I'm Not Dead!

I'm not dead, I swear! Life's very very very busy these days. Much busier than I ever thought I could be. It seems like I have a hundred things going on - I'm (trying to) resume my German studies, I'm (trying to) keep the house cleaner so I don't waste an entire weekend cleaning, I'm trying to do more yoga, I'm still working on decorating the house - which seems to involve hours of research on Pinterest, and being a multi-millionaire in FarmVille isn't easy. Oh, and kids and a boyfriend. I have those too. Basically I'm spending a lot of time trying to be WonderWoman and reading has been slipping through the cracks.

I'm slowly working my way through A Tale of Two Cities. I'm loving it as much as I did first two times that I read it. Probably understanding a lot more this time around too. I'd be lying if I said I'm not disappointed in myself. I was really hoping to rock this challenge. Maybe reading isn't going to be a priority this year. I can hear my TBR shelf groaning in misery from here...

We'll see how the next few months of challenges go. I may need to do a six-month evaluation.

Potato Chip Chicken Strips

This recipe sounds like it should be a winner - I mean, seasoned sour cream, potato chips and chicken? What's not to love?! - but didn't win over our household. I'm not sure what didn't work. I know for me the chicken came out really dry, perhaps the baking temp is too high. The Spawn has a natural aversion to real chicken so his thumbs down vote wasn't surprising, but even The Diva passed on these. Maybe a good thing as this recipe isn't the healthiest I've ever seen...

1 cup sour cream
1/8 tsp garlic salt [used garlic powder]
1/8 tsp onion salt [used onion powder]
1/8 tsp paprika
12 oz pkg potato chips, crushed
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1" strips
1/4 cup butter, melted

In a shallow bowl, combine sour cream and seasonings. Place crushed potato chips in another shallow bowl. Dip chicken strips in sour cream mixture, then coat with potato chips.

Place in a greased baking pan with sides. Drizzle with putter. Bake at 400 degs for 20-22 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.

Serve with favorite dipping sauce.

Recipe from Taste of Home Good Food Kids Love Oct 2006

Chocolate Ribbon Cookies

Here's another recipe from my mom's files. Possibly one of my favorite cookies from childhood. I was disappointed that my kiddos didn't like them. It's hard to explain why they are so good... the firm soft texture and the burst of chocolate flavor... on second thought, I'm kind of glad I get these all to myself!

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup butter
1-1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2-1/2 cups flour
1-1/2 tsp baking powder

In a small bowl, melt chips in the microwave or over double boiler, and set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, cream together butter, sugar, egg and vanilla.

Add flour and baking powder. The dough is usually very stiff and I have to finish mixing it [literally] by hand.

Set aside 1/3 of the dough. Mix melted chocolate with remaining 2/3 of dough. Please use the mixer! The chocolate makes this dough soft and sticky so it can't be kneaded.

Divide chocolate dough in half.

Line a bread pan (9x5x3) with saran wrap, enough to completely fold over the top. Press half of the chocolate dough evenly into the bottom of the pan. Press plain dough over the layer of chocolate. Press remaining chocolate dough over the vanilla. Cover with saran wrap and chill for 1 hour.
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. After chilled, remove dough from saran wrap. Cut dough in half the long way. Cut each half into 1/4" slices. Bake sliced on an ungreased cookie sheet for 7-8 minutes.

Sweet Potato and Apple Bread (ABM)

This loaf turned out beautifully, even though I still haven't replenished my bread flour supply. The sweet potato and apple flavors are very subtle - which seems to be my biggest complaint with this cookbook. I want bread with more pronounced flavors. I did pop this loaf into the freezer to serve with soup at a later date.

Recipe makes 1-1/2 lb loaf

3/4 cup water
1/2 cup sweet potato, peeled and chopped
milk
1 cup apple, peeled and shredded
2 tsp margarine or butter
3-1/2 cups bread flour
1 tbsp brown sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1-2 tsp active dry yeast

In a small saucepan combine water and potato. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cook, covered, about 8 minutes or until very tender. DO NOT DRAIN. Mash potato in the water. Measure the potato-water mixture. Add enough milk to make 1 cup total. Cool to room temperature.

Add ingredients to machine according to manufacturer's directions. For my machine, I add all of the liquid ingredients first, followed by dry ingredients and add the yeast last.

I set my machine to 1.5lb loaf, basic setting, light crust.

Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens Bread Machine Bounty 1992

Apple Spiced Pork

First, I apologize for the bokeh-like photography. I'm still getting used to the new camera. I'm not sure if it's not as good as my old camera or my limited photography skills render the new camera useless. Bear with me, folks.

Second, this recipe didn't live up to expectations. Partly my fault because if I had read and thought about the recipe, I would have realized it's pork, apples, etc. in BEEF gravy. Too much of a mix for my tastes. The Boyfriend thought it smelled awesome while it was cooking, but he'd already eaten supper so didn't try it. Another recipe that won't be going on the menu again, but I'm going to share it anyways.

2 cups uncooked yolk-free noodles
1 lb pork tenderloin cut into 1/2" slices
1/4 cup chopped celery
2 tbsp chopped onion
1 tbsp canola oil
2 medium tart apples, chopped
1/3 cup raisins
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 to 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4-1/2 tsp cornstarch
14 oz (approximately) can beef broth
2 tbsp chopped walnuts

Cook noodles according to package directions; drain. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, brown pork with celery and onion in oil; drain. Add the apples, raisins, brown sugar, seasoned salt and cinnamon. Cook and stir over medium heat for 8-10 minutes or until pork is no longer pink and vegetables are tender.

In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and broth until smooth; gradually add to the pork mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with noodles. Sprinkle with walnuts.

The Notebook

The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I've tried to read this book several times in the past, never getting past the first few pages. This book came up as the selection for Book Club and I promised, promised, her I would read the whole book. So I did it. Thank goodness it was a short read.

I don't care for Nicholas Sparks's writing. Too much tell and no show, to much introspection, too much detail of thought and movement (although not as bad as Ted Dekker) and flat-out too much melodrama.

This book starts out as a boring story - there is no dialogue for the first thirty pages. THIRTY. 3-0. And never ramps up to a climax. It's obvious from the start how the story ends. So finally, reaching page 30 and getting into some dialogue... it's fake, forced and clumsy.

A redeeming quality of the book: if you like heavy melodramatic star-crossed soul mate love stories, this is it. There are a few passages where Sparks shines with a little bit of talent, when he gave me an emotional thought that was real and I could hang onto.

Synopsis: A man with a faded, well-worn notebook open in his lap. A woman experiencing a morning ritual she doesn't understand. Until he begins to read to her. 

The Notebook is an achingly tender story about the enduring power of love, a story of miracles that will stay with you forever.

Set amid the austere beauty of coastal North Carolina in 1946, The Notebook begins with the story of Noah Calhoun, a rural Southerner returned home from World War II. Noah, thirty-one, is restoring a plantation home to its former glory, and he is haunted by images of the beautiful girl he met fourteen years earlier, a girl he loved like no other. Unable to find her, yet unwilling to forget the summer they spent together, Noah is content to live with only memories. . . until she unexpectedly returns to his town to see him once again.

Allie Nelson, twenty-nine, is now engaged to another man, but realizes that the original passion she felt for Noah has not dimmed with the passage of time. Still, the obstacles that once ended their previous relationship remain, and the gulf between their worlds is too vast to ignore. With her impending marriage only weeks away, Allie is forced to confront her hopes and dreams for the future, a future that only she can shape.

Like a puzzle within a puzzle, the story of Noah and Allie is just beginning. As it unfolds, their tale miraculously becomes something different, with much higher stakes. The result is a deeply moving portrait of love itself, the tender moments, and fundamental changes that affect us all.

Beef and Spinach Lo Mein

I thought I'd share this recipe with you even though my family didn't care for it. The Boyfriend and The Diva weren't fans of the water chestnuts. I didn't care for the sauce. This won't be on the menu again at our house.

1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp water
2 tsp sesame oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 lb beef top round steak, thinly sliced
6 oz uncooked spaghetti [used lo mein noodles]
4 tsp canola oil, divided
8 oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained
1/4 cup sliced green onions
10 oz pkg fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
1 red chili pepper, seeded and thinly sliced [couldn't find red chili pepper so I omitted]

In a small bowl, combine the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, water, sesame oil, garlic and pepper flakes. Pour 1/4 cup into a large resealable plastic bag; add beef. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for 10 minutes. Set remaining marinade aside.

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet or wok, stir-fry beef in 3 tsp canola oil in batches for 1-2 minutes until no longer pink. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm.

Drain noodles and set aside. In the skillet or wok, stir-fry water chestnuts and onions in remaining oil until onions are tender. Stir in the spinach, spaghetti and reserved marinade. Cook and stir for 2-3 minutes or until spinach is wilted.

Return beef to the pan; heat through. Garnish with chili pepper.

Recipe from Taste of Home Cookbook 2011