HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY with RECIPES & MENU LINKS week 42 of 2026 ~ BLOG 365.292

Be sure to join us at Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

LAST WEEK RECAPPED

GOOD MORNING I had a productive week despite the fact that we weren’t supposed to be here 🙂 I hope your week was great! We’re big believers that things always happen for a reason. I think part of the reason we didn’t get to go was so that I was here to help my closest friend with a HUGE project that might seriously affect her life. I finally got around to grocery shopping on Saturday since it looks like our trip has been indefinitely postponed. Sunday we spent watching football, NASCAR, visiting with friends and relaxing.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE

We’re back to our regularly scheduled fall weather with lows in the 30’s at night, fog in the mornings, sun breaking around lunchtime and finally reaching near 70 for a couple of afternoon hours. Lots of layers is the uniform of the week. 🙂

TO DO, APPOINTMENTS, DVR/TV & PROJECTS

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS, TRAVEL,  APPOINTMENTS, MENUS & DVR/TV
  • LAUNDRY & CLEANING I spent more time last week deep cleaning and sorting through clothes. I have a load in the back of my car to drop of at St. Vinnies after Taco Tuesday.
  • GROCERIES & ERRANDS Nothing on the calendar, but I know that somehow I’ll stay busy starting with today. A girlfriend called and asked me to go to the “BIG” city with her. We need some things for our crafts table next month.
  • PROJECTS & TRAVELS I guess we’re now taking a quick trip to the coast the second week of November, but the BIG trip will wait until March. 🙂
  • THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY geese honking as they fly over the pond on foggy mornings… the little birds making themselves at home on the new bird feeder and holding their own with the BIG birds 🙂 … cozy mornings reading under a favorite fleece blanket… the smell of apples and cinnamon baking… 

READING TIME

I’m still working on Alice Hoffman’s THE PROBABLE FUTURE. It reads a lot like Practical Magic, which I just rewatched and am looking forward to watching Practical Magic II soon.

FUNNIES

MENU PLANS

BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀 I’, starting to do a 2 week menu calendar to make my life easier!

 10/19 MONDAY 10/20 TUESDAY 10/21 WEDNESDAY
10/22 THURSDAY
 10/23 FRIDAY 10/24 SATURDAY 10/25 SUNDAY
DINNER
CORN/YOYO CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATOR NIGHT or YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN
MEATBALL SOUP and HERB BISCUITS
CORN/YOYO CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATOR NIGHT or YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN
BLACKENED RANCH CHICKEN & VEGGIES
ONE PAN CHICKEN & NOODLES
6 CHEESE GNOCCHI & SALAD
FARMER’S MAARKET SOUP & BISCUITS
DESSERT
 
APRICOT BARS
10/26 MONDAY 10/27 TUESDAY 10/28 WEDNESDAY
10/29 THURSDAY
 10/30 FRIDAY 10/31 SATURDAY 11/1 SUNDAY
DINNER
CORN/YOYO CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATOR NIGHT or YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN
BBQ GRILLED
PORK CHOPS
and TOMATO TART
CORN/YOYO CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATOR NIGHT or YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN
MISSISSIPPI CHICKEN with PORK & BEAN BREAD
CHICKEN POT PIE SOUP & SALAD
EAT OUT
@ HALLOWEEN PARTY
CORN/YOYO CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATOR NIGHT or YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN
DESSERT
 
PEPPER JELLY BARS

FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA

We have been having some beautiful sunsets. I love how my neighbor’s Ghosts illuminated just as I took the picture. 🙂 And I LOVE that downtown businesses are gearing up with a sense of humor for shop local in November.

INSPIRATIONS

LIFE TIP

HOMEMAKING / COOKING TIP

COOKING THURSDAY RECIPES COMING UP THIS WEEK

  • LEMON LUSH CAKE
  • LEMON BASIL VINAIGRETTE
  • GNOCCHI STROGANOFF with CIDER BUTTER SAUCE
  • PAN SEARED COD with WHITE WINE CAJUN SAUCE & BLISTERED TOMATOES

COOKING THURSDAY RECIPE LINKS FROM LAST WEEK

COOKING THURSDAY ~ NELLIE’S ROAST CHICKEN aka GRAM’S TRASH DAY ROAST CHICKEN & BRINED GARLIC BROWN SUGAR WEEKNIGHT CHICKEN ~ BLOG 365.288B

Many of you probably remember me talking about Nellie’s Deli here in town and how wonderful her food always was. The day she retired was a sad day here. Fortunately, for me we’re friends and who I crave her food I just make it from one of her recipe books I bought at her clearance sale or text her for tips. As I was reading through Nellie’s recipe I realized it was almost identical to grams old recipe.

NELLIE’S ROAST CHICKEN aka GRAM’S TRASH DAY ROAST CHICKEN

1 LARGE stewing, roasting chicken
1/2 cup melted butter
3 tablespoons QUALITY Italian seasoning (see note)

STOCK/BRINE
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup Himalayan pink salt
1/2 cup tricolor peppercorns
Veggie scraps – carrot pieces, celery pieces, quartered onions, 1 bunch chopped parsley, 1 bunch chopped cilantro, 6-8 cloves smashed garlic as well as anything else in the veggie drawer that’s beyond it’s crispness and ready for the compost.

  • Combine everything in a LARGE stock pot.
  • Bring stock to a SLOW simmer for 3-4 hours or more.
  • Let cool for 1 hour.

 

  • Add 2 1/2 gallons of stock to 5 gallon bucket.
  • Submerge chicken. If stock is extremely warm, use ice to shock chciken.
  • Refrigerate and brine for 24 hours.

 

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • When ready to roast, drain chicken and pat dry.
  • Pour butter over chicken and rub into all the crevices.
  • Sprinkle with the Italian seasoning.
  • Roast 1 3/4 hours until cooked through.

NOTE: You can use Garden Gourmet Italian herbs. When using, whisk into the melted butter before rubbing the chicken.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just a few simple ingredients and you have a simple weeknight meal that tastes so good that I guarantee your family will be begging for this dish all the time because it is so full of flavor! The brown sugar adds a hint of sweetness, but is also one of the key ingredients to the caramelization that makes this chicken so delectably sweet AND savory. The brining before hand and the baking at high temperature adds a tenderness that also helps keep it super juicy.

BRINED GARLIC BROWN SUGAR CHICKEN

BRINE
1/4 cup kosher salt
4 cups warm water

  • Combine the salt and warm water in a shallow baking dish and stir it gently until the salt is dissolved.
  • Add the chicken breasts and let them sit in the mixture to brine for 15 minutes. You can brine for longer, but no longer than 2 hours as the chicken will turn mushy.

SUGAR RUB
4 cloves garlic, FINELY minced
4 tablespoons brown sugar
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper

4 medium sized chicken breasts, pounded to an even 3/4 -1 inch thickness
1 tablespoon butter, melted

  • Remove the chicken breasts from the brine, rinse them with cold water, then pat them dry with some paper towels.
  • Preheat oven to 425°.
  • Place the chicken breasts in a single layer in a large baking dish.
  • Brush both sides evenly with the melted butter.
  • Combine brown sugar, minced garlic, salt and pepper into a well combined rub.
  • Rub each chicken breast.
  • Bake for 18 -20 minutes, or until surface is golden and internal temperature is 165°.
  • Serve warm, garnished with parsley, if desired.

NOTE: Substituting boneless pork chops for the chicken is a tasty alternative.

COOKING THURSDAY ~ ZUCCHINI CRISP aka MOCK APPLE CRISP ~ BLOG 365.288A

ZUCCHINI CRISP aka MOCK APPLE CRISP

ZUCCHINI MIX
7 cups zucchini peeled, cubed, remove excess seeds
⅓ cup lemon juice
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

  • Preheat oven to 375°.
  • Grease a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
  • In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients; toss to coat.
  • In a large skillet, over medium-low heat, cook zucchini and lemon juice 10 minutes until zucchini is JUST tender.
  • Remove from heat and cool.

CRISP TOPPING
1 cup PACKED brown sugar
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup WONDRA flour
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 teaspoon QUALITY cinnamon

  • Whisk together the flour and sugar in a large bowl.
  • Cut in cold butter until mixture is crumbly and resembles pea size coarse crumbs.
  • Stir 1/2 cup of the flour mixture into zucchini, stirring to coat well.
  • Press 1/2 of remaining crust mixture into baking dish.
  • Spread zucchini mixture over crust in pan.
  • Crumble remaining crumb mix over top and sprinkle with cinnamon.
  • Bake 35-40 minutes until golden brown.
  • Serve warm with ice cream. Enjoy!


HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY with MENUS & RECIPE LINKS week 41 of 2026 ~ BLOG 365.285

Be sure to join us at Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

 I’m still REALLY into the “BER months mindset and can’t believe that SEPTEMBER is over and it’s already half way through OCTOBER!! I’m REALLY glad you’re here Pumpkin month 🙂 And I’m old school enough to say Happy Columbus day, without him making a wrong turn we may not be here on this continent.

LAST WEEK RECAPPED

GOOD MORNING sweet friends! I hope you had a wonderful week and even better weekend! Ours was quite good.

MONDAY~SUNDAY On Saturday I deep cleaned our closet to set aside a few items for a bazaar table my girlfriend and I are doing at a craft fair and bazaar in November, I changed the bedding for new season, washed all the fall jackets and sweatshirts as well as bleached the whites and did 5 other loads to play catch up. Sunday was spent prepping food trays for the going away party as well as watching some football.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE

It finally rained quite a bit on Friday and we received our first frost advisories this weekend. The temperatures came down over 15 degrees overnight. This week is supposed to be in the 60’s during the day and high 30’s at night. It’s definitely flannel layer weather most of the time! But, we also have a couple high 70’s forecasted this week and then back to the regularly programmed frost warnings and layer weather.

TO DO, APPOINTMENTS, DVR/TV & PROJECTS

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS, TRAVEL,  APPOINTMENTS, MENUS & DVR/TV
  • LAUNDRY & CLEANING ALL done and caught up…
  • GROCERIES & ERRANDS not sure yet
  • PROJECTS & TRAVELS Things are still up in the air for many reasons, but we have high hopes…
  • THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY family and friends laughing and having fun… seeing old friends and making new memories… experimental recipes that work out… cozy blankets and good book with a cup of hot tea on a cold frosty evening…

READING TIME

I started Alice Hoffman’s THE PROBABLE FUTURE. It reads a lot like Practical Magic, which I just rewatched and am looking forward to watching Practical Magic II soon.

FUNNIES

MENU PLANS

BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀

 10/12 MONDAY 10/13 TUESDAY 10/14 WEDNESDAY
10/15 THURSDAY
 10/16 FRIDAY 10/17 SATURDAY 10/18 SUNDAY
DINNER
TERIYAKI CHICKEN STIR FRY with BLACK PEPPER YAKISAOBA NOODLES
Heather’s first official TACO TUESDAY as the new POC/OWNER
ON THE ROAD?
or TBD
ON THE ROAD?
or TBD
ON THE ROAD?
or TBD
ON THE ROAD? 
or TBD
ON THE ROAD? or TBD
 DESSERT
 

FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA

This was an interesting camera week. 🙂 Yesterday we had a going away party for David, the now previous owner of The Offyce where we spend a good deal of time and I do some of their shopping. My girlfriend, Diana has managed the place for 15 years for him as he lives out of town and only came down every 2 weeks. It really has become a “family” hang out in this small town. David may be retiring, but the “new” owner, Diana’s daughter, Heather is even more like family to us. So while we are losing David, we are gaining Heather… Diana had this rendition of the building and layout framed for David to remember it all by. 

We had to go to the “BIG” city last Friday and stopped by a favorite recycling place to see what was new. I did like the humor about falling nuts in the back area They really were BIG nuts and might have actually hurt someone. On the way we stopped in a neighboring town for lunch and I found this old Packard showroom and gas station that I had never noticed before in all these years.

You may remember a few weeks ago I posted pictures of a VERY OLD dilapidated hotel in a neighboring town that was red tagged due to a lack of structural integrity (I mean most of the roof is literally in the basement!) as well as the big sign that was erected to have the mayor removed. Well, both have become a real source of MAJOR debate in the community. Someone has made yet another political statement about the town leadership. While the “KKK” reference is eye catching, it is inappropriate I believe and no direct reference to what is happening here.

On Wednesday some girlfriends and I went to town for lunch and made the mistake of taking a side road where we were held up by the train for 30 minutes as it hooked up multiple cars headed to Timber Town. I did get a couple great pictures of a golfing Pink Panther and the KoolAid man though 🙂

INSPIRATIONS

LIFE TIP

HOMEMAKING / COOKING TIP

COOKING THURSDAY RECIPES COMING UP THIS WEEK

  • ZUCCHINI CRISP aka MOCK APPLE PIE CRISP
  • NELLIES’S ROAST CHICKEN aka GRAM’S TRASH DAY ROAST CHICKEN

COOKING THURSDAY RECIPE LINKS FROM LAST WEEK