More Frosty Days!

"One kind word can warm three winter months."--Japanese Proverb


     This month the family took a field trip to beautiful Cache Valley and proceeded on to Hardware Ranch. We took a picnic lunch and ate it there in the building provided near the visitor's center.  Then we took a sleigh ride to see the elk.  The Rocky Mountain elk is the state animal of Utah (just a little trivia to make it educational).  Our tour guide/ sleigh driver, who insisted his real name was Cheeseburger, filled us in on all the details of the ranch.  This was a great winter activity.

 

Bella and Nicki

 

Cheeseburger

 

     I read the best book this past month.  It's called The Rent Collector by Camron Wright.  It's about a family that lives in the garbage dump in Cambodia.  The mom has a chance to learn to read and the whole story is about how that changes her life.  I loved the examples of poetry and prose throughout the book.

          Here's an easy recipe to try out.  It was adapted from a recipe from Managing Your Meals Cookbook.

 

Sesame Baked Chicken

1/3 cup butter                                     1/8 tsp. pepper

1 egg, slightly beaten                         8 boneless chicken breast halves (tenders work nicely)

1 ½ Tbspn. water                                1/3 cup flour

1 ½ Tbspn. soy sauce                          ¼ cup sesame seeds

½ tsp. salt                                           

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place butter in 8x12 inch baking pan and let melt while oven preheats.  Meanwhile, blend egg, water, soy sauce, salt and pepper.  Dip chicken in flour, then into egg mixture.  Arrange chicken in pan, turning to coat with butter.  Sprinkle generously with sesame seeds.  Bake at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until tender and golden brown.  Serve with mushroom sauce if desired.

Mushroom sauce:  In medium saucepan melt ¼ cup butter.  Stir in 1/3 cup flour. Remove from heat and add 1 can chicken broth.  Stir until smooth.  Cook and stir until thick.  Add ½ cup cream (or milk), ¼ tsp. salt, few grains pepper and 1 can sliced mushrooms( drained).  You can also add some chopped fresh parsley.  I just use a little dried parsley.

 

     I found this recipe at Allrecipes.com.  It has cranberries in it so it has to be good.

Cranberry Rice Pilaf

1 Tbspn. olive oil                                             1 tsp. salt

1 cup chopped onions                                     black pepper to taste

½ cup dried cranberries                                 2 green onions, thinly sliced

1 ½ cups rice                                                   3 Tbspn. chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

3 cups chicken broth                                       ¼ cup sliced almonds

     Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and cook and stir until tender; about 5 minutes.  Stir in cranberries and rice and cook for another 5 minutes or so.  Pour chicken broth into the skillet with salt and pepper.  Bring mixture to a boil.  Cover and reduce heat.  Simmer for about 20-25 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed.  Remove skillet from heat and add green onions, cilantro and almonds.  Stir until mixed and warm throughout.

 

 

    It took me awhile, but I finally finished my Forget-Me-Not quilt.  It was a block of the month sponsored by Quilts, Etc. in Sandy. We learned how to make twelve blocks from Japan. Then we got to finish our quilts any way we wanted.  I finished mine with a little applique in each corner and some blue squares and a mock scalloped border.



     This is a kit I purchased at The Wood Connection in Midvale.  When I'm finished with it it will look like the snowman on the right.  I just need to find a wild shoelace for the scarf.