Oh So Tempting...

 One of our friends went to work
 "down the road".

He was given some freshly caught shrimp.

He texted to make a deal.

He would share his shrimp if I would cook them.

 He requested a fried shrimp po-boy,

so I dredged them in flour with spices,

then in an egg-milk mixture.

After the egg, 

I ran them through some bread crumbs.

 I fried them in peanut oil

and drained the excess oil on paper towels.

Our guest was then able to dress

 and eat his sandwich.

You will be proud to know that

I was a good girl.

I grilled my shrimp in olive oil 

with asparagus, garlic, peppers, and herbs.

I did splurge a tiny bit though.

I added a teaspoon of butter to the pan

at the end of the cooking process. 

Drum Roll Please....

 We are pleased to announce the results

 of our big "conversion".

We have been eating lots of yummy food,

feeling great,

and 

LOSING WEIGHT!

I had a sneaky suspicion 

that hubby was losing weight, 

but only confirmed it today.

He has dropped approx. 10 lbs.

(I say approx. because our scale is a cheap one)

I have lost about 6 1/2 lbs.

The above pics are of my lunch/dinner

 for my trip to and from Houma tomorrow.

The sandwich is tomato with

 fresh basil, sea salt, & roasted turkey breast.

I am having so much fun helping my family 

to discover new flavors.

It really does help to know that many of our 

friends are on this health journey with us.

It seems funny to think that we are trying to make our church smaller!

Miracles Never Cease....

(Chicken Picata w/ artichoke, tomatoes, capers, etc...)

 For those of you who personally know me,

 it is a well known fact

 that my hubby and daughter

 are purely carnivores

and

purely junk- food- ivores.

It has been source of contention in my home

 for quite some time.

 (Beef, avocado, sprouts, & spinach rolls)

After having a family pow wow 

a week ago,

the other two thirds of my family

 decided to willingly surrender!

 (15 grain bread, low fat cheese, lean meat, pure joy)

We now drink a low fat,

fruit & protein filled

smoothie for breakfast,

then we eat several veggie & fruit filled

 mini meals throughout the day.

(the above pics are just a sampling) 

Words cannot convey

 the long awaited joy that I feel,

 knowing that I am

not serving my family foods that will

harm and possibly kill them.

This is truly a

Happy Mothers Day!

 Eloise & Cousin planting seeds.

 Some seeds that Eloise started earlier this year.

This is an old picture.

The plants are bigger now.

We actually used the sweet Basil 

in the Chicken Picata dish at the top.

This is a bonus post:
      I just wanted to share how industrious and resourceful my little darling is. About once a year, I go through my closet and get rid of all shoes that are really unbalanced. For some reason the outsides of my heels wear out really quickly. After a while, I can't walk in them comfortably because my feet fall to the outside. This in turn causes my ankles to twist, my knees to hurt, and my back gets all out of whack.
Anywho... I recently did a shoe tossing. After I dumped three pairs of shoes in the garbage, I returned to my closet to wipe down all of the keepers. I suddenly became aware of a whirring noise. Upon further investigation, I realized that Eloise had rescued the cast off shoes. She was using the "pedi paws" spinning pet-claw file to even out the heels. Now I can get another season out of my favorite sandals.

 I love that kid. 

Hidden Treasures....

P.S. be sure to check out Eloise's challenge on our homeschool blog:

www.ecoledefamille.blogspot.com

Eloise is home schooled,

as many of you know.

We love the freedom of schedule,

but sometimes need a change of scenery.

 A couple of days ago,

Eloise & I decided to go for a bike ride.

We would do lessons & lunch.

Our destination was the park.

While on our journey,

we noticed flower and veggie plants

peeping out from behind

a local non-profit building.

It seems that the organization has a team of

gardeners who grow stuff 

to sell at a farmer's market.

The proceeds benefit the organization

It is so good to see

that the land will be put to good use,

since there is so much of it 

post-Katrina.

Eliose and I plan on going back

to see if we can learn more about 

growing food,

since Gran & Grandpa 

have a few empty lots

We had a great time,

and will definitely do this again...

before it gets too hot!

Happy Easter Y'all!

The tomb is empty

and we're so glad about it.

Hard Work Pays Off....

Eloise & I arrived in the parking lot

of Krispy Kreme early this morning.

We were picking up over 300 

freshly glazed morsels of deliciousness.

Why?

Because our tiny little school of 5

(1 student + 4 teachers)

could not afford a much needed new violin

for it's music department.

After a school meeting, in the kitchen, 

Eloise decided that she would 

earn the money.

On Tuesday Eloise got dressed

 in her "outing" uniform 

and we drove all over town

taking pre-orders.

She sold 26 Dozen;

mostly to local businesses.

We then contacted Krispy Kreme 

to arrange our early morning pick-up.

Eloise delivered all of them before 

9:00 a.m.

surprisingly they were all still warm.

And all of her customers were happy.

As a mommy I was proud of her hard work.

Even though she only raised half of the $250

she needed, the Gran & Grandpa Corp.

stepped up and offered her a matching funds grant.

They were impressed with her enthusiasm

and the fact that an eleven year old 

sold enough orders in one afternoon to net $125.

(I did not do any of the selling)

All I can say is ....

look out youth department!

In just a few months your

 newest member will be

 running circles around you

in the fundraising arena.

P.S. I will post pics next week

 when her new violin arrives from California. 

My mouth is watering just thinking about

 the wonderful aroma that was in my car. 

We didn't even get to keep any, 

because a person at one of the drop off sites

 didn't get a chance to order

 and was very envious of her co-workers,

 so we graciously sold her our dozen.

Oh well. I guess the Lord knew we needed the dough, but not all that sugar!

LOL

Test Kitchen Winner....

We recently cooked this lovely  Indian  style recipe.

 I have been wanting to try it out ever since I saw it on a friends blog:

"Diary of a Homeschool Mom"

Thank you Jessica,

for grabbing this recipe off of 

Pioneer Woman's site,

and then sharing with your buds.

We love it.

(we as in all three)

(as in all infernally picky three)

If your taste buds aren't accustomed 

to a variety of flavors,

 then this might not be the recipe for you.

***The only problem I had was buying the Cardamom.

I don't regret it now,

but I was not sure I wanted

to spend $12 for 1 small bottle,

when I didn't know

if I was even going to like the dish.

I do 

and I have also discovered 

that there are plenty of Indian dishes 

that call for it.

Anyhoo....

On with the recipe:

Butter Chicken

4 pieces boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 
bite size pieces)
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cardamom
1 whole lime, juiced
1 whole onion, diced
1/4 c butter
1 can (14.5 oz) tomato sauce
1 can (14.5 oz) petite diced tomatoes
1/2 pint whipping cream
1 bunch chopped cilantro
2 c (or more) basmatti rice

Combine first 9 ingredients and marinate overnight.
Saute the onion in the butter until soft.  Add marinated chicken, cook about 10 minutes (will still be a little pink).  Add tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Cook for 30 min. over med-low heat with the lid on.  I added an additional 1/4 tsp each of coriander, cumin and cardamom.  Add the whipping cream (Light cream or half n' half works too) and cilantro just before serving over basmatti rice.

* Recipe was not all that spicy (hot) in my opinion.  You could add more cayenne if you like spicy foods like me.

The previous ( *) statement was Jessica's,

but we agree.

For those of you who prefer more traditional fare:

I recently made a big pot of beef stew.

To me this is a comfort food.

It was loaded with barley, lentils, veggies,

and of course tender chunks of beef.

Everyone has their own method,

so I won't bore you with the details.