FUN Weekend-Beach, Memorial Day, Recipes AND a Craft!

Happy Friday to you. I have all kinds of FUN to share today.  But first lets chat about what this weekend brings.  For many it will bring a L O N G weekend.  That extra day off resulting in a short week next week.  All because of our holiday on Monday, MEMORIAL DAY! 

Memorial Day is not only a special day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces, it also kicks off BBQ season.  So as you fire up the pit pay some respect to those who gave their lives for YOU.

BBQ season is here and also time to head to the BEACH.  Finally.  I am so excited that tomorrow my toes will be in SAND.   

I have been waiting for months to go and can hardly contain myself that the day is finally here.  I'll spare you today from all my obsessive thoughts, feelings and love for the beach.  Pure beachful bliss is in my very near future.

Tomorrow's Motto

Now, lets get on with the recipes. 

In light National Strawberry Month I am sharing several strawberry recipes from the archives. Although I think any of these would be great to make this weekend, pay special attention to the second one, Not Yo' Mama's Berry Pudding Trifle. 

This is a show stopper and everyone will love you for making it.  It is the perfect dessert for this upcoming Memorial Day weekend. 


Strawberry Bread with Strawberry Butter -perfect breakfast bread for the holiday.

Not Yo' Mama's Berry Pudding Trifle -dessert to make you famous!

Strawberry and Cream Popsicles -for the kids.  Adults too.

Strawberry Brushchetta -perfect appetizers while your honey is busy working the pit.


And last, but certainly not least my super, duper easy craft to make for your Memorial Day party.  My crafty one, Matthew AKA #2,  ask yesterday if we should make something special for Memorial Day.  I tell you what, that little boy thinks just like his Momma.  And always reminds me of decorations for ANY holiday.  We call him Matthew Stewart.  This little banner would also be cute with bright colorful fabric for summer.  I hope to make one soon. I got the idea from HERE .

This will be used again for 4th of July although #2 says it needs flags on it.  It cost me nothing.  I'll beat you have stuff in your stash too to make one up today.  Make sure to check out the link for other banner ideas.


I love the simpleness of this banner.
Yarn, twine and scrap fabric made up this festive little banner.

Be safe this weekend. Wear sunscreen during extended times in the SUN.  Otherwise soak up the natural vitamin D.  Dr. Mercola advises it!
Hang your flag on Monday and think about those who serve.  Thank those you know personally who have served and are serving now.  Maybe thank a stranger too!

Whatever you do this weekend get OUTSIDE and have some FUN!!!!!

Thankful Thursday-Simple Roasted Chicken

I am thankful for the simple roasted chicken we had for supper last night.  It was our first chicken from the pasture raised chickens we butchered on Saturday.

When cooking if I want to taste the "star of the show" I prefer to use less in seasoning.  So for roasting this chicken we used just a few ingredients.  We were all anxious to see if the taste would be different than our usual nasty grocery store chicken. 

Brant and Matthew without a doubt thought it tasted different.  I thought the breast tasted different.  Ryan just ate.  Funny thing was I am usually freaked out by chickens from the store.  They are nasty, slimy and have a weird gross smell.  As I took the chicken out yesterday afternoon to wash it I did not bat an eye at handling it.  Maybe because I knew where it came from, what it had been eating it's whole life and because I had just handled it on Saturday.  Also it did not stink and did not have that disgusting sliminess factory raised chickens usually do. 

Even if there were not a big difference in taste, we all agreed that because of the chicken's life, the way it was raised and what it ate, it is all around better for us.

Ingredients: 
1 (5 pound or smaller ) Roasting Chicken
salt (eyeball)
pepper (eyeball)
1 lemon quartered (surprisingly this gave off a strong taste.  Will omit next time)
3-4 garlic cloves
1 onion quartered
3-4 sprigs of thyme
2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425.
Allow the chicken to get to room temp for about 30 minutes.
Remove inside giblets and such. Rinse the bird under cold water.  Pat dry with a paper towel. sprinkle the inside of the cavity with salt and pepper.  Stuff the cavity with the lemon, garlic, onion, and thyme.  Rub the bird all over with butter.  Then season with salt and pepper.  Using kitchen twine tie the legs together and tuck the wings under.  Or cut small slit in the excess skin and tuck legs in the slit.  Place the chicken in the pan and roast for 1 1/2 hours or until golden and crispy and the juices run clear.  You can use a meat thermometer and check for doneness it should read 160.  Let the bird rest for about 15 minutes before you carve it.

Serve with homemade mashed potatoes of course!  And gravy made from the drippings of the chicken.  And go ahead and stem some broccoli.....easiest recipe ever for broccoli-add just about an inch and half of water to a medium size pot.  Add 1 teaspoon of sugar (yes, sugar); bring to a boil.  Toss in cut up broccoli trees (the boys call them little trees when they are cut up), place lid on pot and let steam for 8 minutes.  DONE!  And super delicious.

I just gave you a whole meal idea.  Enjoy! 

I am off to find more chicken recipes.  You'll be seeing lots of them here.  Do you have a favorite chicken recipe?  Leave me a comment.  Share a link.  If you have a blogged about it let me know, I'll share it here.

And come back tomorrow for FUN Friday/FUN Weekend.  I 'll give a recipe and craft for this up coming Memorial Day Weekend.

Simple Strawberry Jam and Breakfast Grilled Cheese

Since May is National Strawberry Month I just had to share a strawberry recipe or two.

Both are super easy to make.  This would make a perfect breakfast for a certain man in your life.  Yep, that day is right around the corner.  Or it would be a great brunch idea with friends...for a ladies brunch cut in half.  These are super filling!  And I am pretty certain your children would love it too! 

Warm sweetened cream cheese and strawberry jam oozing out the sides of these toasted waffle make me drool.  Sprinkle with powered sugar and cinnamon oh my!!!!

First lets get started on the simple jam.  This is perfect when you don't know the whole canning process (that's me!) or just don't have the time. 


Simple Strawberry Jam
Ingredients:
2 cups of fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/2 cup of sugar* (see note below)
1/4 cup of water
1 tsp fresh lemon zest

Directions:
Wash, hull, and slice your strawberries.  Put them into a saucepan with the water, lemon zest, and sugar.  *Note* add sugar a little at a time and taste as you go.  You may like your jam a little less sweet.  Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes until jam thickens and reduces.  You can add cornstarch to make it thicker if you like.  Mash with a potato masher while cooking to break up big chunks.

**Don't forget: his jam has no pectin in it, so it needs to be refrigerated and used within a couple of weeks.** 

Not a problem!  You can quickly use the jam by making this delicious breakfast grilled cheese.  Are you ready?

Breakfast Grilled Cheese

Ingredients:

⅓	cup whipped cream cheese
2	tablespoons powered sugar, plus more for topping
4	frozen waffles (untoasted....you could use fresh if you so desire)
1 to 2	tablespoons jam (any flavor)
1	tablespoon butter, plus more if needed
	ground cinnamon for topping

Directions:
Mix the cream cheese and powered sugar in a medium bowl. Spread 2 waffles with the jam, then top with the cream cheese mixture; cover with the remaining 2 waffles.
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sandwiches and cook until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes per side, adding more butter to the pan if needed. (Adjust the heat if the waffles are browning too quickly.)
Let the sandwiches rest 1 minute before serving. Sprinkle with powered sugar and cinnamon.

Serve with bacon, fruit and OJ.  Maybe serve this to Dad on a silver platter in bed on Father's Day.  He'll be shocked and give you lots of hugs and kisses!  Enjoy breakfast! 

Happy Wednesday.

I Survived Butcher Day!

Well I did it.  I survived our first butcher day! 

I didn't throw up, didn't freak out and actually thought it was a great learning experience. 

If you missed my post on Friday I'll quickly tell you that Saturday was butcher day.  Our family along with Brant's brother's family butchered 47 pastured raised chickens. 

I'll spare you with all the details, but if you are the least bit interested you can go HERE to read about "Our First Butcher Day". Warning:  there are some graphic pictures.

I know a few of you who are waiting with baited breath to find out the role I played on butcher day.  And contrary to what some may have thought I did do some work.  I did take pictures.  I did cut feet and tails off.  And did eventually pull heads off.  I did handle dead chickens.  I helped in the final cleaning of the dead chickens.  And I did learn more than I could have ever imagined!

What I did not do. I did not do as much as some on butcher day. I did not kill chickens (thank you to my amazing husband and his brother for taking that on).  And I had no part of eviscerating (gutting) the chickens.  I did from time to time have to pull parts of the insides out that were forgotten when I did the final cleaning, but that was as close as I got.  Speaking of gutting the chickens..........Kudos to my SIL who got right there in the action of eviscerating.  Maybe next batch I'll be as brave as you.

My thoughts on this day..........it was a long work day.  But truly satisfying when at the end we saw the fruits of our labor.  Our freezers are now stocked with fresh pasture raised chickens.  Chickens that were fed and cared for in a manner that we are not ashamed of. 

More thoughts on butcher day.....the chicken plucker was by far the most fascinating part of the day.  If you have never heard or seen one that is reason alone to go to the link above to read about "Our First Butcher Day".  A video is in that post.

Right now I am gathering chicken recipes.  And can't wait to have a lovely roasted chicken this week. 

Happy Monday to you.

FUN Weekend?

Yes, I am questioning myself if this will be a FUN weekend.  Today will be, but tomorrow I am not so sure. 

But let's take it one day at a time.

Today will be a delightful morning for sure.  This little old house is getting a new stove!  As a stay at home mom who spends a lot of time in the kitchen I am beyond excited.  Our current stove is a 70s model that came with the house.  Over the past seven months she, the stove, has slowly been telling me she is tired.  Some days working fine and other days putting her foot down to even do the smallest task.  After several "in house examinations" by stove/oven doctors AKA appliance specialists it has been determined she is too old to continue this kind of work.  And just last night she had the courage to tell me, "no more, I'm done".   Lucky for me I was not right in the middle of cooking something.  But I was seconds away from putting something in the oven.  No sweat.  We'll move on to a newer and better machine and give this old gal a break.

And tonight me and my new kitchen friend will start our new life together at a high heat.  It's PIZZA NIGHT!!!!!

Now on to tomorrow. Tomorrow is a day we have been waiting for since the beginning of March.  Tomorrow is butcher day.  Tomorrow our family along with Brant's family will kill and process 47 (I think) chickens.  At the end of the day our freezers will be full of chickens that were pasture raised. 

BUT, my thoughts are blurry this morning.  I am thinking about tomorrow and what is to come....how will I react to all the killing of the chickens, what will the boys think, will blood be everywhere,  what will my role be,  will it all go fast, will we be working until dark (not likely), etc.  And so many other thoughts.  And then I keep thinking about how my husband put it in the first blog post on The Poultry Record .


Factory farmed broiler chickens never see the light of day. They are raised in cramped, overcrowded broiler houses with thousands of other birds. Selectively bred and genetically altered, their thighs and breasts grow so large and heavy that their bones cannot support their weight (have you ever noticed how big the individual breasts are in a package of chicken breasts at the grocery store?). Their beaks and toes are also cut off and they usually spend their short, miserable lives in the darkness to prevent fighting among the birds.

Several years ago, our family made a deliberate effort to start thinking about the food we eat: how it’s grown, where it comes from. And in the case of animals that we eat, the manner in which they are raised.

We are two families, who by the grace of God have been given the skills, abilities and desire to provide for ourselves some of the food we eat, and in doing so, to be less reliant upon the factory providers of the Frankenstein food products that have inundated our grocery store shelves.


And all that gives me strength for tomorrow and a little hope that it will be OK.   These chickens have been raised in the most ethical, honorable and humane way possible.  And we are extremely blessed to still have so many! 

So what part will I play tomorrow???  I sure as heck am not going to kill the birds.  The chicken plucker sounds like a fun job.  Besides the boys would love to help me with that. Google chicken plucker if you have no idea what I am talking about. Gutting the chickens may be pretty interesting if I don't mess up and break the bile duct!  Or maybe I could cut the feet off.  Who knows?!  I'll be back Monday to share.

Whatever it is I will be doing you can bet it will be a day I'll never forget!  And a day full of learning....talk about the ultimate homeschooling class!  Whatever I am doing I sure hope it is a FUN day. 

So what's on your agenda for this weekend?  Whatever you do get outside and have some FUN! 

Words I'm Loving on Wednesday

Life is full of challenges.  Daily challenges.  Sometimes every single minute there seems to be a challenge. With something or someone in your life.  On those days I quickly try to change the outcome.  I set goals.  I plan for the future.  And that future may just be two days away. Heck, it may two hours away!  I plan minute by minute sometimes.  But I plan for it.  I pray and ask God to direct my path because I know the devil is out to make it one tough obstacle after another.

I tell myself I can do this!  I can withstand these challenges right here-right now!

Then I stumble.

I let my guard down.  My children insist on being bossy.  I burn the granola.  We run out of milk.....and EVOO.  Breakfast is rushed.  I forgot to wash clothes and the boys have nothing but pjs to wear. We start school on the wrong foot.  I didn't plan for lunch.  Knives are flying at my back!  I speak unkind words.  I have hateful thoughts!  I FUME!  And then laugh.  AND HARD!   I give in.  I allow ridiculous nonsense to make me fall off my positive pursuit to a good day.  And about that time the devil is laughing too!

And that is when I remember these words..........................

"If you’re going through hell, keep going." Winston Churchill

For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

However mean your life is, meet it and live it.”
― Henry David Thoreau

 

 

 

And wake up with this attitude.................

 

 

and then

 

 

 

Happy Wednesday!