Keeping it Simple in PA, with author Dana R. Lynn

Hi, everybody! The Fresh Pioneer is back and I have a special guest this weekend. Dana is a woman after my own heart. She's a writer and a busy mom, living the dream while keeping things in perspective. I love her can-do attitude! So, here she is, telling us how dinner goes down when life throws you a curve ball.

             Today was one of those days.  You know what I mean. We’ve all had them. My day began with the alarm not going off. I woke up to discover I had to get myself and my entire household up and ready in record time. By the time I hopped in my car, I was ready for a nap. Then there was work. Baseball for one child, horse training for another. I had no time to spend on an extravagant meal. Fortunately, my cupboard is stocked for just such emergencies.

            Ta da! All the ingredients I need for a tater tot casserole. My family loves this hearty casserole. And the beauty of it is that it is quick, easy, and flexible. I love flexible. Don’t have ground beef? Sausage will do. We buy a pig every year at a 4H auction, so we always have sausage. Out of cream of chicken soup? Mushroom works. I have even switched out the cheddar cheese soup for a jar of cheese sauce. It’s all good.

Here’s the basic recipe:

2 lbs of ground beef, browned

1 can of cream of chicken soup

1 can of cheddar cheese soup

Salt and pepper

One bag of tater tots

Ground the beef (or sausage) and put in a 9x13 dish. Mix soup together and spread over meat. Salt and pepper to taste. (I don’t even use salt and pepper usually.) Top with tater tots and bake for an hour at 350 degrees. Yummy

My family devours it. Which leaves me more time to spend with them and write.
  I recently released my first Love Inspired Suspense story, Presumed Guilty. (click on the title to find it on Amazon) Wait! I have a picture…

          

I love this cover. It looks just like rural PA to me.

Here's the blurb:
“I’m innocent!”

            After four years in prison for a crime she didn’t commit, Melanie Swanson’s finally free. Yet starting over brings a heavy load of challenges. Nearly everyone believes she’s guilty- including police lieutenant Jace Tucker. Jace’s certainty cracks only when Melanie is repeatedly attacked, and when the people around her picked off one by one. Melanie’s clearly innocent- and terrified. Someone wants her dead to keep her shattered memories from recalling the crime she witnessed rather than caused. She lost her friends, her fiancé and her freedom when she was found guilty- but proving her innocence could cost Melanie her life.

           

            I’m so glad I was able to stop by the café today. I have been reading these posts for awhile now, and it’s been such a joy to visit.

Blessings from PA!

(Virginia again) Thanks for stopping by and congratulations on your book release!