Spinach and Asiago Stuffed Chicken with Bacon!

      Tonight I realized that my fresh baby spinach was going to expire so I decided to saute it and stuff it into some chicken breast with the rest of the delicious asiago cheese I had bought on an impulse, glad I did. If you don't eat bacon, you should but if you still don't want to even after that super convincing sentence fragment, you could add more flavor by spreading some dijon mustard inside the chicken breast. Anyway, this is what I made for dinner.

Ingredients. 

• 4 chicken breast
• 10oz. fresh baby spinach or thawed frozen 
• 4oz. asiago cheese 

• 6 or more baby bella mushrooms chopped 
• 1TBP butter 
• 8 slices of bacon
• salt and pepper
• italian blend herbs about a TBP or 2 TBP of dijon mustard. 

Putting it together.

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Once melted add chopped mushrooms. When they have browned lightly add spinach and saute.

 2. Lay two slices of bacon side by side on a work surface. Then lay your chicken breast on top. Season with spices. Add the sauteed spinach and mushrooms and slices of asiago spinach. Then start from the bottom and roll up the chicken and place into a casserole dish.

3. Bake in oven for 35 minutes then heat oven to 500F and broil until the bacon has browned and crisped about 5 minutes on each side. Then enjoy. 

      At the bottom of my dish there was some delicious juices which would have been great for making gravy and serving over the top of the chicken roll up and some mash potatoes but I had already made pesto orzo pasta to serve with our chicken. Also I noticed that most of the cheese oozed out into the bottom of the pan but I didn't notice until after we had finished and I was draining the juice for a rainy day. So just a heads up, make sure to serve that with yours. 

    And for dessert... BEER FLOATS! 

     One bottle of stout beer, we used cream stout but an oatmeal stout or chocolate stout would be yummy. And then an extra large scoop of ice-cream, vanilla or chocolate. 

     Mmmmm, tastes like an espresso coffee drink, only better because it gets you a little buzzed. 

Wearing My Boyfriend's Clothes

    I found this video on the youtube with ways to turn a mens shirt into a dress. I really liked it and was super excited to try it out for myself until I read the comments which included people saying things like, "I have two problems, boobs" and "If only I didn't have boobs..." Damn, I often find myself saying this and it seems to always keep me out of the cutest bras, button up shirts and certain necklines. Never the less, I persist and try for a better version of what the skinny, no titty model is wearing.
     Since my boyfriend and I are roughly the same size I only have his size small shirts to work with on my size large frame. Which means I only have enough material to make a top and not a dress like the model in the video shows. I came up with a kind of cowl neck halter top. The buttons are in the back, which I think is really cute because you can leave them unbuttoned and show a little more back, if you are so daring. The back of the shirt has become the front and the folded collar is your modesty neckline and then you tie the arms around the back of your neck. So it will leave loose material for your boobs to fit in and create a cowl neckline. I absolutely love it.

      Of course you could always just go and get a bigger shirt but what's the point if its not your own boyfriends?  Here is the video that inspired me, I hope it does the same for you.

Chicken, Spinach ,Caesar PIZZA!

     Last night I had a stoke of pure GENIUS and decided to put caesar dressing on our home made pizza. I also added spinach, chicken, asiago cheese, olives and mushrooms and some shrimp on my half.This will now be a regular pizza because it was awesome. I also used french bread dough rolled out really thin for my crust which I think was probably the best pizza crust we have had so far, thin, crisp, and yummy.

Up-cycled Laundry Door Shutters

      The other day when I went crazy on my house, blogger and Martha Stewart, I actually got around to cleaning up my laundry area which still looked a lot like it did when we got here, disgusting. Part of the process was figuring out where to hide or what to do with the old shutters that have been taken down since they will not close with my front loaders. I walked them over to a corner of the house and tried hiding an unfinished project, then decided that the wall I moved them from was too ugly to not have them up there and then I unfolded them. I happened to have a stack of framed photos that I had not yet hung up since the walls are not done being painted and then it clicked! Put the photos on the shutters, simple yet very effective. 

     All you have to do is slide the leg part of the frame into the crease of the shutter. Some of my frames don't sit flush with the shutter but it really doesn't bother me. If that is something you think will bother you then make sure to get the kind of frames that have the leg piece in the center and not the ones that are on an angle. 

    The only thing that is bothering me is that the shutters could use some paint and false aging because they are a little flat for my taste, even with the photos on them, they look like they are missing something. Possibly dried flowers and some nick nacks.

I just wanted to share my sweet thrift store find today! I love this table runner.

    This would be another idea of what you could do with old shutters. I think that I will draw some inspiration from this one and possibly paint some of mine a different color. Anyway, things to think about!

That Felon...

    Fucking Martha Stewart! Today I came across a, "daily, weekly, monthly and annual cleaning list" on pinterest. I re-pinned it to help remind myself of the things that I may have or may not be neglecting to clean in my own home.  Turns out I am pretty much good on the daily and weekly check lists since I have made my own but apparently you are suppose to wash things like pillows and clean out your oven!
    I stopped reading after I got through the monthly list, it disgusted me knowing that as much as I work and try to stay on top of this shit, I am always going to be ten steps behind Martha Stewart! Her list makes mine list look like it needs to be cleaned! So basically I am pissed that I can't be more like Martha, Martha, Martha and I am deep cleaning my house.
     Damn it I love that whore...

All I Want To Do Is Cook Your Bread!

   I couldn't agree more with you Etta.

Balsamic Vinegar and Blackberry Chicken

     This is the "So good your boyfriend will do the dishes," chicken recipe I have come up with. I am still working on the "Proposal," chicken recipe which I have heard rumored exists but only married women know how to perfect it and are definitely leaving something out of their shared recipes. Anyway, I will share mine and not leave anything out. I have served this chicken with mash potatoes, and pumpkin gratin or sautéed spinach and mushrooms, it goes well with just about everything.
   

Balsamic Vinegar and Blackberry Chicken Recipe

       Ingredients list                                                                                              makes 4 servings

4 chicken breasts

salt

pepper

1/2 tsp sage
3 cloves of minced garlic. 

1 Tbsp honey 

1/4 cup blackberries ( I used frozen)

1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette dressing or 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth

     Putting it all together 

1. Heat some olive oil over medium low heat and place your chicken breast in the skillet. Salt, pepper  and add garlic and sage and half of the chicken broth. Flip the breast when you can see its cooked about half way through. 
2. When you flip the chicken add the rest of the broth, blackberries, honey and vinegar. The idea is to simmer the chicken into juicy, sweet submission. Yummy. 
3. After your chicken is done, serve the the yummy glaze over the top of your purple chicken. 

     Lately we have been enjoying sauteed mushrooms and spinach. Just slice up about 4 or 5 baby bella mushrooms and saute in a tablespoon of butter, then add 10oz. of fresh baby spinach and salt and pepper lightly. I also grate about an ounce of asiago cheese on it at the last moment. 

      So like I said, not a proposal but definitely get your dishes washed. 

Hey Baby!

      So I just got to thinking about when a guy gives you a complement are some things said better than others? Like do I really want a guy to complement my eyes or is that just something I have heard over and over in movies as being a good thing and therefore when it does happen I think I should automatically like it?
      The truth be told, I am not so fond of being complemented on my eyes because chances are if I were to ask that same person over the phone what color are my eyes, they would answer wrong. My eyes are tricky, they are mostly green but they have a brown circle around the middle which unfortunately makes them look brown most days. So unless its my eye make up I am being complemented on. Because shit, I work really hard on my eye make up and I invested a lot of money into it.

       One time while visiting the south, I stopped at a Popeyes Chicken in a some what run down part of town, not thinking anything about it, I went in. The entire staff and cliental were thick accented black people. Being that I was really young and had lived in Idaho my whole life, this was a bit of a culture shock.
        I observed every person order red beans and rice and either orange soda or sway ta, as I was waiting for my food. I was totally swayed and changed my side order to the red beans and rice and as I did it, this man standing alone, waiting for his order asked, or rather yelled, "MMMhmm, you like them red beans and rice don't cha? Got some thighs on you!" Not understanding what just happened, I just smiled and nodded and I am sure blushed more than ever in my life.
       I still am not sure wether or not that was a complement or a statement but being that he comes from a culture where big booty bitches are often the subject of good conversation and also in many lyrics, I think that it was his way of saying, I have nice legs, or thighs, he did specify. I have never been complemented on my thighs before, and actually I wish that I had gotten more complements on them. That black man at Popeyes was a really nice guy and I hope that his red beans and rice and orange soda where the best he had ever had.
       So really are the generic everyday romance movie complements the best or are the ones that almost make you wonder if you should be offended are?

Things You Can Freeze

     From a little experience of my own I have found that some things freeze better than others and some things were a drunken mistake and you should just move on. Okay well here are a couple things that can and can't be frozen.

   Good to freeze

1. Washed sliced mushrooms. I find it very convenient when making omelets and pizzas to have sliced mushrooms on hand always. 
2. Berries! Great for fruit salad, yogurt and hot cereal, as an extra bonus it cools down your cereal just right. 
3. Shredded cheese. Buy it in bulk or on sale and freeze what you don't use. 
4. Vegetable scraps. Keep the peels and tops of scrap vegetables in a freezer bag then later on make stock out of them, you can freeze the stock as well. 
5. Alfredo sauce. 
6. Cakes. Make a cake in May eat it in September, it will taste just as moist, just make sure to wrap it in clear wrap then foil. 
7. Left over Thanksgiving turkey. Wrap your left over meat in foil then store it in a freezer bag to keep off freezer burn. 
8. Grapes. They are delicious grape popsicles, but don't expect them to unfreeze well. 
9. Minced garlic. Buy bulk garlic, put it in your food processor and store it in a freezer bag, break off a chunk whenever you need it. 

Do Not Freeze

1. Potato soup. I do and have done it a couple times but it will come out grainy. 
2. Yogurt. Unless you are looking to have a tasty frozen treat don't try to unthaw your frozen yogurt. It gets a grainy texture and will loose its creamy thick texture. 
3. Eggs. hehe forgot about that boiled egg I wanted to cool off quickly. 
4. Beer. BIG mess. 
5. Lettuce, but everyone probably already knew that. 

The amount seen in the food processor makes a substantial amount more than pictured in the Mason jar.

What I Got For Christmas!

     And also my 22nd birthday, sorry if you don't want to hear it but I am pretty freaking stoked about this years gifts, as they were just that AWESOME!  I want to start with my favorite gift which was from Ryan, whom I am in love with so much more because of, thats horrible...

Here we are after just having kneaded pumpkin dough. 

Here it is in action!

     Yes, a kitchen aid stand mixer! I am so impressed by its abilities to mix! So far we have made the most fluffy pancakes ever, mash potatoes and now pumpkin pizza dough. The bread kneading attachment on this mixer is the most impressive thing I have seen in a long time. I am absolutely in love and it stays out on my counter top for everyone to see as it is a beautiful piece of machinery.
   

      I also got a beautiful UD blending brush from Andrea and I use it everyday, along with the hair dryer I got from Courtnee. Those girls really know how to spoil a person. Pam and John got me a salad attachment and a meat grinder for my my mixer, I actually opened up the salad attachment before the mixer. When I realized what had to be in the big box I choked on my breath and tears filled my eyes. Is it weird to cry over a mixer?
     I got a lot of cash from people so I was able to buy the Le Creuset French oven I have been wanting so badly. I think I took Ryan, just to look at it about a hundred times and I also did a bait and switch on Nick and had him looking at it too. Last night I made a chicken and sausage gumbo in it and the rue was PERFECT.  What's even more perfect is that I chose the oven in the color, "pumpkin." Its like it was meant to be.

     For birthday Ryan took me out to sushi dinner and shopping all afternoon without complaining once. He even acted like he was kind of enjoying himself, such a nice boyfriend to do that for me on my birthday. I was so tired after the day that I couldn't stay up to finish enjoying my birthday present, the entire HP collection.

A package arrived by owl from Diagon Alley.