how to cook – Melanie K

Patriotic Snacking Board

We enjoy an incredible amount of freedom in the United States. Freedom of religion, freedom of the press and my favorite…free speech (to name a few!). While we celebrate these American liberties, many of us are not FINANCIALLY FREE and are getting the life squeezed out of us by consumer debt. We bought into the glitzy ideals of “buy now, pay later” and “easy credit”. But no one ever makes a sizzle reel about how many YEARS you’ll have to work to pay that debt off. For me- it was about 17 years.

In 2009, I had student loan debt ~$60k, credit card debt ~$20k and a home equity line of credit ~$60k. I had read a couple of “do this and get rich quick” books, but my plan to house FLIP, turned into a FLOP. To make things worse, the economy crashed, we were down to 1 income (mine) and my son was in a car wreck that racked up medical bills (I have blocked out how much money that was). I had no choice but to look for a way out of this hole and I had no one to blame since I dug it myself.

I don’t remember which friend suggested Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University, but I am eternally grateful for it. I didn’t have money to pay for a class, so I learned what I could online, and I got a Dave Ramsey book from the library. I had never stopped to take an inventory of what and who I owed. I had also never tracked how I spent my money. No wonder I was so upside down! I had no money management skills AT ALL. Dave Ramsey has a simple and boring system, but it WORKS.

When I actually looked at HOW I spent my money- I was shocked at how careless I was. I found out that I spent almost $200/month going out to lunch. LUNCH…And it wasn’t even that good- so that was my first lifestyle change- I started taking a PB&J every day to work. I quit buying anything that was not a necessity. I pinched pennies until they screamed. For example: We had a TV go on the fritz-it took @20 mins to get a clear screen when you turned it on, but a new TV was @$800 back then. My solution: Don’t turn it off- just mute it at night. While it was chintzy- we made that work for over a year. Some other quick fixes: we stopped eating out (I had to learn to cook first!), we enjoyed “staycations” at home and I enjoyed a lot of “window shopping” (where you go look at everything, but you don’t buy anything!). Getting back to basics also made me realize that the best things in life really are free: family & friends.

I finally got out of debt in 2018 when I paid off my student loans. It took forever, but it was worth it. Now, I know where every dollar goes and I have an emergency fund to cover unexpected expenses. I am able to save for retirement, give to worthy causes and tithe. While I am not immune to “retail therapy” of “treating myself” from time to time, I now know I can afford it.

*If you are on board with saving money this summer, but would STILL like to have a Fourth of July party- make it a pot luck -I’m sure Dave Ramsey would approve! It’s a little bit of work to divide the menu out amongst your guests, but you’ll be surprised how much everyone enjoys contributing to a great time. For those guests who don’t cook- let them bring drinks & ice. I hope everyone enjoys a safe & festive Fourth Of July!

Free Bird Grazing Board by Melanie Knight

This American Eagle snacking board will make the perfect centerpiece for your Fourth of July celebration. Feel “free” to change up the snacks to fit your family’s taste- just make sure you have touches of red, white & blue.

This Patriotic American Eagle snacking board will make the perfect centerpiece for your Fourth of July celebration. Feel “free” to change up the snacks to fit your family’s taste- just make sure you have touches of red, white & blue.

Supplies

Eagle Cheese Ball (directions below)
10-12 Snyder’s of Hanover pretzel rods (wings)
Snyder’s of Hanover Snaps
Triscuit crackers
1 pint strawberries
1 pint cherry tomatoes
Red- 12 Lindt milk chocolate bon bons
Silver- ½ bag Hershey Kisses
Blue-10 Ghirardelli dark chocolate sea salt caramel
6 slices provolone- cut into star shapes

Eagle Cheese Ball (Bacon Ranch flavor)

2 8oz pkg cream cheese- room temperature
1 pkg Hidden Valley Ranch Mix
½ cup bacon crumbles
8 oz pecan halves (feathers)
½ cup shredded mozzarella (feathers)
1 curved slice yellow bell pepper (beak)
1 black olive (eye)

Cheese Ball directions: Mix the cream cheese and ranch mix. Add in the bacon crumbles. Scoop onto plastic wrap. Coat you hand will a small amount of oil and shape the cheese into an “eagle head”- kinds like a triangle- with a oval on the left side of the top point. Wrap up in the plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 1 hour. If you are in a rush- freeze it for 20 mins.

Board Assembly: Once the cheese base if cold, unwrap it and place it in the middle of your board. Starting with the pecan halves, make a row of “feathers” on the bottom of the eagle bust. Repeat until you are to the neck. Next- press the mozzarella into the rest of the cheese for “feathers”. Add the black olive “eye” and yellow beak.

Add 5-6 pretzel rods on each side of the eagle for “wings”. Fill in the bottom half of the board and around the eagle bust with pretzel snaps. Add the strawberries into the 2 bottom corners and the tomatoes into the 2 top corners. Add red bon bons around the eagle. Add the blue chocolates under the rod “wings” in a row. Add the silver kisses to each side of the eagle. Last- arrange the 6 cheese stars in an arc around the eagle.

#fourthofjuly #charcuteriecoard #snacklife #america #patriotic #partyideas #summerparty #USA #redwhiteandblue #momlife #easyrecipe #learntocook

Easy Weeknight Spaghetti!

This is an easy meal that is a lifesaver for those busy weeks when you just need to survive!!!

Easy Italian Sausage Spaghetti by Melanie Knight- serves 4
Tip: keep these ingredients on hand and you can quickly make a scrumptious spaghetti dinner for a busy weeknight. The Italian sausage is what makes this meal absolutely delicious. When we’ve served this simple meal to guests… they always ask “ooh, can I get this recipe?”

Ingredients
 1lb Johnsonville Italian Sausage
 1 24oz. jar Prego Traditional Spaghetti Sauce
 Optional: ¼ cup wat to rinse jar
 ½ box Barilla whole grain spaghetti
 Water for boiling pasta
 Optional: parmesan or cheddar cheese for topping

Directions
Over medium high heat, brown the Italian sausage until cooked through. Reduce heat to medium and
add the sauce. Optional: Add the ¼ cup water to the empty jar- replace the lid and shake. Pour this
into the sauce & sausage and stir.
In a separate pot, fill to 2/3 full with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook
according to package directions (usually 9-10 minutes)
To serve:
Using a ladle, spoon a helping of sauce over your noodles. Top your spaghetti with parmesan, or my
favorite: cheddar cheese!

EASY Chicken Chop Suey- your family will LOVE it!!

This recipe works with chicken, beef or pork and is a staple in our house.

It is a quick and easy meal for any weeknight!

Ingredients

2 lbs cubed chicken
2 tbsp olive oil
4-5 cups frozen broccoli florets
1 sweet onion- cut into thin rings
4 stalks celery- cut at an angle
1/2 cup Kikoman soy sauce
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp ginger
2 tsp corn starch
OPTIONAL 2 cups cooked jasmine rice

Heat olive oil in skillet over med high heat. Sautee the chicken until done. Set aside. Sautee onions until they begin to brown. Add in celery and broccoli. Cook until done.

In a bowl – mix together soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger & corn starch. Add chicken back to veggies. Pour sauce over veggies & chicken and stir to coat. Let cook 5 minutes over med to low heat until sauce thickens up.

Serve over rice and enjoy! If you make this- send me a pic!

Easy Lasagna Soup- Cook With Me Class 1-21-23 2pm EST on IG

Join me LIVE on Instagram Saturday 1-21-23 2pm EST & cook along in your own kitchen!

I’ve never gone live on Instagram- but we’ll make it work lol…

I hosted this class for my alumni group last year and everyone loved it!

Easy Lasagna Soup by Melanie Knight (serves 6)

1 lb ground Italian sausage
1/2 tbl minced garlic
1 cup diced Vidalia onion
1 tsp Italian seasoning
½ tsp dried basil
1 tsp beef boullion
6 cups water
1 cup frozen spinach (optional)
3 tbl tomato paste
14.5 oz crushed tomatoes
14.5 oz diced tomatoes
1 tsp sugar
4 lasagna noodles (broken into 3rds – then in half so each piece has 1 ruffled edge)
Salt & Pepper to taste

For assembly

8 oz ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
½ grated parmesan

Directions: Brown the Italian sausage over medium heat in a large pot. Add in the onions and garlic and cook until transparent. Add in Italian seasoning, basil, beef bouillon, water, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, sugar and spinach (optional). Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 mins. Add in the broken lasagna noodles and cook another 10 mins. Salt & Pepper to taste

Each bowl: Put 1 spoonful of ricotta cheese on the bottom of the bowl. Top with 1 cup lasagna soup, sprinkle with mozzarella and parmesan. Enjoy!

Thanksgiving: The Prodigal Dog, Four Square Pie & Parmesan Potatoes

The Prodigal Dog by Melanie Knight
I have never understood the Bible story of the Prodigal Son. I have always felt that it was so unfair that
the son who followed the rules and worked hard was overlooked and not celebrated like his lame loser
brother. That all changed for me a couple of years ago.
It was the morning of Christmas Eve and I got up early, had my cup of coffee, bundled up in some warm
clothes and took a walk with my two dogs down to the creek while my family slept. We have two rescue
dogs. Colt is a gorgeous chocolate lab/ Australian shepherd mix we adopted from the Lancaster SPCA at
Walmart in 2005. Our other dog, Bugle Boy (named for his heralding barks and howls every time we
come home) is a pure bred beagle who finally trusted us enough to let us pet him after he lived in the
woods near our house for years. We think he was dumped by a hunter because he is gun shy. Our yard
is fenced in with an invisible fence so our dogs can frolic in the woods chasing squirrels and rabbits,
splash around in the shallow creek and all around enjoy their little doggie country lives within the safety
of our yard and avoiding the busy Camp Creek Road traffic.
Back to our walk. I came across what looked like a dirt landing strip on the edge of the fence line and
figured this must be where Colt (chocolate lab mix) would scratch and bark at a squirrel across the line
that he desperately wanted to chase. I looked at Colt and he raised his little doggie eye brows and I
thought – yep, he just wants to cross the line, smell around and check it out. I knelt down and took off
his collar. He immediately bolted off over the line and kept running. I started screaming his name as he
ran way-way off in a huge arc until I couldn’t see him anymore. I stood there in the cold and did not
know what to do next. Then I heard two gunshots in the distance. “Oh dear God”, I prayed, “Please
don’t tell me they mistook my brown dog for a deer and shot him!” I called more for Colt. He still didn’t
come. I screamed for him until my throat was sore. How could I be so stupid? Why did I take his collar
off? Why would a dog that had everything leave for whatever was out there? If a hunter did shoot him
by mistake, I had now ruined Christmas and had to tell my son his dog was dead because I was stupid.
I made my way back to the house. There was no way I could search in the woods on my own, so I went
to wake up my husband Tommie. To his credit, he just said “Oh my God” and started getting dressed to
come help me search for Colt before our son woke up. Tommie could have really let me have it, but he
didn’t. I think the look on my face let him know I had already beat myself up enough. Not wanting to
waste time- I went back outside and into the woods calling for Colt.
At first I thought I was hearing things, but then it got louder. I could hear a dog barking in the distance.
I listened again- not just any dog- but MY DOG. I ran to where the dirt strip was in the woods, and there
he sat on the other side wanting to come back across the line, but scared to. Tears streaming down my
face, I ran to him and sank down on my knees in the dirt and frantically hugged him. My dog was ALIVE
and he had come HOME. I didn’t care why he left or that he didn’t come to me when I called him. I
didn’t care what he went after or why he decided to leave the safety of our home. I had no desire to
punish him because all I cared about was having him safe in my arms. That’s when I finally understood
the story of the Prodigal Son and why his homecoming was a reason to celebrate- funny how God uses
simple things to teach us complex lessons. Needless to say- both dogs enjoyed some extra treats that
Christmas. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving this year.

Four Square Pies by Melanie Knight, 24-32 servings- depends on your slices!
You’ve heard of three square meals…well here’s four square pies! While this took a while to mix up all
for pie ingredients, the beauty is that you only have to bake 1 time.
Ingredients
 2 boxes Pillsbury Pie Crust (4 individual pie shells)
Cherry Pie
 1- 21oz can cherry pie filling
Apple Pie
 1- 21oz apple pie filling
 ½ tsp nutmeg
 ½ tsp cinnamon
 ½ tsp allspice
 ½ tsp almond extract
Pumpkin Pie
 1- 15oz can pumpkin puree
 2 eggs lightly beaten
 1- 15oz can sweetened condensed milk
 1 tlb pumpkin pie spice
 1 tsp vanilla
Pecan Pie
 ½ cup packed brown sugar
 ¾ cup agave syrup (or brown corn syrup)
 5 tlb unsalted butter- room temperature
 3 large eggs lightly beaten
 1 tsp vanilla
 1 ½ cups chopped pecans
 ¼ tsp salt
 ¼ tsp nutmeg

Directions-Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Line the 12×18 inch pan with the pie shells. Where you have to cut the shells to fit the pan, make sure
to overlap where the shells meet by ¼ inch. Use a fork and pierce the shell to prevent it from bubbling

up. Bake for 10 mins. Remove from oven & set aside. Reserve scrap pie crusts for apple pie shell
topper and cherry pie lattice
For pie filling- mix all individual pie ingredients in a bowl.
To assemble the Four Square Pie- Visually identify where the four squares are. Start with the top left
square and fill it in with the apple pie filling. Top with a layer of pie crust and prick with a knife. Next-
on the bottom right square- fill it in with the cherry pie filling. Top with the pie crust in a lattice pattern.
Next, pour the pumpkin pie filling in the top right square. Finish with pouring the pecan pie filling in the
bottom right square.
Bake for 40-45 minutes in the oven. Remove and let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Crosshatch Parmesan Potatoes by Melanie Knight serves 8
This dish combines the delicious crunch of oven baked parmesan with the comfort of an oven baked
potato. This super simple dish is surprisingly delicious.
Ingredients
 4 medium sized russet potatoes- cut in half lengthwise
 ½ cup grated parmesan
 4 tbl melted butter
 1 tsp Kinder’s The Blend seasoning

Preheat oven to 425
Line a baking pan with aluminum foil. Cut a cross hatch pattern ¼ inch into each potato. Mix parmesan,
butter and seasoning. Using a brush (or your fingers), paste the mixture into each potato crosshatch.
Place potatoes seasoned side down on the pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Gently peal the potatoes off
the aluminum foil so the crusted parmesan does not come off. Enjoy!

Spooky Fun- Mistaken Identity & Charcuterie Board

Late posting this- but I hope you enjoy it anyway!

Hi there old friend! Come grab a cup of the hot cider I just made and sit right here- I saved you a prime
seat in front of the roaring fire. Once you get settled in, I’ll tell you the true and scary “Tale of Mistaken
Identity”.

It was a crisp late afternoon in the fall of 2005, and there was an escaped convict on the loose in
Lancaster, SC. All the news channels were warning residents to be on the lookout and lock their doors;
this person was considered armed and dangerous. I had just got home from work when I heard the
news. At the time, we were living with my father-in-law and building our house next door and I was six
months pregnant with my second child.
Since we lived in the country, my father-in-law didn’t bother locking his doors much, but hopefully he’d
lock them tonight. My father-in-law’s house was a four bedroom, 2 bath split level built in the seventies.
While we lived there, he graciously gave us the master bedroom upstairs and took the downstairs
bedroom for himself. The downstairs bedroom had a door to the den, and a door to the side yard-
facing our new house. This was the door I was worried about, since I could lock the others before I went
to bed, but not this one.
When I saw my father-in-law Tom in the kitchen, I told him about the escaped convict and that he
needed to lock the bedroom side door until the dangerous murderer was caught. He thanked me for
telling him and assured me it was not a problem.
Next, I waddled over to our new house construction site to tell my husband, Tommie. He’d work until
10 or 11 every night on our house when he came home from work to keep things moving, but it was
probably a good way to avoid my hormones too if you want to know the truth. I gave him the same
warning about the armed and dangerous convict on the loose. I was also worried since the new house
did not have doors that locked yet and anyone could just walk in while he worked late at night and catch
him off guard. He also thanked me for letting him know and assured me it would be ok.
Well, by now it was getting late, so I locked up what I could and went to bed. A few hours later I heard a
loud BANG as the downstairs side door was slammed open. It was followed with my father-in-law
hollering “I’ll kill you!!!” and my husband yelling back “I’ll kill you!!!”. Within seconds, I realized my
husband had finished working and walked in through the side door- like he always did (which was NOT
locked by the way), startling my asleep father-in-law who assumed it was the escaped inmate busting in.
My husband on the other hand, tired from working so late, walked into the dark bedroom from the side
door and assumed the escaped convict had somehow gotten inside and was attacking him. I think my
hysterical howling laughter from upstairs tipped them off and things calmed down pretty quickly after
that. Never a dull moment in Camp Creek!

Dia de Los Muertos Skull Charcuterie Board by Melanie Knight
These boards can be filled with so many tasty treats! I try to load them up with fruits and veggies so
they stay healthy-ish, but gorgeous too.
Ingredients

Skull
 1 pkg cream cheese- room temperature
 2 tbl butter- room temperature
 1 pkg dip mix (Ranch or your choice)
 Black and green sliced olives (for eyes)
 Strawberry slice- heart shaped (for nose)
 Gouda sliced cheese (for teeth)
Mix cream cheese, butter and seasoning with a fork until blended. Scoop onto syran wrap and shape
into a flat skull. Place in the middle of your cutting board, but leave syran wrap on as you arrange the
rest of the board. Once the board is arranged to your liking, remove syran wrap and decorate the eyes
with olive slices, the strawberry slice for nose, and cut 8 little squares of gouda for the nose.
Pepperoni & Salami Roses
 10-15 slices of each per rose
Using a shot glass, fold each meat slice on the rim of the glass, overlapping as you go. Press each fold
firmly and turn glass over on to board to place each rose where you want it.

Fruit and snacks to fill your board
 Grapes
 Strawberries
 Blueberries
 Kiwi- cut in zig zag
 Gouda cheese- cut in slices
 Goat cheese roll-cut in slices (Roth Chevre brand)
 Snyder’s of Hanover Butter Snaps
 Celery sticks
 Cherry tomatoes

Place the skull in the middle of the board. Place the peperoni & salami “roses” and kiwi flowers on skull
as a crown of edible flowers. Fill in the rest of the board with the fruits and snacks. Finally- remove the
syran wrap from the cheese dip skull. Decorate the skull face and enjoy!