WIS, WWA | sticky buns
My dad had a birthday this week, so I made him some pecan sticky buns, using his mom's recipe.
I've posted my grandma's sweet roll recipe before with the apricot and cinnamon variations, but I don't think I'd ever even made her caramel nut variation.
But I am happy to say my first effort turned out well. Yay!
What I Spent
I spent:
- $84 at Aldi
- $34 at Giant
That makes $118 for me.
What We Ate
Saturday
I prepped some mashed potatoes, string beans, and chicken for my lunches, so that's what I ate for dinner.
Sunday
I worked, and I took my prepped lunch with me, of course.
Cereal after work, as per usual. 😉
Monday
I worked again, had an exact repeat of lunch, and had shredded wheat with a banana after work.
Tuesday
I grilled some burgers from the freezer (homemade), and we had those with some fruit salad.
Wednesday
I had frozen the tomato soup I made last week, so I thawed it for my dinner.
Thursday
I...was not having the best mental health day. Partly my brain was exhausted from an EMDR session at therapy, and partly I was feeling overwhelmed about the number of classes I have this upcoming semester.
And I was also mad because my new class professor sent out instructions to buy an online book, but the correct one wasn't available, so I accidentally bought the wrong one for $127. So then I had a small crash-out, because my tolerance level for the errors this school makes is very low by now.
(I did get a refund, and my professor corrected the problem with the book not being listed, so now I have the right book.)
Anyway. I was not feeling my most tip-top by dinnertime, so I boiled some cheese ravioli, dumped a jar of sauce on top, and sprinkled it with some shredded Parmesan. We had grapes on the side, and I called it done.
Friday
I'm back at work today, and I packed some tortilla soup that I had frozen a little while back. That was perfect for today, because it's a singleton shift all by itself.
The buns look so yummy! I hope you're feeling a little better today.
This week's eats:
Saturday: Burrito bowls with jasmine rice, black beans, sauteed vegetables and some pesto and cheese
Sunday: Aubergine curry with jasmine rice and chickpeas. I took the leftovers to work.
Monday: Pasta with spinach, mushrooms, onion, garlic and cream cheese
Tuesday: Baked sweet potato with mushrooms, tomato, spinach, garlic and cream cheese
Wednesday: Chilli mac and cheese
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: I have absolutely no idea! I'm sure inspiration will strike later.
Nice treat for your dad's bday. Good work! And wow, I'm so glad you're getting closer to done with this school and its complications.
Highlight meal this week was dry brined baked chicken breasts with garden tomato sauce and muenster cheese. The sauce DH made with a can of tomato soup as the base and added fresh tomatoes, onions, garlic, and peppers.
I was more patient with the rampant errors in the course materials at first. But my patience is now running thin. DOES ANYONE EVER PROOFREAD THESE THINGS????
Gah, seriously!!! I wonder if programs like your setup lend themselves to being more like this. Professors may be teaching these courses as a side gig or appreciate the flexibility and it's "easy." They also never have to look their students in the face for making continued errors. (Pure conjecture...what do I know?)
I get frustrated too these days because sometimes it feels like too many people are too busy/frazzled to do their jobs well.
Mmmm...delicious looking birthday treat!! Happy bday to your dad 🙂
Glad you got the book sorted, and I hope you have a better day now that you're moving to PT!
WIS: $64 between two farmers markets, $11 Target, $120 Aldi = $195
WEA: With our 4 adults in the house who all make their own food, I rather give up on making an "everyone" sort of dinner, and I have very little idea of what happened which day, but I know that there were:
quesadillas
burgers
eggs with veggies & toast
egg sandwiches
salads several times
pasta with homemade sauce with chicken sausages
reubens
pizza
rice with peas
bean salad
And there will be pizza today as it's Friday 😉
On days I experience crash out I have learned to love Girl Dinner: crackers, cheese, fruit, maybe some protein, wine. Something about not having to cook helps. Also - sammies become something of a comfort food.
Made a quick grocery trip and spent close to $60.
M - take-out from Chuy's (queso chicken taco, rice, beans)
T - Teriyaki chicken and rice skillet with broccoli and peppers
W - Leftover Chuy's (chile relleno, black beans, chips and jalapeno ranch)
Th - Garlic herb chicken with mini potatoes and green beans
F - going to fix TJ Tilapia with some eggplant pasta
Its almost too hot here to cook!
Those course errors must be so frustrating, not least because they’re easily avoidable. I bought (and read cover-to-cover) a book on Construction Law about 20 years ago. Literally riddled with errors, honestly I’d say an average of one per page. (Many were grammatical, but plenty weren’t.) I took the trouble to write a list of errata, detailing page and line number, the mistake and the correction, and posted it off to the publisher with a friendly covering letter. And heard … precisely nothing. I’d basically proof-read it for free, and not even an acknowledgment. I don’t know if they did a re-print with corrections, because no way was I going to spend any more of my money on their product!
I once worked somewhere which had a poster about reporting things if they didn't seem right..and there was a misspelling. I found it funny so I never reported it 😉
Those sticky buns look delicious!
Saturday - We went to a pool party where we took a veggie tray and lemonade.
Sunday - Pizza and breadsticks for a movie night
Monday - I made a turkey! Unfortunately, most of the family wasn't home for dinner that night. But it was made and I saved all of the meat from it. We had mashed potatoes, gravy, and corn on the cob to go with it.
Tuesday - Turkey broccoli fettuccine alfredo
Wednesday - Burgers, fries, and corn on the cob
Thursday- Turkey tacos
Friday - I'm going to see if there's some steak in the freezer. The kids will be with my in-laws for dinner and my husband and I would prefer to not eat out tonight, so I'm going to look for something fun we can make at home.
Wow. I've never made--or, I think, eaten--sticky buns, but looking at the totally obscuring layer of caramel on top, I see where they get their name. Lucky dad! I hope today is a better day for you.
Saturday: Grilled chicken, Italian sausage, pasta with pesto, grilled leeks, green salad with creamy herb dressing, peaches and cream. Seven things from the garden in this, yay!
Sunday: Leftover ham, leftover Spanish tortilla, tomato and cucumber salad with the leftover herb dressing, and ice cream.
Monday: Barbecue meatballs, mashed potatoes, green salad with the last of the herb dressing, chocolate chip/oat/peanut butter cookies
Tuesday: I made chicken stock in the morning and used the meat I pulled off the bones to make something like pulled chicken with beans? I dunno. It had barbecue sauce and a can of pinto beans in it, and I served it over rice cooked in the chicken stock. Carrot sticks and ice cream. Not together.
Wednesday: I simmered the ham bone and a few pieces of ham in a pot of pintos, them removed the ham and used it in a casserole with potatoes and cheese. Homemade sauerkraut on the side, some left raw for my kids who like it that way. More ice cream.
Thursday: Grilled steaks, leftover pasta and pesto, leftover mashed potatoes, green salad with ranch dressing
Tonight: Red beans and rice. Red beans are not typically made with pinto beans, but it's what I have on hand because I live in New Mexico, so we'll call it Louisiana fusion. Vegetable to be determined.
Have a restful weekend ahead Kristen! And congratulations on the birthday of your dad, and also on the birthdays of several of your commentariat 😉
WWA:
Sat Escapes me
Sun The last meeh tuna pizza from the freezer
Mon Sausage and green peas and carrot sticks
Tue Oven bell pepper stuffed with huskless oats mixed with onion, garlic, feta and homemade pesto, with grilled nectarines as a side
Wed Ravioli with homemade sauce from oven roasted tomatoes, with mozzarella
Thu Chili sin carne using a few spoonfuls of remaining red sauce and a withering leek, with sides of guacamole and sour cream. And a fruit salad that included a wrinkly apple, a semi dried out orange, the last of some blueberries, a speckled banana (excellent at the inside!) and two very ripe peaches.
Fr: We will have store-bought butter chicken with rice and lentils, to see how a ready made meal agrees with us.
The stuffed bell pepper and the chili sin carne were improvisations on my part and I prepared the fruit just in case my husband would not like them. His initial response was to be cautious about the new dishes, as he prefers familiar tastes and structures. But after a few bites he filled up his plate and proclaimed the food was Not Bad. Which is about as high a compliment as you can get in our neck of the woods.
The fruit was also finished, and now the fridge is ready for a good clean, and tomorrows market run.
Peppers stuffed w/corned beef hash are one of my favorites (an over easy egg on top optional).
I remember my mom and grandmother filling peppers with a burger (raw) mixture and freezing for future meals.
I think I gained a pound just looking at the picture of the buns!!! Have a great weekend!
I hope you will share the sticky buns recipe!
Yes please!
I was out of town for a girls weekend, so my husband meal planned.
Sunday - honey roasted side of salmon, bok choy, rice, gochujang sauce, roasted tomatoes, and leftover corn
Monday - leftovers
Tuesday - eggs, bacon, hash browns, mushrooms, leftover tomatoes
Wednesday - Dinner out for father in-laws birthday
Thursday - Our big plans were cancelled due to afternoon storms. The weather here is exceedingly awful and it's either 100+ degrees and/or pouring/storming. Anyway, while we were at meet the teacher my 15 year old said he would make dinner. He made scrambled eggs with ham and sunny side up eggs, which came our very well. However, he didn't make anything else so we went to Publix after dinner to supplement. I had sushi.
School starts Monday and I could not be more ready.
I hope the weekend is restful!
Friday: Chicken schnitzel (prepped and frozen in advance,) frozen fries, and salad (frozen corn, radish, green onion.)
Saturday: At my parents;' we had salmon and roasted vegetables, salad, I think rice, and fruit.
Sunday: No one wanted to cook, so we got pizza.
Monday: I went to Costco, hurray! We had pasta with peas and Kirkland pesto, jazzed up with extra basil from our struggling plant.
Tuesday: Mr. B was working late so we had pancakes, a broccoli/cheese omelet, and some blueberries. I use frozen broccoli for omelets because it's already softened, so I don't have to precook.
Wednesday: Chicken schnitzel from the freezer, fries, and broccoli.
Thursday: Family movie night! I got us sushi trays from the mall kiosk, then we had popcorn while watching The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
Friday: Planning for something, broccoli, rice, and challah, with ice cream for dessert.
I love the original Winnie the Pooh movie, as have all of my children. It's funny without being in any way obnoxious. The most wholesome movie in existence.
It's wonderful; gentle and funny and relaxing. It was one of my favorites as a kid.
There is a set of four books by A.A. Milne that include the Winnie the Pooh stories, as well as two books of poetry. The stories are good, but the poems have been favorites in our house for all four kids.
Thank you for the recommendation! My daughter liked parts of A Child's Garden of Verses so AA Milne's poems might be up her alley.
On Sunday, DH grilled a bunch of boneless skinless chicken thighs marinated in lime juice, olive oil, garlic, and salt. We put 1/3 of these in burrito bowls with roasted sweet potato cubes, pinto beans, and salsa criollo (thinly sliced red onion with lime juice, salt, and cilantro).
1/3 of the chicken thighs went to a salad of cucumbers, grape tomatoes, olives, bell peppers, and chickpeas tossed with olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, salt and pepper. The final 1/3 went to a salad of nectarines, avocados, peppadews, cilantro, and diced red onion. Then one night, we had a sheet pan dinner of small red potatoes, cauliflower, sausage and cannellini beans. We also had whole wheat spaghetti with jarred sauce, frozen meatballs, and frozen broccoli. I spent about $200 on all this at Aldi.
Happy Friday, everyone! And happy birthday to The Frugal Girl dad!
We spent $69 ($48 at Eastside Co-op, $13 at Tare Market, and $8 at Trader Joe's).
-- Cottage cheese with marinated cukes, tomatoes and basil
-- Banh mi sandwich (homemade bread, spicy tofu planks, cabbage, cukes, mayo, sriracha sauce)
-- Baked potato and broccoli
-- Salad (greens, cukes, tomatoes, cubed tofu, walnuts, vinaigrette)
-- Plant-based chicken veggie casserole
-- Salad greens with homemade thousand island dressing
-- Crackers, cheese and an apple
WIS: $97 at Food Lion and a few dollars each at Dollar Tree (shelf stable almond milk) and Ollie's Outlet (canned tomatoes and chopped walnuts). So a bit over $100.
WWA: DH is still on his streak of eating nothing but juice, Cheerios, ham sandwiches, plums, sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, carrots, and pickles.
I had leftover burger-veggie soup, made with ground turkey & ground pork and a can of Progresso tomato soup as the base, and a few days of white beans & chicken stew. One day I plused up a Weight Watchers frozen meal of turkey and mashed potatoes with steamed broccoli and a slice of toast. Had watermelon or tangerines as a fruit side.
I'm not a sticky bun person, but those look incredible!
We had:
-Dinner with my BFF in Colorado (pizza & salad)
-Dinner out with DS19, & two of his friends. I had more pizza, unexpectedly
-DH grilled burgers for me, but I was so tired I almost fell asleep during dinner
-I had spring rolls with meatballs one night, which was an odd combo
-I made a breakfast burrito (tortilla, cheese, eggs, tomatoes) one night
-Out to dinner with friends last night, and we shared various appetizers from a Greek restaurant
For tonight, the breakfast burrito was so good that I'll likely repeat. I'll be on my own, as DS20 works, and DH is out of town visiting his cousin.
It sounds like it was a simple food week for you.
I hate when you get wrong information on something so important like a needed textbook. I hope you get to write a critique of this school and program you're in when you're done with it.
WIS/ WWA this week
I spent $50 at Edwards Food Giant, mostly on sirloin steak that was on sale, and $50 at Walmart, so $100.
Saturday – ?? don't remember
Sunday – grilled strip steaks, cucumber salad, corn on the cob, stuffed jalapenos.
Monday – brats in wraps with onions, peppers and cheese, fried hash browns, coleslaw
Tuesday– sheet pan beef and broccoli over brown rice, cucumber kimchi
Wednesday – pork tenderloin, onion potatoes, frozen peas and carrots.
Thursday – leftovers from Tuesday and Wednesday.
Friday – we'll have funeral potato casserole with leftover frozen rotisserie chicken from the freezer added, 3 bean salad.
Such a sweet and tasty memory gift for your dad.
It sounds like a perfectly stressful week for you. Dessert, down time and wonderful walks will hopefully help!
We are still hosting wildfire refugees, but many of the fires are in the mop up stage. I refuse to add up what I've spent in groceries and supplies because it is a pay it forward moment.
Sunday family dinner wood fired pizza, garden salad, watermelon, blackberry hand pies, birthday carrot cake with cheesecake filling.
Mon - pork butt shredded for sliders, potato salad, veg and dip, watermelon
Tues - fajitas, Pico, Spanish rice and beans
Wed - Korean bbq ribs, cucumber and onion salad, garlic beans, tempura sweet onions, apple cake
Thursday - Leftover pulled pork sandwiches, fruit skewers, cookies and a summer concert in the park - Eagles tribute band
Friday - taco salads, salsa, watermelon
Saturday - wedding on the beach and bbq1
You can't put a price on being a good person and doing the right thing. Not enough of that these days.
This has been one of those marathon weeks when there is something to do every day and I feel I can’t catch my breath! Next week should be a little calmer.
Saturday - My SIL and her family were visiting from out of state and it was my MIL birthday so we went out to dinner at a brewery (it was all outdoors with lots of space and outdoor games so perfect since we have 4 young kids there) I had the house salad and then ate some of the appetizers we’d ordered (like a giant soft pretzel), kids had the kids meals of grilled cheese and chicken tenders, husband had a burger. My other SIL made a cake that we had for dessert, a fun evening!
Sunday - We had spent the night in the same hotel as my SIL to give the cousins some extra time together so we got home late afternoon this day. My son said he just wanted a bean burrito made at home, husband and daughter wanted Philly cheesesteaks so we picked those up on the way home, I’d been with friends while husband and kids were with his family so I had a late lunch and didn’t want any dinner.
Monday - last night of SIL’s visit, we went out to hot pot for dinner. My SIL and her family had never been before, it was a little chaotic at first with 4 young kids there but it settled down and everyone enjoyed it and no one burned themselves.
Tuesday - I had the first PTO meeting of the year to attend, it was virtual but it started right as I got home from work so I didn’t have time to eat dinner. My mom had fed the kids though. I ate marry me beans from the freezer and some toasted beer bread (made with sparkling water rather than beer) with orange rosemary jam.
Wednesday - we were supposed to host a play date this evening but it was canceled which I was quite grateful for as it meant we had one free evening finally. We had an assortment of things for dinner, both kids split the leftover serving of Swedish meatballs, son also wanted some veggie pot stickers with his. I had marry me beans again but a fresh batch this time that I’d made earlier in the day.
Thursday - back to school night so I made an early dinner, one kid had bean burrito and Spanish rice, another had veggie potstickers and assorted cut fruits and veggies. I had corn tortillas crisped in the oven, topped with homemade black bean dip, avocado, green onion and mango salsa.
Friday - daughter has her first soccer practice tonight so again another quick dinner needed! I took leftover alphabet soup out of the freezer to defrost, we’ll have that with some biscuits (from a can)
Sorry you had a rough day - they get us all sometimes, don't they? Hope you're feeling better now and that you get some well deserved rest.
Saturday: went out with friends to celebrate my birthday
Sunday: khichadi (indian lentils & rice) with flatbread. My mother would be horrified by the shape of the flatbread. Hers are always perfectly round, evenly thick, and equally sized. Mine are...not.
Monday: Taquitos & Enchiladas with guac
Tuesday: Crispy tofu rice bowls
Wednesday: Homemade pizza
Thursday: Mishmash meal of Miso black cod, latkes, fennel/apple/bleu cheese/endive/hazelnut salad, and mango puree. First time making latkes and they were a hit. It made me so happy to see my daughter actually excited about eating something, even if it's not exactly the most nutritious food. She scarfed down seven of them!
Friday: I don't even know...we'll see what happens. Maybe pasta of some sort?
Happy Birthday for Saturday!
Kristen, one way I saved money on textbooks while in college was asking the professor if the current edition was necessary, or if the previous one was fine. About 50% of my professors said there was no significant difference - but of course that can be greatly impacted by the subject matter.
At our school, the library was also required to have at least one copy of every required book - which had to stay in the library. For very expensive books, once every 2-3 weeks I'd grab the one I needed, and use the "book-eye" scanner to scan the relevant section and send to myself as a pdf. This worked super well for books like math where the "how" changed very little from edition 3 to 4, but the problem sets were not the same. A bit time consuming, but probably saved a good chunk of money over my four years.
In a few classes, a friend and I shared a book and would trade off as needed, or scan required sections if we both needed it at the same time.
Might not be an option that works for you - but just wanted to share in case! I'm sure in the 9 years since I graduated things have continued to change!
The frustrating thing is: in this case, I have to join a virtual class with a code that comes with buying the ebook. So there is no other option than paying for the most up to date thing.
I miss paper textbooks!
And from my decades ago college, some required books were written by teachers at the school. A big yes to hold it in your hand books of any sort.
As a college professor who has written textbooks, the college governing body of our state does not allow us to have any profit from our books for the classes we teach. We have to provide an agreement with the publisher that stipulates the funds go elsewhere- I designate a local charity. Basically we can’t require our own books as a means to make profit. There is very little profit from writing a textbook unless you are part of a large publisher selling to huge schools. I did it because I was creating so much material to reflect specific topics, rules, etc that applied to the content, it was just easier for me and the students to have it in one place.
Oh yes, I remember those. Hopefully it's a class were an e-book works for you. I always felt I learned better from physical books. I had a few classes where the Professor self published the book, it was awesome because they were affordable, and aligned closely with our in-class sessions.
I'm glad to see more Elementary through High schools in our area returning to physical books in the classroom!
WIA: I had chili with cornbread twice. An egg salad sandwich. Pancakes and stewed apples. Bean soup. Yogurt with mixed fruit and nuts.
WIS: $9 Target, $16 Walgreens
Planning on something simple; apple slices with peanut butter and honey perhaps.
I appreciate your honesty about your rough mental health day and how you felt impacted by your therapy session. I too had an emotional therapy session this week (on Weds.), and sometimes it's still surprising to me how much that can just "reverberate" throughout the rest of my day, leaving me feeling emotionally drained and struggling to function well. Coupled with the other stuff you were dealing with that day, I'm glad you were able to push the "Easy" button for dinner and just do something simple and call it DONE! It's a good reminder for me as well when I'm feeling that way.
Aww, I'm glad it helped. I typed that part, hesitated, thought about deleting it, and then was like, "nah, I'm gonna leave that in there because it is my reality, and maybe it'll help someone else."
Good on you for doing your work too, even though it is hard!
I’m sorry that yesterday was so crummy, but I looked up EMDR because I’d never heard of it, so thank you for teaching me something new. I hope you continue to make progress healing. ❤️
WIS: both my husband and I made separate smallish Aldi trips totaling a little more than 150.
WWA:
Friday: it was just me and two kids, so I made tacos. I added a bag of riced cauliflower and a diced red onion to my taco meat which was a lb of ground turkey. It turned out great and I will definitely do that again.
Saturday: I used the leftover taco meat and some sauce and cheese to make pizza. I used one prepared gf crust and a one lb bag of focaccia dough that my husband had made and I’d frozen because it was way too hot to run the oven during a heatwave. This was the test to see how the sourdough focaccia would do after being frozen. The verdict is that it was good, but definitely didn’t rise much. It made the crust more cracker-like, but still tasty. We will have to try more freezing experiments and report back.
Sunday: husband didn’t get back until very late. The kids and I had peppers and eggs, sliced tomatoes and gf brownies.
Monday: we had pasta carbonara with peas and a romaine and tomato salad.
Tuesday: chicken patties and gf chicken nuggets and salad.
Wednesday: herb crusted salmon, jasmine rice, salad.
Thursday: scrambled egg nachos and salad
Friday: focaccia and spinach salad.
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
It is a therapy that is a little simpler to use for traumas that are like...one big, defined event. Mine is more like death by a thousand cuts, but she does use EMDR with me for especially troubling memories.
EMDR is an incredible modality, but it can be very emotionally exhausting.
Very!
Kristen, I'm so sorry that it seems as if your current profs don't really seem to consider how their actions actually affect the lives of their students. As a college prof who thinks about this CONSTANTLY (maybe too much sometimes, haha), it just makes me mad. If you ever need to vent to a prof who is sympathetic and who can assure you that your expectations are not unreasonable, please let me know!
Well, I wish you were my online professor! 🙂
Friday: Japanese Take Out – my son was with his dad and so my husband and I had a date night in
Saturday: Brisket sandwiches, rice-a-roni (weird combo but it worked)
Sunday: Burger Bowls, oven fries
Monday: My mom’s spaghetti recipe, garlic bread
Tuesday: leftovers for my son, my husband and I met friends for apps and Bingo
Wednesday: Southwest chicken corn chowder
Thursday: Leftover corn chowder