Life

One especially easy thing you can do with chicken is to slice a chicken breast open and place a slice of pepperjack in there. Close it shut with a toothpick, and then sprinkle it with chipotle seasoning. Serve it with your favorite side dish.

Yeah, I have a lot of mexican style casserole recipes. :D They're easy, and feed the whole family.

With this one, take rice, chicken breasts, cheese, and your favorite mexican seasoning blend. Decide how much rice you want to serve, and put the rice in the bottom of the casserole dish. Add the proper amount of water, according to the rice instructions. Add a bit of the mexican seasoning blend, and stir it into the rice. Put the chicken breasts on top. It's okay if they are frozen- they will cook just fine. Sprinkle cheese over the top, and put in the oven at 400 degrees until the chicken is cooked all the way through.

It's a total southern comfort food, but considering I'm a total southern girl, that makes it okay. :D

I'm going to give you the basic recipe, and I'm going to do the cheat version. Let's be honest- nobody has that much time to spend in the kitchen. And every time I tried to make real dumplings, they always disintegrated into the soup. Just remember that you can always search for your own dumplings recipe if you feel so inclined, but this is going to taste just the same, and be a lot easier. :D

First, you'll need to boil your chicken. I know, I know. God save us all from boiled meats. Do it anyway. :D Using 3 cans of chicken broth, 2 cups of water, and a can of cream of chicken soup, combine all these ingredients and simmer. Add some salt and pepper to taste, and add your chicken to this soup. Then, using a can of homestyle biscuits, tear them into medium sized pieces and toss them into the soup. Viola! Instant dumplings.

I told you we're big fans of tex-mex. :D

While I think everyone gets how a taco salad is made, I wanted to pass along a little tip. If you have a Walmart Supersaver nearby, there is a certain kind of meat that I've only found there (although I'm sure it's not exclusive to them). I can't tell you the name brand because I rarely pay attention to that kind of thing. But I can tell you what to look for. In with the ground beef and steak, you can find seasoned fajita meat. The kind that we particularly like is in a purplish-blue package. Trust me, the seasoning is divine.

Add this to your taco salads instead of taco meat, and I assure you, everyone will love it. And yes, it makes some tasty and easy fajitas too.

We are big into the TexMex style food. Ones that maybe a 100 years ago, they had some sort of Mexican connection. But since then, the midwest got their hands on it, changed most of the ingredients, and covered it in much more gooey cheese than you'd ever find in the authentic version. This is one of those.

First, start with chips. We like the Scoops (not Fritos) because they catch more of the cheesy goodness. Cut up chunks of Velveeta and put it in a saucepan. Cook this over low heat with some milk. When it's properly done, it should be creamy and melted, without being too runny, nor too thick. Pour this over the chips. Add some browned ground beef. Now this is where my husband and I differ. He believes that nachos should have taco seasoning. I do not. I think the color of taco seasoning and melted cheese is unappetizing, and it's enough to put me off my food. He likes the taste. I feel the taste is not different enough from taco soup when you do it that way. And on it goes.

This is your base. Chips, meat, cheese. From there on out, each person can dress their own. Sour cream, salsa, fresh tomatoes, peppers, green onions, etc... These are all excellent ideas for toppings, but it can go in a million different directions. Just add what you like.

One of our favorite dishes around my house is a Mexican style casserole. It's cheesy, and the perfect comfort food. Here's the recipe.

You'll need one pound hamburger meat, some spaghetti sauce mix (powder), some chili powder, corn tortillas, one can of tomato sauce, and optionally- beans, sour cream, and salsa.

Brown the hamburger meat and add the can of tomato sauce. Add a teaspoon of chili powder, and about 1/2 to 3/4 of the spaghetti sauce mix. Taste it, and adjust the chili powder and spaghetti sauce to your tastes. Layer your ingredients in a long casserole dish. Start with the corn tortillas on the bottom. If you want refried beans, add those next. If not, move on to the meat sauce. Put a layer of cheese. Then repeat. Put it in the oven at 400 degrees until the cheese is melted. Serve with sour cream or salsa.

I wanted to experiment a little this week. For this week, and possibly the next several weeks, I want to get some recipes on here that focus on different ingredients. That way, if you're looking for a specific type of recipe, you can find something that will suit you. This week, the ingredient of choice is beef. Ground, grilled, shredded, or sauced, there's a lot of stuff you can do with beef.

The WaterRower is the only rowing machine I've heard of that has a water flywheel. This is notable because it simulates the nature of rowing on water (they say it EXACTLY simulates it, but I guarantee it won't. Waves and other such outside influences affect it too). But it is an incredibly good idea. If you're going to use a rowing machine because you want a way to practice when you can't get on the water, this is a perfect way. The only downside I can see is that the reach seems to be a little short. It says it's 82 inches long, but it looks like the flywheel mechanism takes up about half of that. It *should* be sufficient, but I'd be more comfortable with it if it was longer.

This will set you back over $1100 though. Eek!

I think this is the exact rowing machine I have. The flywheel is good, and overall it's not the worst one I've used, but if you're over 5'5", it's really not the best machine for you. The reach is pathetic. Also, my seat tore up the first time I used it. I was able to fix it, but still...

I was in the rowing club in college, and we used rowing machines that we called ergometers all the time. There are some really good rowing machines, and there are some that aren't worth spending your money on them.

With all of them, you should look for a machine that gives you a really good range. Sit on the seat, grab the bar, slide the seat back, continue leaning back, and pull the bar in towards your chest. When you're nearly laying down flat backwards, that's a good reach. Also, when you're rowing, the proper technique is to row with your legs. It's supposed to go "legs, back, arms, arms, back, legs". Push off hard with your legs, lean back, THEN pull your arms in. Then, when you are returning, reverse it. Put your arms out first, lean forward, then pull in with your knees.

Finally, I strongly recommend getting the flywheel in the front.

Iwin has something I just found out about. You can play free games there. Sure, there are ads, and they are annoying. I won't even pretend that they are unobtrusive. They outright suck! But you're getting free games. I got hooked into Jojo's Fashion Show last week. But 60 minutes goes by really fast. This way, I can finish the game, and enjoy it, without spending a bunch of money on a game that I'll complete and then forget.

Worldwinner has a different spin on game playing. You can play a bunch of games against other people, and win real cash. But personally, I can't bring myself to sign up for it. I mean, I've got better stuff to spend my money on than online gaming. :S

Moola is an online site that lets you win real money. And no, it doesn't cost. You play games, and if you win the game, you get the money. The original idea was that you start with a penny. If you double that penny, you have two cents. If you double that, you have four cents. After only 30 levels, you are up to over $10.7 million dollars. But that's assuming you win every single time.

They have changed their model. Now, you can choose to save some of your money. It's a good way to build up and ensure that you will not lose money, but it's lousy for jumping up the chain quickly. :D

Let me know if you want an invitation. It's an invite only site, and I'd be happy to share.

Popcap is well-known for their downloadable games. But did you know you can also play many of them online? They are one of my favorite game makers, because they games have easy-to-learn rules, but they can be enjoyed if you are a beginning or a more advanced player.

Posted by Intricategirl at 12:16 PM. Filed under: Games
No comments • Permalink