Chicken Tetrazinni for Comforting on Wine Down Wednesday

In the matter of one week my children have hit a milestone birthday, got their driving licenses, are now driving without me and started interviewing for jobs to save for a car...I have cried more in this one week than I care to admit and am pulling out gray hairs faster than I can keep up with coloring them.  I say a prayer every time they leave the house in our car and cannot believe how fast the time is passing before my eyes.

This, on top of the winter doesn't want to let up.  We still have lots of snow, chilled mornings and nights and icy roads mixed with wind here and there.  All I have wanted lately is comfort meals, hibernation (and wine of course)!  It's taking every ounce of resistance in me not to power down on a Blackjack Meatlovers Pizza, a bottle of Ferrari Carano Chardonnay (it is Wine Down Wednesday after all), Ben and Jerry's Chubby Hubby ice cream and a box of Kleenex.

I am doing my best to stay strong, trying to make the gym a few days a week and somewhat stick to a South Beach(esque) menu.  Trying....

Well, this casserole doesn't make the diet cut, but it hit my comfort zone for one night (and freezes well for individual work lunches), super easy and luscious flavors.

Chicken Tetrazinni

(1) 16 oz. package of angel hair pasta, cooked
1/2 cup butter, melted
4 chicken breasts cooked, shredded
(2) 10.5 oz. cans Cream of Chicken soup
2 cups sour cream
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 Tbl. fresh parsley, chopped finely
2 Tbl. parmesan cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Spray 9 x 13 baking dish with non-stick spray.  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl combine melted butter, shredded chicken, soup, sour cream, salt, garlic powder, pepper and chicken broth.  Add the cooked angel hair pasta and mix well.

Pour mixture into the prepared baking dish.  Sprinkle with the chopped parsley.  Sprinkle the parmesan and mozzarella cheeses over the parsley.

Bake covered in foil for 45 minutes.  (Tip: Spray the foil with non stick spray on the side that will be near the mixture/cheeses, so it doesn't stick.)  Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes.

Sprinkle with more fresh parsley before serving.


One Year Ago:  Black and White Parfaits

Blueberry-Banana Muffins and Mangers

Of all the decorations we have, our favorite by far, are the homemade ones that have stood the test of time in our lives.  The burlap gingerbread man from my husband's kindergarten days or the glitter covered metal baby food jar lids that my girls in preschool, transformed into beautiful ornaments.  

The one that has the most special meaning is our manger.  My husband made this many, many years ago for their family.  They had all the figurines, but needed a home.  He built this perfect nativity for them, complete with lighting, grass roof and the outer deck is on hinges, so it folds up perfectly to store in the off season.  I love having this in our family room to look at every evening.

Since Christmas is in only three days, I think it is safe to say that my baking endeavors just aren't going to happen this year.  I had all the inspiration to try out some new desserts and make some of our family standby favorites....none of them have surfaced at this point.  The only thing I have been accomplishing is muffins.  Every weekend I am craving muffins.  I love the aroma of muffins baking on Saturday morning and filling the house with their warmth. (Unfortunately, they are also filling my pants a little too much!)

I saw these muffins on my friend Toni's blog site and added some remaining blueberries I had in the refrigerator to use up.  These are so incredibly good!

Blender Banana Muffins
from my Muffin Recipe box (courtesy of A Taste of Alaska)

Sift together in a bowl:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Place in the blender and blend until smooth:
2 large ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream

*** (1) cup fresh blueberries, which I added to the recipe.

For topping:
Granola, without dried fruit

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Add blender ingredients to dry ingredients, mixing well.  Scoop batter into prepared muffin tins, filling each cup almost full. (At this point, I added a few blueberries to each of the muffins).  Top with a generous sprinkle of granola.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.  Makes about 18 large muffins.

One Year Ago:  Holiday Cake Cookies

Sun Valley Pecan-Crusted Chicken in Idaho

Our family had the pleasure of taking a quick weekend trip to visit Dick and JoAnne (Aunt JoJo) at their summer home in Sun Valley, Idaho last week.

Sun Valley welcomes United Airlines' direct flight from Denver - love it !!

The Sun Valley / Ketchum / Hailey communities are truly beautiful, charismatic and filled with culture, art and incredibly quaint, culinary wonders.  Upon arriving we headed to Despo's "Mexican with Altitude" for a late dinner in Ketchum.  Excellent margaritas, salsa and shrimp tacos.  My daughters even loved their made-to-order bean and cheese burrito for one and the carne asada street tacos for the other.

Sun Valley Lodge

The next day we started off touring the breathtaking Sun Valley Lodge and its beautiful resort.  They have anything you could think of for both summer and winter stays, complete with ice shows, concerts, sports and family activities, not to mentioned the shopping village that has everything you could imagine.

The tranquil lake in front of Sun Valley Lodge

We then headed into town late afternoon for all the items needed for our happy hour platter, wines and JoAnne's amazing Sun Valley Pecan-Crusted Chicken, made famous by Chef Jeff Keys Vintage Restaurant
in Ketchum.  He even wrote a beautiful cookbook (that I immediately ordered and it arrived yesterday, thank you very much) featuring his world class dishes from the restaurant.

It was a perfect and most welcoming evening.  Great food, wines, laughs and conversation......

Our wonderful happy hour complete with roasted garlic, Cambazola cheese
and mango salsa paired with Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc

All happy hours should be enjoyed while dancing.

Beautiful sunset from their deck.

Sun Valley Pecan-Crusted Chicken with Sour Cream Mustard Sauce,
 Tomato and Black Currant Chutney,
Baked Yukon Gold Gorgonzola Smashed Potatoes and Caesar Salad

Sun Valley Pecan-Crusted Chicken
from the "Vintage Restaurant" cookbook by Jeff Keys

For the Pecan Saltine Cracker Crumbs:
1-1/2 cps coarsely ground pecans
1-1/2 cups ground saltine crackers

Mix the ground pecans and saltine crackers in a medium size bowl.  Set aside.

Four the Sour Cream Mustard Sauce:
1-1/2 cups sour cream
2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard

Blend well in a small bowl and set aside.

For the Dijon-Mustard Butter Rub:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard

For the Chicken:
(4) 5-ounce boneless and skinless chicken breasts

To make the chicken, lightly pound each breast to about 3/8 inch thick.  Take each chicken breast and coat one side with the painting of the mustard butter.

  Put the breast, mustard-butter-side-down, in the saltine cracker crumb mixture.  Give it a firm press so the crumbs adhere.  Repeat for the other side.  Do this to all of the chicken breasts and put them on a platter until you are ready to cook.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  To cook the chicken, melt 3 tablespoons unsalted butter in a 12-inch saute pan.  When the butter is hot, add the chicken breasts.  Cook them for about 3 minutes.  They should be turning a nice, crispy medium brown color.  Turn them over and cook for 3 more minutes.  Remove the chicken breasts to a baking sheet, saving the crumbs that remain in the saute pan.

Put the baking sheet int eh oven and cook the breasts for about 5 more minutes.  While the chicken is cooking, add 8 tablespoons of the Sour Cream Mustard Sauce to the saute pan that the chicken cooked in; blend the crumbs and juices from the chicken with the sour cream mixture, just before the chicken is done cooking, heat up the sauce until it is just bubbly.

Take the chicken out of the oven and place 1 breast on each plate and serve with a dollop of the Sour Cream Mustard Sauce.

Hungarian Goulash and Heartthrob #JakeRyan

I am a girl of the 80's.  My high school years were in the 80's and it was truly I think the best of times.  Great movies, great music and you cannot forget the really great big hair (and shoulder pads of course).

It was a time when teenagers actually talked on the phone and had conversations.  There was no Twittering, texting, tagging in photos or hash-tagging.  I'm embarrassed to say that I am still not completely clear on the whole # (hash-tagging) thing. Nonetheless, I am working my way through it with two teenagers.

I was happy to see last weekend was an 80's movie marathon, complete with Pretty in Pink and Sixteen Candles.  I learned that neither one of my girls had never seen either of these movies...how sad is that?

It was my duty as their mother - you cannot go your whole life without seeing these two classics.  It was just us girls home and we snuggled in with our pajamas and I got to relive the 80's all over again...and Jake Ryan.

What girl from that decade could forget the infamous Jake Ryan from Sixteen Candles.  Every girl dreamed of meeting someone like Jake for their 16th birthday and having a prince charming sweep them off their feet (with his red Porsche).

Our 80's hunk, Jake Ryan.

My work here was done - girls loved the movies and Jake Ryan.

In feeling nostalgic this weekend, I was craving my sister-in-law Cathy's family recipe of Hungarian Goulash. Just to show how old this recipe is, she sent it to me on a fax machine in 1998 before our kids were born, before e-mail and way before tweeting.

Hungarian Goulash
Courtesy of Cathy

2 pounds top sirloin, cut into 1" - 2" chunks
1 white onion, chopped in 1/4" chunks
1 whole orange pepper, cut in 1/2" chunks
1 whole yellow pepper, cut in 1/2" chunks
olive oil
salt to taste
flour to coat
2 cans beef broth
1 can diced tomatoes in juice
1/2 cup red wine (optional)
1 small can tomato paste
Hungarian Paprika

In crockpot pour in beef broth, diced tomatoes in juice, red wine and tomato paste - stir well.

In a skillet add olive oil, simmer the onions and peppers until soft.  Remove from skillet and add to the sauce in crockpot.

In same skillet that vegetables were cooked, add the sirloin (dusted in flour first).  Brown meat and season with salt and pepper.  Do not cook meat all the way through, just get a nice crust on it, as it will continue cooking all day in crock pot.

Add the browned meat to the crockpot and mix into the sauce.  Add enough paprika so the stew turns reddish.

Cook in crockpot on low for 8-10 hours.  The longer it cooks, the better it is.

I served it over cooked egg noodles, coated in a little sour cream.  You can also serve the goulash over dumplings, spaetzle, gnocchi or mashed potatoes.

A toast to Jake with Vina Temprana

Tamale Casserole

"A rite of passage" a ceremony or event marking an important stage in someone's life.  Yep, that is exactly what has happened this year to our girls.

After 14 years of tirelessly looking for the perfect costume, dressing up, trick-or-treating, it is finally over.    They are now in high school and it has all disappeared, just like that.  As the past few years have gone by, their costumes have become much more simple, yet home made and really putting their creative minds at work and the groups of teens have dwindled down for the race to each house in search of the best candy.

The first years.....

This year, we still carved the best ever pumpkins, decorated the inside and outside of the house, and purchased candy for the little children.  This year is different though...for the first time, there will not be any dressing up or racing to houses.  Instead my young adults have decided they want to be the ones to hand out candy to the cute up and coming trick-or-treaters.

....I really miss these days.

I don't know who is more sad and disappointed, me or them.  I used to have fun dressing up with them whenever I could.  I even had the same 50's poodle skirt ensemble as they did, complete with a bleach blonde beehive wig - it was the best!!

Last year's final costume appearance.

So there you have it, we are one step closer to seeing our kids, not be kids anymore and yet we have so much to look forward to as we watch them grow into the adults that they will soon become.

Another Halloween tradition that has followed us, since the day I met my husband is Tamale Casserole.  It comes from the family cookbook and we have either made it (or been served it) every year for the past 20 Halloweens. This is not the usual casserole that you would expect to see, it's like a homemade chili on steroids (as my husband so creatively describes it). It's a crock pot creation that is perfect to come home to on a cold fall night after trick-or-treating.

Tamale Casserole
Courtesy of JoAnne and Dick

(3) extra large or (6) regular size tamales (beef or pork), cut into large chunks
(2) cans Hormel chili (without beans)
(1) large can sliced black olives, drained
(1) 15 ounce can corn, drained
2/3 pound cheddar cheese, grated
(1) 15 ounce can tomato sauce

Mix together all ingredients.  Heat in a slow cooker on low heat setting for 8 hours. Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

Pasta, Parent Conferences and Pantry Purging

"The Great American Pantry Purge" phrase was coined by my friend Toni in Alaska.  I am so envious of her, because the pantry in her house is larger than my bathroom.  One weekend we were over at their house for dinner, she told me what she had planned for our menu that night and further explained that it is was because they were in the middle of their Great American Pantry Purge Week...meaning that she was using and cooking with what was already in the house - she made it sound so much fun with her catchy phrase.

Fast forward, I have been diligently trying to keep with my coupon cutting, weekly calendar dinner menu planning (so I only need to hit the grocery store once during an entire week) and really trying to pay attention to what I can use up in the kitchen.  Nothing makes me more crazy than over buying something that I already have an abundance of in the pantry...how many cans of tomato soup and tuna does one house need, really??

Angus watching mom purge, organize and collecting his socks around the house.

A few weeks ago were parent-teacher conferences at our girls' school.  They have a wonderful program where the leadership academy students and parents make dinner for all the staff that are there late at night for conferences and don't have time to run out for a quick meal.  This time the theme was Italian - perfect!!

The best news of all was that the meal I wanted to make, I was able to purge everything I already had on hand in our kitchen.  I just love it when a plan falls into place.

As I have previously mentioned, my husband's family published their own family cookbook.  Some of the recipes go back three generations and have stood the test of time and taken on their own spin as the various family members try them out.

The famous family cookbook.

One of our go-to favorites is "Grannie's Lasagna".  Awesome quick fix, weeknight casserole that is perfect for families or pot lucks, and even makes great leftovers too. So, purge your pantry away while you enjoy this one and for all those great teachers out there who give so much of their time.  After dealing with teenagers all day, it's the least I could do for them.  I even purged our remaining King's Hawaiian Sweet Rolls into these delicious garlic, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese bread creations - yummy!!!

Grannie's Lasagna
Courtesy of Jan and Will

(1) 12-ounce package noodles (egg, bow tie, etc.)
(1) 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
(1) pint sour cream
1/2 pound Parmesan cheese
1 to 2 pounds ground beef
1 onion chopped
1 to 2 cans tomato sauce (or 1 jar of marinara or spaghetti sauce)
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon sugar

Preheat oven 350 degrees.

Saute meat, onion and garlic.  Drain meat.  Add tomato sauce and sugar, set aside.  Boil noodles as directed.  Mix drained noodles with cream cheese and sour cream.  Spray Pam in large casserole dish and spread noodles in bottom of dish.  Add meat mixture on top and finish off with fresh Parmesan cheese.  Bake uncovered approximately 45 minutes, until bubbly.

Also needed to purge Mark West Pinot Noir

Chicken Tortilla Soup For The Weary

"There is no rest for the weary." I looked up this phrase, because I love to know where and how idioms came about (not to mention that I have really been feeling it lately) and here is what one definition said:

Prov. Even people who are worn-out must continue to work. (Describes a situation in which a tired person has to do more work.).  Isn't this the same definition, next to the word MOM in the dictionary??

It has been over 2 weeks since my last post and I feel like I have been gone for months.  My friend Toni is kicking my - - - in the number of her posts this month and I am feeling very behind. Oh, not to worry though, I have been photographing outings and recipes and still driving my family crazy during the past few weeks. I just have not had one moment to sit down and write.  We have been go, go, go!!!

It truly has been a whirlwind couple of weeks, starting with high school volleyball tournament last weekend. As I volunteered at the beginning of the season to be the team parent, I jumped on the bus with the team (promising to not embarrass my children of course) and away we went.  The team was victorious and fought on to take first place - I was so proud of each and every one of them.  Their high school team as of today is undefeated and they have one more game to go for the season to keep their record - I am quite certain I am more nervous about it than they are.

One of our volleyball stars.

  My stress level is already starting to peak with the upcoming birthdays and holidays.  My husband's is mid-December, then we have Christmas and of course I had to pick the end of December to have twins....so, holidays tend to raise my tension level just a bit. I am already trying to figure out who will be getting what gifts and when, deciding what is the best for a Christmas vs. Birthday present.  We have also been blessed this year with our 2 additional twin grandbabies, giving is a total of 3 amazing grandchildren now.  I am making all the grandkids blankets this year, so trying to find the perfect material and patterns for their sweet little personalities.  Let us also not forget the deadline of trying to get packages out in the mail to our families, so I don't have to pay the exorbitant "last minute because I didn't get my act together in enough time mailing fees".

Then there's also my very dear friend Felicia coming to visit me next month.  I want everything perfect for her so she can be spoiled during her stay with us.  She has done so much for me and my family that I want to make her time here special and memorable.  I have no doubt that adult beverages will be involved in those memories - she has already put in a request for my husband's Cosmos.  Stay tuned for postings during that week...should be very interesting to say the least.

To add some fun into the mix, my work is beyond crazy, busy!  I no sooner get to work and it's time to go home.  My days are rapidly going by with all the daily tasks, schedules, clients, paper trails and e-mails. Not complaining though, I would take it that way over being bored, any day!!

Look closely and you can see the other volleyball star being funny!
Now you know why every parent needs a margarita during road trip weekends.

My husband had also been begging me to do a road trip and get away for the weekend.  We tossed around many ideas and learned that Mt. Rushmore was only 5-1/2 hours from us.  I jumped online and did my tourist research because I am such a planner like that.  It turns out that Keystone, South Dakota basically shuts down October 1st every year after their tourist season.  Perfect!!  Got a great hotel for an amazing rate, no crowds at the National Monument and no waiting at restaurants and the weather couldn't have been better for this time of year. 

The girls loved all the history at Mt. Rushmore and we were really taken back by the beauty of the monument. We took in every moment there and learned everything that it stood for, the sculptor and the stories behind it.  Of course, the movie fan that I am, I had to stake out every location sight from where they filmed National Treasure 2 there.  

The locals taking over the highway.

The wildlife before, during and after the visit there was the best though.  Our daughters really had a great time seeing all these amazing creatures in their natural environment yet completely okay being around tourists too.  We even had time to see the Crazy Horse Memorial,  Black Hills Ghost Town and The Flintstones Resort in Custer, SD (yes, you read that correctly). http://www.flintstonesbedrockcity.com/

Our drive home took us through quite the storm from South Dakota, through Wyoming and even into Colorado.  It was cold, rainy and extremely windy.  We were all tired and needed a nice bowl of hearty soup for our chilled bones, to end our perfect weekend.

Chicken Tortilla Soup
Inspired by Chicken Enchilada Soup (on realmomkitchen.com )at http://realmomkitchen.com/463/chicken-enchilada-soup-and-my-top-10-soup-recipes/

(1) 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
(1) 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
(1) 10 ounce package frozen whole kernel corn
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped yellow, green or red bell pepper
(1) 10 ounce can enchilada sauce (mild)
(1) 10.75 ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup
1-1/2 cups milk
(1) cup shredded Pepper Jack cheese (4 ounces)
(2) cooked chicken breasts, diced

Mix beans, tomatoes, corn, onion, pepper and chicken in a large pot.  Whisk together enchilada sauce soup and milk and pour over soup mixture in pot.  Stir well.

Bring to a low boil over medium heat, then cover and  turn to low and let simmer for about an hour.

Serve with the pepper jack cheese,  sour cream, sliced avocado and tortilla strips.

This is what Theo thought of us leaving him for the weekend.

Needless to say, he wasn't very happy when we returned and didn't mind letting us know.