Nothing beats a piping hot bowl of soup on a wintery day.

when it comes to soups I am all in, especially when the weather gets weathery. LOL! You know what I mean by that…snow, wind, sleet, cold. That’s a Pennsylvania winter for you. However, I do have to remind myself that I am a Michigan native and mitten winters are far worse. PA winters, in my opinion, are quite mild.

Anyway, enough about the weather and more about this delicious butternut squash, pork, and black bean soup. So, it’s pretty darn good, to say the least. I had fun making this recipe as I employed my youngest son as head chef. He thought pretty highly of himself and couldn’t wait to serve his dad and siblings this soup.

Are you ready to get the details on this recipe? I bet you are! Well, wait no longer, friend! Simply hop on over to the next page for a complete list of ingredients and instructions. Enjoy!

Recipe and image courtesy of Me Lady Cooks.

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Quick Tip: This soup freezes well. I made a double batch and froze half for later without any issues.

My husband hasn’t been a big fan of pork chops. I think it has to do with the fact that his mother used to make them so often when he was a kid. Whenever I suggest pork chops for dinner, he gets this weird look on his face. And then he says he wants to cook a surprise dinner, instead. Haha! Well, I can’t really blame him. My mother-in-law is a great cook, but perhaps pork chops once a week is a bit too often!

The other night, however, I found this really tasty-looking pork chop recipe and I just had to try it. My husband was still at work so he didn’t have a say in it! I prepared everything (which is, by the way, a breeze with this dish) and waited until he got home. I poured him a glass of wine and told him we were going to have a special meal. His jaw dropped when I served the pork chops, but as soon as he took his first bite, he said these were going on our dinner routine!

Recipe and image courtesy of Group Recipes.

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Quick Tip: Use low-fat options for the soup, milk, sour cream and cheddar, if preferred.

Most of us have tried it—reinvent pork chop breadings to give those juicy pieces of meat a new flavor. What have you tried so far? In my case, I’ve tried the classic flour-egg-bread crumbs. I use Japanese bread crumbs because they give the chops the crunchy taste without the saltiness. I also tried the flour-egg-crushed crackers combination. Those tasteless crackers that we pair with cheese and wine? I put a few pieces in a ziplock bag and crush them. I also tried the flour-egg-flour. I saw this in one of the video recipes on a social media site and tried it too: the flour-egg-crushed Cheetos combination. The last one was the flour-egg-graham crackers combination. This one didn’t taste so good, at least for me. The texture of the crushed graham crackers was too soft; and the semi-sweet taste of it just didn’t taste well with my pork chops.

For some reason, I never thought of using cheese crackers for breading even though I actually love cheese. So when I encountered this recipe from Mr. Food while I was searching for other breading recipes that cater to my taste, there was a “light bulb” moment—why didn’t I think of that?

Photo and recipe courtesy of Mr. Food.

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Quick Tip: Serve with your favorite wine.

Take a peek at what a happy reviewer had to say about these BBQ onion meatball bombs over at Hugs and Cookies XOXO:

“Wow!!! I’m sure I don’t need 3 strips of bacon or that much beef, but I have to try these. And it just so happens I have 3 strips of bacon in the fridge right now! You know Oprah says if you have bacon in your fridge you are not seriously dieting! LoL! These sound amazing and would be a real crowd pleaser. I cook for one and I must attempt this. Pinning and planning dinner right now!”

Who are you trying to fool? EVERYONE needs 3 strips of bacon in their life!

Recipe and photo courtesy of Hugs and Cookies XOXO.

PLEASE CONTINUE TO THE NEXT PAGE FOR A LIST OF INGREDIENTS.

Quick Tip: Add a splash of Worcestershire sauce to these little bombs for an added kick of flavor!

Fast-Making Meaty Deliciousness

Swedish Meatballs deliver a classic creamy and savory flavor and are really quick to make. I had some Swedish meatballs a few weeks ago at my usual tailgate spot, and I loved them so much, I just had to hunt down a recipe for them to share with you.

Fast-cooking recipes such as these are great for parties, tailgates, and midweek dinners. Just pair with your favorite pasta, and there you have it! These aren’t the Italian-style meatballs that most people are used to, but if you like savory and creamy sauces, you’ll really enjoy meatballs this way.

I think that you could practically drink this gravy. And yes, as the original recipe provider suggests, you may want to make a bit extra sauce if you are using broad egg noodles or something similar. This recipe is best if you have enough gravy that it can really soak into the pasta; that way, the savory flavor really takes hold, and you can make that great meaty taste stretch that much further.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Damn Delicious

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Quick tip: Serve with mashed potatoes.

I think that there might be about as many ways to make great pork chops as to make a tasty chicken dish. This recipe involves a bit of stove-top cooking and a bit of baking in the oven to yield a dish that is savory, earthy, moist, and with just the right amount of soft tartness to draw out the other flavors. This French Onion Pork Chop recipe is a relatively quick and simple way to bring a gourmet meal to your dinner table. It’s great savory flavor, ready in under an hour.

One of my dear cousins is so in love with this dish that he always calls me before he travels to meet us. I can hear it over the phone that he wants to ask me to make this for dinner, but he’s too embarrassed to do so… Until I ask if there’s a favorite dish he’d like to have while visiting us. It’s always this one!

Recipe and photo courtesy of Kudos Kitchen

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Quick tip: If you’re not too fond of Swiss cheese, use your favorite cheese instead!

Meatloaf is a popular family dinner item for a reason. My favorite thing about it is that it’s easy to double the recipe and make enough to feed even a larger group for two days. Sometimes, however, it can become a bit boring or “blah.”  Solve that problem and liven up your meatloaf night with this Bacon-Wrapped Meatloaf recipe! It’ll be a huge hit and your family will beg you to make it again soon.

Meatloaf can be a hearty and satisfying main course, particularly when paired with some yummy potatoes and beans.  Some recipes out there just miss the mark a bit, though, at least in my opinion, and even a good, tried-and-true recipe can become a bit of a yawner, after a while.  This recipe certainly isn’t boring.  After making one small adjustment, I thought that it came out beautifully.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Salad in a Jar

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Quick tip: You can add some brown sugar to the ketchup if you want a sweeter flavor.