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Best loved Recipes

Easter Idea: Resurrection Rolls and the Easter Story

This is a fun activity we do each Easter season to remind us of the incredible miracle of Jesus’ resurrection and the new life we have through Him. Even though our children are pre-teens, they are still looking forward to making these favorite Easter treats.

What you will need:
1 pkg. crescent rolls (Or canned biscuits)
1 large marshmallow for each crescent roll
½ cup butter, melted
Cinnamon /Sugar mixture

Depending upon the age of your children, read or teach through Matthew 26-27. Then start this activity.

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Hand everyone a crescent roll triangle or biscuit. (The dough represents the tomb.)
3. Give everyone a marshmallow. (Representing Jesus.)
4. Dip the marshmallows in melted butter. (Representing the embalming oils.)
5. Dip the buttered marshmallow in the cinnamon sugar. (Representing the spices used to anoint Jesus’ body.)
6. Wrap the marshmallow tightly in the crescent roll. Seal it well. (just as Jesus was tightly sealed in the tomb.)
7. Place the rolls in the oven for 10-12 minutes. (Representing the time Jesus was burried in the tomb.)
While the rolls are cooking and cooling, read/teach through Matthew 28:1-10.
8. Let the rolls cool completely. When the rolls have cooled, slice your roll open. The marshmellow is no longer there – just as Jesus is no longer in the tomb – HE IS RISEN!!

His story continues: After that Jesus appeared in person to Peter, then to the 12 disciples and after that, to more than 500 people. Jesus’ appearance to eyewitnesses, those who saw Him with their own eyes, would give support and prove that Jesus rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3-6).

By rising from the dead, Jesus proved once and for all that He IS the Messiah, the Savior of the World, the Chosen One, and the Lamb of God. By dying on the cross and rising from the dead, Jesus did what no other had ever done before. As both God and man, He overcame sin, death, and hell.

And now because of what Jesus has done, these things no longer have any power over those who believe in Jesus and allow His Spirit to lead and direct them. Rather than being slaves to sin and death, Christians ( those who love and believe in Jesus) are free to obey God and do good ( Romans 6:17-18). The Bible says in John 8:36, “If therefore the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.”

With a grateful heart for what Jesus did for me/us, and Praising Jesus for Life and Freedom through Him… and praying that you’ll experience His grace in an abundant way this Easter season… and always with love,
Jennifer
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Easy Spinach Rotel Dip

Have you ever noticed that almost all of the recipes I post on this blog begin with the word “easy”? That’s because “easy” is the only way I cook. (Or, as the kids would say: “It’s how I roll”.) If it’s not quick and easy, chances are, I probably won’t be making it any time soon.

So, in light of quick and easy, I found this delicious dip several months ago on the back of a Velveta Cheese box, and the family loves it. I’m making some for a cookout tonight, and thought I would share the recipe. Hope you enjoy it too. 🙂

Easy Spinach Rotel Dip

  • 1 pkg. frozen chopped spinach – thawed, drained, and chopped into small pieces

  • 1 lb. Velveta cheese – cut into cubes

  • 4 oz cream cheese – cut into cubes

  • 1 can RoTel tomatoes – undrained

  • 8 slices of bacon – cooked and crumbled (may substitute “Real Bacon” bits

Combine in microwave bowl and heat for 5 minutes, stirring after each minute. Transfer to a small slow cooker (like the Crock Pot “Little Dipper”) to keep warm. Serve with tortilla chips or crustini.

Enjoy~ and have a great weekend.

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Amazing Potato Soup Recipe :-)

My friend, Kim (formerly author of the blog “My Journey”) has a new blog called “Kim and Her Coffee,” and today she is hosting a soup recipe collection. I love soups – they are easy and filling and are perfect for busy days. Some time ago I posted my very favorite soup recipe -Zesty Potato – and it’s such an easy and tasty soup, that I thought I would post it again. (And honestly – I’m in a recipe rut – so I’m in need of new soups – which I’m hoping to find through Kim’s blog today.)

Zesty Potato Soup
(Makes 1 large stock pot)
((And for those of you near an Aldi – all soup ingredients can be purchased there for much less money. Yeah!))

7 cans of small peeled potatoes (don’t drain)
1 envelope onion soup mix
Salt, pepper, minced garlic to taste
3 chicken bullion cubes (dissolved in 1/3 c. water)
1 can of evaporated milk
1 stick of butter
2 lbs. of “Velveeta” type of cheese

Combine potatoes, onion soup mix and seasonings in large stock pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes (or until potatoes are tender). Remove from heat. Do not drain. Mash potatoes in liquid until almost smooth. Add remaining ingredients. Stir until cheese is melted.

Soup is ready to serve, or may be kept on low in a crock pot for several hours. Add water if soup is too thick, and add mashed potato flakes if soup is too thin.

Optional: add a can of green chilies, OR several cans of sliced mushrooms along with the cheese.

Delicious served with shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, green onions, and bacon bits.

This is such a favorite soup because everything needed to make it can be kept on hand in the pantry. It’s an easy “fall back” meal for any time, and it’s good enough to take to someone else as a ministry meal, or to serve to company. Hope you enjoy it too.

Check out the other recipe links today at Kim and Her Coffee.

Happy Wednesday to you all. 🙂

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A banner day – and some easy recipes

Good morning! What a day yesterday was… I had no idea how busy or how fun it would be in blogland! Participating in BooMama’s Christmas Tour of Homes (along with 720 other bloggers) was my first venture into a “Blog Carnival”. I just had no idea…

I ended up being the 4th listing of the 720 yesterday – actually by a fluke. I was having a terrible “hot flash” on Sunday night a little before midnight and couldn’t sleep. I had already prepared my Tour of Homes blog post, and had planned on posting it and linking to her site after I finished my QT Monday morning. Boo Mama was going to publish her link to the Tour of Homes post sometime after midnight, CST. So, I thought that since I was awake, I’d go on and take care of all of that while I was cooling off.

When I went to link up to her post, no one else had entered their link. But by the time I had typed mine in, so had 3 other people and mine happened to be the 4th. By the time I fully read and digested her post on her home, almost 100 other people had linked up – and I already had 6 comments on my own post! I was flabbergasted~! Why in the world were 100 other people awake at that hour???

I visited a few sites, left a few comments, and went back to sleep – praying for all of the other bloggers to do the same – having no idea that part of the fun of a Blog Carnival like this one was to stay up all night blogging. I’ll know better next year, and will take a long nap before the Christmas Tour of Homes rolls around again!

When it was all said and done yesterday, Smelling Coffee ended up with 1406 visits and 77 comments! (For some of you, that might be normal – but for me, a newbie at this, who lately averages 85 – 90 hits a day about 12 comments, this was incredible!) I’m working my way through all of the bloggers that commented, then hope to eventually see all of the homes listed on the tour. Which, incidentally, may take me weeks to accomplish! So, if you don’t hear from me on your blogs for a while, you’ll know where I am… lost somewhere in Boo Mama’s links. Just kidding – I’ll sincerely try to keep up with both! 🙂

Thanks for reading and/or visiting and/or following Smelling Coffee – I truly do appreciate you. Thursday will be my 100th post – and it has been a complete joy to be a part of your days. 🙂

Now, on to some EASY RECIPES to use at home – or with company during these last busy days before Christmas.

Main Dishes: Rotel Chicken and Crock Pot Chicken Supreme

Rotel Chicken

12 oz. vermicelli – cooked and drained

Melt together in sauce pan: 1 lb. Velveeta cheese
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 can chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup

3-4 large chicken breasts, cooked & cubed.

Mix noodles and chicken into melted mixture. Place in 3 qt. baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until bubbly. Let stand until firm.

Crock Pot Chicken Breast Supreme

4 chicken breasts, halved
8 slices of bacon
1 jar of dried beef
1 can cream of mushroom soup
8 oz. of sour cream

Line bottom of Crock Pot with beef slices. Wrap each beast with bacon. Place in Crock pot. Mix soup and sour cream, and pour over chicken. Cook on slow for 8 hours. The gravy/ sauce created is delicious served over rice.

To double this recipe, make up the two recipes and just double stack them in the crock pot.

A few side dishes that compliment both of these main dishes – and any other meat dish: Mom’s Vegetable Marinate, Marinated Carrots, and Mrs. Webb’s Fruit Salad

Mom’s Vegetable Marinate (this is SO good!!!)
Serves 8-10 people

Place in large plastic bowl:

1 can LaSeur English Peas (drained)
1 can white Shoe Peg corn (drained)
1 can French Style green beans (drained)
1 small bell pepper – chopped
1 med. onion – chopped
1 small jar Pimento

Bring to a boil:

1 cup sugar
½ cup white vinegar
½ cup oil
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbs. water

Pour the liquid mixture over vegetables when it comes to a boil. Stir together, and marinate overnight.

This will keep 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

If doubled for a crowd, double only the vegetables. The marinate makes plenty for a double recipe. (I double all vegetables except the peas.)

Marinated Carrots

½ cup salad oil
1 cup sugar
¾ cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. spicy mustard or of mustard powder
1 tsp. both salt & pepper
1 can tomato soup
5-6 cans sliced carrots
1 sweet onion, cut in rings
1 green bell pepper, cut in rings

Mix ingredients (oil through soup) together and heat to melt the sugar. Put carrots, onion and pepper in a large sealable bowl. Pour heated mixture over vegetables, and chill overnight. This keeps for several weeks in the refrigerator.

Mrs. Webb’s Fruit Salad

1 can chunk pineapple (drained)
1 can Mandarin oranges
1 can peach pie filing
2 large bananas (may use “fruit fresh” to keep bananas from turning dark)
1 box frozen strawberries

Mix and serve chilled.

Hope these come in handy for someone… Much love to you all! Jennifer

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Christmas Tour of Homes

BooMamaChristmasTour

Happy Monday! 🙂 Today, Boo Mama is hosting a Christmas Tour of Homes on her blog – where we each post pictures of some of our Christmas decor on our blogs, and link them to her blog. The neat thing about that is that when you click on the picture above, or the link at the bottom of this post, it will take you to Boo Mama’s blog where hundreds of links to decorated homes await you. Literally!

I’m posting some pictures of my tree and some favorite ornaments. This year I didn’t decorate all around my house – just my tree, mantle, porch and dining room. However, “Frappuccino Fun with Amy” has so beautifully decked-out her entire home for Christmas that I had to post some of her pictures, too.

We were also asked to serve “refreshments” (a recipe) at our tour of homes, so may I offer you some hot spiced cider? It’s easy, warm, delicious, and makes the house smell just like “Christmas”!

Easy Hot Spiced Cider
1 half gallon of Apple Cider or Natural Apple Juice
1 bag of Red Hots (the size that is sold at the grocery with the candy that hangs up)
OR 1/2 bag of cinnamon discs

This can be made in a percolator, on the stove, or in a crock pot. If you have a percolator, put the candy in the top, and the juice in the bottom and let it percolate. If not, melt the candy and juice together on the stove and keep warm in a crock pot, or toss it all in the crock pot and let it warm for several hours – until the candy melts. Sometimes I add cinnamon sticks and cloves. Mmmm… It’s the best!

Now, on to the pictures. 🙂

This is our Christmas Tree (with an angel on top – who actually does have a head. I haven’t wrapped presents yet, so they’re sitting under the tree unwrapped. Family: don’t look too closely!)


Here are a few of my favorite ornaments. I somewhat collect “Gone with the Wind” memorabilia and a portion of our tree is full of Scarletts.

Years ago, when my children outgrew their baby shoes, I didn’t know what to do with them, so instead of packing them away in a box in the attic, I decided to hang them on the Christmas tree. A pair of each of their shoes hangs toward the top, along with the pink/white ones you see here – which were my baby shoes. Their “passies” are also on the tree. I always enjoy some sweet memories when I hang these special ornaments on the tree.


Every year James gives me an angel and I give him a Santa. I try to find one that signifies something he’s done in that year. Some of our favorite Santas are a Football Coach Santa, a Plumbing Santa, a Santa on a treadmill, and one in a swim float.

This is one of my very favorites – It is exactly how our family of four “sized up” in 2006. Those days are long gone – since Nathan is now a little taller than me. 🙂


And this is my absolute favorite of all… Santa kneeling at the manger. We enjoy Santa in our family, but he has his place, and he is not what Christmas is really about. This ornament is a great reminder that it is Jesus that we all bow to – not to Santa Claus!

Here is Amy’s beautifully decorated home:

Her dining room – with a Hummel Tree


Amy hosts a Cookie Swap each year – and this is a tree in her kitchen full of cookie-themed ornaments.


She has another tree in her kitchen with cooking-themed ornaments on it.


This is a full shot of her kitchen.


Her mantle


The Great Room tree – with Salvation-themed ornaments


The entry way of her home – with a white Santa Claus tree (and a statue of Santa kneeling at a manger.)


And a snowman tree upstairs (even though she has a few others I didn’t take pictures of):


There you have it… Thanks so much for stopping by. To visit Boo Mama’s Tour of Homes, click here. If you’ve posted a tour of your home on your blog, please leave me a comment so I can come visit you. 🙂

PS: Tomorrow I’ll post a few more easy recipes for gifts and family meals… see you then, if not before… Have a great day!

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