Here Piggy, Piggy, Piggy, Piggy.....

Home Made Pesto Chicken

I was planning on making one of our family favorites for

dinner tonight.... PESTO CHICKEN!!

I had it all figured out only to discover that
I didn't have a jar of pesto in the pantry...

THEN, I stopped and thought about it...

I MADE PESTO IN THE FALL!!

I HAVE ALL THE PESTO I NEED IN MY FREEZER!

Here are a few blocks (ice cube sized) and

the bowl in 5-6 blocks all thawed & stirred! 

 The basic ingredients for my pesto chicken dish are:

pesto

cooked chicken

sliced almonds

sun dried tomatoes

pasta

 I boiled down a chicken (that we raised!) cooled it

and picked the meat off!! AND, I have almost

 3 quarts of chicken broth for a soup!!

 OK, my second dilemma was...  I didn't have any sun dried

tomatoes on hand either!  :( 

THE POOR PLANNING ON MY PART

turned into a terrific brainstorm!

I roasted 4 tomatoes (sliced, sprinkled with a little bit

of oil & garlic powder on a baking sheet).

 Roasted at 400* for about 20+ minutes... and YUM!!

I think I like this even better then the way I've been

making this dish over the past few years!

 I used ravioli instead of angel hair pasta!!

Boil the ravioli (or other pasta) until cooked, drain

and return to the pot.

Add the cooked chicken ... bite sized pieces,

sliced almonds (amount varies on amount of pasta)

I think I used about 3/4 cup.

Mix the chicken & almonds in then add the

pesto and re-stir well! NOW... add the final touch

roasted tomatoes!! Gently mix... and serve!

I may look odd, but the flavor was phenomenal!

GROWN AT HOME:

chicken (grown & processed at home)

basil (grown at home & made into pesto)

these tomatoes weren't grown at home,

but they were roasted at home!!

(This summer some of our home grown

tomatoes will be designated for roasting!)
Now, to check out making my own pasta!!

Shared on Simple Lives Thursday 44th Edition!!
Check out the awesome ideas everyone is sharing this week!!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful mom!

Thank you for all the love you've poured into my life,

for the example of what it means to be a woman of integrity

and a woman who follows after God! Thank you...

 I love you!

Happy Mother's Day to my mother in law! Thank you

for the precious gift of your son, my husband!

He is a blessing to me, and I know he is your blessing too!

Thank you for the love you share with me and

every one who enters your door way. You have a

special gift of hospitality and generousity!

I love you!

And, to all my friends who are 'moms',

may your Mother's Day be blessed and filled with love.

May you know how your role as a mother has touched the next generation.

May you remember to pray for your 'kids' even if they are now adults

making their own way in the world.

A mom's role changes year by year, but the job stays the

same: 'unconditional love'!

To all the dads who have had to step into the role of being both

Mom & Dad... good job!!

You are very loved & appreciated on this day too!

Happy Mother's Day!!!

.

Drinking Glasses

As common as it feels to me, I thought I'd share our drinking glasses. My mom asked me the other day why I use the pint jars to drink from... 

 

I have several reasons... 

Mason jars are rather durable!

I don't break them nearly as often as regular drinking glasses!

I am not concerned when doing the dishes that they'll break (no, I don't have a dishwasher).

I can buy 12 at a time for around $10.

You can drink hot or cold drinks in them.

The set is EASY to add on to or replace, as the style stays the same, and the stores generally have them!

There is no guessing as to how much water I'm consuming!   

I can add the lid to the jar for storage or to mix gravy or salad dressings!

 

THEY ARE AWESOME!

Check out other ideas and recipes at Simple Lives Thursday  hosted by Sustainable Eats!

Introducing... Albert II

 This is Albert II   (he's #2 because Travis's first

fish was Albert... and he was a pretty betta too!)

 He is a Crown Betta...   his tail is gorgeous!

We haven't had a tank in 9 years so it was time!

Maybe this is just a tease... a new 20+ gallon

tank would be a wonderful new addition!

Too bad we don't have the space!

Welcome to the family Albert!

"Trailing Arbutis" Otherwise Known as "May Flowers"

This is the flower with the most memories attached

to them in our house!

EVERY YEAR (28 so far) my husband searches the bankings

beside the roads to find these sweet smelling beauties!

His dad would do this for his mom too....  ahhh, some

traditions are worth repeating!

                                 I know you can't really tell, but there are some white blossoms

and some pink ones too!

The leaves are not perfect and the flowers are a little blurry,

but the love that they represent is strong!

Thank God for sweet, thoughtful men....