Unforgettable Childhood

When I was a little girl I remember this popcorn popper that my dad used. It had a yellow dome top and it stirred the popcorn around as it started popping.

For Christmas this year my sister surprised me with my very own Crazy Stir Popper. I was so excited, I knew the girls and I would have a blast with this wonderful little appliance.

A couple of nights ago we got it out to try our first bowl of popcorn. The girls thought it was great and it took me back to when I was a kid. I love it!

Nadia helped me put the butter on the holes to melt into the popcorn.

The girls started screaming at me, “It’s Popping, It’s Popping!”

And it was good! I guess we know what we will be having to eat at our next family movie night.

With the start of 2010 as a family we are focusing on an active lifestyle and healthy eating. As a stay-at-home mom I have no excuse but to have a menu plan to accomplish our healthy eating goals. I am joining I’m an Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday. We want to eat healthy, but I also want to watch my grocery expenses.

I looked at the grocery store ads for the week and my pantry to make my supper menu for the week. The girls are back to school this week so lunches will be leftovers, smoothies and salads.

Chiseled Chicken Parmesan & Spaghetti

Grilled Chicken Enchiladas & Mexican Rice

Tomato-Tortilla Soup with Chips and Salsa

BBQ Chicken Tenders & Onion Rings (from February 2010 Eating Well Magazine see recipes below)

Pork Chops with Ginger Maple Sauce

Recipes:

BBQ Chicken Tenders

1 cup prepared BBQ sauce

2 tablespoons Dijon Mustard

2 tablespoons honey

1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 large eggs

1 3/4 cups coarse dry breadcrumbs, preferably whole-wheat

Olive oil or canola oil cooking spray

Combine BBQ sauce, mustard and honey n a large bowl. Set aside 1/2 cup of any sauce in a small bowl. Cut any large chicken tenders in half lengthwise, then add all the tenders to the large bowl with the remaining sauce; stir to coat. Marinate in refrigerator for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Coat a large rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. Combine flour, salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Lightly beat eggs in another shallow dish. Place breadcrumbs in a third shallow dish. Coat each tender in flour, shaking off any excess. Dip in egg and let any excess drip off. Then roll in the breadcrumbs, shaking off any excess. Place the tenders on the prepared baking sheet. Generously coat both sides of each tender with cooking spray. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn each tender over and continue baking until the outside is crisp and the tenders are cooked through, about 10 minutes more. Serve with the reserved sauce for dipping.

Onion Rings

2 medium yellow onions

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 large eggs

1 1/2 cups fine dry breadcrumbs, preferably whole-wheat

1 tablespoon seasoning blend, such as Cajun, jerk or Old Bay

Position racks in upper and lower thirds of oven, preheat to 450 degrees. Coat 2 large rimmed baking sheets with cooking spray. Cut off both ends of each onion and peel. Slice into 1/2 inch thick slices; separate into rings. place the rings in a medium bowl; cover with cold water. Combine flour and baking powder in a shallow dish. Lightly beat eggs in another shallow dish. Combine breadcrumbs and seasoning in a third shallow dish. Working with one ring at a time, remove from water, letting any excess drip off. Coat in flour, shaking off any excess. Dip in egg and let any excess drip off. Then coat in the breadcrumb mixture, shaking off any excess. Place on the prepared baking sheets. Generously coat the onion rings with cooking spray. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn each onion ring over and return to the oven, switching the positions of the baking sheets. Continue baking until brown and very crispy, 8 to 10 minutes more.

This is the first getaway that we have been on as a family where we packed our swimsuits and our snow pants. To celebrate the New Year we packed up and headed to the Black Hills for a little swimming and skiing.

This was our first family ski trip. Daddy and the older girls took lessons and skied all day. Nadia and I did a little shopping and got in on the end of the day for a few pictures.

Next time Nadia and I will have to try to ski, too.

Maybe this is why we live in South Dakota in the winter. . .