Tag: BLOG 365

COUNTRY FRENCH CHICKEN GARLIC SOUP ~ BLOG 365.3

This recipe is inspired by an old Julia Child recipe.

COUNTRY FRENCH CHICKEN GARLIC SOUP
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon avocado oil
1 SMALL onion, chopped (1 cup)
10-12 cloves garlic, chopped
4 cups homemade chicken broth
1 LARGE potato, diced (1 cup)
1 1/2 cups diced rotisserie chicken pieces
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon FRESH chopped thyme
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper
1/4 cup chopped FRESH parsley, for garnish
Grated Gruyere, for garnish
Crusty bread or Butter Swim Biscuits

  • Melt butter and oil together in large pot over medium heat.
  • Add onions and garlic, sautéing until soft.
  • Add chicken broth and diced potatoes. Bring to a SLOW boil.
  • Reduce heat and let it simmer for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
  • Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth.
  • Stir in heavy cream, thyme, chicken pieces, FRESH ground salt and pepper. Heat through.
  • Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley before serving and serve with crusty bread.
  • For extra richness, top with grated cheese and crusty bread.

CHICKEN TOSTADA CUPS ~ BLOG 365.2

CHICKEN TOSTADA CUPS
12 (6 inch) corn OR flour tortillas, warmed
Cooking spray
2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken pieces
1 cup chunky salsa
16 ounce can refried beans
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend

Optional toppings: Shredded lettuce, sour cream, chopped cilantro, diced avocado, sliced jalapeno, lime wedges, sliced ripe olives, sliced green onions, sliced radishes, and pico de gallo or additional salsa

  • Preheat oven to 425°.
  • Press warm tortillas into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray, pleating sides as needed.
  • Spritz tortillas with additional cooking spray.
  • Bake 5-7 minutes until lightly browned, 5-7 minutes.
  • Toss chicken with salsa.
  • Layer each cup with beans, chicken mixture and cheese.
  • Bake 9-11 minutes until heated through.
  • Serve with toppings as desired.

WORDS & LISTS for 2025 ~ BLOG 365.1B

Back in 2022 Jean over at Chit Chat with Jean did a word for the year and also a list of “22” things to accomplish in 2022. I liked the way she thought and realized that 2022 items would be unreasonable and using the last 2 numbers to do 22 items is completely acceptable, reasonable and even doable. Since that was my first time attempting that kind of list I didn’t have any ‘leftovers” from the previous year and that made me smile and approach the task as even more possible.

After giving this serious thought I decided to join in. Was I be as successful? YES, for the most part.

I’m seriously gave it a try. I did quarterly updates until the end of the year and then decided to do 2023 also 😀 Towards the end of 2023 I fell off the wagon and don’t even ask me about 2024! BUT, I’m back for 2025!

Your Word of the Year sets your intention or theme for how you want your life and year to flow as we move forward in 2025.

I found an Elizabeth Ryder post about selecting your word of the year. This is from her page on how to select your word of the year.

How to choose your Word of the Year:

  1. Grab a piece of paper and make two columns. On one side, write down everything that went well over the past year. On the other side, write what you would like to change.
  2. Review the list of what went well.
    • How do these things make you feel?
    • What do you want more of?
  3. Choose one to five words that really speak to how you want your year to feel. Nouns, verbs, anything works—just words that feel good to you. Don’t get caught up in the grammar.
  4. Review them all together, then narrow it down to one you know you need more of in your heart.

Then, write your word on a pretty note card and stick it to your bathroom mirror or anywhere else you’ll see it every day. Some other ideas are on your car’s sun visor, your office wall, or make it your computer desktop or phone wallpaper.

Choosing a “Word of the Year” is a personal and inspiring process. This is not a comprehensive list, but if you need some inspiration, here are 50 words to spark creativity and reflection:

Transform
Courage
Harmony
Adventure
Balance
Resilience
Growth
Mindfulness
Joy
Empower
Focus
Heal
Innovate
Thrive
Simplify
Connect
Explore
Gratitude
Peace
Create
Nurture
Discover
Inspire
Flourish
Awaken
Believe
Reflect
Elevate
Persevere
Dream
Sustain
Empathy
Challenge
Diversity
Kindness
Wisdom
Freedom
Renew
Resolve
Engage
Passion
Vibrant
Calm
Illuminate
Transform
Integrity
Breathe
Aspire
Unite
Evolve

Each of these words carries its own unique energy and potential for personal transformation. The key is to find a word that resonates deeply with your aspirations and challenges for the year ahead.

In my case I decided a single word just won’t work. There are too many things I want to accomplish so I chose a few, well actually 10. I even tried to make an acronym out of them. My words are:

  • BALANCE all my responsibilities with more fun and adventure
  • BREATHE before making a decision to get involved in ANY project
  • EVOLVE from the rut I’ve been in to a new lease on life with a Passion Project
  • SIMPLIFY by continuing to downsize all the stuff in our life and de-clutter most of it
  • HEAL or AKA continue to stay healthy and work on dietary issues
  • INSPIRE my own creative outlet and as many others as possible
  • PERSEVERE through all of my health issues and life itself
  • THRIVE despite the medical and dietary issues
  • PASSION for getting back to more of my favorite pass times – reading, quilting, painting
  • GRATITUDE for everything and EVERYONE in my life

In the end I realize I’d be happy if any of these words would happen for me on any given day 😀

My list for 2025 is (some are holdovers from 2023):

  • Do a Happy Homemaker Monday post each and every week. This keeps me more on track and organized about my home life. Doing Happy Homemaker Monday so extensively helps keep me on track as it summarizes the past week and lays out a fairly concise plan for this week.
  • Do 1-2 devotionals every day
  • Follow a nightly skincare regime
  • Complete 4 quilts – at least 1 for each quarter.
  • Finish indexing the recipes on my food blog, Savory Kitchen Table.
  • Finish indexing the recipes on Chasing MY Life blog. When I merged my old blogspot blogs into this single blog it duplicated many things and added an “ALL” category that I am having to eliminate one by one so it’s taking a LONG time.
  • Make a better effort to reach out and connect with friends and family more regularly.
  • Learn YOGA or Pilates or both!
  • Take at least a 3 mile walk daily.
  • Continue to downsize and declutter EVERYTHING.
  • Clean out photo files that date back almost 15 years!
  • Create shutterfly photo albums for 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017 and 2016 and then delete the photos from ALL my devices.
  • Go through scrap recipe tote and eliminate all the recipes I will never try – they’re just not worth saving.
  • Do more drawing and painting – at least one per month.
  • Focus on rewriting more recipes to work for only 2 with no leftovers.
  • Volunteer at least once a month for a community project.
  • Do a date weekend once a month – exploring a new place we’ve never been before.
  • Clean out old files and recycle or destroy old papers.
  • Clean out craft cabinets and donate craft parts no longer needed.
  • Eat at least 1 piece of fruit daily.
  • Do at least 1 random act of kindness every time I leave the house.
  • Read 48 books. Hopefully it will be more, but I think this is a realistic goal.

What do you think? Do you want to join in also?

NEAPOLITAN CAKE ~ BLOG 366.362

Why have one flavor when you can have three? Neapolitan bundt cake is a tribute to nostalgic classic Neapolitan ice cream from childhood. It was a family favorite with a flavor for everyone in the family. I was never a single flavor girl. I always ate a mix of all three flavors together.

This bundt cake is dense but soft, similar to a pound cake in texture with strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate layers of soft and fluffy cake and all three flavors – strawberry (sweet), vanilla (basic), and chocolate (deep and rich) are all made from the same batter, making this cake much easier than it looks. But, with just a few additions for the sweet strawberry layer and the deep rich chocolate layer combined with the base vanilla flavor it all balances out! Not the best picture, but the flavor made up for it!

VANILLA CAKE
1 cup or 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons PURE vanilla extract
3 LARGE eggs, room temperature
2 and 1/4 cups AP flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup full fat or whole milk
2 tablespoons full fat sour cream

  • Grease and line three 6-inch round baking pans.
  • Preheat oven to 350 (320 convection).
  • In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla together until smooth and creamy.
  • Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
  • Sift in flour, baking powder and salt.
  • Add milk and sour cream and beat on a low speed until just combined. DO NOT OVER MIX!!!!!
  • Divide batter evenly into three bowls.

STRAWBERRY CAKE
1 teaspoon strawberry extract
Pink food gel or food coloring

  • Add strawberry extract to one bowl and a few drops of pink food gel and stir together.

CHOCOLATE CAKE
1 tablespoon cocoa powder, sifted
1 tablespoon milk

  • Add the cocoa powder and milk to another bowl, stirring until smooth.
  • Leave the final batter as is for the vanilla layer.

 

  • Carefully pour each batter, one layer at a time, into prepared cake tins.
  • Bake cakes 25-30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
  • Carefully remove the cakes and set on a wire rack to cool completely.

VANILLA BUTTERCREAM
1 cup or 2 sticks butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons PURE vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
5 cups powdered sugar
3–4 tablespoons WHOLE milk, room temperature

  • Beat butter with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.
  • Add the vanilla.
  • Add powdered sugar, one cup at a time.
  • Add a tablespoon of milk as needed.
  • Continue until you have used all the icing sugar and milk and the frosting is smooth and creamy.
  • Use a serrated knife to trim tops of cakes to even them out.
  • Place one cake on a small cake board, then cover the top with buttercream.
  • Place the second cake on top. Cover top with buttercream.
  • Place the third cake on top.
  • Cover the entire cake, top and sides, with remaining buttercream. 
  • Use a cake scraper to remove excess buttercream on the sides.

BRINED ROAST TURKEY BREAST ~ BLOG 365.

We’re had a SMALL group for Thanksgiving this year and I ordered a LARGE boneless turkey breast, but was afraid it would be too dry so decided to try a brine to keep it juicy. This recipe calls for an overnight wet brine overnight creating maximum flavor and keeping it extremely moist. It is then roasted to a golden perfection.

BRINED ROAST TURKEY BREAST
Prep Time 15 minutes
Brine Time 12 hours
Cook Time 3 hours
Rest Time 15 minutes
+/- Total Time 15 hours 15 minutes

BRINE
8 cups water
½ cup kosher salt
½ cup PACKED brown sugar
8 cloves garlic, FINELY minced
1 cinnamon stick
¼ cup FRESH tarragon
2 sprigs FRESH rosemary
2 lemons, cut in half and juiced
1 LARGE orange, peeled, cut in half and juiced
4 cups ice, optional

  • Bring the water to a boil in a LARGE pot.
  • Add all ingredients to the pot except the ice and return to a boil, stirring to dissolve all the salt and sugar.
  • Remove from heat and cool completely.
  • To speed up the cooling add about 4 cups of ice to the brine.
Once the brine is cooled, place the turkey breast in the brine making sure it’s fully submerged. You may have to weigh it down with another pot of water to keep it submerged.
  • Store it in the refrigerator overnight or for at least for 12 hours.


TURKEY
2 medium onions, quartered
4 large carrots, rustic cut
4 cloves garlic, FINELY minced
5-8 pound turkey breast, thawed
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper, to taste
4 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
8 tablespoon butter, melted
1 cup homemade chicken broth

  • Preheat your oven to 350°.
  • Remove the turkey breast from the brine solution and pat it dry with paper towels.
  • Rinse the turkey breast thoroughly to remove excess salt and pat dry.
Place the quartered onions, carrot pieces, minced garlic and 4 tablespoons diced butter in a large roasting pan then place the turkey breast on top.
  • Rub the turkey with the melted butter, keep remaining butter for later.
  • Generously season with salt and pepper on both sides. 
Add the chicken broth to the pan. 

  • Cover the pan with aluminum foil and place in the oven.
  • Roast covered for 1½ hours, basting with the melted butter, remelting as necessary every 20 minutes.
  • After 1½ hours, remove the foil and roast for another 1 hour or until golden brown. The breast is done when a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast registers at 165°.
Transfer the turkey breast to a platter or cutting board and let it rest for a full 15 minutes before slicing into it.
  • With a slotted spoon remove carrots to a serving bow. Cover and keep warm.


GRAVY
pan drippings
¾ cup homemade chicken broth
1 tablespoon cornstarch or more for a thicker gravy

  • Skim some of the fat from the pan drippings if necessary.
  • Place the pan on the stove over medium-high heat.
  • In a small bowl whisk together the cornstarch with a couple tablespoons of the chicken broth. Add mixture to the pan, whisking it all together.
  • Strain gravy through a sieve pressing all the liquid out of the onions and garlic for additional flavor.
Add more cornstarch until you reach the desired consistency. Cook for a few minutes, until the gravy thickens a bit.
  • Adjust seasoning as necessary.

NOTES

  • Turkey breast cooking guidelines:
    4 to 6 pounds – 2 1/2 to 3 hours
    6 to 8 pounds – 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours
  • Use a shallow roaster so that the oven air can flow completely around the turkey breast.

HOMEMADE REFRIED BEANS

REFRIED BEANS
2 1/2 cups pinto beans
1 small onion, chopped fine
4 tablespoons bacon grease
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 cup sour cream
1 cup cheddar/ Monterey Jack grated cheese
Cotija cheese, optional
Jalapenos, optional

  • Rinse beans and pick out any bad ones.
  • In a small stock pot cover the beans with about 3 inches of water. If there are still any bad beans in there they will float to the top.
  • Bring them to a boil, lower heat and simmer 2 hours or until skins break.
  • Drain.
  • In a heavy skillet (cast iron works best), melt the bacon grease and butter.
  • Saute’ onion until translucent.
  • Add beans and stir well.
  • Smash beans continuously until desired texture is reached.
  • Transfer beans into a large mixing bowl.
  • Use hand mixer and beat smooth.
  • Add sour cream, salt, pepper and red pepper.
  • Beat smooth again.
  • Transfer into a 9×9 casserole and top with cheese, if desired.
  • Bake 20 minutes at 350°.
  • Garnish with Cotija cheese and jalapenos if desired.