Freeze Ahead: Balsamic Chicken with Mushrooms

This is actually an adaptation of an old Weight Watchers recipe I used. (if you are on WW the only thing that has any points in it is the chicken and goat cheese if you use it). So, my freeze ahead meals are designed for my lifestyle. I usually spend either a long day or a weekend cooking for the week.

You will need:

4 chicken breasts
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 cups roughly chopped mushrooms of choice (Portabella are my fav)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 shallots minced or 4 chopped green onions or 1 chopped leek (or not all!)
freezer bag
(asparagus and goat cheese but not until the day you serve it)

Put raw chicken breast in the bottom of the bag.
Mix mustard, garlic and vinegar, then pour into bag on top of chicken.
Throw everything else in the bag and freeze it.

Fast forward to later in the week.... defrost bag however you defrost. (I put it in the fridge the night before).

When you come home from a long day with the kids, or work, or whatever exhausts you, dump the bag into a hot pan and cook it! That's it! Cook it until the chicken is done!

I don't eat carbs at night, but you can serve it with rice. My favorite is to empty the pan throw some fresh asparagus in the same hot pan, then serve it all together with goat cheese. I promise you..... this will make its way into your rotation!

The Supreme Supreme

So, here is the thing about citrus. Whenever someone around me starts to eat an orange, I walk by and think to myself "oooooo that smells amazing! I should get some oranges!" So I do. But when I open the fridge in search of a quick snack, I don't see that awesome, juicy flavorful delight for what it is... I see peel and seeds, and pith and mess.

Celeste and I live in Florida. Every Autumn (but Autumn I mean like late November/early December) the groves come alive, and citrus gets cheap! So Celeste bought a HUGE flat grapefruit, oranges and nectarines. While at her house she puts a big bowl in front of me full of supremed citrus. Now, I supreme all the time for recipes and salads, but I never thought to do all my oranges at once, and then eat them with a fork! No going back!

SO....here is how I do it!

1) Peel your orange, but with a knife. Make sure you get all the membrane.You should see the juicy part all the way around.

2) With a sharp knife, cut on either side of the wedge. Get as close as you can. You want to get as much fruit as possible. You will be able to easily see the seeds and pluck them out. I recomend you do this over your storage container, because all this loveley juice will begin to pour out!. The wedges will just slide right out!
* disclaimer: be careful, people! I'm not responsible if you are in a hurry and supreme your fingers!

3) I like to take the peel, and carefully remove all the pith. You can julienne and add to all kinds of sweet or savory dishes! (I use this in a lot of my recipes) But in the mean time, the peel can stay in a zipper bag in your fridge for 1-2 weeks! And the oranges are ready to eat, our add to your salads, yogurt....whatever!

back yard meditation

Earlier this year I made one of the biggest steps towards homestead thinking. I put a clothesline in my back yard. I did this to save money. But I continue to do this for several reasons. The biggest is this: I enjoy it. I stand in the fresh air and care for each of my family's articles of clothing one at a time. I am grateful for what we have, and appreciate each piece. I listen to the sounds of bugs, dogs, neighbors and my 1 1/2 year old daughter exploring the yard. There really is nothing like fresh air in your clothes! I have an overwhelming sense of pride and calm as I watch my clothes ripple in the wind. The funny thing about all of this is, I used to HATE doing laundry! Like HATE! But now, like so many other "homestead training choices" I have made, I find joy in the simple acts of daily life.

O! AND I saved like $60 on my energy bill!!!! (And if you are worried about the environment and what not, there is nothing more green than direct solar power)!

 So here are the 7 things you need to know when line drying your clothes!

1) Cut your detergent amount by half! You don't need as much as you think! Extra detergent makes your clothes stiff and wears the fabric quicker! Also a "free and clear" version (no perfumes or dyes) will also decrease the stiffness of you fabrics.

2) Do your jeans and towels first! They take the longest to dry and therefore require most time on the line. Simple I know, but there is beauty in simple efficiency.

3) Hang your shirts by the bottom, and your pants by the cuff! You really want the heaviest part of the garment to hang down. This pulls the fabric straight, and decreases wrinkling.

4) Use a "pin bag" that you can hang around your neck! This keeps the pins easily accessible so your other hand never leaves the line. I usually use a grocery bag. I cut one of the handles to make the opening large enough to slide over my head.

 5) Don't leave your clothes out overnight! Well you can, just don't expect them to be dry right away. Think about dew.....its all wet in the morning!



6) Don't fear the rain! Now, obviously, if it's raining all day, it would be counter-productive to hang out clothes. But, I live in Florida, were the brief afternoon shower is a way of life. Don't go racing out, dramatically ripping your clothes from the line. Rainwater is actually really good for your clothes. Think of it as a free rinse repeat cycle. Then, just wait some more!

7) Perfect laundry weather.  Now, this is just kinda an fyi....it's not like you can alter this variable. BUT, absolute perfect laundry weather is warm and sunny with a decent breeze. Too hot, and your clothes have a tendency towards stiffness. But a slight breeze keeps the fabric moving as it dries, making it soft and perfect!

There are all sorts of other tips I have read about line placement and adding vinegar to your laundry, but these are my essentials. I have been doing this for just over 4 months, and these are really the keys. I may have more to add later on....only time will tell.

Dreaming of Homesteading

I have this big dream. I want to live on a little farm. Nothing major just a few acres. I want enough to have some chickens and some goats. I want a huge garden and shack to make cheese. Weird... I know. But I am stuck on it. I think if I never do it, I will regret it, always. I have decided to put myself through "homestead training". Last year was my first "garden" then this summer Celeste and I taught ourselves to can. It was kind of scary at first. But after a while we got accustomed to pulling hot jars out of pots and waiting for the pop pop pop that is so satisfying its hilarious! This year I am determined to hone my skills. (remember I am a terrible speller and will not apologize for it).

SO the exciting news for today.......... I plotted out my new garden space! I am moving from a 5x2 foot space, to a 10x20 foot space! Think of all the stuff I can kill! I am taking another crack at corn, 'cause I don't care and I am determined to get it rite! Anyway I laid black waterproof plastic over the new area, and in a week I will plow (snicker) and fertilize. Hopefully by then I will know what the heck I want to plant in there! (other than corn). Yeah for something to obsess over. 

O...btw....the black plastic "bakes" the soil beneath and kills most of the bugs, bacteria and weeds. It's not hot enough to "sanitize", but it will help for sure!

Big plan.... Little steps.

I have this tendency. You see, I am stuck on the idea of "getting it right the first time". Prime example: my garden. Before I invested time and money into a garden, I wanted to educate myself on the proper way to do it. So I began to research. And pretty soon, I was so stressed out about location, soil condition, companion gardening, pest control, compost, season chasing and organic everything...that I never got anything in the ground. So last year I threw caution to the wind and gave it a shot. I ended up with 2 overgrown watermelon plants that never bared fruit, 6 corn stalks that never corned, 4 squash plants that never pollinated and 4 pumpkin plants that cried as they shriveled and died. BUT.... I also had 1 cucumber plant that gave 6 huge cucumbers and one of the prettiest tomato plants I have ever seen (that just stopped providing tomatoes this week).

I think the most fruitful things I took away from that garden were these lessons. Don't make your soil too rich, it wont aerate and you get mold (which kills watermelon). DON'T plant your squash plants too far apart, because gourds need to cross pollinate. Don't mix corn with other plants that need nitrate, because the corn will suck it all up! Don't plant pumpkins in Florida. Just don't, really they are a pain in the booty! And ALWAYS let your toddler get filthy. It's worth it every time.

I wanted to read about the best ways to start a blog. I wanted to learn how to keep it interesting. I wanted to develop a plan for when to make entries and custom design a theme. But then it never got done. So I am approaching this blog the way I approached my first garden. And the only thing I am hoping for, is to learn something.