Getting over a cold and struggling with cooking...

Has anyone else been plagued with a cold twice already this season?  Or is it just me!  I'm slowly getting over the second "back to school" cold of the season.  The amount of germs brought home by children during the first four months of school is outrageous.

We had a busy weekend  with a slew of family gatherings.  Between running around town to various events and trying to get over this cold, I knew that I wouldn't be able to pull off a typical Sunday cook-a-thon. Luckily my freezer is fully stocked with meals so it's actually a good thing to use a couple of those meals for this week. I took out greek marinated chicken and a batch of potato and leek soup.

Chicken Cacciatore

Earlier this week my sister was telling me she made chicken cacciatore.  I instantly wanted to make it as it has been years since we've had it in this house.  I really don't make pasta dishes in this house very often, but figured spaghetti with this deliciousness served over top would be awesome!

I set out on a hunt for a chicken cacciatore slow cooker recipe and found this one from a blog that I've frequented in the past.

Chicken Cacciatore

I used her "quick method" set on low heat.  This took a total of 13 minutes to prep, and into the slow cooker it went! 

Follow the tip at the end - after 8 hours remove the lid, crank it to "high" and cook for another hour.  It helps to thicken the sauce.

Ground Beef Pot Pie

I had some ground beef in the freezer and set out on trying to find a recipe I made a couple of years ago.  Ground beef pot pie.  It's easy, calls for minimal ingredients and always turns out right.  I don't think I found the exact recipe I've made previously, but this is a close match.  It calls for half a cup of tomato sauce and thankfully I had a stash of my homemade batch in the freezer :)

Beef Pot Pie

I don't know about you, but I don't have time to make homemade pie crust.  So I'm completely satisfied with purchasing store bought.  My fave is the Pillsbury brand pie crust.  It's a great price, and very easy to work with.  I highly recommend it.

I'm sure my son will freak out when he eats this tomorrow night.  He's what we call a "picky eater".  Often when dinner is served he moans...LOUDLY.  Thankfully I don't take any insult to this :)  I'm a firm believer that you shouldn't make another meal for the picky eater.  That just feeds into the issue.  He eats what we eat.  He may not enjoy it at all, but he eats it.  It's healthy, well balanced, and gets in his belly!

Signing off to make the kids lunches for school...bento box styles and all :)