Before....

We got haircuts!! Here are the before pictures...

Recipe Challenge #2!

It is time to post my second recipe in the 2011 Cookbook Recipe Challenge! This time I was rather ambitious and made the meal AND a dessert. Everyone liked both! Read below for the recipes and my additions/suggestions...

Sauteed Chicken Breast with Mushroom Sauce

from Joy of Cooking

Ingredients:

-4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

-1/4 c. all purpose flour

-1/2 tbsp butter

-1/2 tbsp olive oil

-2-3 tbsp minced shallots or scallions

-8 oz mushrooms, thinly sliced

-1/3 c. sweet or dry sherry

-1 c. heavy cream

-1/2 c. chicken stock or broth

-2 tbsp finely chopped parsley

-Pinch of ground nutmeg

-Salt and pepper to taste

-Fresh lemon juice

Instructions:

Chicken

1. Trim fat off the chicken breasts. Sprinkle both sides with Salt and Pepper.

2. Spread flour on a plate and coat the chicken on both sides with the flour.

3. Heat butter in a heavy 10-12 inch skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil.

4. Swirl butter and oil together and saute chicken for exactly 4 minutes on one side.

5. Turn chicken over and cook until firm, 3-5 minutes more.

6. Remove from skillet and keep warm in a 200F oven.

Sauce

1. In a skillet over medium heat, add shallots/scallions to 2 tbsp saved from the chicken skillet.

2. Cook, stirring, until wilted, about 1 minute.

3. Increase the heat to high and add mushrooms. Cook, stirring, until softened and lightly browned, 2-3 minutes.

4. Add sherry and bring to a boil until it is nearly evaporated, 1 minute.

5. Add cream and chicken stock/broth. Boil until sauce is thick enough to lightly coat a spoon, about 5 minutes.

6. Stir in parsley, nutmeg, salt and pepper, and several drops of fresh lemon juice.

7. Remove the chicken from the oven and spoon the sauce over the chicken. Serve immediately.

**I added broccoli to this dish and it made it very yummy! I put them in before the mushrooms and cooked them with the shallots for about 5 minutes. I removed the chicken from the skillet while they were still slightly pink inside...they finished cooking in the warmed oven. This way, they were incredibly juicy and tender! I cooked this meal for 6 people, so I added another 2 chicken breasts and extra mushrooms.**

I served the chicken and sauce over a bed of brown rice and wheat berries. I simmered 1/2 cup of wheat berries in 1 cup of water for 20 minutes. Then I added 1/2 cup of brown rice and another 1/2 cup of water. Continue simmering until both grains are tender...about 40 minutes. Add salt, pepper, and butter. Yum!

Chicken...still pink inside but just put in the oven to finish cooking!

Shallots, broccoli, and mushrooms before adding sauce & stock

Final Product!

and now for dessert...

Vegetable Bran Muffins

from 500 Cupcakes

Ingredients:

-4 c. oat bran

-1 c. self-rising flour

-1 tsp. baking powder

-1/2 c. packed brown sugar

-Pinch of salt

-2 tsp. cinnamon

-2 c. milk

-4 tbsp. vegetable oil

-2 lightly beaten eggs

-2 tbsp. honey

-2 c. shredded zucchini & carrots

-1 1/2 c. raisins

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease/line muffin pan.

2. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients with a spoon.

3. In a separate bowl, beat the milk, oil, eggs, and honey with an electric mixer until combined.

4. Stir in the shredded vegetables and raisins.

5. Add the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

6. Spoon mixture into muffin tins.

7. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove pan from oven and cool for 5 minutes. Then remove the muffins and cool on a rack.

**These were good! Very healthy. Very healthy tasting. We served them with honey to drip on top, which was very yummy. Probably would also be good with a cream cheese spread on top. Without the raisins, these muffins wouldn't be very sweet at all...I almost cut them out because I don't like raisins in baked goods, but I'm really glad that I didn't!**

Art

Some of my wonderful friends from Wake Forest and I are focusing each month of 2011 on a specific way to weave scripture into our daily lives. February's focus has been on using artwork (all types of media) to help us interpret, understand, and love God's scripture. At first, I was at a loss as to how to incorporate my love of things artsy and crafty with what I read in the Bible. I considered reciting a mantra of verses while I worked on some crafts that I already had in my mind that I wanted to do... but that seemed forced. I considered painting some verses that had particular meaning to me onto a canvas... but I wasn't sure that I would actually ever hang them up once finished. I finally decided on doing something smaller scale, but that would require definite time, effort, and thought in choosing the verses that mean something to me and Colin. So without further ado, I present my humble attempt at using art (more like craft) to express what I've been reading:

Paper

Used my handy-dandy paper cutter to make little flag-sized rectangles

Wrote meaningful Bible verses on flag rectangles

Glued flags with verses to toothpicks and bamboo skewers

Stuck into vase of dried lentils.

Any other ideas for the rest of the month? I'm open!

Valentine's Day

I don't know if you can see these as well as I could at the time...

...but Colin cut the bananas for my cereal into heart shapes! Now if that isn't your dose of cheesy-loveydoveyness for the day, I don't know what is!

Visit to the big D!

A few weekends ago I ventured back to the land of some of my most die-hard Texas fans...DALLAS! I hadn't been there since my dear friends' (Virginia and Matt, duh) wedding in December 2009. Emily Cullum and I had been so excited for this girls weekend for WEEKS! When we got out of the DFW airport, we were greeting with squeals from Virginia, Elizabeth, Caroline, and Lane!! Sadly, I have no pictures of the koala clings that I got to enjoy from Virginia.

We were shocked to realize that we were dressed so similarly the night she picked me up at the airport. HILARIOUS!

Strolling along some body of water in HP

Trying to feed the ducks the leftovers from our picnic

Picnic in the Park!

Emily, Lane, Virginia, Caroline, Me

Christmas lights! In Highland Park village!

:) with Virginia :)

And again with Virginia. Drinking mambo taxis

Quick driveby of the place where Virginia and Matt got married a little over a year ago!

Arlington Hall!

Throwback to college dance parties in the car

Chilling on the patio rooftop of Brian's office building

Me, Virginia, Emily, Elizabeth

ALL OF US! at brunch on our last day there :(

Me, Virginia, Elizabeth, Emily, Caroline, Emily

Love you Dallas girls so much! Thanks, Virginia, Matt, and Elizabeth for hosting us in your homes!!!!!

Heels and Boots and Nikes and Sweet?

"I would get the ladies shoes! Heels and boots and Nikes and...!"

(yes...I know...we are working on this little guy's spelling)

Above his beautifully penned words are stick figures of every girl in our class, as well as one of me, the other first grade teacher, and our secretary. We all have beautifully colored shoes.

More Quotes

Today is the 100th day of school! All day we're participating in fun activities, like reading 100 books (collectively), counting 100 things, doing 100 jumping jacks, etc. I asked my students, "If you had 100 dollars, what would you do?" I got all types of responses, from buying a car to buying a house to buying a bike to helping homeless people get some food. The most colorful, however was: "If I had $100, I would get all the ladies." My response was, "How would you use that $100 to get all the ladies?" He responded..."I would buy some sweet shoes."

So guys...according to a first grade boy, the way to get all the ladies is to spend $100 on some sweet shoes. That kid does usually have some pretty sweet shoes. We'll see if it works ;)

Classroom Quotes

Me: Okay kiddos, what's a mammal?

Student: The thing with two humps on its back that lives in the desert and spits.

Me: Oh, I know what you're talking about. You're referring to a camel.

Student: Yes, a camel is a mammal.

Me: No, well, yes. It is a mammal. But a mammal isn't always a camel. Camels are just one type of mammal.

Student: Right, Mrs. Anderson.

Me (rather thrown off): Okay so let's recap. A camel is a mammal. But wait, who can tell me the main characteristics of all mammals?!