Happy New Year and our very best wishes for you and your family in 2023! I am so excited to start the year with all of you setting great goals for the week, by planning delicious meals for our friends and families. We are kicking this year off with a plan of traditional foods that are a must have here at the cottage. You might enjoy looking back at the favorite foods  that you the readers chose for 2022,  Top 10 Reader Favorite Recipes 2022  !

  Welcome to our special edition of Full Plate Thursday, 621! We are rounding out a great year with this awesome party. We have been gathering here on Thursday's for great recipes, tablescapes and food related post for very special times together and some amazing food! I always look forward to discover what you will be sharing with us at the party. We are posting our Top Ten Views from last weeks party, great post from very talented bloggers! Thanks so much for coming to the party every week and being a part of this special blogging community! Each one of you are so very special to me and I wish you and your family the very best of life in 2023!

This is the time of the year when I like to reflect back on the past year and look at the very best parts of it. We had a bit of a different approach to our food preparation this past year as we had to work around food storages and even sometimes empty shelves. This sent us to the garden more and more, then the drought hit our area and

A very Merry Christmas to each of you! I debated about publishing this post on Christmas Eve and finally realized we will all have to be having meals on Monday and throughout the week. Like many of you we will be having a wonderful Christmas Eve with family and then a Christmas Dinner on Christmas Day. It is a wonderful time to spend time with friends and family which we are so grateful for. I always look forward to spending this time with each of you  every week and thank you so much for being a special part of this community! 

Hello everyone and welcome to our early Christmas Party for Full Plate Thursday!  Christmas is almost here and what a special time of the year when we have celebrations going on almost everyday with

I don't ever remember baking a ham without having some left overs. I like to take those left overs and freeze them in individual bags of 3 cups each and then when I want some ham for a casserole, it is ready to go. Sometimes those left overs never make it to the freezer, they just go right into this delicious casserole. This is a delicious combination of flavor and texture and will have your family coming back for seconds. A great casserole for a family dinner or a potluck supper.

This pineapple casserole has been around our family in one form or another for a very long time. I remember my aunt always bringing the pineapple casserole to all the family holiday potlucks, and it was one of my favorites. It is a very simple recipe and takes no time to put together. It is always a big hit at our table no matter when we are serving it. I have served it as a side dish and also as dessert, it is one of those recipes that is just good anytime.

  Hello everyone, I am so excited to be here with you making our meal plans for this Christmas week. Our meal plans this week will include Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, we will just get a little ahead so we can all be prepared for these

  Hello everyone, hope you are all wrapped up with winter caps and mittens, it is cold outside. Come on in the cottage and stand around the fire, I have a nice cup of  Retro Holiday Punch  for you to enjoy. I know that all of you are very busy this time of the year, we have some great features that will hopefully help you get through the season like a pro! We are so excited to see what you will be sharing with us for the party today. Thanks so much for coming to the party and being a part of this great blogging community!

Our little Peppermint Mini Tarts are a great addition to any holiday dessert table. This is a great little dessert to take to a holiday pot luck dessert party. This dessert recipe takes very little time to make and can be made the day before if you like. I like to keep some tart shells on hand during the holiday season to make nice little desserts and appetizers. These are headed for a holiday party and I know there won't be any left!

  Hello everyone, we are excited to be enjoying a very busy holiday season here at the cottage. We have actually had some great weather for this time of the year, so it has been fun to visit the parades, festivals and special Christmas events. I am trying to do some baking for the freezer of holiday products to have on hand as we move along in the season.  We are having some yummy favorites this week, I am hungry already!

  Welcome to Full Plate Thursday and the festive month of December! The little communities that surround our lake area are active with parades, festivals, and Christmas decorations are everywhere. The holiday food's of course are the center of every event, including this one. We have some really great features from last weeks party that I hope you enjoy. Thanks so much for coming to the party today, I can't wait to see what you will be sharing at the party today!

  This will be the ninth year that I am publishing Gifts From Miz Helen's Kitchen, it has become an annual publication. I love receiving a homemade gift that someone has put so much of themselves, love and work into the finished product. We often time give gifts from our garden that is actually a year long effort. There are always the favorites every year and then we like to add some of the new things that folks will enjoy! It is with great joy that I present the gifts from our kitchen for this year.

  Tex-Mex food is a staple here at the cottage, we have our Mexican food at least once a week. One thing that I really love about our Tex-Mex Breakfast Enchilada's is the fact that we can freeze them, in a baking dish or for single servings for a great grab and go breakfast. The Enchiladas are perfect for a brunch with friends and family. This recipe is a very easy one to put together with a delicious finish!

  Welcome to December, the month of fantastic gatherings with friends and  family. We actually begin this season at Thanksgiving and it doesn't stop until after New Years. Each week is a fun endeavor to bring the very best effort to our planning. It is in the planning that the success of the event begins, no matter if it is a family weeknight meal or a sit down black tie event for friends, the success is in the plan. Sometimes it is very hard to block off enough time to make the plan, but it is worth the sacrifice in the end when friends and family have enjoyed the meal plan that you present. 

  Welcome to Full Plate Thursday, 617! I sure hope you had a great Thanksgiving and are excited about our journey into December with all the great recipes for such a festive season. We had a great Thanksgiving Edition with some awesome features that I hope you will enjoy! Our  5th Annual Holiday Cookie Recipe Exchange is open and we would love for you to stop by and leave some links to some of your delicious cookies! Thanks so much for coming to the party today, we can hardly wait to see what you will be sharing.

  Our Roasted Butternut, Pears, and Kale Salad With Honey Wine Dressing is a delicious blend of flavors. We are using fresh kale right out of our Veggie Pod in the garden as a base for the salad then adding roasted seasoned butternut squash. Next we will add a layer of fresh pears with a Honey Wine Dressing that is a perfect dressing for this salad. We top it off with some pecans and Feta Cheese, we just love this salad!

I am so excited to welcome you to the 5th Annual Holiday Cookie Recipe Exchange Linky Party for 2022! I have enjoyed so many of your cookie recipes from the first 4 parties and I really treasure them. As I am making your recipes it reminds me of you and the special friendship that we enjoy in this very special blogging community. At the end of the party, we will have all shared with each other a memory and a part of ourselves that truly is a lasting gift. Thanks so much for sharing your cookie recipes with us, we cherish your cookie recipes and YOU!

  We are looking forward to an easy cooking week for our meal plans this week after the big Thanksgiving feast. We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving with our family this year, it was so good to see and spend time with them, not to mention the delicious food we had all week. We will be using some of those leftover this week in our meal plans. I may have to make a trip to the garden to get some greens for a salad or a soup. It is very cold here, so I will be waiting til it warms up a bit, for now I am sitting right here by the fire, making this meal plan for the week.

  Welcome to our special Thanksgiving Edition of Full Plate Thursday, 616! We are starting early this week to give all of you more time to spend with your families. This is the last Thursday of the month so it is time for our Top Ten Features from last weeks party, you are choosing the Top Ten with your views. It is always so much fun for me to see which recipes you choose and the new trends that are starting. I can't wait to see what you will be sharing with us today, we are sure saving you a place at the table.  Many Thanks ! When I sit down with my family on Thanksgiving Day, I will be counting all of you among my many blessings. Thanks to each of you who are a part of this awesome blogging community. Hope you have a fantastic week and a very Happy Thanksgiving!

The guest have gone home and now it is time to make something wonderful from the left overs. Some of the best recipes that we enjoy around the holidays are the leftover recipes. I have gathered together some of our favorites to share with all of you today. There are a couple of appetizers, some great turnovers, and an amazing pasta dish. Some of these we will even freeze and bring them out later on that busy day when we need some help in the kitchen. Left overs are the greatest!

  The cottage is a buzz we have family arriving today and we are so excited to see them. When planning the meal plans for this special week, my goal is to have some old favorites, some new recipes and keep it as simple as possible. Planning ahead, cooking ahead will allow me to spend more time with my family. I am so thankful that we are able to share our meal plans with you each week. We made our first post for Whats For Dinner Next Week in August of 2010, that is 12 years of meal plans every single week and I know that some of you have been here every week with us. I count you among my many blessings on this Thanksgiving!

  Welcome to Full Plate Thursday, 615 and just one more week until Thanksgiving!  Here at the cottage we are excited preparing for family that will be coming for Thanksgiving this year. I just know that all of you are making your meal plans and cooking up some great recipes for the big day. We have some great features from last weeks party that I sure hope you enjoy! I can hardly wait to see what you will be sharing at the party today and want to thank you for coming and being a part of this very special blogging community!

  Our Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake With Maple Glaze has already become a star this season, this cake is delicious. It is so moist with a perfect balance of fall spice to blend with the pumpkin. We are topping it with a very delicate maple glaze, that is so rich. Nuts are always optional of course, but this cake really stands on its own without the garnish of nuts. It is headed for the dessert table at several holiday events!

Turkey Tetrazzini Casserole is a delicious way to use up some of the left overs from the turkey or chicken. This is a real easy casserole to put together and can be on your table in no time. A nice pasta, a wonderful cheesy sauce, plus some healthy greens and of course some flavorful Italian seasons. Just add a salad and crusty bread and it is a great meal. I have taken this to some covered dish dinners where it was a big hit!

  Hello everyone, we are all wrapped up by the fire today, certainly no sitting on the screen porch to make our meal plan. I can already tell you we have some major comfort, warm and cozy meal plans coming our way this week. I have definitely changed the season. We will be waking up to 30 degrees, and maybe that is not cold where you live, but here it is cold! This is going to be a great test for my new Veggie Pod to see how the vegetables in the pod fair in the cold weather, I will keep you posted!

  Welcome to Full Plate Thursday, 614 it is so good to see you today. I am always so excited to see what all of you are sharing with us at the party. We are starting to see some amazing holiday foods showing up at the table. We have some great features from last week that I hope you enjoy. We transitioned from Halloween decorations to Thanksgiving, doesn't take long, just change out a few special items to sit in with the fall decorations. I love decorating the cottage with the change of the season, just like I am a seasonal cook. How about you are you a seasonal cook, do you decorate your home with little things for the season. Come on in the cottage we have saved you a place at the table, the party is starting!

  I love going to the garden and collecting the young Brussels Sprouts when they are so tender. I wanted to make a dish that could be a great side and this one is. The combination of the Brussels Sprouts in the cranberry glaze, some fresh herbs and spices add the orzo with a garnish of crisp bacon, it is just delicious. I have served this one to guest who ask for a go box, its a winner!

  When I was developing this recipe, it brought me back a bit to the days when my Mother would make a similar recipe for my Dad. This is a very simple recipe that is loaded with flavor. I got my cutlets on sale which gave me even greater incentive to develop this recipe, and I am so glad I did. The Thyme Gravy is just a bonus, but how could we have fried cutlets without some gravy. We so enjoyed this dish and will be making the recipe over and over in the future.

Hello everyone, I am doing my meal plan a little early this week, as we are expecting some bad storms and I want to be sure you get the meal plan on time. It is a little chilly here this morning so I am all cozy by the fire, looking through some of my  recipes that will be good next week. Sometimes it is hard to make a decision because they all look good, but the pantry check is next and that will make the final decision. Maybe I will need to go to the Farmers Market and check out some fresh fruits and vegetables. It is sounding so good and I have not made a plan yet, so lets get started!

  Welcome to Full Plate Thursday, 613 and our first party of November 2022! Here we are at the beginning of great holiday seasons, first we have Thanksgiving, Christmas and then New Years. The foods of these seasons are some of our favorites and we will all have so much fun with our food post that we can share with our friends. I am so grateful that you choose Full Plate Thursday as a place you like to share your amazing food post. We have some great features from last week that you will want to be sure and check out, they are fantastic! Thanks so much for coming today and enjoy the party!

  I love the idea of the butter board for an informal gathering. I had some friends dropping by for coffee and presented this butter board, it was a big hit and so easy to put together. Some soften butter, special spice mix, and garnish with some fruit and fresh herbs. I am serving it with my  Spice Cake Poppers , and it is a great combination!

  Our Spice Cake Poppers are a perfect treat with morning coffee, afternoon tea, or a special treat anytime. This is a real simple recipe that is quick and easy and produces a great tasting bite of goodness. Just put out a plate of poppers and watch them disappear, they really are that good! On a very busy day, just take a minute for yourself sit back in your favorite chair and enjoy a hot beverage with a delicious Spice Cake Popper!

Hello everyone, we have been busy here at the cottage making sure we are ready for all the spooks that will be visiting us here at the cottage on Monday night for some very special treats. It is fun to make the meal plan for this week, as we have some very traditional dishes. The temperature has stated to drop so we will be planning some nice hot soups, stews and comfort dishes. Be sure and set your clock back one hour next week-end on November 6, 2022. Its that time already, wow where does the time go?

Welcome to the Top Ten Post that you picked from last weeks party. We had a great party with awesome post and I am so happy to present these post that you have picked with the most page views. What beautiful Fall weather we are having. it is a perfect time to get out and take a  walk, enjoy nature just a little bit. Halloween is next Monday and we are all ready for the little spooks here at the cottage. I can't wait to see what you will be sharing with us today, I know it will be yummy!

  We are sure enjoying this beautiful fall weather here at the cottage. We will be planning some great fall meals this week. I have some great fresh fall vegetables to add to the plan this week, some from our own garden and some have been given to us by a  friend. It sure is nice to have friends with orchards and large vegetable farms. Making meal plans this week around some peace and comfort for our family.

  Hello everyone and welcome to Full Plate Thursday, 611! Oh my goodness and all of a sudden some of you have snow on the ground, while others of us have been in a hurry to cover our fall and winter gardens from the 28 degree fall temperature. And today it is is a beautiful fall day to sit on the patio and enjoy the fire pit. Please join us there while we get our party started. Every week we have some awesome blogger talent that visit our party and we feature them, hope you will support them by paying them a special visit. Thanks so much for coming today hope you enjoy the party!

  This recipe for Apple Skillet Cake has been around our family for as long as I can remember. It is a very simple recipe with fresh apples and some warm spices. The fresh apples are folded into a special cake batter and then baked in an old iron skillet. It is topped with more of the delicious apple's and sauce and of course we will serve our serving with a dollop of Blue Bell Ice Cream. Morning, noon or night this recipe is a winner every time!

Hello everyone, I am sitting on the screen porch today, enjoying the nice fall weather. I actually have some vegetables coming up in the garden, it is so exciting to be able to have some fresh greens during the winter months. Our Famers Markets are running over with wonderful fall vegetables. I have inventoried our freezers and the  pantry and found just the right products to go with some great fall recipes that we are having on our meal plan this week. I sure hope you will find something that you and your family will enjoy!

Welcome to Full Plate Thursday, 610 and a great day in the country! It is so much fun to come to the country in the fall, the leaves are just starting to put on their beautiful colors, pumpkins everywhere and a festival on every corner. We had an amazing party last week with some delicious features for this week. Thanks so much for coming to the party today and I can't wait to see what you will be sharing with us today!

When the pumpkins set on in the garden and show up at the farmers markets, it is time to start making all things pumpkin. One of our favorite pumpkin treats is our Spicy Pumpkin Dump Cake, it is filled with warm, fall and winter spice combined with a delicious pumpkin puree. This is a quick and easy cake and is great for the unexpected dinner guest, morning coffee or for afternoon tea.

What a beautiful fall we are having here at the cottage. I am enjoying sitting on my screen porch with some great fall recipes and making these meal plans today. There are so many yummy recipes for this time of the year, there are not enough days to cook them all. I am trying to be budget conscious not only for my food budget, but for some of you out there who are really struggling with a 14 % increase in food cost. I have answered so many folks asking for budget recipes this month. Meal planning will help you on your food budget plus give you more time to spend with your family.

  October is here and we welcome you to Full Plate Thursday, 609! We are gearing up for the fall season and all the fun festivals and food fairs. Fall has a certain peaceful energy that I have always enjoyed. We have some great features from last weeks party that I sure hope you will enjoy, hope you will take the time to visit these talented bloggers. I am so excited to report to you that we have all of our fall and winter garden planted. I will be excited to be sharing it with all of you as we move along, We are so happy that you are here at the party today and I can't wait to see what you will be sharing with us. 

  Our delicious soup recipe is a result of left over Mississippi Pot Roast. Some of the best family kitchen recipes come from the left overs or an ingredient exchange of some kind. We have put together a combination of fresh vegetables, some of the left over beef with some great broth to make this outstanding soup. I love soup in any season, but when we get to early fall and winter I love my stews and  soups. This recipe will definitely be on my favorites list.

Welcome to our weekly meal plan and welcome to October! I had so much fun with my Veggie Pod today, just planting some fall and winter greens. We are also planting some beets, turnip greens and collard in our row crop garden. So good to be in the garden again. We are all decorated for fall and now I have fall recipes laying all over my work table. It is great to be looking at the oldie but goodie fall recipes and introducing  some new recipes that we hope everyone will enjoy. 

  Hello and Welcome to Full Plate Thursday Top Ten Features from last weeks party. The last week of the month we feature our Top Ten Post from the last weeks party and it is so much fun to see who you have picked from your views. We are having great weather here  at the cottage, needing some rain but at least the temperatures are beginning to drop. We are getting ready for fall planting in our veggie pod this week and I am very excited to get the process started. I will defiantly be having more help now that my husband is fully retired now. I am so excited to see what you will be sharing at the party today, we have saved you a place at the table so come on in and join in the fun!

I remember making this Slow Cooker Ritz Chicken when my kids were in school. This recipe is budget friendly and takes very few ingredients. It is cooking in the slow cooker in no time and ready for the family dinner at meal time. Tender chicken breast in a creamy gravy with a Ritz crust on top, just delicious! I am serving it with some of my home canned  Green Beans From Garden To Table .

Is it just me or did this month just fly by, we are looking at the last week in September already. We are still mowing our lawn and so grateful to have a lawn left after the drought summer of 2022. I am excited to be enjoying the screen porch these days and glad you could join me today to make some very special meal plans. My husband (now retired) & I went exploring some Farmers Markets today and got some great vegetables for our meal plan next week.

Welcome to Full Plate Thursday, 607! Come on back to the patio and join us for a fall picnic, it is such a beautiful day. I am so glad to see each one of you today and can hardly wait to see what you will  be bringing to the party. We had some great features last week that I sure hope you will enjoy. We have so many talented people that come to the party every week to inspire us with beautiful tablescapes, delicious recipes and new ideas for the season. Thanks so much for coming to the party, you are very special to us and we saved you a place at the table!

I was recently invited to speak with a group of young homemakers about food preparation on a budget. They were concerned that their food dollars were not going as far as they once were and like so many of us they were looking for some recipes that would give them a nice dish for the family without too many dollars. Our Beefy Onion Casserole is one of the recipes that I passed along to them, it is a very tasty and filling casserole that will be great for a family dinner and depending on the size of your family you could even have some left overs. I have made  this  casserole many times through the years and even taken it to pot luck dinners, it is budget friendly and always a hit!