Chicken Cordon Bleu Rice

This is NOT my recipe. But it is one of our very favorites so I thought I'd repost it! This recipe comes from one of my go-to blogs for new dinner ideas Picky Palate!

Cheesy Chicken Cordon Bleu Rice Casserole

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 red bell pepper, diced (I very rarely remember to have fresh veggies so I omit this and it's still delicious!)

1 clove fresh garlic, minced (I use the kind you can keep in your fridge!)

½ lb diced ham

2 Cups cooked shredded chicken breast

4 Tablespoons butter

¼ Cup flour

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon fresh cracked pepper

14 oz can chicken broth

3 Cups cooked rice of choice (I used instant)

1 Cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 Cup shredded mozzarella or swiss cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat oil into a large 5 qt rimmed skillet over medium heat. Saute onion and bell pepper until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, ham and chicken. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. Melt butter then stir in flour, salt and pepper until combined. Slowly stir in chicken broth until well combined. Stir in cooked rice then transfer to a 9×13 inch baking dish. Top with cheddar and mozzarella cheeses. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cover the dish with foil the last 10 minutes for oozing cheese.

Put down that Credit Card!

How many of us are going into this new year with the goal of being Frugal? Saving anything we can? Leaving the wallet at home?

I had no idea how to go about doing all of the above. So I picked up my husbands Ipad and skipped over to Pinterest. There was link after link about budgeting, saving money on Utilities, not spending your money and that sweater you really want but don't actually need. I had so much fun reading about peoples experiences with paying off $27,000 of debt in 6 months or How Does She Live on $14,000 a year.

I am not going to try to compete with these amazing families. I just want to learn from their example. So I made a list of things my husband and I are going to try different this year:

• Have you ever heard of Mint? We plan to use this free budgeting app and website more efficiently. Click here to check it out!
• We are going to use the envelope system for things like personal spending, groceries and tithing.
• We are going to make sure we always have $1000 in our saving accounts (if not more for 3-4 month emergency money
• Unplug. While we are going to unplug those appliances that suck electricity, even when not in use, we are going to use our electronic devices less, saving money and giving us more time for more important things.
• Open Blinds. I woke up this morning to my husband opening the blinds and letting that beautiful sun stream into our room. Not only did it give me instant energy, but it will save us money! 
• When a light goes out, use that as an opportunity to upgrade to LED. It will last longer and in the end save you the big bucks.
• Plant a garden. We are so excited for this one. There were too many nights that I called my hubby on his way home from work to ask him to pick up some fresh veggies. 
• Coupon, coupon, coupon!!! 
• Krazy Coupon Lady 
• Smiths
• Freebies 2 Deals 
• Warm up with fuzzy socks, blankets and Sweaters before turning on the heat!
• Once a month, we will go through our bank statement with a highlighter and plan the budget for the next month.

 We are so excited for the New Year and new ways to save! {The hubby's excited because he thinks it means we are getting a new TV}

{A}ubry                      

Do You Have any Creative ways to Save? 

Leave a comment and Share!

Need more ideas? Follow us on Pinterest!

Simply a Brainstorm

2014

Where has the time gone? It's pretty obvious that our time did not go into this blog. It's been 4 months. That is four months of crafts {galore!}, recipes, organizing and unorganizing...

Four months of lots of blog-worthy things. Yet not a lot of blog-worthy time. So one of my New Years resolutions was to start blogging again. Why? Well, lets be honest.
I got a new job. A fantastic one with bigger opportunities, amazing people and I get to work with my fantastic husband. The problem is... he works 8 hours, I work 6. Work is too far away for us to be driving two cars when we can save SO much money by carpooling. So here, I sit, 2 hours left in my hubby's work day. This is not the only reason I blog. The other reason is that I believe we brainstormers have a lot to say. We craft, we love, we bake. Life gets interesting, sometimes we believe someone could make a movie about us, we are that cool. {We daydream :)} We also know a lot of people, family and friends, who we want to share our successes with. So you. Yes, you. You are the reason we blog.

Let's get back to my question. Where has the time gone? Wouldn't you like to know. We were having fun themed parties, making Christmas gifts and enjoying our lives.

I'm so excited for 2014. We have so much to share, so much to live and so much to do! I plan to share it with you. So keep reading, we haven't gone anywhere.

{A}ubry                       

Rainstorms for the {B}rainstormers

I know, Where have we been? That's the question we keep getting. We have been all over the place. We've been donating our moral support to each other through Heart Surgeries, Big moves to new houses and Car shopping til we literally want to drop! But don't worry! We've been crafting and baking away, always giving ourselves more things to blog about. We've got a lot to come that we are SO EXCITED for!

  

 {A}ubry                                   

What have you done with your crazy summer? Any fun 

crafts or projects?