Christmas Fills our House with JOY

This year I decided that the mantel needed a little change.  I always ooh and ahh over Christmas decorations I see in magazines and on Pinterest, but year after year I have been getting out our decorations and putting them in almost the same exact spot every year.  This year I decided I was going to do it different and that I wasn't going to spend a lot of money even though I was changing it up.

The only new decoration is the JOY, it was so simple to make and it cost less that $5.  The other items are decorations that I would have normally put somewhere else.  I am very happy with the way it turned out!

Materials:

• Wooden Letter "J"
• Wooden Letter "Y"
• Grapevine Wreath
• Paint- I used one called Apple Spice

You can use any size letters.  I used 10" letters and an 8" Wreath

Follow the Magical Moms on Facebook and Pinterest for weekly menu ideas, crafts, and Disney Magic.  

Shake It On- Slow Cooker Garlic Chicken

This is a recipe that isn't really a recipe because I don't measure any of it.  The first time that I made this I had a bulb of garlic that needed to be used so I just went with it from there.  I had seen a few different recipes for 30 or even 40 cloves of garlic and a whole chicken.  But I was seriously scared to try that much so I started out small.  This was not my first time making a whole chicken in the slow cooker, as a matter of fact I cook it that way often.  8 Spice Lemon Chicken, Slow Cooker Rotisserie Chicken, and BBQ Rubbed Slow Cooker Chicken are a few of my family's favorites.  All of these recipes are incredibly easy and they are sure to please even the pickiest eaters!

Ingredients:

• 15 Garlic Cloves (or 1 bulb)
• 1/2 of an Onion
• Salt
• Pepper
• Paprika
• Rosemary
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 6 lb Whole Chicken
• White Wine

Serves 6-8

This fed my family of  TWICE!!!

Rinse and pat dry the chicken.  Peel garlic, slice onion, and place in the bottom of the slow cooker.  Sprinkle all sides of the chicken with the spices.  Place chicken in slow cooker breast side up.  

 Place a couple tablespoons of butter under the skin of the chicken.  Place about a half a cup of white wine in the bottom of the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Chicken will be so moist and delicious!  It will fall apart!

Follow the Magical Moms on Facebook and Pinterest for weekly menu ideas, crafts, and Disney Magic.  

Garlic Ranch Chicken Kabobs

I have been trying to do some serious catching up blogging.  Summer vacation is certainly keeping us busy around here.  So not only am I way behind in blogging (I must have 30 posts that I am working on!  YIKES!) but we have been experimenting with lots of SUPER quick and EASY dinners.  Summer baseball has taken over our week nights but we love it!  This recipe was part of the week when I accepted the challenge to keep the oven off...I took the challenge more for simplifying dinner than to not heat the whole house.  But either way the week was a success! Obviously, we have been in a big hurry around here...I only had time to snap one picture of the chicken.  Sorry that it had to be one of the raw chicken... It looked much more appetizing after it was cooked.  Easy and delicious

Ingredients:

• Minced Garlic
• Ranch Dressing
• Parsley
• Boneless Chicken Breasts (cut into large cubes)

Combine the first three ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Pour over chicken and marinate for about 45 minutes.  Place chicken pieces about an inch apart in skewers.  Remember if you are using wooden skewers you need to soak them in water for at least 30 minutes before you place them on the grill to prevent them from burning.  Cook on grill until chicken is cooked thoroughly.  

Greek Chicken Pitas

Last week Tracy had a Pampered Chef party and she raved about the Greek chicken pitas that they made. They had used the Pampered Chef Greek Rub and the Large Baker and cooked the chicken in the microwave. It sounded so yummy, but since I had neither the large baker or Greek rub, I set out on a mission to find an alternative way to make this dish.

I figured I could just use my corningware dish in the microwave. It's microwave safe and large enough to hold a few chicken breasts. I also figured I'd make a Greek rub with some fresh herbs and lemon, that way there's no sugar or food starch (both ingredients in the prepared version).

Greek Rub
Ingredients:

- 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil

- 1Tbsp. Chopped fresh rosemary
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp. minced garlic
- 2 tsp. lemon juice
- 1/2 Tbsp. kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper

Mix all ingredients together. I am only cooking this for me and my husband, so I just made 1 1/2 chicken breasts, you may want to double.

Place your chicken breasts in your dish and spread the rub evenly over each piece. Let it marinate in the refrigerator for 15 minutes or longer. Set your microwave oven to 50% power and cook for 20 minutes or until internal temp is 165 degrees.

While the chicken is cooking, go ahead and prepare the tzatziki sauce. 

Tzatziki Sauce

Ingredients:

- 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt

- 1/4 cup low fat sour cream

- 1/2 cucumber, seeded but not peeled

- 1 1/2 tsp. minced garlic

- juice of 1/2 lemon

- 1 tsp. dill weed

- 1 tsp. vinegar

- 1 tsp. Kosher salt

- 1/2 tsp. black pepper

Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Store in fridge until ready to serve.

When chicken is fully cooked, cut/ shred with kitchen scissors or a knife. Warm whole wheat pita pockets in an oven until they are warm with a slight crisp. Serve chicken in pitas with sauce, feta cheese, red onions and tomatoes, or whatever toppings you like:)

Grilled Steak and Spinach Tacos

This is a perfect summer meal because you can eat it with the steak at more room temperature than straight off the grill (but eat it however you like).  That makes if not feel like such a heavy meal.  The pepper jack cheese adds just the right amount of spice and the tomatoes keep it cool!  Just a few basic ingredients for a delicious dinner.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds of Flank Steak
• 1 1/2  Tablespoons Montreal Steak Seasoning
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire Sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic
• 8-10 Flour Tortillas (taco size)
• 12 Sliced Cherry Tomatoes
• About 5 Cups of Baby Spinach (1 6 oz bag)
• 1 1/2 Cups of Shredded Pepper Jack Cheese
• Diced Red Onion (optional)

Serves 4-5 (two tacos each)

In a ziploc bag combine olive oil, Montreal steak seasoning, and minced garlic.  Add meat and marinate for about an hour.  Grill steak to desired temperature.  Let rest (uncovered- it's ok for the steak to cool a bit) for about 5 minutes, then cut in to strips.  Layer a handful of baby spinach on the tortilla, add steak strips, pepper jack cheese, slice tomatoes, and red onion (optional).  And there you go a PERFECT summer dinner!

This recipe was featured on the Magical Moms' July Menu.  Be sure to check out all of our monthly menus


Lots of AMAZING recipes on the Magical Moms' June Menu, Marvelous May Menu, Appetizing April Menu, and March Madness Menu.

Perfect Picnic Chicken Salad

I decided to take the night off from cooking on Friday. I still needed to run to the grocery store for a few items so I picked up a rotisserie chicken from Wegmans prepared foods section. We ate half of it for dinner and I used the other half to make chicken salad for lunch on Saturday.
Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup mayo
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 1/2 teaspoons sweet relish
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 1 hard boiled egg diced (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar
• pepper to taste
• 1/2 rotisserie chicken cubed

 ***makes enough for 4 sandwiches**
Mix all ingredients, except egg, together in a bowl. After they are all mixed together add in the diced hard boiled egg. I do this last because I don't want it to get smashed.

Serve chicken salad on croissant or toasted whole wheat bread. This is perfect for lunch or GREAT on a hot summer night when you don't want to eat hot food. BTW I think that the chicken salad is SO much better when it sits for a few hours in the fridge. The flavors mix together nicely!

This recipe was featured in Two Magical Moms March Menu Madness.  Check out the entire menu and try out some of our other YUMMY recipes!

Simply Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff

This is one of the easiest and tastiest recipes I make. I love slow cooker recipes because I just put the ingredients in and several hours later, we're ready for dinner!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. or so cubed beef
• 1 can golden mushroom soup (it really needs to be the golden to taste so good)
• 3/4 can beef broth (you really want the same amount as the mushroom soup so I pour into empty soup can to measure)
• 1 packet Lipton onion soup mix
• 1 block cream cheese (less fat is ok but do not use fat free- it doesn't melt and incorporate into sauce)
• I also added a couple handfuls of sliced mushrooms because I had them on hand.

Directions:

Place all ingredients EXCEPT cream cheese in slow cooker and cook on low 6-7 hours. Bring cream cheese to room temperature and put in slow cooker the last hour of cooking. Stir to incorporate the cream cheese into the sauce. Serve over cooked egg noodles or rice. Yum!

This recipe was featured on our Appetizing April Menu. Check out the entire April menu for a variety of dinner ideas!