recipe

bubba-loo

I promised guests that I would post the recipe for the chicken we served at the party soooo without much ado... via Jenny Hurst...


CHICKEN PICCATA

20 or so Chicken Tenders (I bought the Foster Farms tenderloins and used 3 of the prepacked bags - located in the fresh meat section)

I used a 9 X 13 pan, and a pie pan and it fit 3 packages of chicken just fine.

2-3 eggs (beaten)

Bread Crumbs:
1 cup Italian Bread crumbs
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Parsley flakes (finely chopped)
Garlic Salt (sprinkle a little)
Flour (I didn't use this, so try just a little)
salt and pepper (sprinkle a little)

Sauce:
1 cup half and half
1 stick of butter
Juice of 2 REAL lemons (not the juice from the store)

Optional: capers, mix a half of jar into the sauce after you have blended the 3 above ingredients

Dip tenders in egg, then in the crumbs. Brown in hot pan with melted butter. Do not cook through. Just enough for each side to be a little crispy. Place in baking dish and put in oven at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Pour sauce over chicken and cook for another 5-10 minutes. Be careful to not overcook.
My suggestions: I made this recipe last night and the family loved it! It was very tender and moist! Try mixing the sauce in a blender to get a better consistency (I didn't do this, and I think it will make the sauce smoother). Also, I did 1 cup of butter for the sauce (the first time) and it was a little too much, because when it came out of the oven, you could see a layer of butter in the pan. So, using 1 stick of butter worked better instead of two sticks. Another thought: really coat the chicken with the bread crumbs. The ones that were coated were the better ones. :)

Also for inquiring minds, the transcendent apple crisp that Joan Crandall brought and everyone snarfed down before I even got a single spoonful is an Ina Garten recipe.


AND, if you live in St. George, make sure you head on over to Jazzy Java at 285 N., Bluff St. on Saturday night. Mindy Gledhill will be there, singing her heart out.

greetings from my universe

The concert and benefit dinner has taken on a life all it's own. Dare I say it's coming together "organically"?  Oh I'm so clever. The theme is woodland.

Anyway, things are really underway.  My dining room table is command central. Sugar Daddy is a dear sweet man for putting up with all my mess, amongst other reasons.  He just shakes his head and says, "Where do you come up with this stuff?"  I think I really baffle him sometimes. Oh well, that adds to the spice of our life wouldn't you say?

I could try to explain to him just how my mind grasps onto ideas and turns them into something similar or not similar at all.  I could try to describe my creative process, but I fear it would be for naught.  He lives in an entirely different universe with depositions and briefs and evidence.  We both spend a lot of time with paper. The difference is I cut the paper up into to bits and rearrange it.

But here's my best go. This is how I create:

I start with gathering inspiration:

In this case I created a virtual style board from photos I found on the web, some of my own and some sent from friends.



Then I stew and brood until some ideas creep into the corners of my mind.

Then I begin. Usually with paper, fabric, metal, clay or paint.  And I see where it takes me.

Dearest Sugar Daddy,

I fear you will never understand me or the things I do. I know you think me compulsive and at times, harried and driven to distraction, and in this you are correct. But I know you love me the way I am. I'm so glad the edges of our universes touch to create this wonderful, crazy family of ours.

P.S. Did I mention Mindy Gledhill is coming? Have I mentioned that? She is. Mindy is coming to sing in my backyard. She's coming. I can't believe it.