Thursday, June 7, 2012

hollycarotenuto.com

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Wednesday, June 6, 2012

a family tradition: poppyseed chicken

i mentioned that i poached chicken for tonight's dinner.
it was so nice to throw together a quick
& easy weeknight meal in less than an hour.

not to mention it's one of my favorite meals,
not exactly healthy,
but real comfort food.

this recipe is one my mom's family loves.
poppyseed chicken.
my mom often makes big batches
& freezes or sends to us
(like after santino was first born, i lived on it)

shred roughly 1-1.5lbs of cooked chicken breast on the bottom of a 9x13 pan.

combine 1cup sour cream (i used light)
& 2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup
(i used healthy request soup)

at this point i mix it up from the usual family recipe.
today i added 2tbsps of dill, .5tbsp of celery seed, salt&pepper, and some minced garlic.
mix spices well into sourcream/soup mix & spread over shred chicken.

next crush 1.5rolls of ritz crackers, mix with 1/2cup melted butter & 1tbsp of poppyseeds.
sprinkle crumb mixture over chicken/sourcream/soup mix.

bake at 350degrees for 40minutes.
serve over rice.
tonight i served with snow peas cooked in olive oil & garlic.
nomnom!

do you have a family recipe that everyone loves?

working mom update.

so i continue to be a full time working mom.
at least for the next month.
then i'm cutting back to three days a week
 { w a h o o }
plan on enjoying my last few months of just mom & santino.

santino's in daycare three days a week
& with my mom two days a week.
i feel like it's a great compromise,
he gets the one:one attention he craves,
& gets the social experience he needs.

i'm a little worried about him leaving daycare
for six months (summer + my maternity leave).
hoping to plan some playdates,
anyone interested?

of course working & being a mom continues to be a challenge.
not a negative challenge though.
i sometimes think about my life pre santino,
& can't imagine what i did with my free time.

i'm on my feet from 6am - 7:30pm most days.
& i really can't complain.
i love those two hours of quiet/alone time before
i actually go to bed,
but wouldn't give up the 13hours of running right now.

some tricks i've developed.
pre-planning = sanity.

coffee is preped each night
& brewed as soon as i wake.
last night i poached chicken
for tonight's dinner.
prepping snacks for santino & i.
some he takes to school,
& some i take to work.
some nights i cook
& freeze pancakes to make AM easier.

a load of laundry is done every night.
we vacuum or sweep everyday,
dishwasher every other day.
doing a little each day,
keeps this family sane!

how do you stay organized with a busy schedule?

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

in honor of three years of marriage


three years of..
remodeling
weeds
minion slobber
olives
pinecrest breakfast
game of thrones
maine
phillies games
the killing
rocco's townhouse
red wine
oreos
florida
clif bars
deadliest catch
santino's laugh
shared cooking
daily vacuuming
mexico
nightly walks

& everything else that makes our marriage work.

my favorite hol & j posts:

the eagles in the snow

on me being lucky.

after three years together

becoming a family


can i ever get over the amazingness of kamila harris' photography of our wedding? nope.

Thursday, May 31, 2012

happiness is..


// girl talk over dinner on tuesday night
\\ getting packages of baby girl clothes & headbands delivered
// finishing my lac application & placing it in the mail
\\ a quick & easy ob appointment
// finding out baby girl is a mover like her brother
\\ santino's dance skills
// planning my summer schedule
\\ getting to see maryland cousins this weekend
// naomi's baby boy being born
\\ ordering these headbands for my beach days
// my first holly hock bloom!

what's happiness to you??

picture: white & gold wicker 1960s satchel available at helen's hassack

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

buttermilk & cilantro steak marinade

i usually get new recipes through blogs.
but one favorite recipe magazine of mine is
everyday food

usually i flip through
& pick out which recipes i want to try.

i originally skipped over this recipe,
but j wanted to try it out.

buttermilk & cilantro marinade
in a blender combine:
1 cup buttermilk
1 bunch cilantro roughly chopped
1 tsp corriander seed
.5tsp curry powder (i substituted for a mix of cumin & garlic powder)
3 scallions (i omitted, because we're just not fans)

marinade steak for 40minutes.
then grill away.



next time i might add minced garlic for more spice.
but overall a successful dinner.

we ate with j's tomato/onion/olive salad.
the dressing is a mix of vinegars & olive oil & italian spices.

& used 1/2cup of extra marinade as a dipping sauce.



nomnom.

Monday, May 28, 2012

mdw 2012 - in pictures

i use to dream of raising beach kids.
mission complete.
j's new summer toy = more beach time for santino & i
getting ((toomuch)) sun.
getting patriotic on the oc nj boardwalk!
first time on the carousel.
not big enough yet.
surfer boy.