Power of Prayer - Update!

A small victory: Sarah & Chris get to fly home with Moses today! YAY!!! Please continue to pray for their adoption & that the birth father will sign the papers.  Thank you!!!

Baby Moses

Make This!!

Bug Juice Chicken!

A little sweet, a little salty, a lotta good!! I found this recipe in The Seattle Times last week. It sounded so good & received so many rave reviews that I decided to make it this week. I am so glad I did. It's such an easy & tasty dish.

Mix garlic powder, ground ginger, onion powder, poultry seasoning, soy sauce & lemon juice in a small bowl.

This is the poultry seasoning I used: McCormick's Montreal Chicken Seasoning.
 I found it at Costco over the summer.

Pour the marinade over 6-8 bone in chicken thighs.
Let the chicken marinate in the sauce for a minimum of 5 minutes.

I let my chicken marinate for a little over two hours (and I flipped the chicken occasionally).
I have to add: Omid came into the kitchen at one point & looked skeptically at the chicken. He didn't seem so sure of what we were having for dinner. When it was finished & he had taken his first bite, he pronounced the chicken "delicious!"

Voila! Crispy crust on the outside, tender & juicy on the inside.

Bug Juice Chicken from The Seattle Times

[serves four, easily doubled for a crowd]

Ingredients

1 cut-up fryer chicken or 6 to 8 thighs (I used bone-in skin-on thighs)

1/3-cup soy sauce

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon each: onion powder, garlic powder, ground ginger, poultry seasoning

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees

1) Whisk soy sauce, lemon juice and spices together in a measuring cup or small bowl.

2) Rinse and pat dry chicken parts, then arrange in a baking pan.

3) Pour soy sauce mixture over the chicken and flip the parts twice.

4) Bake skin side up for approximately 45 minutes (or until internal temperature reaches 165-degrees), basting twice.

Make This!!

Oh Cougar Gold Cheese, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways: 1) plain, right out of the can, 2) in macaroni & cheese, 3) in raspberry bars 4) in broccoli cheese soup 5) in biscuits and 6) in crispy cheese crackers.

Freshly opened can of Cougar Gold: does any other cheese compare?
I think not.

Cracker dough all ready for it's 4 hour rest in the fridge.

What did I do while waiting for the dough to chill?
Part of it was snuggle time with Remy.

After four hours - pure delicious, cheesy heaven from the oven.

Note: Make SURE you keep these crackers in an airtight container. I placed them in a gallon sized Ziplock bag which did not keep them crispy. The deliciously-crispy crackers from last night had vanished & in their place were soft & chewy cheese cookies. Lesson learned: either make & serve on the same day or keep them in an airtight container for sure!

Cheese Crackers from the November issue of Everyday Food

1/2 cup unsalted butter (room temp)
3 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese (I used Cougar Gold)
1 large egg
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp fine salt
3/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 1/4 cups flour (spooned & leveled)

In a food processor, pulse together butter, cheese, egg, mustard, salt & red pepper flakes until smooth. Add flour & pulse until combined. Transfer dough to a work surface & form into a 2 inch wide log. Wrap in plastic wrap & refrigerate until firm, 4 hours (or up to 1 day).

Preheat oven to 350*. Slice dough into 1/4" rounds and arrange one inch apart on parchment lined sheet. Bake until edges are golden, 15-20 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through. Let cool completely on racks before serving. Store in an airtight container, up to one day). Makes 24.

Make This!!

Bacon & caramelized leek dip!

I saw this recipe in the November issue of Martha Stewart Living. It sounded so delicious, I couldn't wait to make it. It's very good and the flavors are subtle. Make sure you don't serve it with too strong of a cracker. I served it with Akmak crackers & they overpowered the dip. We switched to red pepper slices & celery and they were the perfect accompaniment.

I definitely plan on serving this for a Thanksgiving snack!

Finished dip (this is half a recipe).

Caramelized leeks & bacon

Mix the leeks & bacon with chevre, sour cream, salt & voila: you have dip!

Bacon & Caramelized Leek Dip
3 T unsalted butter
3 medium leeks, white & pale green part only, thinly sliced crosswise
2 cups sour cream
6 oz soft goat cheese
6 strips bacon, cooked until crisp & coarsely chopped
coarse salt

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Cook leeks, stirring often, until caramelized, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a bowl & let cool.
Stir in sour cream, goat cheese, bacon & 1 1/2 tsp salt.

Power of Prayer

Please pray for my friend Sarah & her husband Chris. They have waited so long to receive their new baby, Moses, only to find the birth father is having second thoughts.

"Write a list of huge requests you have for God - things so large that if they came to fruition, you would know they did so only because God intervened. Spend time praying through the list."

God is good!!!

Coastal Weekend

We are back from a fun razor clamming weekend at the coast. We met my parents in Longbeach, WA on Friday evening at the swanky Super 8 motel.   This razor clam harvest was an evening dig, so we had some time to kill. We drove to The Lost Roo restaurant & had a delicious dinner. We needed to fill up, since later, we would be burning lots of calories. Razor clam digging is serious exercise!

After dinner & back at the motel, Omid outfitted everyone in their clamming gear. He brought extra things for my parents as they didn't have the proper wind/waterproof clothing.

Remy & I ready to go!

I don't have any pix of the night dig, but let me say this: the weather cooperated & it stayed dry. The wind was warm & we got 2 + limits.

Night digs are not my favorite as it's so hard to see the clam 'show' on the sand (even with lanterns & flashlights).

This is what you have to look for. I only look for 'doughnuts' as they are the easiest to spot.
Photo courtesy Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife.

Our haul!

The next morning, we met up for breakfast. Long Beach is seriously lacking in breakfast places. One place we stopped at, looked nice from the outside, but the minute my dad & I stepped inside to check out their menu, we were assaulted by a strong musty smell instead of food. We hoped to smell bacon or something similar to breakfast. Nothing but 'yuck', so we decided not to eat there. We ended up at another place that was just okay.

Long Beach: you need a Pig & Pancake!

Papa with Long Beach's giant razor clam.

G & P with the World's Largest Frying Pan!
Christmas card photo!!!

After everyone was fed & no one was cranky anymore (Papa!), we stopped at the Washington State University (Go Cougs!!) Cranberry Research Center for some education (& because I love cranberries!).

Fun fact: Up until I was about 12, the only things that would make it on my Thanksgiving dinner plate
were cranberry sauce & stuffing.

Remy, Matty & Grammy posing as 'bog farmers.'

We took the 'self guided walking tour' of the facility.

Grammy ran inside the gift shop to see what they had.

She came out with a can of Cougar Gold Cheese for me!

Woo hoo!!!!!

Ocean Spray!

I love their cranberry-tangerine juice!

Matty checking out a research plot.

Found one!

Prepare to learn some fun facts about cranberries!

I LOVE the fact that there is a cranberry variety called 'pilgrims!'

If you were looking for sign #3, so were we. Let's move on to #4 instead.

We didn't see any wildlife. Remy must have scared them off!

We learned that wet harvested means a combine cuts the cranberries from the vine & the bog is then flooded.
The cranberries float to the top of the bog & are raked in. Thus: wet harvested!

Bumblebee garden

It was a fun stop & we learned lots about cranberries!

After spending about an hour at the cranberry farm, we decided to visit the beach again.

It was an absolutely beautiful & warm day!

I wish every visit to the coast could be this beautiful!

Fun fact: it was here that I checked Facebook & found out my friend Sarah was on her way to South Carolina to meet her new beautiful baby boy! Congratulations Sarah & Chris!

Sarah with her baby boy, Moses.

Make This!!

Evil Chocolate Chip Cookies!

Why are they evil? Because this recipe calls for 3 cubes of butter. THREE! I usually only make a half recipe, as this cookie is really rich (think shortbread).

Evil Chocolate Chip Cookies

3 cubes butter, room temp
1 c powdered sugar
2 1/4 c flour
1 package of mini choc chips

Mix first three ingredients with your hands. Stir in minis. Chill 30 minutes. Drop by teaspoons onto slightly greased cookie sheets. Bake at 325* for 8-10 minutes.

Eugene Road Trip

Yesterday we took a road trip to Eugene, Oregon. Omid found something on Craig's List he had to check out. Matty, Remy & I decided to tag along.  Since none of us had ever been to Eugene before, we decided to stop & check out the U of O campus.

Fun fact: The Ducks have won 30 straight home games.
This terrifies me for when the Cougs play in Eugene next weekend.

The U of O campus is nice & surrounded by the city of Eugene

 (which is much larger than I thought).

Future Duck?!
Heck no, he has to go to WSU!

U of O has several beautiful buildings. This is the 'athletic academic center.'
Beautiful architecture inside & out.

O bicycle racks. Love it!

I absolutely LOVED how each & every dorm window had an O sticker on them. That is school spirit!
Dear WSU: I'd like to see the same idea implemented in Pullman. Thank you.

 Omid trying to make the famous "O." Is he close?

Matty: Is he close?

Neither of them got it.
Thanks to my friend Mary's son, McKinley for showing us how it's done!

This is the U of O Alumni Center. Omid & Matty were impressed with the architecture.
Me, not so much. I love the barn at WSU. Sorry! It's nice, but it's NOT WSU!

This building was impressive.
This is the U of O basketball arena.
Wow.

While I had a nice time visiting, I again have to say my allegiance is 110% to WAZZU! Go Cougs!