A Completely Unintentional Falsehood

I confess; I hath unintentionally lied to thee. I was planning to resume Fab Five yadda yadda today as I promised, but alas; Blogger is having "issues" uploading my precious Fab Five Foto(s). I apologize for this accidental falsehood, but because I do not feel like wrestling with Blogger for 45 minutes only to find that once again, I have taken on a much more ferocious opponent than anticipated, and once again, I have been conquered by the internet in all of its voracious cruelty, I shall instead share two random things AND a recipe.

Oh yeah. I'm really getting wild here.

Two Random Things and A Recipe

By Mary Johnson, homeschooling mama and cooking/baking fanatic by day; music librarian and concert pianist by night.

HA! Not really...anyway.

ANYWAY.

Random Thing #1:

Do you remember our new little tree we had planted a couple of months ago? Yeah, neither do I. JUST KIDDING. Anyway, the moment that I remember the most from that fateful day was when I was talking with the Boss Man, and he proceeded to give me detailed instructions on how to care for our wee tree. "Water it twice a day, every other day," he instructed me. "And call me if it starts to lean a little funny. But you should be fine. Unless, of course, we have ourselves a crazy wind storm in the next week or so!" And he proceeded to roar with laughter for about 30 seconds straight, which, of course, made me roar with laughter as well. It's a rule: If someone roars with laughter for no real reason, it's inevitable that I will succumb to the roaring laughter as well. Now here's the best part: After the tree men left, we proceeded to experience THE MOST FEROCIOUS SPRING WEATHER I HAVE EVER KNOWN AS LONG I HAVE LIVED IN WISCONSIN. Wind storms! Tornadoes! Hail! Rain pounding with an absolute fury! Cloudbursts! Damage! Flying trees! Power lines down! Power outtages! Flying rhinoceros! PEOPLE SPILLING LATTES EVERYWHERE. Okay, maybe not flying rhinos or spilled lattes, but man, oh man, it was truly something else. Every time another storm would descend upon us, Steve and I would say to each other,"If this tree can make through this, then it can survive anything." Well, we've come to the conclusion that IT CAN SURVIVE ANYTHING. It stands in its self-assured glory. Gosh, do I like that tree. Thus ends Random Thing #1.

Random Thing #2:

Only 42 days until we shall be basking in the gorgeousness of the Green Mountain State. Yes; it's Vermont we're headed to for our Great Adventure this summer. I love New England. There is nothing quite like it. I have yet to experience to vastness of the wild west, but that will come soon enough. The farthest west I have ever been was Houston, Texas, and yes; I realize that's not the WEST, but geographically speaking, that's as far west as I have been. So you tell me:

What's your favorite vacation spot, EVER?? If you're having a tough time deciding, go ahead and pick your top two. I understand! I usually struggle picking between Maine and North Carolina. Go figure. Thus ends Random Thing #2.

And now...a recipe.

This is the promised recipe from my last post. Get ready...here we go...it's..*gasp*...it's...

Chicken Breast Piccata Florentine

From The Whole Foods Market Cookbook.

Amen.

1/2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour, for dredging

2 large eggs, beaten

3/4 c. Parmesan cheese (Romano is lovely, too!)

2 c. fresh chopped spinach leaves, washed, or 1 c. frozen chopped spinach, thawed

2 tsp. dried Italian herbs

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp. salt (scant)

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

3 tblsp. olive oil

2 whole boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut in half and pounded lightly, or 4 (3 oz.) boneless turkey breast medallions, pounded lightly

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the flour in a bowl large enough to dredge the chicken breasts in.

Combine the eggs, Parmesan cheese, spinach, Italian herbs, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl, blending well. The mixture should be the consistency of pancake batter.

Place the olive oil in a large nonstick saute pan over medium-high heat. Dredge the chicken breasts first in the flour, dusting off any excess, and then in the batter, and carefully place in the hot oil. Saute, turning once, until just golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side.

Place the breasts on a baking dish, and transfer to the oven to finish cooking, for 10-15 minutes.

YUM YUM YUM YUM YUM!!

Sorry.

Note: I have found I need to bake the chicken a little longer than 10-15 minutes once its in the oven. I usually bake them for about 20-25 minutes, but it all depends on the thickness of the chicken. Remember: NO PINK MEAT. eww. eww. eww. I love to serve this with brown rice, and either broccoli, peas, or asparagus, but you can go nuts and serve whatever you desire for a side. Have fun!

So there you have it, my friends. I have turned lemons into lemonade, and hopefully nobody will die of undercooked chicken poisoning this weekend. Have a great weekend (I love a good dose of morbidity every now and then- sorry)!!