Tiffany Kirkpatrick

Lemon Chicken

2010-01-17T18:20:00.000-08:00

I received this recipe from my sister in law Anna (http://annaminzel.com/), and am so glad I tried it! One of my favorite dishes from Buca's when I worked there was their Lemon Chicken, but its one that I have never tried to make on my own. I loved the flavors of lemon, capers and chicken all mixed into a great dish.

Lemon chicken:

Ingredients

•1 pack of boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into strips (I used about 4 breasts)
•1 cup of cold chicken broth
•1 T cornstarch
•1 t yellow mustard (I like mustard so I use more like 1 T)
•1 t sugar
•juice of 2 lemons and their zest
•1/2 cup or small jar of capers
•salt to taste
1.Heat a pan with a little olive oil on medium heat. Fry chicken strips until golden brown, then remove.
2.Whisk cold chicken broth and cornstarch together, add it to the pan and whisk until slightly thickened. Add mustard, lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, salt to taste (I don’t add much cause the mustard tastes salty enough).
3.Add chicken back into the pan along with the capers, simmer for 20 minutes.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Muffins

2010-01-13T17:35:00.000-08:00

I felt inspired today to use up some of the whole wheat flour that was taking up valuable real estate space in my pantry for quite some time. I also have been craving some morning pastries lately, so I thought I would give this whole wheat chocolate chip muffin recipe a try. The recipe was great! It was a bit sweet though, so I think next time I may add half the amount of chocolate chips (especially since I plan on eating these for breakfast). I also really liked the fact that this recipe only yields 12 muffins (seems like any time I make muffins, it always makes 2 dozen, and I end up throwing away half of them). Any time I have an ingredient that I want to use up, but am not sure what to make, I turn to the What's Cooking board on the Nest (http://community.thenest.com/cs/ks/forums/4110129/ShowForum.aspx?MsdVisit=1). The girls on there always seem to have some great suggestions. I was pointed this recipe from a girl on the board.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Muffins:

1/2 cup (4 ounces) butter
1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon extra-strong flavor, optional*
2 large eggs
1/2 cup (4 ounces) milk
2 cups (8 1/2 ounces) King Arthur 100% Organic White Whole Wheat Flour*
2 cups (12 ounces) chocolate chips
coarse sparkling sugar, for topping

*Add a little extra zing to your muffins with a complementary flavor: cinnamon and coconut extra-strong flavors are both good choices. Start with 1/8 teaspoon, adding more to taste.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease (or line with muffin cups, and grease the muffin cups) a standard-size muffin pan.

Beat together the butter, sugar, baking powder, salt, vanilla, and flavor (if you're using it) until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, then stir in the milk. Mix in the flour, then the chocolate chips.

Spoon the batter into the muffin cups; they’ll be quite full. Sprinkle each muffin with a little coarse sugar. Bake the muffins for 30 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of one comes out without crumbs clinging to it (a little chocolate is OK!).
Yield: 12 muffins.

Recipe from: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/golden-chocolate-chip-muffins-recipe

Come and see Peyton's blog!

2010-01-13T17:34:00.000-08:00

I have started a blog for our daughter Peyton that includes the adventures of pregnancy, decorating her nursery, belly pics and more. You can find it at www.peanutkirkpatrick.blogspot.com.

Getting back in the saddle!

2010-01-06T18:39:00.001-08:00

It has been WAY. TOO. LONG. since I have made a post here. I am making a commitment to continue this blog and be here more often!

I am always asking everyone what their go-to weeknight dinner meals are. I get sick of the same old things that we tend to be drawn to just to have a quick meal. This is why I am starting a list for myself of all the different quick weeknight meals we make and will continue to try out new recipes to be able to add to the list.

I came across a meal that I really wanted to try on a blog that I frequent on a regular basis. (http://annies-eats.com/). Annie says in her review of this recipe that its a super easy weeknight meal to make. I wouldn't go as far as saying that it was super easy, it in fact was a tad bit more time consuming that I thought, but it still was doable for a weeknight, and the next time around I am sure it will go faster for me now having made it once. I loved this meal (the leftovers the next day were even really good, maybe even better than the first night), and John really liked it as well. This will be one added to the list!

Chicken Tortilla Casserole

Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied into halves (4 halves total) (I only used 3 halves since my halves were pretty big)
2 tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
1 shallot, minced (I used red onion)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 tbsp. minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (I used canned jalapeno peppers)
1¾ cups chicken broth
5 cups tortilla chips, broken into large pieces
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
4 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
Pat the chicken breast halves dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil in a 10-12 inch oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the pan and cook until golden brown on both sides (chicken does not need to be fully cooked at this point.) Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Add the remaining oil, shallot, garlic, chipotle, and ¼ teaspoon of salt. Cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the chicken broth, scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and bring to a simmer.

Stir in half of the tortilla chips (I thought this would be a weird step thinking that the tortilla chips would just get all mushy and not taste good, but I followed the recipe, so in they went. Turns out they do mush up, but they make the "sauce" if you will. Definitely a needed step, trust me on this one). Nestle the chicken into the broth and cook over medium-low heat until cooked through (reading 160° F on an instant-read thermometer), about 10 minutes (took mine about 20 min-maybe I will cook them longer in the original pan). Transfer the cooked chicken pieces to a cutting board and shred into bite-sized pieces when it is cool enough to handle (I threw my chicken into the food processor and cut shredded it in there-SUPER EASY to do it this way).

Return the shredded chicken to the skillet with the tomatoes, ½ cup of the shredded cheddar cheese, and 1 tablespoon of the cilantro. Stir in the other half of the tortilla chips until they are incorporated and moistened.

Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top and place the pan under the broiler until the cheese is melted and browning, about 2-3 minutes. Top with remaining cilantro and serve, allowing the casserole to cool 5 minutes before serving.

Yes, there is a reason I'm this hungry!

2009-09-19T18:53:00.000-07:00

John and I are beyond thrilled to announce that we will be adding to our family! Next May (the day after my birthday is our exact due date), we will either have a baby boy or a baby girl to join us. Of course we are extatic, excited, giddy, nervous, in planning mode....I could go on and on. We feel extremely blessed with this life event and could not be more happy about it.

John and I are NOT at all secret keepers. A lot of people would probably never tell their friends and family before the 10 week mark (or so), but that is definitely not us. A couple of weeks ago, we headed over to our families house to share the good news with them. I was only able to snap photo's of what we gave my mom and Tommy to let them in on our news. When I was little I had a lamb-y that I would sleep with each and every night. I found it only appropriate when I came across a lamb at Janie and Jack to give it to my mom to tell her she was going to be a Nana. Here is what we gave them.

She opened it up, read the poem (you'll have to excuse my lack of poem skills here, but they worked) and knew right away what we were telling her. She was thrilled of course.

That same night we were having dinner with John's family, the perfect occasion to break the news. To dinner, I work a black shirt that said "Knocked Up" on it with a zipped-up hoodie over it. We waited for everyone to arrive (his mom, dad, sister Katie, her husband Todd, and mom's good friend Donna), and then I casually took off my hoodie. Todd noticed almost immediately and said "Niffy....do you have something to tell us." I was blank at what to say because I had expected John to chime in for some reason, so I didn't say anything and he just gave me a hug. Then everyone else figured out what was going on and of course they were all thrilled.

My dad's birthday was a couple of weeks back, so we told him we wanted to stop by that day and bring by a belated birthday gift. In his birthday bag was an "I love grandpa" bib and onesie. He and Judith were beyond shocked. I don't think they saw this one coming at all. It was pretty funny. They too were thrilled.

Stay tuned to read about our journey along the way...

Is there a reason I am this hungry???? :)

2009-09-19T18:44:00.001-07:00

I had bought this giant bag of frozen boneless skinless chicken tenders from Costco a couple of weeks ago and since I had taken 5 or 6 of them out of the freezer to eat up, I had to come up with something fast so they didn't go to waste. I wanted to try something new, yet on the healthy side and came across a great recipe for Healthy Chicken Parmesan on one of my go to blogs Annie's Eats (http://annies-eats.com/). Plus, I knew this was a "guy friendly" food, so I figured John would go for it. They turned out great! Super easy, not time consuming, and I had all of the ingredients on hand which makes it even nicer. We will definitely be making these bad boys again. :)

Chicken ParmesanIngredients:

1 1/2 cups panko breadcrumbs (I used regular seasoned bread crumbs)

1 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder

salt and pepper

3 large egg whites

1 tbsp. water

vegetable cooking spray

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied and cut into halves (4 pieces total)(I used boneless, skinless chicken tenders and did NOT butterfly them)

2 cups marinara sauce, warmed

about 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 tbsp. minced fresh basil (I didn't use fresh)

Directions:

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F. Combine the breadcrumbs and oil in a 12-inch skillet and toast over medium heat until golden, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Spread the breadcrumbs in a shallow dish and allow to cool slightly; when cool, stir in the Parmesan.

In a second shallow dish, combine the flour, garlic powder, 1 tablespoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper together. In a third shallow dish whisk together the egg whites and water.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and spray the foil with vegetable oil spray. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper. Lightly dredge each chicken piece in the flour to coat completely, shaking off the excess. Then dip into the egg whites and finally coat with the breadcrumb mixture. Press on the breadcrumbs to make sure they adhere. Place the chicken pieces on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake until the chicken is no longer pink and feels firm when pressed with a finger, about 15 minutes. Remove the chicken from the oven. Spoon 2 tablespoons of marinara sauce over the top of each piece of chicken and top with 2 tablespoons of the shredded mozzarella. Return the chicken to the oven and continue to bake until the cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with the fresh basil and serve as desired, with extra Parmesan and marinara sauce.

Source: adapted from Brown Eyed Baker, originally from Cook’s Illustrated, October 2006

Fall is in the air and so is...Apple Crisp!

2009-09-19T18:24:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I wanted to make John something special for dessert just because. Knowing that he is not at all a chocolate person, I asked him if he could have anything at all that night home made for dessert for him, what would he choose? And he chose Apple Crisp. I didn't have a go to recipe that I use for this, so I decided to try something new. I finally came across a Peach Crisp on Pioneer Woman's Blog (http://thepioneerwoman.com/). I decided to change it up to make it an apple crisp, and also to try the amazing maple cream sauce that she accompanied with hers. John is more of your traditional dessert guy, so he had vanilla ice cream on his, but I made and tried the Maple Cream Sauce, and it is just as Pioneer Woman says in her entry-" And DO NOT taste it. It’s evil and lethal and rude." It was YUMMY!!!!!!!!! So yummy that I couldn't stop thinking about it and had to have it again the next night. I am so glad that I found this recipe so that I can use it as my go to Apple Crisp. As usual my photo doesn't do it justice, but gives you hopefully a little mouthwatering taste of it. Enjoy!

Apple Crisp with Maple Cream Sauce:

1 C Flour

1/2 C Sugar

1/2 C Firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 Tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 Tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 Tsp salt

1 Stick Butter (or 1/2 C)

5-6 C peeled and cubed apples

Zest from 1/2 of a lemon

2 Tbsp real maple syrup

1 1/2 C Heavy whipping cream

5 Tbsp real maple syrup

3 Tbsp light corn syrup

Mix together the flour, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Take the butter, cut it into bits (hint: use butter right out of the fridge so its easier to cut), and add to the bowl. With a fork (or pastry cutter, whatever makes your skirt fly up), begin mixing the butter with the flour mixture until the butter is evenly mixed in.

In a separate bowl, mix the apples, lemon zest and 2 Tbsp maple syrup.

Pour the apple mixture into a 9 inch square baking pan (or similar). Add the dry ingredients on top. Lightly even out the mixture with a fork. Cover it with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for 15 min. After fifteen minutes, remove the foil and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes, or until top is crisp and brown. Sometimes I let it bake for 25 minutes or so, then crank on the broiler for a couple of minutes just to get the top nice and bubbly and crisp. If you do this, though, DO NOT walk away from the oven to answer the doorbell or change laundry loads. You’ll never forgive yourself.

While the crisp is baking, mix the heavy whipping cream, 5 Tbsp maple syrup, and corn syrup over medium heat in a saucepan. Stir together and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and reduced by about 1/3. This should take about 15 minutes. No need to stir vigorously or anything; just enough to prevent sauce from sticking to the pan.Now. You can chill it in the fridge until it’s cold and thick. OR, you can take this shortcut: set the saucepan into a small bowl of ice. The ice will melt a little and turn to ice water, and as you stir the sauce, it will cool and thicken. Within about fifteen minutes, it’s cold!

When done, drizzle maple sauce over crisp and enjoy!

Adapted from: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/07/peach_crisp_wit/

WAYYYYYYYYYYYY Overdue but.....

2009-09-19T18:20:00.000-07:00

Valen Tickle has entered the world! Lucie and Chris welcomed him back in June, so as you can imagine he already looks so different than this picture, but I wanted to celebrate him on my blog. Valen is one lucky little boy to have Lucie and Chris as parents. They are wonderful people! I am thrilled to get to see them take the journey through parenthood and can't wait to watch Valen grown up!

Camping 2009!

2009-09-19T18:10:00.001-07:00

Back in the middle of August John and I drove up to Darrington and had a fantastic weekend camping with our good friends Hayley and Brian. We had literally been planning this weekend for months, so we were all super excited to kick back, do some river floating, clinking some glasses and eating good cheap camping food. The weekend turned out a success! We did several floats down the river (a couple of popped boats and tubes, the boys falling off a high jump, and some good ol' Coors Light keeping cold in the bottom of John's tube), played a fierce game of lawn darts (Hayley and I got in some serious trouble with the outcome of this game), and some good story telling around the campfire. This camping is rouging it big time since there is no bathroom at all, which also means no showers. We all got to know the port-o-potty that we borrowed from John's parents. Let me just tell you how great it was to use a regular toilet and have a shower when we got home from the weekend! Hayley and Brian are getting married in a couple of months, so this was one big last fun couples weekend before they take the plunge. Great weekend and great people!

OR Wine Trip Review/Photo's-Finally!

2009-08-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

For our one year anniversary, John and I decided to head down to Oregon Wine Country and tour the gazillion wineries that the state has to offer. It was a week packed full of wine tasting, picnics, and relaxing time. The week started off with the 2 1/2 hour drive into Salem where we stopped at Willamette Valley Winery, which was about 1 mile from the house we rented. I knew that the first wedding anniversary traditionally is paper and had been racking my head to come up with something to give John. I finally decided on a wine journal so that he could write down where we went, what we tasted, what we liked and disliked, etc. I gave him the journal right before we had our first taste of wine at Willamette Valley. We took the grand tour there, which was great, and were even treated to some barrel samplings from the wine makers son (John absolutely loved this). We stayed at a little farmhouse in Salem that we found on www.vrbo.com. While we really liked the house, we would not choose that location again. If we were to go again (which we hope to sometime in the near future), we would stay in either Dundee, McMinville, Newberg, Dayton, or Carlton. Those cities are really close to each other and each have a ton of different wineries at them. We thought that area was really the heart of the Willamette Valley Wine area. If you haven't checked out www.vrbo.com before, do. Its a really great site for finding places to stay if you don't want to stay in a hotel. I know that in those cities, there are a number of bed and breakfast's as well. John is quite the savvy map guy and planner, so did a lot of research before we went on which wineries were know to have great pino's. He mapped everything out so that we knew where we were going (he even went as far as to print information off each wineries website, so we could read a little about them before we went). We were both thrilled with the places we chose to visit, and felt that we got excellent wine (we came home with 30 different bottles!) Here is a list of places that we went:

Willamette Valley Vineyards
Trinity Cristom Vineyards
Witness Tree
Le Cadeau
Erath
Solena Cellars
7 of Hearts
Torii Mor
Duck Pond
Archery Summit
Annie Amie
Redhawk
Bethel Heights
Sokol Blosser
Duponte
St. Innocent
Vista Hills
Winters Hill
Wine Works/Zivo
Twelve
Barking Frog
Yamhill Vineyards
Maysara
Van Duzer

Here is a link to a great map of the area that shows all the wineries: http://www.winesnw.com/will.html. We used this everywhere we went and found it extremely helpful. Most of the wineries have a hard copy of this map as well, so you can ask at your first winery for one (they are free). This is also a great site that will show you hours and location of wineries: http://www.willamettewines.com/ (Some are appointment only, but not very many). Most should be open on the weekends.

We went to Duck Pond on our anniversary, and John had made reservations for a tour with them before hand. They knew it was our anniversary, and they went above and beyond for us. For $20, we got a tour of the winery, barrel tastings, a private table out on their terrace where someone waited on us and brought us a huge appetizer spread, brought tastings of wine right to our table, dessert, and they even sent us home with a complimentary bottle of wine. Their wine is good too, so definitely worth it.

Carlton is a small town that has a bunch of restaurants and wine tasting rooms there in the town. It was great to go and park our car and just walk around to the tasting rooms.

Before we left John had found an article somewhere online that listed out some of Oregon's best Pino Noir's (our favorite). We used this as a guide to choose which wineries we went to. La Cadeau winery is owned by a couple who spends half their time in Minnesota, and half their time at their vineyard in OR. John had contacted the owner before we left and to our surprise he was going to be in town while we were there. We made an appointment and got directions. As we were following the directions to the winery, we thought we were getting lost. There were so many windy, gravel roads that we felt were going to lead us to no where. Finally, we pulled up to a private residence and winery, with a breathtaking view. When we got there, 2 other couples were sitting out on the owners private patio of his house sipping on wine, and snacking on cheese and crackers. It was very intimate, just the 8 of us sitting around on the patio, talking about wine, and tasting some excellent pino's. After we tasted, the other couples left and it was just John and I and the owners. They walked us around their vineyards and talked to us about how they ended up owning a winery. It was such a great experience to be doing all of that with the actual winery owners, we felt quite special. An experience we are grateful for. We will be saving this bottle of wine for a very special occasion.

Our wedding had been videotaped by a friend and we had never watched the footage. I decided for our anniversary to hire a videographer to edit the footage and put it to music as a surprise to John. On our anniversary, I gave John his gift and we watched the footage of our wedding for the very first time. He loved it!

John made me a shadow box with a small journal inside so that we can write a little about each year of marriage as we celebrate them. It was very sweet and very thoughtful.

We had a wonderful time, learned a lot about wine and tried different kinds of wines we had never tasted before (i.e. Barbera, Ports, etc). It was the perfect vacation to celebrate one year of being married!

Houston...We have a new dining room!

2009-08-09T15:54:00.001-07:00

I decided a while back (you may remember from a previous post) that I wanted to turn one of our spare bedrooms into a dining room. Sounds weird, I know. But because for the past 2 years that we have lived in our house, we have done nothing with this spare bedroom, and we needed a dining room, we decided to go for it. We are finally done (besides a few finishing touches), and I am happy to report that the project was a sucess! John and I had purchased a set of table and chairs a couple of months back in hopes to refurbish them into something that looked great in our new dining area. We are both glad to have the project over and done with, and are excited to do some real entertaining now. Here are some photo's of the before:

Here are the after shots:

1 Year of Marriage

2009-07-19T16:19:00.000-07:00

Often when writing my posts, I am hard on myself with the fact that I am not the best writer in the world. I write from my heart, I don't try to butter coat anything, or use fancy words to make things sound more appealing, and I write directly off the thoughts going through my head. I am proud to do that today. Today, I am writing about the one year wedding anniversary to my best friend, unedited completely. The last year has been like home to me. It has been incredibly wonderful to share each and every day with someone that shares the same values as I do, that is incredibly intelligent on many levels, that has the same dreams as I do, that loves me the same way I love him. I just asked my husband today if someone asked him when we met (back when he was 16 and I was 14) if he thought he may end up with me someday, what he would have thought then. I asked myself the same question (which I had not done before). Many people in this same situation, I think, would answer that they never would have guessed they would end up with that person for the rest of their lives. I, on the other hand can honestly say that if asked that question back when I was 14, I truly think I would have not been surprised to hear that John and I would be married someday. In fact, it would have been incredibly comforting to know that. John is all I have ever dreamed of having (and more) in a spouse. He helps me grow my personal character, he makes me want to take care of him, and our marriage, he loves me unconditionally without question. What more could you ask for in a spouse. John, by the way answered the question the same way. He said he would not have been surprised to hear when he was 16 that he would someday marry me. When I say that my last year has been like home to me, I mean that to its fullest extent. You know when you have been away for a while, and you just want to be back in that place that feels warm, comfortable, loving and familiar to you? The place that makes you the most happy, the place that you can count on at all times to make you feel comfortable. That is John to me. He is home. I continue to discover these wonderful things about him that make me feel forever blessed to be his wife. His ability to work with people of all kinds, his ability to fix and create things for our home, his love for his incredibly family (which I am extremely blessed to be a part of, and now consider them my family too), his ability to have an answer to EVERY. SINGLE. QUESTION. ...Literally. I am beyond thrilled to have the privilege of getting many, many more years with him (to infinity is my cheesy way of saying it). So, here's to my wonderful husband John and an infinity more years of marriage. Here's to my best friend. Cheers!

Blogging from the road...

2009-07-18T09:19:00.000-07:00

I am sitting out on the porch of the farm house we rented as I type this. Its already 81 degrees here, and only 9:00am. We got in yesterday and stopped by Willamette Valley Vineyards for a private tour. It was Fabulous! Right when we checked in, they gave us a glass of wine to start with. Super yummy Pino Gris (we ended up buying a bottle of this). Our tour guide gave us a lengthy history of the vineyard and winery (the only part that was a little too long for us), and then took us through the bottling area, the holding tanks, and the barrel rooms. There was even a guy down in the barrel area testing out different samples straight from the barrel's and asked us if we wanted to try some. He literally took a pipette looking tool and pulled three samples of wine straight from the barrel and into out glasses. Yum! We were wishing we could buy it, but it was not something that is bottled yet. Our guide Wendy was even excited about trying this wine straight from the barrel and grabbed a glass herself. Then we headed back upstairs and tasted several more wines along with a cheese, chocolate and fruit platter. We even ended up buying a private (members only) Pino Noir, which our tour guide sneaked for us (since we aren't members). Since we are somewhat wine tasting virgins, we asked our tour guide Wendy for a wine tasting 101 lesson (hoping that at the next handful of wineries we go to, we won't look completely new to it!). She was great at helping us out with this. John and I found it pretty fascinating how the flavor of the wine changes with the smell, and with what you eat with it. It was a great experience at our first winery. We are gearing up to head out to several more today. Oh, and we love the little farmhouse we rented. Super cute, peaceful, roomy and comfortable.

Projects, projects, projects

2009-07-08T16:06:00.001-07:00

I have for a while had the itch to get into furniture restoring. I finally acted on it when John and I decided that we would like to have a big dining room table and buffet/hutch so that we can eventually do some entertaining. I looked for a few weeks, and came across these two pieces. I am super excited for both of them! The buffet it absolutely gorgeous (does need some TLC of course), and has so much pretty detail to it. The table and chairs has a really cool story to go along with it. We purchased the set from a 93 year old man that goes by the name of Doc. He lives on a farm in Lynnwoood. Yes, that's right. I said a farm in Lynnwoood. I didn't believe it either until we pulled up to his house. He even at one point had live stock on it! He has now sold the property to the city of Lynnwood who is turning it into a park name after Doc himself.

So, consider all of these the before pics, and be on the lookout for the afters! Wish us luck!

4th of July in Spokane!

2009-07-08T15:54:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, John and I drove across the mountains to spend the holiday with my cousins and their family in Spokane. I am so glad we decided to go! We had such a nice time visiting them and really enjoyed the hot weather. On Friday when we got there, we had a great BBQ dinner made by Brice and played a game of Mexican Domino's (I was horrible!). Saturday, we woke up and John went golfing with Michael and Brice. Shala took me for a nice run in the morning, and then we just relaxed around the house for the day. Later that night, we headed up to Shala and Michael's house for some Mexican food, margarita's and good fire works. I was in HEAVEN with Shala and Michael's dogs. They have 2 boxers and I was pretty much stuck on them the entire night. Made me realize how much I really do want one....some day. It was great getting to spend time with the family and their kids. Can't wait to do it again!!

Stuffed Peppers-Yum!

2009-07-08T15:45:00.000-07:00

Last week, I chose stuffed peppers for my new recipe of the week. I wanted something with a lot flavor, meat (for the hubby), but that was healthy. I browsed and browsed, and finally remembered that I had, for a long time been wanting to try stuffed peppers. My nana would always make them when I was a kid growing up, and I don't recall having them since then. They turned out great. Very filling and lots of flavor. Next time for just John and I, I will only make 3 (one for each of us, and one for my lunch the next day). 4 ways way too many.

Stuffed Peppers

INGREDIENTS

11 ounces ground beef (I just used 1lb, and I used ground turkey)
1/3 cup uncooked long grain white rice (I used 1 cup of rice, and used brown rice)
2/3 cup water
4 green bell peppers
1-1/3 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
salt and pepper to taste
3/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Place the rice and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and cook 20 minutes. (I did my rice in our rice cooker)

In a skillet over medium heat, cook the beef until evenly browned.
Remove and discard the tops, seeds, and membranes of the bell peppers. Arrange peppers in a baking dish with the hollowed sides facing upward. (Slice the bottoms of the peppers if necessary so that they will stand upright.)
In a bowl, mix the browned beef, cooked rice, 1 can tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Spoon an equal amount of the mixture into each hollowed pepper. Mix the remaining tomato sauce and Italian seasoning in a bowl, and pour over the stuffed peppers.
Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, basting with sauce every 15 minutes, until the peppers are tender. On the seasonings, and also the sauce, I didn't really measure anything out. I just did dashes here and there, and used probably more than the recipe called for. I like lots of flavor, and I know that John likes a fair amount of sauce as well.

Dr. Funk

2009-06-21T14:18:00.000-07:00

Last night John's dad got the opportunity to play with the local band Dr. Funk out at Big Daddy's in Woodinville. He hadn't played on stage for years, so it was a really big deal for him. John's mom and dad are big fans of Dr. Funk and have been going to their shows for years. Molly rounded up 45 of their family and friends to come out for the event, and everyone had a blast. John absolutely rocked his solo's and even the band members were impressed. The dance floor was full and the drinks were flowing. We also celebrated Barb's 81st birthday that night. Enjoy the pics!

Yay for $6.50 home projects...

2009-06-20T11:33:00.000-07:00

This past Wednesday on my day off, I did some major nesting around our house. One of the things that I had been wanting to do for a while is make our TV stand look less cluttered. I had seen on HGTV once where the designer took a piece of fabric and placed it inside the glass, covering all the things inside the cupboard doors. I decided to try it out and it worked! I love how it turned out and the great thing about it, is that I only spent $6.50 on the yard of fabric I bought. Because its such an inexpensive fix, when I get sick of this fabric, I can just go and buy another yard of a different fabric to change it up. Fun!

Bikin' and Beer'

2009-06-20T11:08:00.000-07:00

To continue with our weekly date with Brian and Hayley, last week we road our bikes along the Burke Gillman Trail from Lake Forest Park out to the Redhook Brewery for lunch in Woodinville. It was a great ride, and really fun to get back on a bike after years of not riding. The lunch was super yummy too. While we were there at the brewery, we found out about their Moonlight Cinema that will be taking place this summer. They are going to be showing outdoor movies on their big lawn and serving beer and dinner through the movie. There are several dates they are going to be doing this, and John and I thought it might make a fun date nigh. Check out their website under "happenings" for more info: http://www.redhook.com/

This is all their kegs stacked up outside the restaraunt. Yum!

A Day Hike to Wallace Falls

2009-06-20T10:58:00.000-07:00

John and I have been having these "weekly dates" as Hayley and I like to call them with our good friends Hayley and Brian. The first week, we went for a hike up at Wallace Falls, which is out by Goldbar (http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/wallace-falls). I had heard about this hike from some of my co-workers who said it was a close drive, an easy-medium hike, nice scenery and wouldn't take you the entire day to complete it, so I though it would be perfect for this day. The falls were really pretty and worth the hike. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who wants a nice and easy day hike.

This picture really does not do it justice, but at the beginning of the trail, there were these tree's that had limbs completely covered in moss. It was a pretty cool sight.

The Falls...

I was particularily fond of this sign...

Our special cat...

2009-06-20T10:55:00.001-07:00

For those of you who have met our cat, he is, well special. He's really like a small dog. Lately, with all of the good weather, he has been wanting really badly to go outside, which we don't let him do. So, to feed this desire, he has learned how to climb to the top of our front door and hang out on the top of it to look outside. We were pretty amazed the first time he did it. Here he is in action.

Rie and Joey get married!! And we get a mini-vaca to Boise out of it!

2009-06-20T10:32:00.001-07:00

At the end of May, John and I along with my mom and Tommy flew out to Boise for the weekend to watch the baby of the family get married. It was a great weekend, super busy weekend with wedding events, laying by the pool, consuming Pat's famouts jello shots, and eating the best ribs I think I have even had a Texas Roadhouse BBQ. Here are some pics...The following are from the rehearsal dinner.

The beautiful brand new church that they were married in.

For each of the 5 kids in our family, Tommy has a tradition of performing a skit at the reharsal dinner to honor the bride and groom to be. They are usually pretty funny and he always has trick to pull out of his hat for these. Here is Joey and Rie's...

My mom with Joanne and Pat (the jello machine!).

Joey and Rie brought in a decorator to turn the Church gym into a romantic reception venue. It looked amazing and no one could believe this was a gym!

I was in love with Joey's shoe choice...

Here is the view of Boise from our room.

Vino, here we come!

2009-06-20T10:24:00.001-07:00

John and I decided for our 1st year anniversary to take a trip down to Oregon and tour the Willamette Valley. As you can see from our first photo, we are in desperate need of updating our wine collection (what you see in the pic is all left over wine from our wedding, and I can't stand drinking it anymore). Because we really love Pino Noir's, we thought this would be the perfect area to tour since they are so well know for Pino's. So, we will be going down for a week in July to drink vino and more vino. We are really looking forward to it, not only for the wine, but also for a much needed week off of work! We have rented a farmhouse (literally) to stay in while we are down there. We are really excited for that mostly so we can cook while we are on vacation, sit out on the porch with a nice relaxing view and not be stuck in a stuffy hotel room while we are there. Here are some pics of our newly constructed wine wall (that is seriously lacking), and the house we rented near Salem. If there is anyone out there reading this who has any tips for us while we are down there, we'd love to hear them!

Hi, My name is Tiffany and I have been neglecting my blog...

2009-06-20T10:06:00.000-07:00

I have been so bad about updating my life's events in this blog lately. I keep meaning to, and then something else comes up preventing me from doing so. Here I am though. Determined to sit down this morning and get these posts up! First up, is my birthday BBQ back in May. It is so apparent that all of our friends are starting to have families because there were a ton of kids there! It was so much fun to see them all running around our backyard and playing with each other. The night even went on for us to sit around a fire in the backyard late into the night. It was a great birthday, couldn't have asked for more. And my gift from my hubby? A plane ticket to Hawaii in September to spend a week with my mom on the beach!

Ooey, Gooey, Healthy Lasagna

2009-05-18T18:40:00.000-07:00

John had been craving a lasagna dinner and we also had a package of ground chicken in the refrigerator that needed to be used. After a little bit of searching, I found a recipe that would hopefully satisfy those 2 things. It turned out really well, especially considering its a "healthy" lasagna. And for my first time ever making a homemade lasagna, I was happy with the outcome. John said he enjoyed it and would eat it again, although he did say he could tell that it was a "healthier" version of a lasagna (I tried to trick him by not telling him how I made it and wait to see if he noticed) simply because it was a little bit looser than a fatty lasagna. I guess you can't have your cake and eat it too right?! I will be tucking this recipe away for another lasagna craving night!

Tomato-Basil Lasagna with Prosciutto from Cooking Light (I used ground chicken instead)
Yield
9 servings

Ingredients
5 garlic cloves
1 (16-ounce) carton 1% low-fat cottage cheese
1/2 cup (4 ounces) block-style fat-free cream cheese
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Romano cheese, divided (I used bagged shredded Italian Cheese)
2 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 large egg
1 (26-ounce) bottle fat-free tomato-basil pasta sauce (such as Muir Glen)
Cooking spray
12 cooked lasagna noodles
1 cup (4 ounces) chopped prosciutto or ham (I used one package of ground chicken)
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preparation
Preheat oven to 375°.
Drop garlic through food chute with food processor on, and process until minced. Add cottage cheese; process 2 minutes or until smooth. Add cream cheese, 2 tablespoons Romano, basil, pepper, and egg; process until well-blended. Spread 1/2 cup pasta sauce in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 3 noodles over the pasta sauce; top with 1 cup cheese mixture, 1/3 cup prosciutto, and 3/4 cup pasta sauce. Repeat the layers two times, ending with noodles. Spread remaining pasta sauce over noodles. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons Romano and mozzarella. Cover and bake at 375° for 45 minutes or until sauce is bubbly. Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes. Let lasagna stand 5 minutes.

Nutritional Information
Calories:
272 (19% from fat)
Fat:
5.6g (sat 2.8g,mono 1.8g,poly 0.6g)
Protein:
20.8g
Carbohydrate:
33g
Fiber:
2.1g
Cholesterol:
47mg
Iron:
2.3mg
Sodium:
775mg
Calcium:
213mg
Cooking Light, JULY 2000

Chicken Satay and Coconut Peanut Sauce

2009-05-11T21:13:00.001-07:00

John's Plate (that he insisted taking a pictured of!) :)

Another keeper! I saw this recipe on The Savory Sweet Life Blog (http://savorysweetlife.com/), and thought it would be a great one to keep in my list of recipe's to try. I always keep a long (and always getting longer) list of recipes that I would someday like to attempt and I try to chose a new one at least once a week. I chose this one tonight, and I can say we will be making it again. The hubs even liked it (which makes this one extra special). I would however, eliminate the Coconut Peanut Sauce altogether. I believe that it is meant to be used as a dipping sauce for the chicken, however the chicken itself has so much flavor that I felt the sauce just took away from that. It speaks for itself and doesn't (in my opinion) need anything to dip it in. It also was very moist, almost melts in your mouth moist.

Ingredients for the marinade:

2 lbs of boneless chicken breasts cubed in 1″ pieces (I used to boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
4 tbs. soy sauce
2 tbs. oil
3 tbs. brown sugar packed
1 tbs. of finely chopped lemongrass (You can purchase this in a tube in the produce section of your grocery store)
1 slice (coin) of peeled ginger - approx. 1 tsp. finely minced
1/2 tsp of whole cardamon (I couldn't find whole, and so I just used ground. QFC by my house has a great spice section where you can buy just a tablespoon of the spice if you like. I decided to do that with this spice since I have never seen it in another recipe. This helped to keep the cost down)
1 tbs. of curry powder
2 cloves of garlic
2 tbs. of fresh lime juice (approx. half a lime)

Wood skewers

Ingredients for the coconut peanut sauce:
1 can (13.5 oz) of coconut milk
3 tbs. of peanut butter
4 tbs. of brown sugar, packed,
2 tsp. of massamam curry paste
2 tbs. of fresh lime juice (approx. half a lime)

Directions for the marinade:
Place cubed chicken in a medium bowl. Combine all the ingredients except for the chicken in a food processor and blend for 30 seconds. Pour the marinade over the cubed chicken and massage the meat with your hands for 1 minute. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and marinade for at least 3 hours. After the meat has had time to marinade, thread 6-8 cubes of chicken on a wooden skewer until all the chicken is gone. Pre-grease (with non stick spray) and pre-heat grill on high heat.

While grill is preheating, heat a medium sauce pan on medium-low heat. Add coconut milk, brown sugar, massamam curry, lime juice, and peanut butter to the sauce pan and continuously stir until all of the ingredients have completely come together. Turn off heat and pour sauce into a serving bowl.

The grill should be nice and hot by now. Grill chicken skewers for 4-5 minutes on front and back side or until fully cooked. Total cooking time will vary but mine were finished in 9-10 minutes. Chicken should be tender and not overcooked.

Did you say Nutter Butters.....?

2009-05-06T09:25:00.001-07:00

As I was browsing through some of my favorite foodie blogs last week, I came across this recipe for Brown Sugar Peanut Butter Nutter Fluffer Sandwich Cookies. I needed a really good excuse to make them, and then I saw it. The sign at work for a Cinco Di Mayo Potluck! What better event to make these for than this Mexican Holiday..Not. But I decided to take the dive anyway. I mean, we all knew there would be plenty of beans, rice, chips, salsa, guac and other deliciously yummy things to snack on all day. I thought I would throw the group and bring something unexpected. And let me tell you, this group of people can eat. I set them out at 11:30, came back into the lounge by 12:30 only to find crumbs left.

These cookies were easy and fun to make. They were the perfect combination of softness and sweetness, but not too much to overdo your taste buds.

Brown Sugar Peanut Butter Nutter Fluffer Sandwich Cookies from http://www.culinaryconcoctionsbypeabody.com/
(My Changes are in red)

Ingredients:
1 cup cold unsalted butter, diced
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 ½ cups lightly packed dark brown sugar
2/3 cup peanut butter
2 eggs
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds removed, pod discarded (Used 2 tsp of Vanilla extract instead)
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda½ tsp salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F.Cream butter and sugars in a mixer on high speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl often.Beat for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, add the eggs and vanilla beans, then add the peanut butter and mix well.Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix on low speed until all the ingredients are incorporated. Increase the speed to medium and mix just until the dough is smooth.Using a small ice cream scoop(or a tablespoon) form the dough into ½ inch balls, roll them in sugar and place on greased cookie sheet. Flatten cookies with a fork. Bake just until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Let cookies cool about 5 minutes and transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Adapted from Caprial’s Desserts by Caprial Pence

Nutter Fluffer Filling
¾ cup marshmallow crème
¾ cup peanut butter
2 TBSP milk

Heat marshmallow crème over low heat in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and add peanut butter and milk. Whisk until fully incorporated. Let cool.Pipe into center of cookie and place another cookie on top to form a sandwich.

Cilantro Jalapeno Humus

2009-05-03T19:16:00.001-07:00

Yum! I'm always on the hunt for a good humus, but I've always been to afraid to make my own. Cilantro is one of my favorite flavors, so I decided to give this one a try. It was delish!

Cilantro Jalapeno Hummus-Another great one from http://annieseats.wordpress.com/

Ingredients:
1/3-1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1-2 jalapeno peppers, ribbed and seeded (depending on desired flavor) (Next time I will use 3!)
1 clove garlic, peeled (I used 3 cloves)
3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup water
6 tbsp. tahini
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 (14 oz.) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 tsp. salt (I used at least a full teaspoon, if not more)
1/4 tsp. cumin
Pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions:
Combine the cilantro, jalapenos, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the ingredients have been finely minced. In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice and water. In another bowl, whisk together the tahini and olive oil. Set aside. Scrape down the sides of the food processor bowl and add the chickpeas, salt, cumin and cayenne. Process until almost fully ground, about 15 seconds. Scrape down the bowl. With the machine running add the lemon juice-water mixture in a steady stream through the feed tube. Scrape down the bowl and continue to process for one minute. With the machine running, add the oil-tahini mixture in a steady stream through the feed tube, and continue to process until smooth and creamy, about 15 seconds, scraping down the bowl as needed.
Transfer the hummus to a serving bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let stand until the flavors meld, at least 30 minutes.

Banana Peanut Butter Granola with White Chocolate

2009-05-03T18:13:00.000-07:00

When I came across this recipe on Annie's Eats (http://annieseats.wordpress.com/), I thought to myself...granola, peanut butter, chocolate, AND its healthy?!! What could be better? I have always wanted to try my hand at making my own granola, but I am somewhat picky when it comes to what is in my granola. I am not a huge fan of nuts or raisons, and the majority of the recipes you see out there have both of these. When I saw this on Annie's blog, I knew that I would be trying this one. And, I am so glad that I did. I turned out great, and was super easy to make. I will be packing this for breakfast at work, and also for an afternoon snack. This one is a keeper for sure. I made a couple of changes for my preference, and have printed those changes in red as usual. You have GOT to try this one!

Banana Peanut Butter Granola

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups rolled oats

2 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal

2 tbsp. honey

1/3 cup applesauce

1/3 cup mashed bananas

1/3-1/2 cup creamy peanut butter, warmed slightly

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/3 cup brown sugar

1-1 1/2 cups dried banana chips (Did not use because the hurt my teeth! :)

1/2 cup honey roasted peanuts (Did not use.)

3-4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (optional) (I used white chocolate chips instead)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, combine the rolled oats and puffed rice cereal. In a medium bowl, whisk together the honey, applesauce, mashed banana, peanut butter, salt, cinnamon and brown sugar until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until the oat mixture is evenly coated. Spread onto the prepared baking sheet in a thick even layer.
Bake for 30 minutes. Then, using a large spatula, turn the granola over in segments. Bake for an additional 15 minutes. Depending on the size of your baking sheet, the center may not be fully dried. If necessary, remove the edges of cooked granola and bake the remaining granola for 10-15 minutes more or until done, being careful not to over-bake. Cool on a wire rack.
Once the granola has cooled, crumble it into a large bowl or plastic bag. Add in the dried banana chips, honey roasted peanuts and bittersweet chocolate, if using. Mix well to combine. Store in an airtight container.

Raise your glass to Hayley and Brian....

2009-04-28T15:52:00.001-07:00

This past Saturday, we officially celebrated Hayley and Brian's engagement with a wine, cheese, and dessert party hosted by her Matron of Honor, Marriane. It was such a great time! Now comes the countdown to all the fun pre-wedding events like the showers and bachelorette party. With this bride, there is never a dull moment, so I am very much looking forward to all of these events and even more so, the big day!Bride and Groom to be

Some of the bridesmaids with the bride

Brian getting the party started

Brian and John, the 2 DJ's of the bunch.

Bride and Groom with Father of the bride.

John and I with Mariann'e husband Luke

Bridesmaid and friends of the bride and groom.

Mother of the bride, bridesmaid, and Marianne's mom.

Marianne giving her toast

Friends of the bride and groom.

Friends of the bride and groom including bridesmaid Heather.

Bridesmaid Tandi

Matron of Honor and host Marianne, Bridesmaid Andrea, and her mom.

Friends of the bride and groom.

Hayley with her cousin (and bridesmaid) and her husband.

Lucie's Baby Shower

2009-04-28T15:42:00.000-07:00

I had the absolute pleasure of co-hosting my dear friend Lucie's baby shower for her this past Sunday. Let's just be totally honest here and say that Lucie is one of the most beautiful pregnant ladies I have ever seen (although she will beg to differ). I love how perfectly round her tummy is and she looks just adorable in all of her cute maternity clothes. I can't wait to meet her little guy, and she only has 7 weeks to go! I feel so blessed that I get to be a part of this experience with her and can't wait to see how motherhood unfolds for her. The shower was a big hit. Lucie's mom Susan was an excellent co-host for the shower, and I was so glad to have all of her help! Lucie's grandmother was kind enough to let us host the shower at her house, which is a special place to Lucie since her and Chris were married at there.

Its game time! Lucie's favorite part (**wink, wink**)

The view from Lucie's grandmothers living room. Gorgeous.

John meets crew of Deadliest Catch!

2009-04-28T15:15:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, John got the opportunity to attend an event called Catchcon, where he got to meet the crew of Deadliest Catch (http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/deadliestcatch/deadliestcatch.html), tour the boats, get some autographs, and hear the captains speak. I don't remember where I saw the information for this event, but I signed John up right when I found it because I know that he is a huge fan of the show. Origonally, they sent me an email saying that the event was closed and that they would put me on the waiting list. But...a week before the event, they must have had some people drop off the list and they said John could now attend. I was super excited for him! John said there was only about 300-400 people there total, so it was a fairly small event. John was chosen to ask a question to the captains, and it was even featured on the discovery channel (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSa8Hjn5WPI&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Edeadliest%2Dcatch%2Dwiki%2Ediscovery%2Ecom%2Fpage%2FCatchCon%2B2009%3Ft%3Danon&feature=player_embedded) And, you can even see John in one of the pictures that was featured on Seattle PI's website of the event (you can see him sitting in the front row): (http://www.seattlepi.com/photos/popupV2.asp?SubID=4787&page=14&GTitle=CatchCon%20draws%20%22Deadliest%20Catch%22%20fans%20to%20Seattle&pubdate=4/26/2009) Here is John and captain Johnathan Hillstrand from the Time Bandit.

They did a Coast Guard demonstration at the event as well.

From left to right is Andy Hillstrand (Of the Time Bandit), Johnathan Hillstrad (Time Bandit), Phil Harris (CorneliaMarie), and Sig Hansen (Northwestern)

Phil and Sig

Keith Colburn (Of the Wizard), and Andy Hillstrand

Here are the captains entering for the first time.

John and one of the deckhands, Matt from the Northwestern

John and Sig's brother Nornam and deckhand Jake from the Northwestern

John on the Wizard with 2 of the deckhands (Lenny on the right and Lynn on the left).

When John was walking into the event, he happened to run into some of the crew from the Time Bandit and others, so he grabbed a quick photo. This is Norman, Jake, and Nick from the Northwester, and Mike from the Time Bandit.

Whole Wheat Muffins

2009-04-01T10:52:00.000-07:00

I was in the mood to bake, but wanted something healthy. A couple of weeks back, I had come across this recipe on http://jessicasfoodspot.blogspot.com/ and decided to try them. Yum! I thought they turned out really good, especially for being whole wheat. I even caught John eating one when I came home from work the other day. These are just a good little sweet snack that you can grab quickly and don't have to feel so guilty about eating. I will definitely make these again. Whole Wheat Muffins

Ingredients:
2 cups White Whole Wheat Flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup and 2 tbsp applesauce (I will add a little more of this next time)
1 egg

Directions:
Line muffin tin with liners and preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. Next add the sugar to the flour mixture and blend. In another medium bowl (or your standing mixer) blend the milk, applesauce and egg. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix just until blended.Scoop the batter into a muffin tin. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-22 minutes (next time I will check them at about 15 minutes. My oven cooked them faster and I ended up taking them out at 18 minutes). or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Phyllo Wrapped Salmon with Herbed Cream Cheese

2009-04-01T10:34:00.000-07:00

After seeing this recipe on Annie's Eats blog (http://annieseats.wordpress.com/), I knew I wanted to try them. Annie's recipe called for goat cheese instead of herbed cream cheese, but I knew that John doesn't like goat cheese. I got in touch with Annie herself and asked what she thought about me substituting the cream cheese instead and she said she thought it would work. Both John and I thought they turned out great, with a few things we will change next time we make them (which we will be doing). I personally love goat cheese, and will be making mine with goat cheese next time, and John's with cream cheese. This was a fairly quick, easy to medium recipe that worked well for a weeknight. Enjoy!

Here is the final product:
The first step was to brush the sheets of Phyllo with butter, and place the salmon fillet inside.

Next, you wrapped the salmon fillet like a burrito and placed on a baking sheet.

Here is what they looked like when I pulled them out of the oven:

Phyllo Wrapped Salmon with Herbed Cream Cheese

Ingredients:
2 salmon fillets (I asked the butcher to give me a fillet that would feed 3 people because I wanted leftovers. Next time I make these, I will make the pockets with smaller salmon fillets. The ones we used were a lot of salmon. Also, I HATED skinning the fillet. I don't know if they will do it or not, but next time I am going to ask the butcher if they will skin it for me at the store)
1-2 oz. herbed cream cheese (Once I had the salmon fillet in layed on the phyllo sheets, I basically "buttered" the fillet with cream cheese. I went light on the cream cheese because I wasn't sure how much to use, but we both agreed that we would double if not triple the amount of cheese we use next time and "butter" both sides of the fillet instead of one).
12 sheets phyllo dough (I found these in the freezer section next to the frozen pie crust)
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
salt and pepper

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400°.

On a work surface, lay down one piece of phyllo dough. Brush lightly with melted butter. Repeat until 6 sheets of phyllo are layered on top of each other (John would like me to only use 3 sheets of phyllo next time for each fillet. He says that 6 was too much). Place one salmon fillet at an angle near a corner of the phyllo stack. Season with salt and pepper. Spread half of the goat cheese on top of the salmon. Fold corner and then sides of the phyllo stack over the salmon, and then roll up, burrito-style, keeping all sides of phyllo folded in. Trim off any excess. Place seam side down on a baking sheet and brush top with more melted butter. Repeat the process with the second salmon fillet. Refrigerate for 10-15 minutes. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until phyllo is golden brown. (Ours was done in 28 minutes)

1/2 Marathon Update

2009-04-01T10:10:00.001-07:00

Aaaahhhh!!!! Its over finally! I can't begin to express how happy I am to say that. And even more so to say that we actually followed through on this goal and completed it. The actual race turned out great. I was extremely happy with our results and how good the actual run felt. I was fearful after my last long training run was the run from hell. Anna and I's last training run was windy (like knock your power out windy), rainy, and my knee pain was terrible the past 6 miles. I came home in tears afterwards, and therefore the whole week leading up to the actual race, I was fearful that the race would be another run like that. However, it turned out great. We had almost picture perfect running weather, my knee pain was non-existent (until after I stopped running when it was over, then I really started feeling it), and Anna and I both ran it faster than we thought we would. Plus, it was great to have Hayley's finance Brian there with us as well, who also finished right with us. My first half marathon, I finished in 2 hours and 20 minutes (or so), and this one, I finished in almost exactly 2 hours. So, that was a big improvement for me, and it meant that I ran 9.16 minute miles the whole way. I was incredibly impressed with Anna's finish as well. This was her first ever half marathon and she finished like a champ. She is already now training for a sprint triathlon and considering another half marathon in September of this year. She is hard core!

Some reflections I have of training for a half marathon and completing a half marathon:

It is a huge commitment to train for one. You are dedicating a lot of your free time to training, and if you train correct and by a schedule, then you are doing a long run once a week, which takes a lot of time and energy. The way we trained was to increase our long run by one mile each week, so our last long run was 12 miles, and then the next weekend was our half marathon race (13 miles). This means that you don't want to miss a long run at all, or you would be 2 miles behind on your training. I forgot how much time you need to dedicate to training for this.
I have realized that indeed, running is bad for your joints. Being 26 years old with knee pain is no good. Anna also got this same knee pain. John joked with me that I should retire from running because he doesn't want me to be a young mom who can't be active with her kids because she messed her knee up running when she was younger. I would also like to not end up a patient in my own hospital having to get any kind of surgery done.
I lost 6 pounds (a fair amount for me) throughout the course of training, and saw a total change in my body. This was a great feeling. Its not that I felt I needed to loose weight, but more so that I wanted to tone up, and training for a half certainly does that for my body. Even a couple of my coworkers noticed a difference, and that felt great! It was like a payoff for all the hard work I had been doing.
When you are putting so much effort into training, you naturally find yourself wanting to eat healthier all the time. Its almost like when I would eat unhealthy, I felt like I was cheating myself out of all this training that I was doing. So, it was a good kick start for me to get into some really good healthy eating habits. This was also a really good kick start into getting into a good exercise routine weekly. You feel that you have put all this work into getting into shape, and I don't want to stop now just because the race is over. I have to admit that by Tuesday after the race (which was on Sunday), I already felt the urge to go back to the gym.
The sense of accomplishment when you are done with something this big is HUGE! It was such an incredible feeling to see my family and friends cheering me on at the finish line. A really incredible feeling that I don't think you can describe. THAT is what would make me want to do another one.

Here is Brian, Anna and I after the race.
This is the absolute dorkiest photo of me, but its as I saw my husband with the camera and just about to cross the finish line. I didn't care how I looked at that moment, because it was a really cool realization for me that I was done and had accomplished my goal.

Here is us just starting the race.

And the start line.

Kidney Update

2009-03-04T17:20:00.000-08:00

I am so, so, so, so happy to be posting this post. I just got home from seeing a 2nd nephrologist down at the Polly Clinic in Seattle. It was a second opinion that my original nephrologist recommended I get. I had been putting this off for a while, and finally had it done. It was the BEST thing I could have done at this point. I left his office today not being able to stop smiling at the news I received. Here is a breakdown of what occurred:

-All my labs and chart notes were in his hands to review what had occurred up to this point.

-After reviewing my history, he told me that I have had every possible diagnostic test done to figure out if there truly is a problem. NONE of these diagnostic tests were abnormal (yay!) I already knew this, but I hadn't ever had it said to me like that and for some reason, that sunk it in my head and made me feel good about it.

-The main reason that I have been receiving all of these test is because of something called a Creatinine Clearance. This was determined after I had a 24 hour urine test done. My creatinine clearance was showing low, especially for my age. It was still considered in the "normal" range, but very low on the normal scale. In order to figure out this number, they have to calculate it with a bunch of other numbers from labs, etc. The doctor today took all my labs back to his office (while I was giving another urine sample), and re-calculated the number just to be sure. Turns out, he calculated this number higher than the lab had. That is a good thing.

-He went through a series of questions with me that were all things, if answered yes that would indicate low kidney function. My answer to every single question was No.

-After giving my urine sample, the Medical Assistant came into the room I was in, and put it into test tubes and spun it down. It was pretty cool to see this done right in front of me since it has always in the past done without me right there. Then the doctor came back in and put it under the microscope. It was determined that there was NO BLOOD IN MY URINE!!!!!!! This is the first time in over 5 years that I have had a UA done and it has not showed blood.

The conclusion that he gave me is that he doesn't think I even have compromised kidney function at all. He indicated to me a couple of things that may have caused me to have blood in my urine in the past. He said that being as active as I am with running and exercising could cause this (haha! I guess there could be one downfall of exercising!). He also said that my rib cage goes down extremely far and that there isn't a lot of space in between my rib cage and my iliac crest and that its possible sometimes my kidney could be bumped and therefore cause blood in my urine. He went on to tell me that I do not need to have anything additional done besides having a routine blood test each year at my annual exam.

This is EXACTLY what I needed to hear. Someone to look at all the damn testing I have had done and tell me there is either something wrong, or that there is nothing wrong. Everything I had received from doctors up to this point was just inconclusive. No one has been able to tell me one way or the other. I felt very confident that this doctor was providing me accurate information and was confident in what he was telling me. This particular doctor was also ranked a top doctor in Seattle's Top Doctor magazine, which I found impressive.

So, this means wine for me tonight! I am thrilled.

Happy Birthday Mom!

2009-02-27T15:44:00.000-08:00

John and I offered to host a birthday dinner for my Mom this year. I knew that for her birthday dessert, I had to do something chocolate, because she is a huge chocolate lover. I came across this recipe on this blog: http://lepetitpierogi.blogspot.com/ and was hooked right at the picture of these delicious chocolate brownie cupcakes. I loved the heart addition on the top as well. These were super easy, but I somewhat time consuming because I made my icing from scratch and had to "cookie cut" out the hearts to put on top. But, I will say I think it was well worth the time for how well they turned out (I had to steal a bite of one today!). I hope everyone else tonight will enjoy them just as much with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.

Here is how I melt the chocolate and butter (one pan on top of the other) and it worked great.

Letting the Kitchen aid do all the work!

Chocolate Brownie Cupcakes with Almond Butter cream Icing

Ingredients: Source: http://lepetitpierogi.blogspot.com/ (adapted from Martha Stewart)

Vegetable oil cooking spray

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt

15 ounces (3 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

12 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

3 cups sugar

6 large eggs, room temperature

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Coat an 8-inch square cake pan with cooking spray, line bottom with parchment, then spray parchment.
Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Place butter and chocolate in a heatproof mixer bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stirring until chocolate melts.
Attach bowl to mixer, add sugar, and whisk on medium-high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, then vanilla. Reduce speed to low, and add flour mixture.
Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full. Spread remaining batter in square pan. Bake until set but still soft, about 20 minutes. Let cool in tins and pan on wire racks.
Frost cupcakes with butter cream. Cut out 24 hearts from brownie in pan using a 1 1/2-inch heart-shaped cutter. Top each cupcake with a heart.

**This made a total of 22 cupcakes for me plus the pan of brownie cake for the hearts to go on top.**

Almond Butter cream Icing: Source: Wilton

Ingredients:
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine softened
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (approximately 1 lb.)
2 tablespoons milk
Makes: About 3 cups of icing.

Instructions
(Medium Consistency)
In large bowl, cream shortening and butter with electric mixer. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.
For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use. Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.

Homemade Pizza!

2009-02-27T15:37:00.001-08:00

Yum! I decided on my day off this week to tackle another food item that I have been wanting to make on my own for a while. The recipe that I used was super easy and turned out great. This worked out well for John and I since we like different things on our pizza. The recipe makes enough for two pizza's (well sized), so we each "decorated" our own pizza's with what we wanted. John did pepperoni and cheese and I did feta cheese and fresh tomatoes. I think the only thing that we will change next time when we make it is to cook the pizza directly on the racks of the oven for crispier crust.

Here is the dough under two wet cloths after rising.

Putting our sauces on...

John's after it was done baking (we had lots of leftovers!)

And mine after it was done baking.

Yum!

Basic Pizza Dough

Ingredients:
½ cup warm water (about 110°)
1 envelope (2 ¼ tsp.) instant yeast (same thing as quick rising)
1 ¼ cups water, at room temperature
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
4 cups (22 oz.) bread flour, plus more for dusting (I used regular flour)
1 ½ tsp. salt
olive oil or non-stick cooking spray for greasing the bowl

Directions:
Measure the warm water into a 2-cup liquid measuring cup. Sprinkle in the yeast and let stand until the yeast dissolves and swells, about 5 minutes. Add the room temperature water and oil and stir to combine. Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Briefly combine the dry ingredients at low speed. Slowly add the liquid ingredients and continue to mix at low speed until a cohesive mass forms. Stop the mixer and replace the paddle with the dough hook. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Form the dough into a ball, put it in a deep oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1 ½ to 2 hours. Press the dough to deflate it. To bake, place a pizza stone in the lower third of the oven. Heat the oven to 500° for at least 30 minutes. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Form both pieces of dough into smooth, round balls and cover with a damp cloth. Let the dough relax for at least 10 minutes but no more than 30 minutes. Working with one piece of dough and keeping the other covered, shape the dough and transfer to a pizza peel or round of parchment dusted with semolina or cornmeal. Top as desired. Slide the dough onto the pizza stone. Bake until the crust edges brown and cheese is golden brown in spots, about 8 to 12 minutes. Repeat with remaining ball of dough or freeze for later use.

The cleanup...

2009-02-16T14:13:00.000-08:00

As you probably saw in my post from yesterday, our entire yard was FULL of branches from the two trees that we knocked down. Today, we hired a guy to come out with his chipper for all of the cleanup. John and I (and even some help from Hank and Katie) pulled all the branches from the back yard into the front where his chipper was. It only took us about 2 hours to get everything done. Here is what the yard looks like now. I'm sure our grass is quite happy with all the new sunshine its getting! Here is Hank with his earmuffs on and branch in hand. He liked watching the chipper.

And, I just HAD to get a shot of the license plate of the guy who game out with his chipper. This isn't the best shot, but it definitely says "Nudists" on it and around the license plate it said "Please flirt aggressively". This was a husband and wife team who runs their own chipping and wood cutting business. We found it pretty funny.

Now you see 2 big trees......Now you don't

2009-02-15T14:45:00.001-08:00

In an effort to plant a better and more uniformed line of privacy trees in our backyard, we had to take down the two big ones that were there. Its going to be a couple of years before we get that privacy back, but John says in the end it will be worth it. Uncle Jeff came over this morning and took these bad boys down. Here is the BEFORE shot:
Here are all the during and after photo's. Excuse the flash spots on the first few pictures. I was inside and didn't realize they were coming down as quick as they did.

Mid fall...

And the first one is down...

2nd one is down...

This is John and I in 71 years...

2009-02-15T14:25:00.000-08:00

I can only hope:

http://www.komonews.com/news/39622282.html

Valentines Dinner at Wasabi Bistro

2009-02-15T13:31:00.000-08:00

I made reservations about a month ago at Wasabi Bistro for Valentines Day. I had been a couple of times, but John never had, so I was super excited to take him there. Our dinner was so great, that I was still thinking about it this morning. If you like sushi and have never been here before, go!! You won't regret it. We shared a few different rolls, crab filled won tons, a crab ball, and a couple pieces of tuna. My favorite was the Mango Tango roll (shrimp tempura, cilantro, red bell pepper & mango). John didn't want to order this one at first because he doesn't like mango, but he ended up liking it just as much as me. The couple next to us heard us talking about how great it was and even asked us about it so they could also order it. Yum! We finished the night of with a hot tub in our new tub. It was the perfect date night. :)

Spicy Chicken Curry Soup

2009-02-15T13:16:00.001-08:00

OMG!!! Talk about yummy soup. I am so glad that I decided on a whim to try this recipe, as its definitely one that I will be making over and over. If you like Thai flavors (curry, coconut, etc), then you will definitely like this soup. It is so simple, but full of a ton of flavor and is very filling. I came down with a nasty cold this week and was in the mood for some warm chicken soup, but just plain old chicken noodle wasn't sounding appealing to me. I googled chicken soup and after browsing through a few recipes, I found this one. Some of the reviews of this recipe said that it was too spicy for their taste, but I actually added extra curry paste because I love all the flavor, and I personally wouldn't even classify this soup as spice at all. Now that I have bought some of the staple Thai ingredients (green curry paste, peanut oil, etc), and I am excited to try some other recipes as well. Enjoy this!

Spicy Chicken Curry Soup (Courtesy of Allrecipes.com)

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon peanut oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 carrot, peeled and diced
1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk
1 tablespoon green curry paste
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
2 cups chicken stock
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup chopped green onions

DIRECTIONS
Heat the oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and carrot, and cook 5 minutes. Mix in 1/4 the coconut milk. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil. Mix in curry paste. Place the chicken in the pot, and toss to coat.
Reduce heat to low, and pour in the chicken stock. Cook until heated through. Stir in remaining coconut milk, lime juice, and green onions. Continue to cook and stir at least 10 minutes before serving.

**Just a note on the coconut milk. When I opened the can of mine, it was almost like it was separated into a coconut paste and a coconut liquid. I just threw the whole can of it into the blender and it mixed very nicely into a milk.**

Love Em or Leave Em Valentines 5K

2009-02-11T16:32:00.000-08:00

This past Sunday, I had a great time running the Greenlake Valentines Love Em or Leave Em 5K race. I ran it along with 2 of my co-workers (Ron and Liz) and my sister in law Anna and brother Colin. It felt really good and was the fastest 5K I had ever done (about 24 min). Anna and I had just ran 7 miles the day before, so I am thinking that is why this felt like a breeze for both of us. Everyone did such a great job, and I believe it was a personal best for Anna as well. Here are some photo's from the event. Next up: St. Patty's Day Dash with Toddy!!!, and then the 1/2 marathon.

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

2009-02-11T16:21:00.000-08:00

Talk about comfort food! This is one of my ultimates. I found this recipe about 5 years ago (I have no idea where) and have been using it since. I haven't tasted a slow cooked pot roast that I like better than this recipe. Its just so flavorful and the meat just falls apart, which I love. John isn't huge on pot roast in general, but he is a good sport about when I am craving it and will eat it then. Please try this recipe next time you are craving Pot roast. I promise, you won't regret it! These are the veggies that I always use (extra carrots!). The recipe calls for a turnip and rutabaga, but I have never tried adding those.

Meat all floured on top of the veggies and ready for sauce.

Here is the sauce and from here all you do is wait for it to cook. I took several photo's of the meat when its all done, but to be totally honest, meat that is falling apart and cooked just doesn't look super pretty on a photo, so I decided not to include those.

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

Ingredients:

1 onion, chopped

4 small red potatoes, quartered

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

1 turnip, peeled and chopped

1 rutabaga, peeled and chopped

1 (3lb) chuck roast

Salt and ground black pepper

3 Tblsp all-purpose flour

1 (15oz) can tomato sauce

2/3 cup brown sugar

2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1tsp mustard powder

1tsp garlic powder

Instructions:

Arrange veggies in bottom of slow cooker. Season beef all over with salt and pepper. Rub flour all over beef. Place roast on top of veggies. Whisk together tomato sauce, brown sugar, chili powder, cumin, mustard powder, and garlic powder. Pour over beef. Cook on low for 12 hours or high for 8 hours.

Our new toy...

2009-02-04T09:16:00.001-08:00

A new hot tub!!! Yes, we finally did it. Anyone who knows us, knows that we love hot tubbing. We are constantly driving over to my mom and Tommy's house to dip into theirs. So, this year we decided to get one of our very own. This weekend we will hopefully work on getting all the wiring done to hook it up to the house, and then fill it up and have our first tub next week. Can't wait to walk out of the sliding glass door from our bedroom right into the hot tub. That will be the life. :)

Jalepeno Cheddar Cornbread

2009-02-04T09:05:00.000-08:00

Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread

Yum! I had a pot of white bean chicken chili in the crock pot last week for dinner, and wanted something a little different to go along with it. After some searching, I found this recipe for Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread, which sounded just up my alley. And a double bonus, it was by Ina Garten, one of my favorites. The bread itself turned out really good. It makes a really big batch of it, so we had so many leftovers, we ended up eating it for a few days and then eventually throwing it out because it was just too much to try and eat for the two of us. If I make this again for just us two, I will definitely be cutting the recipe in half at the least. But, it is great if you are feeding a large group. Yummy!

Ingredients-My changes/suggestions are in red
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 cups milk
3 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, plus extra to grease the pan
8 ounces aged extra-sharp Cheddar, grated, divided
1/3 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts, plus extra for garnish, 3 scallions
3 tablespoons seeded and minced fresh jalapeno peppers-I could have standed mine with a bit more kick, so I personally will add more jalapenos next time.
Directions
Combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the milk, eggs, and butter. With a wooden spoon, stir the wet ingredients into the dry until most of the lumps are dissolved. Don't over mix! Mix in 2 cups of the grated Cheddar, the scallions and jalapenos, and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking pan.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top, and sprinkle with the remaining grated Cheddar and extra chopped scallions. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool and cut into large squares. Serve warm or at room temperature.

My first roasted chicken...

2009-01-18T12:42:00.000-08:00

I have really been wanting to use the new roasting pan that John and I received for Christmas this year, so I decided to try my hand at a roasted chicken. I was super nervous about doing this for my first time, however everything I had heard about doing a roasted chicken was that its super easy. Now, after doing one I also agree with that. I enjoyed this recipe, and will likely make it again. I used an Ina Garten recipe since everyone said that hers are pretty dependable. I am also excited to play around with seasonings the next few times I roast a turkey as well.

Ina Garten's Lemon and Garlic roasted chicken-My changes are in red as usual

Ingredients
1 (5 to 6-pound) roasting chicken
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large bunch fresh thyme
4 lemons
3 heads garlic, cut in 1/2 crosswise
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 pound sliced bacon-Did not use so I could cut out some fat and calories
1 cup white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pinfeathers and pat the outside dry. Place the chicken in a large roasting pan. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the thyme, reserving enough thyme to garnish the chicken dish, 1 lemon, halved, and 2 halves of the garlic. Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Cut 2 of the lemons in quarters and scatter the quarters and remaining garlic around the chicken. Lay the bacon slices over the chicken to cover.
Roast the chicken for 1 hour. Remove the bacon slices from the top of the chicken and set aside. Continue roasting the chicken for an additional 1/2 hour, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Remove to a platter and cover with aluminum foil while you prepare the gravy. I opted out of making the gravy again to cut out some fat and calories, so I roasted the chicken for a total of about 1 hour and 25 minutes.
Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the fat from the bottom of the pan. Add the wine and chicken stock and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer for 5 minutes, or until reduced by half.
Slice the chicken on a platter. Garnish the chicken platter with the bacon slices, roasted garlic, reserved thyme and 1 lemon, sliced. Serve with the gravy.

Crash Hot Potatoes

2009-01-14T13:28:00.000-08:00

I decided to try a new recipe from a blog that I just recently started following (and that is excellent! http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/06/crash-hot-potatoes/). I thought these would make a good side dish to our steak dinner last Sunday night. Ok, so I suck at taking picstures of my food creations, but I think you can get the idea here (and please don't compare my pics to pioneer womans pics-hers are top notch). These potatoes were very tasty, and I would highly recommend them. Give em a try!

Here is a link to the printable recipe. http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/crash-hot-potatoes.pdf

I followed the directons exactly, with no changes this time.

Julia and Sharon's Shower

2009-01-11T14:26:00.000-08:00

I had the pleasure of co-hosting my friend Julia's baby shower and my friend Sharon's wedding shower. Both of these ladies are also my coworkers, and so we were able to host a double shower for all of the ladies that we work with. We had a great turnout of almost 20 people a LOTS of food for everyone to enjoy. The shower was complete with champagne and sparkling cider.

Chocolate covered fruit on a stick

Cranberry White Chocolate Bars

Good shot of the cake balls.

Mom to be Julia enjoying my lounge chair and cozy blanket. She only has 2 weeks to go until baby Owen arrives!

Bride to be Sharon in the middle in the brown shirt. She also has two weeks until she makes it official with hubby to be John.

My coworker Joyce was nice enough to offer to co host the shower with me. She brought some lovely antique plates and forks for us to use along with an adorable centerpiece for Julia and baby and Sharon.

Here are the recipes for the items that I contributed:

Caramello Brownies (from my sister in law Anna):

Mix up ingredients in box brownies. Pour half the batter into the baking pan. Add squares of caramello chocolate bars onto the batter. Pour the remaining half of the batter on top of the caramello squares and bake according to the box.

Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecakes
See previous blog entry for recipe

Cake Balls

This was my first time making cake balls, and to be completely honest, I was not all that impressed. In fact, I don't think I will make them again. I wanted to try them because I have heard so many good things about them. Guess you have to try it to find out though. To make them, bake a box cake (any flavor) according the instructions on the box. Once done and cooled just a bit, break up the cake and mix it with a jar of frosting (any flavor). Shape them into balls, and freeze for a bit just so they are hardened a little. Then dip in chocolate and serve.

Cranberry White Chocolate Bars
Yum! These turned out great and were a really good alternative to all the chocolate that I served. This recipe is from the blog Good Things Catered (http://goodthingscatered.blogspot.com/). My changes are made in red.

Ingredients

1/2 c. butter, softened

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1/2 c. packed brown sugar

1 1/2 c. flour

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

zest of 1/2 orange (did not have, so went without this)

1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg (used the spice nutmeg and used 1/2 teaspoon)

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 c. dried or fresh cranberries (used fresh)

1/2 c. white chocolate chips (used about 3/4 C)

Directions:-Preheat to 350 degrees and line an 11 x 7 pan with foil (did not use the foil), coating with cooking spray. -In medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, zest, nutmeg and set aside. -In bowl of stand mixer, beat butter and sugars on high until soft and light in color, about 3 minutes. -Turn mixer to low and beat in eggs, one at a time, and then vanilla until thoroughly combined.-Slowly incorporate flour mixture.-Remove from stand mixer and stir in cranberries and white chocolate. -Spread batter in pan (it's thick so use a spatula and be sure to remove all air bubbles). -Bake 25 - 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. -Cool on rack for 1 hours. -Remove from pan and cut into bars.

Chocolate Covered Strawberries and Pineapple on a Stick

These were very easy to do and looked very pretty. They can be very messy to make, however. I think my whole kitchen was covered in chocolate by the time I was done!

Bathroom Update

2009-01-11T14:17:00.001-08:00

This week we (actually most of it was John) took on the tast of updating the walls and some of the fixtures in our bathroom. We could not WAIT to get rid of the flower design that was painted on the walls before. We decided to stick with repainting the walls a white white since we had so much color in the floor that we chose and the tiles on the wall. John did an excellent job getting everything updated and it only took him a couple of days. I am completely satisfied with how it all turned out. Here is a list of what we have done in the bathrooom since moving in alsmost 2 years ago:

Replaced the vanity, mirror, sink, towel racks (main and hand towel) lighting fixtures
Added an additional vanity over the toilet
Replaced the flooring
Did tile work on the walls
Repainted

The only think left for us to make it 100% complete is to replace the blue tub (or re-line it) and replace the single pane window into a double pane.

Here are the BEFORE PICS:

And here are the AFTER PICS

Happy 2009!

2009-01-11T13:53:00.000-08:00

This New Years Eve we had the opportunity to attend a party thrown by bride and groom to be Hayley and Brian at the Smith Tower observation room in downtown Seattle. The night was complete with a black tie attire, catered appetizers, an open bar, plenty of dancing, and a view of the Space Needle. As you can tell by the pictures we had a great time! It was so nice to spend the evening with everyone there. I even got behind the bar and bar tended for a while! :) These pictures are in order from the end of the night back to the beginning of the night, so as you can probably tell, we had a couple of drinks in us. What more is there to say than happy 2009!

Last home Seahawks game and snow!

2009-01-11T13:48:00.001-08:00

This was our first year to have Season Seahawks tickets and we had a great time enjoying our seats (even if they did horrible this year!). The last home game was enjoyed with a lot of snow. We bundled up as best as we could and took off for the game. Little did I know, that I would only make it to half time, at which point I was so cold and miserable that we left the game and enjoyed the second half from the booth of a nice and warm lounge. It was quite the experience. Here are some of the pictures from the day.

Snow! And first update in FOR-EV-ER!

2009-01-11T13:42:00.000-08:00

This year, we got the most snow that the Seattle area has seen in years. And, it came at the perfect time, right around Christmas. It was fun to see the almost 18 inches that Edmonds got, and take snow walks to enjoy it. Here are some pictures John and I took of our home and the street we live on.

11 Weeks until the half!

2009-01-04T16:21:00.000-08:00

So, I have 11 weeks to go until its time for the half marathon. Time to get my butt running! I decided to come up with a strict, but realistic running/training/exercising schedule for the next 11 weeks to help me get to this goal. I have a good 5 mile base run with hills down, so that is my starting point. Here we go:

Week One (January 4th-January 10th)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 3 mile run and a 5 mile run

Week Two (January 11th-January 17th)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 3 mile run and a 5 mile run

Week Three (January 18th-January 24th)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 3 mile run and a 6 mile run

Week Four (January 25th- January 31st)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 4 mile run and a 6 mile run

Week Five (February 1st-February 7th)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 4 mile run and a 7 mile run

Week Six (February 8th-February 14th)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 4 mile run and a 8 mile run

Week Seven (February 15th-February 21st)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 4 mile run and a 9 mile run

Week Eight (February 22- February 28th)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 4 mile run and a 10 mile run

Week Nine (March 1st- March 7th)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 4 mile run and a 11 mile run

Week Ten (March 8th-March 14th)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of a 4 mile run and a 12 mile run

Week Eleven (March 15-March 21s-HALF MARATHON WEEK)
2 Gym Days minimum
2 Outside Running Days consisting of 12-13 mile run early in the week, and 4 mile run later in the week) and then Marathon on Sunday

Wine, Wine, and more Wine

2008-12-10T12:15:00.001-08:00

Last Saturday, a group of girls (and John as our wonderful driver) went wine tasting at Woodinville's annual St. Nicholas event. We had such a great time! I loved the group of girls that we got together for this. It was so fun to spend time with all of them. I would love to do it again! There was a total of 35 wineries that participated in the event, and I would guess we probably made it to about 15-20. It was a lot of wine for 1 day, but so worth it. And, I can't thank my husband enough for driving us around in the van.

Christmas Decor

2008-12-03T16:13:00.001-08:00

Well, its that time isn't it?! John and I put up our Christmas decor last weekend so we could enjoy it all month. This year we bought an artificial pre-lit tree (gasp!), and bought fresh garland so we could still enjoy the smell. Enjoy!

Our Mantle and fireplace. We used the fresh garland here.

Our tree with the fresh garland strung above the windows. You can even see the spray bottle on the ground in front of the tree to keep our kitty away! :)

Spaghetti and Turkey Meatballs

2008-12-03T15:50:00.000-08:00

I was really craving meatballs, but because we are trying to eat healthier, I decided to try making some turkey ones instead of beef. I think they turned out well. It was a nice alternative with still a lot of flavor.

Ground Turkey Meatballs: (Changes in red)

(recipe from cooks.com)

1 lb. ground turkey

1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

1 egg

1/2 tsp. dried basil leaves

1/2 c. bread crumbs (fine)

1/4 c. fresh or 1 tbsp. dry parsley

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Mix and shape into 1 1/2-inch meatballs. Saute in large skillet until browned and no longer pink. (I decided to bake these in light of trying to be more healthy. Next time I make them, I will either bake them again, but cover them this time, or I will try sauteing them like the recipe says. The tops of the meatballs were just a little dry from being baked uncovered).

Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecake's

2008-12-03T15:38:00.000-08:00

A few people have asked for this recipe, so here it is! I have been making these for probably about 5 years now. They are always a hit. I **believe** I got this recipe on the food network from Paula Deen, but its been so long ago and I never wrote down where I got it from, so I can't be certain. These are super easy to make and always turn out great.

Peanut Butter Cheese Cake Mini's

Crust:

1 1/2 C Graham Cracker crumbs

-4 Tbs sugar

-1/2 Stick butter melted

Filling:

-12 bite size peanut butter cups

-2 (8oz) cream cheese packages at room temp

1 C Sugar

1/4 C Flour

1 tsp vanilla or almond extract

-2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350. Place paper cupcake liners in each cup of muffin pan. Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter until crumbs are moistened. Press crust into bottom of each muffin cup. Put 1 peanut butter cup in center of each crust. Beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add sugar, flour, and vanilla/almond, beating well. Add eggs-1 at a time, beating well. Spoon cream cheese mixture over peanut butter cups. Bake about 20 minutes. Cool before serving.

Pesto Cream Cheese Ball

2008-12-03T15:31:00.000-08:00

I decided to make a nice appetizer to bring over to my Mom and Tommy's house for a little pre-Thanksgiving dinner munching. I had never made this one, but it turned out great. I served it with Sun dried tomato wheat thins.

Pesto-Sun dried Tomato Appetizer Ball (My changes in red)

8 oz. cream cheese (softened/room temperature)

¼ c. margarine or butter (softened/room temperature)

½ c. finely chopped onion (I used a red onion and am so glad I did)

¼ c. pesto sauce (drained from oil) (I used about 3/4 of a regular sized container of pesto)

¼ c. sun dried tomatoes (drained and chopped)

½ c. pine nuts (toasted) (did not used, but would have been good)

Parsley and Basil for garnish Crackers

Combine the cream cheese, butter and onion. Take a 2 c. bowl and line with plastic wrap. In the bowl, layer:1. 1/3 of the cream cheese mix on the bottom2. Put ½ of the pesto and spread it over the cream cheese mix (go all the way to the edge).3. Put ½ of the sun dried tomatoes over the pesto4. REPEAT steps 1 and 35. Finish with a layer of cream cheese
Cover and refrigerate overnight. Before serving, garnish plate with parsley. Flip bowl over onto plate to remove the ball. Top with toasted pine nuts and a sprig of basil. Serve at room temperature with crackers

When I put it in the refrigerator to sit overnight, I set it on a couple of paper towels because I could see that some of the oil from the pesto was drizzling out of it.

Thanksgiving Breakfast

2008-12-03T15:16:00.000-08:00

John and I decided to host a breakfast on Thanksgiving morning for my Dad and his wife Judith, my grandmother, and my brother Colin and his wife Anna. We had such a great time preparing for it, and a wonderful time at breakfast. It was our first time using our wedding china, so I felt extra fancy setting it up. Here is what the menu consisted of:

Caramel Apple Cream Cheese French Toast (recipe below)

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Roll (brought by Anna)

Scrambled Eggs

Bacon

Fruit Salad (best ever made by my Dad's wife Judith)

Mimosa's

Hot Apple Cider

Orange Juice

It was so nice to be able to enjoy this breakfast with my dad, as I generally do not see him on Thanksgiving. We are hoping to make this a yearly tradition.

Here is everyone (minus me because I had to take the pic).

Caramel Apple Cream Cheese French Toast. I was rather surprised how yummy this turned out. I will definitely keep it on my list of things to make again. Apple cider brewing and smelling delicious. A good shot of the pumpkin cream cheese roll that Anna brought and of the place cards that I made. The place cards were just sparkly pinecones (purchased from Target) with a name card.

Caramel Apple Cream Cheese French Toast: My changes are in red.

(6 servings) Printable Version
1 cup brown sugar

3 tablespoons white Karo syrup

6 tablespoons butter

1 cup chopped pecans Did not use

3 Delicious apples -- peeled/cored/sliced

1/3 cup water

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3 tablespoons white sugar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon corn starch

12 slices Texas Toast or 1-inch thick cut french bread

12 ounces cream cheese I think 12oz of cream cheese would have been WAY too much. I used 1, 8oz package and it was the right amount.

6 eggs

1 cup milk (I didn't have any milk, so I used a total of 1 1/2 C half and half)

1 cup whipping cream or half and half cream

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons cinnamon (or 1 teaspoon cinnamon + 1 teaspoon nutmeg)

Grease generously 9"x13" glass pan.
Combine sugar, syrup, butter and boil in pan for one minute. Pour and spread over bottom of greased 9x13 pan. (Sprinkle with pecans.) Combine apples, water, cinnamon, sugar, lemon juice and cook, stirring constantly, in pan over medium heat just until apples begin to soften. Add corn starch and continue to stir until thickened. Remove from heat.Thickly spread cream cheese over 6 slices of bread and place in single layer to cover caramel mixture in 9x13 pan (cream cheese side up). Distribute apple mixture over bread/cream cheese layer. Cover with remaining 6 slices of bread. Blend together eggs, milk, cream, vanilla, cinnamon and gently pour over bread layers in 9x13 pan. Cover and refrigerate overnight (not more than 24 hours).
Remove cover and bake in 350 degree oven 60 minutes until brown and slightly puffy. Immediately invert each serving on plate, sprinkle with powdered sugar, top with sweetened whipped cream and garnish with pecans, cinnamon, or nutmeg.

Easy, healthy, baked salmon

2008-12-03T15:12:00.001-08:00

Even though this is just a simple baked salmon, I wanted to post it because it was the first time I have cooked salmon completely on my own. I am trying my hardest to branch out and learn how to cook meats. I was really in the mood for a baked piece of salmon prepared in a healthy way, and simple. Here is how it was made:

-Preheat oven to 350

-Place piece of salmon in 9x13 dish

-drizzle salmon with olive oil (or use pastry brush to spread it over the salmon)

-sprinkle salmon with dill weed (all over)

-squeeze the juice of 1/2 a lemon all over the salmon

-place rings of red onion over salmon

-Top with a couple of teaspoons of light butter

-Bake for 20-30 minutes

Uncle Billy

2008-12-03T15:03:00.000-08:00

I realized today that I never updated my blog in regards to my uncle (nor have I made any blog updates in a couple of weeks, so I am due!). We found out that he died of a head trauma. It was such an unfortunate accident.

John and I headed over to Spokane for the weekend after it all happened to be with the family. It was pretty rough, as could be expected, but I was so glad that we had the opportunity to go and be with my family. Those times are really hard because you want to be able to do so much to help them, but really there is little you can do but be there.

The next weekend was the funeral, so we headed back over to Spokane. It was simply amazing to see how many people cared for my uncle. There is no way to really know, but just taking a guess, we think there was somewhere around 250 people that came to the funeral. So many people had great stories about him, and it was obvious to see by these stories that he was such a caring and loving man. Being in Seattle, I didn't get to see him in and out every day, so it was great for me to listen to his closest family and friends talk about being close with him, his fishing stories, his stories of being a great friend, father, etc. He will be missed tremendously!

Wow...

2008-11-19T15:38:00.001-08:00

I just found out that my dear uncle Bill died today. He was only 59 years old-FAR to young for this.. His coworker found him in his garage near a ladder. It is still unclear weather he fell and hit his head, or had a heart attack or something similar. I am so incredibly saddened by this. It is an awful situation. I hate that this is the only picture I have of him at the moment, but he is the one behind my mom in the blue dress at our wedding. He will be incredibly missed by all of us.

Happiest girl right here!

2008-11-16T15:28:00.000-08:00

I got in my mom and Tommy's car yesterday to drive down and pick them up from the airport and they had it on 106.9 and they have started playing non-stop Christmas tunes from now until Christmas. What could be better than that?! I am happy. :)

http://www.warm1069.com/

And, you can even stream it online and listen. Best. Thing. Ever. Now all we need is some snow on the ground. I think that is asking too much. :)

Chicken Gyro's!

2008-11-12T19:46:00.001-08:00

I finally gave into my craving of a chicken gyro and made them for the first time ever. They were so yummy!!! And, they are fairly healthy and a quick weeknight meal. I didn't follow any recipe since they are so easy. Enjoy! Step 1: Chop up some red onion and cucumber. I de-seeded the cucumber only because I prefer it that way.

Slice up some boneless, skinless chicken breast into strips. We used 2 chicken breast for 2 of us, and it was more than enough. In fact we had enough left over for a 3rd gyro.Buy some Naan from the store. I got this from Central Market, and am not sure if they sell it at a regular store (i.e. Safeway) or not.

Get your olive oil ready.

Warm some olive oil up in a pan first over medium high heat. Once the oil is heated, add the chicken. Sprinkle the chicken with some dill weed and salt. Saute until cooked through.

Pan fry your Naan so that it gets a little crispy. You still want it soft in the middle, so just enough for the outsides to get somewhat crispy. I pan fried mine with a little more olive oil.

You will need to also buy some tzatziki sauce for your gyro's. This was the first time I bought it, and again I found it at Central Market in their salad bar of all places. Once you have pan fried your Naan, spread some tzatziki sauce over it, add your chicken, red onions, and cucumber. Fold in half and enjoy!

Hayley & Brian get engaged!!!

2008-11-12T19:31:00.000-08:00

We had an absolute blast this past weekend! We felt completely honored that Brian asked both John and I to be a part of his big proposal surprise to Hayley. It was so wonderful to be able to witness such a big moment in both of their lives. I could not be happier for them, and think they are two wonderful people who have a lifetime of happiness ahead of them. Congratulations you two!! Looking forward to creating many more memories with you both. Here is a photo story of how the proposal went. Enjoy! We sent Brian and Hayley on a scavenger hunt around Vashon Island. Here is one of the clue cards. My most creative husband came up with all of the wording.
Here are all the clue cards finished along with the "Marry Me" sign that Brian had made at a local print shop.

Picking up the $50,000 boat that we got to ride in all day!

On the way to Dockton Beach for the proposal. We lucked out and had excellent weather, despite the forecast of rain all day.

While waiting in the harbor for Hayley and Brian, John and I cracked open a bottle of our wedding wine. It was the first time we had been back to the Island since we got married, so it was a nice weekend for us as well.

Hayley and Brian right after the proposal. Can't you see her huge, flashy, gorgeous diamond ring?!!!!!

Brian enjoying the moment with his sign on the back of the boat.

The boys. Mission accomplished! They had been planning for a couple of weeks over numerous emails, phone calls, and meetings. Brian did a great job in all of his planning.

This is at the harbor where we dropped the boat back off at. Such a pretty background.

And we finally made it to dinner at Brian's favorite place. We had some really great food there.

I have a secret...

2008-11-05T17:09:00.002-08:00

I have a secret and I am busting at the seams to spill it, but no can do.... :)

Our New President and First Lady

2008-11-05T15:45:00.000-08:00

Couldn't be happier! I am so thrilled to be a part of this history in our country. Looking forward to see what comes next with Obama. :)

Seahawks vs. Eagles......:(

2008-11-05T13:35:00.000-08:00

This past Sunday we got the chance to attend the Seahawks game with John's sister Katie and her husband Todd. The guy who has season tickets next to ours was selling them for this game, so Todd and Katie snatched them right up. We decided to tail gate for this game (our first this year), and had a great time. We picked the right lot to do it as well. All the other tail gaters in the lot we were in have a cook off each year. They have a theme each home game and all cook according to the theme, pass their food around for all to taste and at the end of the season, someone wins the cook off trophy. We just happened to pick that very lot and got to try some great food! I even was given a white chocolate pear brandy mouse....tailgating at a Seahawks game! What could be better? It was clear that these people really get into this cook off each year. One of the tailgaters even had his Boxer with him (see pic below), so of course I was in heaven. I had to laugh when I saw the people across from us literally roasting a ham in a parking lot in downtown Seattle.

I was so glad to be able to spend some time with Katie and Todd. Even though the Hawks lost, it was still a great time!

Katie and Todd

The view from our tail gating lot:
The lot with the very cute boxer running around:

John getting the BBQ ready for some dogs. He looks thrilled to be having his picture taken doesn't he?
The four of us getting pumped for the game:

Blue Thunder:

Someone in the lot had carved this pumpkin:

Dinner with Karin & Eric

2008-11-05T13:27:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday night we had a really fun time with our friends Karin and Eric. We hadn't seen them since the wedding, so it was really great to catch up with them and enjoy some yummy drinks and a night out to dinner. We always have such a fun time with them, and are hoping to make it more of a tradition to try new restaurants together around the Seattle area.

Karin and I out at dinner. We somehow managed to forget to take a photo of all 4 of us, so this is what I've got!
We tried a new-ish restaurant in downtown Edmonds called Shell Creek Grill and Wine Bar. John and I had read an article about it earlier in the week. The owners of the restaurant were feeling the bad economic effects and were hurting for business. So they decided to try a new marketing technique and take all their prices off the menu, telling the customers to only pay what they could afford. Brilliant! So, it was an interesting experience. We received our menu's, which had all the prices for everything on them. At the end of the night, we received our bill, which literally said $0 (besides the wine we had ordered, which was full price), and there was a slot to write in how much you wanted to pay. It was quite the experience. Their food was, I felt really great. My favorite part of it was the pumpkin butter to go along with their warm rolls. I would recommend Shell Creek Grill and Wine Bar to anyone for a nice evening out.

And, of course I had to include the heels picture. I have had these for about a year, and NEVER get to wear them, so I just had to that evening. Good thing we weren't walking far! :)

Halloween 2008

2008-11-05T13:16:00.000-08:00

John and I decided to stat in this Halloween and answer our door and pass out candy. We had a really nice night with movies, LOTS of candy, dinner and of course the trick or treaters. We got about 10-12 groups of kids this year, were hoping for more, but it seemed to be slower this year for everyone we talked to. We still managed to have a fun night.

Here is a few pictures of our favorite trick or treaters! Our niece and nephew Hank and Lily. They came as a pirate and Bar Maid. Super cute~!

We watched the ever so popular Shining, drank some yummy beer, and snacked on the enormous amount of candy that John bought this year.

Pulled Pork

2008-11-05T13:05:00.001-08:00

I decided to try my hand at making some pulled pork last week for dinner. John and I usually keep some pork loin in the freezer for dinners and I was tired of our usual way of preparing it, so I searched for some pulled pork recipes, and here is what I decided on. It turned out really great! And, a double plus, it was very easy. I was even more excited that John really liked it. I will definitely be making this one again. Pulled Pork in the Crock Pot:
This recipe is from the blog "The Way The Cookie Crumbles." http://crumblycookie.wordpress.com/2008/05/30/crockpot-pulled-pork/

Tiffany's side notes to the recipe:

The spice rub makes A LOT, so beware. I actually saved over half of it in a zip lock to use for the next time I make it.
I tasted the pork when I was "pulling it" and before I put it back into the crock pot with BBQ sauce, and it tasted great. I would even think about not putting on the BBQ sauce next time because it had to much flavor in itself from the spice rub.
Mine I**believe** was about a 3-5lb pork loin, and I think it cooked on low for about 4-5 hours and was done.

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork (spice rub from Cooks Illustrated)
Spice Rub:
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1-2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar (I used light brown sugar because it was what I had)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
4 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons table salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon ground white pepper
1 (6-8 pound) bone-in pork shoulder2 cups barbecue sauce

1. Mix all spice rub ingredients in small bowl.
2. Massage spice rub into meat. Wrap tightly in double layer of plastic wrap; refrigerate for at least 3 hours. (For stronger flavor, the roast can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)
3. Unwrap roast and place it in slow cooker liner. Add ¼ cup water. Turn slow cooker to low and cook for 8-10 hours, until meat is fork-tender.
4. Transfer roast to cutting board; discard liquid in liner. “Pull” by tearing meat into thin shreds with two forks or your fingers. Discard fat.
5. Place shredded meat back in slow cooker liner; toss with 1 cup barbecue sauce, and heat on low for 30-60 minutes, until hot. Serve with additional barbecue sauce.

Pumpkin Time!

2008-10-29T16:25:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday John and I headed over to Katie and Todd's for some pumpkin carving. It was really fun to see Katie and Todd's son Hank with the insides of the pumpkin and his reaction to all the carvings. We had so much fun and even set aside seeds for roasting. Can't wait for Friday to put some candles in our pumpkins for all the trick-or-treaters to enjoy!Here is all of ours together minus Katie's Obama pumpkin which I so wish I had a picture of.

John's is on the left and mine is on the right. My husband is always the MOST creative with projects like this. I have a blister from doing the carving on mine.

Hank with his before it was carved. Hank's had the coolest stem!

John and Todd before we got started trying to get their creative juices flowing.

Happy 80th to Grandma Sumi

2008-10-29T16:15:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday my family and John and I headed down to Tai Tung's Chinese restaurant in China Town in downtown Seattle to celebrate my step dad Tommy's mom's 80th birthday. It was a surprise party for her planned by Tommy and his sisters. Tai Tung's served a really yummy dinner, we played Bingo (and I won for once!), saw how fast or slow we could use chopsticks to transfer beans from one cup to another, and visited with family. We had a really great time!

My brother Colin and his wife Anna

John and I!

Tommy's sisters made homemade jam and paper crane's as favors for the party. They did a great job!

Here is grandma being lead into the room. I think she was surprised!

My niece Kalei sang a song for Grandma Sumi and did an excellent job. I couldn't help myself from taking a picture of her Ugg's that Tommy bought her the day before. She is 8 years old and has Uggs! I'm jealous.

Here she is in action:

Night out with the in-laws!

2008-10-29T16:08:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday night John and I went out to the Triple Door to see Johnny A (http://www.tripledoor.com/event.aspx?eid=3594&venue=mainstage) and have dinner with John's parents. We had such a great time! I had never been to the Triple Door before and was really impressed. We had front Row seats for the show and enjoyed a great dinner and show. It was so great to be able to spend some time with John's parents. We always have a great time with them. Hopefully we will be able to do it again soon! :)

Kidney Update

2008-10-22T14:40:00.004-07:00

Today I had my follow up visit with the nephrologist. He was to go over the results of my blood tests and my 2 ultra sounds and then discuss with me where to go from there. In a nutshell, here is what was discussed at the visit:

Blood Tests were all normal
Both ultrasounds were normal
My doc still is leaning towards the fact that I have Glomerulonephritis
I have three options from here:

a. Just have it followed each year to see if anything else develops

b. Have a Kidney Biopsy to be officially diagnosed with Glomerulonephritis

c. Get another opinion from a Nephrologist at the UW which my doctor would set up

I am leaning towards NOT having the kidney biopsy because of all the complications it can cause. 1 in 10 people who have it done (that is 10% and to me a very large number) have bleeding complications from the biopsy. These bleeding complications can ultimately (I'm sure in the more extreme cases) cause you to lose your kidney or to have a catheter stuck up your femoral artery, through your aorta and into the kidney to stop the bleeding. NO. THANK. YOU. However, there is no other way to actually be diagnosed without having the biopsy done.

On the other hand, even if I were to be officially diagnosed with this condition, there essentially is no treatment for it other than being put on a fairly high dosage of fish oil, which does not cure this condition.

I asked my doctor today if I were to be officially diagnosed with this, if its something that I ultimately have to be concerned with my entire life. There wasn't exactly a short answer to this question. Some people who have this condition do just fine their entire life and simply have to have it watched each year for advances or changes. Other people down the road can end up on kidney dialysis. That is a scary thought! My doctor did say, however that he in no way is saying he thinks this is where I will end up, but he also said he can't promise that I won't.

After talking with my mom and thinking it over, I **think** I will go down to UW and have one of the docs down there look at my stuff. I have yet to talk to my husband or dad about this, and those conversations I am sure will help me decide where to go from here.

All in all, I am trying to stay positive about the entire thing. At least my ultrasounds and lab tests came back normal. I would hate to be faced with a tumor on my kidney or something god-awful like that. And, I have no real pain or side effects that cause me stress really. Occasionally I will have some minor pain in my back where my kidney is at, but lets face it, that is no big deal. I can deal with being put on fish oil and seeing the doc once a year! :)

Kidney

2008-10-22T14:40:00.003-07:00

2008-10-22T14:40:00.001-07:00

Williams Sonoma Cheddar Ale Soup Review

2008-10-22T10:23:00.000-07:00

I was really in the mood for some good hearty, creamy soup with all this fall weather we are having, so I decided to try Williams Sonoma's recipe for Cheddar Ale Soup. It was a fairly easy recipe to make, some chopping, grating, stirring, blending and you are there. I loved the rich flavors that came from the soup. I felt you could taste everything that you put into it. It was filling, and hit the spot for me. On the other hand, my husband John did not like it AT ALL. In fact, after his first couple of bites, he didn't even have any more of it. So, that said I think the recipe was semi-successful. Just leaves more lunch left overs for me right?!! Changes to the original recipe are but in red. Also to note, I used a fairly dark and rich ale in this soup. I would imagine if you wanted to turn the flavor of the beer down a little, you could use a slightly lighter ale. Enjoy!

Williams Sonoma Cheddar Ale Soup

4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1 yellow onion, finely diced

2 celery stalks, finely diced

2 carrots, peeled and finely diced

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 3/4 cups milk1 3/4 cups chicken stock

1 bottle (12 fl. oz.) ale

1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. dry mustard

1 1/4 lb. sharp cheddar cheese, grated

Salt, to taste

Cayenne pepper, to taste

Directions:In a stockpot over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Add the onion, celery and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high and whisk in the milk and stock. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often, until thickened, about 10 minutes.
Using an immersion blender (Put it all in a regular blender), puree the soup until smooth. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl. I did not do this part, mostly because I didn't have a fine-mesh sieve to do so.
Return the mixture to the pot and set over medium heat. Add the ale, Worcestershire and mustard and simmer for 5 minutes. Whisk in the cheese 1/2 cup at a time, letting each addition melt before adding more; do not allow the soup to boil. Season with salt and cayenne.
Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and serve immediately. Serves 4 to 6.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

2008-10-19T13:54:00.000-07:00

Just tried this yummy recipe for Chocolate Chip Pumpkin bread from the Cooking Light Magazine. It turned out really well and I am excited to share it with John's family tonight. The only changes that I made to the recipe was to use nonfat vanilla yogurt instead of the pudding, and I used Pumpkin Pie Spice instead of the cinnamon. I decided to make part bread, and part muffin's since the recipe made so much batter. Enjoy!

CHOCOLATE CHIP PUMPKIN BREAD
no mixer required
-----
2 cups sugar
2 cups canned pumpkin
1/2 cup canola oil (I'm sure vegetable oil would be fine)
1/2 cup fat-free vanilla pudding (I used Hunt's Snack Pack Fat-Free Vanilla Pudding)
4 large egg whites
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons salt1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Hershey's Milk Chocolate Chips)
Cooking spray
-----
1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in large bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, level with a knife. Combine flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture, stirring just until moist. Stir in chocolate chips.
3. Spoon batter into 2 (8 x 4 inch) loaf pans coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350 for 1 hour 15 minutes (mine took 1 hour 25 minutes) or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans on wire rack, and remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.
-----
Yield: 32 servings
Calories: 152
Fat: 5g
Protein: 2g
Carb: 26.5g
Fiber: 1.1g

Dawg Dash!

2008-10-18T10:11:00.000-07:00

This year, my sister in law Anna and I (and was supposed to also be my brother) participated in the annual Dawg Dash. It was only a 5K, but definitely got me motivated to add some more running into my work outs. In fact, so much so that Anna and I have decided to train for the Mercer Island 1/2 Marathon for Colon Cancer Awareness in March (http://www.mercerislandhalf.com/). This will be my second half marathon, so I am super excited for it. It was such a feeling of accomplishment when I trained and finished the first one, and I would love to feel that again. So wish me luck in my training!

Crockpot Salsa Chicken review

2008-10-15T11:26:00.000-07:00

I had seen this recipie floating all around the internet and it got a lot of good reviews, so I finally decided to try it. It turned out just ok for me. In fact, I was even a little dissapointed. It lacked flavor out of all things. Although it was a really easy dinner to make, I would definitely change some things next time I made it (if I even ever make it again). Here is the recipie along with the changes I would make.

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 Cup salsa (I would double this to 2 cups)
1 Cup Sour Cream
I would also add vegies into the crockpot to add more flavor. Cilantro, onions, olives, fresh tomatoes, etc.

Place chicken in crockpot. Mix together cream of chicken soup and salsa and then pour over chicken breasts. Cook on low for 4-6 hours (Mine took only 4 hours). After cooking, mix in 1 cup sour cream. Serve over tortilla chips, rice, or pasta. We tried serving ours over shell pasta, which I didn't like. I would try it over Mexican rice next time.

I give this recipe a 6 out of 10.

Martha's Yogurt Ginger Chicken Review

2008-10-15T11:21:00.001-07:00

Well, its been a while since I have written an update on my recipes, so here goes. About 2 weeks ago, I tried Martha Stewarts Yogurt Ginger Recipe (to follow). All in all, it turned out really well. It had a lot of really good strong flavors to it, was pretty simple to make, and made really good lunch leftovers for the next day as well. The chicken was really moist as well. Here is the recipe along with what I would change the next time I made it:

Martha Stewart’s Broiled Yogurt-Ginger Chicken
Ingredients
Serves 4
3 cups plain yogurt (This is just to marinate the chicken. I found that it was a LOT of marinade. Could probably use a lot less of this and still get good results. You end up throwing all of this marinate out of course before you cook the chicken and it felt sort of like a waste).
1 piece (5 inches) peeled fresh ginger, grated (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Coarse salt
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (about 8 ounces each), tenderloin removed
1 small red onion, thinly sliced (Really, truly try and use a SMALL onion. I probably used a medium one and it was too much onion. You could even try using a half of an onion).
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped (Next time I make this, I will use 2 cucumbers. They were almost the best tasting part).
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
Juice of 1 lime
Directions
1. Stir together the yogurt, ginger, cumin, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
2. Starting on one long side, cut each chicken breast almost in half horizontally, stopping about 1/2 inch before reaching the opposite side. Open each breast like a book.
3. Add chicken to marinade and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours.
4. Preheat broiler. In a small bowl, toss together red onion, cucumber, cilantro, lime juice, remaining 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, and pinch of salt.
5. Transfer chicken to a broiler pan. Discard marinade. Broil chicken, rotating pan once, until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Top with cucumber mixture.

I give this recipe a 7.5 out of 10.

Apple Cookie Bar Review

2008-10-01T14:00:00.001-07:00

So, on Sunday I tried out one of my goal recipies. I tried the apple cookie bars. They turned out ok. I give them a C+. However, I think the next time I try making them I will do some additions/adjustments to the recipie. The recipie did not specify to peel the apple or not (some of us novice bakers/chef's need this kind of direction), so I did not peel them. Next time, I would hands down peel the apples. Secondly, it states to bake for 30 minutes, which is not nearly long enough (at least in our oven). I think more like 45 minutes or more even. I did however add a half bag of milk chocolate chips, which was a great addition to the recipie.

I jumped on the google pages bandwagon

2008-10-01T13:58:00.000-07:00

And its kind of addicting. Here is the link:
http://sites.google.com/site/tiffanyakirkpatrick/

I will eventually get around to posting some pics of our home, before and after stuff and decor.

Wish list

2008-09-28T15:38:00.001-07:00

I really want this christmas tree skirt from pottery barn:
http://www.potterybarn.com/products/p1578/index.cfm?pkey=choliday%2Ddecor%2Daccents

That is all. :)