I haven’t had much computer time because I was visiting Rina in Orem, so that’s why I haven’t posted. Anyhow…this is the pic I took on Friday. This is my friend Nicole. We try to get together once a month. Due to the holidays we haven’t been able to get together for a few months. She wouldn’t let me take a pic of her by herself so we snapped one together. Unfortunately, I totally didn’t look good and since she’s so gorgeous I cropped myself out. heehee. It was so nice catching up with her.
My pic of the day is of my shoes on our treadmill. Yes…Jon and I actually own a treadmill…heehee. I finally started my working out for the year. I have somehow lost 10 Lbs since January and my goal is 10 Lbs a month. So…I realized that there’s no way I can keep losing weight if I don’t start working out. Treadmills are pretty boring, but I loved it today because I put it at an incline and it was like I was walking up hill the entire time. It was a very good workout!
I am currently on my “summer” break from my babies and I miss work so much. With that said I am unemployed for three months so money is going to be a little tight. Jon and I have been trying to go the last two weeks without spending money. So I’ve had to come up with some crazy dinner ideas. One night I made a stir fry with frozen vegetables, ramen, onions and garlic. I knew as I was creating it that he would eat it, but he wouldn’t really enjoy it. When he got home I gave him the option to eat it or make his own dinner. He made his own dinner. ANYHOW, when I made this chicken I was hoping it wouldn’t be a bomb like the stir fry. And it wasn’t thank goodness! It actually turned out to be DELICIOUS!! I totally redeemed myself! I’ll tell you what I did and what ingredients I used, but it really was just a mesh of things. I didn’t measure anything. So good luck! Enjoy!
Fried and Baked Chicken
Chicken (I only had thighs, but use whatever you have)
Shortening (to fry the chicken in)
Buttermilk (I had to make it using powdered milk. The ratio is: 1 cup of milk you add 1 tbsp of white vinegar or lemon juice…let it sit 5-10 min)
Garlic Powder
Cayenne Pepper
Flour for dredging
Garlic Salt to taste
Soak the chicken in buttermilk for at least 8 hours. Overnight works too! Mix garlic powder and cayenne pepper in a small bowl (I think I used a 2:1 ratio (2 being the garlic powder)). Remove the chicken from the buttermilk. Rub the seasoning on the chicken. Then put it in the flour. Shake off excess flour. Fry for about 3 min on each side. You just want to let it get crispy, but not cooked all the way thru. Once gold brown place chicken on baking sheet. And bake for about 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees or until internal temperature of the chicken is about 180 degrees. Then eat!
I meant to post this yesterday, but my server issues wouldn’t allow it. It’s a blessing and a curse having Jon host my blog. LOL. Let me explain. It’s a blessing for me to have a husband to fix my comp and blog issues BUT it’s a curse for Jon because I expect him to drop whatever he’s doing to get my stuff fixed. hahaha. He loves me! Anyhow, I found this recipe on Melanies blog. It was so easy to make! And it looked just like a loaf of french bread from the grocery store! I was so impressed with myself. Try this PLEASE! Enjoy!
Grandma’s French Bread
2 ¼ cup warm water
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp yeast
1 Tbsp salt
2 Tbsp oil
5 ½ -6 cups flour-stirred before measured
Dissolve sugar and yeast in the warm water. Let this proof—or sit for a few minutes until it bubbles. Then add salt, oil and 3 cups of flour and beat well. Add in 2 1/2 -3 more cups of flour. The dough should clean off the sides of the bowl and not be too stick – but be careful not to add too much flour. Knead for a few minutes.
Leave the dough in the mixer to rest for 10 minutes and then stir it down (turn on your mixer for 10 seconds) and then allow to rest another 10 minutes. Repeat for a total of 5 times. Then turn dough onto a floured surface and divide into two equal parts. Roll each part into a 9×13 rectangle. Roll dough up, starting from long edge of loaf to seal. Arrange seam side down on large baking sheet that’s been sprinkled with corn meal (I didn’t have corn meal so I just sprayed the pan lightly with cooking spray), allowing room for both loaves. Repeat with second part of dough. With a sharp knife, cut 3 gashes at an angle on the top of each. Cover lightly; allow to rise 30 minutes (I let mine rise for longer because I didn’t want to bake it yet and it still turned out fabulously!) Brush entire surface with egg wash (one egg beaten slightly with 1 Tbsp of water). If desired, sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for 30 minutes at 375 degrees.
