Renee Wyatt of American Guns is like every other mom in America who’s trying to feed her busy family the best meals possible. With such a busy lifestyle, I wondered how she handles cooking. Recently, I had a chance to ask her a few questions about cooking for her family, while handling the hectic lifestyle of a reality TV star.
Having a family that likes to hunt, what are some of your favorite dishes to prepare with game meat?
Uh oh. I am going to have to plead the 5th on this question. I am sorry!!! I just don’t care for game meat. Rich and Kurt do…I think you should ask them before I get myself in trouble! How about I tell you a secret in exchange for this non-answer? I pretty much never eat fast food, but the Wyatt family favorites that we NEVER pass up when traveling (including me) no matter what, are: White Castle, Friendly’s, In n’ Out Burger and Dunkin’ Doughnuts. None of those in Colorado – crazy, right?
What’s your family’s favorite meal?
Big ‘ol turkey dinner (think: Thanksgiving). That’s the one favorite for everybody. We made it a tradition when Kurt got his own home to have a huge family dinner once a week. I’d cook all day, the rest of the family would all leave work early and gather at our house for a full-out Thanksgiving with the works (or something the equivalent) every Thursday night. but, unfortunately, now with our American Guns schedule we can’t do it regularly any more. That’s one thing we all really miss, and something we look forward to doing again.
Any recipes you’d like to share?
Ok, this is great, quick and so yummy! Sautee chopped onions, add ground beef and brown in a large skillet. Add a packet of taco seasoning and a large can of stewed tomatoes. Add black beans and garbanzo beans (or whatever beans you like), and some water to a “chowder” consistency. Sprinkle in a packet or two of powdered ranch dressing mix and simmer for a couple of hours. Serve with sour cream, some shredded cheese and tortilla chips on the side. This is the BEST to keep a big batch in the fridge, but it doesn’t last very long!
With such a busy family, are there any tricks you use in the kitchen so that your family can eat more homemade meals, rather than fast food?
I do what a a lot of busy moms do. I make 3 or 4 lasagnes, a couple of homemade smothered burrito trays and, say, a dish or two of stuffed shells and freeze them. That way when our week gets crazy I can always pull out a healthy home cooked meal that I had ready to go, and nobody is the wiser.
What cooking advice would you offer busy moms?
Make pasta sauce from scratch and freeze in muffin pans or ice cube trays over night. Then transfer to zip lock bags for storage. That way when you are ready to make some quick italian food you can grab just whatever amount you need.
