I pulled to a stop behind a small truck while en route to Katy yesterday. It happened to have a long, thin rope dragging behind it.
I immediately felt like I was in high school all over again and the shoelace in front of me was begging to be stepped on.
I inched forward with my mental Converse raised, poised for the perfect moment. Should I? Should I not?
A few more inches and that rope will be under my tire.
Before I could decide whether it was a smart idea to see what would happen when I sat my heavy car atop that rope and discovered just what it was tied to, the light turned green and the truck turned as I drove on.
Probably all for the best.
April 30, 2010
April 29, 2010
Southern Phenomenon?
I just did a Yahoo!, Google, and Wikipedia search on "chicken spaghetti". Yahoo! and Google gave me recipes (not needed), and Wikipedia had no entry!
What!
Chicken Spaghetti is a delicious casserole comprised of noodles, chicken, cream of mushroom soup and chicken stock. Add cheese on top, some cooking time and voila! Muy delicioso!
Does chicken spaghetti not exist outside of my family? Do you have this casserole as a staple in your diet when you go home for the holidays? Is this perhaps a Southern phenomenon, I wonder?
Here's a recipe to give it a go:
1 roasted chicken (go for mid-size, the Toyota Camry of rotisserie)
8oz. spaghetti
1/2 c. chopped sweet onion (I used to completely opt out of this, but I'm learning to be an adult and eat my vegetables)
1 (10.75oz.) can of Cream of Mushroom soup (something that grosses me out, but adds a delicious flavor)
Chicken stock for consistency
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1) Cook pasta al dente (8-10min.)
2) Preheat oven to 350*
3) Saute the sweet onion in a little bit of butter
4) Once that's cooked through (to where the onion becomes transparent), add the cream of mushroom soup and let that cook down a little.
5) Then you're going for consistency of the mix. You want it a little runny, so start adding chicken stock and stirring while the pan is still on the stove. Add and stir, repeat. It's all about the feel.
6) When you're satisfied that it's just this side of runny, add this into the pot of drained pasta.
7) You may lose the consistency you had attained previously, so add a bit more chicken stock until you're happy with it. (First time is an experiment, after that it's a game!)
8) Add in 1 c. cheese to the mix, it'll thicken things up again a smidgen.
9) Take this mix of soup and pasta and place it in a 9x13in. pan.
10) Bake for 30 minutes. Place the remaining cheese on the top of the casserole and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes until the liquid starts to bubble. That's when you'll know it's cooked through.
Take it out and enjoy!
This is a casserole after all, which means you can add and subtract as much or as little as you please. Try adding bell peppers (probably green would be best as they aren't as sweet as red, unless that's what you want) or corn, broccoli...the possibilities are endless.
Let me know if you make one. I want to hear how it goes!
Postscript: Note that to have a true chicken spaghetti, you should buy an uncooked chicken, boil it in salty water, debone it and cook your pasta in the chicken broth you created. It adds a whole new taste element to the casserole. Also adds the element of time...and commitment. Cheers!
What!
Chicken Spaghetti is a delicious casserole comprised of noodles, chicken, cream of mushroom soup and chicken stock. Add cheese on top, some cooking time and voila! Muy delicioso!
Does chicken spaghetti not exist outside of my family? Do you have this casserole as a staple in your diet when you go home for the holidays? Is this perhaps a Southern phenomenon, I wonder?
Here's a recipe to give it a go:
1 roasted chicken (go for mid-size, the Toyota Camry of rotisserie)
8oz. spaghetti
1/2 c. chopped sweet onion (I used to completely opt out of this, but I'm learning to be an adult and eat my vegetables)
1 (10.75oz.) can of Cream of Mushroom soup (something that grosses me out, but adds a delicious flavor)
Chicken stock for consistency
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1) Cook pasta al dente (8-10min.)
2) Preheat oven to 350*
3) Saute the sweet onion in a little bit of butter
4) Once that's cooked through (to where the onion becomes transparent), add the cream of mushroom soup and let that cook down a little.
5) Then you're going for consistency of the mix. You want it a little runny, so start adding chicken stock and stirring while the pan is still on the stove. Add and stir, repeat. It's all about the feel.
6) When you're satisfied that it's just this side of runny, add this into the pot of drained pasta.
7) You may lose the consistency you had attained previously, so add a bit more chicken stock until you're happy with it. (First time is an experiment, after that it's a game!)
8) Add in 1 c. cheese to the mix, it'll thicken things up again a smidgen.
9) Take this mix of soup and pasta and place it in a 9x13in. pan.
10) Bake for 30 minutes. Place the remaining cheese on the top of the casserole and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes until the liquid starts to bubble. That's when you'll know it's cooked through.
Take it out and enjoy!
This is a casserole after all, which means you can add and subtract as much or as little as you please. Try adding bell peppers (probably green would be best as they aren't as sweet as red, unless that's what you want) or corn, broccoli...the possibilities are endless.
Let me know if you make one. I want to hear how it goes!
Postscript: Note that to have a true chicken spaghetti, you should buy an uncooked chicken, boil it in salty water, debone it and cook your pasta in the chicken broth you created. It adds a whole new taste element to the casserole. Also adds the element of time...and commitment. Cheers!
April 27, 2010
Rebel
I was driving down Loop 762 on my way to the best coffee house I know when I passed a sign.
Cell phone use strictly prohibited.
As any normal person would do, I instinctively reached for my phone.
Why am I such an undercover rebel?
Cell phone use strictly prohibited.
As any normal person would do, I instinctively reached for my phone.
Why am I such an undercover rebel?
Dreamertainment
My dream last night consisted of the following elements:
1) Old highschool bandmates
2) Because we were marching on the field
3) Which was pitch black
4) While the overlaid music was Fiddler on the Roof as performed by the Santa Clara Vanguard circa (yes, I like that word) 1997.
That’s what I call a dream: A mishmash of memories and disconnected fundamentals combining for pure entertainment. I don’t know if I have ever dreamed musically, nor do I often have the ability to speak in them either. I had a conversation with my first boyfriend about how tall he was. Even in my dream I questioned why I was asking him that because it was completely out of left-field.
The dream concluded with the band walking up stairs at what was then dusk next to a pond filled with ducks. I’m fairly certain the ducks came from the book I’m reading, Craig Ferguson’s American on Purpose. He was on a wicked acid trip and thought there were killer ducks after him in a park. Yeah, his is an interesting life story.
While apparently it makes me think of ducks, it also encourages my latent desire to speak with a Scottish accent. Thank you, Diana Gabaldon and now Craig Ferguson.
Excellent. This won’t seem strange at all in my daily goings-on.
1) Old highschool bandmates
2) Because we were marching on the field
3) Which was pitch black
4) While the overlaid music was Fiddler on the Roof as performed by the Santa Clara Vanguard circa (yes, I like that word) 1997.
That’s what I call a dream: A mishmash of memories and disconnected fundamentals combining for pure entertainment. I don’t know if I have ever dreamed musically, nor do I often have the ability to speak in them either. I had a conversation with my first boyfriend about how tall he was. Even in my dream I questioned why I was asking him that because it was completely out of left-field.
The dream concluded with the band walking up stairs at what was then dusk next to a pond filled with ducks. I’m fairly certain the ducks came from the book I’m reading, Craig Ferguson’s American on Purpose. He was on a wicked acid trip and thought there were killer ducks after him in a park. Yeah, his is an interesting life story.
While apparently it makes me think of ducks, it also encourages my latent desire to speak with a Scottish accent. Thank you, Diana Gabaldon and now Craig Ferguson.
Excellent. This won’t seem strange at all in my daily goings-on.
April 25, 2010
Breaking the ice
Hello to the know, a phrase that flitted into my mind. I liked it. It’s sticking around.
I figured, to keep myself at the current level of sanity I have, I needed something to keep me busy, something to keep me mentally stimulated. Because, while movies and television may have their moments of social teachings, historical moments, and other such sundries, I’m still just slowly killing brain cells as the television waves imprint themselves on my eyeballs.
And so a blog was born.
I used to have a xanga back in the day when it was all the rage. Before that I had a blog, when that was the hip thing to do. Ah, how things come full circle as here I am again. Elton John circa Lion King certainly had it right about that circle.
I’ve taken some time off from work to recooperate and plan to spend it keeping my mind fresh, throwing down some major knowledge on my post-graduate behind, and slowly becoming the world champion of Guitar Hero.
You think I’m joking.
I guess I kinda am. But I do plan on working on the beginning stages of arthritis as I wail away. Just wanted to add to the carpal tunnel in both wrists from working on a laptop all day long. Cheers!
Welcome. I hope you enjoy. This blog is really so that I refrain from sending 50 texts, 60 emails, and refrain from saying 100’s of times, “Whatcha doin’?”...
5 minutes later when you don’t respond or have given me an inadequate answer to satisfy my curiosity.
“Whatcha listenin’ to?”
Be thankful. Really. Y'all know how bad I am when I’m busy 30 seconds of every minute…just imagine when I’m not hindered by work.
Ciao for now!
I figured, to keep myself at the current level of sanity I have, I needed something to keep me busy, something to keep me mentally stimulated. Because, while movies and television may have their moments of social teachings, historical moments, and other such sundries, I’m still just slowly killing brain cells as the television waves imprint themselves on my eyeballs.
And so a blog was born.
I used to have a xanga back in the day when it was all the rage. Before that I had a blog, when that was the hip thing to do. Ah, how things come full circle as here I am again. Elton John circa Lion King certainly had it right about that circle.
I’ve taken some time off from work to recooperate and plan to spend it keeping my mind fresh, throwing down some major knowledge on my post-graduate behind, and slowly becoming the world champion of Guitar Hero.
You think I’m joking.
I guess I kinda am. But I do plan on working on the beginning stages of arthritis as I wail away. Just wanted to add to the carpal tunnel in both wrists from working on a laptop all day long. Cheers!
Welcome. I hope you enjoy. This blog is really so that I refrain from sending 50 texts, 60 emails, and refrain from saying 100’s of times, “Whatcha doin’?”...
5 minutes later when you don’t respond or have given me an inadequate answer to satisfy my curiosity.
“Whatcha listenin’ to?”
Be thankful. Really. Y'all know how bad I am when I’m busy 30 seconds of every minute…just imagine when I’m not hindered by work.
Ciao for now!
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