Culinary Arts

I was in the cooking mood today (which, ahem, is sort of rare), so I searched through my cookbooks and online to find a yummy soup. Also decided I should make a fall dessert too :) Thanks to my new handy Jr League of Amarillo cookbook, On the Rim, I found two delicious recipes. I highly recommend both of them! Quite tasty :) So I'm sharing with y'all to enjoy the yumminess too!


Corn and Green Chile Soup

3 1/2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels (I used can corn, drained)
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups milk
1 tsp oregano (this seemed to much for ground oregano, so I did not use the whole tsp)
1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles
3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 cup diced tomato (I used a can of Rotel tomatoes)
1 cup (4 oz) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Saute corn and garlic in butter in large pan over high heat for 1-2 mins. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 3-4 mins. Do not brown vegetables.
Remove the corn mixture to a blender or food processor. Add chicken broth and puree. Return to pan.
Add milk, oregano, chiles, chicken, and tomato. Simmer 30 mins. Add cheese. Simmer til cheese melts, stirring frequently.

**Side note for soup: I would probably add extra chicken broth to make it soupier. Maybe 2 cups instead of just 1 cup.



Pumpkin Bars/Cake
*I didn't use the 10x15 pan, but a regular cake pan. Ether way will be delicious :)

4 eggs
1 2/3 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
2 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 (3 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 Tblsp milk

Beat eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin together in bowl. Combine flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in separate bowl. Gradually add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well. Pour into 10x15 pan. Bake 350 degrees for 25-30 mins. Cool completely.

Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter, vanilla together in bowl. Add enough milk to make spreading consistency. Spread over cake. Cut into bars and enjoy!

Posted in: on Sunday, November 14, 2010 at at 7:59 PM 0 comments  

The big 2-8

Dear blog,
It's been too long. Tomorrow I turn the big 2-8! Here's to hoping that 28 is as good as 27 :) So far the celebrations began on Saturday and are still continuing. Some of the nurses got a cake for me and another coworker with a birthday. Red velvet mmm!

Saturday night I celebrated my bday with Pat Green :) A nice steak dinner at the Ryan Palmer Foundation banquet and a PG concert. Not too bad if you ask me.



Today--Monday--I celebrated with my hallmark peeps. The most awesome carrot cake from Village Bakery mmmm! Plus a new Pandora bracelet and beads from the family. Continued my celebrating at Jazzercise to work off those carrot cake calories (well it's got to be kinda healthy right? I mean with carrots in the cake lol). Then a pre-bday dinner courtesy of Pei Wei take out.

Now I'm curled up with Millie (the cat) watching tv and relaxing. Wonder what Millie will get me for my bday tomorrow? hehe :)



I've saved all my cards and such to open in the morning of my bday :) So I'll be celebrating in the morning with carrot cake for breakfast.

Goodbye 27....hello 28!

Posted in: on Monday, October 11, 2010 at at 9:44 PM 0 comments  

My new friend

This week I adopted a cat, which I have named Millie Roux. She is a pretty sweet cat. This is day 2 :) So far she's discovered some pretty sneaky hiding spots--like under my kitchen cabinets. Thankfully that hole will be boarded up tomorrow. So far so good with her adjusting to me and my apt and she seems quite happy!

Posted in: on Friday, March 5, 2010 at at 12:21 AM 0 comments  

Random forgottens

I was reading through my blog the other night and realized a few things...

1. It's been over a year since I found out that I was accepted to the summer 2009 child life internship. Now I'm working and preparing for the certification exam this summer. Time flies! It seems like yesterday I started this whole career change journey. And now I'm finally doing what I love!

2. I never blogged about Lucy's wedding or my family's vacation to the Outer Banks this past summer. So here's some pics and such below to fill in those gaps :) I'm a bad blogger, oh well :)

Lucy and Chris's June wedding

The newlyweds!

Lucy and Me before the big wedding

The bridesmaids and Lucy's dad with our "bouquet hats" at the rehearsal

Lucy's wedding was wonderful! A great weekend and a beautiful wedding and fun reception with lots of dancing and of course cake!


Outer Banks, NC Summer Vacation:

I believe my sister and I successfully climbed almost every lighthouse in the OBX last summer. We had a great vacation despite the lack of beach time. Our day at the beach was not successful with high winds and cold temps. We managed to see as much as we could from the northern end (Duck, Corolla, Currituck) to the southern end (Cape Hatteras). We stayed at a great B&B in Kill Devil Hills with nice folks and yummy breakfasts! Maybe we'll get to go back soon :)

Bodie Island lighthouse

Cape Hatteras lighthouse

Me and Dad at our first OBX meal

Wild horses on Corolla beach

Cape Hatteras

The Wright Brothers first plane replica of the first flight at Kitty Hawk/Kill Devil Hill, NC

Ok now I think that is everything :) Hopefully I haven't left anything else important out!

Posted in: , on Sunday, February 21, 2010 at at 5:59 PM 0 comments  

Sunday

Tomorrow/Sunday I will be enjoying this


and this

Because thank goodness for Sundays in Lent!


Posted in: on Saturday, February 20, 2010 at at 11:43 PM 0 comments  

Happy Days

Happy days are here again...


Today I got a free car wash :) The local "Quick Quack" car wash here has a deal if you buy the "Best" car wash, you get a free wash within 5 days. So I took advantage of this perk today before the predicted snow hits this weekend. Btw, Quick Quack's mascot is a huge yellow duck. seriously. Not sure what it has to do with a clean car, but whatever.

Yesterday I got a pay raise after my 90-day review (hard to believe it's been 90 days). Oh happy day :) Review went great and extra money never hurts!

I gave up desserts for Lent this year (um so not a happy day). However I have rekindled my love for frosted mini wheats for breakfast and dinner too hehe (happiness). I will live for Sundays until Easter when I can indulge in some of my frozen girl scout cookies mmm!

Tomorrow/Friday I have just a half day of work woohoo! Even though I had to work a super long Monday at both jobs, it will be worth it tomorrow afternoon for sure!

The Olympics have started and Lost has begun again. Yay!

My family is coming to visit me next weekend wahoo! Let's hope for no snow and no cow stinkiness hehe :)

I am resettled in my new apartment and it is wonderful! Better neighbors, better apt altogether. My apt now smells normal and clean and not like an ashtray. yay.

That's all for now! Cheers :)




Posted in: on Thursday, February 18, 2010 at at 10:11 PM 0 comments  

Winter Storm 2010 update

So it is day 3 of my "snow days" which have involved being stuck inside my apartment. The highlight of my days: walking to the mailbox and taking snow pictures. I was actually hoping to go to work today just to get out--but I was not that lucky. Today though, I am very fortunate to have made friends with a couple that has a 4wd car. Oh happy day! We are all beyond excited for them to pick us up to make a grocery store run and a lunch outing. You would think we've all been stuck inside our homes for 3 days....oh wait, we have!


This is definitely the most snow I've ever had where I live. This makes the snow days in Charlotte last year seem so wimpy with just 1-3 inches at most. Unfortunately, this snow will not be gone anytime soon. The weatherman said Amarillo got 7 inches at the airport, but my apartment definitely has at least 12 inches in some places.



I don't know how people do it where it is like this for 6 months of the year. The snow is beautiful and I'm glad to have a warm home with power to stay safe in :) But I am missing those 60 degree spring like days we were having just a couple of weeks ago.



Needless to say I am glad that I got all moved in before this snow storm hit on Thursday!

And no family, I am not going to build a snowman by myself outside in the freezing temps. I'd rather admire the sparkly beauty of the snow from my warm apt :)

Posted in: on Saturday, January 30, 2010 at at 12:43 PM 1 comments  

Snow day!


So I took this video of the snow with my mac...I apologize if it makes you dizzy. It was my first time to video something like this. Just thought I'd share the winter storm footage here in TX :) It's like a snow globe! We're supposed to get 12 inches once the day is over. At this rate, I believe them! Thank goodness I'm home from work today still in my pj's :)

Posted in: on Thursday, January 28, 2010 at at 10:51 AM 2 comments  

To whom this concerns

**Disclaimer: All of this is said with good humor and intent :)

Dear redneck cowboy smoker neighbor man,
I do not like you. I am glad this is the last night I have to shut my bathroom door so my apt does not smell like an ash tray. Why do you have to smoke so much? Why do you find it necessary to play your cowboy redneck music at full volume late at night? I mean it does not have the same effect as rap music. Maybe you will get lung cancer soon or go deaf from the loud music.

Respectfully,
your 3rd floor neighbor


Dear Weatherman,
Please do not let it snow an insane amount on Thursday. I was really enjoying this spring weather in January. I don't think I'll know what to do with several inches of predicted snow. As long as you keep any bad weather away for Tuesday, I guess I can deal with snow on Wednesday and Thursday.

Thank you,
Southern girl


Dear Sonic on 34th,
Why do you always screw up my orders? How hard is it to include marinara sauce with cheese sticks? How hard is it to put ranch or honey mustard on a chicken wrap? Why do you never put ketchup in my bag so I have to ask for it before I leave? Not that you care, but I will just go to Braum's next door next time. At least they have ice cream and groceries in one stop.

Best regards,
Cherry Limeade lover


Dear Dish Network,
Why do you find it necessary to leave me the responsibility of removing my current satellite dish? Why can't you just use the same dish in my new apartment? This is sort of ridiculous. Maybe your technicians will realize this and just reuse my current satellite dish tomorrow. That way I don't have to discard 6 concrete bricks used to install my first dish.

Sincerely,
New Dish customer

Posted in: on Monday, January 25, 2010 at at 11:06 PM 0 comments  

Moving is not fun

Note to self: I will not move again for at least 2 years. Moving. Is. Not. Fun.


I just survived a marathon moving session with my coworker Becky tonight. We managed to get my kitchen stuff moved, most of my living room things moved, and most of my clothes. Whew! Let's just say that living on the 3rd floor does not make for a fun moving experience. Maybe I will have awesome toned leg muscles after this. I have 3-4 more friends from church coming tomorrow afternoon to help me finish the rest of my things other than furniture. The movers come on Tuesday to finish everything.

The new apartment is sooooooo much better than my current one. I have a good feeling that this is the right move. I have all new carpet, newly painted walls, and new blinds in the "new" apartment.

I ran into my annoying smoking neighbor while moving boxes to my car. I wanted to say some smart/snide comment, but i held my tongue and kept walking. Let's all hope and pray for good neighbors in building 200!

Posted in: on Sunday, January 24, 2010 at at 12:28 AM 0 comments  

I'm a lazy blogger...

Instead of me just repeating everything that Fran says on her blog about our girls' adventure weekend in Amarillo, I will just share the link to her blog again. This time you can read all about our trip to the Palo Duro Canyon, which is the 2nd largest canyon in the US (right under the Grand Canyon). So go here to Fran's blog to read about the canyon, longhorns, and sushi :)


And please don't give me grief about not blogging about this myself. It is 11pm and I just got home from a busy day with sick children ;) And I will be moving into another apartment in just 7 days!! So I'll just "delegate" and let Fran tell you the stories of our weekend adventures!

Posted in: on Wednesday, January 20, 2010 at at 12:19 AM 0 comments  

The Adventures of Fran and Michelle

To see what all adventures we had this weekend here in Amarillo, go to Fran's Blog. You don't want to miss it!


**I figured why blog about the same thing when Fran did such a stellar job! Plus if you visit her site, it will boost her numbers of readers hehe :)

Posted in: on Monday, January 18, 2010 at at 11:22 PM 0 comments  

Moving...again :(

So I will most likely be moving before the end of this month into another apartment. Why? Well I have an old man, alcoholic, smoking neighbor that smokes 1 entire pack of cigarettes in 6 hours each night. This causes my apartment to then smell like an ashtray. NOT good! My apartment has been very accommodating and tried to solve this problem for weeks. There is no solution other than to move. So be looking for me to send another email out with my new address AGAIN. I swear, it would be nice to stay put in one place! Hopefully though this will be a much better location in the complex with better neighbors. Anyone willing to help pack and move, come on over ;)

Posted in: on at at 8:37 PM 0 comments  

Pray for Haiti

One of my friends in Charlotte, Kevin (aka owner of my furry friend Ambrose), is the minister of missions at MPUMC (the church I attended there). He is currently in Haiti serving the people of a small village, Bayonnais. I'm sure most of you have heard the latest news of the earthquake today. Please keep the people of Haiti and Kevin in your prayers. Pray for their safety. Pray for Kevin to be able to return home to NC easily when able.


My church in Charlotte has invested a lot of its mission resources into this Haitian village. My friend Nicole recently went on a medical mission trip there in October with MPUMC. This country has seen so much damage from natural disasters, and is still recovering from the previous hurricanes in 2008.

You can view this video on you tube that shows the people of Haiti receiving food via helicopter from MPUMC after Hurricane Gustav: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iD1wbm5yvMQ

Posted in: on Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at at 12:17 AM 0 comments  

Happy New Year update

I apologize for the long delay...you know adjusting to a new city, new job, and then all the holidays that followed just got the best of me :)


Here's the latest...I am now working 2 jobs....mainly at the hospital 3 days a week and the 2 days at a local Hallmark/Saturdays at another little gift shop. I am constantly working and busy, but all my jobs are fun and the people I work with are great!

Thanksgiving and Christmas were great. I got to go to Frisco to Mel's for t-giving and back home to LA for Christmas. That was one adventure on xmas eve---after a 3 hour delay in Amarillo and another 3 hour delay in DFW (while sitting on the plane), I finally made it home in time for our new traditional chinese Christmas eve dinner and church service (which is not chinese lol). Santa brought a new vacuum cleaner and a foot spa to soak my feet after long days at work :) as well as some other fun goodies.

It has snowed several times so far here....it is quite fun :) and thankfully it isn't blizzard snow and doesn't last for very long. There is still snow on the ground which is pretty. It was 45 degrees today and I actually thought it was warm...crazy!

Hope everyone has a wonderful start to 2010. And Happy big 6-0 birthday to my dad today!

Posted in: on Sunday, January 3, 2010 at at 6:12 PM 1 comments  

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