Catz in the Kitchen

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Weekly Menu for the Week of Sep 13

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We're nearly halfway through this month and I cannot believe it. It really feels like the month just started, but when I wandered into Target the other day, all of the Halloween stuff was out and I just wasn't ready. I feel like there are two categories of people. Those who cannot wait for fall (like, dying by mid-August) and those who always want more summer. Usually I'm itching for fall. But the past few years, I've just been wanting more summer.

We're actually away on our family's annual fall vacation, so I'm sure when I get back I'll be more in the mood for the season. But this week, we're just kicking back. We're going to bike ride, read books, take walks, and swim. We're visiting Central Oregon (as is our annual tradition) and I just love it down here.

Even though we're on vacation, I still have a menu for ya. I know how helpful these are especially in these busy seasons of back to school when it seems like we're all desperately trying to find our new routines again. I got your back!

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Peanut Butter & Chocolate Oat Muffins

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This yummy recipe for peanut butter & chocolate oat muffins is a great healthy snack, and can be easily adapted to be gluten-free or paleo!

Hello, back to school time! Did I just write that? Say it isn't so. In some ways, 2021 has felt longer than 2020. Is that just my opinion or do you feel the same way?

My kids are always hungry. Please tell me that this isn't just my kids. I never used to have this problem. When Grace and Eden were younger and it was just the two of them, they ate their 3 meals a day and maybe a snack to hold them over till dinner was ready. Christian and Ruby are always snacky which has totally rubbed off on the other kids! That's one of the reasons why I think it is important to have healthy snack meals on hand instead of just, you know...chips.

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Oat Muffins recipe

I mean, we all like chips. I don't buy them a ton - they're more of an occasional summer treat or vacation snack. The rest of the time I just try to keep granola bars and lots of fruit on hand.

Or muffins!

Some muffins I feel lean towards breakfast territory, but I almost always feel like muffins are just the perfect snack. They've got a little starch - so a bit more filling. They usually taste sweet - ranging from dessert sweet or like these Peanut Butter & Chocolate Oat Muffins which are a little healthier and don't have much added sugar.

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Oat Muffins closeup
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Weekly Menu for the Week of Sept 6

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Hi, friends! It's me, Chels! I know it's been awhile since you've heard from me what with having two broken wrists and all. I can officially tell you that I am out of my wrist casts and on my way to getting my full range of motion back - which isn't quite there. I still have a road ahead of me. I can't lift much and certain turning motions are really hard for me to navigate, so I find myself having to ask for help. I need to give a shout out to Josh, though. I know we don't post a lot on the blog during these past 6+ weeks, but Josh did a great job of trying to get a few things posted and just generally making sure that the blog was running smoothly; all while doing his other job + taking care of the whole family and making sure I got a shower every day!

We actually (he and I) just got back from a much needed vacation. We ran down to a resort we love in Texas to get a little r&r, which was exactly what we needed. It gave me a chance to get a feel for how my wrists were doing without having to jump back into real life right away, and it gave us a break from reality a bit. We took in a concert, drove down to Waco one day (here's the post we wrote when we went down there in 2017), and laid by the pool in the hot sun. It was perfect.

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Classic Brownies

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If you're looking for an easy, foolproof recipe for the chocolatey, crumbly, gooey goodness of classic brownies, even kids can make these!

Well, originally there was a simple plan with these brownies. Our kids are big Food Network fans (as are we), having basically grown up on some of the shows (I'm looking at you Chopped, The Great Food Truck Race, and The Pioneer Woman!), and they really like kid's cookbooks! (In fact, we did a post last summer about our kids' favorite cookbooks.) So, when we were offered the opportunity to check out an advance copy of Food Network Magazine's new cookbook, The Big, Fun Kids Baking Book, we didn't hesitate!

Classic Brownies

So, like I said, there was a simple plan. It was for Chels and the kids to make this together, enjoying a little quality baking time, letting the kids do as much of the work as possible, and learning along the way, of course. The kids identified about five recipes they were especially interested in making, ingredients were purchased, plans laid...and then Chels broke both her wrists in an accident on Eden's hoverboard.

Classic Brownies recipe
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Chipless Nachos

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This easy recipe for chipless nachos is a little healthier than the standard variety, and full of bright colors and smoky, fresh flavors!

This recipe has been on Chels' "to-write" list for over a year! We tested it out multiple times, tried it with different proteins and toppings, and with different cooking methods (oven vs grill), finally got it just the way we wanted it, photographed it, edited the photos...and then Chels had her accident, which you probably already heard about from Instagram or from the Weekly Menu a couple of weeks ago. It's tough to type with no hands, so clearly she hasn't been able to get this recipe for chipless nachos out!

Chipless Nachos grilled

It's going to be another month or so before Chels has her hands back, and this is a great summer recipe, so you'll just have to settle for me typing it up instead! I'll my best to get it right (and it will help that Chels can still proof it!).

Chipless Nachos baked

The basic concept here is very straightforward - replace the chips in a nacho with something else, preferably something fun and healthy. Chels' idea was to use a bag of sweet mini peppers - if you haven't had sweet mini peppers before, they are a lot like bell peppers, but smaller, a little sweeter, and just vibrant and beautiful. Our whole family loves them!

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Weekly Menu for the Week of July 19

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Weekly Menu for the Week of July 19

Well, if you missed it last week, Chels' wrists are still broken. The kids and I really had intended to get a post up this past week - we have a number of recipes that have already been photographed - just need to get them written and out the door! We'll try again this coming week. Gracie was busy recipe-testing a couple of desserts from a new cookbook today, so we will be selecting one of those to share with you soon...

I'm going to share with you again this week some of the wonderful meals friends and family have been so kind to drop by (or at least close takes from our archives!), including a couple of "meals out" that we slipped in on Saturday for good measure. Chels was going stir-crazy after eight days of sitting in the house, and decided she wanted to get away to the Oregon Coast for a day. We brought lots of cushions and pillows, a sling for her arm, pain meds, and found some activities that required minimal walking (she bruised her tailbone, too!), and absolutely no use of the arms or hands!

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Honey Mustard Drumsticks

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Meals don't get much more kid-friendly than chicken drumsticks. This easy, flavorful recipe for honey mustard drumsticks adds some pizzaz!

When I was younger and still living at home, my parents didn't grill much unless it was fish - which was always cooked beautifully. My mom did however make this really delish chicken dish that involved wings and those baby drumettes that would get baked in a soy sauce marinade that I could never get enough of. I always went for the drumettes over the wings. And if I ever found myself at a backyard barbecue and there happened to bbq chicken there, I was always reaching for the drumsticks!

Honey Mustard Drumsticks

When I think of summer, the top foods that kind of always stand out in my mind are: burgers, popsicles & ice cream, and chicken drumsticks. I think most people like grilled bbq chicken drumsticks - which are great, but I love playing with the flavor profile because they can really hold themselves up to big flavor profiles - it's a bone-in meat that is usually pretty juicy and tender, not to mention one of those most affordable cuts of a chicken.

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Weekly Menu for the Week of June 28

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Happy week leading up to the 4th of July, friends! Okay, can I just talk about our Sunday here in the PNW for a moment? Saturday was 106, it's supposed to be 115 here today, and for Oregon, guys, that's like...400 degrees. My family in Las Vegas would say that's a fairly normal summer day, but it just doesn't usually get that hot here. Portland broke it's all time heat record of 107 yesterday, which was from 1965! Is the rest of summer going to look like this I wonder??

Weekly Menu for the Week of June 28

I'm busy working on putting together more fun summer recipes for you guys - I cannot wait, but until then, you can always take a look at our Grilling Archives for other recipes that are perfect for this season and great for grilling. I'm going to be pulling together a recipe roundup post of our favorite summer recipes soon, so be on the look out for that, too.

Here's what's for dinner this week:

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Curry Ginger Chicken Kabobs

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These curry ginger chicken kabobs are perfect for summer - healthy, fresh, & smokey! If your family loves skewers, give this recipe a whirl!

What do you call food on a stick? Shish kebabs? Kabobs? Kebabs? Skewers? The census on IG the other day was most people (who responded) call them kabobs. But there were a few who messaged me and said they grew up calling them shish-kebabs.

We're going to go with kabobs today. But if you refer to them as skewers or shish-kabobs/kebabs in your home, go on with your bad self!

Curry Ginger Chicken Kabobs

Today, I'm serving you up these flavorful and easy (despite using the blender to make a sauce) curry ginger chicken kabobs. This is a family-friendly, kid-friendly recipe. My kids are ordinary, everyday kids with normal tastebuds, just like most kids. While I have worked hard to cultivate a certain appreciation for foods and flavors, there are still some things my kids don't like. Eden doesn't like cilantro (which is in this recipe - but it's in the sauce). Grace doesn't like avocados. Christian doesn't like parsley, and Ruby doesn't like mustard. I don't like red onions, and Josh doesn't care for mushrooms very much. We all have our things. And that's okay. One of the things I really like doing is using the ingredients we don't like very much and trying to cook them different ways so that maybe I can crack the code. I did this with Brussels sprouts because Josh didn't enjoy them, and now he likes them a lot, when prepared in specific ways.

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