Make-Ahead Tater Tot Casserole

How was your Saturday?

We had a good day babysitting for a friend. We call it baby time. Noah is already asking when we can have baby time again. I totally agree! It was a lot of fun.

For supper tonight, I made a family favorite - Tater Tot Casserole. This is a recipe that's so easy to make but everyone in my family will happily eat it. That's not something that happens around here every day! My kids are pretty good eaters though.

Sometimes I make this with only one can of cream of mushroom soup. A lot of times, it just depends on what I have in the pantry. This is one of those meals that are totally customizable. You could easily add onions to the ground beef or add additional spices. For my family, I like to keep it simple. It's really delicious. 

Don't the golden tater tots and melty cheese look glorious? This is a definite must-try recipe!

Yield: 12 servingsAuthor: Jennifer SmithPin it

Easy Make-Ahead Tater Tot Casserole

This family favorite is easy to put together and can be made ahead and refrigerated until it's time to bake.

prep time: 15 MINScook time: 45 MINStotal time: 60 mins

ingredients:

• 2 lbs ground beef hamburger meat
• 2 (10 ounce) cans cream of mushroom soup
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
• 1 (2 lb) package frozen tater tots

instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Brown ground beef and drain well. 
3. Mix ground beef and mushroom soup then spread into greased 13X9 casserole dish.
4. Sprinkle cheese on top of ground beef. Top with tater tots. 
5. Bake uncovered 45 minutes. 

notes

Serve with sour cream and/or ketchup.

http://www.gracelikerainblog.com/2018/03/make-ahead-tater-tot-casserole.html

Don't forget to pin this recipe so that you can try it later!

Have you ever made Tater Tot Casserole? Did you add-in anything else to it? What do you serve it with?

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Mason's Pirate Birthday

Last night, we went to Mason's Pirate-themed 12th birthday party. Mason has always been a huge Pirates of the Caribbean fan. Even when he was a kid, he would carry around a straw as a sword. He also had a Captain Hook cake at one of his past birthday parties. I even have a picture of it! I also found this picture where Mason is carrying around one of his infamous straws when he was a kid but this time it was a "wand" instead of a "sword."

Mason had a feast fit for a pirate. I wish I'd taken more pictures of the food because it was all set up so cute with these labels. One of them was (gold)fish and chips. Another one was golden (chicken) nuggets. 

Mason's cake was really neat with an edible image on it and buttercream frosting. YUM! There was also ice cream and cupcakes. 

We had a fun evening celebrating Mason's birthday and visiting with everyone. Can't wait until next year when he's a teenager! Eek!

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In My Humble Opinion

In My Humble Opinion ... rule breakers in the school parking lot

Some parents can't follow the rules in the car rider line

Do you have kids that you have to take or pick up from school? If so, you might need to vent about this topic too.

When I have to drive Noah to school in the morning, there is a specific traffic pattern that drivers are supposed to follow for the car rider line where you drive in the drive-thru line and wait until you're in front of the school before your child can exit the vehicle under the watchful eye of the staff. If you're not going through the car rider line, the policy is that you must park your car in a designated spot and walk with your child across the crosswalk to the sidewalk. But there are many MANY drivers who do not do this. They just pull into the parking lot and let their kid out and then drive off.

To the school's credit, they have sent out several reminder letters to all parents about the parking lot policy. It's not that hard to follow the rules. All the kids know the rules. What kind of example are you setting for your child when you're not even willing to follow the rules? To me, there is no excuse for this behavior.

Sure, the car rider line takes a few minutes. Sure, you have to wait your turn. But the safety of YOUR OWN kids is at stake here. Is it going to take an accident to get these parents' attention? It makes no sense to me. None.

Faith in Humanity: 


Now it's your turn. Who can relate to the car rider line at the schools? Tell me your worst experience in the car rider line in the comments.

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Entryway Makeover Sneak Peek

Over the last few months, I've been changing up some things in my entryway. I have a beautiful console cabinet that I use to display my crystal and a small portion of my elephant collection, but the top of the cabinet needed a change.

I want to put together a whole post about how I freshened things up but for now, here's a sneak peek at the new look.

You can find the beautiful carved nesting boxes here.

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Wordless Wednesday - Emily's School Style

I originally called this post Wordless Wednesday, but I think it's just too hard to stay silent! Any other suggestions for a snazzy name for this type of blog post?

Emily's school style has evolved since she's gotten a little older. She used to let me pick out her clothes, but those days are over. Emily prefers clothing that is simple in design and easy to wear. She's a big fan of Converse shoes, and particularly the high-tops. 

We were shopping online for clothes the other night and Emily decided to put together an outfit for you. This would be perfect for wearing to school or hanging out on the weekends. 

Would you wear this outfit?

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Make-Ahead Lasagna

Today was one of those days. It was rainy and gloomy and I felt it all day.  On most mornings during the week, Noah and I walk to the bus stop that's around the corner from our house. When it's sunny out, the sidewalk on our side of the street is in the sun and the sidewalk on the other side of the street is in the shade. We walk on the sunny side - I always tell Noah that I prefer the sunny side of life. This morning, Noah wanted to know where the sunny side of life was. It was nowhere to be found.

Since it was still rainy and drizzly this afternoon, I drove to the bus stop to wait for Noah's bus so that he wouldn't have to walk in the rain. (I did the same for Emily, but she gets home about an hour earlier than Noah.) When we pulled into the garage, Noah asked me if there was anything he could help me with. Even though it was a gloomy day, he still wanted to help. So, Noah helped me make a lasagna after school this afternoon. 

This lasagna recipe is super easy to put together. It uses no-bake lasagna noodles, jarred spaghetti sauce, and ricotta. 

I thought Noah did a great job helping. We made quite a bit of a mess but it was worth it to spend some time with Noah and learn some valuable life lessons. 

Want to know my secret to using jarred spaghetti sauce and getting a homemade taste? Have you ever heard of McCormick Perfect Pinch seasoning? It's a combination of classic Italian herbs like oregano, thyme, and basil. You can find it at any grocery store. I add a little to the sauce then shake a bit more over the top. I also add a little more Parmesan cheese on the top before baking. 

I thought Noah's lasagna turned out just wonderfully. I think he was even impressed with himself. 

Look at how handsome and proud he is! He likes his lasagna with a slice of cheese toast. 

Here's Noah's recipe. If you try it, Noah wants you to let us know how it turns out for you.

Yield: 12 servingsAuthor: Jennifer SmithPin it

Make-Ahead Lasagna

Having guests over for dinner? You can make this recipe in advance and just pop it in the oven before your guests arrive. It's delicious and hearty and a sure crowd-pleaser. Serve with breadsticks and a side salad.

prep time: 30 MINScook time: 1 hour and 15 MINStotal time: 1 hours and 45 mins

ingredients:

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 2 jars spaghetti sauce
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 20 ounces ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 12-15 no-cook lasagna noodles
• 6 cups mozzarella cheese

instructions

1. In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until browned; drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce. In a large bowl, combine eggs, ricotta, Parmesan, and pepper.
2. Spread 1 cup meat sauce into a greased 13X9 inch baking dish. Layer with 4-5 noodles, half the ricotta mixture, 1 cup meat sauce, and 1 cup mozzarella. Repeat layers. Top with remaining noodles, meat sauce, and mozzarella. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.
3. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour. Uncover and bake 10-15 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. 

notes

Lasagna can be baked immediately.

http://www.gracelikerainblog.com/2018/02/make-ahead-lasagna.html

Do you prefer lasagna with ricotta or cottage cheese? Clearly, I'm in the ricotta camp. 

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So Ready for Spring

We had a warmer weather day here in Oklahoma today. That was a welcome change from the freezing rain and sleet we had last week. 

This afternoon, I got out and went to check on all the daffodils and they're still making progress. It doesn't look like the cold snap hurt them too much. I have a couple different varieties out there so it will be interesting to see when they all bloom. I also planted some of the bulbs late so I think they may bloom later than expected.

This evening, Emily and I had to run over to Hobby Lobby to get Noah a white shirt for his school play next week. I'd been meaning to do that for a couple weeks, but I keep forgetting. I've even been to Hobby Lobby a couple times but I never remembered to grab a shirt.

Speaking of Noah, his teacher is on a school trip to camp with the 5th graders so he has a substitute teacher for the week. Noah is just happy that he doesn't have his usual math worksheets every day. Sometimes it's the little things.

Tonight for dessert, we tried out some Girl Scout Cookies. The s'mores ones were really good.

I love this tv stand. I'm waiting for the price to go down a bit though.

I think this duvet is very pretty, too. It would be perfect for spring.

What's your favorite Girl Scout Cookie? Were you a Girl Scout?

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Dark Chocolate Mousse

Dark Chocolate Mousse Recipe

Easy Make Ahead Chocolate Mousse Dessert Recipe

Last night, I whipped up some dark chocolate mousse for our lunch today. This mousse is lightly sweet and very chocolatey. It's thick and creamy and quite delicious.

It's not a one-bowl recipe but it doesn't take long to whip up this mousse recipe. One thing to keep in mind is that the mousse needs to chill at least a few hours or overnight in the refrigerator before serving.

I thought the dessert cups that I got at Pier 1 were perfect for the dark chocolate mousse. I think they would be great for ice cream or pudding cups or maybe even fresh fruit. And they were on clearance! Can't beat a deal.

Here's the recipe I used for the mousse. This recipe is enough for at least 8 servings. It's so rich that the servings can be pretty small and still be satisfying. Emily likes to mix more whipped cream into hers, but I think it was almost too much for her stomach to handle

Yield: 30 mini dessert cups or 8-10 larger servingsAuthor: Jennifer SmithPin it

Dark Chocolate Mousse

Such a contrast - a light, airy texture with rich, dark chocolate flavor. It's a perfect make-ahead dessert for any special occasion, just make it the day before and let it chill in the fridge until it's time.

ingredients:

• 9 ounces high-quality bittersweet chocolate, like Ghiradelli 60% cacao baking chips
• 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter, diced
• 4 teaspoons boiling water
• 2 cups cold heavy cream
• 6  large eggs, separated
• 2 tablespoons sugar

instructions

1. Melt chocolate and butter carefully in the microwave, or use a double boiler. Add boiling water and set aside to cool slightly. 
2. Whip cold heavy cream until soft peaks form. Place in refrigerator. 
3. Whip egg whites and sugar in a separate bowl until soft peaks form.
4. When the melted chocolate has cooled to approximately 100 degrees F, stir in the egg yolks.
5. Fold half of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture. Fold half of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture.
6. Fold in the other half of the whipped cream and the other half of the egg whites.
7. Spoon or pipe into serving dishes.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

notes

Serve with freshly whipped cream and a raspberry on top.

http://www.gracelikerainblog.com/2018/02/dark-chocolate-mousse.html

Be sure to save this recipe so that you can try it. And if you try it, please come back and let me know how you enjoyed it. I'd be happy to answer any questions about it.

Do you prefer dark chocolate or milk chocolate?  Have you ever made mousse?

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Weekly Wrap-up

Hi guys! 

Looking back ...

This week started off with some President's Day Adventures with Grandmother and Granddaddy. We had a whole lot of fun and even got a few projects done while they were here. They left on Tuesday morning, about the time all the bad weather came rolling in.

We'd been dry for months but here came the rain - freezing rain, that is. Schools were out on Wednesday and Thursday because of the weather. I still had to work, but we still got to have a little fun cooking and watching movies.

The weather was better by Friday and the kids were back at school. It still rained quite a bit but at least it wasn't cold enough to freeze. Noah got to go to a pizza lunch on a party bus because he sold enough items at the school fundraiser last fall. He said they watched a movie and the bus had minions inside and outside. He had a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone who bought things from his fundraiser!

This afternoon, Emily and I went on a little shopping trip to try to find some plates to display the food that we feature on the blog. I was pleased with all the different types of plates we found. We went to several places but all of these came from Pier 1. And most of them were on clearance.  I love all the different colors.

When we were checking out, the lady at the checkout counter said she was curious what we were going to do with all the different plates and I told her that I was going to use them to take pictures of food. She said that the bright colors might overpower the food on the plate then she told a story about when she was getting married. She said that when she was picking out china, she'd found a beautiful, bright floral pattern but her mother told her to get simple, light-colored plates because that would make her food more appetizing. She said she hadn't even thought of that. She was just thinking about how the dishes would look in her china cabinet.

Another lady standing at the checkout asked if I was a caterer and I said no, I just take pictures of the food and post it on the internet. The ladies did not understand what I was doing at all!

I got six of the little parfait glasses in the picture above. They are so cute! They're exactly what I was looking for and they were also on clearance at Pier 1. I'm using them for tomorrow's dessert. More on that another day. 

Tonight, we decided last-minute to go out to dinner. We wanted to go to our favorite pizza place, but their waitlist was too long. We went to a local Italian bistro instead.

I ordered one of their lite menu options, the chicken cacciatore. It wasn't bad. The chicken was really tender. I thought the brown rice and quinoa medley was pretty good but I wished the broccoli was cooked a little more.

Emily and Mike both had pizzas. 

Noah has "sketti and meatballs." He wanted me to take a picture of his food too, but I took a picture of him instead!  

Looking forward ...

We're planning to have vegetable beef soup and cornbread after church tomorrow. I'm also making a special dessert. I'll be sure to fill you in on that tomorrow.

We have several birthdays in our family this week - Happy Birthday to Heather, Carter and Mason!

I'm looking forward to the warmer weather this week. I think my daffodils are looking forward to the nice weather too. They spent this week frozen over and I don't think they were too impressed. This is the first year I've had daffodils since we moved to this house four years ago and I can't wait until they start blooming. It won't be long.

I'm counting the days until spring ...

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In My Humble Opinion

The other day, we were at Target letting the kids pick out something to buy with their Valentine's Day money and my mom ran across this journal that reminded her of me. It's called "In My Humble Opinion- A journal to vent about why people are like that and why all the stupid things they do are so obvious to me, from not using their turn signals to believing they're the center of the universe to sweating the small stuff to ignoring the fact that we're all just trying to make our way in this insanely crowded world but some of us are doing it a whole lot better than others." Do you like that nice, long title?

I'm blessed to be one of those observant people who notice all the stupid things that people do. I guess I'm not all that great at keeping my opinions to myself so I thought I'd share some of my journal entries here on the blog and you can add your humble opinions in the comments below.

First off, let's talk about restaurant seating. 

In my humble opinion ... if I bring my party of two to your restaurant when it is not busy at all, you should not give me a tiny two-person table right by the noisy kitchen. You should give me a nice, four-top in a quiet part of the restaurant. Or heck, you should let me sit pretty much anywhere I want. This is a huge pet peeve of mine. 

Mike and I used to go to a certain restaurant on our date nights and three or four times in a row, they sat us at a tiny table right by the kitchen when their restaurant was basically empty. I barely had room for my chips and salsa and my drink. By the third time, I was pretty irritated and I was not being very friendly to the waitress. Mike had to remind me that she wasn't the one who sat us at that table. 

We've been back since then and we haven't had to sit at the table by the kitchen, but the last time we went there our table was leaning to one side and was unstable. I guess if it's not one thing, it's another. This is why we rarely eat out. And we can get better food at home too. It's a win-win.

Faith in Humanity: 

What's your opinion on restaurant seating? Post in the comments below and be sure to start with "In my humble opinion ...". 

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Snow Day #1 and a Chocolate Pie

Old-Fashioned Chocolate Meringue Pie Recipe

Chocolate Pie Recipe in Microwave

We got some freezing rain and sleet yesterday and again this afternoon so the kids were out of school today. We found out yesterday evening that they were going to be out so we knew that we were going to get to sleep late in the morning.

Mike went ahead and went to work but the rest of us slept in. I had to log in to work at 8 am but I stayed in bed as long as possible. Noah is a morning person and I'm pretty sure he was awake for quite a while but he stayed in his bed until I came out of my room at about 8 am.

We had breakfast and then Emily and Noah played on the computer while I handled some work calls. I told them that there would be absolutely no fighting, fussing, or arguing while I was in my office but they could come to the door if there was an emergency.  They were good and I didn't hear them arguing at all.

Mike's office closed at 11 am so he came home and they hung out until lunch. I hadn't planned for everyone to be home so it was peanut butter and honey sandwiches for the win!

Early afternoon, the precipitation kicked up again and the hard surfaces were covered with sleet and snow and ice. I wasn't willing to go outside but I took a picture out the window.

For supper, I made smoked bacon-wrapped chicken breasts, mashed potatoes and green beans. Then we had a chocolate pie for dessert. We're all spoiled! We get good food like this all the time. I make this smoked chicken quite often and freeze the individual breasts. Whenever I want a healthy meal, I just pull one out and defrost it and put it with some veggies. 

The chocolate pie was just a snow day surprise. I'd had some pre-made pie crusts in the freezer for a while that I'd been meaning to use. I figured what better day than this?

I meant to get really fancy and take a picture of a slice of pie for you, but we ate it when it was still warm and the slices didn't come out pretty at all. The other issue that I have to think about is that we always eat on paper plates and that doesn't make a very pretty picture. Where can I get a selection of inexpensive but pretty plates/saucers/dishes? Or should I just do simple white plates for my blog pictures?

Well, the schools have already announced that there is no school again tomorrow so we'll have to figure out something fun to do.

Yield: 1 deep dish pieAuthor: Jennifer SmithPin it

Microwave Chocolate Pie

Whip up this thick and delicious chocolate pie filling in less than 10 minutes in your microwave

ingredients:

For pie filling

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 5 Tbsp cocoa
• 3 Tbsp flour
• 3 egg yolks
• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 stick margarine
• 1 tsp vanilla

For meringue

• 4 egg whites
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1/2 cup sugar

instructions

1. Stir together sugar, cocoa, and flour together in a microwave-safe bowl.  Add in egg yolks and milk then stir until combined. 
2. Cook in microwave on full power 2 minutes. Stir. Cook 3 more minutes. Stir. Continue cooking in 2-minute intervals until thick and pudding-like consistency. Stir in margarine and vanilla then pour into baked pie shell. 
3. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar in a glass bowl until foamy, add in sugar 1 Tbsp at a time. Beat until stiff peaks form. Spread on top of pie filling. Bake in 350 degree oven for 12-15 minutes until browned.

http://www.gracelikerainblog.com/2018/02/snow-day-1-and-chocolate-pie.html

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Winter Band Concert

Emily has started playing the clarinet in band class this year. At first, she wanted to play another brass instrument but she got put in the woodwind class and they didn't have room for her to change. I think she's starting to enjoy the clarinet and she's doing really well with it though.

Back in December, her 7th grade band had their Winter Band Concert at the school. I was so excited to see that Emily was on the front row.

She and the band played Christmas music. I was afraid the concert was going to be a "squeak-fest" but it actually wasn't. And I could actually recognize some of the songs they played.

The day of the concert was the first time the woodwind class and the brass class had practiced together for the performance. That's pretty impressive, don't you think?

Here are a couple of clips of the concert for your listening enjoying.

I know you'll be impressed, as I was. 

As you can tell from this last picture, Emily was very pleased with the performance as well. For the final song, the conductor invited the parents to come as close as we wanted.  We were sitting on the front row because I had my boot and knee scooter so I was planning to just stay where I was, but Emily seemed to want me to come up closer so, of course, I did. 

We had a lot of fun at the Winter Band Concert and can't wait for the next one in the spring.

Were you in the band? If so, what instrument did you play?

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