Happy Birthday to Mom!

Okay, so it's time for the recipe of the week!  This week's dish comes from one of my favourite recipe books, simply titled, Favourite Brand Names: Italian Cooking by Publications International Ltd.

So, last week was my mom's birthday, and amongst many gifts, I gave her the choice of what I would make her for dinner.  To my surprise and excitement, she chose chicken tetrazzini with roasted red peppers.  This is a crowd favourite, let me tell you.  It's also one of the easiest things to make. 

I don't make it too often, and after you see the ingredient list you'll know why.  haha...but it's SOOO good!

This meal is great when you're making dinner for a group of 6 to 10 people.  I find it tastes best the day it's made, although the leftovers aren't 'that' bad.

Okay, so if you're ready to get started, here we go.  The whole recipe can be done in 4 easy steps.  The prep, the sauce, the noodles, and the mixing. 

Here's what you'll need to have on hand:

~6 ounces of uncooked egg noodles (I love the no yolks brand)

~3 tablespoons of butter

~1/4 cup all-purpose flour

~1 can (14 ounces) chicken broth (I usually pick a low sodium kind)

~1 cup whipping cream (oh yeah!)

~2 cans (6 ounce each) of sliced mushrooms (I usually omit, due to people's fear of mushrooms)

~1 jar (7 ounces) of roasted red peppers, drained and cut into 1/2 inch strips

~2 cups chopped cooked chicken (I actually use about a chicken breast per person)

~1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning (...and if you don't have any, just mix some basil and oregano and parsley)

~1/2 cup (or more!) grated Parmesan cheese (and use the good stuff...non of that Kraft crap...lol)

The Prep

If you haven't done so, cook your chicken.  I like to chop it up and cook it in a little EVOO.  Make sure to season it well with salt and pepper.  I like to fry a little garlic with it as well (it gives it a nice taste).  Once that's done, set it aside. 

Have your peppers and mushrooms (if you're using them) all ready to go.

Also have your Parmesan cheese grated and ready to go.

The Sauce

Okay, so this will be the toughest part of the recipe (and it's not that tough).  The main thing here is to have all your ingredients already measured.  This will make for nice transitions when making your delicious sauce.  You may also want to double the ingredients here, if you wish to have a lot of sauce on your pasta, or if you're entertaining a lot of people. 

Start by melting your butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  I like to continuously whisk it, so it doesn't burn.  Add the flour and whisk until smooth.  Add the chicken broth; bring to a boil over high heat.  Once it's boiling, remove from the heat and slowly add your whipping cream.  Continue stiring until well blended.  For a different flavour, here you could add a couple tablespoons of dry sherry.  I personally like to add a few dashes of nutmeg.

The Noodles

Cook your noodles according to package directions. 

The Mixing

Here is where you can be as creative as you like.  Personally, I just throw everything into the pot and do a big mix.  You could also just mix the sauce with the noodles, and then add the peppers, mushrooms, cheese, and chicken separately on top of each person's plate (so much more work!).

Regardless, make sure the noodles, the sauce, the peppers, the chicken, the mushrooms, and the Parmesan cheese all get put together one way or another.

Add the sauce to the noodles slowly.  You don't want your poor noodles drowning the the thing. 

Final Words

And there you have it.  A delicious, easy, 'not-so' healthy meal, that will  please even the pickiest of eaters.  The whole thing shouldn't take you longer than 20 minutes.  I like to serve it with some nice crusty bread and a big veggie salad (with homemade dressing of course...stay tuned...haha).

Enjoy!

P.S.  HBd Mom!!

Happy 50th!

It was 50 years ago today, when that prehistoric family first hit the tube.

Here's a little interesting fact for you,

Fred and Wilma were the first married couple to be shown in the same bed on prime time TV!

GASP!!

Lucky

Okay...so this lucky, lucky, LUCKY kid is sooo lucky.  He needs to go and buy a lottery ticket right now.  You always hear about drinking and driving...you hear about driving and texting...what about driving while tired?  This kid is lucky there were no passengers in his vehicle. He's lucky there were no cars around him.  He's lucky there wasn't a pedestrian near by.  He's lucky to be able to walk away from this. 

He's 22 and driving to school on the highway, north of Deer Lodge, Montana.  He fell asleep behind the wheel and took out the end of the guard rail.

The guard rail came through the right headlight, engine compartment, firewall, glove box, passenger seat, rear seat and exited out the driver’s side rear window.  That is 120 LF of guard rail that threaded through the suburban.

This is what can happen when you fall asleep behind the wheel...and just remember...he's lucky.

 

ZEDONK!

Okay, so today I somehow got onto the website for the Institute for Creation Research (LOL...I don't know either), and I saw this article and it excited me.  A zedonk.  How cool does this thing look, and how much cooler does it even sound?!  Zedonk-a-dee-donk-donk. Come over to my crib, so we can Funk-a-dee-funk-funk.  I love it!!  haha. 

Anyway, how did this magic happen?  Well, I guess there's a place called the Chestatee Wildlife Preserve, just north of Atlanta, Georgia, where donkeys and zebras share the same parture.  Cue the Barry White soundtrack.  Anyway, one summer night, something magical happened. A donkey gave birth to my new favourite animal - a zedonk, aka a zonkey.  Another name I enjoy too much. 

The baby is doing well.  The mom is being a total ass about all the fuss, but going to be just fine.

I Love Lasagna

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Z5PtivrKho

Don't we all Ben, don't we all.

Really? The Dumbest Things People are Obsessed with on the Internet

Okay...so trutv.com came out with a list of the "10 Dumbest Things the Internet is Obsessed With".  Let me just say, I was very disappointed.  I don't really know who came up with this list, but really?!  This is the best you have?  I could come up with a better list in my sleep.  Anyway..without further adieu, here's the dumb list:

10.  Bacon (the internet is obsessed with bacon...really?  hmmm...I don't think I've ever looked up bacon. I don't know anyone who has.  It is quite delicious though).
9.  Betty White (Awww...I ♥ her!  Like number one on this list, quite cute and delicious!)
8.  Nip Slips (well...guilty as charged.  haha..jk)
7.  Tumblr Blogs (what does this even mean?  ...and the word "tumblr" looks like it needs another vowel...)
6.  Cute Animals (haha...I must admit, I have looked at these with my little sister before.  Piglets, Bunnies, Kittens, Puppies...etc Don't hate me because I'm beautiful, Be beautiful because you hate me). 
5.  The Palin Family  (lol...I can honestly say, I've never looked these people up in my life AND I never will, unless Sarah has a "number 8".  haha  jk)
4.  Classic Video Games (what's wrong with a little nostalgic fun)
3.  Star Wars (ummm...maybe because it's so awesome!)
2.  Cats (really...there are people out there looking up cats on the internet.  Well..I believe it, but is the internet really "obsessed" with cats so much that it made it to number two on this list?  hmmm...I would HOPE not...but you never know...haha)
1.  Cupcakes (WHAT?!?  I don't really know where this list came from...but cupcakes?!?  Why hate on something so cute and delicious..why?

Well there's the list folks.  That's right, Star Wars, Cats, and CUPCAKES make up the top three of the dumbest things that people on the internet are obsessed with.  No Lindsay Lohan or Tiger Woods.  No mentos/diet pepsi experiments.  No pictures of people shopping at Walmart.  No Farmville (phewf).  Just good old fashioned, delicious 3 bite desserts.

Grab a fork!

"Two Vermont businesses are teaming up to help create the world's largest-ever dish of macaroni and cheese.  The 2,100 pounds of pasta will be cooked in a giant cast iron kettle in downtown New Orleans Thursday afternoon using Cabot Creamery cheese and butter and King Arthur Flour, mixed with milk, elbow macaroni and bread crumbs.  The goal is to break the Guinness World Record, but the real prize will be what comes after the dish is made; the pasta will be sold to raise money for several nonprofits in the New Orleans area."

This both excites me, and disgusts me, at the same time.

UBER pumped!!

So I'm super excited about Jeremy Fisher's new CD coming out on October 26th, 2010!!  I know NOTHING about it, other than the release date.  I just found out about it today and I can't wait.  He's also doing a cross-Canada tour to promote the album.  Too bad the closest stop is in Toronto on December 4.  I wish he'd come a little more south...  But who knows, maybe I'll drive up to the big city.  We'll see how good the album is (who am I kidding?  it will be great!)

Damn! That wine's got bite!

Okay, so I found this kind of crazy.  A man and his wife were making wine at their home in Woodbridge, Ontario on the weekend, when the man scooped up some grapes from his crate and found a black widow spider!  For those of you who don't know, the black widow is one of the most dangerous spiders on the planet.  According to Canadian Geographic, it's venom is 15 times more lethal than that of a rattlesnake.  I guess the grapes were bought at the local grocery store and were originally shipped from California.  Crazy, eh?  The spider has now found a new home at the Toronto Zoo.  I named him Sean.

Apple of my Eye

Well, for anyone in the Brant County area, the third weekend of September can only mean one thing.  That's right...the St. George Applefest!  I went and as always, I did my mama proud!  I pounded back an apple fritter, an apple cupcake, some caramel covered apples and an apple dumpling.  No where was there an apple without a ton of sugar to be found!  If that wasn't enough, I went back on day two....for another apple fritter.  My god, they're delicious.

With Fall just around the corner, apples can be found EVERYWHERE!  What a perfect time to make a mouth watering apple crisp.  I hate baking, but apple crisp is SO easy, everyone can do it (and it tastes SOOOOO good).

Here's a quick and easy recipe that will keep that tongue licking your lips.

Nana's Apple Crisp

Ingredients

• 6 tart apples - peeled, cored, and sliced
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• a pinch of nutmeg
• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, divided
• 1/4 cup butter, cut into pieces

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Place apples in a 9x13 inch baking dish. In a bowl, mix melted butter, flour, sugar, vanilla, oats, and 1 tablespoon cinnamon to form a crumbly mixture. Sprinkle over apples. Dot with remaining 1/4 cup butter, and sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon cinnamon and the nutmeg.
3. Bake 45 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned and apples are tender.

MMMMMMMM....I want some RIGHT now!!  Granny smiths work really well in this (and all apple recipes).   I can't wait until next year's Applefest.  Only 364 days to go...

"Somewhere the hurting must stop..."

Well...it's that time of year again.  Time to lace up the runners and go out running.  I run often, but once a year, I run for a Canadian hero - for Terry Fox.  I run for cancer research - for hope.  I run for my family.  I run for my friends.  What can I say?  That Terry Fox gets to me...every single year.  I can't hear or watch his story without "getting something in my eye". 

Today marked the 30th anniversary of the Terry Fox Run - The Marathon of Hope.  This was my 9th year participating in the event (and I plan to continue the trend for as long as I can).  Terry Fox had died a few years before I was born, but his spirit somehow ignited inside of me and has continued to burn for 27 years.

His vision was so strong, and his courage will be next to impossible to surpass.  We all know his story, so I won't go into it right now.  Instead, I'll leave two poems.  Two poems which I believe Terry would love everyone to hear.  Enjoy and welcome to my blog!

What Cancer Cannot Do

Cancer is so limited....

It cannot cripple love,
It cannot shatter hope,
It cannot corrode faith,
It cannot destroy peace,
It cannot kill friendship,
It cannot suppress memories,
It cannot silence courage,
It cannot invade the soul,
It cannot steal eternal life,

It cannot Conquer the Spirit

author: unknown

Spending Your Dash

I read of a woman who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend,
She referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning.....to the end.

She noted that first came her date of birth
And spoke the following date with tears.
But she said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between the years.

For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth...
And now those who love her
Know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own;
The cars...the house...the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard...
Are there things you'd like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
To consider what's true and real,
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,
And show appreciation more,
And love the people in our lives,
Like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile...
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a while.

So, when your eulogy's being read,
With your life's actions to rehash...
Would you be proud of the things they say,
About how you spent your dash?

-Linda Ellis