Cheeseburger Pies that honestly was a little unplanned. It was one of those days when I was feeling experimental and I was on a path to one idea and ended up with another. I’m glad that this is where I ended up! These were sooooo good.

Using store bought pie crusts that I got 2 for $1.99 at Aldi, I filled them with a cheeseburger filling and topped them with whatever each family member wanted. My daughter Addie has just realized that she likes pickles. (I know right? Where has she been?! Pickles are yummy.) So she got those on her’s.

See? How adorable. What a great idea for a party. These aren’t too small but they also aren’t huge either so they could be used an appetizer also.

They are so simple too. I have a good feeling these would also freeze well.

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Mini Cheeseburger Pies

This miniature version of cheeseburger pie is a perfect appetizer or party food!

Ingredients

  • 1 lb Ground Beef
  • 2 Premade Pie Crusts (or homemade if you prefer)
  • 1 Medium Onion, Chopped
  • 2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
  • 1 Tbsp Ketchup
  • 1 Tbsp Djon or Yellow Mustard (whichever you prefer)
  • 2 Tsp Garlic, Minced
  • 4 oz Velveeta Cheese
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Bacon Pieces (Optional)

Method

  1. Preheat over to 450 degrees.
  2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown mean with onion and garlic. Drain.
  3. Add worcestershire sauce, ketchup, mustard, and Velveeta. Stir until combined.
  4. Meanwhile, using a glass or biscuit cutter, cut 2 and 3/4 inch circles out of pie crusts. Place circles into a greased muffin tin using the leftover scraps to piece together more.
  5. Fill each crust with equal amounts of meat filling. Add bacon pieces last if desired.
  6. Place a second pie crust circle on top of each pie and press down around the edges to help it seal.
  7. Cut a T slit in the tops to prevent them from bubbling up.
  8. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown.
  9. Serve with your favorite cheeseburger condiments!
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http://pennywisecook.com/mini-cheeseburger-pies/

 

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Sugar Cookie Ice Cream Bowls

I was busy making up cookies for Addie’s 5th birthday last week. Which by the way, I am still in shock that I have a 5 year-old. Doesn’t seem possible that she is already that big. I’m going to try to get over it and not have a mini meltdown. Instead, I’ll just eat a SUGAR COOKIE BOWL full of ice cream! I got the idea from this picture. Pretty self explanatory.

Yeah, it’s quite an epiphany. Eating ice cream out of a cookie? I’m totally down with that. I think the only thing better than that would be eating ice cream out of a brownie. Hmmm, I’m getting ideas….

It’s best to have a good batch of sugar cookie dough to use. I found the BEST recipe last week and it worked like a charm. You simply lay the dough over the muffin tin cups and bake as usual.

You can also cut the dough using the top of a glass to get a perfect circle. Or you can just wing it like I did. I even had to patch a few up. It didn’t matter though because they still baked up fine.

Tah dah! Oh yeah, it’s a bowl that’s a sugar cookie. Incredible isn’t it? This is where you place your ice cream…

Or even fruit if you’re being good….

Sugar Cookie recipe courtesy of Spark People.

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Sugar Cookie Ice Cream Bowls

Eat your ice cream out of a sugar cookie!

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups - granulated sugar
  • 2/3 cup - butter (or shortening - half of each is recommended)
  • 2 whole eggs
  • 2 Tbsp - 2% milk
  • 1 tsp. - vanilla extract
  • 3 1/4 cups - white flour
  • 2 1/2 tsp - baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp - salt

Method

  1. Cream butter and sugar together in a large bowl. Add eggs, extract, and milk and mix well.
  2. Mix dry ingredients with a wire wisk in a medium bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in large bowl. Mix until combined well.
  3. With hands, shape dough into a ball. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2-3 hours.
  4. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  5. Lightly grease muffin tins. Roll half or 1/3 of the dough at a time on a floured surface. Keep the rest in the fridge.
  6. Roll dough to 1/8-1/4 inch thick.
  7. Flour a glass or cup and cut shapes. Re-roll trimmings and reshape. Place over muffin tin wells making sure to cover the whole thing with no holes.
  8. Bake for 8 min or until light brown.

Notes

You are free to use whatever sugar cookies your prefer, even store bought. I just found this recipe to be really great to molding and rolling.

It's not a bad idea to make your dough the night before and roll it out in the morning. The colder it is, the easier it is to work with.

This works with chocolate chip cookie dough too!

This recipe makes a LOT of dough (like 72 cookies depending on your size) so if you only plan on making a few, half this recipe.

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http://pennywisecook.com/sugar-cookie-ice-cream-bowls/

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Crockpot Pinto Beans and Cornbread

May 14, 2012

There are a lot of meals that I remember my momma making when we were growing up. Some that I liked and some that I (as a kid with immature taste buds) I could have lived without. Of course, it’s the ones that I liked that I remember the most and now make for my [...]

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Happy Mother’s Day 2012

May 13, 2012

M is for MIRACULOUS. O is for OUTSTANDING. M is for MOTIVATING. Moms are simply the best! It’s the greatest job that I could have asked for and I enjoy every fun, joyful, challenging, and spectacular moment of it. For all of the moms who spend each day being miraculous, outstanding and motivating, I hope [...]

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Hot to Cut a Pineapple

May 12, 2012

Today’s post may not be something new to some of you, but if you’re like me- a pineapple can seem intimidating. I don’t know if it’s the big leaves at the top or the pointy eyes that stare at me, but there is something about a pineapple that makes it seem a little scary to [...]

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Cinnamon Sugar Roasted Chickpeas

May 11, 2012

My sister has been making fun of me lately. This isn’t really anything new because she has always done this. We’re 4 years apart so it’s what you would expect. Back in the day she would make fun of me for the way I walked or the way I’d say something. You know, silly, ridiculous [...]

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Crispy Caesar Chicken Wraps

May 10, 2012

Do you ever have those days when you start thinking about dinner and your mind just goes completely blank? This happens to me a lot so I do my best to prepare a meal plan for the week. Though we rarely actually stick to it. Most weeks I come up with my menu on my [...]

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