Sunday Lunch

Since it's easy, something Kent can do AND make breakfast for our guests, we had Roast and Noodles again today! It is a PERENNIAL favorite around here! Tiana ate, I think she said, 10 helpings of noodles today!

ROAST AND NOODLES3-4 lb chuck roast
1/4 c. olive oil
Kosher salt
fresh ground pepper
1 large onion, sliced
4+ cloves of garlic, minced
2 c. beef broth
2 c. red wine (I always use the cheapest burgundy available! I've used expensive wine and it wasn't as good!)
1 lb. wide egg noodles

Heat olive oil in large Dutch oven. Sprinkle roast with salt and pepper and brown in hot olive oil. After thoroughly browning roast, remove it from the pan and add the sliced onion, sauteing until well caramelized, about 20 minutes. Add garlic, wine and broth, bringing to a boil. Add roast back to Dutch oven, cover, set heat to LOW and simmer for 2-1/2 hours. Remove roast from liquid, add egg noodles, stirring well, add meat back to the noodles and let cook for 20 minutes until all liquid is absorbed. ENJOY!!

To counter the Creamy Almond Chicken

So, we're having company and to go with the Creamy Almond Chicken of the previous post, I thought it would be good to add a decently healthy dessert! I love this recipe!

Low Fat Apple Crisp

3 lbs. peeled, cored and sliced Granny Smith apples
1/3 c. brown sugar (don't pack!)
2 Tbs. cornstarch
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
For the crumb topping:
3 Tbs. flour
3 Tbs. rolled oats
1 1/2 Tbs. brown sugar
1 Tbs. butter

Preheat oven to 350º. Lightly grease 2 quart shallow pan with non-stick spray (or if you have DeMarle -- use it!)
Place the apple slices in prepared pan.
Combine the 1/3 c. brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon and nutmeg. Sprinkle over the apples, tossing to coat evenly. Cover the dish with foil.
Bake for 30 minutes.
For the crumb topping:
Meanwhile, combine the flour, oats and 1 1/2 Tbs. brown sugar in a small bowl. Mash the butter into the dry mixture with a fork.
Remove baking dish from oven, sprinkle with the crumb mixture and bake uncovered for another 40 minutes.

A recipe...

I'm getting my next recipe swap pages together and I thought I might as well share this one with you, too! I got the recipe from a co-worker a few years ago and we love it! It is terribly bad for you, but so delicious! I'm planning on having this for dinner on Friday night!

Creamy Almond Chicken
1 stick butter, melted
2 tsp. celery salt
1½ tsp. oregano, finely crushed
2 tsp. paprika1½ tsp. curry powder
salt
freshly ground pepper
8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
flour
3/4 c. sliced roasted almonds1½ c. half and half1/2 c. sour cream
1/4 c. sherry

Combine butter and spices; set aside.
Preheat oven to 350º.
Dredge chicken in flour and then roll in butter mixture. Arrange chicken in baking dish, scatter almonds evenly over chicken and pour half and half over all. Cover and bake for 35 minutes. Uncover dish, pour cooking liquid from pan into bowl. Whisk sour cream and sherry into juices until smooth. Pour over chicken and bake, uncovered, 15-20 minutes longer or until chicken is done. Serve with a light pasta side dish.

Bon Appetit!

ACCOMPLISHED!

The house is clean!! The luggage is back out in storage, as are the Winter decorations, the bathrooms are clean, the floor is mopped, the living room is dusted and I still have almost 2 hours to go until it is time to go to work! I need to stop at the Post Office, so it looks like I will have plenty of time to do that! I'm feeling pretty good today!!

My First and I'm proud!

So, using Nolan David to model it,  I present my first ever knit hat!!  It turned out so cute!  I made one mistake, but I think I can deal with that!  It was quite fun, but at the end it got just a bit tiring with needles that ended up being almost too small to do the job!  The yarn itself created the pattern in the hat, too, so that made my job that much easier! Thanks for taking a peek!

Rainy, dreary days, but it could be worse!

So we are right in the midst of January in the Northwest and that means it is soppy wet!  Tonight it was such a damp cold that we were more than happy to just hurry home to warmth after dinner and a stop for a few groceries.  It really has made exercising drop in priority on the daily to-do list, but as a bonus a fair number of cards have been created!  I've even managed to put together some pretty decent meals!  And have kept the house pretty clean!  Guess there is a positive to the grey!  Ahh... and candles, soft music, rejuvenation makes for a happy soul!

Wishing even now for a big rainbow colored umbrella!

Happy Smells

Ok, call me weird, but in the grocery aisle the other night, I smelled a smell that just made me happy! -- FRESH CORN TORTILLAS!!

That's all!