[Oprah voice] I love bread!
I love making bread. With chronic illness, I don’t have the hand and arm strength to knead the dough and I can’t spend too much time standing. Because of this, I’ve had to adapt my bread recipes so that I can make them and not over exert myself. I use an inexpensive stand mixer so that I don’t have to mix by hand.
  *before you ask, no, I’ve never used a bread maker. I have no idea how that works.
 To make quick bread, you will need:

5 1/4 cups flour
2 – 4 Tbsp. sugar (add depending on how sweet you’d like it)
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 Tbsp. instant yeast (I like Fleischmann’s and I buy the jar because I use so much)
1 1/2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 cups warm water 
 
Before you begin, preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and butter a large baking sheet.
 
Put dry ingredients into a stand mixer on low. The low setting is important so that the dry ingredients don’t end up all over the place. Add the oil and water. Mix on medium for about a 1 minute. The dough should be very sticky. If it isn’t you may need to add more water.

Continue mixing for 5 minutes.  The dough should be a smooth even consistency. But very important: Don't mix too long.

Rub a little flour on the counter and your fingers so that the dough doesn’t stick. Remove the dough from the mixer and place it on the counter. 

Separate the dough into at least two pieces by tearing or cutting. Now shape the dough and place them on buttered baking sheets. Cover them with a large dishtowel and let them rise for 25 minutes.

After the 25 minutes, use a sharp buttered or oiled knife to make 1/4-inch deep cuts in the top. You can make one long one down the center or diagonal slashes.
 
Bake the bread for 25 minutes, or golden brown.

I let them sit and cool for a bit but I can’t help myself because I love warm, buttered bread.
Remember that this bread does not have all of the preservatives that store bought bread does and it needs to be eaten quickly. The good news is it’s so good, I don’t think that will be a problem.I have no problem freezing fresh bread. I let it cool then put it in a freezer bag. Be sure to label the bag before you fill it with what it is and the date you are bagging it.
Enjoy!

Each Friday or Saturday we make pizza. We have made pizzas many different ways with many different ingredients, steps and procedures. I'm going to give you some suggestions for quick, easy, inexpensive pizza that are a great alternative to frozen pizzas. It takes me about 30 minutes or less start to finish.
First, we need to chat about crust choices. I have made my own dough in the past but I just don't have the energy anymore. Here is a quick and easy pizza dough recipe if you feel like tackling it. In the past, we have also bought pre-made pizza crusts. These are usually in the same aisle as spaghetti sauce. We discovered pre-made pizza dough about two years ago and we love it! They are a few dollars cheaper than the pizza crusts and not too much more expensive than getting the ingredients to make our own and the convenience is worth the difference. We find the best price at that huge discount store slash grocery store super center that most people consider the devil; it's only $1 there. We also find them at the local grocery chain but they are a little over $3 there. In both places, the dough is in the deli section. I don't have to rank these as to how much energy they require, I'm sure you've done that already.
The ingredients will vary based on which dough/ crust choice you make and what toppings you want on your pizza so I'll explain what we do. My kids are all old enough now to prepare their own pizzas so I make my own as well; sometimes my husband does it for me. My pizza:
Ingredients
•    ½ pre-made dough (I like thin crust. Use a full dough for thick)
•    flour
•    pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce* (Italians don't judge me; look away)​
•    cheese (I use mozzarella and Italian)
•    olive oil
•    butter
•    Italian seasoning
•    garlic
•    toppings
* you likely have spaghetti sauce already and will use it for other dishes. This is just easier than dedicated pizza sauce and it tastes fine. I'd stick with traditional flavored/style sauce.

Preheat your oven to 425 or so. I gather all of my ingredients before beginning because my hands get very messy. I take a ramekin and I mix 2 parts butter to on part olive oil and melt it in the microwave. Then I add Italian seasoning and garlic to the mixture and set it aside. I put about a half cup of flour on a clean counter and spread it around bigger than my pizza will be. Then I rub the flour all over the front and back of my hands and between my fingers then pile the remaining flour out of my way. I take half of the dough from the package and begin to flatten it out with my fingers, adding flour as needed. I shape the dough as desired. (generally make a rectangular thin crust, my daughter usually makes a perfect circle with edges like at a pizza parlor, my husband and sons aren't pretty but are utilitarian.) when my pizza is almost the size I want it, I grab my baking sheet and smear my butter/ olive oil mixture on the pan so the crust doesn't stick then put the crust on the pan. Then I smear the butter/ olive oil mixture over the top of the crust; this adds flavor and makes it easier to finish spreading. I continue to spread my crust out on the baking sheet; it's much easier to spread with the oil on top and bottom. Then I wash my icky hands. I place the crust in the oven until it is very lightly browned. I do this because I want the crust cooked and it may not cook as quickly as the cheese will melt. After removing it from the oven, I add sauce and desired ingredients and put the pizza back into the oven until the cheese is melted. I don't over brown my cheese because this makes enough for two meals. I cut the pizza in half, eat half and let the other half cool. I place the remaining pizza into a bag, label it and put it into the refrigerator. When I reheat the pizza in the oven, my cheese won't burn because I didn't overcook it the first time.
Enjoy!

I make my pot pie using  my easy stew. I make them after the stew cools and freeze  them or eat them immediately. This is how.
Ingredients

• cooked stew
• deep pie crusts (frozen, in  pie pans)
• foil

* you may like to add pre-made  pie crust to cover the pot pie but it's not required

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Pour the stew into  your frozen pie crusts  until the filling is slightly below the rim.  If you choose, add a top crust by laying it over the pie and pressing the dough into the bottom dough.  If you add a top crust, slice about a 1 inch long slice in the top crust or poke holes with a fork.  This will  allow heat to escape and prevent a mess.  Whether you add a top crust or not, rip foil into half inch or so strips  and wrap around the edges of the crust so that it doesn't burn. Bake for  25-40 minutes or until  the crust is golden brown.
Enjoy!
*If you choose to freeze these for later,  be sure to label the pies beforehand  with what it is and the date.  

I use my chili recipe to make this recipe I'll share soon. You can assemble this, cook it and freeze it or eat it immediately. 
​Ingredients
•    cooked chili
•    about 3 cans of corn (may need more or less)
•    about 4 boxes of corn muffin mix
•    milk (amount required by muffin recipe)
•    eggs (amount required by muffin recipe)

Mix the corn muffin mix. Pour enough chili to cover about ½ inch into a dish. (I use these pie dishes for several recipes like this because they're easy to clean.) Then pour enough corn to cover the chili. Finally, pour about ½ inch of corn muffin mix on top; do not over fill. Bake following corn muffin instructions. Reduce bake time by about 10 minutes if you plan to freeze it to eat it later. Partially cooking it makes for better freezing and will ensure the cornbread doesn't burn when reheating. Cover the food with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze. Be sure to label what it is and the date before freezing it. Whenever you fully cook it, I enjoy rubbing butter over the top of the cornbread as soon as I pull it out of the oven.
Enjoy!