I am a huge proponent of adult time. Now whether I get it or not is another story. With a big active family it is not always possible to achieve this. But...when it happens I am always glad I was able to be there. Hopson and I are part of a couples supper club, and have more laughs than we can stand when we are there. BTW, supper club, I have 2 words for you...Derby Party, be there...
I was trying to think of a different appetizer to take to last night's dinner. Our group is crazy about Brie. Ashley Stockard makes one of the BEST Brie appetizers I've ever had. I really had a taste for that, but couldn't (and didn't want to try to) replicate it. I also had a taste for a BLT dip that my friend Shannon makes. What does someone like me do? Well mix them of course! When I was at the grocery store getting the Brie, tomatoes, and bacon, I knew it needed a special spice to go with it...but which one. I'm standing there smacking my mouth trying to taste in my mind what different spices would taste like with the main 3 ingredients & you know what I came up with? Smoked Paprika. It's a spice that's a little crazy, but I'm pretty sure I'll use it again, so I didn't mind buying it. You know how I feel about crazy ingredients.
The group approved of the BBT appetizer, I think most of it was gone, and that's usually a good sign. :)
There was a lot of laughter last night, with some talk about our crazy extended families, being groped at the airport, Thanksgiving and cabins, how to properly calculate how long you've been married, cotton bales, peanut oil on knees, youth sports teams, and how great Robert & Martha Cook's boys look wearing Auburn shirts, among other things. Fun & laughter was had by all ~ minus the Rumplemints.
If you haven't had in any adult time lately, I highly recommend you get some. It will make your heart fill lighter and your soul feel fuller. If I don't get to post before next Thursday, Happy Thanksgiving! How blessed I am!!!
Y'all be blessed beyond measure,
~ashley
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Thursday, November 11, 2010
A Twofer
I've finally gotten off my duff & posted the second recipe.
I was a little nervous about serving it because my family is known to turn their noses up at soup. (and not just the picky one) They want something that is meaty & hearty. Something that coats their stomach's and doesn't make them hungry in 5 minutes.
This recipe came out of desperation. It was cold. Squirrel... I'm cold natured & am not a fan of being cold. I know you can bundle up to get warm, but I never feel warm! I have to be in my bed with my: electric mattress pad (I would love to kiss the person on the mouth who invented this), sheet, electric blanket (between the electric mattress pad & electric blanket I feel like I'm in a warmth burrito~it's heavenly!), polertic blanket & down comforter. Even then it takes me about an hour to warm up & be toasty. My family thinks I'm crazy & they call me a cold prickle. I've come to terms with it.
Anyway, like I was saying, it was cold outside. I had some stew meat that I needed to find a way to eat, because I had cooked it a few days before & served it with rice, but I had a good bit leftover. I hate for food to go to waste. Sooooooo, I came up with the stew.
The fam actually liked it. They really liked it because I gave them each a huge hunk of bread to go with it. (I love the bread you get at Panera Bread when you order their soup.) Yum is all I have to say. I ate some today for lunch & it was delish.
On the we gotta eat site I've included how to make this meal a twofer, so you too can cook the meat once, but eat twice. No thanks needed, just throw money. HaHa! Just Kidding. (I think that was in a movie from the 80's.) We love to say random movie lines & see if others in the fam can figure them out. I know, we're a little kooky! :)
Y'all have a wonderful Veteran's Day!
Be blessed beyond measure,
~ashley
I was a little nervous about serving it because my family is known to turn their noses up at soup. (and not just the picky one) They want something that is meaty & hearty. Something that coats their stomach's and doesn't make them hungry in 5 minutes.
This recipe came out of desperation. It was cold. Squirrel... I'm cold natured & am not a fan of being cold. I know you can bundle up to get warm, but I never feel warm! I have to be in my bed with my: electric mattress pad (I would love to kiss the person on the mouth who invented this), sheet, electric blanket (between the electric mattress pad & electric blanket I feel like I'm in a warmth burrito~it's heavenly!), polertic blanket & down comforter. Even then it takes me about an hour to warm up & be toasty. My family thinks I'm crazy & they call me a cold prickle. I've come to terms with it.
Anyway, like I was saying, it was cold outside. I had some stew meat that I needed to find a way to eat, because I had cooked it a few days before & served it with rice, but I had a good bit leftover. I hate for food to go to waste. Sooooooo, I came up with the stew.
The fam actually liked it. They really liked it because I gave them each a huge hunk of bread to go with it. (I love the bread you get at Panera Bread when you order their soup.) Yum is all I have to say. I ate some today for lunch & it was delish.
On the we gotta eat site I've included how to make this meal a twofer, so you too can cook the meat once, but eat twice. No thanks needed, just throw money. HaHa! Just Kidding. (I think that was in a movie from the 80's.) We love to say random movie lines & see if others in the fam can figure them out. I know, we're a little kooky! :)
Y'all have a wonderful Veteran's Day!
Be blessed beyond measure,
~ashley
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Hello again my friend...
Well hello blogspot, my name is Ashley. I know it's been a few weeks since we've talked, but I just wanted to check in & say hey, and let you know that I'm doing fine.
HaHa! Just kidding y'all. It has been a few weeks. Sorry about that. I've started working again & have been trying to break myself back into the working habit. It's harder for me this time because I'm working from home. There are things that call to me...laundry, cleaning, facebook, finding out that Cam Newton has stolen my day and deposited it into his growing bank account. Just kidding about the last one. I am part of the AU Family & stand behind Cam. Innocent until proven guilty right?
Sorry, I digress.
Working from home for me is like the dog in the movie 'UP' who will be talking & then all of a sudden in the middle of his sentence says, "Squirrel!" It is easy for me to get engrossed in whatever I am doing & before I know it, the day is gone & it's time for me to drive carpool. I'm getting better, I guess there's a learning curve.
I have 2 new recipes for you. One I will post here because it's so easy it's shameful, and the other I will post to my we gotta eat site & send you the link. Both have received high marks from the fam. except the picky one. I don't know how that child doesn't float away on a stiff breeze.
Last night I was in a tight for dinner because the closer we get to Christmas, the busier my days & nights get. I know that's true for everyone. I think Christmas is busier than May! But it is the most wonderful time of the year! See, I told you, squirrel!
I had some poached chicken & didn't want to fix poppy seed chicken, again. (one of the go to dinners) I found some Pillsbury biscuits in the freezer, ok that's good. I was trying to figure what would taste good with both of those...
...Squirrel! I get on food kicks. I will crave foods and will want to eat nothing else. I'm back on my taboule (tabbouleh)/hummus kick right now. I could eat those two things for breakfast, lunch & dinner. (and I do) I guess this is better than being addicted to drugs & alcohol, but wow. Another thing I've found myself craving lately is...
...Gravy! Not the gravy you get out of a can, but homemade. Ok, yum! Chicken, biscuits & gravy. You're going to hate me, I didn't measure anything, just poured until I think I had it to the right consistency. My mother-in-law loves it when I do that, not. She will tell you she has to have a recipe to boil water. (BTW, have a great new cookbook I'll tell you about later.) Anyhoo, the gang loved it. So, here's the recipe.
Y'all be blessed beyond measure,
~ash
Sop it up Gravy with Chicken & Biscuits
1-1 1/2 pounds of chicken poached; shredded or cut up
6 Pillsbury buttermilk biscuits cooked
2 cups Chicken Broth
1/4 cups vegetable oil
1/2 cup flour
1 onion chopped or 1/2 bag frozen onions
salt
cracked pepper
cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a skillet stir together oil & flour until mixed well. Since I didn't measure it you may have to add more flour. You will want it to be a little pasty. Add onion, salt & pepper & cook on medium heat until flour mixture begins to turn light brown. Add chicken broth & stir continuously until thickened & hot. Taste to see if you need to add more salt & pepper. I like mine to have a little pepper kick to it.
Spray baking dish with cooking spray. In the dish, place biscuits either cut in half or cut into small pieces in the bottom. Place chicken on top of biscuits & gravy on top of chicken. Bake for 20 minutes & serve hot.
HaHa! Just kidding y'all. It has been a few weeks. Sorry about that. I've started working again & have been trying to break myself back into the working habit. It's harder for me this time because I'm working from home. There are things that call to me...laundry, cleaning, facebook, finding out that Cam Newton has stolen my day and deposited it into his growing bank account. Just kidding about the last one. I am part of the AU Family & stand behind Cam. Innocent until proven guilty right?
Sorry, I digress.
Working from home for me is like the dog in the movie 'UP' who will be talking & then all of a sudden in the middle of his sentence says, "Squirrel!" It is easy for me to get engrossed in whatever I am doing & before I know it, the day is gone & it's time for me to drive carpool. I'm getting better, I guess there's a learning curve.
I have 2 new recipes for you. One I will post here because it's so easy it's shameful, and the other I will post to my we gotta eat site & send you the link. Both have received high marks from the fam. except the picky one. I don't know how that child doesn't float away on a stiff breeze.
Last night I was in a tight for dinner because the closer we get to Christmas, the busier my days & nights get. I know that's true for everyone. I think Christmas is busier than May! But it is the most wonderful time of the year! See, I told you, squirrel!
I had some poached chicken & didn't want to fix poppy seed chicken, again. (one of the go to dinners) I found some Pillsbury biscuits in the freezer, ok that's good. I was trying to figure what would taste good with both of those...
...Squirrel! I get on food kicks. I will crave foods and will want to eat nothing else. I'm back on my taboule (tabbouleh)/hummus kick right now. I could eat those two things for breakfast, lunch & dinner. (and I do) I guess this is better than being addicted to drugs & alcohol, but wow. Another thing I've found myself craving lately is...
...Gravy! Not the gravy you get out of a can, but homemade. Ok, yum! Chicken, biscuits & gravy. You're going to hate me, I didn't measure anything, just poured until I think I had it to the right consistency. My mother-in-law loves it when I do that, not. She will tell you she has to have a recipe to boil water. (BTW, have a great new cookbook I'll tell you about later.) Anyhoo, the gang loved it. So, here's the recipe.
Y'all be blessed beyond measure,
~ash
Sop it up Gravy with Chicken & Biscuits
1-1 1/2 pounds of chicken poached; shredded or cut up
6 Pillsbury buttermilk biscuits cooked
2 cups Chicken Broth
1/4 cups vegetable oil
1/2 cup flour
1 onion chopped or 1/2 bag frozen onions
salt
cracked pepper
cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a skillet stir together oil & flour until mixed well. Since I didn't measure it you may have to add more flour. You will want it to be a little pasty. Add onion, salt & pepper & cook on medium heat until flour mixture begins to turn light brown. Add chicken broth & stir continuously until thickened & hot. Taste to see if you need to add more salt & pepper. I like mine to have a little pepper kick to it.
Spray baking dish with cooking spray. In the dish, place biscuits either cut in half or cut into small pieces in the bottom. Place chicken on top of biscuits & gravy on top of chicken. Bake for 20 minutes & serve hot.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Joy Bubbles Up Part Deux
Ok...it's Monday; I think I've caught up on my sleep; & all I know is the more I look at the pictures from homecoming, the more I laugh! I don't know if the children had as much fun as I did, but a girl can hope. I am already starting to plan for what we're going to be doing next year. But, before 2010 is over there will be a shaving cream war rematch. It will be BYOSC, so if they want to bring 5 cans...who am I to say no?
Abby, Hopson's homecoming date has entitled her picture cache on facebook, 'so my hair still smells like shaving cream'. Love it. I wondered if it make her hair shiny & silky smooth. Yes, I'm very weird, and my family is aware of it also. (they are just watching for when they may have to put me on medication...just kidding)
Henry could not wait to play with the shaving cream! So he, Abby's little sister, Riley, our neighbor, Katie & another friend's son, Woodson, had a great time the next day covering the slide in the backyard with shaving cream & sliding down. I've included pictures at the bottom. :)
Enough about pictures, let's get to the good stuff...the food! We had enough to feed an army! The kids needed to eat a lot more than they did. (I should have gotten down my 'to go' plates & made them each fix one.) Needless to say, I haven't cooked a few days because my fridge is full. I told you I would post my friend, Traci's, breakfast casserole recipe. It is sooo easy & delicious. It's a great all purpose recipe because it can be tweaked so easily without compromising the taste. It is also easy to double, triple, quadruple, but very easy to make each one taste differently.
Click here to see the recipe. With Thanksgiving & Christmas coming up, I'm going to be posting some old family recipes to share. (and of course the stories that go with them.)
I am going to workout now because I ate so much this weekend I think I gained about 5 pounds...Yikes!
Y'all be blessed beyond measure,
~ashley
Abby, Hopson's homecoming date has entitled her picture cache on facebook, 'so my hair still smells like shaving cream'. Love it. I wondered if it make her hair shiny & silky smooth. Yes, I'm very weird, and my family is aware of it also. (they are just watching for when they may have to put me on medication...just kidding)
Henry could not wait to play with the shaving cream! So he, Abby's little sister, Riley, our neighbor, Katie & another friend's son, Woodson, had a great time the next day covering the slide in the backyard with shaving cream & sliding down. I've included pictures at the bottom. :)
Enough about pictures, let's get to the good stuff...the food! We had enough to feed an army! The kids needed to eat a lot more than they did. (I should have gotten down my 'to go' plates & made them each fix one.) Needless to say, I haven't cooked a few days because my fridge is full. I told you I would post my friend, Traci's, breakfast casserole recipe. It is sooo easy & delicious. It's a great all purpose recipe because it can be tweaked so easily without compromising the taste. It is also easy to double, triple, quadruple, but very easy to make each one taste differently.
Click here to see the recipe. With Thanksgiving & Christmas coming up, I'm going to be posting some old family recipes to share. (and of course the stories that go with them.)
I am going to workout now because I ate so much this weekend I think I gained about 5 pounds...Yikes!
Y'all be blessed beyond measure,
~ashley
 |
| Henry giving 2 thumbs up before sliding down the shaving cream slide |
 |
| Riley (in the white) & Katie (in the blue) getting the slide ready. |
 |
| Riley up top, Katie in the red, Woodson in blue & Henry in white preparing the slide! |
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Joy Bubbles Up Part 1
First of all, let me preface this by saying I only had 4 hours of sleep last night. Woke up at 4:45 am Friday morning; went to bed at 4 am Saturday & woke up at 8am Saturday. Wow, sleep deprivation is a killer. With that said, if I ramble, just laugh at me & know that when I reread this I'm going to be wondering what I was thinking.
Have you ever had an emotion have a taste? Bitter sadness, maybe...I like delicious laughter better. I had a huge helping of delicious laughter last night. It was Vestavia's homecoming & after the dance we hosted about 36 teenagers for breakfast & games. I have been posting pictures for the kids to see & they are hilarious. I love it when you have a picture and you can feel the happiness in it. It reaches out and grabs you & makes you smile too. Joy bubbles up. The next thing you know you're laughing because of their happiness. You laugh because of your memory of what you saw and experienced. I Love It! It's no wonder they say laughter is the best medicine, have you ever noticed how you feel after you laugh? I was able stand back and see memories being formed and relationships strengthened. What a blessing for me! It was a great night with some great kids!
My brother, Cotton, had the idea of game playing after breakfast. I give him all the credit, because oh my goodness...it was hilarious!!! I am going to post a few pictures so you can share in the laugh.
There's no recipe in part 1, but I will post a wonderful breakfast casserole that my friend, Traci Parker gave me and the variation that she approved of.
I'm going to drink something with caffeine.
Y'all be blessed beyond measure!
~ashley
Have you ever had an emotion have a taste? Bitter sadness, maybe...I like delicious laughter better. I had a huge helping of delicious laughter last night. It was Vestavia's homecoming & after the dance we hosted about 36 teenagers for breakfast & games. I have been posting pictures for the kids to see & they are hilarious. I love it when you have a picture and you can feel the happiness in it. It reaches out and grabs you & makes you smile too. Joy bubbles up. The next thing you know you're laughing because of their happiness. You laugh because of your memory of what you saw and experienced. I Love It! It's no wonder they say laughter is the best medicine, have you ever noticed how you feel after you laugh? I was able stand back and see memories being formed and relationships strengthened. What a blessing for me! It was a great night with some great kids!
My brother, Cotton, had the idea of game playing after breakfast. I give him all the credit, because oh my goodness...it was hilarious!!! I am going to post a few pictures so you can share in the laugh.
There's no recipe in part 1, but I will post a wonderful breakfast casserole that my friend, Traci Parker gave me and the variation that she approved of.
I'm going to drink something with caffeine.
Y'all be blessed beyond measure!
~ashley
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| Abby & Hopson |
 |
| Hop after the games |
 |
| Part of the group after the games |
 |
| Abby & Hopson after the games |
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| Harry had to join in! |
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