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Spending Less Time in the Kitchen and More Time with Your Family

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Spending Less Time in the Kitchen and More Time with Your Family | RealLifeAtHome.com

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One of the things that quickly to pops in my mind when I think of my early childhood is my grandparents’ home.  It was the mirror image of our home, as they lived on one side of one of the duplexes that they owned and we lived on the other side.  One of the rooms I remember with especially fond memories was the kitchen.  Surrounded by its 1970s linoleum, wallpaper, and counters, it was full of activity.

I can so clearly remember when I used to open one of the lazy susans in my grandparents’ kitchen to find the glass jar of bullion cubes so I could build pyramids with them.  I still think of those pyramids every time I grab the glass jar with bullion cubes out of one of my own cabinets. Life goes by in a blink, doesn’t it?

Sometimes the days can seem so long, but the years just zoom by.  There was a time that I was that little pig-tailed girl visiting my grandparents and building bullion cube pyramids, and now I’m a mom of three kids who, within a four year period of time, helped to care for each of those grandparents at the end of their lives.

Now, I know that at this point you may be thinking, “Wait, Angie.  What does this all have to do with Marie Callender’s desserts?  I know I saw at the beginning of the post that this was a sponsored post.  What does this have to do with your grandparents?”

Marie Callender's homemade desserts

Well, it’s because I remember something else when our family all got together at my grandparents’ house.  My grandma and other women of the family would spend so much of their time in the kitchen preparing for our meal and dessert, as well as a ton of clean up time.

Life goes by so quickly, and I’ve learned that while time working away all day in the kitchen can be fine sometimes, often it is so much more rewarding to be able to devote that time to connecting with family and friends.

One way that we have worked toward doing that more has been to have simpler meals when we have family gatherings.  We also have things like Marie Callender’s homemade desserts to help us savor every precious, sweet moment of being together.

Marie Callender's Coconut Cream Pie

Recently, when we had my parents over for dinner, we had Marie Callender’s Coconut Cream Pie and Chocolate Satin Pie.

I love how they feature made-from-scratch crusts and they taste deliciously homemade. Plus, I dig that neither of those pies need to be baked, which meant that my oven was free for the dinner I was making. I think what my family loved was that not only were the pies delicious, but I wasn’t frazzled from running around. Oh, and the kids were pretty pleased about those beautiful real chocolate curls on the top of the Chocolate Satin Pie. Mom’s in a good mood and there are chocolate curls? Bonus!

Marie Callender's Chocolate Satin Pie

With the holidays coming up, it’s a perfect time to decide to savor time with your family and get out of the kitchen by serving homemade quality desserts like Marie Callender’s pies.  You know what?  Those pies are pretty delicious after Taco Tuesday too.  It’s doesn’t have to be a holiday to enjoy pie!

Marie Callender’s desserts are available at most major grocery stores nationwide, and you can read more about the varieties and where you can find them on the Marie Callender’s website.  You can also follow Marie Callender’s on Facebook and Pinterest.

What are some of the things you do to spend less time in the kitchen and savor more time with your family? Leave your comments for a chance to win a $100 Visa Gift Card!

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About Angie Kauffman

Angie, mom to three very fun kids, is the founder of Real Life at Home.  With degrees in elementary education (B.A.) and special education (M.S.Ed.), as well as being a former homeschooler, she is passionate about supporting both parents and teachers by providing printables, crafts, and activities to help children learn and grow.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Angie W says

    To save time in the kitchen with our big family, we try to have assigned cups for each of the kids, to avoid having to wash 8 or 9 cups 3 times a day and using paper plates!! If I can use paper for breakfast and lunch I save so much time having to fill and empty the dishwasher!

    Reply

  2. Linda Nelson says

    Definitely slow cooker meals(doubled if possible so you can just put slow cooker insert in fridge and heat up in the next couple of days). Also, make double the separate items at beginning of week(i.e. turkey, mashed potatoes, brusselsprouts, corn) that you can just throw together when cleaning up after first meal and then you have a type of “goulash” for a following meal in the week. We just did this and just made a cornbread to have it spread over. It was wonderful. Thanks for the opportunity to win a giftcard:)

    Reply

  4. Diane Haman says

    I throw my frozen meat in a crockpot in the morning. Sometimes it gets shredded and made into something else, sometimes it just gets seasoned and served with a side of veggies. Either way, it saves time thawing/cooking the meat later. Also, fewer desserts. I just don’t have time to bake.

    Reply

  5. heather says

    To spend less time in the kitchen and more time with my family I like to order a pizza every now and then. I also love the Dutch apple pie the best from Marie Callender’s it is so delish.

    Reply

  8. Rachel says

    My favorite thing to do is make meals in the crock pot. Throw it in before you go to work and when you get home it’s basically done.

    Reply

  11. Natalie says

    To spend less time in the kitchen I try to make dishes that can be put in the oven. That way I don’t have to be in the kitchen to constantly stir food is on the stove pot. Put it in the oven and go!

    Reply

  20. Julie Wood says

    To save more time in the kitchen, I make dinner meals on Sunday that last a whole week and i freeze them in individual containers. I also get desserts that are already made!

    Reply

  22. Barbara M says

    I save a lot of time in the kitchen by making double batches of casseroles.
    Eat one freeze the other for later.
    thank you

    Reply

  24. Lisa Brown says

    I save time in the kitchen by cooking for a few days ahead and freezing meals so I have more time with the kids for their activities.

    Reply

  31. shelly peterson says

    I like to do crock pot meals to save time or make extra to have enough left overs for another meal.

    cshell090869 at aol dot com

    Reply

  34. Betsy Barnes says

    To spend less time in the kitchen and savor more time with your family, I often double recipes and freeze half. This really helps when we have a game night planned playing Yahtzee. #sweepstakes 🙂

    Reply

  36. Cynthia C says

    For family get-togethers I try to make things that can be prepared ahead so I don’t spend too much time in the kitchen.

    Reply

  38. Elle says

    When I make a home cooked meal, I make more than I need so I can save for another night and have more time to spend with family.

    Reply

  43. Kristen says

    Lately I’ve been experimenting a lot with the slow cooker. There are so many good recipes out there that help make dinner easy and delicious.

    Reply

  46. Carolsue says

    Well, one thing is to serve frozen Marie Callendar’s pies! Why spend all that time making one by hand when MC’s are just as good!
    Digicats {at} Sbcglobal {dot} Net

    Reply

  49. Starla B says

    I have always loved Marie Callender’s desserts! They are so simple and always a huge hit. I love to prepare everything that can be prepared early ahead. It makes our family time so much better when we have more time to spend together! starla.bates(AT)yahoo(DOT)com

    Reply

  53. Jeffrey says

    We eat at home just about every night and I usually prepare dinner while the kids are still at school, leaving time in the evening for family games and movies. For some meals the kids like to get involved, like pizza night, which in itself is family time.

    Reply

  63. rachiti says

    Learn how to use a pressure cooker. Unlike a slow cooker you don’t have to get up extra early to prepare the meal. You can come home, brown the meat in the same pot you’ll cook it in (ie more flavor) then drop in everything else. I also love it for cooking beans or bean soups. Not only are they done quickly – which uses less energy just like a slow cooker – but you can make an entire pound of beans for the cost of a single can. I make chickpeas this way for my salads & hummus. I also like it for kidney beans for chili. Fyi, you should never put raw kidney beans in a slow cooker as it doesn’t get hot enough to prevent illness from them. I love how I can have a delicious meal with leftovers to boot without spending more than 15 minutes in the kitchen on prep.

    Reply

  72. Gina M says

    I like to meal prep on weekends so I can put meals on the table quicker, and with less prepping each evening to save time.
    Thanks for the chance to win!

    wildorchid985 at gmail dot com

    Reply

  76. Tamara says

    The biggest thing that has saved me time this past year is my new electric pressure cooker. It greatly reduces the time I have to spend in the kitchen!
    westiemks5 at yahoo dot com

    Reply

  78. Stephanie Phelps says

    I use my crock pot to be able to spend less time in my kitchen and more time with the family! I also freeze a head a lot of meals to give me more time with them!

    Reply

  81. Anastasia Falling says

    One way is by stocking up on these delicious pies!! A delicious dessert without all the work 🙂 Also, get the kids involved in the kitchen work, so it’s done faster AND you get to spend time together 🙂

    Reply

  83. Jammie says

    To save time in the kitchen I use the slow crocker often and prepare meals ahead of time. jammielmorey at gmail dot com

    Reply

  89. Ellie Wright says

    Every year my husband and I make rum cakes for family and friends. one way we save time is by using a cake mix with pudding in it as the base.

    Reply

  96. angie says

    I do all I can to spend the least amount of time in the kitchen. hahaha One of my fav things to do is casseroles. Dump, stir, bake. 😀

    Reply

  98. Betty C says

    Slow cooker meals are great when so many families are out and about during the day. Spending time together preparing a meal is a great way to connect and to help children learn cooking skills.

    Reply

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