Busy!

It all happened so suddenly...one minute, we were living in one city, the next we had packed up, picked up, and moved out! We only just got our internet back (Phew!).

I've been working like mad on revisions/editing to Totems: The Sword and The Shield. I think Rael and Arianwyn are happy about that. I hope to finish this first round in about 3 weeks from today. Then I'll be sending it off to a proofreader (more on that person to follow!).

Guardians: Revenge has been coming along nicely as well. Eddy and April are quite demanding when it comes to getting their story told. April's had enough upheaval in her life that she isn't interested in sitting around. And let's not forget that Jason is still running around, causing havoc in the world. April definitely wants to stop that and Eddy is determined to help her.

On a more personal note...Argentine beef skewers with chimichurri sauce (all of it homemade) were delicious! Highly recommend finding out how to make it for dinner during these hot summer months. We added some corn on the cob and rice to go with it. Yum! Tonight is Chinese. Asian Mama's Chicken (it's like an orange chicken recipe). I love food!

Dear Health Nuts...

Okay, admittedly, I occasionally fall under the title of "health nut." But I don't think I'd say I was overboard or crazy, by any stretch of the imagination...here's my letter, I guess.

Dear Health Nuts,

It's OKAY! Do you eat healthy and exercise? Awesome. You should do that. But you wanna know something? It's OKAY to occasionally cut loose, eat a slice of pie and NOT WORRY ABOUT CALORIES!

I hear health fanatics talk about foods they "used to" love eating. But then they follow it up with, "But then I realized that I would have to run ten miles to get rid of it!" I don't know why it bothers me to hear that. Maybe it's the fact that they sound more than a little obsessed. Maybe it's because people who obsess over their health have lost the ability to simply enjoy what they eat. I miss people who would share recipes because they were delicious and not simply nutritious.

So, my healthy friends, learn to cut loose every once in a while. You know the old saying 'moderation in all things?' I think it involves eating 'junk food' every once in a while. Because chances are, you're missing out. WAY out. I'm going to go consider something completely UNHEALTHY to eat now. Thanks. :)

Sincerely,

Someone Who Loves Eating ALL KINDS of Food

Cajun Chicken Pasta

I don't know why, but I always thought Cajun Chicken Pasta would be harder. After making it a few times, I've discovered that it's not only easy, but it's also a fairly quick meal!

These are my leftovers...it's still delicious and creamy the next day! This particular recipe serves two, although I haven't found a need to increase the amount of chicken when I double the recipe, nor do I use as much bell pepper. In this batch, I used half a green and about a quarter red. But my family doesn't like pepper as much. Looking at the recipe, I didn't use as much cream as it calls for either. So there's definitely room for variation! Anyways, here's the recipe that makes 2 servings. :)

4 oz pasta

2 chicken breasts, cut into strips

1 green onion, minced

1 1/2 c heavy cream (you can use half and half, too)

2 t cajun seasoning

2 T butter

1 green bell pepper

1/2 red bell pepper

4 fresh mushrooms sliced (I haven't used these, so their optional!)

1/4 t dried basil

1/4 t lemon pepper

1/4 t salt

1/8 t garlic powder (I've also used garlic salt)

1/8 t black pepper

2 T parmesan cheese

1. Boil the pasta.

2. While it's boiling, toss the chicken in the cajun seasoning, then saute the chicken in butter.

3. While that's cooking, chop, mince, and slice your peppers, mushrooms, and green onion.

4. Add vegetables and fungus (haha, couldn't resist!) to cooked chicken. Saute 2-3 minutes.

5. Reduce heat and stir in heavy cream.

6. Add seasonings and heat through.

7. Toss pasta in sauce and top with more parmesan if desired.

 

Honestly, this probably takes about 30 minutes to throw together (assuming you have all ingredients on hand). It's a great meal! Especially if you have fresh rolls or garlic/french bread to the side...mmmm...and a green salad is yummy with this also...Hmmmm...when am I eating this next? ;)

Pumpkin Bread Bowls

My son found these at the grocery store. We had bread bowls on the menu for dinner, but I didn't really want to take the time to make my own. Not only were these easier to make (haha!) but so festive, too!

If you were to make them on your own (which I will...someday), then it looks like you need to separate out a bit of the dough. In other words, separate your dough into four large balls. From each ball, take a smaller portion to make the stem. I would get the pumpkin part and add a little bit of orange dye to the dough. The stem bit, I would add green dye to it, then place it on top of the pumpkin to raise, then bake.

Okay, just thought of an option two. Beat two egg yolks (one yolk in one bowl, the other in another). Add 2-4 drops of green dye to one yolk and 2-4 drops of red and yellow dye to the other. After your bread has raised (but before baking), "paint" the different sections onto your pumpkin bread bowl. If you're REALLY good, you could get a black dye and paint a face onto it!

Do it and tell me how it turned out for you.

Slithery Snake Bread

So, I'm working to get my kids in the Halloween spirit. At the same time, I want to make some fun memories for them. I have a book from Taste of Home that is Halloween/Fall themed and I've selected several recipes to try from there.  Here's this one! It's the sausage stuff slithery snake bread. The recipe calls for frozen bread dough (I used Rhodes whole wheat), but you could use just about any type of bread dough. You roll the dough out into a rectangle and place whatever you want inside down the center, pressing it slightly into the dough.Our snake is stuffed with sausage, mozarella cheese, spinach, parmesan cheese, and some seasonings (like garlic and oregano). Pinch the edges together and place seam side down. For the stripes, use egg yolks and food coloring. I don't have anything to paint food with, so I just used my finger to apply the yolk. This is the snake before baking...

And here it is after baking! 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Our biggest complaint...it tastes like it should be a side dish or like it should have some sort of marinara sauce to dip it in. Gooey brains (spaghetti) would probably be a great addition! And if you're wondering...my 4 year old and 2 year old liked it and my husband said it was pretty good, too!

Tasty Tuesday: Chimis

For a time, my husband and I lived in the Dominican Republic. We loved it there, especially the people and the food! One of our streetside favorites was the chimi. It looks like a hamburger, but tastes...not like a hamburger...LoL It's delicious! If you're ever in the country, BUY ONE! So I've been on the lookout for a chimi recipe. This one was good, but it did NOT taste like a chimi. We rather thought it tasted more like a meatloaf.

So, here's what you need for the burger: 1 1/4 lb ground beef (I have 2 lbs here), 1 medium onion (I used a large onion because you use more later on. Also, the Dominicans I knew generally used the purple ones), 1/2 lg green bell pepper, 2 garlic cloves, 1/3 C chopped cilantro, 1 t dried oregano, 2 t soy sauce, 1 T worcestershire sauce.

 Mix your beef, onion, pepper, garlic, cilantro, oregano, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, scant 1/2 t salt, 1/2 t pepper. I think it would work better if you could chop everything (except the hamburger) in a food processor so it's almost a puree, then squish it into your hamburger.

 It says to make 4 patties, I made seven (obviously). These were LARGE patties and one burger was VERY filling! Next, get your toppings prepped: 2 cups thinly sliced cabbage, 1 carrot, 1 small red onion (remember that lg onion I mentioned earlier?), 1 tomato.

Next, lightly toast your hamburger buns on a griddle (all cooking will be done on a griddle).

 

 Then cook your hamburgers, about 8 minutes for medium rare, turn once. When finished, place on hamburger buns.

While your burgers are cooking, prepare you sauce:  2 T ketchup, 2 T mayo, 1 T yellow mustard mixed together.

 Mix your cabbage, carrots, and 1/4 t of salt, then cook on the griddle after the hamburgers are done. Turn once or twice. Only cook until the cabbage starts to wilt. Divide on top of hamburgers.

 Now you get to sear your onion and tomatoes. Only cook for about 2 minutes, turning once. FYI, the tomatoes used in the Dominican Republic were more green than red.

 Add the cabbage, then tomato and onion, top everything with your sauce, and enjoy! It is a VERY messy burger, btw. It was pretty tasty, but definitely NOT a chimi.