Alone with four kids....but eating like a queen!

I've noticed the hubs is not really eating many left overs lately. Finally I just asked...."why am I throwing this away?" Now don't get me wrong; some people aren't "left over" folks, including myself, but hubs will eat pretty much anything.

He politely replied, "well...I'm really not a fan of that dish anymore." After the third time I received this response, I decided, maybe I should get out the old recipe book.

I found a fancy recipe indeed!!! I was actually looking for a chili recipe to blow the neighbors out of the water in the "cul-de-sac chili cook off" which will take place this Sunday. I don't have a chili recipe in my bag of tricks except for the chili packet from the store, with tomatoes and water to add to it! I remembered the MIL (mother-in-law) passing along a white chicken chili recipe several years ago and also that it was a great success among our Rochester friends.

Ok....so this post is not about white chicken chili. Sorry for the lack of brevity on my part. I'm typing this post on my lap top while "watching" a webinar on my desktop. I have to renew my pharmacy license this year, and unfortunately this conference is about GOUT! How "painful" is this lecture? What a better way to remedy that than to blog while listening. I'm such a rebel I know.

As I was searching for the white chicken chili recipe, I was hungry, and I ran across a FAVORITE FOOD WORD!!!! Mushroom...ahh..you love 'em or hate 'em. Hubs and I LOVE 'em. So if you don't like mushrooms, you can stop reading....NOW.

Before I give you the recipe, please understand the following. This recipe may seem "fancy". I am a VERY typical, thirty something, mom of three kids, don't make it if it's not in my pantry, don't make it if I have not heard of an ingredient, don't make it if it takes longer than an episode of Sesame Street. So stay with me, I put on my best oven mits and decided to tackle this despite its intimidating composition.

Roast Pork with Mushroom Sauce
1 (3 pound) boneless rolled pork loin roast
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/3 cup apple cider or apple juice
2 tbsp vermouth (ver....what??)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup whipping cream (now I didn't say it was healthy)
12 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp butter or margarine

For the roast pork ...ALERT THE FOLLOWING IS AS PRINTED IN THE RECIPE BOOK and then I'll tell you what I did differently

• Preheat oven to 450 deg
• Sprinkle the roast with the thyme, salt and pepper
• place in a 9 x 13 -inch baking pan. Roast for 20 min. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 deg and roast for 1 1/4 hours longer.
• Remove from the baking pan to a serving platter, reserving the pan drippings. Let stand for 10 min before slicing.

I altered the pork part. I am not familiar with pork roasts but am very familiar with pork tenderloin. The MIL passed along an "IDIOT PROOF" pork tender recipe years ago, and it always turns out.

Follow the first two steps above. This is also key....buy a hormel original flavor pork tenderloin. They all have a standard weight of 1.7 pounds. If you use this, I promise it'll be as tender as chicken.

Now do the following with the meat after you've sprinkled it with the above directions.

• Place tenderloin in a PRE-HEATED 450 deg oven, and turn the timer on for 20 min. After 20 min, turn the oven OFF. DO NOT OPEN the oven door. Leave the meat in the oven for 50 more min. I always check the temperature when it's done, but it should safely be above 165 deg. (Emily I wrote that part for you:)

Ok that is the only thing I changed. The rest is as follows.

• Combine the reserved pan drippings with the apple cider (I used apple juice), vermouth, chicken broth and whipping cream in a medium sauce pan. What in the world is vermouth? It is a type of liquer. I put my sister on the assignment to find it b/c she is a frequent flyer in the local liquer strore. Ba ha ha...just kidding, the store was closer to her, and she's breast feeding, so I knew she wouldn't go crazy in the liquer store. Here's a picture of what it looks like. I only needed two tbsp so if you are local, come on by, and I will pour you some...as long as you WALK home with it.
  
• Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook for 20 min or until the mixture thickens, stirring frequently.
• Saute the mushrooms in the butter in a small skillet until tender. Add to the sauce. Cook until heated through.
  
• Serve over the sliced roast.

Now I didn't say this was the fastest dish to whip up, but on a test run, I did it with an extra kid in the house, and a hubs who was gone to work. Thank you play pen; thank you Sesame Street. I served it with brown rice and green beans.

The kids ate it up. Hubs hasn't tried it because he's still at work, but he's in for a treat. I licked my plate when no one else was watching.




Recipe taken from "Apron Strings" (a publication of The Junior League of Little Rock, Inc.)

Parade of Costumes

Today is the crazy day of the year where a couple hundred parents scramble like crazy fools a few days before Halloween to find every piece of that costume which is not quite ready yet and rush off to preschool barely before 9am to watch their precious pumpkins walk around the school all the while calling it a "parade". The parents are actually the ones to be photographed as they hover around screaming "SMILE" while the majority of kids probably would rather be on the playground! WHOOAAA where is the attitude coming from....there is truth in all sarcasm, and so I am halfway serious, but the kids do enjoy showing off their costumes to their friends....except for Mary...... :)


She does well for the before school pictures only because I bribe her with CHOCOLATE!

Cutest Strawberry Shortcake I've ever seen:)

...and HERE is what I was talking about. All this attention is complete misery for Mary...unlike big sis who always loved the parade.

She perked up when she saw Adam, Em, and Abbott....she LOVES baby Abbott.

Couldn't quite get Abbott to look.....in this one....

...but in this one that I took last week, I got quite the sweet smile!

Mary and her knight in shining armor, Campbell.

I only posted this one because Garrett actually sat down in front of the fall scenery. These days I NEVER get a picture of this dude. He's just too fast!

Talents of the Master

Allie's school has a "talent show" tradition called "Talents of the Master." I was very impressed by many of the students. K-12 graders are invited to participate. She's never done anything in front of an audience although we all know she's never been afraid of an audience either. It never occurred to her to be nervous! Wish I had done something like that early on; I HATE being in front of people as anyone who knows me would tell you!

I'm assuming that's her "nervous" stance:) I asked her why she was standing that way, and she said, "well the girl behind me was standing like that!" Since when did Allie follow the crowd??

Saturday

We haven't had a lazy saturday in a long while:) The girls went hunting for sticks this morning, and with the hubs help fashioned a tee pee. They have been out there all day. Allie dressed herself complete with last years ski boots, but I thought she looked so cute, so I snapped a couple of pics.

A Spookie Cookie

Every fall, the kids and I visit the grandparents...mine and theirs:) Allie is old enough to know the "drill". Eat candy with Nanna, eat candy with Nanna, go to the garden with Deeda, pick Memaw some flowers, feed the birds, and play outside with the cousins.

Nanna The kids worked very hard on this haunted gingerbread house.

These are my grandparents. SWEET FOLKS!!! I'm so blessed that my kids get to enjoy their great-grandparents!

The kids with my parents. I don't know when we will ever get all three to LOOK THIS WAY!

Picture day

Today was picture day for Mary. I snapped a few before heading out into the rain! It always rains on picture day you know.

A "hum"dinger of a party

What a weekend! Allie and I left shortly after lunch on Friday to head to Fayetteville.....unbeknownst to Katie! Jason had a BIG surprise planned for Katie's 30th birthday....



The invite said 6:30pm SHARP! Allie and I arrived at 6:12...nothing like cutting it a little close. When Katie walked in at 6:42 because Jason could not stall ONE MORE MINUTE, she was STUNNED! Allie says she now wants a surprise party for her birthday!

I've never seen Jason so RELIEVED! It appears that not one person "slipped" the big surprise. Glad you pulled it off!

Oh...and one more thing. I always try to get everyone in pictures! I left out the other CHIEF party planner...Jason's MOM!!!! His parents were both at the party, and were fully vested (as were Katie's parents) in the lying scheme to make this party happen! Sheww...GREAT JOB!