Chicken-Schmicken 2 (or Wendy's Superb Chicken)

I must confess: you already know we eat a lot of chicken. So I'm always looking for new chicken recipes. Even if I have to make them up myself. So this particular one I thought of when I recently saw a recipe for Chicken Kiev. Though I love melted butter, I thought I might be a bit much, so I replaced it with mozzarella cheese. Probably not much better for you, but definitely less messy!

I started off with two chicken breasts and pounded out my days frustrations on them until they looked like this

The I breaded them with egg and plain breadcrumbs like so

The I pan fried them until they got that crunchy look, which doesn't take long when they are pounded out so thin.

I added pesto and mozzarella cheese like so

and then folded them over, secured them with toothpicks and added more cheese on top. I got a thing for cheese, OK?

Baked them in the oven for 15 minutes at 400 and the husband called them superb.

So I'm calling it Wendy's Superb Chicken!

Happy Cooking!

Wendy

Closet Organization

I must confess: I am a clothes horse. I love clothes and always will. As most people my closet space is limited so sometimes I have to be creative in storing items. Recently I realized that my tank tops were taking up WAY too much space and I really needed to do something. So I took all 64 tank tops and folded them up and put them in a couple of bins. This freed up a lot of space, not to mention hangers, but then left me with another problem, where to put the two bins. I solved one problem and created another. But I'll work on that one later. I was truly amazed at how much space I have now! 

Before picture

 Bin one complete: this one holds the tanks that have the built in bra

 Bin two complete: this one holds all the layering tanks and there is a layer underneath!

 Closet after

I know, it still needs works, it's a work in progress.  Maybe I'll call the girl from my favorite show 'The Amanda's'.  She is an organizational QUEEN and I must bow down to her amazing abilities!

Happy Organizing!

Wendy

Stuperstitions

I must confess: I don't believe in superstitions, because, well I think they are stupid. They should be called stuperstitions. Get it?!
I never understood them. Black cats, broken mirrors, Friday the 13^th, walking under ladders its all crap.  When I find myself in a building with more than 13 floors 99% of the time there is no 13th floor. Does it really fool any one into thinking 13 is really 14? I don't think so.  I know people believe all this stuff, so let them. There isn't enough room in my head to think about it.
I have more important things to think about.
Like what nail polish to use on my next pedicure! Yep that deserves space in my head!
Love,
Wendy

What does my current nail polish and my parents have in common? A lot!

I must confess: this is by far my favoritest nail polish color to date! It's called For Audrey by China Glaze. A tribute to Audrey Hepburn in 'Breakfast at Tiffany's'. I was drawn to the color because it's a pretty Tiffany blue, but also because its named 'For Audrey'. Audrey Hepburn was and probably will always be my dads favorite actress. I remember as a kid him talking about her and I too, became a fan. A woman of style, grace, and beauty. I could see what he loved about her.  When I was in my mid to late twenties, I asked my dad what was it that drew him to my mom, he responded with 'she looked just like Audrey Hepburn'. I was surprised, I thought really? mom looks like Audrey? I'll be honest, I didn't see it and neither did my mom. I'd seen pictures of my mom from those years and searched for some semblance of Audrey in her but couldn't see it.  A few years later I came across a photo of my mom I'd never seen before and there it was, Audrey looking right back at me. I saw what my dad saw.  Why he fell for her and why they've been married for 45 years. Because of Audrey.

Happy Anniversary 45^th Mom & Dad!

Love,

Wendy

Seriously in love with this color!

And so close to the real thing! (Yes I own one and only one piece of jewelry from Tiffany)

Happy Mother's Day!

I must confess: I don't like working full-time. I know that sounds immature, but seriously, with all the things that I have to do at home: cooking, cleaning, laundry, bill paying, taking care of our house, two dogs and two cats, and a husband. I don't have time to spend 40+ hours at a job. I don't know how working mothers survive doing it all. I applaud them for trying to do everything, because I'm barely keeping up with anything. Throw a kid in the mix and something is going to give, I'm thinking it would be the cooking, but that's me. I really think that if you are lucky enough to be a stay at home mom, do it! Just my opinion.

Now don't get me wrong, I know that staying home isn't an option for a lot of people in this economy and that it's a necessity for many, many families. So just give a working mom a break when she has to leave work because she has a sick kid or a baseball game or ballet class. She's working her butt off, just to keep things going forward.

Me, I think I'll look for something part-time! ;-)

Happy Mothers Day!

Wendy

More Comfort Food

I must confess: we love comfort food in my house. Probably why we are so overweight, but whatever. The other day I made another one of our favorites. Meatloaf, yum!!! I've had this recipe for so long I have no idea where it came from. Its been in my recipe box since at least 1993. So almost 20 years. It has served its purpose on more than one occasion. And over the years I have tried to 'lighten' it up by taking out one of the two pounds of ground beef and replacing it with one pound of ground turkey. It's not the same, but pretty close. I did make the error in judgment of having the meatloaf before heading out to Zumba. Big mistake. It sat like a rock in my belly while jumping around like a crazy person at Zumba. Won't make that mistake again! Anyway, I wanted to share the recipe and also confess that I love my as seen on TV meatloaf pan. So worth the $15 to be able to get the meatloaf out without all the greasy parts and accidentally dumping the entire thing in the sink. Yep done that before!

Meatloaf

2 pounds ground beef or 1 pound ground beef, 1 pound ground turkey

1 package dry onion soup mix

2 eggs slightly beaten

¾ cup dry breadcrumbs (plain or seasoned)

¾ cup water

1/3 cup ketchup

Mix all ingredients in a bowl or large plastic bag. Personally, I use my kitchen aid stand mixer with the dough hook. Place in loaf pan or shape into loaf and place on a 9x12 baking dish. Bake uncovered until done, about 1-1 ½ hours at 350 degrees. I also put some ketchup on top for extra flavor.

Fresh out of the oven, mine looks light because I used half turkey, half beef.

 Easy to get out of the pan because I have the special as seen on TV meatloaf pan.

Happy Cooking!

Wendy

Zip Lining was PRETTY FREAKIN' AWESOME!

I must confess: I might be a little bit of an adrenaline junkie. Well maybe not so much. But I am all for trying new things, so for my birthday my cousin Kristine wanted to go zip lining. I was all for it until I fell and sprained my wrist and then found out I have tennis elbow then it was Christmas and well here we are 7 months later, almost to the DAY, and we finally went. It was so much fun! I wasn't nervous at all and we had the best time. We opted for a two hour tour that included tree walks, sky bridges and nature walks. After all that, I was so glad we didn't go for the three hour because we were exhausted! But in a good way. I love breaking out of my comfort zone every now and then and trying something new. And this is definitely something I would do again. And again. And even again. 

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy! 

Getting our zip lining lessons.

Kristine ready to go! 

Kristine and I taking a breather.

Me having a great time and showing off  'look ma, one hand!'

Happy Zipping!

Wendy