BACON RANCH CHICKEN SLIDERS

BACON RANCH CHICKEN SLIDERS
12 pack of Kings Sweet Hawaiian Rolls
2 1/2 cups chopped Costco rotisserie chicken pieces
1/2 red onion, THINLY sliced
8 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
8 slices Havarti cheese
1/3-1/2 cup Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon powdered Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • LIGHTLY spray 9×13 pan with non-stick cooking spray.
  • Stir together chicken pieces and ranch dressing until well coated.
  • Cut entire package of Hawaiian rolls in half so you have a top and bottom.
  • Place roll bottoms in pan.
  • Place half the cheese in a single layer on top of rolls.
  • Top with chicken pieces in an even layer.
  • Evenly layer onions on top of chicken pieces.
  • Sprinkle with bacon pieces and top with remaining cheese in a single layer.
  • Place tops on rolls.
  • Whisk together melted butter, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, garlic powder and Parmesan cheese.
  • Brush roll tops with butter mixture.
  • Cover LIGHTLY with foil.
  • Bake 20 minutes.
  • Remove foil and bake 5 minutes more.
  • Serve warm.

NOTE: You can use regular rolls, but the Hawaiian rolls are a much sweeter roll that lend a great profile to this recipe.

A to Z CHALLENGE ~ K is for KODACHROME

K is for KODACHROME. Is the song stuck in your head yet. I know it was mine right after hearing that single word even though I was really young when it was released, it stayed popular for many years and is still played on some classic rock and roll stations 😀 So, I had to go with this definition for today! Read all the way to the end of the definition and that too brings its own little laugh 😀

Per Wikipedia Kodachrome is the  Southern Pacific Santa Fe Railroad‘s red, yellow, and black paint scheme, which resembled the packaging of Kodachrome (a KODAK registered trademark) color transparency film.  It is a method of color transparency, but more commonly known as a type of color film the company started marketing in 1935.

The same color scheme was instituted when the merger between Southern Pacific and Santa Fe was assumed to be approved. Hundreds of locomotives were painted in Kodachrome colors before the merger was denied. 😀

Just for some added nostalgia for some of you, here’s the song Lyrics by Paul Simon to make you smile. It really had a catchy tune. 😀

Paul Simon was working on a song with the title “Coming Home” when the word “Kodachrome” came to him. He had no idea what it meant, but knew it would make for a much more interesting song than “Coming Home.” The song became an appreciation of the things that color our world, and a look at how our memories are framed to fit our worldviews.

Paul Simon YouTube

When I think back
On all the crap I learned in high school
It’s a wonder
I can think at all
And though my lack of education
Hasn’t hurt me none
I can read the writing on the wall
Kodachrome
They give us those nice bright colors
They give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world’s a sunny day, oh yeah
I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away
If you took all the girls I knew
When I was single
And brought ’em all together for one night
I know they’d never match
My sweet imagination
Everything looks worse in black and white
Kodachrome
They give us those nice bright colors
They give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world’s a sunny day, oh yeah
I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photographSo mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome
Leave your boy so far from home
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome
Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away (ok)

HAPPY HOMEMAKER & MENU PLAN MONDAY week 16 of 2021

Be sure to join us for Happy Homemaker Monday and link up
with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

Hello sweet friends. How was your week/weekend? It rained here and was downright cold on Saturday so we stayed in and watched some racing and a couple of movies, but the Sunday was pretty nice. We took a walk around the pond and even though spring is later than normal, it was pretty cool with the breeze. As long as you keep going though you don’t seem to notice it much!

This week is supposed to be the nicest yet this spring.  Cool mornings, sunny afternoons and just plain pretty. Highs in the 60’s and lows in the 40’s.

Hot water and carrot apple toddler squeeze

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS & APPOINTMENTS
 We actually decided to up and take a little trip this week so I actually have nothing lined up until I get back Friday and I have a painting class on Saturday 😀

WHAT’S ON THE DVR/TV
  • NETFLIX Still working on Stargate SG! We also watched Thunder Force with Melissa McCarthy, Jason Bateman and Octavia Spencer and KILLERS with Ashton Kutcher, Kathryn Heigl, and Tom Selleck
  • CABLE Great American Food Truck Race, Easter Baking Challenge, GGG, DDD, Beat Bobby Flay, Spring Baking Challenge, Tournament of Champions, Clarice, Ellen’s Game of Games, Bull, New Amsterdam, The Good Doctor, 911, 911 Lone Star, FBI, FBI Most Wanted, Young Sheldon, The Unicorn, Last Man Standing, MOM, Call Your Mother, NCIS, NCIS New Orleans, NCIS LA, Magnum PI, MacGyver, Blue Bloods, The Resident, Chicago series

I just finished a long tedious trilogy read by Nadia Lee, but I stuck with it and am really glad it is over. I have never NOT finished a book, but I often wish I had 🙁 This was one that took 3 books to tell a story that should have and could be told in 2 and even possibly in one.

I just downloaded SPY MISTRESS by Jennifer Chiaverini, “New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Chiaverini is back with another enthralling historical novel set during the Civil War era, this time inspired by the life of “a true Union woman as true as steel” who risked everything by caring for Union prisoners of war — and stealing Confederate secrets”,  and am looking forward to starting that.  I’ve read her many times in the past with her quilt series and always enjoy her stories.

The DOUBLE PINK Flashpoint tulip plant that we bought my mom for mother’s day has opened beautifully! They are not your typical tulip style as the have more petals. I believe they call it a peony style.
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
DINNER
C.O.R.N. CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATOR NIGHT
OOT (OUT OF TOWN)
OOT (OUT OF TOWN)
OOT (OUT OF TOWN)
OOT (OUT OF TOWN)
Y.O.Y.O.
PORK TENDERLOINS & SALAD
DESSERT
NOTHING THIS WEEK

  • CHICKEN BACON RANCH SLIDERS
  • PAN SEARED CHICKEN with RUSTIC TOMATO GRAVY & FLUFFY BUTTERED MASHED POTATOES

A to Z CHALLENGE ~ I is for INERTIA

A to Z challenge 

Another good term to learn is INERTIA.

INERTIA is the force that holds the universe together. Literally. Without it, things would fall apart.

This is one of those terms that a TRUE definition can be clear as mud so I’ll offer you up a couple choices 😀

A) “The property of matter by which it retains its state of rest or its velocity along a straight line so long as it is not acted upon by an external force.”

B) “Inertia is the resistance of any physical object to any change in its velocity. This includes changes to the object’s speed, or direction of motion. An aspect of this property is the tendency of objects to keep moving in a straight line at a constant speed, when no forces act upon them.”

C) “Inertia is a passive property and does not enable a body to do anything except oppose such active agents as forces and torques.“

But Newton’s First law, the Law of Inertia really says it best for the layman “if a body is at rest or moving at a constant speed in a straight line, it will remain at rest or keep moving in a straight line at constant speed unless it is acted upon by a force.”

All that said, there are no #RailArt pictures for Inertia itself so I’ll offer up these random images 😀

BLTS ROLL UPS

These are great in the spring and summer, especially for picnic baskets or outside around the yard.

BLTS (BACON LETTUCE TURKEY STRAWBERRY) ROLL UPS
PER PERSON
1 LARGE spinach tortilla
2 slices deli turkey
2-3 pieces crisp bacon
2-3 LARGE strawberries
shredded lettuce mayonnaise

  • Lay spinach tortillas out on a flat work surface.
  • Spread with mayonnaise.
  • Starting at one edge top with turkey slices followed by bacon pieces, sliced strawberries and lettuce not quite going all the way to the other edge.
  • Roll the tortillas TIGHTLY!
  • Cut each roll in half and serve.

A to Z CHALLENGE ~ H is for HELL ON WHEELS

HELL ON WHEELS was a GREAT show that we loved! After all, who doesn’t love Anson Mount? :SIGH: 😀 And even though it was fictional, it WAS based on real life!

HELL ON WHEELS – A traveling assembly of business establishments for railroad workers of the Union Pacific during the construction of the transcontinental railroad. Businesses typically included purveyors of equipment and supplies, as well as gambling houses, saloons, dance halls, and brothels.

Now I obviously wasn’t around when HELL ON WHEELS happened and #RailArt wasn’t even invented yet so we’ll have to settle for these images 😀

A to Z CHALLENGE – G is for GOLDEN SPIKE & GREENWICH MEAN TIME

A to Z challenge 

GOLDEN SPIKE – The ceremonial spike driven that joined the rails of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869 at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory.

GREENWICH MEAN TIME – The time as measured on the prime meridian running through Greenwich, England, and used internationally as a standard calculation.

While I don’t have pictures of either, they are crucial railway terms.  I do have these pictures though 😀

A TO Z CHALLENGE ~ F is for FREIGHT TRAIN

A to Z challenge 

The first term I want to share with you is FIREBOX – The fire-chamber of a locomotive-boiler. It is jacketed with a water-chamber to prevent radiation of heat. The fire-box door may also be double and have a circulation of water through the hinges. A partition in the box sometimes divides the fire-space into two parts, and, being full of water, increases the fire surface. But, of course I don’t have a picture of this 🙂

It is near impossible to find #RailArt on a lumber FREIGHT CAR, but it’s almost a given that it will also have cargo cars that do 😀 FREIGHT TRAIN – A FREIGHT train is constructed and used for the carriage of merchandise.

A to Z CHALLENGE ~ E is for ENGINE

A to Z challenge 

I bet you didn’t see this coming, but “E” is for engine 😀

ENGINE ~ A machine which acts both to power and operate.

There is a town north of us called Junction City where I took this picture. Yep, you guessed it, there are A LOT of trains with a junction. The trains run right through the center of town. You literally have to pull over to let trains pass.

There is also a #RailArt term called #EndToEnd that is pretty simple to understand. The graffiti is LITERALLY painted from END TO END.

And while these last two aren’t END TO END they do fit our letter E.

HAPPY HOMEMAKER & MENU PLAN MONDAY week 15 of 2021

Be sure to join us for Happy Homemaker Monday and link up
with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

I hope spring is treating you well and that you had a beautiful Easter holiday. Spring has FINALLY come to our area and we had a very quiet Easter here. I made an abbreviated menu and had a quiet and simple day 😀

While our lows are still in the high 30’s, we are reaching the high 50’s and low 60’s during the day. It’s now time for light layers as you never wear the same thing all day 😀

Hot water, cottage cheese and pineapple

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS & APPOINTMENTS
  • LAUNDRY & CLEANING – a couple loads of laundry, pack away Easter decorations, garden clean up, attach garden hoses…
  • GROCERIES & ERRANDS pedicure and a BUNCH of little stops today to complete my to do list for the day
  • PAPERWORK & PHONE CALLS I’ve been trying to get a hold of the same medical office to change an appointment time for a week without a call back and I’m getting VERY frustrated so will stop by there tomorrow while I’m in town.
  • RECIPE RESEARCH & MENU PLANNING I spent a good deal of the weekend working on the April menu so I can use up the pantry and freezer items before we travel in May.

WHAT’S ON THE DVR/TV
  • NETFLIX We’re still watching Stargate SG!, but we’re up to season 7
  • REDBOX We saw WW84 – not my favorite Wonder Woman movie
  • DISNEY+ Watched an episode of the Mighty Ducks which was pretty cute
  • CABLE – Great American Food Truck Race, Easter Baking Challenge, GGG, DDD, Beat Bobby Flay, Spring Baking Challenge, Tournament of Champions, Clarice, Ellen’s Game of Games, Bull, New Amsterdam, The Good Doctor, 911, 911 Lone Star, FBI, FBI Most Wanted, Young Sheldon, The Unicorn, Last Man Standing, MOM, Call Your Mother, NCIS, NCIS New Orleans, NCIS LA, Magnum PI, MacGyver, Blue Bloods, The Resident, Chicago series, Law & Order SVU – I was waiting for the new Law & Order with Elliott’s return last week, but was a bit disappointed 🙁

I just downloaded a bunch of fun summer reads and hope to start one this week.

We did make it to the Tulip Festival last week. The day was beautiful, a bit chilly, but nice none the less. I got a few pictures, but the fields weren’t in as much bloom as we had hoped because of the late winter. 🙁

We bought this one for my mom for mother’s day.

I’ve been doing this for years and it works wonderfully!
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
DINNER
PAD THAI
GARLIC LEMON CACIO E PEPE with ROASTED ARTICHOKES
PISTACHIO CRUSTED CHICKEN with TOMATO RICOTTA SALAD
CHICKEN BACON RANCH PULL APARTS and COLE SLAW
ENCHILADAS
BUFFALO CHICKEN PULL APARTS and OVEN BAKED FRENCH FRIES
BLT SPINACH ROLL-UPS and PASTA SALAD
DESSERT
CINNAMON PEAR PLATZ

A to Z CHALLENGE ~ D is for Departure

DEPARTURE YARD: Like a staging track to ready locomotives, departure yards assemble cuts of cars to ready them for an outbound train. I have a great picture of a departure yard :somewhere: :sigh: I looked for hours and could not find it, so I was just going to go with the one below where the #RailArt begins with a “D” even though I don’t know what it stands for AND then I looked one more time and found it! 😀

The day I took this picture the dispatch yard was almost empty, but it’s normally FULL of lumber cars, both full and empty as well as a bunch of box cars full of #RailArt.

Another “D” would be for DEPOT. This is a preserved depot in the same small Montana forest town lumber yard that yesterday’s caboose is in.