Wednesday, February 13, 2013

We finally have a winner!!!

I'm such a slacker...I know I drive ya'll crazy!  Who watched the Dog Show!!  Love all the dogs...just wish they would throw some cats in the mix...you know, stir things up.  Anyway, I finally got around to getting Ozzy and Lita to pick a winner for those awesome Birch Tree earrings!!
Congratulations Ginny!!!  I hope you love them!

Off to cook dinner...happy Wednesday!

love and peace always ~ Kathy

"Is it possible to be different and still be all right." ~ Anne Schaef

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Frogs, shelves and sticky chicken...

Hey!!!  So yesterday I attended a free class on "frogs" at the "Cradle of Forestry".  It was very interesting and I learned about the various frog species in our area and their habitats. I also "won" a frog sounds CD.  You can listen to the "Gray's Tree Frog" here ~ one of my favorite Summer sounds.  
  Maybe the saying should be "a frog in hand is better than two in the bog" ~ I need to get better at drawing frogs.
 So this week's theme for the "2013 Project 52" Flickr group was "on the shelf".  I decided to showcase my little shelves of collectibles over my sink.  Click on the link and you can read all about each item and where it came from.  My little shelves of love!
Everyone is wanting the "Sticky Chicken" recipe, so here goes:
Ingredients:
2 lbs. boneless/skinless chicken thighs, trimmed well [I don't like chicken fat at all, so I cut off just about all of the fat.  If you don't mind the fat, feel free to leave some of it on]
Cavender's  All Purpose Greek Seasoning
Bragg Liquid Aminos
Garlic Power
 1 Red Bell Pepper, 1 Yellow Bell Pepper and 1 Green Bell Pepper [diced]
1 Medium/large Purple Onion [diced]
Olive Oil [this olive oil is really really good]
2 cups Chicken Broth [maybe more, see below]
2 tablespoons All purpose Flour
 *Note* ~ the beer is not an ingredient for the recipe, just part of my Friday Night cooking school regimen :)
Directions:
In a bowl, combine trimmed chicken thighs with Cavender's, Garlic Power & Bragg Liquid Amino.  Coat well - use your judgement as to how much to use.  I use a pretty good amount of Cavender's [probably about 2 teaspoons] and slightly less Garlic Powder [about 1 teaspoon] and just enough Bragg's to get it nice and coated and have the spices stick good.  Set aside:
 Heat Olive Oil [about a tablespoon...enough to coat bottom of pan good] in a fairly large skillet for a couple of minutes and then toss in the peppers and onion to saute'
Cook the veggies until tender [really, as long as you like.  I like my veggies to start getting a little browned and caramelized, which can be achieved by covering while cooking, but leaving a small opening for ventilation]...stir often to keep from sticking.  After the veggies are done to your liking, wisk together 2 cups of chicken broth and 2 tablespoons of flour and pour over veggies
stir until heated well and gravy starts to thicken, then toss in the chicken
cook until chicken is done [about 15/20 minutes], stirring occasionally.  If your gravy seems to thick, you can always add a little more chicken broth to thin it.  That's it!  I cooked up a big mess of Kale to go with it
  and seved it over steamed rice.  
 So yummy!  And, it's even better the next day!  If you cook it up, let me know how much you love it ~ enjoy!!! 

love and peace always ~ Kathy

"I refuse to believe that trading recipes is silly.  Tuna fish casserole is at least as real as corporate stock." ~ Barbara Harrison

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Growing Violets 1.0.1...

So I finally got around to starting a new batch of baby violets today.  I think mama violet [shown above] enjoys watching her babies grow, just as much as I do.
These are the supplies you will need [please ignore the fact that I'm doing this in my kitchen...as you know, I'm from Louisiana and it is just way to cold to go outside]:
1.  A parent violet(s) [most importantly]
2.  African Violet potting mix [I used Miracle-Gro brand]
3.  Small plastic pots [I always save the ones that contain my bedding plants I buy in the Spring].  Just make sure the ones you choose have several good size drainage holes in the bottom.
4.  Plastic fold-over type sandwich bags.
5.  Rubber Bands
6.  Plastic trays [you'll see why at the end of the post]
Fill pots with potting mix, but not all the way to the top. Using scissors, cut several leaves from the parent violet plant(s), making sure you cut leaves that are healthy and have the longest stems [long stems are needed to help the leaves stay in place, once they are put in the potting soil]
Using your finger, or a pencil, poke a hole in the soil and stick the leaf stem as far down as it will go...just until the leaf itself is barely at the surface of the dirt.  If you want to have a mixture of blooms, you can place two leaves in the container from two different parent violets...makes for a pretty little Spring pop of color in your kitchen window, or gift for a special friend.
 After all the leaves are in place, cover each pot with one of the plastic sandwich baggies and secure it with a rubber band.  Make sure the baggie is poofing up over the leaves good, so they'll have plenty of room to breathe.
Place the pots in a well lit spot [not direct sunlight, but close to a bright window is perfect].  You can either place several pots in one long plastic tray [like I have shown] or each pot in it's own little tray.  Either way, be sure to keep water in the trays until your plants start to sprout [usually a month or so].  Sometimes you'll have a leaf that won't produce a plant, but 9 times out of 10, you'll get little baby violets sprouting up in no time!  Good Luck!  I'll keep you posted on the progress of these.  My last batch of babies have already been adopted out!
  I was so excited over the snow we received last night - I just have to share
 and this morning!  
 loved watching it [along with my little bobble heads] from my studio window.  It lasted just long enough for me to enjoy it!  Now it's all gone and I can look forward to the next time it pays us a visit.
 love and peace always ~ Kathy

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Pulled Pork, Feathers, Snow & A Freebie!

So someone told me that a blue feather is a sign of spiritual advancement.  Perhaps!  Sounds good to me, at least!  
 This is a shot from my studio window today.  We are having a pretty good dumping of snow!  I love to watch it fall, see it weigh down the limbs of the trees, cover everything in glistening white and then I love to see it melt and go away!  This snow should only be here a day or so.  Hoping it snows tonight, so I can practice some nighttime snow photography...pretty exciting! And, as a side note, I noticed several little nose smudges on my window pane...seems as though I'm not the only one that enjoys looking out of it :)
The pulled pork was awesome!  
All you need is:
1.  A pork tenderloin [mine was almost 4 lbs., since I love leftovers]
2.  Root Beer [I would use 8 ounces per pound of pork]
4.  Hamburger Buns [I used Udi's - Glunten Free]
All you do is:
1.  Place the tenderloin in your slow cooker
2.  Pour the Root Beer over it
3.  Cover and cook on low for 7 to 8 hours
4.  Remove the pork from the pot, discarding the root beer.
5.  Pull the pork apart [it will easily fall apart]
6.  Stir in the barbecue sauce and coat the meat well
7.  Serve it up on buns with whatever fixings you like
8.  Enjoy!
I have to say...even my pig plate was impressed!  That was the best pulled pork samich I've had in a long time!
I've been busy making some new things for the shop...check it out when you get a chance.  These little tree branch earrings reminded me of White Birch Trees in Winter...so pretty!  Actually, they will be the next give-away!  Ozzy [or Lita, depending on who's in the mood] will be picking the winner Tuesday [February 12th]!  All you have to do is leave a comment on this blog post, or my facebook page.  Good Luck!
So I'm always writing little tidbits of poetry here and there and it seems like they always come to me with birds and feathers.  Wayne fixed up a new post for my bird feeder yesterday, so now I can wake up every morning to their singing ~ love my little birds!
Stay warm ya'll!  Love and peace always ~ Kathy