June 28, 2011- Chicken Alfredo and Corn on the Cob

It was our turn to host our PEPS group tonight.  Usually I make something from scratch, but decided I just couldn't add that to my schedule this week.  I opted to purchase chicken alfredo with penne noodles from Costco for our main dish.  It was delicious and super easy.  Preheat oven; bake for an hour; serve.  How nice not to be stressed about getting the food done in time!

We also served corn on the cob for the first time this season.  I think Katie ate 1.5 ears of corn!  The other families brought a green salad and Klondike bars:)

Friday, 3/4/2011

Our church's women's retreat began tonight with a potluck at one member's home.  I made a chicken and pasta casserole to take.  I started with sweet Italian chicken sausage, sliced thin and then pan fried it until a little brown around the edges.  The sausage was mixed into a store-bought, creamy, four-cheese alfredo sauce with rotisserie chicken.  Once it was all hot, I added some cooked penne pasta, and stirred it all together.  There was enough to make two small dishes (see photo) for Katie and Ben and one medium casserole dish for the potluck.  We topped each dish with shredded mozzarella cheese and put them in the oven to let the cheese melt.  

I was running a bit late, so I didn't do any more with my dish other than cover it and transport it to the potluck.  Ben had more time; so, he turned on the broiler and got the cheese a little crispy and golden brown on top.  I wish I had had more alfredo sauce for the dishes.  Although very tasty, they were not as moist as I hoped they would be. 

Wednesday, 12/29/2010

Spencer's girlfriend, Kate, arrived from Chicago late last night.  It was nice to finally meet her this morning!  The six of us, Jennifer, Spencer, Kate, Ben, Katie and I, went to Zoolights at the Portland Zoo this evening.  It was very cold and we even had some snow:)  We all got hot cocoa or coffee as we entered the zoo to take the edge off.  Katie did great with her cocoa.  I don't think she spilled any of it.  It was true progress for her!  What a spectacular light display!  I was really impressed.  There weren't many animals out to see, but we did see a momma elephant and her baby Sam, otters, monkeys, snakes, penguins, and fish. 

Kate, Spencer, Jennifer, Ben, and Katie

After the zoo, we drove to Montage, a restaurant which serves Cajun comfort food.  We've tried to go there several times and have been thwarted each time.  We thought we would be home free tonight since it is a Wednesday.  Nope.  No such luck.  There was an hour wait when we arrived.  We ended up going to Gustav's, very close to Jennifer's home.  It was actually a much better option for us in the end.  Katie didn't nap today and fell very asleep on our way from Montage to Gustav's.  She didn't wake up as Ben got her out of the car, into the restaurant, or as we laid her down on the bench of the booth we were seated at. 

Ben and I shared a small order of chicken alfredo with penne noodles.  It was really good.  Jennifer had Königsberger klopse-- poached pork and beef meatballs, caper sauce, and spätzle noodles.  Kate and Spencer shared a plate of rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes, and brussel sprouts.  I don't think they ate many of the brussel sprouts.  Ben, Spencer, Kate, and I all enjoyed Hacker Pschorr Dunkel Weisse-- a true dark, German hefeweizen.  Yum!!!  

Katie woke up after the bill had been delivered to the table.  We think she thought we were just sitting down.  She acted like she should be getting her dinner soon and was not happy when we said it was time to leave. 

Sunday, 6/6/2010

What a great day today was! It began with Music Sunday, the conclusion of the choir season at our church. The church musicians lead the service by performing their favorite songs from the previous year. The service went really long, but our pastor said it was one of the most moving services he had ever been a part of. I'll take that as a BIG compliment:)

We put Katie down for her nap after lunch. I took advantage of her late nap schedule to get some much needed weeding done in the yard. I love the look of freshly weeded dirt! Our lavender, transplanted a couple years ago from my parent's yard, looks wonderful. Can't wait to see it in full bloom!

This evening we had two birthday parties to go to. Ruthie, our wedding coordinator, was celebrating her 80th birthday. And, our friend Greg was celebrating the big 50 with his twin brother. Our plan was to go out to dinner in between the parties. Unfortunately, the restaurant we wanted to go to closed at 4pm on Sunday. We put Katie into her stroller and went around the shopping center to a teriyaki restaurant. Closed! I guess people in West Seattle don't go to Westwood Village to have dinner on Sundays. After a quick stop at Barnes and Noble, we got in the car, headed for Endolyne Joe's. Argh...soo busy! Tons of people waiting to be seated already and no hostess in sight. What to do, what to do.

Although we were worried it would be crowded or closed too, we lucked out and found Abbondanza pizzeria on California, at Morgan Junction open and with tables available. Thank goodness! We were getting very hungry and frustrated. We shared a chicken caesar salad and an order of their sausage ravioli. OMG...sooo glad we had that. The ravioli was in a rich alfredo sauce and the filling had a very fine texture. I don't think either one of us would have offered to share more than a bite of the ravioli if we hadn't pre-arranged to split the plate:) Katie ate some of the chicken from the salad and munched on bread dipped in minestrone soup.

Next stop, Greg's 50th birthday party. What a fun party! I want to do the same thing for my 50th (hint, hint Ben). He rented out a local hall and hired a super talented musician to be at the piano. Greg and his brother started everything off with some jokes and a blues song about getting old. It was kind of an open mic night. I sang a solo and then as part of a couple groups. Everyone had a great time!

Sunday, 5/16/2010

Happy Birthday to my husband Ben!

We celebrated Ben's birthday tonight with our friends Ryan and Vanessa. I wanted to meet somewhere near Tacoma, half-way between our homes, so that none of us had to drive too far. I did lots of internet searching and finally found the Adriatic Grill. The restaurant's website was really nice, easy to navigate and full of great information. I don't know about you, but I have a hard time getting excited about an unfamiliar restaurant if it's website is poorly designed. Anyway, the menu had a lot of variety, the entree prices looked reasonable, and they advertised 1/2 priced bottles of wine on Sundays. Also, I was thrilled when Google Maps showed me a photo of the restaurant and it had a parking lot. Sweet! No street parking!

I made my reservation online and was pleased to receive a call a couple days ago to confirm. They had our table prepared for us when we arrived, complete with our requested high chair for Katie. They gave her some crayons and she actually used them to scribble with! Ok, she did try to eat them later on, but the nice waitress let us know they were soy based. We took advantage of the 1/2 price wine and shared a bottle of chianti. We toasted Ben for his birthday. Katie took notice and insisted on clinking (or clunking) her sippy cup into our glasses too. SO CUTE!!!

Ben ordered Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo. I had Steelhead Salmon with Fresh Pesto off of their Fresh Sheet menu. Vanessa enjoyed the Pesto Shrimp pizza. Ryan tested the lasanga, and Katie had a cheese pizza. For dessert, Ben got a complimentary cup of ice cream with whipped cream and chocolate sauce. He shared that with Katie, who showed, once again, that she loved ice cream! Vanessa and I each had a chocolate amaretto cake with amaretto ice cream. Whoa, sooo rich and delicious. Neither one of us could finish our dessert even though we wanted to. Ben had Affogato Al Cafe- a white chocolate ice cream drizzled with espresso and topped with whipped sweet cream and chocolate covered espresso beans. Ryan enjoyed a dish of spumoni.

Bottom line: I would HIGHLY recommend visiting this restaurant if you live anywhere near Tacoma.

Tuesday, 5/4/2010

We enjoyed a delicious PEPS meal tonight at Sara, Aaron and Ari's house. Sara fixed chicken alfredo with penne noodles, caesar salad, garlic bread, fruit salad, and cookies. I wish I knew her secrets, because each dish was fabulous. The pasta dish in particular had a divinely gooey sauce that I could have eaten like soup. And, the garlic bread was restaurant quality. Rustic wheat bread (I think) with thinly sliced garlic on it. Sara, please share your secrets with me;)

Katie loved the strawberries from the fruit salad, ate a bit of the pasta, and begged for more cookie crumbs than we would give her. But, eating was not her primary focus. Ari's toys were far more interesting. Oh yes, and she was a champion sippy cup tester tonight. She can spot a friend's sippy cup from across the room and has no problem taking a swig or two to see what they are drinking. The parents played a good game of protect the sippy cups.