Ella's Birthday

I left my camera at Julie and Al's when we were there for Everett's baby shower. So I will have to post those pictures when I get my camera back. I stole some pictures of Ella's 4th Birthday party off of Ken's Facebook page.

The theme for Ella's Birthday was a Hair and Nail Salon. Grandma Julie, Grandma Dee, Cousin Isaac, Cousin Rachel and Ella's mom, Emily, all got their hair done.

Grandma JuJu was up first. Here is Ella and her assistant Emma. Looks like a fun!








Grandma Dee was up next...











It was the most fun for me when Rachel was up. It was fun to "suggest" products. They were totally up for my suggestions of MORE hairspray, MORE gel, MORE hairspray, MORE mousse, MORE hairspray. What are little sisters for?!








Look at Ruby's hand......












Look at Ruby's hand again....













I guess she figured out what to do with the mousse.











It was shortly after this picture that Ella was getting tired of doing hair. Bummer! ;)










Rachel and I got Ella (and Emma) their Easy Bake Ovens. I can't wait to babysit and make something!

I *heart* Rachel.

Rachel, Your hair looks really pretty in this picture. It must be from all the "hairspray."

Ruby and Ella LOVE Ken. Here is Ruby taking a moment to read a magazine to Ken.

Happy 4th Birthday Ella!

I have made a TON of recipes since my last post. Some of them were really bad or wouldn't make again kind of recipes. I'm excited for some of you (Rachel) to try the ones we loved.

This past week I was getting really frustrated with my freezer. I had a 14 lb turkey and a 7 lb pork shoulder sitting in there and could not fit anything else in there. I NEED another freezer. So while Ken was swapping out light switches, I made my first Pork Shoulder.

___________________________________________________________________

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches

(I had to double this recipe because I had a 7 lb pork shoulder.)

3 lb pork shoulder

2 envelope Lipton Onion Soup Mix

1 cup Ketchup

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white vinegar

2 Tbsp. Tabasco Sauce

Put pork shoulder in crockpot. Mix everything else up in a bowl and pour over the pork. I added just a little bit of water to it. But I probably didn't need to.

Cook on Low 10 hours or on High 6 hours. (Or until Ken is done with the lights.)

Obviously, you put these on rolls. However, the first day we didn't have any rolls so we put it over rice. Yum! Try it, it's good.

We also made some more tasty recipes from my Rachael Ray cookbook. I changed some of them to make them my own.

___________________________________________________________________

Spinach and Spicy Ham Pasta Bake

I was worried about using Capocollo - Spicy Ham. I loved it!

1 lb Cavatappi or any ridged pasta (I can't remember what I used but it wasn't Cavatappi)

olive oil

1 med. onion, chopped

3 tbsp flour

1 + 1/2 cup of skim milk

1/2 lb sliced capocollo, halved, then sliced into thin ribbons

1 - 10 oz box from chopped spinach, defrosted and wrung out in a clean kitchen towel.

1/2 c Parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 t. nutmeg

1/2 t. cayenne pepper

1 lb ball of mozzarella

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook al dente.

While the waqter is coming up to a boil for the pasta, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 T olive oil. Add the onions and season with salt and peper. Cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes, then dust with ionions with the flour and continue to cook for 1 mintue. Slowly whisk in the milk. Gently bring the milk to a bubble, allow the mixture to thincken a bit, then stir in the ham, spinach, and parmesan. Season the sauce with nutmeg and cayenne and remove from the heat. Taste and add a little salt, if you like.

Combine the cooked pasta and the cubed mozzerella with the sauce, then stir to coat completely by turning over and over.

___________________________________________________________________

Smoky Black Bean and Rice Stoup --

I try not to buy lean cusines too much. But when I do I almost always buy the Santa Fe Rice and Beans one. This recipe reminds me a lot of that one. A small portion really fills you up and it freezes really well.

3 bacon slices, chopped

1 bay leaf

1 med onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, chopped

1 cup frozen corn kernels

2 - 15oz cans black beans -- (Rachael Ray's recipe calls for 1 can drained and smashed with a potato masher. I did this to both cans which might be the reason I was able to love this soup.)

1 T. ground coriander

1 T. chili powder

1 T. ground cumin

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

2 T. Tabasco

1 - 15 oz can diced fire roasted tomatoes

1 - 8 oz can tomato sauce

1 quart chicken stock or broth

2 c brown rice

Heat a medium soup pot over medium high heat. Add the bacon and cook for 4 minutes to render the gross fat out of it. :) Add the bay leaf, onions and garlic and cook for 4 more minutes. Add the corn and the beans. Season the veggies and beans with coriander, chili, ground cumin, Worcestershire and hot sauce. Season the mixture with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce and stock , then cover the pot and raise the heat to bring the soup to a boil. Add the rice and cook over a rolling simmer until the rice is tender but has a little bite left to it, 15 minutes. Adjust the seasonings.

I'm back....

I decided that I had to get back to blogging because Jeff bought me a new Rachael Ray cookbook for Christmas and it is great! So I wanted to share the recipes that we have made already. I'll post those at the end of the blog. Ken has started up his blog again. Be sure to check out his 365 day picture project at http://entirelynameless.blogspot.com/ .

Ken and I had so much fun this past Christmas. We were lucky to have spent it with so many friends and family. Here are some pictures of the Holiday! Love you all!




Audrey, Gina, Me and Erica. I'm new family is a lot of fun!











We had the Zaffke Christmas at our house this year. Here I am stealing a hug from my nephew Oliver.










Oliver on Uncle Kenny's shoulders. Oliver seems to be liking Ken and I a lot more these days.












Our house on Christmas Eve.


























December 23rd is one of my favorite day's of the entire year. This we Lisa Marie Johnson joined the fun.











Our first Christmas!











The In-Law's and Lisa Marie Johnson.













The "Sansgaard" girl cousin's know how to have a fun time when we are together. Rook, Monopoly Deal, Banagrams were some of the games we played this year.








Aren't we a cute bunch? (Jeff is my favorite in this picture.)











Spending time together has really changed over the years. The "Sansgaard" boy cousin's were all REALLY into their electronic games.









Things have changed a lot for me in 2009. I love being married to Ken. I don't even mind the Yoda that tops my Christmas tree now.










Ok. Recipes. The recipes below are my versions of the recipes in the cookbook. For some I can't seem to follow the recipes. I just feel the need to change them and make them my own.

Mediterranean Chicken and Saffron Couscous -- This is adapted from Rachael Ray's recipe.

Cooking Spray - (Rachael calls for 4 T of olive oil. I try to make our meals as lowfat as possible.)
½ cup all-purpose flour
3 or 4 boneless-skinless chicken breast halves, cut into large chuncks.
salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 cups chicken stock or broth
1 pinch of saffron, or 1 single-use packet saffron powder
4 garlic cloves, 1 crushed, 3 chopped
1 cup couscous
1 large red onion, chopped
1 tsp dried thyme leaves.
1 15-ounce can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1 cup dry white wine (I was bummed that I didn't have any on hand. I just used chicken broth but will use wine the next time we make it.)
10 -20 kalamata olives, pitted, cut in half
½ pint grape tomatoes
½ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, coarsely chopped - (I used the parsley in a tube. I used about a tablespoon. The stuff in a tube is great! It has more flavor than dried and doesn't spoil as fast as fresh.)
1 Tablespoon dried basil

Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Spray with cooking oil. Place the flour in a shallow dish, season the chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and the cayenne, (Taste the flour to make sure you can taste all the seasonings. I added a lot more cayenne to mine.) Then transfer the seasoned chicken to the dish with the flour, toss around in the flour, then shake off the excess. Add the chicken to the skillet and cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side. While the chicken is cooking, make the saffron couscous.

In a sauce pot, bring 2 cups of the chicken stock up to a boil with the saffron, the crushed clove of garlic, salt, and pepper. When the stock is at a boil, add the couscous, cover with a lid, and turn the heat off. Let the couscous stand for 10 minutes.

Once the chicken is done, remove it from the pan and cover with a piece of aluminum foil to keep warm. Return the skillet to the heat and add more cooking oil spray. Add the artichokes and wine to the pan, bring up to a simmer, then add the remaining 1 cup of chicken stock, olives, and grape tomatoes. Return the liquids to a simmer and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the grape tomatoes start to burst and the sauce has reduced by half. Give the sauce a taste to see if it needs more salt and pepper.

Add the chicken back to the skillet and warm through. Add the parsley and basil to the completed dish and stir to distribute the herbs.

To serve, fluff the couscous with a fork, remove and discard the crushed garlic clove, and transfer the couscous to serving plates. Serve the chicken whole or sliced on top of the saffron couscous. Top the chicken with some of the sauce and vegetables. Enjoy!

BBQ Sloppy Chicken or Turkey Pan Pizza

Adapted from Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats

2 boxes corn muffin mix (8.5 ounces each)

2 eggs

4 T unsalted butter, melted

1 1/2 cups milk

1 cup frozen corn kernels

spray oil for the pan

TOPPING

Spray Oil

1 lb. ground chicken (I used ground turkey because that is what my husband bought at the store. Would make it again with the turkey.)

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 small red bell pepper, diced

salt and pepper

1 T chili powder

1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin - (After tasting the dish I ended up adding more cumin. Probably a total of 2 1/2 tsp.)

2 tsp. hot sauce

1 T Worcestershire sauce

1 cup tomato sauce

3 T brown sugar

2 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

3 chopped scallions

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

In a large bowl, mix the corn muffin mixes, eggs, milk, melted butter, and corn kernels. Spray cooking oil into a very large nonstick skillet. Pour the batter in the skillet and bake at 400 for about 20 minutes or until it is well set and brown on top.

In another skillet over medium-high heat, spray pan with cooking oil and add chicken. Once the meat starts to brown add onion, and red pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes. Add garlic and good for 2 minutes more. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and hot sauce. Cook for about 5 minutes or until veggies are tender to your liking. Add Wocestershire sauce, tomato sauce, and brown sugar; stir and reduce heat to low. Let simmer about 10 minutes or until your cornbread is done.Pour the chicken mixture over the cooked cornbread (leaving it in the skillet) and sprinkle with cheese and scallions. Return to oven for another 5 minutes or until cheese is all melted.