Christmas Shepherd Pie

I'm cooking dinner for my family on Christmas Eve and I've been searching and searching for the perfect Christmas Eve dinner to prepare. I think I've gone to http://www.foodnetwork.com/ and http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/ about a million times over the past week or so! I finally came across Paula Deen's Christmas Shepherd Pie recipe and decided that was the golden ticket.

I tried the recipe out this weekend with my best friend Megan. Let me tell ya...it's so much fun cooking in the kitchen with a friend. I highly recommend you doing it at least once in your life if not more!

We got home from Christmas shopping and poor Jared was famished from not eating all day since he was looking forward to this meal.

This is a pretty quick meal to put together, however, keep in mind it does take a little over an hour to get everything ready.

You can find the recipe at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/christmas-shepherds-pie-recipe/index.html

This isn't the greatest picture but it gives you an idea of what it looks like in a casserole dish.

I did make individual ramekins for Megan, Jared and myself and will do the same on Christmas Eve. This recipe makes a TON of food...I'll just throw that out there.

For Christmas Eve I will be making it with ground turkey instead of ground beef, I'm sure it'll be just as delicious.

If you want a good home cooked, southern feel, fills your stomach to the brim meal, then give this recipe a try.

Let me know what you think!

Enjoy!
-AKL

Zesty Spaghetti a la Puttanesca

This weekend I went out on a limb and tried Nadia G.'s (chef from Bitchin' Kitchen) recipe, Zesty Spaghetti a la Puttanesca. The reason I say I went out on a limb is because this recipe calls for anchovy fillets. I for one have never cooked with anchovies. Really...who likes fish that come in a can? Maybe I'm wrong, but it's been a turn off for me. I've watched plenty of cooking shows where they cook with anchovies, but I've stayed away from those recipes...until now!

I've been blessed with a husband that is willing to try all of my dinner creations. Well I guess I shouldn't say all because he will not try Edamame! He politely refers to Edamame as "Hairy Bean Pods". It's easy for me to read Jared when he tries something I make. It's all in his face...and when he doesn't like it he can't cover up the sour look that comes over him. I was apprehensive about this meal to be honest. When I watched Nadia cook the meal on her show it looked delicious and I wanted to give it a try, but like I said, I've never cooked with anchovies or capers. A very traditional Italian spaghetti meal but totally different than anything I've cooked before.

My guinea pigs for the night were Jared and one of my best friends, Megan. They both watched over my shoulder as I pulled the anchovy fillets out of the can and began to shred them with a fork. Not my favorite part of the meal, but it went without incident. I carefully followed Nadia's directions and all in all it was a an easy meal to throw together. It smelled amazing (no the anchovies don't make your house smell fishy) and looked delicious when it was all said and done. But wouldn't you know...I didn't take a photo! The photo above is courtesy of: Cooking Channel, Nadia G and Bitchin' Kitchen.

Now, when we sat down to eat I wouldn't let Jared or Megan try a bite before I did. Call me crazy, but I really didn't want to see either of them run to the bathroom because it didn't taste as good as it looked. I took the first bite and didn't really know how to describe it. It was a different taste to me since I'm used to your "all American drown your noodles in tomato and meat sauce and call it a day" taste. We had an interesting conversation of what flavors stuck out and the fact that you really don't taste the anchovies. It was a successful meal and one that I will certainly try again with some modifications, for Jared....i.e. chicken needs to be added to make it a "man" meal.

If you're interested in the recipe you can find it here: www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/zesty-spaghetti-a-la-puttanesca-recipe/index.html

Let me know if you try it and what you think of it!

Enjoy!
-AKL

New Cooking Show

I found a new cooking show to add to my addiction! Have you ever heard of Nadia G? I had never heard of her, but we recently switched to Dish and they offer the Cooking Channel. I love this channel. They play every thing from Julia Child to Rachael Ray. It's GREAT!!

Well the other day I was checking out different shows on the Cooking Channel and was intrigued when I saw a show called Bitchin' Kitchen. I had to set up a recording and see what this was all about. The show is VERY different, but so fun to watch. Nadia doesn't just stand up there and cook, she acts and makes it humorous for those watching. I don't know..maybe I'm an odd ball but I think she's funny.

Last night I tried one of her recipes (Sirloin Shepard's Pie) and it was wonderful! She has meals that take a lot of preparation and cook time as well as pretty quick meals that you can make last minute. I'm excited to watch some more shows and she what she has to offer.

Anyway, of course I didn't take photos of dinner last night, but if you're interested in checking her show out you can go to www.cookingchanneltv.com and look her up under Chefs & Hosts OR her website http://bitchinlifestyle.tv/

Enjoy!
-AKL

Shayenne

This is Shyanne (aka...Shy) and I love her! We've had Shy for 6 1/2 years, however, it seems like she's been a part of our lives forever.

Shy actually came into our lives as a surprise. We originally were interested in another American Eskimo named Peanut. We got in contact with an Eskie rescue and make an appointment for a home visit with Peanut. When the lady arrived with Peanunt she asked if we'd be willing to see another dog named Shayenne. I'll be honest, I'd seen a photo of Shy on the internet and she looked like this little scraggly thing but the lady explained that she felt like Shy would be a perfect fit for our family of two.

She brought Shy into our apartment and it was love at first sight for both Shy and myselft. She wasn't fond of Jared in the beginning but I insisted we take a chance on this little girl. Before we knew it the lady took off for her next home visit and she told us to call her after a little bit with an update of how it was going.

After about an hour into our time with Shy one on one we called the lady from the Eskie rescue and said we wanted to keep Shy overnight for a trial run. We were given more information regarding Shy and her past. We found out that if we were to adopt her we'd be her fifth owner, she came from a drug home in California and had been bounced around from place to place because she didn't like anyone and they didn't like her! Shy needed A LOT of attention and love. She needed someone to be patient with her and let her come around on her own time.

We had a long road ahead of us with Shy. It was beyond difficult trying to get Shy to meet new people and not try to eat them. I kid you not, we couldn't even walk around the park without her trying to attack someone or something. We tried special training, we tried clicker training, we tried anything and everything we could think of and all she needed was time.

Sure she still barks at the door when someone rings the doorbell and yes, she screams like a little girl when she gets too excited, but we love her just the same. She has gone from an insecure little pup to a mature and wise older lady. We couldn't imagine our family without her and we wouldn't trade her for anything. She's our Shy Butt!!

Labor Day, Birthday, and Balloons

We been staying rather busy in the Leffler household. Here are some photos to update you on what we've been up to.

2010 Balloon Classic

Beautiful Clouds

Labor Day fun in the park

Doggy Smiles

Early Birthday Gift

Enjoy!

-AKL

Personal Space

This doesn't need any explanation....please adhere to the following!







Diagram of Edward T. Hall's personal reaction bubbles (1966), showing radius in feet. Taken from Wikipedia.

Am I Crazy?

Yup, I've lost my mind! I'm not sure what came over me! This weekend Jared and I bought a bird...I mean 2 birds! Jared has been talking about buying a bird for as long as I can remember and I've simply patted him on the head and told him he was cute, but that was never going to happen.

See many, many years ago when we were young and newly married we thought it was time to get a pet. We didn't know if we wanted a dog since we lived in an apartment, on the third floor, so we opted to buy some birds. Yes, 3 parakeets to be exact! Ah, beautiful birds, 1 blue, 1 green and 1 white.

We were so happy that first day of bird bliss. We thought sweet soft little chirps would be coming from the cage, but we were wrong. The second day turned into bird bonkers! Our sweet white parakeet, that we named Angel, picked and bit the other birds. No pleasant chirps were coming from her or the other two so we had to take her back. That left us with two, which unfortunately I can't remember their names. Anyway, it wasn't long that we decided they were too loud, messy, and unfriendly that we gave them away. I don't know about you, but I like all ten fingers I have and I was tired and those birds biting me! After that I decided we were a dog family only and I'd never think about owning birds again! Shortly after the birds were gone we adopted Shayenne. Then a couple years later Chandler joined the Leffler family!

Well...I guess I was wrong about being a dog only family. I'd like to introduce you to Forrest and Gump, which we have decided to call Hunter & Sookie!

Granted we've only had Hunter and Sookie for a few days, but so far they have been nothing but quiet, sweet, loving little fluffs of feathers. Hunter is a Quaker Parrot and Sookie is a Lovebird.

This is Sookie!

This is Hunter!

Jared has many plans for training Hunter. Quaker Parrots are known for being able to talk. Currently he is able to say, "Whatcha doin?", "Hi", and "Goodbye". He's been rather quiet since moving into his new home, but we're sure he'll get comfortable and start chatting away. I must say that I've enjoyed holding both birds and all 10 fingers are still intact.

On another note, Jared bought me a new camera, which I'm happily sharing with him. I'm excited to be able to post more pictures on this blog and keep you up to date with the Leffler happenings!

Here are a few of the snapshots I've taken so far.

I'll leave you with a photo of Hunter taking off to head back to his cage.

-AKL

Things I love

It's amazing how blogs change over time. I thought when I started this blog it would be about cooking, but I've jumped from topic to topic and that's ok. I've decided that I will randomly post things I love. The "Things I love" posts will be random and not much explaining will be involved. Here's a few items to get you started.

Dog Paws

Smiles

-AKL

Early Morning Walk

I decided to take Chandler for an early walk this morning. I went to bed last night thinking I'll never be able to pull myself out of bed early enough, but was pleasantly surprised to open my eyes at 4:45 AM ready to go.

It was so quiet and peaceful. The air was fresh and crisp and the temperature was near perfect! I had my headphones on and was listening to the Chris Tomlin station on Pandora. There's nothing like enjoying God's beauty early in the morning while listening to praise and worship. It was so nice to be quiet and listen to the words that were being sung in the background.

I really got to think this morning, let my mind go where it wanted to go. I didn't have to focus on anything, other than Chandler not going potty in people's yards. So many thoughts flooded my mind, am I happy, what am I doing with my life, am I where the Lord wants me to be, what will my life look like in 5 years, am I ever going to be satisfied, would I do it all over?

Lets just say, my walk wasn't long enough for me to figure everything out. Before I knew it the sun was starting to come over the horizon, the sound of cars driving down the road was drowning out the music, and the clock was telling me time to get home so I could get ready for work. My peaceful, quiet morning was soon engulfed by stress and noise.

Chan and I got home where he happily greeted Shy and went back to bed, must be nice to be a dog. I quickly got ready and jumped in my car to join the ratrace into work. What will the next 7 hours hold? I don't know, but I do know that my quiet peaceful morning has been replaced with people talking, phones ringing, elevators opening and closing, and the sound of people typing on their keyboards.

Ah, morning walk....I miss you! Until next time....

-AKL

Why

Why do people choose to sit in the stall next to you when there are 7 open stalls in the bathroom?

Why do people talk on their cell phones when in a public restroom?

Why do people get ready in their cars while driving to work?

Why are customer service people so rude when you call?

Do cooks really spit in your food when you return it because they didn't cook it right in the first place?

Why are the lights always green when you're early to an appointment, but when you're late you always get red lights?

Why is it so difficult for women to understand men and men understand women?

Why do people carry on a conversation with you while standing at your cubicle when you're on the phone already?

Why do computers crash or freeze so much when they're supposed to make our lives easier and faster?

Why when your a child you can't wait to be a grownup but when you're a grownup you wish you could go back to your childhood?

Why do some meals take hours to make but only minutes to eat?

Why are people so competitive?

Why do semi truck drivers (or any other large truck for that matter) think they can drive their trucks like a mini cooper?

Why do people hang the balls ornament from the back of their trucks?

Why is there so much backstabbing among friends, family, and co-workers?

Why can't you seem to style your hair like your hairstylist did when you first got it cut?

-AKL

Arizona and More

Wow it's almost been 2 months since I've updated this blog. Time sure does fly when you're working all the time. Here's what's been happening in the Leffler world.

Over Memorial Day weekend we took a road trip down to Arizona to spend some time with Jared's family and to enjoy the heat! This was the first road trip Jared and I have taken together! We were able to take Shy and Chan with us which was a nice change. Both dogs did extremely well in the car, no car sickness, just lots and lots of sleeping.

We rented a house with Jamie, Chelsey and Carter. It was so nice to have a place of our own and not have to stay in a hotel the entire time. We had our own private pool which was used every single day!

Jared was our dedicated pool boy during our stay. I must say he did a mighty fine job of keeping the pool bug free!

Chelsey and I did find some time to have some retail therapy! There's something about being on vacation that causes you to think you need to buy "vacation" stuff.

By mistake we happened upon an outdoor shopping mall that had great shops and wonderful restaurants. We enjoyed dining outside whenever we could.

We also had the opportunity to have lunch at In & Out Burger. I haven't had a burger from there for a good 15 to 16 years!! It was just as yummy as ever!

As always our visit was too short, but it was nice to be away from every day life even for a couple of days.

Both Jared and I have been working a lot! Jared has been busy in HR rolling out a new system to our field countries. It amazes me how technical his mind is. I've been busy in marketing gearing up for our festival season and helping my team with anything they need.

We just celebrated Jared's 29th birthday. We had a joint birthday party for Jared and his brother Jordan. We hosted a BBQ at our house and it was nice to spend time with the Leffler's. We were able to snag our nephew Jake so he could spend the night and play with Carter at the party. Those boys sure know how to have some fun!

The next night we hosted another BBQ for Jared's birthday with my family. We had a lot of fun just talking and laughing. You can't go wrong with good food, good dessert, good weather, and great family. I did bake 3 different desserts over the course of those two BBQ's and they all turned out wonderfully. What's not to like about chocolate, chocolate cake, strawberry and pineapple delight, and an apple crisp. YUM!

Jared and I have brought my mom into the 21st century with convincing her she needed to buy a laptop. I never thought I'd see the day that Jared, my mom, and myself would be sitting in our living room, each with our own laptop, surfing the web and emailing each other funny videos we found on YouTube!

I do have a confession to make. It's been haunting me since it's happened. I was unable to keep my new year's resolution of no Starbucks for a year! I did cave and have a Starbucks the day we left for Arizona. Something about road trip equaled the need for a coffee. Then once we got to Arizona and were enjoying the great weather, we all needed a cold frap to cool us down. I'm still struggling with the fact that I caved not once, but twice! I'm hoping I can get back on the path and refrain from any more Starbucks, but it is summer time and those skinny iced vanilla lattes are screaming drink me on those early Monday mornings.

-AKL

Tater Tot Casserole

Tonight I made my dad's tater tot casserole. I don't know as I'll ever be able to make it as good as he did, but I'm trying. He used to make it for our family and the firehouse guys all the time. I'll give you my dad's version and then I'll give you my "healthy" version.

What you'll need for dad's firehouse version:

1lb ground hamburger meat

1 can mushrooms

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 bag (9oz) frozen tater tots

1 small white onion

What you'll need for Abby's "healthy" version:

1lb lean ground turkey

1 can cream of mushroom soup OR 1 can cream of chicken soup

1 bag (9oz) frozen tater tots

1 small white onion

Cooking dad's firehouse version:

*Preheat the oven to 350

*Place the ground hamburger in the bottom of a casserole dish (if you opt to not brown up the meat before hand you're casserole will come out VERY greasy...totally not healthy, but that's how the guys liked it back in the day)

*Slice up the onion and lay on top of hamburger meat

*Spread mushrooms and cream of mushroom soup on top of meat and onion

*Top meat with frozen tater tots (make sure you do NOT thaw the tater tots)

*Bake for 1-1 1/2 hours

*Salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Abby's "healthy" version

*Preheat the oven to 350

*Brown lean ground turkey and drain off the drippings

*Spread turkey on bottom of casserole dish

*Slice up onion and place on top of turkey

*Spread cream of mushroom soup (or cream of chicken soup) on top of meat and onion

*Cover meat with tater tots (make sure you do NOT thaw the tater tots)

*Bake for 1 hour

*Salt and pepper to taste

Sure wish you were here to try my healthy version, dad! Miss you!!

Enjoy!

-AKL

Updated Tuna

Do you ever have a hankering for tuna? I'm talking bumble bee tuna in water from a can hankering? Last night I was trying to figure out what I wanted to make for my Monday lunch....and I wanted tuna. Not plain tuna, but an updated version of tuna. Hear me out....

Updated Tuna:

1 can bumble bee tuna (in water)

1 1/2 T mayo (more or less depending on how you like your tuna)

2 spears of dill pickles

1 small gala apple

Cut up your spears of dill pickles into bite size pieces. Then cut up your small gala apple into bite size pieces. Drain your tuna, add mayo, pickles, and apples and then mix! If you're really adventurous try adding just a little fresh white onion as well.

Personally I like to let mine chill overnight in the fridge, but if you want to eat it right away by all means do!

Great atop Ritz crackers!! There's just something about tuna, pickles and apples that are extra yummy!

Can think of a better way to enjoy Monday lunch at the office.

Enjoy!

-AKL

Taco Meets Pasta

Last night I tried something new, tacos meets pasta. The jury is still out on if I'll make it again. It wasn't bad, it was good, but I don't know...I think tacos are supposed to be on tortilla's not pasta. Anyway, if you want to try it:

Things you'll need:
1 box of Pasta (any kind you want....we switched to whole wheat and really like it)
1 lb of meat (any kind you want...I made it with stew meat, it's what we had on hand)
1 T of olive oil
1 T ground Coriander
1 1/2 T of ground Cumin
1 packet taco seasoning (if you want lots of taco flavor)
4 cloves of garlic
1 onion
1 can of tomato paste
1 can of beer

Here's what you'll do:
Boil 4 qts of water in pot for pasta
Warm 1 T of olive oil in large skillet on medium high heat
Brown up your meat
Add garlic and onion - let onions get a little soft
Add coriander, cumin, and taco seasoning
Add beer and tomato paste

Let ingredients come together and when meat has been thoroughly cooked and pasta is done, mix together.

Wow! That was so easy!

In other news, I'm still going strong with no Starbucks! To be honest I don't even crave it anymore. I can only imagine how much $$ it's saving as well. Jared and I continue to get up, go to work, come home, hang with the dogs, go to bed, and then do it all over again!

I didn't take photos of dinner last night so I'll leave you with a photo of our clean dogs! And yes, that is them sitting in our nephew's car seat. Thank goodness Jake wasn't in it.

Enjoy!
-AKL

Vegetable Stir Fry with Scallops

Jared was on dinner duty tonight! He made vegetable stir fry with scallops. It was pretty yummy.

We're new to scallops, I actually googled scallops just to know what I was really eating. Basically they taste like clam chowder without the chowder. If you're interested here is what you'll need to do.

What you'll need:
Broccoli
Carrots
Snap peas
Garlic
Onion
Scallops
Olive Oil
Butter
Dry white cooking wine
Flour

What you do:
Place scallops in a bowl and soak in dry white cooking wine, don't fully cover, for about 10 min
In a large skillet warm olive oil
In a medium skillet melt 3 tbls butter
Place cut up vegetables in large skillet and cook until tender
Drudge scallops in flour and place in melted butter - about 2-3 min per side (you want them a nice shade of golden brown)

Once everything is cooked plate your vegetables and top with scallops

Easy breezy and the best part.....NO FISHY SMELL!!

Enjoy!
-AKL

Updates

Life has been busy at the Leffler household. Jared and I got back Sunday night from a leadership conference with my team in Dallas, TX. What an amazing time to get to spend together and with the wonderful people I work with.

I'll be honest, I wasn't thrilled to be going at the beginning. Why you might ask...well:

1. I HATE flying! Now for those of you who know me really well and know all the traveling I've done you might think that statement is incorrect....it's not...you read it right. All it took was one bad flight and honestly I'd be ok with never flying again.

2. I don't like leaving Shy and Chan for long periods of time. Crazy...I know, but really they're my kids right now.

3. I had so much to get done at work. Having a major tour start in March equals tons and tons of orders and letters to get out.

4. I don't really like getting out of my daily routine. I love my home and my bed....hotels just aren't the same.

5. I knew that when I got to the conference I'd have to get out of my comfort zone and meet a lot of people face to face that I only knew through email.

But I went and I'm so thankful I did. God was in this conference from the moment we stepped on the plane in Colorado Springs to the moment we landed back in Colorado Springs.

1. Both flights we were on were incredibly smooth and we were able to sit together at the front

of the plane (I don't do well in the back of the plane).

2. Shy and Chan did really well with the new dog sitter. No acting out, no potty messes, no keeping him up all night crying.

3. Work was still waiting for me when I got in on Monday morning, but I have been able to plow through and keep the stress level to a minimum.

4. I'm slowing getting back into the daily routine. Dinners are still hit and miss but it's coming.

5. I can't say enough about the people at the conference. Amazing men and women with such a heart for Compassion and the volunteer work they do. Wonderful conversations, lots of laughing and serious discussions. We all left with a renewed vision for Compassion and passion for the work we do.

We were privileged to have the Aaron Ivey Band lead us in worship while we were out there. They were great! Aaron and the band have such a heart for Haiti and adoption and the work that Compassion does. I would encourage you to listen to some of their music....they won't disappoint!

We had our very own team member Jim Ed Hardaway lead our session on Sunday morning. This guy has the gift of speaking. He was so honest in what he had to say and didn't sugar coat his struggles in life. He was so real and at the same time encouraging to get through those rough patches in life.

It was great!

Now we've been trying to get back into the swing of things just in time for Jared to take off next week for a training in Atlanta.

Still going strong with no Starbucks. I even managed to resist Monday morning when Jared stopped at Starbucks to get a mocha before work. Woo hoo!!

-AKL

Beef Stroganoff

On the Leffler menu tonight...Beef Stroganoff. This is the second time I've made this meal and by far tonight was the best. I changed it up a bit with how I cooked the beef and I think that made all the difference. Here's what you'll need...if you want to try this meal.

Ingredients:

4 Tbs olive oil (I used 2 Tbs garlic infused olive oil and 2 Tbs basil infused olive oil)

1 lb cubed beef stew meat

5 Tbs flour

3 Tbs dried onion flakes

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 can cream of chicken

1 lb egg noodles

What you do:

Over medium high heat warm the olive oil. Place flour in ziplock baggie. Toss stew meat in flour and make sure the meat is completely covered. Once meat is covered and olive oil is warm add meat to pan. Allow meat to begin to brown. As meat is browning season with salt, pepper and onion flakes. Continue to toss until meat is fully cooked.

As meat is browning, boil 4 Qts of water in separate pan and follow directions on egg noodle package for cooking time. Make sure to salt your boiling water before you add the noodles so they don't stick together.

When you have about 5 minutes left of cooking the noodles add entire can of cream of chicken to browned stew meat. When you do this it will be VERY thick. Either add a bit of water or chicken stock to loosen mixture. You don't want a soup mixture but you want the stew meat to be able to move around.

Drain the noodles and put back in hot pan. Add your beef to the noddles and mix.

Serve alongside fresh vegetables and warm bread. YUM!

-AKL