Sweet Potato Fries

Kid friendly, daddy likes 'em, too: Sweet potato fries!

Ingredients:

4 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed and washed (we leave the peel on)

3 TB olive oil

1 tsp Cajun seasoning; or: (use more if you like them spicy)

1 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. salt

Slice the sweet potatoes into thick "fry" shapes. Toss in large bowl with remaining ingredients. Roast in 400 degree oven for 30 minutes, or desired doneness, stirring once. My guys love these with pan-seared chicken breasts, hamburgers, fried tilapia, just about anything!

All I need is the air that I breathe. . .

. . . and my little guys!

Googled

A few years ago, I googled my own name for kicks. I was relieved to find very little about myself out there for public view, but I was pleasantly surprised to find a recipe on allrecipes.com that I had submitted. Since then, my name has changed and my California chicken spaghetti has received 165 ratings and has stayed at a solid 4 1/2 stars. I am so glad people like my recipe, and it made me wonder: Have you ever googled yourself? and what did you find?

Food on Fridays

Ann is hosting a Food on Fridays carnival at her blog. . .check it out for some menu inspiration!

Leftover Flank Steak, (or Chicken, or whatever) Ultimate Nachos

I love to throw nachos together and there are tons of variations, but one of my favorite ways is to use leftover steak (grilled, usually, but this time we had a large amount of broiled flank steak leftover because of a work/dinner mix-up). Leftover grilled chicken works great as well. Here is what I do:

Nachos:

This makes one large jellyroll pan full, enough to feed our crowd of boys. You can definitely use the techniques and make a smaller amount.

4 cups cooked meat (steak, chicken, pork) sliced thinly

4 TB cooking oil

1 TB taco seasoning

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt (or to taste, if your meat is seasoned)

One can seasoned black beans, drained and rinsed and heated through

3 Cups shredded cheese (cheddar or Colby jack is what I usually use)

1 1/2 Cups corn salsa (mix one normal size bag frozen corn, thawed; one chopped jalapeno; 1/4 cup chopped onion; 1/4 cup chopped cilantro; dash salt; dash Tabasco)

One tomato, chopped

Shredded lettuce

Sour cream

Chopped cilantro

One bag corn tortilla chips, restaurant style (we like Santitas)

Heat one tablespoon oil in skillet for each batch of meat. Brown the sliced meat in batches in the skillet, sprinkling with the taco seasoning and garlic (reserve enough for each batch from the above listed amount), and adding salt as desired. Hold the cooked meat warm.

Spread the bag of chips out on a jelly roll pan. Cover with the meat, beans, and cheese. At this point you can broil for a couple of minutes (watch closely) or continue with the rest of the toppings.

I *heart* Valentine's Day

I love to celebrate Valentine's Day with the family. . .we usually try to do a bit of a theme day with them. I like doing this much more than going out for a "romantic" dinner with hubby. Honestly!

For breakfast, I made pink pancakes, heart-shaped eggs, and sausage:

I decorated the table with a pot of tulips T. picked out at Home Depot (frivolous, but fun) and heart cut-outs I made on the computer. I also put a heart-themed quilt over the banister to display the gifts for the guys:

I am very frustrated right now. . .why is it so hard to format on blogger? There has to be an easier way to post pictures that line up and format correctly within the post. And why do they not insert where you want them to? If anyone has any tips or tricks, please let me know. I want to post more, but the picture insertion is way too time-consuming! Thanks, M.

Ten Minutes, Tops

That's about all the time I have at once to do anything these days. But, I've found that I can be productive in these ten minutes, if I work hard and ignore any interruptions, barring a bloody emergency.

It's that or get up at five a.m. and I'm not quite ready for that yet.

How about you? How do you find time to get things done while the kids are in their demanding stages?

After many downloads of various spyware blasters, virus cleaners, and malware destroyers, I think I'm back on line. I'll celebrate with the fun one word game:

Where is your cell? Purse
Your significant other? Faithful
Your hair? Graying
Your mother? Smart
Your father? Collector
Your favorite thing? Nature
Your dream last night? Childhood
Your favorite drink? Coffee
Your dream/goal? Heaven
The room you're in? Bedroom
Your fear? Failure
Where do you want to be in 6 years? Home
Where were you last night? Here
What you're not? Musical
Muffins? Love
One of your wish list items? Laptop
Where you grew up? Country
The last thing you did? Spoke
What are you wearing? Slobbish
Your TV? Warrantied
Your computer? His
Your life? Joyful
Your mood? Tired
Missing someone? Sometimes
Your car? Important
Something you're not wearing? Watch
Favorite Store? Thrift
Your summer? Pregnant
Last time you laughed? Morning
Last time you cried? Afternoon

Well, there you have it. I have lots of updates coming soon.