Fall leaves and Perfect Roast Chicken

Micah has been on leave all week and we just got back from a little getaway to Denver (more on that in another post). So we've had a lazy week of just hanging out and doing fun things....except for the fact that Micah has gotten multiple work phone calls a day which annoys me to no end. (Seriously, can he not have a week to himself????)

Anyway, I really wanted to get pictures of Skylar in the leaves like I did at exactly this time last year. Fortunately we did right before the blizzard hit. Unfortunately, there was something foggy on my lens and I didn't realize it. Oh well, photographer I am not, but it's fun to compare this year to last and see how big she's gotten (sniff, sniff).

And now for a couple of my favorite cold-weather recipes!

I adore Ina Garten and started making her Perfect Roast Chicken a few years back. The name does not lie, it turns out exactly right every time. If you've never tried roasting a chicken before you NEED to try this recipe. (And if a whole raw chicken grosses you out like it does me--suck it up. It will be worth it!) Just 10 minutes of prep time and your work is done. Make your husband carve it.

PERFECT ROAST CHICKEN

1 5-6 pound roasting chicken

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

1 large bunch of fresh thyme (there is no substitution for fresh here!)

1 lemon, halved

1 head of garlic, cut in half crosswise

2 T. of butter melted

1 spanish onion thickly sliced

1 cup chicken stock

2 T all purpose flour

Preheat oven to 425. Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out, removing any excess fat and leftover pin feathers. Pat the outside dry. Place the chicken in a roasting pan. Liberally salt the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the thyme, both halves of lemon, and all of the garlic. Brush the outside of the chicken with melted butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Scatter onion slices around the chicken.

Roast for 1 1/2 hours or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and a thigh. Remove to a platter and let rest under foil while you prepare gravy.

(Gravy isn't my thing.....I don't do gravy, but in case you do--here it is.)

Remove all the fat from the bottom of the pan, reserving two tablespoons in a small cup. Add the chicken stock to the pan and cook on high heat for 5 minutes, until reduced, scraping the bottom of the pan. Combine the 2 T of chicken fat with the flour and add to the pan. Boil for a few minutes to cook the flour. Strain the gravy into a small saucepan and season it to taste. Keep it warm over a very low flame while carving the chicken.

The finished result:

I usually serve it with Ina's Caramelized Butternut Squash, which I could eat as a meal on it's own. The condensed version of the recipe is as follows:

Peal and chop 2 medium butternut squash (4-5 pounds total). Toss with 6 T. melted unsalted butter, 1/4 cup of brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons of Kosher Salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper. Roast for 45-55 minutes, until squash is tender and caramelized.

So go on with your bad self, and roast up a chicken.

A few of my new favorite things.

I just want to share a few things that I am currently loving.

I am obsessed with Back to Nature products, especially the Apple blueberry granola. It is SO GOOD and only has 2.5 grams of fat per serving. (They're packaging is also "green" but that's secondary to the taste.) They also make awesome Chocolate Chunk cookies made without high fructose corn syrup or white sugar. If you can find them in your store, you need to try them. It also happens to be the cheapest brand where I shop, so that's a plus.I also love the Mossimo Tissue Tees from Target ($9.99). They come in 6 colors and are perfect for layering under sweaters/jackets/short sleeves without over-heating. I love how long they are and they aren't too shear, so it's also cute by itself or with a scarf. I currently have it in 2 colors, but will probably end up with a few more by the end of the year. They frequently go on sale for $8 and I wear the two I have every.single.week. You need to try them!

Another favorite around here are The First Years disposable kids cups with straws. Skylar loves drinking from a straw, and these are perfect. The lids have never popped off and the straw fits snugly so there are no leaks. Best of all, they are "disposable" (even though you can reuse them forever) so if you lose one somewhere--or in my case melt the lids in the dishwasher---it's okay!! They aren't "baby cups" so they're great for older kids too and only $3.50 for a 4 pack.

I love getting recommendations from people, so if you have any please pass them along!

The Sunday crunch.

Why is it so hard to get out of the house for church? Especially considering we have TWO adults and ONE puny child to get ready?

You would think after 18 months we would have the hang of it by now. We kind of do: I pick out Skylar's clothes, Micah gets her dressed, I do her hair, he checks the diaper bag, I make the sippy cup, he puts her in the car, etc. So really, she's the easy part.

Inevitably one of us (me) forgets to eat breakfast and ends up drinking diet coke and eating goldfish (or whatever snack I find in the car) on the way to church. And one of us (me) never knows what their wearing until 5 minutes before we walk out the door, as though anyone cares. It doesn't help when your husband tells you it's warm outside, but it's really only 33 degrees. Besides he can wear the exact same outfit every sunday and feel absolutely fabulous.

We prefer the early service, but this morning Skylar slept until 9 am, so late service it was. We actually made it to the sanctuary with 5 minutes to spare, but I was exhausted and ready for a nap by the time we got there.

This picture pretty much sums up the morning:

(I think she was upset because Micah said she looked like a Librarian with her button down shirt and cardigan.)

The service was great as always, and I honestly don't know how we will ever find another church like this one when we move. We have been doing a worship series for 23 weeks, and today was the culmination. Woodmen Valley incorporates so many creative expressions of worship, it's been really awesome. It was almost 1:00 when we pulled out of the parking lot so we popped Skylar's binky in and hoped she would fall asleep like she always does.

Then we drove into this:

Nice, big wet snowflakes.

Skylar decided the snow was worth staying awake for. She didn't remember it from last winter (just four short months ago) and was really excited. As soon as we got out of the car she ran around pointing to make sure we were seeing what she was seeing.

Since we are about to head south to a warm, snowless South Carolina winter, I'm happy it's snowing too. (I really do like snow--just not 8 months out of the year. I think all four seasons should have equal opportunity.)

Her excitement was infectious. She didn't care that she was getting all wet. She didn't care what we dressed her in for church. She didn't even remember how upset she was when the nursery worker accidentally knocked her head against the door while passing her over to me.

She was just happy.

It occured to me that if a toddler can worship, then that's what she was doing. Or maybe she's just teaching her parents.

We're snotty around here.

Since I've been sick the past couple of weeks, Skylar has seen me blowing my nose a lot. Now it's one of her favorite things to do:

At least she throws them away when she's done.

Yum-O.

Yes, Rachel Ray is a wee bit obnoxious, but I'm going to post one of her recipes anyway. If you've eaten at my house in the past five years, you've probably had this---it's a favorite around here:

Chinese-Barbecued-Chicken Lettuce Wraps

2 cups fresh shitake mushrooms (I use button mushrooms)
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast or tenders
2 T. vegetable or peanut oil
Salt and pepper to taste
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 inch ginger root, finely chopped or grated
Grated zest of 1 orange
1/2 red bell pepper, diced small
1 small tin water chestnuts, drained and chopped
3 scallions, chopped
3 T. Hoisin sauce
2 large heads of iceburg lettuce, cores removed, heads quartered (I use a red or green leaf lettuce)
1 navel orange

Remove and discard stems from mushrooms and brush caps with a damp towel to clean. Chop mushroom caps.

Chop chicken into small pieces. (The finer the chop, the more "PF Chang-y it is:)

Heat a large skillet or wok over high heat. Add oil to hot pan. Add chicken to the pan and sear meat by stir frying a minute or two. Add mushrooms and cook another minute or two. Add salt and pepper, then garlic and ginger. Cook a minute more. Add orange zest then bell peppers, water chestnuts, and scallions. Stir fry another minute. Add hoisin sauce and toss to coat mixture evenly.

Transfer barbecued chicken to a serving platter and pile lettuce wedges along side. Garnish with orange wedges.

Serves 4.

For convenience, I recommend prepping all of the ingredients before you start, because once you start stir-frying it goes really fast. A microplane is a handy tool for this recipe (orange zest and ginger) so if you don't have one, I highly recommend it. It will soon become your favorite kitchen gadget.
Last night Nicole and Natasha came over and made dinner for us: pork chops, butternut squash soup, salad, bread and then the most amazing chocolate cake ever. If you like chocolate you MUST try this recipe. It starts with a cake mix, so it's fast and easy. (Go here for the recipe). Thank you ladies for an awesome meal, you are welcome to come and do it again anytime!And just for the heck of it, here's a picture of Skylar looking like a homeless child after her daddy dressed her in nothing but baby legs and a hoodie. And as for the hair....we won't even go there.

DIY Baby Legs

***Edit: My original link to the instructions wasn't very clear, so go here to learn how to make them.

I am so excited about my latest project that I am inspired to blog two days in a row!

I got this idea from a lady I have never met, but her father was sitting at the same table as Micah and I at an MCYM luncheon where Micah spoke a few weeks back. He was telling us about his children and grand kids and told me I just had to check out his daughter's blog. So I did, and while she is far craftier than I (she has lots of cute projects on her blog), this looked like something I could actually do--and so can you.

They are baby/kid legwarmers made out of women's knee socks and they seriously take 10 minutes to make (more like 20 minutes the first time while you figure out the directions). I bought 3 pairs of socks on Ebay for 1.25 a pair and decided to give it a shot last night, and here is the end result:

Skylar wasn't being a very cooperative model so I'll just leave her whiny little face out of this picture:)
Okay here's her face (studiously ignoring me) and her new leg warmers in action. (The dress is a hand-me-down from Addison Hilton--thanks Amy!!)
Considering BabyLegs are $12 a pair, these are well worth the few minutes it takes to make them and way cuter than most tights. I also anticipate them being perfect for potty training whenever that happens. At any rate, I am totally hooked now and Skylar will definitely be sporting these all winter.

I need to vent.

I detest the Ft. Carson commissary. I realize it's a military benefit and I should be grateful to have access to it's inner sanctuary. But I'm not gonna lie, I can't stand the place.

To be honest, it isn't even that much of a discount. In fact, the more I shop in regular grocery stores the more I realize that I'm actually paying more for some things in the commissary. Add to that the fact that Colorado has no sales tax for food, but the commissary tacks on a hefty surcharge, and the "benefits" really diminish.

The exception to this is the meat and dry goods. You can't beat the price of chicken at the commissary, even if it does sometimes smell funky after just a day in the fridge thereby causing me to throw it out and waste money. However, frequently when I go there isn't a single package of chicken or turkey to be found. Apparently they have stocking problems.

They also can't hold a candle to King Sooper's free kids cookies, penny horse rides and pimped out car-carts. It's like Disney Land for Skylar. But I don't expect the government to waste money on that stuff, so we'll that one slide.

One of my biggest frustrations (besides the fact that there are no carts during "busy hours" which could be anytime of the day and the fact that I am always overcharged for something) are the cashiers. They are so incredibly unprofessional. They go on and on about their personal lives, nights out, and are usually cussing like sailors while they check you out. I've had to ask them to please refrain from using those words in front of my child, resulting in dirty looks (and I swear broken eggs one time). Usually they are discussing all of this with the bagger or worse, yelling it to the next cashier over. The Chic-fil-A people need to do a commissary take over and teach them some customer service.

The breaking point was this past summer when my cashier was talking about her severe constipation with the neighboring cashier. I couldn't BELIEVE it. The other cashier was giving her lots of helpful advice (involving the nuances of enemas) which apparently she had already tried. Do I really have to listen to your poo-problems while I'm buying food?

That one warranted a complaint letter, not that it probably did much good.

All of this to say, the commissary does have brief shining moments that keep me coming back. For instance, in the past month they have had an incredible cheese sale. The 8 oz Kraft blocks, bags, sticks, slices, etc have been on sale for $1.25. And then if you buy six they give you a $5 off coupon making the grand total for 6 things of cheese, ahem....$2 or .66 a pound. I've come across this sale 4 times now, and that's a whole lotta cheese in my freezer and some in Nicole's too.

This is also the time of year when the Christmas things debut, which mostly consists of yummy imported European delicacies. I'll admit, my inner fat-kid did a happy dance when I saw the Bahlsen ginger bread cookies. I've missed them so.

I may have eaten 3 for lunch today with a side of milk. Think what you will, but they were yummy and I might do it again tomorrow.