Honey Mustard Chicken

Okay, so I discovered this recipe on allrecipes.com and was so excited because my entire family LOVES it! The only thing I do differently is add some garlic powder. At first I was a little nervous to have the honey and basil combo because I had never tried it, but  they really do well together! The chicken is really tender and moist and when I serve them with mashed potatoes, I actually like to add the honey mustard over my potatoes. This is great as leftovers too!

Ingredients

• 1 to 1 1/2 lbs., boneless chicken breast halves, trimmed
• salt and pepper and garlic powder, to taste
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup prepared mustard
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
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• Directions
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• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2. Next, sprinkle chicken breasts with salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste, and place in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish.

3.  In a small bowl, combine the honey, mustard, basil, paprika, and parsley. Mix well. Pour 1/2 of this mixture over the chicken, and brush to cover.

4.Next, bake for 30 minutes, uncovered Turn the chicken pieces over and brush with the remaining 1/2 of the honey mustard mixture. Bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

I love to serve this with a side of steamed broccoli or green beans and garlic cheddar mashed potatoes. The green beans are actually pretty amazing in the sauce as well. Sooo delicious! And a kid pleaser!

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My New Step Garden!

Okay, so let me just say...I am one blessed lady! Seriously. My husband rocks!

Why? Well, I'll tell ya. Back in December DH and I purchased a new home which we love, BUT it has one drawback. The back yard has a big hill in it. We are pretty lucky though because it somewhat levels off and we have a swing set and shed. Anyway, I don't know about you, but I like having a vegetable garden.We had one for a few years at our other house. It's a fun hobby and we love the fresh produce. However, the only spot that gets sun most of the day in our new backyard is that doggone hill! So, being the 'genius' that I am, I came up with the great idea of building a step garden in the hill. So smart. I know. (pats self on back) LOL. Well, wouldn't ya know, the genius has NO idea how to actually build one AND I had a difficult time finding a tutorial online. SO, I went to my wonderful hardworking handy carpenter of a husband and asked him oh so sweetly to do it for me. And as every married couple assumes, yes, he literally jumped for joy!...right...Well, being that he must actually love me, he did decide to build it for me even though he's never built one before and had to make it up as he went along. SO.... here's my awesome hubby working his tail off. Don't let him know these pics are on here...It's our little secret. He started it  Mother's Day right after church and just put on an old shirt and never changed out of his dress socks. He hates these pictures...so SSHHH! He spent at least 12 hours all together between building it, helping me stain it, picking up and unloading compost and topsoil. Again, my husband is AMAZING....today...lol...just kidding...he is always amazing...sometimes I forget and it's things like these that put it in perspective. Love him more than anything! So without further Adieu....

Directions:

Marry a carpenter or hire one because I don't know what else to tell ya! Sorry!

Building the first box. We figured out that it is probably better not to build the box first because not only did we have a vertical angle, but we also had a horizontal angle to deal with. 

Here's Princess2...seriously...Isn't she adorable?

Mommy, enjoying a gorgeous Mother's day with my sweeties while my DH works. Feeling loved today... :)

Remember...you never saw the socks or old shirt! ;-)

Finding where level is...He's so smart!

Bracing the wood.

Level?

3 out of four...this was the 2nd day. And it was drizzling. 

Almost finished with the building process...yay!

He was much happier with this outfit. He just got home from his real job. So these are his real work clothes.

All done! He is quite exhausted. I owe him big time!

I got a solid outdoor stain which is a waterproofer and sealer in one. So I just needed two coats. It was called "Barn Red"

Here it is with all of the compost and dirt for this year. I will add more next year, but by the time he had finished unloading the dirt from his truck, I just didn't have the heart to make him go get more. So he can be done...for this year...lol. 

My zucchini...they have their own home since they don't like to share their space very well...

Chicken Fajitas

Okay, so I have yet another Mexican dish for y'all to try. If you haven't noticed, I LOVE Mexican food! This is also a dish that my entire family loves too. Score! Tonight I made some Chicken Florentine from the Pioneer Woman for them for the first time, and yeah... it took them 45 minutes to finish the smallest servings ever...so let's be thankful for dishes that your kids love, right?? Sometimes if we are having guests, I will prepare this as a self-serve buffet because it is pretty simple to prepare ahead. The marinade recipe I use off the back of the Mission flour tortilla package. I actually prefer to use the larger burrito tortillas but you can use any size you'd prefer. In these pictures I have fajita size. Well, I hope you enjoy it!

Chicken Fajitas

10 Flour Tortillas 

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

2 Tbsp fresh Lemon Juice

1 tsp Salt

1 tsp Black Pepper

1 tsp Cumin

1 lb. Chicken Breasts, boneless, skinless, rinsed, fat trimmed off, and sliced

white or vidalia onion, sliced

green bell pepper, sliced

red bell pepper, sliced

sour cream

salsa

Mexican blend cheese

jalapenos, optional

lettuce, chopped

tomato, diced

Alright, so first dice up them veggies! I am actually the only one in my house who eats these. I love when my company enjoys it too. Then I'm not the odd ball out. One day, hopefully my princesses will take after me and actually enjoy some caramelized onions, so sweet and tasty that I can eat the whole bowl all by themselves....hmm...I'm getting hungry just thinking about them.

Anyway, moving on...In the dish you plan to use for marinating combine the olive oil (or your preferred oil, I sometimes have used vegetable oil), lemon juice, salt, black pepper, and cumin. Whisk together.

Next take your rinsed and sliced chicken breast and add it to the marinade. (You can use chicken breasts or chicken breast tenders. I use whatever I have, we always have some type of chicken on hand and it's usually which ever is cheapest. Just make sure to slice them about 1/4 inch thick by 2-3 inches long)Toss to coat and set it in the fridge while prepping the rest of the meal.

In a skillet over medium-high heat add the peppers and onion. Saute until beginning to caramelize. You don't have to cook them that long if you don't want to. Some people do not like mushy veggies, but I LOVE them when they caramelize. Like I said before, I can eat them all by their lonesome little selves. Ha ha! You can put the lid on the pan with it cracked a bit to vent the steam in order to speed up the cooking process a little.

Once finished, remove the veggies to a bowl and put some tin foil on it to help retain their heat.

In a preheated skillet, add the chicken breast and cook over medium-high heat till cooked through and no longer pink in the center.

Set aside in a dish and cover with foil also.

Dice up the tomato and lettuce. 

Now's the fun part! Putting them together and eating them! I have this handy little tortilla warmer my sister got me as a gift forEVER ago. I just add the tortillas and nuke 'em in the microwave for about 45 seconds.

Here's my little trick...Put the sour cream on FIRST! It's so much better because you get some in every bite this way instead of putting a dollop on later where it's clumped together. Add some cheese and a few pieces of chicken.

Next, add the sauteed veggies, lettuce, tomato, and salsa. Roll 'em up and dig in! Oh and serve it up with some of my favorite Knorr Spanish Rice. (No, they didn't pay me to say that, I just love it)

These fajitas are amazing! Love Love Love them!

Enjoy!

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