HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY, RECIPE LINKS & MENU ~ week 24 OF 2026 ~ BLOG 365.166
Be sure to join Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom
LAST WEEK RECAPPED
MONDAY ~ FRIDAY
- Monday was Trivia Night, but the day began with a ton of paperwork to end the fiscal year for the Eagles and general clean-up around home.
- Tuesday was Taco Tuesday followed by a couple VA appointments, car wash, errands and a quick meeting.
- Wednesday we had a leisurely morning with a quick lunch, hardware shopping for the new supplies we needed to fix the misters and then some antiquing while we waited to pick up an elderly friend from the airport on Wednesday before taking her to dinner. It turned into a bit of a major fiasco. Her flight was delayed twice and then they lost her checked luggage which contained her blood pressure medicine and jewelry. And yes we talked to her about NEVER putting those things in a check bag! Long story short we didn’t get home until almost 10PM and her bag FINALLY showed up on Sunday and they delivered it to her house.
- Thursday and Friday were a blur of errands and yard work.
SATURDAY I took a girlfriend out for lunch and we went to a couple of estate sales and to a favorite winery that is going out of business where we split a case of wine, some pizza pans and wine glasses. It’s sad to see a favorite place go out of business 🙁
SUNDAY YAY! 🙂 A day of relaxation and a birthday party open house for a friend. Though I did get the bed changed, a load of dishes and 3 loads of laundry done as well as hand watering the garden multiple times because of the heat alert.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
THE WEATHER OUTSIDE
We have an active advisory for a HEAT WAVE with triple digits to begin the week! We should be down to high 80’s by week’s end. We’ve had a dry winter and are also on an active fire ban. Our little town had their first brush fire yesterday that they were able to get a hold on quickly, but it’s scary!
TO DO, APPOINTMENTS, DVR/TV & PROJECTS
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THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS, TRAVEL, APPOINTMENTS, MENUS & DVR/TV
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READING TIME
MARSH MYSTICS Book #30 of The MISS FORTUNE SERIES by Jana DeLeon
FUNNIES
MENU PLANS
BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀
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6/15 MONDAY
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6/16 TUESDAY
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6/17 WEDNESDAY
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6/18 THURSDAY |
6/19 FRIDAY
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6/20 SATURDAY
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6/21 SUNDAY
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DINNER
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TRIVIA NIGHT
CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own
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YUMMY BALLS & CHEESY CORN PUDDING
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CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own
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PEACH GLAZED CHICKEN
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CRUNCHY CHICKEN SALAD
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CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own
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LAMB CHOPS & GLAZED CARROTS
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DESSERT
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BOSTON CREAM PIE CHEESECAKE
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FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA
For years I’ve been waiting for them to paint Herbette and they finally did. In the beginning she was pretty and always done up appropriately for holidays and then she deteriorated BADLY for many years. They have finally re-painted her and planted her with pretty flowers.
My calla lillies and African violets are blooming really well. I can’t believe they are already baling summer hay.
When we went to pick up a friend from the airport we had time to kill when her plane was delayed and did a little antiquing where I found this super unusual glass tray made out of plates. And I’ve always liked this little town water tower. The neighboring town has a lot of Simpson’s murals. And these silly ducks are all over the airport.
INSPIRATIONS
LIFE TIP
HOMEMAKING / COOKING TIP
COOKING THURSDAY RECIPES COMING UP THIS WEEK
- REFER PICKLES
- SWISS STEAK
- ALFREDO CORN
- BANANA BREAD CINNAMON ROLLS
COOKING THURSDAY RECIPE LINKS FROM LAST WEEK
WEEKLY FEATURED PARTY LINKS
SILENT SUNDAY ~ BLOG 365.165
SATURDAY COFFEE ~ BLOG 365.164
TGIF ~ BLOG 365.163
COOKING THURSDAY ~ STUFFED BURGERS & GRAVY ~ BLOG 365.162C
You know how I like to find old recipe boxes and recreate the recipes? Well, here’s another keeper! It’s simple, hearty and will please the entire family. I have tweaked it ever so slightly to bring it into the 21st century 🙂
STUFFED BURGERS & GRAVY
1 pound of ground beef
1-2 to 2/3 + 1 cup WHOLE milk
FRESH ground tri-color pepper
3 green onions, minced
Prepared stove top stuffing (flavor of choice)
1 10.5-ounce can of creamy condensed soup (flavor of choice – cheddar cheese, mushroom…)
2 tablespoons of ketchup
1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
- Preheat oven 350°.
- Combine ground beef and 1/2 cup in a mixing bowl. If too dry add a bit more milk a little at a time until you have the perfect consistency.
- Add pepper and onions, mixing well.
- Divide ground beef mixture into six even pieces and flatten each into a patty.
- Form stuffing into balls and place in the center of each burger.
- Mold the ground beef around the stuffing until it resembles a baseball and stuffing is sealed into the center of the burger bundle.
- Place the burgers in a 9X13-inch baking dish.
- Whisk together the remaining milk, soup, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce until smooth.
- Pour the soup mixture over top of the burgers.
- Bake for 1 ½ to 2 hours.
- Serve with mashed potatoes or pasta noodles.
COOKING THURSDAY ~ MARRY ME CHICKEN DIP ~ BLOG 365.162B
I LOVE to make Marry Me Chicken for guests, but even better is this dip version! Marry Me Chicken Dip is creamy, rich, cheesy, and packed with some serious flavor!! The tender chicken pieces and sun-dried tomatoes give this recipe its OOMPH. It’s the PERFECT, yet an easy to make party appetizer that comes together quickly and disappears fast. Great for EVERY game day or holiday.
MARRY ME CHICKEN DIP
1 ½ cups rotisserie chicken pieces, small chopped
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
1 ½ cups FINELY shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup FINELY shredded Parmesan cheese
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained well and chopped **see note
1 cup FRESH chopped spinach (optional)
FRESH chopped basil for garnish, optional
- Preheat the oven to 350°.
- In a large bowl, mix together the cream cheese and sour cream until smooth using a hand mixer.
- Add in 1 cup of the Mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, onion powder, and salt, mixing until well combined.
- Fold in the sun-dried tomatoes, spinach and shredded chicken until evenly combined.
- Spread mixture into medium baking dish (round or 9×9 inch) or large cast iron skillet and smooth into an even layer.
- Top with the remaining ½ cup mozzarella.
- Bake for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
- Broil for 1 minute, or until the cheese on top is golden brown.
- Garnish with extra sun-dried tomatoes and FRESH chopped basil before serving.
- Serve with crackers, toasted bread pieces or tortilla chips.
NOTES:
- Roasted Red Peppers substitute really well for sun dried tomatoes in a pinch.
- The dip makes a wonderful sandwich when served on croissants.
COOKING THURSDAY ~ SWISS CHICKEN DIANE aka POOR MAN’S CHICKEN DIANE ~ BLOG 365.162A
Swiss chicken is made with a classic French daughter sauce, Chicken Veloute, made of heavy cream, butter and FRESH lemon juice. It is commonly used with poultry and delicate white meat dishes. I’ve adapted and combined 3 recipes; Swiss Chicken, Stroganoff and Steak Diane to create this “Swiss Chicken Diane” recipe.
SWISS CHICKEN DIANE aka POOR MAN’S CHICKEN DIANE
2 + 2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon avocado oil
4 4-6 ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 shallot, FINELY minced
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper
4 slices BABY Swiss cheese
1 tablespoon WONDRA
1-2 tablespoons heavy cream or sour cream
8 ounces Beech mushrooms, trimmed
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon Dijon
4 tablespoons Cream Sherry
1/2-3/4 cup homemade chicken broth
2-3 tablespoons FRESH chopped parsley + more for garnish
Prepared mashed potatoes, pasta or stuffing for serving
- Heat heavy skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add 2 tablespoons butter and avocado oil.
- Generously season chicken with FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper.
- Saute chicken 2-3 minutes per side.
- Set chicken aside, top with cheese pieces and tent with foil to keep warm.
- Add shallots, cooking a minute or too.
- Whisk in WONDRA until smooth.
- Whisk in lemon juice and Dijon.
- Add mushrooms and parsley, cooking 3-4 minutes.
- Add cream sherry and chicken broth, whisking until smooth.
- Remove from heat and whisk in remaining butter and cream.
- Return chicken to pan and serve immediately.
- Serve over prepared mashed potatoes, pasta or stuffing.
WORDLESS WEDNESDAY ~ BLOG 365.161
TRIVIA TUESDAY ~ BLOG 365.160
HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY ~ MENU & RECIPE LINKS ~ week 23 of 2026 ~ BLOG 365.159
Be sure to join Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom
LAST WEEK RECAPPED
MONDAY~THURSDAY It was a week that began with appointments EVERY day making it for a REALLY busy week. I broke up all the shopping for us, the Eagles and the Offyce, doing a little each day whilw in town. Had to have the roofers back to finish up some spots they missed and clean out the gutters of roofing nails and silt.
FRIDAY & SATURDAY Our town normally does a city wide garage sale the 2nd weekend of June. This year they changed it to the 1st weekend. Changing it made for an even busier time for us as another favorite city 20 miles away does theirs the 1st weekend (their normal weekend) so we had the best of both worlds 🙂 I was able to get a few really cool things for Christmas (yes I said the “C” word)!
The Catholic church participates every year and I always find some cool things there. I found a couple things I wanted in a small tote and when I asked the guy working the area how much, he said the price was for the WHOLE tote!! Boy, I made out on that one as I only wanted 3 items out of it that would have cost me the same amount as buying the whole tote and I’m able to donate back 95% of it for their next sale. 🙂 And I found some card making goodies for my mom too. And hubby picked up a really cool small circular saw that was brand new!!!.
Later each day I also did a serious deep clean on my closet and bedroom. I was able to adhere to my garage sale/antiquing rule. For ever item I bring in, 2 have to go out! I have a tote and a couple bags in the back of my car to drop off later today. I also got ALL the laundry done including ALL the towels and bedding.
SUNDAY I was able to get a serious relax day in! I read off and on and we went to lunch with a friend before I tackled straightening my desk area.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
THE WEATHER OUTSIDE
The weather this week is seriously bi-polar. Last night was 39° and the heat actually kicked on this morning for a bit. Today is 60° and raining which is supposed to continue into tomorrow, but by Friday we’re supposed to be 80° and 97° by Sunday!
TO DO, APPOINTMENTS, DVR/TV & PROJECTS
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THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS, TRAVEL, APPOINTMENTS, MENUS & DVR/TV
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READING TIME
I finished book 3 of the Kerry Lonsdale series I was reading and book 4 doesn’t come out until August so I started the SECRET LIBRARIAN by Soraya M Lane.
FUNNIES
MENU PLANS
BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀
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6/8 MONDAY
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6/9 TUESDAY
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6/10 WEDNESDAY
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6/11 THURSDAY |
6/12 FRIDAY
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6/13 SATURDAY
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6/14 SUNDAY
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DINNER
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CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own
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BAKED PORK CHOPS with DRESSING & GLAZED CARROTS
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OLIVE GARDEN (picking up a friend at the airport)
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MEATBALL GRINDERS
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KUNG FU CHICKEN & FRIED RICE
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CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP
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TAPAS for a friend’s birthday party aka OPEN HOUSE
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DESSERT
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PEACH ANGEL FOOD SNACK CAKE
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FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA
There are so many fun photos this week. My garden is beginning to thrive and I just love the frilly carrot tops, tomato blossoms and how the calla lilies continue to come back in the middle of my beans no matter how many times I transplant them! Last Friday’s sunset was absolutely amazingly gorgeous! Turkeys were absolutely everywhere this weekend while we were out going to rural garage sales and my African violet is looking wonderful with 8 blossoms beginning to open and stand at attention!
INSPIRATIONS
LIFE TIP
HOMEMAKING / COOKING TIP
COOKING THURSDAY RECIPES COMING UP THIS WEEK
- MARRY ME CHICKEN DIP
- STUFFED BURGER’S & GRAVY
- SWISS CHICKEN DIANE aka POOR MAN’S CHICKEN DIANE
COOKING THURSDAY RECIPE LINKS FROM LAST WEEK
WEEKLY FEATURED PARTY LINKS
- TUSCAN CHICKEN PASTA SALAD
- BROWNED BUTTER TOASTED COCONUT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
- PAN SEARED CHICKEN in HERB WINE SAUCE
