Ranch Chicken Strips

I had some of those pre-cut chicken strips for some reason. They must have been on sale.  So, obviously, baked chicken strips were the answer.  Easy, crazy tasty.  Will do again.

The original recipe is from blogchef.  I didn't have Corn Flakes (we don't eat cold cereal) and I accidentally bought the spicy Hidden Valley Ranch packet instead of regular.

The Ingredients:

8 boneless chicken boobs (sliced into strips)
1 c bread crumbs
3/4 c grated parm cheese
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t pepper
1 packet ranch dressing mix (I used the spicy kind)
1 egg
(It's now supposed to say "1 c milk" but I didn't have any so just skipped it.  Plus we don't use cow milk and not sure almond milk would taste right.  Skipping it was fine.  The bread crumbs still stuck well.)

The Labor:

Pre-heat to 350.

You can grease a 13x9 baking dish, I used parchment paper on a cookie sheet.

Combine all the dry stuff together (bread crumbs, cheese, garlic powder, pepper, ranch mix).

Beat the egg in a bowl

Dip strips into egg, then coat in the dry stuff and place on cookie sheet.

Bake for about 30 minutes.

Last little legal tidbit:  This is for my personal use.  I don't claim nor advertise ownership of this recipe.  Please go to the original post for that, linked above.  If you take issue with this post at all, please let me know and I'll gladly remove it.  *whew* 

Zuppa Tuscana in the Crock Pot

So this is supposed to my one of those creamy milky soups, but I forgot to add the milk, so, well, yeah. That being said, we loved it.  I wouldn't add the milk since I didn't think it lacked for anything, and we kinda don't really drink cow milk anyway.  Almond milk in this sounds, well, repulsive.  SO, the original recipe is a little different than the one I did.  It froze well, and made a ton.

This is a new idea for me to do this so I didn't take pics.  I'll get one next time I make this.

The original recipe can be found at "Get Crocked".

But this is what I did...

The Ingredients:

1 Lb Italian sausage (we got it a little spicy)
2 large Russet potatoes - MUST be from Idaho or it's a travesty - in 1/4 in clunks
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 c bacon bits (optional, but, really?)
2 minced garlic cloves
2 c kale or 2 c Swiss chard, roughly chopped but be mindful of the size of your eating hole
16 oz chicken broth
1 quart water

The Labor:

Brown the sausage.

Put browned sausage, broth, water, garlic, potatoes, and onion in slower cooker.

Cover.  Cook on high 3-4 hours, or low 6-8 hours, or until potatoes are soft.

Optional - use a potato masher to change the texture if'n ya want it less "brothy".

Turn off the crock pot and add the kale.

Let it sit for 5 minutes.

Serve.

Last little legal tidbit:  This is for my personal use.  I don't claim nor advertise ownership of this recipe.  Please go to the original post for that, linked above.  If you take issue with this post at all, please let me know and I'll gladly remove it.  *whew* 

Enchilada Lasagne

                                                           I stole the pic from the original blog. Go check it out! 

I made some changes from the original recipe based on what I had at home.  Mr. Smith loved it.  Not good for you, but tasty.  We used flour tortillas this time.  No good.  They got all doughy.  Lesson learned.  Stick with the corn ones.

The original post can be found at Mogwai Soup.

I made some changes.  The original called for corn tortillas.  Yeah, covered that already.  It also called for a can of cream of celery soup and a can of cream of chicken soup.  I hate that gloppy canned grossness so make my own "cream of whatever" soup.  This one I just made 2 cups of cream of chicken.  I also didn't have soup cream so used cottage cheese and Bulgarian yogurt that I got at Whole foods.  NOT good for breakfast stuff for me.  Really bitter and runny.  But it was a fantastic substitute here.

Here's the way I did it...

The Ingredients:

2 T veg oil
1 Lb chicken boob chopped into bite sized bits
4 c (or so) sharp cheddar cheese shredded
2 cans (same as 2 cups) cream 'o chicken soup (I make my own cream 'o soups, so this time I used chicken)
3/4 c low fat cottage cheese
3/4 c Bulgarian yogurt (I just happened to have this around)
1 large can diced green chilis
1 can corn niblets drained
1 t cumin
2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
corn tortillas

The Labor: 

Brown chicken in oil.  Set aside.

Mix the wet stuff (cream 'o chicken soup, cottage cheese, yogurt, chilis, corn, cumin, s&p). Set aside.

Use the same pan you would for Italian lasagne.  The bottom layer is 1/2 c of the creamy stuff spread around.  Then layer tortillas, chicken, cheese.  Repeat.  Be sure to end with cheese on top.

Bake at 425 for about 25 minutes or until brown on top and bubbly.

Let cool to avoid second degree burns on the roof of your mouth from cheese lava.

Mine didn't set up like lasagne does, so I served it in a bowl.  Mr. Smith cared not a whit.

FYI, this down here is the Bulgarian yogurt in case you didn't know what I was talking about.

Last little legal tidbit:  This is for my personal use.  I don't claim nor advertise ownership of this recipe.  Please go to the original post for that, linked above.  If you take issue with this post at all, please let me know and I'll gladly remove it.  *whew* 

New Ink

I suck at blogging.  I have too many other irons in the fire.  But I wanted to put up the newest iron that went in the fire and came out 80 minutes later.  I'm really proud of it.  The ampersand is my husband and I...Aaron N Day, and the California poppy is not only a nod to my home state, but the CA poppy is my favorite flower.  It can't be used in bouquets.  As soon as you try it will collapse.  But leave it to its own devices and it will take over a whole field and light it up.

That being said, marriage is all new to me, despite being 37.  At "our age" there's no 20 something constant newlywed somethin' somethin'.  But it's amazing to know there is always someone who will support me, even though he knows I fart a lot and, if need be, will eat a sandwich in the bathroom cuz sometimes things need to happen at the same time.  Just saying...

So, my new tattoo was done by Andrew Pontius at Chalice Tattoo in Boise, Idaho.  He's award winning, a great story, and an epic artist.

Vacation = scarves

Break is officially over...Back to my 210 freshlings today. I had a great break, spending most of my time doing nothing I was supposed to. BUT, I managed to do a little creating. You might be able to see that I made a few scarves. It was a blast, and as always, Aaron dealt well with my creation explosions around the house.

I've worn a couple of these now, and love them, but more to the point, I just can't sit still well. How do people have spare time??And when they do, how do they not fill it?

I've come to realize that this might, um, perhaps, um, kinda explain my nail biting? Picking my fingers? Wiggling my legs? My toes? Ya think? Maybe? That only took me 36+ years...NOW, the challenge will be to ditch the nail biting and trade it in for cardio or something. I did start Insanity yesterday with a friend of mine. Which I LOVE. My goal is to stick to it and feel healthier. And Shawn T aint nothing bad to look at, even when he's yelling at me. See, now, all I need to do is figure out how to run and embroider at the same time. Doesn't seem that hard...

It could be the dawn of a whole new era of fitness - crafty cardio. If you just read that, you are obligated to buy my first video. FYI.

Next project I'm going to start (because I have loads of free time) is a coffee table book project using my piggy bank. I'll let you know when I get it started. I'm hopeful I'll make the library section of Urban Outfitters soon...Again, if you just read that you're now obligated to buy the book. FYI.

Cheers, all!