Getting the Hang of the Weekend Kitchen

I spent yesterday in the kitchen. Spent the first hour or so cleaning it. Cleaning! It is remarkable to me how little time it takes a family of four to make a mess of the counters and kitchen table over night. I could have sworn it was clean when I went to bed...

In an effort to save money on store-bought snacks, I wanted to use things we had on hand to make something everyone would enjoy. A couple weeks ago a friend dropped off a half-dozen of home-grown lemons. Having used 4 of them over that time (I love a wedge in my Diet Coke - yum!) for various things - like baked fish one evening - we still have 2. So, thumbing through our various recipe books, I found a simple and quick Lemon Bread with Poppy Seeds. It was incredibly easy to make - but, sadly, it was so easy I didn't even need to use my new mixer. Sadness was all around, but passed quickly. Here's what it looked like (after the family decimated half of it!):


Next I turned my creative juices to thinking about dinner. We haven't had my Chicken Enchilada Verde in a long time. I really enjoy making this simple dish. On a chilly day it's truly a comfort meal. It's easiest when using left-over chicken from a previous meal. But, when you don't have left-overs, it's easy enough to bake a couple of oregano peppered chicken breasts until cooked through (about 30 minutes at 350°F), then cool and shred. I use onion, garlic and green chilies, Monterey jack cheese, corn tortillas and a Verde enchilada sauce. This time around I decided to try putting the enchiladas on a bed of rice before topping everything with the sauce and some of the cheese.

Turned out great. Sorry, no picture. It disappeared!

Have You Ever Noticed...?

That when everyone is in meeting (except you), the email traffic plummets to near readable levels?

That they're probably piling work on you just because you're not there?

That long-awaited phone call comes, not when it was supposed to, no. It comes when you finally can't stand it any longer and run off to the bathroom.

You work your ass off doing everything they want you to do, and then decide they didn't want it done that way? (It was the way they specified, dammit!)

That when you throw the software over the wall, it just comes - splat! - back at you?

That you turn your cell phone off before going into a meeting, and everyone in the world wants you and you needed to know that?

:sigh:

Got any more?

One Last Fling...

Tomorrow is a work day. Bah-Humbug! We've been home-bodies for nearly the entire holiday and now we were itching to get out and about. Kandy was making noises about driving to the coast - but at this time of year its not pleasant to get out of the car and walk the beach, what with the strong winds and rain. Brrr. I rather like my beach excursions to be more pleasant. Then, I thought Yosemite might be a good drive - but the snow could be a problem.

I was online chatting with a friend when I realized they were in Sacramento. We had never done anything fun in Sacramento in a while, so off we went...!


... to a day-trip to Sacramento. One of our good friends is the Executive Director to the Mental Health Commission, and we rarely see her, so on the road we went. We met up with Sheri and Jules just after noon and took off to the Home and Garden Show a few blocks away. Here's a pic of Katie and Megs - you'd think I had had too much caffeine or something... ?

The show was a bit disappointing - it was about 95% Home and 5% Garden - and I'm being generous to the Garden side. Our shows at the Alameda County Fairgrounds are much better, and cover just about every aspect of H&G. Oh well.

Sheri took us over to the capitol building - I hadn't been there since 1969. OMG, have things really changed. Such modern structures surround the building. But, once inside, we wandered around marveling at the beauty of the old building. Here's a picture of the California Senate Floor (I think). Notice the laptops?















Lastly, we were in the rotunda, just under the dome. One more picture for you viewing pleasure. We then found a Paesano's - Jules and I drank Fat Tire Ale, watched San Diego bumble their way to a win against the Colts.

What did you do on your Holiday Vaca?