Strawberry, Strawberries!

Strawberries are at their sweetest right now.  At local farms you can also pick your very own. It's a sweet tradition in our family to do this at least once each year. 

Strawberry Angel Food Cake

For this last week's Sullivan's The Pulse post, I shared some of our very favorite strawberry recipes from The Ranch Kitchen's site.  These are not only my recipes, but those of friends of The Ranch Kitchen who have shared on my site.  

It's always fun to open up and see recipes friends have shared to post to my site.  These strawberry recipes also happen to be some of the most popular and visited on the site too.

Kathy's Strawberry Pie

You can click here to access on The Pulse - The Ranch Kitchens' Dessert, Dessert, Desserts - Strawberry post here too! These strawberry recipes are easy and everyone loves them on our ranch!  

Brandi's Strawberry Cupcakes

If you have some recipes you'd like to share on The Ranch Kitchen, it's easy.  Just click on The Ranch Kitchen's Share a Recipe link on the tab on the recipe section of my blog. You'll create a log-in there and you are set to go. Once I've checked it over, you'll be posted on the site and can share with your family and friends!

Strawberry Brownies

Our plans tomorrow are to pick strawberries at a local farm or two in the afternoon and come back to create a few new recipes.  My girls, their cousins and friends love picking strawberries and I know yours will too.

We hope your weekend is a great one!  

Alise 
The Ranch Kitchen!

Why I Blog and Post My Recipes

Today as I was posting one more recipe the realization struck me pretty hard.  I've been doing this blogging thing now over nine years.  Over 190 blog posts later and with almost 187 recipes to date, this blogging - recipe thing is a pretty big part of my life. 

One for my very first post for Nolana's Family Hot Sauce

Someone recently asked me when they saw the large photographer's light in my house, just why I needed that?  The answer came off my tongue strangely quite easily and I told them that because I cook mostly at night, I need the professional light to photograph my food for my recipe and blog site.  It's funny how my family is now used to me taking photos of almost everything we cook and when a recipe is good they will nonchalantly say, "Make sure you put that on your site".  To me that is the ultimate compliment! 

When I think about it, I don't do this blogging thing to for anything else other than to share and teach others about cooking and my love for it.  My recipes aren't difficult, fancy or require four different cheeses for a simple 'mac and cheese' dish or expensive cuts of meat. I made that promise to myself years ago that the recipes I shared would be those that any cook could make, on any budget and be both economical and family friendly. 

While all my recipes may not be the leanest or the most cutting edge, they are my tried and true family recipes that either I created for my daughters and husband, or are the handed down from of my sweet mom and dear Granny. I feel pretty blessed to have watched some awesome cooks in my lifetime like the both of them.

The Ranch Kitchen's Beef Stroganoff! The #1 most popular recipe to date!

I may use a soup can now and then to thicken a sauce or a little too much Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning, but when you find a good thing there is no need to change it.  I like to think my Granny is looking down from heaven and is proud I love cooking so much and in the process shared a few of her recipes.

My greatest wish is that my legacy for my girls will be one of love, sharing and teaching and giving through service to others through this blog and my life's work.  My blog and recipe site are yet another way as the educator I am to continue to teach others how simple and fulfilling cooking is and how one of greatest joys is to enjoy our family around a good meal.  There is simply no need for our youth or new cooks to think cooking is hard or tedious.  

So as I post yet another of my recipes to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Tumbler, remember it's just the teacher in me helping another student learn.  It's also the momma in me sharing my recipes with my girls and the advocate 'agvocating' about our beloved agricultural lifestyle.  And it's just me sharing my passion and enjoying what I've always loved...cooking and ultimately writing.  It's my way to do something that's just for me.  As a mom and wife we all give so much of ourselves each day. My blog is my outlet and believe it or not, my ultimate downtime.

Deep down I'd like to thank all my friends, subscribers and especially my family for following, sharing and liking my recipe posts.  What started as a way to share recipes on my blog for my girls while at college has turned in to so much more and for that I am very humbled and thankful. 

So stop by my site from time to time, try a recipe, save or share it and tell me if you liked it! I hope maybe just one recipe will inspire a meal around your table with family and friends.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart and from The Ranch Kitchen blog and site.  

Remember, no one said cooking had to be hard! 

Alise Nolan - The Ranch Kitchen

Chicken or Pork Chops and Rice

Today, I am on a deadline...but I work best that way.  I am the biggest procrastinator in the world!  In college whenever I had a big paper due, project, or presentation, I did everything but what I needed to do.  I cooked, cleaned (I hate to clean house), and I became 'Suzy Homemaker'.  Finally at 10:30 at night, when everyone was asleep, I was at my best, exhausted, but in 'my zone'.  Whatever it takes - I always meet those deadlines!

 

So below is not the meal I prepared last night, but should have...I fixed an elaborate meal of roast beef and all the sides...remember I had a deadline to meet! Crazy but true! 

What I should have fixed was my easy - Pork Chops or Chicken and Rice!  So here's to what I should have done...and my 'ode' to soup in the can!

I owe a lot to soup and soup mixes.  They are staples in my kitchen.  I can't imagine life without them.  I imagine my granny, making homemade based soups and stocks over a hot stove with five kids at her side.  Thank God for modern conveniences and soup in a can! 

For new cooks the recipe I am enclosing today is EASY.  Anyone can make this as it's that simple.  It's comfort food at it's best.  Along with my Italian Green Beans, a green salad, and French bread you'll have  a meal that everyone will love. 

 

 

 

Chicken or Pork Chops and Rice

Chicken breast or pork chops – 4 to 8 of each

1 can of cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup according to your taste (because some people just hate mushrooms!)

1 pkg. onion soup mix – dry mix

4 - 6 cans water

1 stick margarine or butter

2 cups rice – Uncle Ben’s brand white rice or 2 packages of Uncle Ben's Wild Rice with seasoning packet as in the picture above...if you use Wild Rice omit/take out the onion soup mix as you have seasoning packets in the Wild Rice.

salt and pepper to taste -optional

Directions:
* In a 9 x 13 inch glass dish sprayed with cooking oil, place water and soups. 
* Stir and break up soups with a whisk or fork. 
* Mix in rice evenly. 
* Place meat on top of the rice/soup mixture. 
* Dot with margarine and season with salt and pepper. 
* Cover with foil and cook on 375 degrees Farenheit for 1 and 1/2 hour or until meat or rice looks done (bottom of your dish will be slightly browned). The top of rice and meat will be slightly 'crusty'.  Do not cook too long or it will dry out the rice.  Adjust cooking time depending on your oven.

Serve with my The Ranch Kitchen's Italian Green Beans, rolls and my Winter Salad all found on this site under Recipes and Side Dishes.  This is one of my dad Al's favorite recipes!

Alise - The Ranch Kitchen