Chicken Salad with Creamy Roasted Pepper Dressing

I was recently diagnosed with gallbladder disease and have since had to seriously cut out fat from my diet. We were reasonably healthy eaters before, but now I've needed to cut out all animal fats, which for me means dairy products, including eggs. I also need to be especially attentive to the other kids of oils and fats that are in processed foods, as well as those I use to cook with. Pretty much I'm left with olive oil and the occasional lean white meat, and every thing else needs to be fat free. It's been a fun adventure discovering new ways to enjoy produce and making sure my family is getting all the essential nutrients they need. I made this salad tonight and got rave reviews.

For the chicken:

(I used several chicken cutlets because that's what I had, but skinless breasts work well too)

Mix 1 quart water with 1/4 cup table salt and brine chicken for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 hours. Pat dry and rub both sides lightly with olive oil. Season with pepper. For this dish I also used some generic Italian seasoning, but you really could use whatever suits you. Just don't add any more salt, since it's already been brined.  

Place on a foil lined baking sheet and bake in the center of the oven at 350 until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees. Depending on the size and thickness of your cuts, this can take anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes. I use a probe thermometer that beeps when the meat reaches the right temperature, which takes a lot of guess work out of the process. 

For the Dressing:

(makes about 1 cup)

Roasted red or orange pepper (mine was orange)

Half of a 14 oz. container of soft tofu, drained but not pressed

Light drizzle of olive oil (1/2 to 1 tsp)

Couple drops of habanero sauce (for flavor, not heat)

Salt and pepper to taste

Combine everything in a blender or food processor and enjoy. We ate it warm for dinner, and cold for left overs the next day and liked it both ways.

For the Salad: 

Serve chicken on a bed of fresh spinach with diced tomatoes and dressing. Delicious!

Christmas Stockings

I started these stockings two years ago, and finally finished the fourth one just in time for Christmas eve. Next year there will be five of us, so I've still got at least one more to make. I think it's a really fun tradition to have mama-made stockings though so I don't mind. 

Napkins and Table Runner - Twisted Star

This star was a lot of fun to piece. It was a bit more advanced than the ones I've done before and I learned a couple new techniques. I'm super pleased with how it turned out!

Poinsettia Table Quilt

I made the napkins in the tutorial for my sister and her husband. It's just the two of them and they have a smallish table, so I decided on a square table quilt to act as something of a center piece. I'm really pleased with how it turned out.

Chocolate Peppermint Chex Mix

I recently discovered Pinterest, which is where I found this fun little treat. I believe they called it reindeer feed or something cutesy like that.

6 cups rice Chex

2 cups white chocolate chips

1/3 cup finely crushed candy canes

Melt the chocolate (either in 30 second increments in the microwave or on the stove over low heat) and add half the candy. Mix the chocolate into the Chex, then spread on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Immediately sprinkle the remaining candy over the mix. Give it about 20 minutes to set, then break apart and enjoy. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

 I still had some crushed up peppermint after I made the white chocolate mix, so I thought I'd try a milk chocolate batch. I personally like brown chocolate better than white, but both turned out yummy.

Christmas Tree Napkin Tutorial

To make two napkins, you will need 1/4 yard of two different fabrics (that's 1/2 yard total, and means you can make 8 napkins out of 1 yard of each fabric, or a total of 2 yards).

Step 1:

Make your pattern. This is a simple half circle with a diameter of 18 inches.

Step 2:

With right sides together, place your pattern and cut out as many napkins as you plan to make (I found this project went much faster when I did each step to all the napkins before moving on to the next step). Stick a pin or two in each napkin to keep the pieces in place.

Step 3:

With right sides still together, sew a 1/4 inch seam around the whole thing, leaving a few inches open on one side of the straight edge so you can turn it right side out. Clip the corners and make little cuts all around the rounded edge.

Step 4:

Turn the napkin right side out and use a straight pin to pull out the corners and help the seam lay flat. Iron. I find this to be the most tedious part, especially when you are doing a whole bunch at a time, but making sure the seams are all ironed flat is probably the most crucial step.

Step 5:

Fold the napkin. Start with the curved side pointing away from you. Place a finger roughly 7.5 inches from the left hand side of the napkin along the straight edge. Fold back the right hand side of the napkin to roughly 7.5 inches up the curved edge, then continue to fold accordion style until you get something that looks like a Christmas tree. Don't worry, the folding is much more intuitive than this description would lead one to believe. Adjust until the edges all line up, then iron. Using thread colors on the top and bottom that will blend in with your fabric, sew a straight line along the creases. This will help future users know where to fold the napkin after it's been laundered. Skip this step if you want your napkins to be reversible.

Step 6: 

Top stitch along the whole border. I used a decorative stitch in contrasting colors along the curved edge, and a straight stitch along the straight side. This is when you will be sewing up the hole used to turn the napkin right side out, so make sure not to skip this step even if you choose not to do any embellishments.

Step 7:

Refold the napkins and iron one more time for a nice crisp look.