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Chicken teriyaki

Posted on August 11, 2007 by Barbara Harper

When I posted about my latest cooking fiasco, my friend Carol asked for the recipe — the correct one, not my altered version. 🙂 I am glad to oblige.

This comes from a 1979 Betty Crocker cookbook and is originally for beef teriyaki. It called for 1 1/2 lbs. beef boneless top loin or sirloin steak, but I used this recipe a lot for cubed steak when I found it on sale. Then one day I decided to try it with chicken, and my husband liked it a lot better with chicken than steak. I like it with either.

The measurements for the sauce here are twice what they are in the book because we like some of the sauce over the rice. I like to use chicken tenderloin for this. I have made this for Sunday dinner before, leaving the meat in the refrigerator to marinate, even though it is more than the required hour. I like it that way, but Jim feels the flavor is too strong. I have also made it without letting it marinate — Jim likes it better that way. Probably the one hour time recommended is best, but you can experiment and see what you like.

Chicken Teriyaki

1 1/2 to 2 lbs. or so of boneless, skinless chicken
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon garlic powder (original recipe calls for 1 clove garlic, crushed)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Rice

Cut chicken into 1/8 inch or so slices (easiest done when it is still partially frozen). Mix soy sauce, oil, sugar, ginger, and garlic. Stir in chicken, coating each slice thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.

The original recipe says to drain the marinade from the chicken, but I usually just pour it all into a skillet. Cook and stir frequently over medium heat until chicken is done.

Then the original recipe says to add water to the reserved marinade to mix the cornstarch into, but since my marinade is already in the pan, I just take a small cup with a little water and stir in the cornstarch. Pour the cornstarch and water mixture gradually into the chicken. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered about 5 minutes until sauce thickens to desired consistency. Serve over hot cooked rice.

Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt: Row

Posted on August 10, 2007 by Barbara Harper

PhotoHunt

Theme: Row | Become a Photo Hunter | View Blogroll

I took Jesse with me downtown to try to get a picture of these statues of children in a row with hands over hearts before the flag. It was a little too late in the evening, though, and too dark. I might try to go back tomorrow and get a better picture in the daylight.

But we also saw this row of fountains in front of a building and thought they were pretty…

And a row of flags…

And a row of trees in the median.

This row of tiles is the project all the guys are working on for the weekend —

Working on tearing them out row by row and replacing it all with a shower surround…

Because too many of the tiles are doing this even after repeated regroutings.

Because of this kind of thing, the sheetrock and insulation were wet, too. It’s been a messy job for them!! I hope to post a nice “after” photo tomorrow or next week.

By the way, Jesse (age 13) took the pictures of the statues and flags. Often I use pictures I have on hand for the Photo Hunt, but it was fun to drive around and look for things that fit the theme this time. He was even thinking about starting a blog so he could post pictures of his own. 🙂

Show and Tell Friday: Boyd’s Bear figurines

Posted on August 10, 2007 by Barbara Harper

Kelli at There’s No Place Like Home hosts “Show and Tell Friday” asking “Do you have a something special to share with us? It could be a trinket from grade school, a piece of jewelry, an antique find. Your show and tell can be old or new. Use your imagination and dig through those old boxes in your closet if you have to! Feel free to share pictures and if there’s a story behind your special something, that’s even better! If you would like to join in, all you have to do is post your “Show and Tell” on your blog, copy the post link, come over here and add it to Mr. Linky. Guidelines are here.“

I used to like all kinds of bears, and then I discovered Boyd’s Bear figurines. I love them! They’re so cute and so detailed. Through the years my family, mainly my mom and my husband, have given me various ones. Some of my favorites are the ones that reflect my interests or what’s going in my life.

I have several “couples,” most given to me by my husband. This one is special because he gave it to me on our last anniversary because we had gotten engaged while sitting on a log in a state park.

This is where we’re headed. 🙂

Here are a couple of the “Mom” ones.

This reflects my love of reading…

…and chocolate. 🙂 And hearts.

This is a Boyd’s Bear Collector.

I love Irish folk music, and this bear is holding sheet music for “The Last Rose of Summer.”

My mom gave me this one when we were home schooling several years ago. This was one of my first Boyd’s Bears.

I love these gals “just because.”

Cooking is, of course, one of my major duties.

This is a little sewing basket. I used to do a lot more sewing.

Finally I want to show you the little curio cabinets where most of these stay (though I have several throughout the house.) These were just little cheapie ones at Wal-Mart, and we discovered when we got them home and put together that they weren’t deep enough for many of the figurines. So my husband took apart the back and added about an inch of wood all around the back and added a mirror because the bears really weren’t showing up well amidst all the brown. Isn’t he talented?

Odds and Ends

Posted on August 9, 2007 by Barbara Harper

If you’ve ever seen del.icio.us referred to and wondered what it was all about, Jeremy found a video that explains it in very simple terms for non-technical people like me. 🙂

Kelli at There’s No Place Like Home showed the cutest little Keepsake Envelope Folders. They’re just perfect for small but meaningful gifts for a friend or even a “secret sister” if your church ladies’ group has that kind of program.

I am having a blast looking through the Artful Blogger party contributions, graciously hostessed by ArtsyMama. I’m maybe about halfway through. Even though I might not do some of the specific crafts shown, it’s inspiring creatively and mentally just to see what people come up with. Such imagination out there! I’ve bookmarked several, but one of my favorites is cards made from hankie designs by Yapping Cat Studio (this was what I meant when I said some of these folks are light years ahead of me, but, hey, ya gotta start somewhere. This was so inspiring and just plain lovely!) Some of my other favorites are tutorials about making decorative bows by Sugar Bear, making crepe paper ruffles by Natasha Burns, and sewing on paper by Julie. I’ll be spending free time over the next couple of days checking out the rest of them!

I don’t mind the verifications codes that some blog hosts require when you post a comment — well, not too much most days. 🙂 I know it’s a necessary step to block robotic spamming. But I do get frustrated when Blogger shoves letters all together so you can’t make them out easily like this:

Which is a v and which is a w and how can you tell what is a w and what are two vs stuck together? Whatever this was, I didn’t get it right and another (longer!) code came up. If I could send a plea to the powers that be at Blogger — please spread the letters out a bit! 😀

Booking Through Thursday: Multiples

Posted on August 9, 2007 by Barbara Harper

The Booking Through Thursday topic for this week is multiples.

Do you have multiple copies of any of your books?
If so, why? Absent-mindedness? You love them that much? First Editions for the shelf, but paperbacks to read?
If not, why not? Not enough space? Not enough money? Too sensible to do something so foolish?

I have two copies of Little Women, both hardback. One came with a set of children’s books. The other I saw at a bookstore and just loved the illustration on the cover, the size of it, everything about it. It was the type of book that you would remember long after reading it for the book as well as the story. If I had ever had daughters, probably one copy would have been hers. I am hoping someday to have a very bookish granddaughter to share these kinds of things with.

Other than that, I discovered I had two copies of a biography of William Carey — I had just forgotten I already had it. If I haven’t given away the extra copy yet, I should.

As to the “why not” part of the question — I really don’t see a need for two copies of any book unless one copy is for children and one to save and keep nice, or one is part of a set that has some value. Otherwise I’d rather the extra copy went to someone who could use it rather than taking up space on my bookshelf.

One exception would be Bibles. We have different translations as well as older copies too worn for general usage but which contain notes we want to keep.

Signs of summer in the South

Posted on August 8, 2007 by Barbara Harper

I posted this on a Thursday Thirteen last summer, but I thought of it again this week when I thought my skin was going to be flayed before I could get from my car to Wal-Mart. It’s not original with me: I received it in an e-mail a while back.

Thirteen signs of summer in the South:

1. You step outside at 7:30 a.m. and break out into a sweat.

2. The birds have to use pot holders to pull worms out of the ground.

3. Farmers are feeding their chickens crushed ice to keep them from laying hard-boiled eggs.

4. The cows are giving evaporated milk.

5. You can make instant sun tea.

6. You learn that a seat belt makes a pretty good branding iron.

7. You decide the best parking place is determined by amount of shade instead of distance.

8. Hot water now comes out of both taps.

9. A parent laments, “I wish it would rain – not so much for me, cuz I’ve seen it – but for my 7-year-old.”

10. You actually burn your hand opening the car door.

11. Your biggest bicycle wreck fear is, “What if I get knocked out and end up lying on the pavement and cook to death?”

12. You realize that asphalt has a liquid state.

13. The trees are whistling for the dogs.

Artful Blogger Party

Posted on August 8, 2007 by Barbara Harper

ArtsyMama is having an Artful Blogging Party today, partly to celebrate the new Artful Blogging Magazine by Stampington & Company (in which she is featured!) and also “to applaud artful bloggers everywhere.” She encourages participants from all over the world to post anything “artsy,” from tutorials, instructions for a project, “pictures of how you display your own art or vignettes of art you’ve received from others. Anything goes… whatever artful blogging means to you.” Then go to this post and put up the information about your post as per her instructions, and she will create a link to your post. Whether or not you want to add a post of your own, I am sure you’ll be inspired and delighted by all the neat information and artsy, crafty eye candy.

I wasn’t going to post anything of my mine because I’m way out of my league here, having just ventured back into crafting after a long absence. But…I just wanted to! So here are a few of my offerings.

I’ve really enjoyed the new (to me) art form of various paper crafts that I have seen around, and I’ve just started making cards, bookmarks, and a few other things.

Here are some tools of the trade:

These are some leftover hearts from our ladies luncheon several weeks ago.

Here is a little plaque I made:

Here are a few cards and bookmarks:

The last picture came from some bookmarks we made for missionaries our church supports to use in their ministry.

I used to do a lot of stitchery and would like to start back up (after getting my eyes checked. 🙂 ) This is one of my favorite pieces, made 23 years ago when expecting my firstborn.

I loved the detail, the little raised cookies and french knot cupcakes and fringe on the blanket:

Paper crafts are definitely a lot faster!

One other craft I’ve dabbled in a little recently has been button crafts. These are my favorite products of that:

I didn’t make the plaque underneath, though I have thought of making similar ones.

For the button wreath, basically you just glue buttons on to whatever shape you want. The base can be cut our of lightweight cardboard (for something small like ornaments you could use probably use heavy cardstock). I found the heart shape just by searching for “heart shape” online and finding a coloring-book style heart. I started with flat, plain buttons and added the shaped and decorative ones on top as I filled in spaces. I used a small hot glue gun. I imagine craft glue or tacky glue would work, but would take longer to dry and work with. I glued a ribbon for hanging it on the back, then backed it with white felt (I read that some other used decorative paper for backing).

I was going to also post some favorite art around the house, but this post is way long already! I have posted some of it on my Show and Tell Friday posts.

Works-For-Me Wednesday: Greeting card file

Posted on August 8, 2007 by Barbara Harper

When I buy cards, I like to look at several in the category I’m shopping for before deciding on one, even if I like the first one I pick up (though that practice had to be curtailed when my children were small or when I was in a hurry). That led to sometimes finding more than one card I liked and not being able to decide which to choose right there in the store, so I would buy two or three and take them home and then decide. That led to having excess cards and no way to store them to keep them neat and be able to find them again when I wanted them. So I bought a small accordion file (smaller than the letter-sized and bigger than the check-sized ones) at Wal-Mart and labeled the tabs with different categories: Birthday, Get well, Sympathy, etc. I grouped baby and wedding cards together under “Congratulations” and Mother’s and Father’s Day and Valentine’s Day under “Miscellaneous,” but you could label the categories however you wanted to depending on how many compartments you have and what types of cards you usually buy.

It has helped to have cards on hand for times when I can’t get out to look for one or for when someone else in the family needs one. But even when not under a time crunch, it saves on multiple card-shopping expeditions to have some on hand. Plus sometimes stores have sales to get a card free when you buy a certain number. So now when I go card shopping I look on purpose for a few that I like and bring the extras home and store them in my file.

I have liked this better than buying boxes of all-occasion greeting cards — I usually don’t like all the cards in a particular box.

For more real-life workable tips or to share something that works for you, go to Rocks In My Dryer.

Time Travel Tuesday: Birthing edition

Posted on August 7, 2007 by Barbara Harper

My Life as Annie hosts the weekly Time Travel Tuesday and asks us this week about birthing stories.

With my first pregnancy, we had been married four years and had been wanting to get pregnant for about two. We were beginning to wonder if we should go to the doctor and check things out when I finally got pregnant. My first sign was

(click to read the rest) Continue reading →

I wonder if this kind of thing ever happens to Emeril…

Posted on August 6, 2007 by Barbara Harper

Somehow I don’t think so.

I was making chicken teriyaki for Sunday dinner and thinking that it’s pretty easy to make and wondering why I didn’t think of making it more often.

The last stage of preparing it calls for you to mix a little cornstarch with some cool water, then pour it into the chicken and soy sauce mixture, and stir for just a little while until the sauce thickens. It usually only takes a few seconds for the sauce to get to just the right consistency.

So I poured my concoction in and, instead of the gently, slowly thickening sauce, POOF — a foamy mess instantly formed and rose almost to overflow the pan. I thought, “What in the world….???” as I took the pan over to the sink to skim off the foam.

Then I realized….I had used baking soda instead of cornstarch.

If I had been really smart I would have called my kids in for a teachable moment in chemistry. When we discussed it later and my husband was explaining to them that the baking soda reacted to something in the soy sauce, my oldest said, “Just like those little volcanoes we used to make for science class.”

Yep. Neat for volcanoes. Not so good for dinner.

When I told my husband what happened (and yes, he laughed, and I can’t blame him), he came upstairs to look at it. By that time the bubbles had died down. He stirred and tasted it a little and said he thought it was ok to still use. I thought it might taste too salty, but it seemed ok. I had heard you could add a potato to soups and stews to counteract excess salt, but this was ready-to-serve except for the sauce, so I didn’t know if that would work. I didn’t have any more soy sauce to make new sauce, so I just added the right cornstarch and water concoction this time. It looked fine. It smelled terrible. It tasted way, way salty. None of us could finish our serving.

It took two tall glasses of iced tea to begin to relieve the salty feeling in my mouth. It might have helped if my tea had been sweetened.

It’s a good thing none of us is on a low sodium diet.