Friday, December 9, 2011

December Meal Plan...

If you are scrambling for recipes this month with all the busyness of the season, here is what we are having.  We have leftovers on Wednesday because we have to be at church soon after John gets home from work.  I've included some of the recipes.... Enjoy!




December
2011
Meal Plan



Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
1
2
3







4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Turkey Pot Pie (Healthy)
Venison Stew
Leftover Turkey Pot Pie
Brushetta Chicken
(Recipe below)
Leftovers or go out
BLT’s w/avocadoes
Soup
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
Potluck-Pumpkin Soup
Stuffed  Peppers
(recipe below)
Meatloaf
Leftovers
Talapia
(Recipe below)
Fish tacos

Leftovers- soup from freezer
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
Luncheon @ church
Thai Chicken

Turkey Chili

Leftovers
Lasagna
Leftover lasagna

25
26
27
28
29
30
31






















Turkey Pot Pie- from Cooking Light.com

Ingredients

  • 3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth$
  • 1 1/2 cups frozen green peas, thawed $
  • 1 cup (1/2-inch) cubed peeled baking potato $
  • 1 cup (1/2-inch) cubed peeled sweet potato $
  • 1 cup (1/2-inch) cubed peeled celeriac (celery root)
  • 1 cup (1/2-inch-thick) slices parsnip
  • (10-ounce) package frozen pearl onions
  • 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces $
  • 2/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 3 ounces), divided $
  • 1 1/2 cups fat-free milk $
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt $
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper $
  • Cooking spray $
  • sheet frozen puff pastry dough, thawed
  1. Preheat oven to 400°.
  2. Bring broth to a boil in a large Dutch oven. Add peas and next 5 ingredients (through onions) to pan; cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 6 minutes. Add chicken; cook for 5 minutes or until chicken is done. Remove chicken and vegetables from broth with a slotted spoon; place in a large bowl.
  3. Increase heat to medium. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Place all but 1 tablespoon flour in a medium bowl; gradually add milk to bowl, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Add milk mixture to broth; cook for 5 minutes or until thickened, stirring frequently. Stir in chicken mixture, parsley, thyme, salt, and pepper. Spoon mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
  4. Sprinkle remaining 1 tablespoon flour on a work surface; roll dough into a 13 x 9-inch rectangle. Place dough over chicken mixture, pressing to seal at edges of dish. Cut small slits into dough to allow steam to escape; coat dough lightly with cooking spray. Place dish on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake at 400° for 16 minutes or until pastry is browned and filling is bubbly.








Bruschetta Chicken- from the Taste of Home Cookbook...
  • 4 Servings
  • Prep: 10 min. Bake: 30 min.
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Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (6 ounces each)
  • 1 tablespoon butter, melted
  • 2 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped
  • 3 tablespoons minced fresh basil
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

  • Place flour and eggs in separate shallow bowls. In a third bowl, combine bread crumbs and cheese. Dip chicken in flour, then eggs; coat with bread crumb mixture.
  • Place in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Drizzle with butter. Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 25-30 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 170°.
  • In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients. Spoon over the chicken. Return to the oven for 3-5 minutes or until tomato mixture is heated through. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: 1 topped chicken breast equals 380 calories, 14 g fat (5 g saturated fat), 185 mg cholesterol, 589 mg sodium, 19 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 42 g protein.
Smoky Stuffed Peppers
2 large bell peppers, tops cut off and seeded4 ounces hot Italian sausage, removed from casing (about 1 link) 3/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth1 large plum tomato, chopped 2/3 cup instant brown rice1/3 cup chopped fresh basil1/3 cup finely shredded smoked cheese, such as mozzarella, Cheddar or Gouda, divided.

1.  Position rack in upper third of oven; preheat broiler.
2. Place peppers cut-side down in a  large, microwave-safe dish.  Fill the dish with 1/2 inch of water, cover and microwave on High until the peppers are tender-crisps, 7 to 10 minutes.  Drain the water and transfer the peppers to a roasting pan.  3.Meanwhile, cook sausage in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, breaking it up into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.  Stir in broth, tomatoes and rice; bring to  simmer, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon.  Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the rice is softened but still moist, about 10 minutes.
4. Stir basil and half the cheese into the rice mixture.  Divide the filling between the peppers, then top with the remaining cheese.  Broil until the cheese is melted, 2 to 3 minutes.

I served the peppers with an Orange and Avocado Salad with a Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette.  Yum! Enjoy!


BOBBY'S BAKED TILAPIA- from foodnetwork.com


Ingredients

  • Butter cooking spray
  • 4 (6 to 8-ounce) tilapia fillets
  • Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
  • 1 lime, finely grated zest and juice
  • 2 tablespoons butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a large cast iron pan with a nonstick butter spray.
Rinse fish and pat dry; place on the cast iron pan. Season each fillet with salt, cracked pepper, lime zest and lime juice. Add fish to the pan. Place a pat of butter on each fillet and cook in the oven for 8 to 12 minutes.



Wednesday, December 7, 2011

My top three products of the moment...

As of right now, these are my top three health/beauty products.

#1
Free-Sample-of-Maybelline-Foundation.jpg
Maybelline FIT foundation.  It is super lightweight and blends extremely well.  I usually put it over top of product number two (below) and let it set before proceeding with blush.



#2

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If you have dry skin, then you need to get Cetaphil.  It is inexpensive and it moisturizes your skin so well, you can feel it all day.  I use it all over.  I have a problem with my eyelids getting really dry in the winter.  I've tried expensive eye creams, and nothing has worked better than this!


#3
300.JPG.jpg
Neosporin Lip Health.  This stuff is no joke.  It cost around $5, but it is worth it.  This daily hydration therapy helps maintain smooth lips AND it also has the added benefit of SPF 20!


Check them out!

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Christmas Tree Diet....



So John and I got our Christmas tree over the weekend.... I was super excited because I just love Christmas trees and John negotiated the price down ten dollars!  It's a pretty tree, although we did have a heck of a time getting it to stand straight in the tree stand.


While we were driving home, John asked me, "So what do you usually feed your Christmas trees?
"What do I FEED my Christmas tree? Um....usually just water." 
"Isn't there some kind of food that you can give it to live longer?"

I immediately went to my iphone and googled Christmas tree food.  And so this year, my friends, we will not only be giving our tree water, but also Sprite. The carbonation and the sugar somehow helps the tree last longer. I'll let you know how it works out. 
 I also found some mentions of people giving their tree an aspirin. 

Yes an aspirin.  LOL

John also asked me if I ever fireproofed my tree. 

No.

But after much research I found this to be a common theme:
Fill a bucket with 2 gallons of hot water and add 2 cups Karo syrup, 2 ozs. liquid chlorine bleach, 2 pinches Epsom salt, 1/2 tsp. Borax and 1 tsp. chelated iron.

Read more: How to Fireproof a Christmas Tree | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2050458_fireproof-christmas-tree.html#ixzz1flwrOnBr

So there you go... I expect everyone's tree to last until after the New Year :-)



  





Friday, December 2, 2011

The Tale of the Turkey...And so much more


I made our first turkey yesterday.  I got a lot of suggestions, but I was nervous.  All I have to say is I think this experience would have turned out a lot better if the company would have put the weight on the turkey....just sayin'...


I ended up using the recipe from my Williams and Sonoma cookbook.  It seemed to be the easiest for my first time. 


I ran into a brief blonde moment when I say this plastic thing inside.  I wasn't sure what it was. Was I supposed to take it out or not????  I came to my senses and realized that I must just have to take it out, because I feared it would melt and then John and I would get some kind of poisoning....just sayin'.


So.... after taking out the giblets and the neck(which I have to say was probably the most disgusting part), I gave the turkey a nice massage of butter and a little bit of oil, along with seasoning salt.  Inside I stuffed him (or her) with onions and fresh sage.  I put him in the roasting pan on top on a boat load of onions.  I preceded to cover the breast with foil and stick him in the oven at 325.  

My intention was to keep him in for 4 hours.  John and I were trying to guesstimate the weight of the bird.  At one point, John had a ten pound dumbell in one hand and the turkey in the other.  True story.  So... we were thinking that maybe Mr. Turkey was around 11 pounds.  Four hours later, we took the turkey out of the oven, and let it sit for about ten.  Then we cut into it.  Oh... and I forgot to mention that we found out our meat thermometer doesn't work. (This would be a great stocking stuffer mom). 
I had another blonde moment using the thermometer.  I didn't know the actual thermometer was in a protective case, so I was sticking the thermometer with the protective case into the turkey.  I was getting frustrated when it would only register 80 degrees.  I just couldn't understand how this could be since the turkey was roasting for 4 HOURS!!  John saw me stick the thermometer into the turkey and said, "Please don't tell me you have been sticking the thermometer in like that."   He then explained that there was a casing over the actually thermometer.
Oh. 
It turns out though that the thermometer was busted.   
So, at four and a half hours, we took the turkey out.  John cut into it and it was pink.  I had also noticed blood coming out. I didn't think that was normal.  John googled, yes googled, turkey blood and came back to report that all juices should be clear.  So we put theturkey back in the oven for another 45 minutes.... still pink.  ANother 45 minutes passed.... by this time we ate our baked potatoes.  Then I said, "If the turkey isn't done this time, I am just going to settle for potaotes and apple pie."
My friends, that is EXACTLY what happened.  
Baked potaotes and apple pie.  
By the time the turkey was done, we were tired.  John cut it up, and we just put it in the refrigerator.  He then went to our wooded backyard and threw the rest of the turkey as far as the eye could see for our furry friends to enjoy.  
The good thing that came out of this whole experience:  While John and I were waiting for the turkey to be done for the third time, we sat on the couch and reminisced about our season of dating.  It was super sweet.  


  




First picture ever taken of John and I. 






A year and a half later....

Photos courtesy of Adrienne Seng www.artevitae.com









Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Wedding Pictures

I love Shutterfly so much.  They are extremely good to their customers, and it seems like they are always having some kind of sale.  I would like to share my Wedding Album with you... because I'm really proud of it:-)


Shutterfly photo books offer a wide range of artful designs and embellishments to choose from.