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Tuesday, August 16, 2011

First Day of School 2011-2012

First Day of School!

The school year (along with the schedules, homework, and bedtimes) is upon us.
The boys had a great first day.

Thomas's last "first day" of Elementary school!
Our big 6th grader!

 Brennan's first day in 4th grade Academic Challenge.
We're looking forward to a great year!


And they're off...

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Y'all Come Eat!



I've really enjoyed trying out new recipes and modifying some old favorites over the last few months.
 Thomas, Brennan, and I have found a bunch more to try out soon.

So that our family blog isn't overrun with recipes, I decided to create another blog that is devoted entirely to cooking.

I hope that you'll join me over at Y'all Come Eat

I'd love it if you followed me!

And for those who receive this through email, please let me know if you want to get Y'all Come Eat as well.

Please be patient with me as I get the new blog up and running and recipes transferred over.

Buen provecho!

Thursday, August 11, 2011

2 New Main Dishes - Chinese and Mexican

I've cleaned out all my ripped out magazine recipes, my online bookmarked recipes, and have gathered all my kids' requests for meals and have made quite a few lately.  I've shared a number of our latest recipes with you and now have 2 more dishes to share.

Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice

While Thomas was away on his mission trip I asked Brennan what he'd like to help me make for dinner one night. 
He said "shrimp stir fry" and began to write his own recipe (which he does often). 
Because his omitted quite a few ingredients, I decided to borrow one from Gina's Skinny Recipes
I modified it slightly for our family's tastes.

Ingredients:
3 cups cooked brown rice
2 lbs. shrimp (peeled and deveined)
3 eggs
3 garlic cloves, chopped
5 scallions, sliced
1 Tbsp sesame oil
2 tsp crushed pepper flakes
1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce
Seasonings for shrimp

Directions:
* Cook brown rice
* In large bowl marinate shrimp with cayenne, chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper to taste.  (I used about a tsp of each - I rarely measure).
* Scramble eggs and season with salt and pepper.
* Heat your wok or frying pan.
* Saute garlic and red pepper flakes in hot sesame oil for about 2 minutes.
* Add shrimp and cook until done.
* Add rice, eggs, and soy sauce and mix well.
* Add scallion greens and serve.
Brennan loves snap peas so I steamed those in their bag and served alongside the Shrimp Stir Fry. 
David thought it was takeout.  He absolutely loved it.  Brennan and I did as well.  I will definitely make this again.  Good choice Brennan!

Poblano Chicken
We really like Mexican food, and I make black bean enchiladas quite often.
In my international cooking club we made this dish one day and I've been meaning for try it out for the family. 
It was not a huge hit (the boys aren't big on peppers and David isn't big on rich sauces), so I will modify it for next time. 
I, on the other hand, loved it.

Here is my modified recipe.

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I used tenders)
3 poblano peppers
1/2 carton Mexican cream
2 cups shredded Monterrey or other white cheese
1 Tbsp Chicken bouillon
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt, Pepper, Garlic Powder to taste
Olive Oil

Chicken:  Season chicken with salt, pepper, and a little garlic powder.  Heat olive oil in a skillet.  Add the chicken and brown on both sides.  Cook until chicken is almost done and remove.

Peppers:  Clean the peppers and remove the tops, seeds, and veins.  Slice the size of your chicken breasts.  Boil in hot water until soft then drain.  (An alternative is to grill the peppers and remove the skin.)

Sauce:  Combine cream, bouillon, Worcestershire sauce, and 1/4 of a poblano pepper in the blender and blend until mixed well.  Heat over low heat on the stove top.  This will make a much less rich sauce than the original recipe.

Lay the chicken in a 9x13 dish.  Cover the chicken with 1/2 of the sauce.  Sprinkle with cheese and top with a pepper.  Cook at 375 for 15 minutes.

You'll notice I put the cheese on top of the peppers.  I'll have the peppers be on top so they're easy to remove (for non-pepper fans), leaving the cheese and sauce.

Serve the chicken with the remaining 1/2 sauce in a gravy boat on the table for those who want to add a little more.

Poblano peppers are available at the grocery store and give the chicken a wonderful taste.
You can use any white cheese that your family likes.  I always have Chihuahua on hand.  It's great for quesadillas, enchiladas, tacos, etc.
Mexican cream can be found with the Mexican cheese in the dairy section.  It's thinner than sour cream and works well in Mexican dishes.

Enjoy!


And don't forget that the "What We're Reading" linky party will be on August 20th at Ricki Jill's blog.  Join us with your latest post on those great summer reads!

Monday, August 8, 2011

Videos of Two Adorable Little Boys

When we lived in Mexico I purchased my first digital camera. 
I used it to capture videos and am so glad I did because we don't have enough examples of their cute little voices! 
Here are 3 David found in an old email I sent to him. 
I could eat these little boys up with a spoon.

These are from March 2004.
If you're reading this in email or a reader, you will probably need to go to the blog to watch these short clips. 

Sorry for the poor video-ing!

Thomas, 3 1/2, singing to one of our friends
And our dogs, Shelby and Bogey

Brennan, 2 years old, and his serious love of puzzles

Brennan, 2, sharing a song he learned in KinderMusik

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Young Eagles

Thomas and Brennan got to participate in the Young Eagles event at our local airport yesterday.
The program offers kids ages 8-13 the chance to go up in a private plane and learn a little bit about flying.

The boys met their co-rider, Ashley, and their pilot Larry.
This is his private plane that he has flown all over the U.S.
He was great with the kids and got them set up for their flight.

Posing for their formal photo.
Along with their photos they received a certificate and a flight log book.

I gave Thomas the camera and took this shot with my iPhone before they took off.
A little nerve wracking for Mom.
They wore headsets so they could hear Larry communicating with the tower and telling them what all they were flying over.


 

After their flight we took the boys to The Hangar (the restaurant at the airport) for lunch. 
It's a popular spot, especially on the weekends.

Thomas came home and got on the computer to work on all of the Flight Plan steps that come after the initial flight. 
We might have a pilot in the family one day!

It was a fun opportunity and we appreciated Larry giving the boys such a great experience!



Thursday, August 4, 2011

July Visit to Mississippi

We spent time with family in Mississippi over the long weekend.
It is always fun to see our cousins and grandmothers (and Aunt Shelly)!

Natalie (7), Brennan (9), Thomas (11), Danielle (4)

They played in the sun.

Had a super dance party

And Brennan climbed Grandma Carolyn's fig tree in search of the perfectly ripened fruit.


Of course, on our drive we always spend a lot of time at Cracker Barrel!

It was a wonderful vacation to visit friends and family!