More diverse or... More something...

Pinterest has made me a more diverse chef.  If I could actually call myself a chef... I think you actually need schooling to take that title and I'm sure the 1/2 semester of cooking class I took in high school doesn't count.

Last night we tried 'hot dog in a bowl'.  Of course I put my spin in it, but this is where my inspiration came from.

With mine, I took grilled hot dog bun and laid it on a plate.  Cut up grilled hot dog pieces over top, then added chili, cheese, onion, jalapeno, banana pepper, and sweet and hot pickles. Topped it all with mustard and ketchup. Next time I will add tomato and maybe some other items.  The way I see it, the best part of the dog is the toppings.  This dish is heaven because its the dog with TONS of toppings.  

My husband loved it.

Ryder actually pulled my plate away from me, took my fork and ate about half of mine on his own.  All together it was a big success.  The best part... it took about 10 minutes.

I also found the ultimate comfort food.  This is my next kitchen adventure.  

Chicken, Bacon, Ranch Mac & Cheese.

Yum.

I'll probably give this a try tomorrow night.  Tonight is a pizza night if you ask me.  It's nice to have a break from cooking sometimes.  This way I can worry about the next trouble Ryder will get into instead of worrying about what I'm making for dinner tonight.

I have gotten more efficient.  Being the queen of the calender anymore, I have a meal plan written out weekly.  It really does help.  It makes sure I have all the ingredients available without a surprise run to the grocery store, and there isn't the hours worth of planning to figure out what I am going to feed my family for the night.  And pinning meal ideas has gotten me more creative with what I cook.

It's amazing the tricks you learn when you become a mom