Hey, Y'all!

Comfort Food Saturday: Perfect Roast Chicken

I love roasting chickens. Not only are they delicious straight out of the oven, but you can easily get three or more meals by pulling all the meat and boiling the bones to make stock. In the autumn months, roast chicken graces our table about once a week. Here's my recipe for a perfectly roasted chicken.

I usually buy about a 3 pound bird. Start by washing the chicken with cool water and pulling out any giblets or other grossness from inside.  Melt about 3 tablespoons of butter and mix it with a bit of garlic and a squirt or two of lemon juice.  Baste chicken with butter mixture using a basting brush. (My brush is silicone--it makes clean-up much easier and is dishwasher safe!) Once the entire bird is basted, sprinkle on seasoned pepper or other herbs of your choice.  Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes. When 20 minutes has elapsed, re-baste bird with more butter/garlic/lemon mixture and decrease oven temperature to 375 degrees. Roast one hour for a three-pound bird and add about 10 minutes per pound for bigger chickens. Baste as needed with pan drippings. This is especially wonderful if you surround it with root veggies like carrots, turnips, parsnips and potatoes. Cook until skin is golden brown and a meat thermometer inserted in the thigh reads 165 degrees.  Allow chicken to rest five minute before carving.

Enjoy!

I was going to add a photo, but I looked at pictures of roast chickens so long that it started to freak me out, so I'm not including one. You know what chickens look like. :)

A Milestone I Could Live Without

As a parent of a toddler, the past few years have been all about milestones. They start when you're pregnant: first kick, each trimester, development of eyelids and the like. Once the baby's out of you, you're checking off first smiles, first steps, first words, all of which are lots of fun.  This week we hit a milestone I never needed to experience:  first bout of strep throat. I don't remember ever having strep as a child or adult and Marcus thinks he may have had it once, but seeing how he usually refuses to go to the doctor, the world may never know.  Dean woke up at 12:30am Tuesday coughing, crying and burning up with fever. We stayed up til about 4:30 watching "Finding Nemo" and snuggling on the couch.  The doctor got us in first thing Wednesday and did both a flu swab and strep test.  Ever held an almost three-year-old while someone shoves a Q-tip up his nose AND down his throat?  Not a fun time, as  the bruises on my shins show. Strep was confirmed and pink medicine was prescribed.

Dean's pitiful when he's sick. He doesn't eat, which freaks me out to no end. He wants to play, but then it makes him tired or makes him cough, which frustrates him and makes him cry. We've spent a lot of time cuddling on the couch watching movies and reading books over the past 48 hours. He woke up at 4:30 Wednesday morning (I"m writing this Wednesday night...hopefully Thursday morning is not so early!). I tried to put him in bed with Marcus and me, but he said, in his sad little hoarse voice,"No, Sugar! Downstairs!" So down we went. At 5am, his fever had broken and he was circling the couch going, "Look at me! I running!" while I was slung out on the couch trying to stay semi-conscious.

And on that  note, I'm going to bed. At 8pm. Because I can. Here's a cute picture. G'night.

 
A happy, pre-strep day with ice cream.

Wordless Wednesday: The Colors of Fall

 
 
 
 

This Old House

WARNING: If you're in no mood to hear me complain a little, navigate elsewhere!  Seriously.  You won't hurt my feelings.  May I suggest Food Lush?

Ok, still here?  Great. Thanks.  I need to tell you about my house.  This house was our second choice when we bought it 2 1/2 years ago.  Our first choice was a big fixer-upper that I thank God every day we didn't end up buying.  (It needed a new HVAC, new siding, a new roof and all new carpet...so we walked away.)  At our walk-through and even at the home inspection, this house looked great.  It had recently been flipped, so there were new appliances, brand new carpet, new paint and other little details all around.  It's pretty "bare bones," but we're not fancy, so it was a good starter home for us.  When we learned we would remain a family of three, we decided we could stay in this house long-term if we chose to, or we could move and rent this one out to students or faculty members at the university. 

Y'all...I think I hate this house.  It just seems like it's been one thing after another lately and I'm just about to the breaking point.  First there were the ants.  We got rid of them pretty easily, but the reason we had them in the first place is that the baseboards and cabinets were not installed correctly.  There are holes. Guess what else comes into holes?  Mice.  I think we may finally (crosses fingers and prays) be rid of them, but who knows.  We haven't seen any "evidence" in the past few days and I caught 5 of them last week, so at least there are less of them, even if a few are still lurking.  Our electricity also went out in our front "formal" living room.  Just that room.  No idea why.  Fortunately, we don't use that room much, BUT STILL. It would be nice to have the option.

This brings me to cleanliness.  We are not dirty people, I assure you, but the house seems in a perpetual state of clutter.  My husband, who I adore, is a slob.  My son is 2 and likes to dump things onto the floor.  I admit that I"m a bit of a packrat, but I NEED a little order in here.  I clean, I promise I do, but it looks like I rarely touch the clutter.  At the end of the day, it looks like a bomb exploded in our living room.  There are mega-blocks scattered about, Marcus's coffee cups and newspapers are strewn all over, mail is stacked on top of mail and sometimes there are stray fruit bar wrappers on the couch.  There are days when I would absolutely die if someone stopped by unannounced. I pick up after everyone, but by morning, it's al destroyed again, it seems.

I cleaned our bathrooms this morning, a task I tackle every Monday. (FYI: Toilets and sinks get done twice a week.)  I have no idea what Marcus did in our bathtub while Dean and I were gone this weekend, but there was a black ring around the bottom.  It was disgusting! I cleaned it THURSDAY before we left.  His side of the sink looks like a health and beauty aisle at CVS and there's enough reading material stacked on his nightstand to open a used bookstore.  I do not claim to be guilt-free.  My nightstand is covered with Dean's bedtime books and my magazines, some of which date back several months because I just haven't had the time to look through them. 

I have this fantasy where someone gives me a gift certificate to a maid service for just one cleaning.  I feel like if someone else came in and got the place absolutely spotless just once, I could keep it up from there.  (I realize this isn't the case, as Marcus and Dean would still live here, but a girl can dream, right?)  In my fantasy, the cleaning occurs on a Friday and Marcus and Dean are gone until Sunday. I guess they are on the boat catching fish, eating pickles and amusing each other by passing gas.  I run around in my bare feet and feel the non-sticky floors, the luciously clean carpet, sniff the fresh air, bask in the emptiness of the laundry basket and wallow in the clean sheets.

Then I snap back to reality, mix up my trusty baking soda/vinegar paste and scrub whatever the heck that black stuff is out of my tub.

Do other parents feel like they can't keep their homes clutter-free? Tell me I'm not alone, internet.

Peppermint-Filled Brownies

My mom had a batch of these made when I arrived at her house today for a visit and OH. MY. LORD. GOOD.  We'd seen the recipe in Real Simple Magazine last week and figured even WE couldn't screw them up.  So without further ado, I give you my mom, Jenny The Chocoholic.

I'll be the first to admit that I need help.  Having an affinity for chocolate the way I do makes it hard to lose weight.  Brownies are my favorite food, and these are some of the best I've ever tasted.  In fact, I love brownies so much that I could probably use some kind of intervention program once I get started eating them.  Normally when I make a dessert to take to a friend or to a potluck dinner or luncheon, I make my banana pudding because everyone loves it.  This is going to be my other go-to dessert.  I can see my girlfriends jumping on these. 
 
If you like a combination of chocolate and mint, these are for you, so make some and dive right in.  You don't even have to share.  I won't tell. They're great with a cup of coffee, a scoop of ice cream, or a glass of cold milk.  

 

  
PEPPERMINT-FILLED BROWNIES 

1-19 oz. package brownie mix (I used Betty Crocker Fudge Brownie Mix)
1-9.2 oz. bag York Peppermint Patties
 
Mix brownies according to package directions.  Spray an 8x8" baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.  Spread half the batter in the pan.  Top with 16 Peppermint Patties, laying them side by side.  You'll use 16, which will leave you three to eat for a snack later.  Spread the other half of the batter over the candy.  Bake according to package directions for extra thick brownies, about 50-55 minutes at 325 degrees for a nonstick pan.  That's what I used.  It will give you directions for different pans on the box.  Cool brownies completely before cutting.  Cut, and, if you are like me and can't resist having one, enjoy!  These are pretty rich, so you may want to cut them into small squares, or just cut them into bigger squares to save on having to take two.  Because you know you're going to want two. 
 
Jen, my mom and I will be eating these this weekend.  Dean and I will be baking sugar cookies.  Since the true baking gene skipped me, I bought Pillsbury cookies with pumpkins in them that are ready to bake.  Dean can place them on the pans and help take them off when they're done.  He may not like the cookies, but I know several adults in the house who will! 
 
Happy baking and eating!
J

Who you callin' a Bambino?

Hey, peeps! Dean here.  I keep telling Sugar (that's what I call my mom) to refer to me as something more sophisticated than "Deano the Bambino," but she says that until I pee pee in the potty all the time, she can call me whatever she wants. Fair enough.

I haven't blogged since spring because I've been so busy!  I'm going to big boy school again this year and it's awesome! We make a craft every day and sometimes we play in the gym.  I'm doing better about not throwing my snack on the floor, even if it's something I don't like.  My teachers are awesome, especially Mrs.Jackie. She's an Auburn fan, but I try not to let that affect our relationship.

Sugar and I are spending a lot of time outdoors these days.  She says it's because Fall rejuvenates her, but I think she's avoiding doing laundry. On mornings that I'm not at school, we spend a couple of hours at the park.

 
Our park is really special because all the trees have these neat  carvings. Here I am checking one out:

 
Good thing he doesn't have bad breath.

This morning I got to play with  my friend Pax. He's 1 and doesn't walk that well just yet.  I held his hand and showed him the  slides.  Sugar said I was very friendly.  I continued my friendly streak by crashing these  ladies' picnic and charming them with my good looks.  They thought I was cute.  One of them even gave me a bag of chips! I was just about to tell her how foods like hummus and bell peppers are better than chips, but Sugar made me leave them alone. (Sugar's a real downer sometimes.)

Here I am minding my own business, having a tasty beverage:

 
When we got home today, Sugar made me lunch. I ate it all.  Then she fixed her lunch. I ate that, too.  (I'm a growing boy, you see.)   I  see a suitcase...that must mean we're taking a road trip!  Oh, boy, I love road trips. I get to watch DVDs and listen to my music and if I scream loud enough, the people stop and buy me French Fries!  I'll check back  next week and tell you where we went! (If I had to guess, I'd say Grammy and Papa's house.)

Coming soon

I decided this week that I'm going to give NaBloPoMo (NaNaBloPop, as it's known at my house) a go again in November.  Anyone else doing it?  Alissa is, so we're going to be each other's cheerleaders.  It must sound pretty nuts to you that I've just written a post about having difficulty finding material, yet now I"m committing to write a post every day for a month.  Honestly, that's why I like NaNaBloPop.  I thrive on deadlines and I love completing tasks, so it's a perfect situation for me.  Plus, I'm hoping that having an assignment of sorts will encourage me to find things to write about. I also want to take more pictures. I love Fall and there are so many cool and wonderful things around me that I want to document them. 

One thing I want to make sure I include this November is a "Week in the Life" post.  Each day for a week, you take pictures of ordinary things your family does, like mealtimes, school drop-off, or bed time stories.  As bloggers, it's so easy to fill our virtual pages with wonderful stories of special or one-time-only days and events, but it's rare that we include a lot of pictures of our day-to-day activities.  I, for one, want to remember the ordinary things my family does each day. 

How's your month going?  We're looking forward to a visit to my parents' house this weekend, where we'll get to see my grandmother for the first time since April. We're also really excited about Halloween and an upcoming visit from Marcus's parents around Thanksgiving.  Our weather has allowed us almost daily playtime at the park where Dean amazes me with his friendliness, fearlessness and curiosity. The ordinary is pretty extraordinary around here.

It ain't deep

I'm having one of those days where there are about 8 posts circling in my head, but I'm too tired to get any of them out of me and onto the screen.  I had precious little free time last week, so my blogging had to take a back seat to work.  For maybe the second time since I started blogging, the blank screen actually intimidated me a bit when I logged in this evening.  So much to say, but where to start?

So instead of trying to be deep, I'll tell you that there are 2 mice living in my house and my goal for the evening is to catch and dispose of them.  Wish me luck.

EDITED TO ADD: I caught the mice. BOTH mice.  Heh, heh, take that, suckas.

Who's hungry?

Oh, blog friends, how I wished you all lived closer so that I could show up on your doorsteps with some of the food currently inhabiting my kitchen.  You see, it's state screening auditions week here in Alabama, and I cope with the stress by cooking.  Why, since Friday, I've made marble cupcakes with homemade cream cheese frosting, golden butter cupcakes, roast chicken and stuffing, homemade chicken soup (which ROCKS), and later I'll be making a fudge cake with buttercream frosting and chicken/sausage jambalaya.  There are tubs of leftovers in my fridge and they contain everything from veggies to macaroni and cheese. 

If we're facebook friends, you've seen my status updates, which fall under the category "What I'm cooking today."  The truth is I love food. I like to eat it and cook it and I LOVE to watch others enjoy something I've made.  Is there a recipe you'd like me to share? Let me know.  If/when we ever meet in real life, I'll come bearing baked goods.

Now if you'll pardon me, I've got a date with some chicken stock and turnips.  Stay tuned this week (Or next. Probably next.) for news.  Not THAT kind of news. It's writing-related.  (Though if you want a good HOLY COW, I'M PREGNANT story, go visit Amalah!)

CardsDirect Giveaway WINNER

And the winner is...Alissa!  Thanks to all who entered!