Old Fashioned Chicken & Dumplings

This Old Fashioned Chicken & Dumplings recipe is just like the classic comfort food you grew up with, but it is even more flavorful than you remember thanks to the addition of a few extra ingredients...

We have had several chilly & rainy days here lately, and chilly, rainy days call for spending the afternoon curled up on the couch with a warm blanket, Netflix, & a bowl of the most perfect comfort food. For me, that most perfect bowl of comfort food is homemade chicken & dumplings. 

It is one of my go-to recipes when I am feeling under the weather or just down in the dumps. Or when I need to bring a little comfort food to a friend or family member who is going through a tough time. It is simple, flavorful, and gives you a warm hug from the inside out.

I will be the first to admit that traditional chicken & dumplings is usually pretty bland. Most recipes I have seen are a simple mixture of chicken broth, chicken, and flour based dumplings. And while my easy to make recipe certainly includes all of those classic ingredients, I decided kick up the flavor level just a bit with the addition of sauteed onion & garlic and a couple of bay leaves...

Slow Cooker Peach Habanero Short Ribs

These sweet & spicy Slow Cooker Peach Habanero Short Ribs are the perfect fall comfort food & would make a tasty addition to that game day menu...

This recipe first appeared on the Bridgeport Farmers Market Let's Get Fresh site.

I am on a mission once again this outdoor farmers market season to show you all how you can create a delicious recipe purchasing mostly locally grown & raised produce and meats at your local farmers market. I started this locally inspired recipe series last summer, and I am thrilled to be continuing the series this year as well. Each month I will be sharing a recipe here to the blog inspired by and featuring some of my own personal favorite fresh & local finds from my local market. 

For the month of September & for my final recipe for this year's outdoor market season, I am sharing the recipe for these sweet & spicy Slow Cooker Peach Habanero Short Ribs with you all today. These hearty & saucy short ribs are the perfect comfort food for a crisp fall day. They would also make a tasty addition to your next game day menu! :)

Slow Cooker Bolognese Sauce

Rich & hearty, this homemade bolognese sauce simmers in your slow cooker all day. Just serve with rigatoni or tagliatelle for comfort food perfection. 

Well, folks... I think the start of comfort food season has officially arrived. The temps have started to drop slightly, the leaves are falling off of the trees, and I have actually had to turn on the heat a few times after waking up in the morning to a cold house. 

I know we typically think of bowls of cozy soups and cheesy casseroles as traditional comfort food, but I am about to step up your homemade comfort food game with this slow cooker recipe for an easy and flavorful bolognese sauce.

I fell in love with bolognese sauce earlier this year when my boyfriend helped to open a new Italian restaurant just north of Pittsburgh. 

There, they slow simmer their bolognese sauce on the stovetop all day and then serve it over homemade tagliatelle pasta. It quickly became my go-to pasta dish to order off the menu almost every time that I would drive up to visit my boyfriend while he was working at the restaurant.

Since I can't always make the two hour drive to the restaurant when I have a bolognese craving, I decided it was time to come up with my own homemade version of my new favorite comfort food. I did consult with the chef of the restaurant as to what his must-have ingredients are for a good, traditional sauce. 

And since I know that most of us do not have the time (nor the patience) to simmer & stir a pot of homemade bolognese over the stove all day, I decided that a slow cooker adaptation for the recipe was necessary.

A Foodie's Guide to Magnolia Market

Magnolia Market isn't just for the DIY addicts & HGTV fans. With a delectable bakery & food truck park, this market in Waco, Texas is a must-visit destination for foodies too...

This post may contain affiliate links. Purchasing through them helps support this website.

I will be the first to admit it- I don't watch HGTV all that often, and I have never caught an entire episode of Fixer Upper. (I know- GASP, right?) 

I mean, I know who Chip & Joanna are. I have seen parts of Fixer Upper a few times (my parents are HGTV addicts & love the show, so I have caught bits & pieces of it when visiting them). 

So when I tacked on the day excursion to Magnolia Market with my ticket to the Indulge Conference earlier this month, it wasn't because I am a fan girl or wanted to make the ultimate DIY pilgrimage to the home decor mecca of Texas. I wanted to go for one reason & one reason only- the food, folks. ;)

While the food was my main goal of visiting Magnolia Market, I came away with an unexpected fun & laid back experience as well. There is much more to Magnolia Market than just the food. And home decor & DIY inspiration is not all you will find when exploring this famous pair of silos. But let's chat about the food first, shall we?

Calling on My Food Blogger Friends! Join in November 8th & Help Show Support for Sandy...

We all have been seeing the photos and hearing the stories of the complete devastation so many of our friends and loved ones and fellow citizens have been experiencing since Hurricane Sandy swept through their cities, towns, and neighborhoods.  Homes destroyed, families forever changed, loved ones lost, the misery of having no heat or electric or a warm meal.  My natural inclination is to want to make a huge batch of homemade soup or a casserole and a warm apple pie and find some way to personally deliver it to one of those families in need of a little comfort food.  Unfortunately, I cannot do that even though my heart longs to.  But I will show support in a way that is possible for me... by joining with other food bloggers on November 8th to post our favorite comfort food recipes, donate to Red Cross, and hopefully inspire a few others to make a small donation to help those who are struggling in the wake of the flooding and destruction.

I first heard about this blogging project from Barbara who blogs over at Creative Culinary.

So, I am asking my fellow food bloggers (and even non food bloggers if you happen to have a great recipe!)- will you also join in on November 8th?  (Please, please, please say yes?)  Visit the link to Creative Culinary above to get more information on the project and to get the code for the button you see below. :)  

I can't wait to see all of your fabulous comfort food recipes linked up at Creative Culinary next Thursday! 

Brown Butter Pumpkin Alfredo

This creamy & decadent Brown Butter Pumpkin Alfredo sauce with fettuccine is perfect fall comfort food...

Up until today's post, I had never made brown butter before... or used it in a recipe. And honestly? I have no clue why. For some odd reason, I had always been intimidated by the thought of making it. 

Maybe it is because I had it in my head that making brown butter was some sort of delicate, fancy French cooking technique that I was sure to mess up. (I mean, the French do refer to it as beurre noisette- sounds fancy, right?) But that couldn't be farther from the truth, you all.

Brown butter is so super easy to make! It literally consists of one ingredient- unsalted butter. And if you can simply swirl butter in a pan for a few minutes, then can you too can successfully make brown butter. ;) Looking back, I feel silly now that I avoided trying to make it for so long. 

For my very first recipe on the blog using brown butter, I decided to add it to a decadent, creamy homemade Alfredo sauce. But this isn't just any Alfredo sauce, folks. It is a dreamy, comforting pumpkin Alfredo sauce that is perfect for fall...

Slow Cooker Apple Butter Rice Pudding

Creamy, comforting rice pudding is jazzed up with apple butter & chunks of fresh apple in this easy to make Slow Cooker Apple Butter Rice Pudding...

Since a good, home cooked risotto happens to be my favorite savory adult comfort food, then a creamy rice pudding has to be my ultimate sweet comfort food. But rice pudding wasn't a comfort food that I came to love as a child. Now my mama made this great quick version of rice pudding with a little leftover rice mixed with melted margarine & sprinkled with cinnamon & sugar. 

But the first time that I tried an honest for goodness homemade rice pudding was when I baked up a batch myself a few years after moving out of my parents' house. Yes, making rice pudding from scratch equals adulting when you are in your earlier 20's. ;) And thus began my love affair with creamy, comforting rice pudding.

But the thing with most homemade rice pudding recipes is that they require both stove top cooking & oven baking and thus twice the dirty dishes. Is it worth the extra effort and dish washing? Yes! 

But I knew there had to be a better way to whip a homemade rice pudding recipe that I would love without all the extra steps. My solution? The slow cooker- duh! ;) 

You literally just dump everything in, mix, and let the slow cooker do the rest. Now I jazzed up the basic rice pudding with spicy apple butter and chunks of fresh apple for this Slow Cooker Apple Butter Rice Pudding I am sharing with you all today, but you could leave out the apple flavors for a classic creamy rice pudding (just increase the cinnamon to a 1/2 teaspoon)... 

20 Tasty & Comforting Slow Cooker Recipes for Fall

You are sure to find a cozy slow cooker recipe to keep you and your family warm and satisfied in this collection of 20 Tasty & Comforting Slow Cooker Recipes for Fall...

Who else is huddled up inside avoiding this cold front that this blasting the east coast this week? 

I, for one, loathe being cold. When an arctic blast is heading my way, I am happiest when I am warm & cozy, cuddled up with a soft blanket and a bowl or plate of my favorite comfort food. Who's with me? ;)

And some of my favorite comfort food recipes happen to be made in one of my favorite kitchen appliances- my slow cooker! 

My love affair with my slow cooker is no big secret to those of you who have been following my blog for a while. In fact, some of my most popular recipes on the blog are made in the slow cooker.

I searched some of my favorite food blogs for the best tasty & comforting slow cooker recipes I could find for fall time. All of these slow-cooked recipes are brimming with some of our favorite flavors of fall like apple, pumpkin, butternut squash, and pears. 

Whether you are avoiding the cold temps outside or you are just craving a little comfort food, you are sure to find a cozy slow cooker recipe below to keep you and your family warm and satisfied...

Loaded Baked Potato Grilled Cheese

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

What says comfort food better than a good ole-fashioned grilled cheese? 

How about a grilled cheese stuffed with even more comfort food goodness like bacon and mashed potatoes? ;)  Yep, you heard me right, folks. I have taken the classic grilled cheese to a whole other level of cheesy amazingness with today's recipe.

A lot of foods top my ultimate comfort foods list- creamy rice pudding, a perfectly cooked risotto, grilled cheese and tomato soup, and a hearty baked potato loaded with my favorite toppings... 

And I found a way to combine at least two of these into one fabulous sandwich with this Loaded Baked Potato Grilled Cheese! :)

But first, I had to head to my local Walmart to pick up everything I needed for this wonderfully cheesy comfort food goodness...

Support for Sandy- Good Ole Fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup

Today I am joining together with other food bloggers across the country in posting a favorite comfort food recipe in order to raise awareness for the need for donations to aid the victims of Hurricane Sandy.  Homes have been destroyed, families have been devastated, lives forever changed.  Please consider clicking the button above and making a donation to the Red Cross.  

Enjoy my recipe for Good Ole Fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup.  :)  I wish I could make a few big batches of this and send them up north...

One of my favorite homemade comfort foods for fall is Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup.  And when I say homemade, I mean HOMEMADE.  I roast two large chicken breasts in my Crock Pot a few days before I plan to make a pot of the soup. (CLICK HERE for my recipe for Slow Cooker Roast Chicken.)  Then I remove all the good meat from the bone-in chicken breasts and save the rest (bones, cartilage, skin, etc) in a container in the fridge and make homemade chicken broth the next day with it.  (CLICK HERE for my recipe for Small Batch Homemade Chicken Broth.)  Then on the third day, I use my slow cooker roast chicken and my homemade chicken broth and make THE BEST homemade chicken noodle soup you will ever slurp. ;)  But, you don't HAVE to do all that to make this recipe.  You can buy a grocery store rotisserie chicken and a carton of chicken broth.  But it is worth the effort if you have the time to make it all from scratch.

What you will need:

1/2 medium onion, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

2 large carrots, chopped (or you can use a couple of handfuls of baby carrots & chop them)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

4 cups of chicken broth (homemade, if you got it ;) )

3 cups of water

2 bay leaves

about 5 oz of extra wide noodles

about 1 1/2 cups of chopped cooked chicken

2 tbsp of fresh parsley, chopped

Salt & pepper, to taste

Heat a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat.  Once heated add the olive oil and butter.  Once the butter is melted, add the onion, celery, and carrots.  Saute for 3-4 minutes.  Pour in the chicken broth and water.  Drop in the bay leaves.  Heat to boiling.  Once it is brought to a boil, add your noodles.  Boil for another 10 minutes until noodles are tender.  Reduce the heat to a simmer.

Fish out the two bay leaves (do this with spoon and not your fingers, please ;) ). Then add in the chicken and parsley.   Cook another 3-4 minutes until the chicken has been heated through.  Taste your broth at this point and add salt and pepper to your taste.  

Ladle into bowls and serve with a nice crusty bread or good old school traditional like us and pull out the saltines. ;)  This makes about 6-8 servings.

Please head over to Creative Culinary to check out the other comfort food recipes being linked up for Support for Sandy, and link up your own recipe too! Just CLICK HERE. :)

What is one of your favorite comfort food meals to make?

The Best Places to Eat & Drink in Delaware County, Ohio

From locally owned restaurants, to breweries, & everything in between, here are my top 7 recommendations for the best places to eat & drink in Delaware County, Ohio...

This post was created in partnership with Destination Delaware County Ohio. As always, all opinions & thoughts expressed below are 100% my own.

If someone would have asked me at the beginning of May what my recommendation would be for a good travel destination in Ohio for foodies, Delaware probably would have not been the first Ohio city that would have come to mind for me. Having lived in the Columbus area for over 8 years, I was familiar with the Delaware area but didn't venture that way much when I was resident of Franklin County. I knew Alum Creek State Park was up that way, but that was about the extent of my knowledge of Delaware County.

That all changed when the kiddos & I visited the Delaware, Ohio area at the end of May earlier this summer. Over the past 10 years, the historic downtown area of Delaware has grown by leaps & bounds. And with this growth has also come the birth of a vibrant local restaurant & brewery scene. 

While we definitely didn't get to experience all of the deliciousness that Delaware County has to offer during our stay, we did get a good enough taste of the area. From locally owned restaurants, to breweries, & everything in between, here are my top 7 recommendations for the best places to eat & drink in the county... 

The Best of Frugal Foodie Mama- Top 10 Posts of 2015

Here are my Top 10 Posts of 2015 as clicked on, pinned, shared, and decided by you all- my readers...

Happy 2016, friends! :) Another year has come and passed here at Frugal Foodie Mama, and I have to say that 2015 was a pretty incredible year for this little space of mine. I had the pleasure of being invited to my first ever blogger press trip by the friendly and generous folks at Southern Living & Delta Faucet. Not only did I get to check off Birmingham from my travel bucket list, but I also got to tour Southern Living's headquarters & test kitchens and meet the incredibly talented people behind those southern recipes we look forward to each month. From there, 2015 just kept getting better for this little food blog of mine. I attended the Indulge Conference in Portland in May, and then traveled to Orlando for the Food & Wine Conference as a brand ambassador for Wisconsin Cheese. In August, my family and I were invited on our first travel media trip to a part of the Kidsburgh press tour hosted by the folks at Visit Pittsburgh. And I rounded out the year with a blogger press trip to Cleveland to take part in the Ohio Dairy Adventure. :)

I was afforded some incredible opportunities to work with some brands and companies that I had only dreamed of collaborating with before. And in return, I was able to provide you all with even more delicious and budget friendly recipes, money saving tips, and family friendly travel ideas in 2015. And speaking of family travel, I met my goal of really growing and expanding that section of Frugal Foodie Mama in 2015 ! :) If you haven't visited my Family Travel page recently, you should pop over and take a peek. I added lots of travel recaps and tips to that section over the past year. 

I am so thankful for how much this blog has grown in the past 365 days, but as always none of this would be possible without all of you all. My readers who come back day after day to read my posts, share them, and support Frugal Foodie Mama. I can never say it enough, but THANK YOU. :) You all are the reason why this blog of mine has done so well. 

And now for the real reason you all are here- the top posts of 2015! Not surprisingly, recipes dominated what you all loved the most from the past year. But we did have one non-recipe rank pretty darn high in the countdown this year. 

Let the countdown from #10 to #1 begin NOW...

12 Healthy & Comforting Soups

Not only are these 12 Healthy & Comforting Soups better for you & packed with the good stuff, but they are also hearty & comforting at the same time...

The colder temperatures have finally started to settle in around here.  With temperatures in the 60's & 70's over Christmas weekend, I was beginning to wonder if I was ever going to be able to break out my cute winter sweaters and cozy scarves. ;) 

But it seems that winter has finally caught up with us here in the mountain state & just in time for the new year. Time to cozy up with a warm bowl of comforting soup now that it is finally cold enough to.

I know healthy isn't usually the first thing that people think of when they think of a big warm bowl of comfort food, but who says that comfort food can't also help you reach those healthier eating goals for the new year? 

Not these 12 Healthy & Comforting Soups I have rounded up from some of my favorite food blogs! :) That's right, folks. A dozen homemade soup recipes that are not only healthy, better for you, and packed with the good stuff, but that are also hearty and comforting at the same time...

Summer Blog Challenge, Day 18- A Recipe I Love

For the mama who loves to cook as much as I do, you would think this would be an easy one, right?  Well, it is not.  I have so many recipes that I love, and once again I am asked to choose just one...  So, I am going to choose three! :)


I am going to go with a theme here- favorite comfort foods.  My ultimate favorite comfort food is risotto.  I call it grown-up mac 'n cheese.  What I like most about risotto is that it is SO versatile!  You can add just about whatever you would like to it.  But good risotto does require patience.  It takes a while for the chicken broth (or veggie broth) to be absorbed by the rice, plus you have to park yourself by the stove for about an hour.  But it is so worth it!  Here is a link to my very own Summertime Risotto recipe- click here.

For snowy winter evenings or a rainy day, I love to make Avgolemono Soup- a Greek chicken lemon soup.  My favorite recipe for it also happens to be a Cooking Light recipe (healthy too!).  Click here for the recipe.

And we can't forget the ultimate comfort food dessert- chocolate chip cookies!  I actually just stumbled across this recipe from Once Upon a Chef last week, and it is unanimous in this house that it is now our favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe.  I featured this cookie in my Pinspiration in the Kitchen post last Friday- click here.  (You can also find a link to the recipe in my post.) ;)

What are some of your favorite recipes?  Feel free to share the links to them below in the comments! :)

Parmesan & Veggie Quinoa Skillet

This one pot Parmesan & Veggie Quinoa Skillet combines fresh veggies with Parmesan cheese & hearty quinoa. This vegetarian-friendly recipe is the perfect dish to whip up when you are craving a little healthy comfort food...

 

As many of you know, I donated a kidney to my fiance in October of 2021. If you follow me on Instagram, then you may also know that we have had our struggles and setbacks since our surgeries a little over 1 year and 3 months ago. 

While his kidney function and numbers are better than they have been in over 15 years, the reality of life post-transplant was not exactly something that we felt we had really been made aware of or had been sufficiently prepared for. Over the course of the past 15 months, Colin has experienced emergency surgery, hospitalizations, 2 mild rejection episodes, more ER visits than I can remember, and numerous medication changes to try to find the right combination for him.

And while we are thankful that the surgeries, hospitalizations, and rejection episodes seem to now be a part of our past (knock on wood), we are still struggling with the latter two- particularly the medications. Colin takes quite a few medications to help prevent rejection and keep his blood pressure in check. They all can have significant side effects, and some of the meds and dosages are worse than others.

While we are leaving it to his team of docs to try to find the right combo and dosages of his much needed medications, we are doing what we can as a couple to lead healthier lives together. That includes eating healthier, going to the gym more each week, and cooking at home more often.

Holiday Turkey & Cranberry Risotto

Creamy risotto comes together with fresh rosemary, leftover holiday turkey, sweet & tart cranberries, & flavorful cooking wine in this comforting Turkey & Cranberry Risotto...

This post was created in partnership with Holland House Cooking Wine. As always, all opinions & thoughts expressed below are 100% my own.

The only thing I love more than a good home-cooked holiday meal is the leftovers. But after a day or two of eating leftover turkey sandwiches, I am ready to change it up a bit. 

This Turkey & Cranberry Risotto recipe I am sharing with you all today is going to elevate your holiday leftovers to a whole other level of deliciousness thanks to the bold flavor that the Holland House White Cooking Wine adds to this dish.

Creamy risotto comes together with fresh rosemary, leftover holiday turkey, sweet & tart cranberries, and flavorful cooking wine to create a dish that is almost as good as the holiday dinner itself. It is perfect post-holiday comfort food, you all.