Happy Earth Day!

This Earth Day I challenge you to take one action towards a green lifestyle. It could be as simple as remembering to turn off the lights when you leave a room, riding your bike or taking a walk, or using reusable bags.

Have a Happy Earth Day!

Happy Birthday Spencer!

Saturday we celebrated our friend Spencer's 27th Birthday with a Pool Party!

the Pool version of Battleship

the Birthday Boy

I love Arbor Day!!

Every year for Arbor Day, our city (and I suspect a lot of your cities), gives away Free Trees for the wonderful Day. We didn't find out about it until last year, when we had already been homeowners for 2 years, but we were so glad that we did find out. Last year a Magnolia was our tree of choice. And this year we got a Yellow Trumpet Tree! We are so excited to plant it. I already know where I want to put it...were just waiting for it to get accustomed to it's spot before we plant it.

Crawfish Boil

About 3 years ago, I went to my first ever Crawfish Boil. My husband had been the two years prior, but I unfortunately worked retail back then. Ever since I tasted that first crawfish, I fell in love!!



They are so much better than shrimp. And with the authentic Louisiana Flavors, I couldn't get enough. So this past Saturday, we went to the Crawfish Boil! Along with the Crawfish, there was Red Beans and Rice, Jambalaya and lots of goodies.

Blue and Pink

The Sky. Was beautiful tonight. After a Day of Rain.

Chicken Saltimbocca

Ingredients

• 6 (3-ounce) chicken cutlets, pounded to evenly flatten
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 paper-thin slices prosciutto
• 1 (10-ounce) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
  
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 (14-ounce) can low-salt chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  

Directions

Place the chicken cutlets flat on the work surface. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Lay 1 slice of prosciutto atop each chicken cutlet.

Squeeze the frozen spinach to remove the excess water. Season the spinach with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, toss the spinach with 1 tablespoon of oil to coat.

Arrange an even, thin layer of spinach atop the prosciutto slices. Sprinkle the Parmesan evenly over each. Beginning at the short tapered end, roll up each chicken cutlet as for a jellyroll. Secure with a toothpick.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy large skillet over high heat. Add the chicken and cook just until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Add the chicken broth and lemon juice, and scrape the browned bits off the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium. Cover and simmer until the chicken is just cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a platter. Simmer the cooking liquid over high heat until it is reduced to about 2/3 cup, about 5 minutes. Season the cooking liquid with salt and pepper, to taste. Remove toothpicks from the chicken. Drizzle the reduced cooking liquid over the chicken and serve immediately.

Going Green

Recycle!!



Recycling is easy. You can get a free bin from your City. Throw in plastic, newspaper, aluminum, glass, and so much more. Help out our landfills!!

Happy Easter!!!

Happy Easter Everyone!!

Easter Egg Hunt

Today, our friends Doug and Lauren hosted an Easter Egg Hunt/Meet and Greet which just happened to be on Doug's Birthday! Lauren just had identical twin boys, oh so cute, and wanted to host a time for friends and family to visit. Easter weekend just happened to be the best time and so she made the most of it by having an Easter Egg Hunt. There were so many pregnant ladies and kids! It was so much fun.



It was Cohen's first Easter Egg Hunt and it was so much fun watching him pick up eggs. Okay...So we kind of walked him around making him pick up eggs and forcing them into the basket so he could get more...but it was still fun. He caught on pretty quickly to what we were doing and didn't find it too amusing.


So, we just let him sit and play with the few eggs he caught. None the less, it was a lot of fun. And we look forward to many more Easter Egg Hunts in the future.

Thrifty Finds

This week I went on a shopping Spree. To the local thrift stores. I wanted to see what I could find. So, here is a sneak peek. Real photos to come once I put together some outfits.

...er, Thursday. This past Tuesday my in-laws came over for a visit, and brought some yummy Red Beans and Rice. So, needless to say, I didn't cook on Tuesday. Which was actually quite nice. And it allowed me to get some much needed cleaning to do.

But we did still want to do the new recipe for the week, so we did it on Thursday. This week I tried a new recipe for enchiladas. They were really good. But I think I will stick with my usual recipe.

Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas with Gooey Jack Cheese

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
  
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces *see cook's note
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles
• 1/3 cup prepared salsa, mild, medium or hot
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 4 (8-inch) flour tortillas
• 1 1/3 cups shredded Monterey jack and or Cheddar
• *Cook's note: this is enough chicken to make this meal and another meal. If you are only making this meal, use 1 pound chicken.

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute 2 minutes. Add chicken and saute 5 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. Remove half of the chicken and reserve for another use.

Stir in black beans, green chiles, and salsa and simmer 5 minutes, until sauce thickens and reduces. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro.

Arrange 4 tortillas on a flat surface. Top each tortilla with an equal amount of chicken mixture. Roll up tortillas and place side by side in a shallow baking dish. Top tortillas with shredded cheese (1/3 cup per tortilla).

Bake enchiladas 15 minutes, until cheese is golden and gooey!

Cohen's first time at the Pool

This past Saturday we helped some friends move. And when I say we, I mean the guys. The girls hung out by the pool! It was a really nice day to just relax, spend time with friends and enjoy the gorgeous Florida weather. And this was the first time that Cohen went swimming. Well, I guess he didn't go swimming, but just hang out in the arms of some lovely ladies while wading in the water. But, he did so great! The first time my parents took me into the pool, I screamed at the top of my lungs. I didn't like it at all. But Cohen was the opposite. He loved it! He splashed around, kicked his feet. It was so cute. I look forward to many more pool times.

(don't mind my paleness. i haven't had a nice tan in some time. sad.)

Brunch with the Ladies

The first Saturday of each month, the Ladies of our Young Married's Group get together and have brunch. During this time we fellowhship, talk about the current book we are reading, and of course eat some yummy food. This time I decided to make some mini frittatas for the brunch. These were super easy and really good.

Ingredients

• Nonstick vegetable oil cooking spray
  
• 8 large eggs
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces thinly sliced ham, chopped
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Spray 2 mini muffin tins (each with 24 cups) with nonstick spray. Whisk the eggs, milk, pepper, and salt in a large bowl to blend well. Stir in the ham, cheese, and parsley. Fill prepared muffin cups almost to the top with the egg mixture. Bake until the egg mixture puffs and is just set in the center, about 8 to 10 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, loosen the frittatas from the muffin cups and slide the frittatas onto a platter. Serve immediately.

Rain, Rain...Stay Awhile

We finally got a nice down pour this afternoon. Florida has been suffereing from some major drought. Nothing like California, but we have had some wildfires. In February the freeze came through and burned everything and then we've been without rain for a good while. So, the rain was gladly welcomed. Even if it did take our power away for an hour.