Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Homemade Chicken Fingers


Last night I had planned to make chicken stirfry with veggies and steamed rice. When I ran this idea by Eric he was not feeling it. I already had chicken thawing so we decided to give homemade chicken strips a try! And I have to say they were YUMMO! I used the following recipe!

I cut THREE large chicken breast in to strips

Marinated them in buttermilk for 15-20 min. (However I did not have any buttermilk so I made my own... 1/4 cup of white vinegar and 1 cup of regular. Pour vinegar first then milk and let stand for 25-20 min... or just use good ole buttermilk)

MIX 2 cups of whole wheat flour with your favorite spices. We used Essence of Emeril, garlic salt, a dash of oregano and pepper.

Meanwhile, take some veggie oil or shortening and get it frying on then stove. About an inch deep!

When the oil is sufficiently heated begin cooking the strips a few at a time. Cook them for about a minute and a half or so on each side. When golden and crispy, remove them to a paper towel lined plate!

Get out the ranch, blue cheese, or ketchup and start dipping!!! Then ENJOY!

Monday, December 20, 2010

Christmas Card


I so wish I could send everyone in the world a Christmas card, but that would take entirely way too long, but I would love the addressing, stamping, stuffing, etc. I love running to the mailbox each day to see the new cards we have gotten. It brings a smile to my face. So since I cannot send everyone a card here is a copy of our Christmas Card this year...

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!


Saturday, December 18, 2010

Christmas Program

So John Hunter had his first school play at school on Thursday. It was cute and the kiddos did so good. They have been working on it for a while, but something about putting 75 3-4 year olds together makes the songs a little more comical. Anyway they did great and I was so proud of my boy!







Sunday, December 12, 2010

Buffalo Chicken Soup!

I have no idea why this picture is so small but this soup is so yummy. This is what was served at the White House tonight, and I am looking forward to leftovers for lunch tomorrow. It was super east and tasty, great to serve with salad or toast! Give it I whirl. It severs a lot so it would be great for Christmas company!

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 3 stalks celery, diced
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup half-and-half cream
  • 3 cups water
  • 2 cups of milk
  • 1 cube chicken bouillon
  • 2 cups cubed cooked chicken
  • 1 1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce, or more to taste
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-high heat; cook the celery and onion in the melted butter until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the flour and allow to cook until absorbed, about 2 minutes more. Slowly stir the half-and-half and water into the mixture. Dissolve the bouillon in the liquid. Stir in the chicken, milk, buffalo wing sauce, and Cheddar cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low. Stirring occasionally, allow the soup to simmer until the the cheese has melted completely, about 10 minutes.
2. I served with crumbled blue cheese on top and BAM!

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Snow Day


Well the first snow fall has happened and we enjoyed it to the fullest. Along with Gigi and Grandad coming, they brought an EXCELLENT book. Frosty the Snowman. Which was perfect for the first snow fall. You can buy it at Hallmark, but the coolest part is you can record your own voice reading it your children (or grandchildren in this matter) John Hunter loves it, and Eric and i do too! Dad does such a great job reading it... what a fun treat!

We also got play a lot in the snow. John Hunter wanted to shovel off the back deck, so while he was doing that, I cleaned the kitchen. Here is where I found him... oh MY WORD!

Also, we went to some friends house and they built a snow slide. There was lots of fun and snowfall fights which happens where there are three boys and two dads! IT was a blast!

One more side note... I have not been feeling too well. Sinus or upper respiratory infection, I have no idea, but today I needed a nap despartely. So while I was napping John Hunter decided to clean his room. And he even hung up his clothes. It was precious and he did such a good job! I was SOOOOOO proud. He is becoming quite the helper!

OOOPS.. another side note. Eric dropped us off for church this morning to park the car, and while JH and I were walking he said, "mom, I gotta tell you something strange. My ears have been hurting for a couple of days, and they hurt really bad". Poor guy. We had our second set of tubes put in and we have had 3 infections since then. Please say a little prayer that his ears are healed and this is behind us!


Saturday, December 4, 2010

Potato & Bacon Soup


This is a delicious creamy and yummy soup. My mom makes it in the fall and winter months, and it is always requested. It is so filling that we usually serve it as a main meal with crusty bread on the side and salad.

2/3 cup butter
2/3 cup of flour
4 cups milk (usually 2%)
3 cups half and half
4 large baking potatoes (baked, cooked, peeled, and cubed - 4 cups)
1 large bag of REAL bacon pieces (or your can chop up 12 slices of cooked bacon)
1 1/2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup of sour cream
1 bunch of green onions chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

In a large soup pot (We have done this is the crock pot as well, just make it in a soup pot then transfer)
melt butter. Stir in flour, heat and stir until smooth. Gradually add milk and half&half, stirring constantly until thickened
Add potatoes and green onions. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat; simmer for 10 min and add remaining ingredients. Stir until cheese is melted. Serve Immediately!

(if you do the crock pot, transfer after the soup has been brought to a boil. About 30 min. before serving, add in cheese and serve once completly melted!)

We like to serve our with shredded cheese and green onions on top! OH and ENJOY!

Date Night

Last night Eric and I were supposed to go to Columbus, OH for the night for his Christmas party and it had to be rescheduled due to a death. Well my parents were coming anyway to take John Hunter to the symphony and then to Breakfast in Bethlehem this morning. So we planned a date night!

I thought we would just go to dinner and maybe walk around shopping or look at Christmas, and we did that. But we also go to stay the night in a hotel! It was so fun and a cute hotel. I love it, the room even had hardwood floors:) Which was great if you know me and how I feel about hotel floors:) We went to a great dinner a Chappies, looked at Christmas lights, and then watched a movie! It was so fun, but now we are both not feeling well! Oh well... hopefully this snow day will help us out and make us better!

John Hunter had a great time too with Gigi and Grandad, he got to go see Sandi Patty (I was 5 the first time I saw her live) and they said that Yuletide was excellent. I am confident it was. Then this morning they went to Breakfast in Bethlehem at our church where we met them! What a great weekend. Now we are having BUCKETS of snow and we are cuddled in the house watching Christmas movies and drinking hot chocolate! Happy Weekend Yall!