Italian Chicken with Angel Hair Pasta

May 28, 2014 By Chelsia Rief Leave a Comment

This recipe for Italian Chicken with angel hair pasta is marinated in Italian dressing and spooned over delicate noodels with fresh parsley and parmesan.

Our homeschooling year is just about over. In fact this week, because it was a holiday week we're only having 3 days of school and then we're done. Actually, officially tomorrow we'll be done because it will be Thursday and we school Monday-Thursday. But because Monday was a holiday, there wasn't any school And since today is Wednesday, this only leaves Grace with one day left. Did you catch all that? Did you like how I kind of repeated the same thing twice but said it in a different way? Clever ain't I? Don't worry, I'm here all week for your amusement.

Last week, because I'm kind of totally ready and halfway out the school door, I casually suggested to Josh that maybe we just let the last week slide and just surprise her and be done with it all until the fall. You know what he said? "No.." That's right. He shut me down! Hard. Like it was a firm no, meaning zero discussion. I'm all like, "c'mon, have a heart! She has done so well this year. It's only THREE days." Nope, he didn't budge. I thought about turning on the water works. But since I'm already allergy ridden with a nose that can't decide if it wants to be stuffed up or runny and sneezes randomly, LIKE WHEN I'M DRIVING or just plucking my eyebrows and my eyes are just seconds away from having itchy watery eye syndrome, (yes it's a thing. Not really.) Anyone else sneeze when they pluck their eyebrows? Didn't think so. #weirdo

Poor Grace. She has a dad that really wants her to succeed and not take any easy ways out...even if it's only a three day school week. Secretly, I think he is harboring some resentment towards me because I forgot to wash out the coffee maker a few times last week and he was forced to do it. I think the whole doing the last 3 days of school thing is a conspiracy against me. His wife who sends replies to text messages in a really sappy, dopey, lovesick, clingy kind of way, like this:

But whateves! I'll see his conspiracy and raise him...dirty coffeemakers all week long!

Just kidding. I'm not that immature. Or am I?

Enough about school and all the hardships that befalls it. Let's talk about this dinner. Could there be anything easier? She says in a Chandler Bing tone of voice.

This recipe is one that we often enjoy with Josh's family. It is so super simple. One of the reasons why I LOVE it! We use chicken tenderloins for this dish because they thaw faster so you can marinate them longer and they drape over the pasta so beautifully. Literally, this dish goes, thaw, marinate, bake, serve. You can't screw it up, it's a fail-proof chicken dish that is packed with delicious flavor and only calls for five ingredients. Which leaves you time to do the dishes, make a side dish, have the kids set the table, and put your feet up while you check your Facebook feed. Trust me, I know this from experience. :)

Italian Chicken with Angel Hair Pasta

Name: Italian Chicken with Angel Hair Pasta
Prep time: 2 h
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 2 h 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 8-10 boneless, skinless chicken tenderloin (figure 2-3 tenders per person); 1/2-3/4 cup Newman's Own Family Recipe Italian Dressing; 1 lb angel hair pasta; 4 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped; Grated Parmesan cheese for topping

Yield: 4-6 servings

Prep Time: 2 hours

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes

This recipe for Italian Chicken with angel hair pasta is marinated in Italian dressing and spooned over delicate noodels with fresh parsley and parmesan.

Ingredients

8-10 boneless, skinless chicken tenderloin (figure 2-3 tenders per person)
½-3/4 cup Newman's Own Family Recipe Italian Dressing
1 lb angel hair pasta
4 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
Grated Parmesan cheese for topping

Instructions

Marinate the chicken with the dressing in a ziploc bag for at least 2 hours and keep in the fridge until ready for use.
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Empty the chicken and dressing into a 9x13 baking dish. You can add a bit more dressing at this point if you like. (The dressing turns into a sauce that you can just drizzle over the chicken and pasta. ) Bake for 20-30 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
While the chicken is baking, prepare pasta according to the box's directions. Drain pasta and return to pot.
Place some pasta on a plate and top with the baked Italian chicken. Drizzle some of the dressing from the baking dish over the chicken. Sprinkle a little bit of parsley over the pasta and chicken. Top with grated parmesan cheese and serve.

Notes

Recipe courtesy of Jewelissa Rief

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 702Total Fat: 30gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 18gCholesterol: 220mgSodium: 618mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 1gSugar: 5gProtein: 75g

Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.

Tuesday's Tidings for May 27, 2014

May 27, 2014 By Chelsia Rief Leave a Comment

1. (Forgive my appearance in this photo- I had not taken a shower yet and was wearing zero makeup.) Saturday morning, I woke up and wanted to work out. Every Friday night before bed I always tell myself I'm going to do it Saturday morning, and then my bed calls to me to say a bit longer and the working out never happens. I have been wanting to take Grace out on a run for some time now. I think it is great exercise for her and something she and I can do together. She is a natural! She ran the first mile without stopping once! Did I mention we were .06 away from a 5k? She did so good. So now that I know this is something she is not only good at but likes to do, we need to get her some proper running shoes and some running clothes.

2. Josh and I went and saw Godzilla on Saturday afternoon. Super good movie! I loved it. Very clean too.

3. Josh has been working hard at Ancestry.com over the weekend. It's a lot to explain, but basically, there is royalty on his Grand-mother's side and they owned several castles all over Scottland. Also, because we can prove awesome lineage...as soon as our daughter's turn 18-we're enrolling them in the DAR! Gilmore Girls anyone?

4. We spent most of Monday late morning and all afternoon cleaning out our garage-something we've promised we were going to do for 3 years now. It looks so amazing and we're not even done. I think one more day spent on it and we will be completely done! :)

5. Last day of school is Thursday! Holla!!

6. After Christian's nap and grocery shopping on Sunday, we spent the evening with Josh's family so we could hear about their trip to California and look at their pics. We usually end our time with a game and this time it was MAD GAB! Have you played it before. I find it really hard, lol! It was boys and against girls and the boys completely creamed us. But look at how intense they are. Can you see Josh's eyes! He's out to win! :)

7. Allergies suck :( I've switched meds this week to see if the off brand of Zyrtec will help me out. Clariten doesn't do anything for me. This time of year, I am a sniffy, sneezy, itchy mess!

8. I'm completely in love with this hair cut and can't make my mind up if I should take the plunge and cut my hair. Thoughts?

9. I went shopping at Goodwill this weekend, per usual. I found more brand new goodies! Two dresses for summer with their tags still on and brand new black heels!

10. I've been craving this Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream Sandwich since I pinned it earlier this week. I'm drooling all over the place just thinking about it.

Weekly Menu 5/26-6/1

May 26, 2014 By Chelsia Rief 4 Comments

Happy Memorial Day!

We are so blessed to live in a country where we have men and women volunteer to fight for our freedom. Thank you to all you men and woman who work so hard to train to protect us and go out on the line and sacrifice yourselves for us. Thank you to the families you leave behind. Today we honor ALL of you!

Our weather has changed here and we're still not sure what we're going to end up doing for dinner, but I'm hoping the rain will stay away so we can barbecue some really good food.

This is our last week of school! Can you see me jumping for joy? Officially on Summer break as soon as Thursday is over! How long until your kids are out?

Monday

Teriyaki Pineapple Turkey Burgers and Potato Wedges

Tuesday

Quinoa, Black Bean Tacos with a Salad

Wednesday

Teriyaki Meatballs with Rice and Steamed Broccoli

Thursday

Egg in the Nest and Fruit

Friday

Chicken Taco Pizza with Salad

Saturday

Chicken Bruschetta Cappellini with Veggies

Sunday

Fried Egg Sandwiches and Smoothies

Chilled Orzo Salad

May 23, 2014 By Chelsia Rief 3 Comments

Chilled Orzo Salad - simple, fresh ingredients like tomatoes, olives, and spinach thrown together with pasta and Italian dressing - a scrumptious side dish!

Memorial Day is Monday! It kind of crept up on me this year. Just the other day, Josh reminded me that Memorial Day was Monday and that meant that we had a 3 day weekend! #Score

Honestly, I'm so relieved that we have a 3 day weekend. Josh and I vowed that this week we would slow down, and so far we have. I can't say I've caught up on sleep, but I have gotten some things done around the house, which has been nice. BTW-just in case you were wondering...only 4 more days left of the school year for us. BOOM CHA CA LACA!

Years ago, and when I say years...I mean probably like 4-5 years ago I came across this recipe in one of the Sunday coupon ads.

Did you all like my nice segway into a new topic? Yeah, I thought so. ;) [Read more...]

Croissant Chicken Salad Sandwich

May 22, 2014 By Chelsia Rief 2 Comments

When lunchtime rolls around, I am uninspired. It's the one meal that I would be fine with skipping. Our lunches for the week usually rotate between PB&J's and a sandwich with some kind of lunch meat in it. However, every Friday, I make the Kraft Macaroni for the kids. I know it's unhealthy garbage, but it is easy and pretty good too. I can always count on Christian eating it as well.

I always have a rotisserie chicken around because I buy one every time we go to Cosco. For $4.99, you can't really pass the price up.

Since Memorial Day is right around the corner and the usual trend is to grill something-I thought I would offer up an alternative to grilling. Maybe you are getting together with friends in the afternoon for lunch- this lunch is so easy and tasty it would be a shame not to share.

Croissants are the perfect pairing to turn this into an awesome sandwich. It's light, buttery, and flaky. It's filling without making you feel like you ate a huge sandwich. Just serve some fruit on the side and lunch is served!

Croissant Chicken Salad Sandwiches

A Catz Original Recipe by Chelsia Rief

Easy, light, and flavorful. Everything you want in a sandwich at lunchtime.

Prep time: 10 minutes

Total time: 10 minutes

Yield: 2 sandwiches

Ingredients

1 cup cooked chicken, chunked
1 small baby dill pickle, finely diced
1 TB mayo
1 TB yellow mustard
1 TB flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 large croissants, sliced length-wise
handful baby spinach leaves

Cooking Directions

Place the chopped chicken, diced pickle, mayo, mustard, and parsley in a medium-sized bowl and stir until everything is combined.
On your sliced croissants, put a small bed of spinach on the bottom of the croissant. Spoon the chicken salad mixture evenly on top of the spinach. Place the top of the croissant on top of the chicken salad. Serve with fresh fruit.

Blackberry Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping

May 21, 2014 By Chelsia Rief 13 Comments

This blackberry coffee cake offers the best of both worlds with blackberries scattered throughout a buttery, crumbly cake topped with streusel.

I've gone grocery shopping, checked all of Grace's school work, put the groceries away, and the last load of laundry is drying in the dryer. It's quiet right now. Christian is taking his second nap of the day, which is something of a rarity anymore and the girls are playing quietly in their room. It's quiet. Quiet aside from the dryer tumbling the laundry dry. I'm afraid to press down on the keys of my laptop too hard in case my little one wakes up. I want this silence to last a bit longer. I'm tired. Just thinking of our last four weeks makes me want to crawl into my bed and pull the covers over my head. Do you ever have months, weeks, or days like that?

These last two weeks for us have included four birthday parties (two of which were for my kid), Mother's Day, and a few late nights for us that had us gathered with some of our family from out of town. This last weekend-Friday, we had Grace's birthday slumber party with her friends. Saturday it was yard work, running errands, allergy fits, beginning the teaching of showing Eden how to ride a 2-wheeler bike, Josh finding time to write a message for church as he was filling in for his dad, and Sunday was church and a birthday party. I was pretty much a zombie after church and came home right away and took a nap till 3:45pm.

And I made coffee cake for brunch Saturday morning for all the girls! It's funny, Josh and I planned out dinner for the kids. We made homemade individual pizzas for the girls which they got to decorate, and the girls made cheesecake for dessert. But for breakfast the following morning-I drew a blank! I had forgotten about breakfast and I had no idea what I was going to do. I didn't want to make Josh run to the store for more groceries. I was still feeling bad for going over our budget on the last shopping trip. I wanted to make something, but it was Friday night and we usually do our grocery shopping on Sunday afternoons, which meant I was running low on pretty much everything. I thought about doing a baked french toast, but after all of the birthday excitement after dinner and dessert, I was exhausted.

I wanted to make coffee cake, but for the life of me, I could not find my go-to recipe and apparently, I never got around to posting it on the blog because it wasn't there either. At 11pm Friday night, I had a pile of cookbooks on my bed, looking for a basic coffeecake recipe and so many looked amazing. But I was missing ingredients for them. I finally, hauled all the cookbooks back to the desk and went to Pinterest and started going through my breakfast board when I came across this recipe. Magically enough, I even had every ingredient on hand! It was meant to be. I printed it out and went to bed sleepy and happy!

I'm so glad I came across this recipe because it was really very simple even though I kept forgetting steps. It smelled amazing while it was baking and it looked perfect when I pulled it out of the oven. The only thing that was missing was the homemade whipped cream, which I almost forgot to make! The original recipe only made enough for an 8x8 baking dish, so I doubled it for a 9x13 baking dish because I had a lot of hungry girls in my house and the recipe below is the doubled version. Seriously, I'm really glad I didn't come across my other recipe because this one is my new favorite!

That silence that was so golden at the beginning of my post? That's over now. The little man is awake, lol! #norestfortheweary

Blackberry Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping

Yield: 12

This blackberry coffee cake offers the best of both worlds with blackberries scattered throughout a buttery, crumbly cake topped with streusel.

Ingredients

Topping

⅔ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
4 tablespoon packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cubed

Coffee Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅔ cup milk
3 cups blackberries, thawed

Instructions

Grease a 9x13 baking dish with butter. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Set aside.
To make the topping, stir together flour, sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a medium sized bowl. Using a pastry blender, blend the butter into the mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside and keep in the fridge until ready to use.
To make the cake, in a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, ginger, and salt. In a large bowl, cream softened butter with an electric blender. Add in the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Alternate flour mixture and milk until just combined.
Pour the batter into the greased baking dish. Scatter the blackberries over the top of the cake. Spoon the streusel over the berries. Bake for 45-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
While the coffee cake is cooling, whip up some homemade whipped cream to go on top of the coffee cake.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 259Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 35mgSodium: 207mgCarbohydrates: 55gFiber: 3gSugar: 30gProtein: 5g

Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.

Tuesday's Tidings for May 20, 2014

May 20, 2014 By Chelsia Rief 6 Comments

1. Friday night, Grace had all of her bestest friends over for a birthday sleepover. We played Cold Lemon (I was out of hot potatoes), watched Enchanted & National Treasure, made raspberry cheesecake, AND we rolled out seven individual pizzas using our homemade pizza dough for the kids to decorate. Josh and I were pleasantly surprised with the results and the kids had a blast. It was a bit time consuming because we only have one oven, but I don't think they minded. They were to busy watching McDreamy in Enchanted. :)

2. Yesterday I went grocery shopping with the kids and I was out of coffee creamer. Bailey's was on sale and they had Baileys Mudslide!!! Eeek!!! Long ago when I would treat myself to a cocktail or two, the mudslide was always my favorite. Now, I can drink it in my coffee and drive! #Winwin

3. Only SIX more days of school with Grace! Yes, I'm counting down. It's been a tough year with a lot of difficult discussions between Josh and I and Grace. But I am so proud of her!

4. I recently took advantage of a shutter fly deal for free personalized Thank You cards. They are so cute you guys! All I had to do was pay shipping, which was really cheap. Love, love, love em!

5. This looks like my kind of hot dog!

6. We were at ToysRUs over the weekend letting Grace spend a b-day gift card and we wandered over to the car section. We have a purple Barbie jeep parked in our garage right now. But I don't think that will work with our son. This looks more like it. Don't ya think?

7. Does this Blueberry Cream Cheese Pastry not look amazing? Deborah from Taste and Tell recently made these and I've been drooling since I saw the post yesterday. I need this so bad!

8. Now that Christian has been walking for over a week now, it is so funny to watch him steer himself around. He is still very wobbly, but he is slowly getting the hang of it. It's just so funny to watch him walk from here to there.

9. I attempted to begin organizing the garage last week. I got as far as one little corner and a small load to Goodwill. I quickly discovered that without Josh's help moving some of the heavy stuff and going through his bins full of random paper, I wasn't going to get very far.

10. Memorial Day is this weekend! I can't believe it! We don't have any plans and I hope it stays like this. Josh and I are taking this week to slow down and do nothing! Except putting the air conditioners in and maybe working not the garage.

Weekly Menu 5/19-5/25

May 19, 2014 By Chelsia Rief Leave a Comment

I'm not sure how I survived the last week. We were so crazy busy that I feel like I could pass out from fatigue at any given moment. I normally never feel the urge to take a nap. But all I wanted to do this last week was nap. I finally did get a nap yesterday afternoon after church and it helped, but it isn't enough. I need more. I'm really hoping that this week I can catch up a bit.

Even though it was a busy busy week. It was a really fun week, spent with many celebrations. We spend Sunday-Tuesday visiting with my sister and brother in love. Friday and Saturday was a birthday sleepover for Grace and her friends, and then Sunday was church and a birthday party for my mom in the evening. It was a great way to spend a week.

Monday

Italian Chicken over Angel Hair Pasta and Roasted Asparagus

Tuesday

Mexican Lasagna and Mexican Roasted Potatoes

Wednesday

Teriyaki Pineapple Turkey Burgers with Grilled Potato Wedges

Thursday

Grilled BBQ Drumsticks with Orzo Pasta Salad

Friday

Pepperoni and Olive Pizza with a Side Salad

Saturday

Chicken Bruschetta Cappellini with Corn and Rolls

Sunday

Fried Egg Sandwiches and Smoothies

Tuesday's Tidings for May 13, 2014

May 13, 2014 By Chelsia Rief 4 Comments

1. Josh saw this cake carrier at World Market and I'm in love!

2. We've been spending some time over at my in-love's house because my sister and brother-in-love are in town. Last night, my sister made 90 meatballs! You guys...as a family (gulp) we ate 73 of them! Yeah, we're kind of piggy, but they were really good! I'm going to have to nab the recipe.

3. For Mother's Day my kids were super sweet. First my daughter made me blueberry muffins from her new Disney Princess cookbook. (So good) and then my wonderful kids, got me this KitchenAid Flex Edge Beater! I'm in love, but wishing I'd had it when I made Grace's b-day cake. Josh also got a Groupon deal for us to go Kayaking! So excited and so much fun for us to do something new together.

4. Last year, my in-love's got me an Orchid for Mother's Day. I thought it died because after the flowers fell off it never bloomed again. But it remained green and I watered it occasionally. This morning, I noticed new blooms and it made me so happy! I DIDN'T KILL IT AFTERALL!

5. The weather is beautiful today and all of my windows are open! I love it, even though my allergies are probably going to pay me back later.

6. We made this taco pizza Friday night with leftover chicken from our tacos earlier in the week. Oh my gosh, you guys, it was so good! We're going to have to make it again and share the recipe.

7. I lost a diamond in my wedding ring this week. It makes me so mad because now I have to take it back to the jeweler and get it fixed and be ringless for awhile. Thank goodness for warranties.

8. Christian decided on Mother's Day that he was going to start walking! It is so cute. He totally looks drunk doing it.

9. Fresh flowers in my house is like catnip for my cat. She won't stay out of them!

10. I haven't watched the season finale's of The Blacklist or the new episode of 24. Ssshh...don't tell me what happens.

A reminder for moms on Mother's Day

May 9, 2014 By Chelsia Rief Leave a Comment

In two days, my oldest daughter will turn 10 years old. Which means that I will have been a Mama for 10 years as well. What a wonderful ride it has been so far. A wonderful and did I mention, completely exhausting ride. The kind of ride that bounces you along, swings you hard left, swings you hard right, makes you cry like a baby, makes you raise your hand because you are ready to get off the ride and can't take it anymore, and then gradually the ride comes to a stop. Only....you know what, the ride was so amazing an unexpected that you would go stand in line again so you can do it all over again.

That is motherhood.

There are no two ways about it. Being a mother is very hard work. I think that's okay though. Would we appreciate it and love it as much if it were easy? It's the hard things in life that strive us to be more and do better. When I think of motherhood, I think of this verse:

"Whatever you do, do your work heartily as for the Lord rather than for men. "

Colossians 3:23

Mother's Day is a really fun holiday. It's a day to get celebrated and acknowledged for all of the hard work you've endured. Come Monday though, we're completely back to our routine again and the diaper changes, pet accidents, stairs that need to be vacuumed, kids that need bathing, messes that need to be cleaned up, discipline to dole out, praises to be given, boo boo's to kiss, cuddles to pass out, Disney songs to sing along too...often on repeat, fingernails to paint, school work to grade, laundry to fold, letting go of OCD for 5 minutes while you let your kids assist you in the kitchen, lunches to make, and lot's of I love you's and hugs being freely given out. We do this, often times with a lot of silent prayers to God to help us and a pot of coffee to give us the energy to get through the day.

We, mama's, we work heartily at our job. Our job is not just teaching and training. It's not just cleaning up mess after mess. It goes beyond that. We work heartily at loving our children. Motherhood is hard. When I look at my kids, sometimes, I am just so overcome with this amazing wave of love that it rips my heart to pieces. I never knew I was capable of loving someone this much until I had my kids. Our love is unconditional in the same way our God loves us.

That's why we endure everyday, even when it is hard.

Confession-most mornings, I say a short prayer out loud before getting out of bed, particularly on the mornings when I'm having a hard time waking up. "Dear Lord, give me the energy to get out of bed, to greet my kids with a smile instead of a frown. Help me be patient and loving. Help me continually show my kids how much I love them." To be perfectly honest, after I say it, I can usually get out of bed with no problem...even on the mornings when my youngest decides that 5:45am is the perfect time to be awake.

Mama's, don't let the world degrade your role as a mother. Your role is more important than any other job in the world. No one else can mother your child like you. No one else knows your child the way you do. No one else's kisses are the same as yours. There is power in being a mother. It is a job worthy of working heartily at. Don't let the pile of dishes in the sink bring you down. Those dishes, let them be a reminder that you are awesome and you are nourishing your children. Don't let the noise get on your nerves. That noise is what fills your home with life! One day, they'll be grown and out of the house and you will miss the all of it. The laundry that is never-ending...that is you, clothing your children.

Look down at your hands mama. What do you see? Our hands are usually the first place where we see age set in. I can see it in my own hands. The vein lines are a bit more pronounced than they were several years ago. But our hands are so beautiful. They are touching lives and making a difference and working hard, and when you work hard...it is only natural for it to become a bit more weathered and show its age.

Don't lose heart. We are all in different seasons of life in our roles of motherhood. Be proud of your season! Own it! Live it as fully as you can. You are an amazing mom to your children! I'm in awe of all of you. Let us work hard at being moms and bring glory to our God and our families. It is the most blessed job we will ever hold as women.

Happy Mother's Day Mommies!