Chicken & Wild Rice Casserole

Ingredients:

2 slices bacon, chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 pounds chicken thighs, boneless & skinless

1/2 cup diced celery

1/2 cup diced onion

2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried sage

1 cup converted long-grain white rice

1 package (4 ounces) wild rice

6 ounces brown mushrooms, * wiped clean & quartered

3 cups hot chicken broth, or enough to cover chicken

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons chopped parsley, for garnish

* Use "baby bellas" or crimini mushrooms. Or, you may substitute white button mushrooms.

Directions:

Microwave bacon on HIGH (100% Power) 1 minute. Transfer to crockpot. Add olive oil and spread evenly on bottom. Place chicken in crockpot. Add remaining ingredients in order given, except parsley. Cover; cook on LOW 3 to 4 hours, or until rice is tender. Uncover and let stand 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper, if desired. Garnish with chopped parsley.

WE LOVED IT!!

Yum & YUM!

So, this weekend I had a poor, sickly hubby so we had a long, lazy weekend. Being the good southern girl that I am I cooked all day on Sunday. I made three casseroles, 2 batches of cookies and a crockpot meal. No, that is not typical and that's not normal for me but it's what good, southern women do when friends are in need. The crockpot meal and one casserole were for us. The cookies and the other two casseroles were for friends that are having a hard time.

So, I made Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole in the crockpot and it is really good! I'll post the recipe next! That is my first yum!

My second YUM is saved for the one and only Matthew McConaughey! Last night after my cooking extravaganza we watched The Lincoln Lawyer. LOVED IT! I was talking to one of the attorneys I work with and I told him I was game to start practicing that kind of law with him. He agreed that law is "much sexier" than real estate. We laughed, but it's true. Real Estate law is needed but it sure isn't ""sexy". I don't desire to work in criminal defense but there are times where some excitement in the work place would be fun, especially if Matthew McConaughey was my boss...and none of my attorneys are Matthew. If you're looking for a good movie and/or your a fan of Michael Connelly then definitely watch this movie!

THIS, TOO, WILL PASS

I can not begin to tell you how many times I've heard my mother and Suzanne McCurdy (another of my mothers) say, 'This, too, shall pass." One of my favorite movies is Hope Floats. All through that movie that strong, southern, Christian mama kept telling Birdie (Sandra Bullock) that, "This, too, shall pass."

When you're feeling low, weird, wired, or just not yourself it seems like a flippant answer or a cheesy platitude. I can remember being in high school and my mom saying "This, too, shall pass" and thinking, "Whatever lady" but you know what? She's right. They all are and I found a poem in a book that says exactly that. Thought I might share for anyone needing a little bit of hope...because according to the movie, it floats (wha-wha - super cheesy but whatever!).

This, too, will pass. O heart, say it over and over,

Out of your deepest sorrow, out of your grief,

No hurt can last forever - perhaps tomorrow

Will bring relief.

This, too, will pass. It will spend itself - its fury

Will die as the wind dies down with the setting sun;

Assuaged and calm, you will rest again, forgetting

A thing that is done.

Repeat it again and again, O heart, for your comfort;

This, too, will pass, as surely as passed before

The old forgotten pain, and the other sorrows

That once you bore.

As certain as stars at night, or dawn after darkness,

Inherent as the lift of blowing grass,

Whatever your despair or your frustration

This, too, will pass.

Grace Noll Crowell

Being Like Aibileen

Have you watched or read The Help? One of the main characters is Aibileen Clark. Aibileen doesn't think of herself a strong person or as a game changer but she becomes both of those things. Well, one of my favorite things about Aibileen is that she writes her prayers every night. Last night I decided that if that worked for Aibileen then maybe it would work for me. I had to go to Kroger to buy yet another prescription (more on that in a sec) and I decided to see if they had any notebooks. Well, wouldn't know you that Kroger has a very cute variety of notebooks and journals. I found a small notebook with HOPE on the front of it and knew instantly it was mine. Last night Jeff and I watched a movie and after the movie I went in the bedroom to read and I took my notebook and decided to give it a try.

HAVE MERCY FOLKS! Have you ever tried to write your prayers? I think I could have stayed up all night long thinking of people and things to pray for. And a side note, when I wrote my prayers it was a VERY different feeling than trying to say prayers! Writing is very specific. What I am praying for exactly for these people in my life? Wow, that was definitely a lesson for me. I think so many times a person, name, situation would pop in my head and I would give it an "Oh Lord, please" and kind of fade off. Writing prayers is VERY different. And...it felt good! It felt really good. I dated last night's entry and hopefully this is a good habit I can keep up and it will be very interesting to go back and read what I prayed for, who I prayed for and how my writing and my prayers will change over time. I'm pretty pumped about this. I would highly recommend giving it a try. And above all I really do feel like I gave a lot of my worries and troubles over to God to carry for me and I don't the weight of them with me today. I hope that's a feeling I can continue, too.

As for the medicine I was really at Kroger to buy...I've got acid reflux. No biggie, right? WRONG! It's been tough. At first I was gagging every morning when I woke up and at every meal and I was barely able to eat anything (If you ever want "fab abs" I can tell you how to get them!) after two trips to the doctor so far we've decided it's acid reflux that may or may not have been brought on by...anxiety! That's a new feeling for me, too! I am happy to say that today I am feeling myself and I've been on a upswing since Sunday night and I hope it continues. In no particular order I know that faith, determination, hard work, and support will really go a long way towards helping me deal with anxiety. I won't bore you with details but I will say that I know I'm not alone in dealing with anxiety and I hope you know you're not alone either and as my mom always told me, "This too shall pass."

Hope that wasn't too cheesy for you. I'll try to get back to "regular" stuff soon!

Movies, Books and More

Last night we watched our most recent Netflix movie: Ray. Totally pass on it. The music, like in every movie, moved me and it was absolutely amazing to know what all he was going through while he was creating soul stirring music...but I didn't enjoy it. Did you know that Ray Charles had 12 children by 9 different women? Yeah, neither did I. Cheating is one of my major unforgivable things so I just couldn't be happy for Ray Charles overcoming all he did because he loved music. Being a great musician or a blind man doesn't give him the right to do all the things he did. He was an amazing man because he was blind and poor and still made it to the top. As the tag line for the movie said, "A man who fought harder and went farther than anyone thought possible." That's very true but I still wouldn't recommend it. It was just "eehh."

I'm in the middle of book two of The Hunger Games trilogy. I am miserable here at work. I would so much rather be at home reading than here at work. Yesterday I was pathetic and today I will be, too. We don't have any plans tonight or this weekend and I have a feeling I may be staying up late tonight and tomorrow night reading the second and third book. I've got a long list of things to do but I'm afraid I may be too wrapped up in these books to do anything else. Hopefully I won't. I would HIGHLY recommend these books! If you haven't read them then do yourself a favor and start today! They are unlike anything I've ever read. And if you're like me and you like to read the book before you watch the movie then you should hurry. The movie based on the first book comes out in March. That gives you about 2 months to read these books before the movies. Since I'm stuck at work and would so much rather be at home reading I console myself by watching the movie trailer...every once in a while.

And as for everything else, I tried a new recipe, Balsamic Chicken, PASS! It was so blah that I actually threw away the recipe. Jeff liked it better than I did...I didn't like it at all. I thought maybe it might be better as leftovers the next day after the ingredients had time to blend together...not so much. Okay, honestly, I did leave out the garlic and that might have helped it but even with garlic, I don't feel like trying it again. We've only cooked at home one night this week. We've been surprisingly busy this week. We found out on Monday night we are going to have a nephew! We're very excited about that. I feel like I need to start a betting pool. I think the baby will have a "J" name. Any suggestions for "J" names? Julia and I have started a list (must like Allison did with Samantha). We are also blank on middle names. I'm stuck on one (Daniel, for our father-in-law) but that doesn't have to be used. There are plenty of others but apparently my brain can't think of any! Suggestions?

I hope to get back to my cleaning up and clearing out this weekend but who knows if I'll be able to put down a book long enough to do that! We'll see! TGIF folks and may the odds be ever in your favor!

Roasted Root Vegetables

Ingredients
4 medium parsnips, peeled & halved lengthwise

4 medium turnips, peeled

1 medium sweet potato, peeled

3 medium carrots, halved lengthwise

2 medium yellow onions

8 leaves of fresh sage, slivered

3 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/4 cup honey

2 leaves fresh sage, snipped

Directions

Cut vegetables into 1" pieces. In a large greased roasting pan combine parsnips, turnips or rutabaga, potatoes, carrots, onions, and the 8 leaves of slivered sage. Combine oil, salt, and pepper; drizzle over vegetables in pan. Toss lightly to coat. Roast, uncovered, in a 425 degrees over for 30 or 35 minutes until vegetables are lightly browned and tender, stirring occasionally. Drizzle honey over vegetables. Stir gently to coat. Bake 5 minutes more. To serve, sprinkle with snipped sage. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition/serving: 143 calories, 5 g fat, 0 cholesterol, 66 mg sodium, 25 g carbohydrates; 43 g fiber; 2 g protein.

YUMM-O!

A little of this and a little of that

Well, last night I did something that I've never done before. I took a cooking class! Basics of Healthy Cooking: Learn to Chop, Measure and Plan Healthful Meals. It was fun. I actually learned some stuff and I actually plan to use what I love.

By the way, I'm currently watching The Chew and Paula Deen is on there and she's getting on my nerves...sorry.

But I digress, Jeff has cholesterol issues. Nothing so major that he needs medicine but we want to make sure that it doesn't keep going up and do some things now so that he doesn't have to take medicine in the future...and we just need to eat healthier. He gets mad and says I eat like a truck driver. It's probably true. I grew up with Mema always serving a meat and 3 for lunch and dinner, dessert, and sweet teat with every meal. Those are HARD habits to change! But dang it, I'm trying! So...when I saw this class advertised I knew I needed to sign up. We broke up into two small groups and met with two different teachers for two different sessions. At the first session we were taught how to chop, dice, peal and work with vegetables in an easier way. I will admit that at first I thought it was silly but it really helped. If I can chop an onion or celery faster and easier, I'll be more likely to use them in recipes. The other lesson in that session was measuring and learning how to eyeball something. I am such an exact person when it comes to recipes. If it calls for a 1/2 teaspoon of something I will measure out an exact 1/2 teaspoon instead of pouring it in until it looks right. I'm getting better with that but it's still so easy to go by the recipe for me. As the teacher said last night, "A recipe is a suggestion, not a direct order." Okay, okay!

Our other session was with a nutritionist. She talked with us about the new food pyramid, what our plate should consist of (more fruits & veggies, less meat). She also talked about substitutes that we can make to make a comfort food dish a little less comforting and a little healthier. It really helped me, seriously. One thing that was mentioned over and over again was to read and compare labels. I have never done it and I really need to get in the habit.

I took one of her suggestions to heart and tried it. I wanted spaghetti. Spaghetti isn't the worst food in the world but it's not the best either. How could I make it a little healthier? Well, I bought wholegrain noodles and bison meat instead of ground beef. Bison meat is leaner and contains a lot less cholesterol! SO, I got to eat a favorite food in a slightly healthier way!

Oh, and I will share one recipe. We got to try all the recipes last night but this one was my favorite. It looked the best, smelled the best and I think it tasted the best and I can't wait to try it on my own!

This same class is going to be taught again next month and she's going to have a new class in March about cooking with fruits & vegetables and I think I will definitely be signing up for that one!

As for everything else, I'm still working on my cleaning out. I haven't done anything in almost two weeks because I've been sick. I'm actually feeling better and almost normal but we've been busy all this week so I haven't had a chance to do anymore deep cleaning. Hopefully I can get back on track this weekend.