Scones are one of the easiest pastries to learn to bake and these are perfect for beginners. They come together quickly and the overnight rest in the refrigerator makes them pretty forgiving.
The ingredients are ones I almost always have in my pantry so when I decide to make a special treat these are often what I choose. They are a family favorite for sure. They also make wonderful gifts to drop off with friends and neighbors!
One thing that will help your scones turn out beautifully is to measure out your buttermilk and measure and cube your butter then place them both back into the refrigerator until the recipe calls for them. Keeping things cold makes a big difference. I don’t even preheat my oven until the scones are assembled, sliced, and ready to bake.
Combine the dry ingredients and give them a good mix to break down any large clumps of brown sugar. Little lumps are ok and actually make for little bursts of flavor in the baked scones.
Pull the buttermilk and butter out of the fridge. Toss the cubed butter in the flour and then cut it into the dry mixture until the butter is the size of large peas.
With the mixer on low speed, slowly stream in the buttermilk until the dough just comes together. There will still be a little dry flour in the bottom of the bowl, that’s ok; it will get incorporated when you knead it by hand.
Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and carefully knead it a few times, just to incorporate the crumbs and make the dough fairly smooth and not too sticky. Handle the dough as little as possible so as not to melt the bits of butter.
Divide the dough in two and pat each half into an 8 inch circle. The sides won’t be smoothly round and that’s ok.
The scones are best if you can put them back in the refrigerator for a while before you bake them. I prefer to leave them overnight and bake them the following day.
Place each round in a zip-top bag or wrap them tightly with cling wrap and refrigerate. If you need to bake them right away, leave them in the fridge until the oven is completely preheated.
When you are ready to bake the scones, preheat the oven and then pull the scones out to slice once the oven has come to temperature.
Place the circles on an ungreased baking sheet (I use a pizza stone). Cut each circle into 8 triangles. Separate the triangles so they aren’t touching and bake until they are just beginning to turn golden brown around the edges. This will only take 14-16 minutes. You want to avoid over baking them so they aren’t dry.
Transfer the baked scones from the cookie sheet to a cooling rack so they don’t sweat and get soggy.
These scones are soft and fluffy and are delicious warm or cold, served with butter, jam, and fresh whipped cream. Make a batch and tell us who you shared them with!
Whole Wheat Buttermilk Scones
Light and flaky scones that can be prepped ahead and baked the next day.
Cut the butter into small cubes and measure out the buttermilk. Place both back in the fridge to keep cold until they are needed.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a food processor, combine the dry ingredients.
Stir well to combine and break up any large pieces of brown sugar. Smaller lumps are ok.
Take the butter from the fridge and sprinkle it around the flour mixture int he bowl, trying not to handle it too much.
Blend on medium speed (or pulse in the food processor) until the butter is the size of peas.
With the mixer on, slowly stream in the buttermilk until the dough just comes together. There will still be a tablespoon or so of dry flour at the bottom of the bowl.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface being careful to pour the dry flour onto the top of the dough so it can be folded in.
Knead the dough just a few times with your hands until it comes together and isn't very sticky. Be careful not to handle the dough too much as that will make the scones tough.
Divide the dough in half and pat each half into a circle about 8 inches in diameter.
Place each circle in a zip-top bag or wrap tightly in cling wrap and place them both in the refrigerator until the oven is preheated and you are ready to slice and bake them. They are best if left in the fridge overnight but are still delicious if baked the same day.
Preheat the oven to 400°. Once it is preheated, remove the scone circles from the refrigerator and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.
Slice each circle into 8 triangles.
Separate the triangles so they aren't touching and bake just until the edges begin to brown. This will take about 14-16 minutes. Do not overcook the scones or they will be dry.
Let the scones sit for just a few minutes once they are out of the oven and then serve them with soft butter, lemon curd, jam, and fresh whipped cream.
Weekends seem like the perfect time for a big breakfast, but making scrambled eggs and bacon for a large family can be time-consuming. This baked egg casserole makes a hearty breakfast a cinch! This recipe is a favorite because it can be prepped ahead, then assembled and baked the next morning, making weekend breakfast quick and virtually mess-free.
This casserole recipe is very flexible. The measurements work well with as little as 10 eggs or as many as 18, but the cook times may vary a bit. If you don’t have breakfast meat you can leave it out without any adjustments and the eggs are still delicious.
Canadian bacon and freshly grated cheddar wait to be whisked into an egg casserole.
Use whatever cheese you have on hand or a mixture of multiple kinds. Freshly grated will always be my recommendation, but pre-grated bagged cheese will work as well. Any breakfast meat is delicious in this casserole; try bacon, sausage, or even sliced up, sauteed Canadian bacon.
Layer the cheese and breakfast meat into your casserole dish and set it aside while whisking up the eggs, milk, and seasonings. The flour will clump in pieces and that’s fine.
If you’re using crumbled bacon in the casserole you can wait until after pouring the eggs over the cheese and sprinkle it on the very top so it stays nice and crispy.
Give the egg mixture one last whisk then pour them over the cheese and breakfast meat. Bake uncovered for 45-60 minutes at 350. If the eggs are sunken in the middle still keep cooking; the center will puff up like a souffle when it’s cooked through and then deflate once it’s out of the oven.
If you are prepping the eggs ahead, cover the cheese and meat in the casserole dish, and transfer the eggs to a covered bowl or zip-top bag, then refrigerate overnight. The next morning set the pan on the counter while your oven preheats. Give the eggs a little stir to combine again, then pour over the cheese and meat layers. Bake as directed.
These have been a family staple for two decades now. They have been taken to many pot-luck meals, shared with friends after a new baby, enjoyed many Christmas mornings, and even been know to be whipped up on a weekday!
Give them a try this weekend and let us know which breakfast meat is your favorite!
XOXO
Shan and Doe
Baked Eggs
Cheesy breakfast casserole that can be prepped ahead of time then assembled and baked the next day.
Preheat oven to 350° and llightly butter a 9 x 13 casserole dish.
Spread all the grated cheese in the bottom of the prepared casserole dish.
If you are adding breakfast meat layer it on top of the cheese. (if using bacon I like to add it very last after the egg mixture so it stays crispy)
Set the casserole dish aside for later.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, crack the eggs and add the milk.
Using the whisk attachment on the mixer, whisk together until the egg yolks are mostly broken up.
Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until mostly incorporated. The flour will be lumpy, that's ok.
Give the eggs one last whisk and then pour it over the cheese and breakfast meat in the casserole pan.
Place casserole in the center of the oven uncovered and bake for 45-60 minutes. The eggs are done when they are a light golden brown and the center has completely puffed up above the sides. The center will deflate and flatten once it's removed from the stove.
Let the casserole stand for just a few minutes before slicing.
My family eats soup almost year-round, but we eat A LOT of soup when it’s damp and grey outside. This creamy, cheesy, chowder is one of my favorites and I don’t even like bell peppers! The ingredient list looks a little long, but don’t let that deter you; most of the things you’ll probably find in your pantry and fridge already. Once everything is chopped, the soup comes together very quickly.
Another great thing about this soup is that’s it’s versatile. I think of it as a way to use up leftovers or the last bits and pieces of things hanging around in the fridge. Some extra crumbled bacon from last night’s baked potato makes a great topping for this soup. Substitute the cheeses for whatever you have in your fridge–the pepper jack is the only one I’m not willing to leave out!
The base recipe is delicious even without the addition of meat. Rotisserie chicken is an excellent, easy addition, as are those leftover spiral-sliced ham chunks you have stashed in the freezer.
It’s not an overly spicy soup, even with the jalapeno and pepper jack, so even your little ones can eat it. If you like it spicier sautee some red pepper flakes with the vegetables at the beginning.
I think soup always calls for some kind of bread or biscuit. We love these copy-cat Red Lobster Biscuits.
Let us know if you give this soup a try, we’d love your feedback!
XOXO
Doe
Doe’s Versatile Bell Pepper and Corn Chowder
A simple, creamy chowder that can be made as is, or add chicken or ham.
3bell peppers (yellow, red, orange)deseeded and chopped
1jalapenodeseeded and chopped
3clovesgarlicpressed or minced
1/4cupall-purpose flour
4cupschicken or vegetable stock
3cups frozen sweet corn kernels
4ozcream cheeseroom temperature
1 /4tspsalt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2cupshalf and half
1heaping cupcolby jack cheese (plus extra for topping)shredded
1heaping cuppepper jack cheese (plus extra for topping)shredded
2cupschicken breastcooked and shredded (OPTIONAL)
2cupshamcooked and diced (OPTIONAL)
crumbled baconfor topping
Instructions
In a large pot or dutch oven, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Once the foaming has subsided, add onions, celery, peppers, jalapeno, and garlic and sautee until fragrant and tender.
Sprinkle the flour over the vegatables and stir to make a roux. Cook for 2-4 minutes to eliminate the raw flour taste. Be sure to stir it frequently so it does not burn.
Carefully add the chicken stock all at once. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the broth begins to thicken a bit (10 mins or so), stirring occasionally.
Add the cream cheese, salt, and pepper, and cook until the cream cheese melts into the broth. If you are adding cooked chicken or ham, add it as well and cook until heated through.
Turn heat off and stir in half and half and both cheeses.
Ladle into bowls and top with extra cheese and crumbled bacon.
As you may have gathered from my sister Doe, I am not a menu planner. Is this a problem for me? Yes, yes it is. But I am one of those people who has to be hungry for something in order to want to make it for dinner.
Has this been a problem for my family? Yes, yes it has. Many a night I am just a girl standing in front of the refrigerator asking it to tell me what to make for dinner. I may have a lot of ingredients, but no ideas.
Every few years I’m inspired by Doe’s menu planning and give it a try. I start out weak, work up to mediocracy, and then fizzle out. It’s not my spiritual gift! That’s why I love this soup. I usually have the ingredients on hand (because I use whatever I have on hand) and this time of year it’s something I crave often!
I call it Whatever Ya Got Soup
The very best thing about this soup? You really do use whatever you have on hand. Do you have some leftover green beans and corn from yesterday’s dinner? Throw them in the pot. A random can of sliced carrots in the pantry? Throw them in the pot, too! A bag in the bottom of the freezer with only a few frozen peas? You got it, toss em in!
Maybe you don’t have any ground beef but you’ve got some kidney beans or some great northern beans–that’s fine–just substitute the beans for the beef.
Most any pasta will do for this soup, even broken up spaghetti pieces, but if you don’t have pasta, just throw in a diced raw potato or two.
You could put just about anything in and it makes a nice hearty meal, especially served alongside some yummy bread! One of my favorite bread recipes to make is from the cookbook “New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.”
This is a great book with a lot of wonderful recipes and most are very simple. I use the Master Recipe and if I keep a batch of dough in the fridge I can whip up a couple of small loaves in about an hour and a half. It makes a lovely rustic round loaf.
Hopefully, if you’re a non-planner like me, I’ve given you a little hope and maybe some dinner inspiration. Let us know if you give this soup or bread a try!!
XOXO,
Shan
Shan’s Whatever Ya Got Soup
A simple soup that can be made using whatever meat and veggies are hanging around in the pantry and fridge.
In a large pot brown the ground beef, drain, and return to the cooking pot.
Add 5 cups of whatever combination of liquid you've chosen and the soup mix. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.
Allow the broth and cooked beef to simmer over medium heat for 30-40 minutes then add the canned tomatoes and vegetables. Cook unitl the vegetables are your desired tenderness.
Add the uncooked pasta (I usually use elbow noodles) and cook al dente.
Ladle into bowls and top with a little grated parmesan cheese.
I don’t know what it’s like in the winter where you live, but here in West Virginia, it is grey and wet a lot of the time. I can handle it during the holiday season because I’m distracted by all the twinkly lights, baking, and special music. Once I take down Christmas my home feels a tiny bit barren. I miss the cozy atmosphere the holiday season brings. This year, I am determined to keep more of that special cozy feeling that surrounds the holiday. Here are a few ways I’m going to try doing that.
I’m going to start by catering to ALL my senses.
Paying attention to the way things LOOK around your house is probably the fastest way to implement a cozy atmosphere; are things picked up and organized? Do I like the way my areas are arranged? Is there something that irritates me each time I look at it that I can do something about? Those are fairly obvious things that make a difference when it comes to making your home cozy. But when I think about the atmosphere of the holidays so much of it also involves smell, feel, sound, taste.
Smell: So much baking happens around the holidays but life is picking up speed at my house again so I don’t have a lot of extra time to whip up lots of goodies, but I can easily toss together a simmer pot and set it on my stove when I’m in an afternoon slump. If even that’s too much, I can pull out my essential oil diffuser and search for a great diffuser recipe on Pinterest. Orange is one of my favorite scents around the house. It smells fresh and clean and it also helps wake me up when all I really want is a nap.
Taste: I may not have time to whip up a lot of extra treats after the holidays, but I will still be cooking dinner. When it’s nasty outdoors I purposely plan “comfort foods” that are a little more heavy and rich like this Chicken Pot Pie from the Love Welcome Serve Cookbook, a quick and hearty taco soup (recipe pictured below), or even just opening a can of our favorite chili. Then I add in a light and fluffy carb, sometimes from scratch but more often something like Jiffy cornbread mix (I doctor it up a bit by adding an extra egg, 2 TBSP of melted butter, and 1 TBSP of sugar to the box mix), a can of Pillsbury biscuits or (our favorite) crescent rolls. Mmmmmm, I feel warmed up and cozy just thinking about it.
Sound: There are people home with me all day long so my house leans more toward the noisy side than it does the peaceful and cozy side so I rarely add music into the chaos, but one thing I have enjoyed is playing soft music while I cook or clean in the kitchen. Pandora is my online music go-to and one of my favorite channels is the French Cooking Channel. I also love The Getty’s channel when I’m looking for Christian music. I don my favorite apron, pour a cup of hot tea, and turn the music up just enough that I can hum along over the sound of the slicing, chopping, pouring, and bubbling. It changes my whole mood when I’m cooking dinner!
I’m not as familiar with Spotify, but BooMama205 and TheLazyGenius have made playlists in the past and talked about them on their Instagram accounts. Of course, you don’t have to go with an already prepared playlist; make your own playlist filled with music that lightens your mood! Cooking and cleaning aren’t the only times to play music, during dinner background music makes for a wonderful atmosphere, and while you’re soaking in the tub it’s delightful!
Feel: When it’s blustery and cold outside, I want all the soft, squishy, fluffy things tucked in around me. Cozy jogger pants, oversize sweaters, thick socks and my favorite slippers, piles of blankets, and pillows I can burrow into with a cup of hot tea, cocoa, or coffee depending on my mood. I love to end an evening curled up on the couch under a warm blanket, a hot beverage, and a favorite movie. A folded stack of blankets or a pile of pillows tucked into a shelf or basket just calls out for friends and family to settle in and linger a little longer under their warmth.
The atmosphere of all those things put together can really go a long way to keeping the winter greys outside and bringing the warm and cozy inside. The only thing that could raise the bar just a little?
Twinkle lights and candles.
I can’t even think of what in life is not made a little more cheerful because of a strand of fairy lights or a lit candle. A candle by your bathroom sink as you brush your teeth before bed, twinkle lights wound up carelessly in a jar on your nightstand, battery-powered candles strewn down the center of your dinner table, white Christmas lights dangling above your kitchen sink. Dim your lights friends, and enjoy a winter evening by twinkle lights and candles.
But winter cozy isn’t just about the physical parts of your home. We want you to find ways to make your everyday LIFE cozy.
Take a bubble bath. Place a few candles (or jars with fairy lights) around the room. Give your skin some extra TLC and hydration with a good sugar scrub. Saturate your hair in a good hair mask and while it soaks in put your feet up and read a few chapters of a book.
Drop off a basket of baked goodies for a friend. Include the ingredients for their own simmer pot in a cellophane bag tied with ribbon.
Plan a coffee date at your favorite local coffee shop (all by yourself if that’s what recharges you, with a friend, with your kiddos, or with your spouse) or if your weather is more temperate, fill a thermos, grab a blanket, pick up some treats form your local bakery and head out on a picnic at a park.
Put together a puzzle at home. Turn on your fireplace (or put one on TV), pour your favorite drink, and have a family puzzle night. Order-in your favorite pizza and you won’t even have to cook dinner.
Date-Night at home. Put your kids to bed early if you have them (or just send them to their rooms early if they’re older) and enjoy a quiet candle-lit dinner with your spouse. Maybe even throw a blanket on the floor and have a little living room picnic. Think through all the senses we talked about above and how you might incorporate some of those into your home-date. Who knows what kind of cozy it might lead to!
Eat on that china you usually save for special occasions. Let’s turn more regular days into reasons to use our favorite dishes. Spaghetti and french bread taste even better on china than it does on disposable. (Unless you’re just too exhausted for dishes, then spaghetti on disposable is heavenly!)
Go to the library and check out the maximum number of books you’re allowed. Get a variety, cookbooks, home decor, non-fiction, fiction, comic books, gardening books, whatever strikes you fancy. Plan a whole day and spend all of it cuddled up pouring over these borrowed treasures. If you’re the playful type, build a fort out of your couch cushions, bring in those battery-operated candles, all your piles of pillows and blankets and do your reading in there! Invite a friend to join you!
What do you think? Will you try some of these things at your house to stave off the winter blues? We‘d love to see pictures if you do. Share them on Instagram and tag @thesweetteasisters
“On Mondays We Memorize.” Did you catch the reference to the movie Mean Girls? It’s the first Monday of the New Year and we are ready for a little challenge and we really want you in our club. Instead of a club of mean girls, however, we want to build a club of Bible Girls and everyone is invited!
Shan has thoughtfully chosen 12 Bible verses that we will be memorizing throughout 2021, and we really hope you’ll join us. Each scripture was chosen to encourage your heart and grow your faith. We settled on memorizing only one verse each month so that we have plenty of time to let each verse really penetrate our hearts and memory.
If you’re not already, you’ll want to follow us (thesweetteasisters) on Instagram where we will be sharing the new verse on the first Monday of each month. We share a lot of other fun and encouraging stuff there as well, you don’t want to miss out!
And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall talk about them as you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Deuteronomy 6:6-9
It’s no coincidence that God commanded the Israelites to be about His word all-the-time and every-where. The more you encounter scriptures as you go about your day the more ingrained in your very being they become.
We’ve created a set of printable scripture cards to help your memorization work. You can download the free PDF here. We hope you print off multiple copies and leave them around your house where you’ll come across them throughout your day. You can tape a copy to the mirror in your bathroom, use one as a bookmark, keep a copy in your car, tape it above your stove or kitchen sink, leave one on your bedside table. Check out our Instagram stories each month as well and be sure to grab a screenshot of the current month’s verse that you can screenshot and use as a cover photo on your phone.
We’ve also included 4 of our favorite Psalms with the printable in addition to the 12 memory verses. If you’re feeling a little ambitious you can memorize them as well, but no pressure!
You’ll notice we’ve used an image of a teacup with each scripture we share. Besides the fact that we love pretty cups, we also love the analogy of a full cup being bumped and the contents spilling out–on us and those around us. We want our cups to be filled with God’s word so that when life bumps into us, in whatever way, we spill out that which is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise. (taken from Philippians 4:8) To fill our cups with those things means we have to become intentional about memorizing God’s word.
We hope you decide to join us and we pray these verses bless and strengthen you as go through 2021. If you’re in with us, grab your scripture cards, mark your calendar and then pop over to our Instagram and comment, “I’m in!!” And don’t forget, on Mondays we memorize!
Does the thought of committing to daily Bible reading send dread down your spine? Or maybe it stiffens your back because of those “legalistic-perfect Christians”. Oh, friend, I hope it doesn’t, but I understand if it does. The guilt I used to feel every time I missed a day or got so behind I just stopped reading altogether was enough that for many years I barely opened my Bible other than on Sunday. I wouldn’t commit to reading because I was just so tired of failing.
Part of my struggle was I wasn’t sure where to start. I knew I could start with Genesis and go book by book, but that just felt overwhelming, and I didn’t always understand or have any context for what I was reading. Not understanding can make the word of God feel very remote and dry.
I also had trouble “catching up” or feeling behind if I missed a day. In my mind, I had to follow a specific plan to read a certain amount, on a certain day, at a certain time. And if I missed a day I felt as though I needed to read the previous day before I could read the current day. And if I missed multiple days? Two choices: binge-read or give up. I have chosen both in the past.
Can I give you a bit of encouragement, sister? Reading your Bible doesn’t have to be a burden. In fact, I’ll dare to say it SHOULDN’T be a burden. God didn’t give us His word just to add work to our day. Reading our Bible isn’t what saves us or makes us better Christians. But reading our Bible WILL help us as we function as believers.
How much easier is it to trust someone that you know personally?
How much easier to follow someone when you know where their heart is?
How much more likely are you to have faith in someone when you have seen and understand how they have handled themselves in the past?
The Bible tells us in Matthew 4:4, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT COMES OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.’ “ NASB
Reading our Bible helps us to know and see God in a very real and life-altering way–if we can just get past our issues first. I’m going to share a few things that have worked for me and I think maybe they can help you as well.
The first thing I’m going to encourage you to do is kick your preconceived notions of “the right way” to the curb! Other than with an open heart and a teachable spirit, there is no “correct” way to read the Bible. God isn’t timing how long you spend reading or keeping track of what time of the day it was. He doesn’t care what order you read the books in or if you highlight and write in the margins. He doesn’t require that you read from your favorite Bible, or even READ at all. I promise God isn’t grading you on your Bible time. He just wants you to spend time in His Word and with Him.
Maybe you don’t have an hour or two to dedicate to the Word every morning, but I bet you can grab 15 minutes here and there throughout the day. You might be surprised how many verses can be read in just 15 minutes.
Don’t rely on the fact that you have your phone with you all the time, we’re too easily distracted by social media and the internet. I can’t tell you how many times I pick up my phone to turn on music and then wonder half an hour later how I ended up on Facebook without any music playing!
Try keeping an inexpensive Bible in multiple rooms of your house. Did you know you can buy a paperback Bibleon Amazon for about $3.00? The words in the cheap paperback are the same as the ones in your favorite leatherbound Bible. Consider keeping a paperback one in your kitchen (read while you’re eating breakfast or sipping coffee). You can keep another one in your car (read while you’re waiting on your kids or husband). The best place to keep one is probably in your *gasp* bathroom! Start leaving your phone behind and browsing the Bible instead.
I just recently learned that Jews view scripture as food and they “eat their portion” daily. I love that image. A bite here, a full meal there, and a snack for good measure adds up to nutrition.
Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on Him God the Father has set His seal…Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to Me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in Me shall never thirst.
John 6: 27, 35 ESV
Remember, there is a difference between READING scripture and STUDYING scripture. Both are important, and each produces fruit differently. I will never discourage you from doing a deep dive into God’s word to study it–cross-referencing, reading commentaries, making outlines, and listening to lectures, but if you’re already struggling to be in the Word on a regular basis, maybe it’s time to scale back a bit and do the basics. Much can be learned by JUST READING. Don’t even highlight or write in the margins if you don’t want to, just read straight through like you would any other story. Do the best you can, until you can do better, but don’t do nothing just because you can’t do it all.
For as the rain and snow come down from heaven, And do not return there without watering the earth And making it produce and sprout, And providing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; So will My word be which goes out of My mouth; it will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the purpose for which I sent it.
Isahah 55:10-12 NASB
Ask God to give you a love and a hunger for His word. Sometimes, when I was making an effort to be in the Word, I didn’t enjoy it. I was tired, it was dry, I wanted to be sleeping…lots of reasons. So I confessed that to God (I’m pretty sure He could already tell) and I asked Him to please help me love it–to place a desire to read His Word in my heart. And before I begin reading, I ask Him again. I also ask the Holy Spirit to open my mind and heart to help me understand what I’m reading. God is faithful and He will help you.
Your words were found and I ate them, And Your words became for me a joy and the delight to my heart; For I have been called by your name, O Lord God of hosts.
Jeremiah 15:16 NASB
Take advantage of technology. Somewhere I heard about an app for my phone called ReadScripture. It’s a year-long reading plan that can be started at any point in the year. (I just happen to like to start things at the beginning of something; like a Monday, or the first day of a new month, or maybe even January 1st!) You can read it at your own pace or their recommended pace. There’s nothing revolutionary about that though, that’s how it is with most plans.
What I LOVE about the ReadScripture app is that it’s meant to help you see the Bible as a whole story and to see Jesus as the running theme throughout. At the beginning of each book, there is a short video that gives you an overview of the book, along with information for context and how it fits with the big picture of the Bible. Occasionally, throughout the book, there may be other videos explaining different things. ReadScripture pairs with BibleProject.com where you can sign up to have the reading plan and videos emailed to you instead, in addition to a blog and podcasts. I come back to my ReadScripture app every time I start a new Bible study so I can rewatch the overview video as well as any other videos they have included. While I prefer to read my actual Bible, rather than on my phone, I do keep track of what I’ve read in the app.
LISTEN! Remember how I said you don’t even have to READ the word? Listening to it counts as well, friend! I remember my mother had all the books of the Bible on tape and it was in this huge hard-back case that weighed a ton. Now, you can listen to scriptures from your phone or computer with just a few clicks–and often for FREE. My favorite is an app on my phone called Dwell. It’s not free, but I love the different ways it can be customized. You can change the speaking voice, add music in the background, and there are multiple plans to choose from. You can also listen to “playlists” set up by other users. It has been well worth the $30.00 a year I paid for it.
I listen while I’m cooking or cleaning. Sometimes I listen when I’m driving somewhere or as I fall asleep at night.
Talk about what you’re reading or learning with a friend. This doesn’t have to be something formal or in person (unless you need an excuse to get together!) and they don’t have to even live in your town. Shan and I live 2500 miles apart and have begun having a weekly phone call to talk about what we’re reading. Sometimes it’s the same thing, other times we are each reading something different, but it’s so fun to see how often God is showing us similar themes. Some weeks we have to shift our call to another day or skip that week completely. We just pick up wherever we are when we do get to chat. Be warned though, if you are like Shan and me, your phone conversation could take up a good portion of your day. (And that’s the very best part for me!)
To Plan or Not to Plan? You don’t have to follow a reading plan if that’s not your style. Some people like the structure, some people do not enjoy being told what to do (or read)! The point is to do what works FOR YOU, in this season. I just came out of a season of just randomly reading different books in the New Testament. It was great, but now I’m ready for a little structure again.
If you’re the type of person who likes to have a reading plan in place and like to see yourself marking off the chapters, some of the apps I mentioned above will provide the ability to mark off and track what you’ve read. You can also go old school and print a paper copy to manually mark off. A quick search on Pinterest will give you MANY options!
There is more than one style of reading plan as well. Most of us are used to the “reading straight through” plan. Start at the beginning of Genesis and just keep reading in order until the end of Revelation.
Another option is the “chronological” plan. It might come as a surprise to learn the books of the Bible are not placed in the order in which they happened. If you want to read the Bible like a timeline, look for a chronological plan. You may find chunks of certain books are moved in within other books to create a full, chronological story.
The “five-day plan” divides the Bible up so that instead of reading seven days a week you are reading five. This might be a great plan for you if you like the idea of having two days to catch up if you get off track during the week.
If reading only in one Testament at a time is not your cup of tea, look for an “Old Testament/New Testament” plan. Each day you will read selected passages from both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
A plan I hadn’t heard of before is called the “M’Cheyne plan”. Each day you will read two passages from the Old Testament, one from the New Testament, and another from either the Psalms or the Gospels. When you finish the plan (a year if you follow it as given), you will have read the Old Testament once and the New Testament and Psalms twice.
Whether you choose a plan or not, DO NOT GIVE UP, friend! You’re going to miss days or maybe even weeks. You’re going to not understand some things. You’re going to want to skip entire books in whatever plan you’re reading (ugh–Job!!). But whatever happens, just pick up your Bible and start where you were at the next time you can. God will still be there. His Word will be the same. You don’t have to be perfect because He has already filled in the gaps of our humanness.
I love the way Psalms 1:1-3 tells us that for those who delight in and meditate on the law of the Lord (night AND day), “He is like a tree planted by streams of water, that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.”
Our earthly lives are about seasons, my sisters. Some seasons are dry, some are rainy, and some are beautifully sunny. Some bear rest, some pain, and some work, but all seasons result in fruit–in its time.
Remember, whatever season you are in, it is a GIFT from God. Acknowledge it. Sit in it. Soak it up. It is God who will produce in us.
For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
Do you have an ideal day? The one where everything aligns and you can do anything you want? Maybe it’s at the beach or sitting by a cozy fire, maybe a lakeside retreat, or a day spent shopping with girlfriends. I love all those things too, but by far my favorite thing is to be somewhere quiet enjoying a good book. If you know me at all then that comes as no surprise! The past 6 months have provided many opportunities to do so, and I’m not a bit mad about it.
Today, I wanted to share a few of the books I’m currently reading. When I was younger I couldn’t read more than one book at a time and I found it difficult to understand those who were able to read multiple books at once. However, as I’ve gotten older my ability has changed and now I read many books simultaneously. I can’t seem to get enough. Bring me all the books!
Here’s what’s on my “reading table” at the moment.
The author D.A Carson (Ph.D.) is a research professor of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He is the author or editor of more than forty books and is one of the leaders of the Gospel Coalition
I’m reading this book for an online class I’m taking entitled “Christian Story” through the Village Church’s Institute. The class is an 11-week study that covers the basic storyline of Scripture. The goal of the class is to help disciples understand, explain, and participate in the true story of the world in deeper and richer ways. His book “ takes you through the big story of Scripture to help you know what you believe and why you believe it.”
I’ve been a Christian my whole life. My parents were believers. My grandparents, most of my Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins too. But, sometimes we can believe things without knowing why we believe them. We take on the faith of our family, which is wonderful, but at some point, you have to make it your own. This is a journey I’ve been on for many years. To examine what I believe and sort out what I don’t. To know and understand my faith in a way that I can explain and share with others.
The book is written a bit like a textbook and I’ve got to put my thinking cap on when I’m reading it!
Favorite Quote so far:“He made us, and we owe him. If we do not recognize this simple truth, then, according to the Bible, that blindness is itself a mark of how alienated from him we are. It is for our good that we recognize it, not because he is the supreme bully but because without him we would not even be here, and we will certainly have to give an account to him.” -From Chapter One
Who should read this book? This book is for anyone who wants to know more about Scripture in a deeper, more life-transforming way. Whether you’ve ever read the bible or not.
Shanna is a resident of Washington State (just like me) and is the founder and owner of Illustrated Faith and the Bible-journaling community.
She starts right off the bat confessing that she hasn’t always loved her bible! I love it when authors are honest and transparent with their readers. Isn’t that the truth for many of us? We have struggled to have a meaningful quiet time with the Lord and often come up feeling like we’ve failed. This can lead to making excuse after excuse for not getting into the Word.
Shanna’s book is straightforward and she gets to the heart of the matter and has some fun and easy ways to make bible reading more rewarding and engaging.
It’s a very easy read with a journaling challenge at the end of the book.
I’m about halfway through and have really enjoyed it.
Favorite Quote so far: “Mark it down – your progress in holiness will never exceed your relationship with the hold Word of God” ( Nancy Leigh DeMoss).
Who should read this book? Anyone wanting some creative ideas for engaging with Scripture.
Jen is a speaker, writer, and teacher of women’s Bible studies.
I have several of her other books and they are wonderful! I’m also doing an online study of the Psalms that she is leading. She is probably one of my favorite Bible teachers.
Her book outlines a study plan that follows the 5 P’s: Purpose, Perspective, Patience, Process, and Prayer.
I finished this book earlier this year, but keep it handy to reference often. There are so many good truths to wade through I need to refer to it often to cement it into my mind.
Favorite Quote: “The heart cannot love what the mind does not know. This is the message of Romans 12:2-3 – not that the mind alone affects transformation, but that the path to transformation runs from the mind to the heart, and not the other way around.”
Romans 12:2-3 “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given you.” NLT
Who should read this book: Anyone looking for a more in-depth study method.
Ellen is a New York Times bestselling author and former vice president of executive communications at Prison Fellowship and collaborated with the late Chuck Colson on a number of his seminal works.
Elisabeth Elliot was one of our mothers’ favorite authors. Her book “Keep a Quiet Heart” was one she kept on her table next to her chair in the living room. I have long been fascinated by a woman who could go back and serve the very people who took the life of her husband while serving as missionaries in Ecuador. How was she able to do something so remarkable and selfless? I have only just scratched the surface of this book, just now on chapter 3, but my goodness, it is so good! I encourage you to get it if you possibly can.
Favorite Quote so far: “Her story conveys all the discipline and patient suffering for which she was well-known in the often-repeated stories about the violent death of her first husband. But her most noble accomplishment was not weathering that excoriating loss. It was practicing-through both the high dramas and the low, dull days that constitute any human life-the daily self-death required for one’s soul to flourish.”
Who should read this book? Anyone who would be encouraged and strengthened in their faith by the life of one ordinary woman who through God overcame great tragedy and allowed Him to use her life any way he chose.
Isabel is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and the first woman of African-American heritage to win this prize in journalism.
To quote the back cover of the book “ Isabel Wilkerson chronicles one of the great untold stories of American history: the decades-long migration of black citizens who fled the South for northern and western cities, in search of a better life. From 1915-1970, this exodus of almost six million people changed the face of America.”
The New Yorker says “This is narrative non-fiction, lyrical and tragic and fatalist. The story exposes; the story moves; the story ends. What Wilkerson urges, finally, isn’t argument at all; its compassion. Hush, and listen.”
The stories she shares are of real people. They are heartbreakingly hard to read, I can’t imagine living through them. Honestly, I can only read a few chapters at a time. I admit it; I am a wimp. It can be overwhelming, so I don’t plan on finishing anytime soon, but I’m giving myself a little grace. Sometimes you need to sit with what you read for a while and let it change the way you see the world. Even how you see and understand the past.
Favorite Quote so far: “What binds these stories together was the back-against the wall, reluctant yet hopeful search for something better, any place but where they were. They did what human beings looking for freedom, throughout history, have often done. They left.”
Who should read this book? Anyone who wants a better understanding of recent American history and the way it has shaped our country.
Stacey is an author, blogger, and speaker. She is the author of six books and has worked with Campus Crusade.
This is my first book by this author, and it is a series of prayers for hearts that feel hidden, hurt, or hopeless. If 2020 has done anything I think it has made many of us often feel hopeless with every news cycle.
THRED’BARE, adjective (thread and bare) “Worn to the naked thread; having the nap worn off; as a threadbare coat; threadbare clothing.”
The definition of thread bear feels right, it fits. I can certainly relate, can’t you? This year has left me feeling worn out, exposed, and naked on many, many days. The ugliness that seems to be the norm these days, the worry for others’ health and safety, the struggle to trust our leaders to lead us well, the day in and day out of a life that has been marked by change. It’s all been exhausting and there are days I struggle to put into words what I’m feeling because honestly, it’s all just too much. That’s why I’m so thankful for a Savior who isn’t overwhelmed, isn’t threadbare, and hasn’t been taken by surprise with anything 2020 throws at us. He already knew and He’s already made a way through for me. And you, too! We just need to trust Him and lean on Him during hard days.
Favorite Quote so Far: “And I realize once again, Jesus isn’t threadbare holding on for dear life. He is holding onto me. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:17)
Who should read this book? Anyone who is feeling worn thin by life.
Well, there you have it! Those are the books that I am making my way through. I’m sure some I won’t finish until the end of the year and I’ll probably add a few good ol’ “Who-done-its” along the way, I just can’t help myself! I hope I’ve encouraged you to dig into your Bible or maybe pick up a new book today.
Now tell me: What’s on your reading table and why????
XOXOX,
Shan
**This is not a sponsored post. All books were purchased by us, and we receive no compensation if you purchase any through the provided links.
My husband walks in the door after work and finds me standing glassy-eyed, staring into our pantry, trying to figure out what to cook for dinner. Finally, I decide on spaghetti. Again. But the ground beef is frozen and when I go to grab the jarred sauce while the pasta boils there is only one jar. Not enough for a family of seven for sure. Do I have a plan B? Do I run to the store really quickly to grab another jar? Do I dare ask my husband to go back into town to grab another jar? Panic. None of these are ideal solutions. I eventually sort it out, but now it’s past 7:30 and we are just sitting down to eat. The kids are tired. I’m tired. My husband is tired. And we are ALL grumpy.
Does any of this sound even a tiny bit familiar to you? If so, I may have something that can help you out a bit. It’s Menu Planning. Stay with me here. Menu planning is not a contract and it doesn’t have to be an ordeal. It’s not a miracle cure, (or even the answer for everyone), and it does require some sit-down time in advance for planning, but it can be done fairly simply and quickly with a few tips and tricks I’ve learned. Menu planning isn’t for everyone, and that’s ok! But it has made a huge difference in dinner time around our house and if you struggle with deciding what to cook at dinnertime, it might be worth giving it a try for your house as well.
Menu planing was a novel concept for me, my mom did not make a formal menu of any kind while I was growing up. But I had a friend who made had been making a menu for as long as I could remember. Just watching her make her menu is what got me started thinking it might be a good option for us.
One thing you’ll need to decide before you sit down to plan your menu is how far out you are planning. Do you like to do things weekly? Do you want to consider paydays and budgets? There were times we were paid once a month and I planned that entire month of meals all at once. Other times I planned from the 1st of the month to the 15th and then the 15th to the last day of the month. Now I tend to plan just one week to a week and a half at a time. There is no right answer and it may take some trial and error to figure out what works for you. It may also change from one month to the next. Don’t give up, keep tweaking to figure out what works for your family.
I’ve been making a menu fairly regularly for nearly 15 years now. But it wasn’t always perfect or pretty in the beginning–for a while there it was pretty hit and miss. Some weeks I would put together a menu and other weeks I would skip it and I’d be right back where we started. Other times I’d make the menu, but never make it to the store for the ingredients to make the meals.
Which leads us to tip # 1. The first thing I learned was to keep ingredients for some “Quick & Simple” meals on hand at all times. Things like chili and cornbread, spaghetti and green beans, tacos and refried beans, frozen pizza, and fish sticks and macaroni and cheese. They are simple meals and work in a pinch, and I had almost a whole week’s worth of ideas to get me by. If I was sick and my husband needed to cook he had some easy options he could throw together quickly. If my day went sideways or I simply didn’t plan well, I could always pull out a faithful standby and have something hot on the table shortly after my husband got home. And believe me, we ate some variation of those items quite often for a while.
One I started using a menu, I dreaded dinner time a little less. But it would still drive me nuts when I would get asked multiple times a day, “What’s for dinner?” I was already writing my menu out on paper so all I needed to do was post the menu somewhere everyone could see it. This actually benefited us in two ways: people could answer their own questions, and I would see the menu hanging on the fridge and that would remind me to pull whatever needed to thaw out of the freezer! I started out scratching my menu out on whatever scrap of paper was available but pretty soon I started using pretty notepads or lots of colored pens to brighten up my menu. Now, I write my menu in my day planner along with reminders for when to take things out to thaw. I’ve created two printable menus you can download and print out for FREE. One has WEEKDAY HEADINGS and starts on Monday. The other is BLANK and you can fill in whatever days work for you.
If you’re alive in this world today, (man, woman, mother, father, working, staying-home, whatever), then I know you are BUSY! Let me encourage you to make friends with your slow-cooker and/or instant pot. I intentionally plan at least one “set-it-and-forget-it” type meal each week. This has saved my sanity on several occasions. From breakfast casseroles to baked potatoes to cooking a frozen roast in your instant pot, Pinterest has a plethora of recipes to try out.
In addition to slow-cooker meals, I intentionally add no-cook nights to each menu. We almost always have some leftovers after meals and most things reheat beautifully, either on the stovetop or the microwave. But they don’t always get eaten before they go bad. By adding nights that I don’t cook to the menu I force myself and my family to “forage for food”. If the leftovers get eaten before our planned no-cook night, hallelujah! We transition to a ”whatever-you-can-find-for-dinner” night. This might be macaroni and cheese, top ramen, hot dogs, peanut butter sandwiches–anything my family can prepare on their own. (Sometimes we even just have a bowl of cereal! Breakfast for dinner anyone?!) Bonus tip–on no-cook nights, use paper plates. It’s a win-win all around.
When you are planning your menu, pull out your family calendar, and plan around your schedule. The first thing I write on my menu is anything I need to know about the upcoming week. Kids work schedules, birthdays, date nights, sports, church events, etc. Then I fill in meals based on those events. Maybe your kids are involved in an activity that takes you away from home one night so you purposely plan to have some kind of portable dinner that can be made earlier in the day, like sandwiches. Or maybe your husband will be out of town and so that’s when you plan your no-cook night and everyone indulges in cereal. Perhaps you will be the one gone for the evening so that’s when you plan a slow-cooker meal. Knowing what’s happening in your week will help you make choices about what to cook when.
Sometimes it feels like the choices for what to cook are overwhelming. If that’s where you find yourself when sitting down to make your menu, one tip that might be helpful is to stick to a pattern and use a template to help make deciding easier. Something like Meatless Monday, Taco Tuesday, Slow-Cook Wednesday, Left-over Thursday, Pizza Friday, can help you narrow your meal choices into categories. Again, arrange your template to work with your family’s basic schedule.
The thing that made the biggest difference for me when putting together my menu, especially when I was doing two or more weeks at a time, was when I put together a Dinner Docket. A docket is a list of things to be considered. I used to pull out every cookbook I owned and also pull up Pinterest when I started planning. It was not only a mess, it slowed me way down. I would forget to add meals I knew my family enjoyed and instead ended up with a list of more complicated meals with ingredients I was usually missing. Finally, I sat down and started a list of all the meals my family likes, sorted by category: chicken dishes, ground beef dishes, meatless dishes, etc. I would add one or two new meals from Pinterest or a cookbook I wanted to try. Then as those new recipes proved to be delicious, I simply added them to the Docket. When it’s menu planning time I look on my Docket and check my “list of meals to be considered.” My Docket is written in the back of my planner, but I’ve created two printable versions that you can download for FREE. One has CATEGORIES already written in. The other is BLANK for you to write whatever category you’d like to sort your Docket by.
If you are still feeling overwhelmed with choices, you can always ask each person in your home what they would like to see on the menu. There are seven of us in my family so I would get quite the list of suggestions. I didin’t always put everyone’s suggestion into one week, somethines I would make note of them for later menus, but it was nice for each person to see their favorite meal pop up on the upcoming menu.
A menu plan won’t do you any good if you never have time to make it to the grocery store to do a full-on shopping trip. Be kind to yourself and utiize online shopping and grocery pickup whenever you can! Look through your pantry and refrigerator first to see what things you already have or what needs to be used up and then as you make your menu and find things you need, add them to your grocery cart right then and there. Schedule your pick up and you’re good to go.
Remember, a menu is not a contract. It’s a proposal. Feel free to shuffle your meals around as life happens and things come up. Some days I wake up and I just have no desire to make what I planned that night for dinner, so I don’t. Because my menu is not the boss of me. Maybe I’ll swap it with another night, maybe I’ll cook one of my pantry standard meals, maybe I won’t cook at all! I can push that meal off to another day or even next week or month. One of my friends plans a menu, but instead of puting them on specific days, she just writes them on index cards and shuffles them through the week as her life goes along. She still has a plan and all the groceries at her fingertips, but she’s tweaked menu planning to fit what works for her.
Shannon and I talk a lot about learning to live prepared rather than reactionary and a menu is a great tool that helps me do that in one area of my life. When I have a plan my afternoons and evenings go much more smoothly, I’m tempted to eat out less often–which really helps the budget, and we tend to sit down at the table together as a family more often.
I’m curious if you make a menu? If not, what holds you back? I hope you find these tips helpful and that you’ll give menu planning a try. If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments and I’ll share any wisdom I may have. Don’t forget to download and print out your FREE Menu Worksheet and Dinner Docket (links below). Take a picture of your upcoming menu and shar it with us in Instagram, be sure to tag TheSweet Tea Sisters so we don’t miss your post!
Trust. The Webster dictionary defines it as “the assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of something or someone. One in which confidence is placed.”
Lately, it doesn’t seem like there is much to put our trust in. Certainly, doctors, our government, media, just about everyone, all seem to have lost credibility. We don’t feel we can trust anyone or anything they say. We trust only ourselves and what we can see and touch. What our minds can grasp and understand. What we can plan for ourselves.
We are Lord and Master of our fate. Even as Christians we struggle in this area. When things are going well, right on our schedule, following our plan, we often see little need for God and think we’ve got it all under control. Right up until we don’t. Plans change. The diagnosis comes in. The job is gone or maybe a Pandemic comes along and changes everything.
And we forget. We forget the God we serve. The God we say we trust. The One, we believe in. We forget His power, His goodness, His faithfulness, His strength, The Truth of who He is. But we aren’t the only ones. The Old Testament is full of the stories of Israel forgetting.
Psalms 78 is a call to Israel to remember God. A call to repent of their doubt. It recounts all the ways God delivered them from Egypt. The signs and wonders He performed on their behalf. How he cared and provided for them all the years in the desert. How He brought them into the very land He had promised the ancestors. And yet, they forgot all this and continued to grumble, complain and doubt.
Verse 22 says “for they did not believe in God or trust in his deliverance.” Youch. It wasn’t that they didn’t believe there was a God. They believed. They just didn’t believe IN Him. They doubted His ability to provide and care for them. They doubted His goodness. His character. They doubted His strength. And many times we do the same.
This year has been one of constant change, upheaval. Things we took for granted as normal daily occurrences like work, school, shopping, or meeting friends, came to an abrupt stop. Over and over again what we thought we knew was challenged and cast aside. Many times, I’m sure we felt like all we knew was tossed out the door and we were left to pick up the pieces. Everything changed in a moment. Everything that is, except God. He stayed exactly the same. We just forgot.
I had to work through my own doubt and fear earlier in the year when the airline industry was hit particularly hard by the pandemic. Being a Flight Attendant meant that since fewer people were flying, there were fewer flights, and so, fewer of us were needed. Many of us took the unpaid leaves that were offered in hopes of keeping mass furloughs from happening down the line.
One thing this affected was when I was planning to retire. The plan my husband and I had made was to retire in 3 years, together. That would give me the time needed to keep my flight benefits. Something we’ve come to enjoy and rely on to visit family and friends scattered across the country. Now that plan was in question since being out on leave would mean I would need to work longer to make up for the time I was out. Maybe even as much as a year longer. And what about the possibility that the industry wouldn’t recover. What if I lost my job altogether? What then?
I wish I could tell you that I handled this well and I put my full trust in God immediately, but I didn’t. There were many anxious hours and sleepless nights spent with the what if’s running rampant through my mind. I had forgotten, too. Forgotten who really is in charge of my life. Who I can trust and put my full weight on.
Psalms 37:23 says that ‘The Lord directs the steps of the godly, He delights in every detail of their lives.” And Colossians 1:17 reminds us “He existed before anything else, and He holds all creation together.”
Did you see that? He’s holding it all together. Not me. I don’t need to come up with a new plan, I just need to trust His plan. Because He is trustworthy. He is faithful. He is able to provide for all my needs. He’s done it every year for the 59 years of my life. Over and over again He’s shown me in countless ways I can trust Him.
And, while I can’t even begin to imagine what surprises 2020 has yet in store for all of us, I do know with all my heart that if I can trust Him with my eternity, I can certainly trust Him with this day.
I pray that same assurance for you, my friend. That you know without a shadow of a doubt that you can put your full weight on Him. He is worthy of your trust. He will never leave you. He will never let you down. You can trust His plan for you.
