In the meantime

A few weeks ago we went to Mongolian Grill with some friends.  I'm not a huge fan of stir-fry stuff, but when you have a whole smorgasbord of meats, vegetables, and sauces to pile onto your dish to then be fried in front of you, this stuff is pretty tasty! Our garden is doing quite well these days--we've harvested a handful of deliciously red tomatoes, savored cilantro in everything that we can add it to, laughed about our "English Zucchini" (according to Isaac) actually being cucumber, identified a handful of watermelons (or are there also some cantaloupes in that mess of vines?) that have set on, and picked a handful of sugar peas almost every day. With all that said, I'm needing to use the peas that are starting to add up... Annnnd that's when Mongolian Grill gave me an idea: why not google "Mongolian Grill sauce recipes"??  And guess what? I found a website with a ginormous list of recipes for Asian sauces that look similar to the dozen or...

This is a {cheater} recipe for the meal my good friend Christiana and I made for our senior meal at Cornerstone Bible Institute.  This meal was what made Isaac say {in his mind} “I’m going to marry this girl!” {Well, not in so many words, but he sure did like it!} Because I made the original meal close to 4 years ago and haven’t made it since, the recipe got lost somewhere in all my computer files.  But…I remember the gist of how the recipe went, so here’s what I came up with the other day as an imitation to that original killer, spicy hot recipe that burned all the way down to the stomach, but oh, was it ever good! - Chipotle Chicken : 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips 1 egg 1/4 - 1/2 cup milk 2-3 teaspoons chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (if you happen to get chunks of pepper, just make sure it is finely chopped! Mix together in a shallow dish.  Set aside. 1-2 c. flour Salt and pepper Paprika (optional) thyme/parsley/oregano (...

My personality does not default to being a meticulous housekeeper.  In fact, I only do laundry because I have to have clothes to wear, and dishes only get done because the counter gets full.  Our table collects clutter like a magnet and usually only gets totally cleared off when we know we’re having company.   And then when we do have company, I go into a cleaning frenzy.  (Amazing how much can get done when you find out you’re having company in 1/2 hour!) Since getting married, I’ve been learning about the importance of hospitality.  I used to equate “hospitality” with “a full-spread meal, perfectly cleaned house, and a pinterest-worthy bedroom and bathroom.”  My father-in-law once said “ in your marriage and in your ministry, you’ve got to show hospitality.  It is in the home where you get to know people and they get to know you.”   It really is true and has been a challenge to me! Thanks, Pa! The Bible has a lot to say about hospi...

...your mental concoction of a recipe for lunch turns out! Let me explain: Isaac made a pretty yummy dish of stir-fried rice today. While I've had stir-fried rice dozens of times, I've never thought to try sweet-and-sour sauce on it (at least not when I've eaten it at home.)  This time however, it just "smelled" like it needed some sauce to go with it!  But...where is the sauce? "I think I can come up with something" I thought. I scooped some brown sug ar into a small saucepan, and poured in about the same amount of vinegar . It seemed like it should have some mustard in it as well, so I squirted some in. The vinegar smell coming from the pan was a little strong, so I dumped some water in to water it down a little. As it began to heat, I had the wild idea of putting several drops of red Tabasco sauce in it. "Now, for it to all dissolve and come to a boil. Then I'll add some cornstarch  and soy sauce."   Once it came to a boil, I added the c...