Meatball Stroganoff Recipe

By Sinea Pies 

Beef Stroganoff dates back to Russia and is named for a 19th century figure named Count Paul Stroganov.  History of Beef Stroganoff. The beef was sauteed with onions and mushrooms and combined in a sour cream sauce. This creamy, comforting mixture is usually served on noodles or rice. It tastes delicious but takes so much time and effort to make. That's why many of us have opted for a simpler version.

Meatballs Stroganoff

Photo by My Kind of Cooking

My recipe is one of the "cheaters versions"...
                                                                        ...quick, simple and low cost. 

Ingredients

1 bag precooked Homestyle meatballs

1 cup-ish of sour cream

1 can condensed Cream of Mushroom soup

1 T. cooking sherry (to taste)

Parmessan cheese (optional)

Egg noodles (extra wide)

Directions

• Precook the meatballs in oven, according to directions. 
• Precook noodles according to directions (1/2 bag serves 2 people)
• Combine other ingredients in a large skillet or sauce pan and heat gently on 
• medium heat.  
• Add meatballs.  
• Serve on cooked egg noodles.   
• Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese (optional).

The Meal

Now, one of the points to this recipe is to make a delicious filling, warm meal with little effort. So, what do you serve on the side?  You may want to simply microwave some peas or green beans.  

Green Beans

Photo by Ian Britton on Freefoto.com

If you'd like to get a little fancier, though, here are some great ideas:

• Green Beans with Almonds from Simply Recipes: easy to make green bean recipe with a nice little twist.
• Easy Yams: this takes the time to bake them but is almost effortless. Yams have a natural rich, sweet flavor that need little to no attention and it still tastes great!
• Homemade Biscuits by Paula Deen: if it's Paula Deen, you know it's delicious. These DIY biscuits only take 12 minutes to make!
• Apple Crisp: great dessert recipe served with vanilla ice cream.

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Elegant Cupcakes? You bet!

I was in the mood to show you something truly beautiful this Wonderful Wednesday. So, I looked through the links from our guests on last week's blog hop and knew instantaneously that this was the one! Cupcakes!

Debbie from "Life is Sweets" makes most spectacular cupcakes...and she photographs them beautifully, as well. A work of art.

Each cupcake is the picture of perfection. And she shows you HOW to do it, too. 

Be sure to check it out: Mother's Day Flower Bouquet Cupcakes. There are many more lovely pictures to see, in addition to this one. 

Gorgeous Mothers Day Cupcakes

Photo:  Life-is-Sweets

And, of course, today is another Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop.

Add your links, like and follow, leave great comments, spread the news.


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Mops, Brooms, Dustpans...Oh My!

By Sinea Pies

A place for everything, and everything in its place. Everyday cleaning tasks are a real chore if you don't have the right tools--and if they're not handy. 

Today we are going to talk about the tools that get our floors clean and shiny, and where to put them when they're not in use. 
Martha Stewart shared her storage tip for mops and brooms on her website this week. How to keep an Orderly Utility Closet

Organizers for your Mops & Brooms

There are several styles of organizers available to keep your mops and brooms neat, and conveniently handy. 

Here are some easy to install space savers: BROOM ORGANIZERS

KINDS OF BROOMS

FLAT BROOM

Traditional broom with even-trimmed bristles at bottom attached to a wooden handle.

ANGLE BROOM

Similar to the traditional flat broom except that the bristles are cut at an angle for cleaning debris out of corners, as well as sweeping the central part of the room.  This style is more versatile than the flat broom variety. 

PET HAIR SECRET:  having trouble getting pet hair off of your carpeted stairway?  Use an angle broom!  Sweep back and forth, starting that the top stair, and watch the fur fly!  Once it is loosened up, use an electric broom or vacuum cleaner to finish the job!  Works brilliantly.

PUSH BROOM Often depicted in cartoons being used by street-cleaners, this wider and thicker broom covers large open areas well.  Especially big, open rooms, hallways or garages.

WHISK BROOM

This broom has a short handle and is therefore well suited for cleaning the interior of vehicles or uncarpeted stairs.  Be sure to use a dust pan.

ELECTRIC BROOM Closer to being a vacuum cleaner, this broom is a bit less powerful but very useful for short jobs.

TYPES OF MOPS

Flat Mops and Dust Mops

Similar in nature, these dry mops quickly clean up light debris and pet hair from hard surfaces floors.  Sweep and shake em outside or over a garbage can. The latest version is the Swiffer Duster. Cover with disposable sheets and dust your floors in no-time.

Sponge Mops

Wet mops that absorb dirt and distribute cleaning solutions.  The sweeper just wets the sponge end in water, and squeezes it dry with a metal device that is built in, applies cleaning solution to the floor and wipes it clean.  Many of today’s solutions do not require rinsing.  Sponge mops are most often used on kitchen, bathroom and hallway floors.  A contemporary version of the traditional sponge mop, is the Swiffer Wetjet. 

String Mops

String or rag mops are often depicted in old-time movies 
where the janitor is cleaning a linoleum floor in an office building or a navy seaman is cleaning the ship. Bucket at his side, he “swabs the deck” with steady, large back and forth motions. String mops do the job but can get yucky pretty fast and it takes lots of elbow-grease to use them. 

Steam Mops

A home executive’s dream come true!  Black and Decker has a Steam Mop with smart technology that is oh so neat.  No cleaning solutions necessary—just use tap water!  Gotta check this video out.

Vacuum Cleaner
More and more we are using vacuum cleaners as brooms. They are lightweight, easy to clean and made for hardwood and tile floors as well as carpet and upholstery. By far, the best vacuum I've ever owned is the Shark Navigator. 

What are your favorite "tools of the trade"?  How do you store them? What do you like, or not like, about the ones that you use?

I think we can all agree that, after the floor is clean and shiny, we stand back, admire our work saying "Yes! Now that's much better! Gee, I'm really gonna miss this when I hire a maid!"    :)

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5 Best Organizing Tips I Have Ever Learned

By Sinea Pies

We have so much to learn in the World of Organizing, don't we?  I know I do. That's why I fortify myself with reading great material on decluttering, organizing, cleaning, decorating, time management, and so on. It is encouraging, invigorating and brings focus. Here are some tips that I've learned from the best!

The 5 Best Organizing Tips I Have Ever Learned are 

fundamental keys to getting the job done!

1. Shine Your Sink - this one came from the Queen of Organizing, Marla Cilley. Otherwise known as the FlyLady, Marla has started zillions of us off on the path to an organized life. I'm proud to say that I've met Marla personally...by phone but we spent 90 minutes talking one afternoon about organizing and writing. She has taught me so much. 


The Shiny Sink 101 lesson was monumental. Somewhat skeptical, I took it on.  Following her instructions almost exactly, I emptied my very full and grungy sink, shined it up real pretty and WOW! It looked so good, I just had to do the counters, too. 


Keeping my Windex nearby, I continued to keep it empty and shined and it really did what she said it would do...REPELS DIRTY DISHES! No one wants to be the first to put a dirty dish in it.  Check out her tutorial Shiny Sink 101 and try it. (BTW, the same concept works in other areas of the house, like the dining room table.)

1950's Kitchen Remodeled

2. You Can't Organize Clutter - Clutter is just that...CLUTTER! And clutter cannot be moved, regrouped or organized. It must go. It MUST go! Recognizing the truth is a huge step toward conquering it for good. 


Erin Doland on her website "Unclutterer" shared an eye-opening reality in her post "Single Socks and How They Can Help You To Process What-if Clutter."  We've all experienced the paralyzing thoughts that oppose throwing or giving things away. "What if I might need it later?" torments us till we do absolutely nothing but maybe move it aside. Fact is, that thing MUST go.  Be brave. Be strong. Get rid of it!  

"View from the Floor"

3. Do A Little Bit Every Day - organizing projects take time. Especially if decluttering has to take place first, don't try to do it all at one time. Why not? Because you'll fail. You'll give up and then the clutter will start to climb again. If you set a habit in place and let it become a lifestyle, soon whole rooms, entire closets and finally your entire dwelling will be neat, clean, manageable and "drop in company ready".


Laura Wittmann teaches an easy to follow "How to Get Organized" process on her website "Organizing Junkie" and she even provides a beautifully designed bookmark with the steps right on it (free printable pdf). Even the top organizers refer to her process and it's a good thing for all of us to learn from. Then, while we are doing a little bit every day, we'll know WHAT to be doing! :) 


4. Many Hands Make Light Work - if you can get the family involved in the process, do it. Not every family falls into line like we might wish but Organized Home writer Cynthia Ewer has some great suggestions on how to make it work in her Five Tips for Spring Cleaning With Kids post.


5. Don't Let New Things In The House - Yep! Sounds severe but sometimes you've got to really attack the situation. How'd the clutter get in? You LET it in. Leo Babauta of Zen Habits has a great article entitled "15 Great Decluttering Tips" that tells it like it is. Point #2 is don't let new stuff in!  Makes sense. Until you get the other stuff out, don't compound the problem. It'll make you want to get control faster, too because, let's face it, we all love new stuff!

Previously on Ducks 'n a Row (and other places):

• Menu Planning
• Dryer Sheets (the secret weapon of the cleaning world!)
• How to Wash Clothes in 5 Easy Steps
• Bagster-Like Having a Dumpster in a Bag
• Pantry Moths-How to Get Rid of Them Forever

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"1950's Kitchen Remodeled" by NancyHugoCKD.com on Flickr Creative Commons.  
"View from the Floor" photo by Puuikibeach on Flickr.com

 

Roll a Rainbow from Rub Some Dirt on It

Welcome to Wonderful Wednesday. Last week we had some truly superb posts. It was so hard to pick just one to feature. But, Becky's post from Rub Some Dirt On It -- "Roll a Rainbow" --really caught my eye. I admit, I am on her mailing list, so I had a heads up in advance on this one, too.


Becky is a master photographer with the cutest kids on earth as her subjects. Add some ingenuity to it and you get Roll-A-Rainbow and other great ideas.


Be sure to stop by her site today and let her know that you saw her featured on Ducks 'n a Row!  And, don't forget to link up your posts below. This is a Blog Hop. Who knows, you may be next week's spotlight!

Great Ideas from Rub Some Dirt On It

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• Stains - Getting Laundry Really Clean the First Time

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Menu Planning

By Sinea Pies

Field Greens for Salad

Menu planning can be fun or exasperating, depending on your point of view.

Fun, if you have time and are in the mood to express your creativity through the food you serve. 
Exasperating, if time and money are not on your side. 

So, how can you effectively create a weekly menu with enough diversity to have a happy, satisfied family and not break the bank? Plan with time and money in mind!

Time:  identify which days allow for a meal that is more elaborate in the making and which days are going to be “hit the pavement and run”.  You know those days.  Evening classes for you, sports or music lessons for the kids, PTA meetings. Those are the times that quick meals are a necessity.

Money: it may be necessary to make every meal the cheapest but if you can at least work in one “nice” meal, maybe on Sunday, it provides the comfort that the other light-weight or repetitive meals may not.  Grilled cheese and soup is great once a week but not 7-days a week!

Tip: reuse ingredients. By that I mean, buy a big pack and split it to use a couple of nights in a row. In the plan below, half a big-pack of ground beef will be used for Little Cheddar Burgers and half for Baked Lasagna. Big packs are cheaper per pound.

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Here is this week’s Menu Plan from Ducks ‘n a Row. 

• Monday  Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and cream of tomato soup.
• Tuesday Fried Chicken with biscuits.
• Wednesday "Breakfast for dinner" Make Eggs in a Basket with sausage or bacon on the side.
• Thursday Lite night. Mediterranean Salad with couscos as a side dish. 
• Friday  No cooking. Get a great Pizza Hut pizza!
• Saturday Little Cheddar Burgers with mashed potatoes and corn on the side. (Save the remaining ground beef for tomorrow night's lasagna)
• Sunday  Baked Lasagna with spaghetti, tossed salad and Italian bread

What are your menu planning secrets? Please share.

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Photo Credit: Catsper on Flickr.com

Home Office

By Sinea Pies

What does your work space look like? Not the kitchen or laundry room, mind you. We're talking about the place where you do your paperwork, pay your bills, plan the schedule. That place. 

Photo by nuttakit on freedigitalphotos.net

Some of us are blessed to have an office at home. Others use the kitchen table, a corner of a bedroom or some other creative little nook where they can get some things done.


Mine? I was wondering what was happening with mine. Something was seriously wrong. Why couldn't I keep it neat? Papers, magazines, office supplies would quickly fill up the desk top and soon there was no desktop. 


Took me a while but I finally figured it out. My "desk" only has a top...a white kitchen counter top that my son-in-law built into a really nice work space for me. It's wonderful, with one big drawback -- no drawers! I was trying to get by with desk organizers for everything and it just wasn't working. 

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This solution is not beautiful but it is totally neat and functional. The underside of my "desk" is not visible from the doorway, anyway, so visually it is no problem. 

More can be done but these drawers have helped so much!

What I did was I bought a very practical set of Sterlite plastic drawers. The unit is on casters...comes with four or five drawers ...and it fits perfectly under the counter. Organizing it was a dream come true and my desktop has now been cleared. Yipee!

How do you organize your work space? 

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Below: Isn't this CLOSET OFFICE pretty? For most of us it is a struggle to give up valuable closet space but this closet-office is very cool. (I think I'll go throw some stuff away right now and when I get to the bottom of it all,  I can have a pretty closet office, too! ) 

photo: Home Office Design Blog

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• Daily Routines
• Dong Quai for Women
• Kid Recipes - Easy Recipes Kids Will Love
• How Big Is Your Mountain of Undone Stuff?
• Organize - Become an Organizing Genius in 5 Easy Steps

Serenity You and a Great Blog Hop, Too!

This week's featured site belongs to Natasha Mairs from UK, who generously shared three posts with us in last week's Blog Hop. The blog is called Serenity You. Check out her how-to on make Cute Yarn Letters for a child's bedroom wall.

Busy Bags from Serenity You

Natasha's post on Busy Bags for little tykes is what first got my attention. What a nifty idea. 

I remember the days when I really needed to get some things done in the house (like sewing) and my four year old son, Josh, was right in there wanting to be in on it. Needles and four year olds are bad! If I'd had Busy Bags ready in the wings, I think I might have been able to sew when he was awake. As it was, for safety's sake, I had to wait to do my sewing until after he was in bed for the night.

Yellow Lab after a long night of play.

Photo courtesy of wikimedia commons

Even now, when I have a long night of writing ahead and my yellow lab Lexi wants me all to herself, I have a stash of dog toys to distract her and wear her out. Same concept. Doggie busy bags! LOL

So, do you have something to share with us this week? Please do!

Dazzle us with your ingenuity, haute cuisine, something cute, creative, funny, inspiring. Whatever you'd like.

Share your links below!

Who knows...your blog might become next week's feature!

If you host blog hops and link parties on your site, share where & when in the comments. 

We'll stop by!

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Chicken Divan

By Sinea Pies

Chicken Divan is a delicious casserole consisting of a layer of broccoli, followed by boneless chicken breast and a thick creamy sauce topped with bread crumbs and grated parmessan cheese. 

Chicken Divan is the most marvelous dish - great for special occasions or Sunday dinner. It's one of those "all-in-one" meals covering the basic food groups: protein, veggie, even a little dairy. Served with rice pilaf on the side, it'll become a family favorite. 

There is a little bit of preparation time involved, that's why I prefer to serve it as a meal on the weekend.  It reheats well so, make enough for leftovers the next night!  



Ingredients:

• Fresh broccoli, cut in spears
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 
• Cream of chicken soup 2 cans
• Real mayonnaise 1 cup
• Grated Parmesan cheese 1/2 cup
• Unseasoned bread crumbs 3/4 cup
• Lemon juice 2 tsp
• Curry powder 1 tsp

Slightly cook broccoli in boiling water, till starting to get tender-- but not quite done-- drain and cool.

Lay the broccoli in a baking dish, top with chicken breasts (2-4 whole, divided)

Combine 2 cans cream of chicken soup, 1 cup mayonnaise (Hellman’s or any “real” mayonnaise—not salad dressing) 2 tsp lemon juice, 1 tsp curry powder. Spread over the chicken (thickly). 

Sprinkle with a combination of bread crumbs (3/4 cup) and Parmesan cheese (1/2 cup).

Bake in a preheated 300° oven, uncovered, for 60 minutes until done. I double this recipe, which increases the cooking time by quite a bit. Just cut into a piece to check for doneness. Serve with Neareast Original Rice Pilaf on the side.

Related Articles:
Recipes - Main & Side Dishes
Best Chicken French Recipe Ever
More Chicken Recipes for You

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Stomach Bug? Be Ready!

By Sinea Pies 

 Under The Weather?

There are some things that we don't like to plan for: disaster and disease. They are unpleasant to think about and certainly not welcome in our homes. Let's face it, though, sometimes these unwelcome visitors come whether we want them or not. 


Disaster preparation is a whole 'nother topic, to be visited another day. Today, though, we're going to talk about being ready when a Stomach Bug comes knocking at the door.  

This hits close to home for me because my husband and I both had one just days ago...first time in maybe 20 years...and it came on like gangbusters! 


I am so grateful that he got it first and not me. After I initially took care of him and finally got him settled under the covers in bed, I hit the stores! We certainly were NOT prepared. Not by a long-shot. By the time I got sick that next night, the house was well-stocked with the "Stomach Flu Essentials" and it got us through the 4+ days of not being able to leave the house! (For a while we weren't even able to leave the room!)

The Essentials

What you should have on hand:

Food

At first the sick person won't be able to eat anything but recovery will depend on going it real slow at introducing foods back into their diet.

Ginger Ale: get "real ginger ale". For me, this means Canada Dry. Point is, it should be made with sugar (not diet, unless you are diabetic) and have real ginger in it. Many ginger ale's don't have a lick of ginger in them. When your stomach is upset, this will not do. If you cannot have ginger (it is contraindicated with some medications), then get real Coca-Cola instead. 

Saltine Crackers: crackers can settle the stomach but not just any crackers. Saltine crackers--or "soda crackers"--have a key ingredient that helps: baking soda.

Chicken and Rice Soup: don't get fancy here. Buy the plain old Campbells variety that is not extra chunky and has almost no vegetables. Have lots of them on hand and recycle your inventory over a period of time. Use the old first, replace with newer cans.

Jello: gives you a little spurt of energy and even replenishes some liquids. 

Bread, White: as you get better, a slice of dry toast will taste good with your soup. Although white bread is not touted for it's great nutritional benefits, it is easier to digest than whole grains plus it stays soft even without butter. 

Rice, White: similarly, white rice is not considered to be as healthy a choice for people who are well. When you're sick, though, it digests much more easily.

Rice Krispies with fat-free milk.  This will be the first dairy you'll add back into your diet. Wait a while before trying it.

Pedialyte or Gatorade: people who have a stomach bug stand the risk of getting dehydrated. They also experience body aches from the loss of potassium. Both Pedialyte (formulated for children) and Gatorade replenish the fluids and restore electrolytes. 

Medications and Related Items

Tylenol: kills pain, plain and simple...and is a fever reducer, too.

Thermometer: you may have to call the doctor if symptoms are severe for too long. You'll want to be able to tell them if there is a fever, too.

Pepto Bismol: for stomach upsets and diarrhea. 

Imodium: anti-diarrhea tablets. Some people can't deal with the smell of Pepto Bismol. If this is you, Imodium works great. 

Baby Wipes: for everybody! Our kids are all grown up but this doesn't stop me from buying sweetly scented baby wipes for our home. Grown ups can use them too. Keep one pack in each bathroom and a spare on the shelf.

Other:

Toothbrushes: soon as the symptoms subside, throw out your current toothbrushes and replace with new. Get those germs out of the house!

Tall Kitchen Bags: putting it delicately, when someone in your house has the "throw-uppies", you may go through a lot of these. With each episode, take the dirtied bag, tie it up good and remove it from the house to the garbage can outside. You may use quite a few but, again, get those germs out of the house.

What else might you want to have on hand?

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Photo credit Stuart Miles Free Digital Photos dot net