Garden Fresh Chicken Zucchini Bake Recipe





There are lots of zucchini and other veggies coming from our garden right now, and it's really exciting. It can also be a challenge to find a way to use them in recipes, and to make sure they don't go to waste.

This recipe for Chicken Zucchini Bake uses four cups of chopped zucchini, a box of stuffing mix, and a couple of cups of cooked chicken. It's easy to make, and is super good.

When I made it last night for dinner, I was hoping for leftovers, but no such luck. It was really nice though to see my grandchildren eat this dinner up, and get some of that good zucchini in their bodies.

Of course, if you don't have a garden filled with zucchini, the grocery stores and farmer's markets are filled with them.

This dish is great-tasting, easy to make, and when you have leftovers, reheats beautifully. And even if you are not a zucchini lover, try this recipe and you just might change your mind.

Recipe for Chicken Zucchini Bake

Makes 6 Servings

Ingredients:

6 ounce package of boxed stuffing mix (like Stovetop)
1/2 cup melted butter
4 cups zucchini, diced
2 cups of cooked chicken, cubed
1 can Cream of Chicken soup (10.75 ounces)
1/2 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup sour cream

 

Directions:

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the stuffing mix and melted butter. Set aside 1/2 cup of the of the mixture for the topping. Add the zucchini, chicken, soup, onion and sour cream to the remaining stuffing and stir together well.

Place the zucchini mix into a greased 9 x 13 glass baking dish and spread out evenly with a spatula.

Sprinkle reserved 1/2 cup stuffing mix on top and bake uncovered for 45 minutes.

 

I originally posted this last August, but since it's such a great zucchini recipe, I wanted to share it with you again. Enjoy!!

Sofft Shoes Summer Sandal Sale and Breeze Sandal Review

I am a blogger and a working Mom. I am on my feet 8 hours a day and shoes are the most important item in my wardrobe. Being comfortable and fashionable can often be a challenge. I know many gals at work who have aching feet, knees and back from not so good shoes. Luckily I am able to wear many types of shoes to work and in the summer that allows for sandals. I LOVE cute and comfy sandals!

There are a few brands I know I can trust for comfort and Sofft Brand is one of them. I selected the Breeze Sandal in Luggage color for my review since its a cute wedge heel, stylish and would be secure on my foot with the zip back. I could not be happier with this shoe. I have worn it to work many times this past month which happens to be our second busiest time of the year and my feet did not ache. I even found a co-worker wearing the exact same pair of Sofft Breeze sandal. We giggled a bit that we were shoe twins.

Sofft shoes is having a Summer Sandal sale where you can get the Breeze or any of the other stylish shoes on sale. Some styles of Sofft shoes are on sale at Nordstrom too.

The Breeze Sandal in Black

I enjoy shopping online from the comfort of my home or on my phone. I always try to find a good deal, a discount code or free shipping, every little bit counts. Sofft shoes has Always Free shipping and returns. Another nice thing about Sofft is they make a Made in the U.S.A. Collection in addition to their other lines. I like the Sofft Cadee shoe from the U.S.A. collection.

You can connect with Sofft Shoes on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. When I find brands or sites I like I usually sign up to their emailing lists to get the sales and coupon notifications. Do you own any Sofft shoes? What is your favorite one?

Plum And Raspberry Galette Recipe

A few days ago my family and I went to a friends' house to pick yellow plums from her plum trees. We brought back baskets full of the sweetest, juiciest, plums I've ever eaten.

I'd never seen or heard about yellow plums before, all I know is that they are delicious. So I decide to make a couple of fruit galettes, one for my family and one for our friend who let us pick the plums.

I decided to combine the yellow plums with some raspberries. I've found that raspberries go really well with other kinds of fruit in a galette or pie, or even a fruit crisp.

The warm weather we've been having here in the Seattle area has helped make the plums ripen beautifully. There were so many of them, and the air was actually fragrant with the smell of sweet plums.

 Even my grandchildren picked some when we held them up high enough so they could reach them. And we ate as we picked because they were so delicious, right of the tree.

I know a lot of people get nervous about making pastry, so making a pie can seem intimidating. I felt that way too, so I started making fruit galettes.

They are really quite easy to make, and I love the rough, rustic way they look. You only make one piece of pastry, and then pile the fruit filling in the center and then fold the dough in on top of itself.

I love making these, and they are really so delicious. I hope our friend likes the one I'm making her as a thank you for all those delicious plums.

Recipe for Plum and Raspberry Galette

Ingredients for pastry dough:

 2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 large egg yolk
3 tablespoons ice-cold milk

1 egg
1 tablespoon water (to make egg wash)

Directions:

  Combine first 3 ingredients in a large bowl. Mix in butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Whisk together egg yolk and milk, pour into flour mixture, stirring just until dough starts to form a ball.
Press together with lightly floured hands, and form into a flat round. Cover with plastic wrap, and place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Ingredients for filling:

 4 cups yellow plums, quartered, pitted, and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 cup fresh raspberries
 1/2 cup sugar
 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Directions:

 Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss together plums, raspberries, sugar, and flour.

Remove dough from refrigerator. Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface into an approximate
10-inch round. Place on a large, lightly greased baking sheet. Scoop plum and raspberries mixture into center of round.
Fold about 1 inch of dough all the way around to form a rim. Combine egg and water, brush outside of galette with the egg wash.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool on pan 20 minutes, then move to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Can be served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.
Serves 6.

Shop The HUGE Safeway Anniversary Sale For Great Savings

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #AHugeSale #CollectiveBias #Safeway

Do you love a good sale? You can bet I do, so I'm excited to share with you about the Safeway Anniversary sale. There are so many great items on sale, including 24-can Pepsi cubes, 8-pack bottles of Gatorade, and the party size bags of Lays Potato Chips. And I'm totally loving these chicken breasts that are on sale, too!

Since Safeway opened a new store that's only a quick drive away for me, it's become my favorite place to do my grocery shopping. I can always count on finding my favorite products, gorgeous fruits and veggies, and a super friendly group of employees who are always so helpful.

Of course, if you are like me and my family, saving money on my grocery bills is pretty important. We are very price-conscious shoppers, so shopping at Safeway every week has become what we do to save grocery dollars, while still buying what our family wants and needs.

Since my daughter's birthday is coming up very soon, I'm stocking up on our favorite items for a birthday barbeque for her. I can almost taste those yummy barbequed chicken breasts. Not only will they be great for her birthday dinner, but because they are on sale, I can stock up and freeze them for other meals, too.

I live with my daughter and her family, which includes my three grandchildren. I had forgotten how much kids eat, and boy, do they! So it's great to save money on our grocery bills, which seem to get higher as the kids get older.

The Safeway Anniversary sale runs July 29 - August 11. I shopped the Safeway Huge Anniversary sale, but be sure to check out what great deals are available at Albertsons, Vons, Star Market, and Shaws too!

Since my son-in-law is such a big Pepsi lover, I was happy to get the Pepsi cubes on sale for a great price. When we have friends and family over for barbeques, I love putting lots of cans in a big tub of ice, and everyone just helps themselves to a drink.

Oh how I love Lays Potato Chips! They have been my favorite brand for many years, and I love all four kinds.

They are a big must at our house for barbeques, picnics, and just plain snacking. The Party size is a terrific value, and the Anniversary sale makes it easy to stock up on them.

Since my five kids are all grown-up, it can be a challenge to buy them a birthday gift that they will really like. Safeway offers the biggest selection of gift cards that I have ever seen, so I've been giving gift cards, which seems to make everyone happy. And no returns needed!

I can pick up a gift card here to some of my kid's favorite stores and restaurants. It's super convenient and one of the reasons why Safeway is my favorite grocery store.

We are all Gatorade fans, and stocking our pantry with it while it's on sale is a must. There are so many flavors to choose from now, and I have quite a few favorites.

Seattle is experiencing record breaking heat right now, and like lots of people here, our house doesn't have air conditioning. The house gets hot and stuffy, so we have been spending lots of time out on the deck.

It's great during the day, and especially during the evening. And we love our Lays Potato Chips and our favorite dip to enjoy no matter what time it is!

I make an onion flavored dip to eat with the wavy or regular chips. I don't make it as spicy as I used to because my grandchildren don't like it that way.

Of course these two little partners in crime had to get in on the chips and drinks. My two youngest grandchildren are only a little over a year apart. So when they aren't arguing, they are best buddies.

We love our Pepsi and Gatorade, and with the heat wave we have been having, we sure are going through a lot of beverages.

I'm so glad I can stock up at Safeway right now and take advantage of those great Anniversary sale prices.

Since I live in the Seattle area, it's very often cold and rainy during the fall and winter. Getting your groceries into the car after shopping can mean you are soaked by the time you're finished. That's why I am so happy my new Safeway has underground parking. It really makes all the difference, and my grandchildren love taking the elevator and pushing the buttons.

Safeway is my go to grocer. Shop the HUGE Anniversary sale and stock up on your favorite brands 7/29 - 8/11.

I'd love to hear how your family will stock up!

Maintain Your Bone And Joint Health And Keep That Active Lifestyle

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone and should not be taken as medical advice. #Caltrate3in1 #CollectiveBias

I always tell everyone that I don't feel my age. I just had a birthday and turned 58 years old, which is quite honestly hard for me to believe. I don't feel 58 on the inside, and my body doesn't feel like it either.

I've been blessed with good health for most of my life, and my plan is to do everything I can to stay that way. Being physically active at my age can mean all the difference in my later years. The saying 'use it or lose it' is all too true.

For me, the one real thing that I attribute to keeping me healthy is yoga. I can't say enough about how yoga has helped me to be strong, balanced, and give me a sense of well-being. I have friends my age and younger, that are all on medications for different ailments, and they don't do yoga. I've been doing yoga for nine years, and I don't take any medications.

One of the great things about yoga is that you can take it up at any age, at any weight or shape, and begin seeing the benefits right away. I can't imagine my life without it, and I'm hoping to still be practicing until I am very, very old.

I have an easy and gentle home yoga practice that I do 4-5 days a week. I'll occasionally go to a class for inspiration, and to just hang out with other yoga lovers.

Despite how good yoga is for my body, I do have occasional pain from all the stretching and bending. I've been thinking for awhile now that I need calcium supplements to maintain good bone and joint strength. But I've tried different brands before and got frustrated at how many you have to take a day. I don't like having to take a lot of pills, and sometimes I would forget.

But when I was at Walgreens last week, I found Caltrate ®  Bone & Joint Health. This is a new simple daily tablet that contains vitamins and minerals to help support bone strength and both bone and joint flexibility.

Caltrate has calcium plus Vitamin D3 for bone strength, and extra minerals for bone flexibility. And you only have to take one tablet a day, which I'm really happy about.

I realize how important it is to maintain my bone and joint flexibility to continue doing yoga, and the other activities I enjoy. With Caltrate, it's a  simple and easy way to help me do that.

One of the other activities I enjoy is walking on the beach in all kinds of weather with my daughter and grandchildren. We live in Washington State and are blessed with many beautiful beaches near us, so we try to take a beach walk once a week.

Sometimes I'll walk through my neighborhood early in the morning, before most everyone else is awake. It's such a quiet, peaceful time and it really lets me focus on my thoughts and goals.

I always encourage everyone to walk, it's such an easy way to get your exercise and help maintain your weight.

This last spring our town created wonderful walking and hiking trails in the forest that loop around for a couple of miles. My grandchildren love going to them, and we bring our dog Chewy along, too.

It feels great to be out in nature with them, enjoying the kids company and knowing how good the exercise is for all of us. We all spend so much time on our computers, phones or playing video games, that I think we forget how much beauty is available to see and appreciate in nature.

I want to be able to enjoy all the activities I love for many years to come. Using Caltrate Bone & Joint Health gives me the confidence to keep going strong. UC-II supports healthy cartilage promoting joint flexibility and health, just what I need to help me stay active.

At Walgreens, shoppers can save $5-off with the in-store instant value coupon book available. I used the coupon for my first purchase, and I love saving money whenever I can.

And one of the main reasons I want to remain active is because of my grandchildren. I have four altogether, and I adore each and every one of them. They are a true blessing in my life. I want to be able to walk with them, play with them, and do the things they do.

I feel that taking care of my body, exercising, eating healthy, and taking my supplements, is the best way to help me be there for them in the years to come. My family is active and loves to have fun, and I want to be right there with them enjoying life, too.

 This is how I stay active and confident with Caltrate ® Bone & Joint Health. What would you do with more bone and joint confidence?