A New Recipe: Peach-Whiskey Barbecue Chicken

I saw this recipe on thepioneerwoman.com yesterday, and it sounds delicious. I think I'm going to make it for supper tonight.  The only thing I will be doing differently, however, is using real peaches instead of jam.  I suppose I'll have to add in some sugar to balance it out, but since peaches are in season, it would be silly to use jam when I have a box and a half of fresh peaches on my kitchen table.

I'm not that used to cooking with alcohol, so I'll probably lessen the amount of whiskey.  I don't want to overwhelm the fam (and myself!)

Also, I'm going to use breasts and legs, because that's what I've got in the freezer.  And, instead of a side of mashed potatoes, I might just boil fresh garden potatoes and have them for a side (you know, with just a little butter and dill over them...yum! and then I don't have to dirty my mixer to make mashed potatoes).

Recipe: Peach-Whiskey Barbecue Chicken

Prep Time: 5 Minutes  |  Cook Time: 2 Hours  |  Difficulty: Easy  |  Servings: 6

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Ingredients

• 12 whole Chicken Thighs, Bone-in, Skin-on
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 whole Yellow Onion, Diced
• 1-1/2 cup Whiskey
• 12 ounces, fluid Barbecue Sauce
• 1 jar Peach Preserves
• 1/2 cup Water
• 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
• 4 cloves Garlic, Peeled
• 3 whole Green Onions, Sliced Thin

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Heat oil and butter in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Place chicken thighs, four at a time, in the pot, skin side down. Brown both sides, then remove to a plate and repeat until all chicken is browned.
Pour off half the grease, then return pan to stove. Add onions to pan and stir, cooking for 2 minutes. Pour whiskey into the pot, being very careful if you're using an open flame. Stir and scrape the bottom of the pan, allowing whiskey to reduce for a minute or two. Pour in barbecue sauce, peach preserves, water, and Worcestershire sauce. Throw in garlic cloves. Stir until combined, then return chicken to the pot, skin side up. Cover and put pot in oven.
Cook for 1 1/2 hours, then remove from oven.
Serve pieces of chicken over a big pile of smashed potatoes. Sprinkle sliced green onions over the top.

I hope you try this recipe...it doesn't look like it will be disappointing!  I'll let you know how it turns out so you feel more comfortable making it on your own.  :)

Back To School Soon...For Some

Well, school is starting again soon.  That means I'll be subbing as much as possible...it helps give us some fun money.  Plus, it's a way to give me a little break from being home all the time...I can bring a good book or my magazines that I don't read over the summer and page through them all day long (of course, while I'm watching the students and making sure they're working hard  :) ). 

My favorite years of school were college.  I loved college. Not for the parties and staying out, but because I loved most of the classes I took.  It was so fun to challenge myself and think in new ways.  Every fall, around school time, I get a little melancholy and wish I could go back again.

Matt doesn't really understand.  Maybe you don't either.

I want to go back to college to just take interesting classes, not because I have a dream of being something else (there's no way I'd want anything but what I'm doing).  I just want to learn new things and challenge myself again.

Maybe someday I will...or take some classes online.  However, being the procrastinator that I am, online classes with no definite goal in mind maybe wouldn't be a very good idea for me...I'd put everything off until the last week or two and then be scrambling down to the last thirty seconds to turn my work in on time.

Oh well.......


Well, hope you have a wonderful day...enjoy the rainy day...I will...it means I get to see a little more of my handsome husband! 

And, I'll probably bake some today...some banana bread, cookies, and something tasty for supper. 

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Oh, by the way, I wanted to share in case you've never tried these:

They're one of the best things about summer!

Try one today!

Toasted Tomato Sandwiches
1 tomato
2 slices darm homemade bread (you don't have to use this; I do, and I think it's best this way)
butter
miracle whip
salt and pepper

Toast the bread.  Butter one slice, and put miracle whip on the other.  Put the tomato on and enjoy!  Seriously, it's wonderful!  Nikki (my sister) likes to add cucumber to hers.  I haven't tried that, but I'm sure it's delicious as well.

A Scare

Yesterday after church, the kids and I headed to GF to do a little shopping.  I'd been thinking of fun things to buy (or wish for), and decided to go and see what I could find.  The kids were so good! We went to the mall and shopped for over an hour...they sat in the stroller the whole time, content eating granola bars.  Clarence even told me when he had to go potty.....awesome!

Next we went to Target, my main reason for the trip, for a new camera! I'm so excited to use it and take fun, cute pictures of my kids.  It's a Nikon D3100 (whatever that means)...to me, it means that it's going to take better pictures and last longer for me.  It better last a very long time, actually.  I'm excited to read about it and figure out how to use it well.

While we were in Target, Clarence was standing up in the big part of the cart.  He fell out, landed on his head/back, and started screaming.  There wasn't anyone around us at the time, thank goodness, so I was able to calm him down right where we were.  Right away, I was nervous about what would happen.  However, once he calmed down, he seemed fine, so we finished our shopping and went to check out. 

In the checkout line, he said "my tummy hurts, mommy."

Immediately, he threw up...all over the cart, himself, and the floor.  I felt so so bad for him.  How awful for him to feel so bad right there with all those people around!

The lady waiting on us was older and extremely calming and patient with us.  She just kept handing me paper towels, and telling us to take our time.  She shut off her lane so we wouldn't feel rushed.  She was so nice.

We paid for our stuff, got a different cart, and left the store. 

I brought Clarence to the emergency room in GF to get him checked out for a concussion.  By this time, he was totally himself, happy, chasing Adina around, laughing at her, jumping, etc.  The doctor wasn't too worried about him since he was acting so good.  He said Clarence had probably just thrown up from the shock of hitting his head and crying so much.  He said to let him stay up really late and to watch him closely for a change in behavior. 

We left the hospital, ready to head home.  I struggled to keep him awake on the way home (by this time, it was 7:30 pm, he'd only had an hour nap during the day, and he really was tired and ready for bed.)  I put in a borshow (Little House) in the car, and he watched that for a while.  Then I had to tickle him.  Then we had to stop so he could fake puking (I think he was teasing that time).  Then we had to stop so he could pee.  Then I had to tickle him again.  I managed to keep him awake until we got to the field where Matt, Dad and Chuck were baling.  He got out and rode with Dad in the baler.  They had fun...then Clarence got a ranger ride!

Later that night, once we'd gotten home, he threw up again.  I was nervous after that...so I called the hospital in Hallock.  The doctor there told me to wake him during the night to check his walking and make sure he was working properly.  He also told me that if Clarence was acting normal, he was probably okay.  That assured me a little.  I prayed myself to sleep last night, asking God to keep him safe.

This morning, I gave him juice.

He threw it up.

I gave him some eggs.

He threw it up.

I called the hospital and brought him in.

He had a slight fever, glazy eyes, but was still acting like himself.  We held him down to take an x-ray of his head to make sure it was okay.   It was, thank God!  I'm guessing it was a concussion? I'm not really sure...they never told me to my face it was/is.....maybe I'm supposed to know it is and that this is what happens with concussions.

We were told again that vomiting is normal when a person hits his head.  He's not supposed to sleep much the rest of the day, and if he starts acting funny, we should bring him in. 

He ate some when we got home and was able to keep it down.  I'm hoping everything will be okay now...that he won't throw up anymore and that he'll keep being his sweet, happy, energetic little self.

He seems like he'll be okay, but please pray for Clarence that he'll recover quickly and all will be well! Thanks!

Adina's Strawberry-Lemon Layer Dessert

Adina helped me make a dessert yesterday.  It's really delicious.  It's actually my friend, Lindsay's recipe, that she made for us last year when she brought us supper right after Adina was born.  It was wonderful...I asked for the recipe, and now make it once in a while...it's really refreshing!

I wrote that it's Adina's recipe because Clarence was still napping, she'd woken up, and wanted to help.  I pulled a chair up next to the counter (I love that she's old enough to do that now!), and let her hold the ingredients until I put them together.  So, my end result was a dessert with a lot of Adina's finger flavoring (because she touched everything as I made it...she stirred the graham crackers in the crust with her fingers; she dunked her whole hand in the bowl with the pudding and licked it and then repeated over and over; and she ate the cream cheese by the finger-full before I started mixing it. 

She was a huge help! Actually I loved having her with me...since the dessert was only for us, it didn't matter that her fingers touched every ingredient.


Strawberry-Lemon Layer Dessert

Crust:
11 graham crackers, crushed
1/2 c. sugar
1 stick melted butter

Put in a 9x13 pan, mix with a fork, and spread out. 

Filling 1:
2 (8oz.) bricks cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. milk
1/4 c. sugar

Cream cream cheese until smooth; add milk and sugar.  Spread over the graham cracker crust.  *You may need to use your fingers to just pat it on because otherwise it pulls the crust up.  Trust me, I've made it a couple times and the fingers seem to work best!

Filling 2:
2 3oz. packages instant lemon pudding
3 cups cold milk

Mix pudding and milk in a bowl (I usually do this before the cream cheese filling so that the pudding has a chance to set up a little.) Spread over cream cheese mixture.

Topping:
1 carton cool whip, thawed
1-2 c. strawberries (frozen or fresh and depending on how many you want)

Mix together and spread over the lemon pudding layer.  *I use the big carton of cool whip (12 oz. I think) because I like the topping thicker.  I also use a lot of strawberries...they really add to the dessert.  Refrigerate (or eat right away) for a while.  Store in the fridge. 

*If you want to make this into two desserts, use two pie plates.  That's what Lindsay did when she brought us supper last year.  She gave us a pie plate of it and kept a pie plate of it for herself.  That works well, too!
And, obviously, if you only wanted to make a smaller portion of this dessert, you could half it...it would work fine to do that!


Enjoy!!!

Stuffed Green Peppers

This is what I'm making for supper tonight along with corn on the cob.  For the past couple of years, I've had way too many peppers.  I end up cutting them up and freezing them, then never using them.
Last year, I looked on the internet (taste of home) for some recipes and found this one.  I made it and loved it!  I also made extra and froze them because I was looking for freezer recipes and finding ways to spend less time in the kitchen...all you have to do is pop them in the oven for 30-40 minutes.

These really are very good, and so simple to make!

Just don't forget the salt...I did last year, and we could tell...they are kinda bland if you forget the salt. 


Stuffed Green Peppers

6 medium green peppers
1 1/2 lbs. hamburger, browned
1 medium onion, chopped up and browned with hamburger
1/2 tsp. salt
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
2 1/2 c. chopped tomatoes
1 1/2 c. cooked rice

Cut tops off peppers and remove seeds.  Place in a saucepan and cover with water.  Boil 6-8 minutes.  Cook the rice in a separate pot. Brown meat and add the rest of ingredients.  Drain peppers and stuff with meat mixture.  Place in a baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Hints:

• Don't skip the part about boiling the peppers whole...it helps soften them so they're not crunchy when you eat them.
• If you want to add a little zing to it, replace some of the tomatoes with salsa.  It would spice it up a bit.
• If you do want to make extra for freezing, I wouldn't make extra meat...I'd just add more chopped tomatoes, cheese, and rice to stretch it further.  (Unless, of course, you have a huge family and want a lot for another meal...then make all of it over again!)
• These are really good as leftovers, too, so don't worry that they won't be good past the initial meal.

Busy, in every way possible!

We're all so busy around here! Matt and I are also a little overwhelmed, I think.  It's just the busy days of summer, which we love, but we'd love a couple days to hang out just by ourselves (and that would take going away, because if we're home, we'll work, or at least Matt will). Please don't think I'm complaining about anything...we're just busy...it's the way our life is.

The Kids

They're so busy! They're in and out of the house...Clarence wants to go pick cherry tomatoes, but not so we can eat them...just for himself.  They're running in the puddles out front, with their clothes on or naked, they don't care.  It's cute and it's summer, so I let them.  Kids are supposed to do that.  They're hungry...a lot...well, at least Clarence is.  Adina's been a bit of a bird lately...eating a little here and there.  (Maybe it's a princess thing...? I'm not sure.)


Matt

He's trying to cut CRP for hay, cut CRP thistles for the neighbors, haul hay, fence, feed the cows, see us once in a while, fix the tractors/machinery...it's neverending! I help where I can...with the fencing, the haying, and the running for parts, but there's always more to do.  Such is life on the farm!   We wouldn't trade it for anything!

Me

I'm trying to keep up with my house...the kids undo everthing, I'm trying to can some vegetables, there's always a load or two or ten of laundry to wash, fold and put away...it's a neverending job here, too, but it is for every woman, I know!

Yesterday, I picked all five of my biggest tupperware bowls (you know, the biggest ones they have) FULL of green beans...so, today I've been trying to pickle some.  It's really hard with the kids around. I wish I would've gotten my groceries yesterday, woken up at 5 this morning, and done it before I had others needing me for minor things.  Live and learn, I guess...I'll have to remember that for the rest of the fall when I want to can by myself...wake up early, Jacki! It'll all be worth it in the end!

I love summer, but sometimes I can't help but wish for late fall and winter when we are able to hang out with Matt, do just the basics outside, and not have a yard and garden to take care of.  However, I know I shouldn't wish...it'll all come so fast, and I'll be wishing for more time from summer to finish up last-minute projects.  I guess my own advice to myself here is to use my time wisely!

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We were able to fence a bunch more yesterday morning...we layed posts out for a half mile, strung some wire, and put some clips (what holds the wire to the post) on.  It helps to know we've started...it makes us want to keep working on it.
The kids were busy helping, too...Adina helped drive the pickup and hold clips for me; Clarence helped with the wire (he took a fencing plier and wrapped it around the wire and sat there pulling on it and talking about fencing...really so much help!).  They're so cute!

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The kids and I are going to a Peter Eide concert tonight in Bronson at the park.  I'm really excited.  I haven't seen him since I was in high school at a youth group event somewhere.  The people in charge were able to raise enough money so that the concert is free for everyone to attend.  That's so awesome! I hope people take advantage of this and attend!

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Potty Training Update:

Clarence is pretty-much potty trained.  He hasn't had an accident in days, and if I remember to take his pullup off right when he gets up from bed or a nap, he doesn't have any accidents.  He's even now just going on his own. I don't have to ask him...he just remembers and hurries to go.  He's big on going outside right now. I'm okay with that.  We don't have a downstairs bathroom, so it's quicker for him to go outside.  That's ok for me because at least he'll be used to knowing he has to go by winter and will be able to run upstairs and go and still hold it. 
I'm so proud of him and happy that he is potty trained. It's so much easier than changing diapers all the time! Yay!

Have a wonderful day!  Enjoy the beautiful weather!

A List

1. I played organ in church yesterday.

It went pretty well...they're a forgiving bunch at church, so they just overlook the mistakes.  It's nicer that way...much less pressure! Adina came with me, Clarence went with Matt (to check cows and play softball).  Adina wanted to put lip gloss on for about half the service.  It's the only thing that kept her sitting still.  Otherwise, she was ornery and kept jumping around.

2. Matt played softball yesterday. 

It was a beautiful day for a tournament.  They played four games (I was there the whole day (after church, that is) and only really watched him hit like 3 times) and won the tournament! Great job, guys! Almost everyone showed up, so they had plenty of guys, and they all played well (at least, that's what Matt told me. :) )

3.  We visited the Woodcarver's Festival at LB State Park. 

It was fun...I bought some homemade soap, some ceramic cups, and an apron for Adina.  I love the park...being out there makes me want to go camping. 

4.  We visited the museum.

Matt and Mark (Nikki's husband) had never been there.  Nikki, Nathan, and I grew up going there all the time with my grandparents.  They were both very involved in the museum and writing history for our county, and they wanted to share that with us.  Clarence had a lot of fun looking at all the old things (especially riding in the train!) and gathering hay (old clumps of grass). 

5. We went home, I brought the kids to Nikki's (Adina to play for awhile, and Clarence to spend the night), and Matt and I fenced for a couple of hours.

Our fencing consisted of tying up a corner (we have five railroad ties in the ground, in an L shape, with telephone poles horizontal making them meet; then, we tie them together with barbed wire.) and stringing one wire (for a quarter mile - that's how far a roll of barbed wire goes).  We're working on fencing in our two quarters right by our house.  Our land comes out of CRP this October, so we want to bring the cows home this fall and be able to let them graze on all the grass before winter.  It would really cut back on hay for the start of the winter.  Also, if we get it done now, it'll mean less work next spring during calving and seeding, which is better all the way around.

6. It rained last night.

That means Matt wasn't able to get up and start cutting hay like he was hoping. Instead, he went to town to sign up to hay disaster CRP (meaning we can hay fields we hayed last year instead of only fields that haven't been hayed for three years;  this is a good thing because they hay is better quality, we know the spots where the fields are rough and where it's wet), run get some parts for the tractor, and stop at the grocery store to get me three boxes of peaches.  When he gets home, he'll probably fence some more.  I'm sure the kids and I will go out at some point and try to help. 

7. Adina's wearing black Sunday shoes today.

She's darling.  She carries those shoes around like they're really cool, so I decided to put them on her.  It took me awhile.  Her feet were arched (kinda like the stepsisters on Cinderella when they're trying to fit their really long feet in the glass slipper; this was Adina, only hers were too chubby for awhile...until I used my finger to open the shoe up a little more and stuff her feet inside them).

That she is even wearing shoes is significant because she usually doesn't like them.  She does today, though.  I think it's the shoes.  She likes dressing up and looking fancy.   They don't really match her outfit...they're a little too dressy, but we're not really all that fashion-conscious around here. 


Have a Happy Monday!! Enjoy the beautiful weather!

Date Night!

We're going on a date tonight...just me and Matt...I can't wait!

We don't get to go on dates by ourselves very often.  I asked for a date for my birthday (June 16th) and this is our first date by ourselves.  We've gone on dates with other couples, and that's fun, too, but it's just so fun to go hang out together and talk. 

My favorite kind of date is going out for supper, doing a little shopping (because if we ever go on a date, it's to GF or Roseau, so I need to shop while I'm there...at Target!), and then going out for a movie. 

Today, I'm playing piano for a wedding...(at 4). I'm so nervous!  I hope and pray that I will play well to make their day special and go smoothly! I'm not all that experienced at playing for weddings...this is only my second wedding...and I know I'll only get better with more and more practice and experience.  I've been playing on and off at our church for over a year and I love it, but playing in church is different...people are forgiving and look past (or don't notice) the mistakes.  At weddings, everything has to be perfect. I don't want to be the un-perfect part of somebody's wedding! (As long as I breathe and stay calm, I should be ok, I think.)

Matt and Mary brought the kids over to my mom's house so she could watch them while I practice, get ready, and am at the wedding.  The kids get to eat lunch, take naps, and play at Grandma's house...they love that!


Matt and Mary are going to treat cows, haul out some pairs, move the cows to a different paddock, and maybe fence.  They've got a busy day, too, and they have to work in the rain.  I feel bad about that.

I get to sit and play piano all day (which I love most of the time) inside, and they're plugging away at stuff in the rain. 

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When I get home and pick the kids up from my mom and dad's house, we're heading to Roseau to bring Mary home, leave the kids with his parents for a couple hours, and go on a date!

It'll be the perfect way to end a stressful day!

Awkward, Uncomfortable, Embarrassing

I was 7-8 months pregnant with Clarence and driving to college a couple days a week.  It was my last semester of driving down for class.  My class started at 9 this semester, I think.  That meant I had to be up by 6:45 a.m. and on the road by 7:15.  Not really a big deal.  However, I usually slept as long as I could and then I'd make breakfast to eat in the car to help occupy my time on my hour and a half drive.  I always had juice and toast...it's my signature breakfast...although I like to drink coffee instead of juice now. 

Throughout my whole first pregnancy, I would randomly get sick and gag a lot or throw up.  I don't know if it was from my prenatal vitamins or the time of day or what...I'd just get sick (usually while driving) and have to stop quickly to puke. 

On this particular day, I was in the big city (GF), about three blocks from the school and my class was going to start in 10 minutes or less.  I was going around a curve on a back road. I had a feeling that I needed to pull over.  I was going around a bridge that I couldn't stop on, so I hurried up to try and get past it. 

Not a good idea.

As I pulled into a crossing right after that curvy bridge, I puked all over myself.  Seriously, all over myself.  It was absolutely disgusting.  Gross.  Nasty. Foul. Repulsive.  I just sat there in my little Buick Riviera...what to do?

I called my mom.  Mom's always know what to do in a situation like this.

"you call one of your friends and borrow some clothes?"

(No, mom, I'm 7+ months pregnant and none of my friends are.)

"Can you run in the mall/Target and buy something?"

(No, mom, I'm a mess.....I seriously have puke all over my shirt and part of my pants! There's no way I'm going in any store!)

"I don't know...it'd be a shame to drive all the way down and then just drive home because of that."

I totally agreed with that statement.  What a waste of a trip.  But, there was no way I was going in any store, or calling one of my much smaller, skinnier, non-pregnant friends to borrow some clothes.  So, three blocks from school, as my class was starting, I turned my car around and drove home, puke-covered shirt and all.

After that, my mom found a puke bag that I could keep in my car for emergencies.  Know what? It didn't happen again! Just my luck! :)

Fajitas, pronounced Fah - Jee - tahs

That's what I told Matt's sister the other night when she asked what we were making for Nikki's birthday supper. 
Fah - Jee - Tahs. 

You know what? She believed me. 

For real. 

I had to tell her they were Fajitas (Fa - hee - tas).  She's now much smarter on this subject.

She also didn't know what fajitas were...she now knows what they are and how much she likes them.  I'm glad we, her brother and I out in the boondocks with no TV or any connection to the outside world besides this here darn computer, could broaden her horizons.

Fajitas

1 (or 2 or 3 or 4) round steak(s), pounded/tenderized (or if you have two freezers FULL of meat like we do, use sirloin...it's much more tender)
3 peppers (red, yellow, orange or green, whatever you have or can find)
2 onions
tortillas
corn, 1 can/bag  (I say bag because we freeze corn in the fall and have bags to use)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
lettuce
tomatoes
salsa
sour cream
cheese

Three to four hours before supper, thaw the meat.  Tenderize and cut into thin strips.  Put into a bowl and marinate with teriyaki sauce.  Cut up the peppers and onions into strips (we like big strips) and put in a bowl.  Marinate with the same teriyaki sauce you marinated the meat with.  Set aside for a couple hours.

Thirty minutes before you want to eat, start grilling your meat, peppers and onions.  I have a basket for the grill that works great.  If you don't have this, butter aluminum foil and seal the veggies in one, and the meat in another.  Just a plain old cakepan would work, too, as long as it's old and you don't care if you get it all charred.

Once the meat and veggies are cooked, it's time to eat! Serve it up the way you would tacos.  It's that easy and so wonderfully delicious!