Monday, November 30, 2020

Pucker Up Monday

Welcome to Pucker Up Monday. It's not what you think, lol. Since Mondays do tend to suck, I though I'd try to start the week off right for y'all.



Friday, November 27, 2020

Finicky Friday - PINEAPPLE BBQ BAKED CHICKEN FOIL PACKETS IN OVEN

 


INGREDIENTS LIST FOR THE BBQ CHICKEN IN FOIL PACKS

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

2 cups pineapple chunks (we recommend fresh, but frozen is fine too)

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

Coarse salt and fresh cracked black pepper, to taste



For the sauce

1/2 cup of your favorite prepared bbq sauce

3 clove garlic, minced (or 2 teaspoons dried garlic)

1 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 jalapeño, sliced

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Chopped cilantro, to taste



DIRECTIONS

1. To make the baked chicken foil packets: Pre-heat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Lay four 12×12 inch (30×30 cm) squares of foil out on your work surface. Place pineapple chunks, and bell peppers in the middle of each piece of foil. Season with salt and pepper, then top with each chicken breasts. Season chicken with salt and pepper generously. 

2. In a bowl, combine bbq sauce, olive oil, paprika, minced garlic, lemon juice, oregano, cilantro, and jalapeño. Divide the sauce over each chicken pack and sprinkle with additional chopped cilantro.

3. Fold the foil over the chicken and vegetables to close off the pack, pinch the ends together so the pack stays closed.

4. Transfer the chicken foil packs to a baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and veggies are tender. When chicken is done, carefully open the foil packs, drizzle with more sauce and broil for 1 or 2 minutes to crisp up the chicken.

5. Serve the baked chicken foil packets immediately, garnished with more cilantro. Enjoy!

Note: If your chicken breasts are too thick, just cut lengthwise to make fillets, they will cook faster.


TIPS FOR THE BAKED CHICKEN IN FOIL PACKS

This easy and healthy recipe transforms chicken into a tasty effortless dinner in a matter of minutes!

Cooking time can vary based on the size and thickness of your chicken breasts. Ensure the chicken reaches 165°F (74ºC) to be properly cooked.

If your chicken breasts are too thick, just cut lengthwise to make fillets, they will cook faster.

If aluminum foil is a concern for you, you can use parchment paper to make the packets. Use a stapler or paperclips to maintain the fold. You can also double the foil with parchment paper on the inside.

Other vegetables to accompany the baked chicken in foil: Make it low carb with cauliflower, zucchini, or broccoli. OR! Carb it up with potatoes cut into cubes!

WHAT OTHER VEGETABLES CAN WE USE FORT EH BAKED CHICKEN IN FOIL?

If the combo of pineapple and bell pepper is too sweet for your taste, you can keep it low-carb with cauliflower, zucchini, or broccoli instead.

HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN IN A FOIL PACKET

Before adding the chicken, bell peppers, and pineapple, you can either spray the foil with cooking spray or add a small piece of parchment paper into the packet (we know some of us are concerned by the foil making contact with food). When baking chicken foil packets, you’ll want to ensure they’re properly sealed to keep any delicious juices inside and allow them to steam the veggies. To close the chicken foil packet: Start by folding the packet lengthwise and then roll up the ends to create a sealed packet.

HOW AND HOW LONG TO KEEP THE BAKED CHICKEN IN FOIL LEFTOVERS

Discard the foil and transfer the baked chicken and veggies to airtight containers (glass containers preferably). Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Simply reheat the chicken gently in the microwave with a few drops of water to loosen up the sauce.


Link: HTTPS://WWW.EATWELL101.COM/CHICKEN-FOIL-PACKETS-IN-OVEN-RECIPE

Tuesday, November 24, 2020

Tuesday Teaser

 



“Fucking hell! Dammit, Frost.”

Nicholas chuckled. Yes, he imagined his informant didn’t appreciate the chilliness since he was ectothermic. That’s what he got for smoking. While Nicholas did request this meet, and knew the paranormal waiting for him, he wouldn’t relax his guard. A lax assassin was a dead assassin.

He sniffed the air currents again. Nothing human had been there in a very long time. The only living paranormal inside was who Nicholas expected. Nothing undead lay in wait, either. To him vampires smelled slightly musty with a hint of a moss. And, as odd as it sounded, decaying mushrooms.

Satisfied no one else lurked, he strolled out onto the main floor. Standing in a sliver of moonlight was a tall, muscular man. All around him was rusted machinery and equipment, some of which was broken. Tiles and twisted wires hung from the ceiling. Layers of dust and dirt cover every surface.

“Such a hostile place to do business.”

“It does have a delightful ambiance, does it not?” Nicholas stopped several feet away and glared at the cigarette. “Those are horrible. The scent is atrocious.”

Mick dropped the cigarette on the concrete floor and stomped it out. “Hey, you worry about your vises and let me worry about mine.”

“If only I had vises to worried about.” Nicholas mused. He was certain Mick didn’t hear the sarcasm in his words. “Good to see you, Mick.”

“Ordinarily I would say the same, but”—Mick waved his hand around—"the creep factor here is over the top. Even for you.”

“It was for your safely. You cannot be seen with me right now. You do not want to catch the attention of the one you have information on.”

Mick huffed. “No, no, I don’t. This is some shit, for sure.”

Nicholas studied the man in front of him. Little telltale signs of nervousness caught his attention, and he didn’t think it was because Mick was away from his swamp.

Mick’s heart rate was up, and Nicholas tried hard not to stare at Mick’s neck where his pulse fluttered. Mick was tense, and his breathing was slightly elevated. Something dark moved deep within Nicholas—a need that wouldn’t be denied much longer.




Monday, November 23, 2020

Pucker Up Monday

 Welcome to Pucker Up Monday. It's not what you think, lol. Since Mondays do tend to suck, I though I'd try to start the week off right for y'all.




Friday, November 20, 2020

Finicky Friday - Peanut Butter Dessert Lasagna

 


YIELDS: 8

PREP TIME: 0 HOURS 10 MINS

TOTAL TIME: 6 HOURS 30 MINS


INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 c. heavy cream

1/2 c. powdered sugar

1 (3.4-oz.) package vanilla instant pudding mix, plus ingredients called for on box

1 (16-oz.) package Nutter Butters

1 (16.3-oz.) jar peanut butter, melted

3 King Size Butterfingers, roughly chopped

1/2 c. semisweet chocolate chips, melted




DIRECTIONS

Make whipped cream: Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or hand beaters, beat cream and sugar until medium peaks form, about 3 minutes. Set aside.

Prepare pudding according to package directions.

In an 8"-x-8” baking dish, spread a thin layer of whipped cream. Top with a layer of Nutter Butters and top those with a layer of melted peanut butter, spreading to completely cover cookies. Top with half the vanilla pudding, spreading into an even layer, then half the remaining whipped cream in an even layer; top with half the crushed Butterfingers and drizzle with more melted peanut butter. Repeat layering with remaining Nutter Butters, pudding, whipped cream, and crushed Butterfingers.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cookies are soft, 6 hours and up to overnight.

Drizzle with remaining melted peanut butter and melted chocolate, then slice and serve.


Link: https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a49509/peanut-butter-dessert-lasagna-recipe/

Thursday, November 19, 2020

Thursday book recommendation


These are books I’ve read and really enjoyed. Most of what I talk about will probably be paranormal/scifi but not always. Although it’s rare, I do read some contemporary. 




This week is: A Pebble for Lewis (Alaskan Pebble Gifters Book 1)


Blurb:
Lewis has never been kissed.

Omega penguin shifters aren’t allowed any physical contact with an alpha until their Pebble Gifting Season, when alphas present a pebble to their desired mate. Lewis has always followed the rules.

Until he meets Todd. A polar bear shifter.

Everyone knows that polar bear shifters are unreliable players who don’t mate for life. But Todd is breathtakingly beautiful, with a body as big as a mountain and a head of thick, white hair. Lewis can’t manage to look away.

In Anchorage Alaska where penguin shifters and polar bear shifters have been at odds for over a century, even a friendship between Todd and Lewis is forbidden. But as Lewis’s Pebble Gifting Season draws closer, their forbidden friendship turns into a passion neither of them can ignore.

A Pebble for Lewis is a 37,000-word best-friends-to-lovers romance with a size difference, knotting, and MPreg of the penguin egg variety. It’s set in the same world as the Heron Manor series, but it stands alone.



Wednesday, November 18, 2020

Tuesday Teaser (a little late lol)


Frost's Bite, #3 in the Mystic Bay series



Chapter One – Nicholas

WHEN ALONE in the snow-covered mountains, peace prevailed. Outside noise fled, and silence was a constant companion. It wrapped its cold arms around all it touched, offering the feeling of being the only person to have ever walked the path before you.

To Nicholas, it was paradise.

He smirked. Funny how those feelings reversed in an abandoned building. There was something sinister about a structure that was obviously erected at great expense, then simply left unused. And in the dark of night? Well, the mind played tricks, asking what monster skulked through the corridors just waiting to sink its greedy claws into unprotected flesh.

Nicholas was that monster.

Satisfied he heard only one beating heart, he crept forward. After dodging barbed-wire fencing, he pushed his way through thick foliage, moving soundlessly toward the towering, decrepit warehouse. Finding an unlocked side entrance, he slipped into the building.

It had been allowed to fall into disrepair and suffered from vandalism. Trash littered the floor, and every window he passed had been shattered. Broken beams of moonlight fought the darkness as Nicholas walked the maze of twisting corridors toward the open, main floor.

As he drew closer, he expanded his senses. Good. All he heard was the one beating heart in all the silence, along with the stench of cigarettes now. Good gods, such a nasty habit. But it did have its uses—like disguising scent. He lifted his hand, and a rather strong blast of Arctic air flooded the immediate area.

“Fucking hell! Dammit, Frost.”


Monday, November 16, 2020

Pucker Up Monday

Welcome to Pucker Up Monday. It's not what you think, lol. Since Mondays do tend to suck, I though I'd try to start the week off right for y'all.




Friday, November 13, 2020

Day's Light video

 



Finicky Friday - Apple Crisp Cheesecake

 


YIELDS: 12 SERVINGS

PREP TIME: 0 HOURS 15 MINS

TOTAL TIME: 7 HOURS 30 MINS


INGREDIENTS FOR THE CRUST

Cooking spray

12 graham crackers, crushed

6 tbsp. melted butter

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 c. granulated sugar

1/4 tsp. kosher salt


FOR THE CHEESECAKE

4 (8-oz.) blocks cream cheese, softened

1/4 c. caramel sauce, plus more for drizzling

1/4 c. granulated sugar

3 large eggs

1/4 c. sour cream

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

2 tbsp. all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon 


FOR THE TOPPING

1/4 c. packed brown sugar

1/4 c. all-purpose flour

1/4 c. old fashioned oats

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon 

1/4 tsp. kosher salt

4 tbsp. butter, softened 

1 apple, peeled and finely chopped 

Whipped topping, for garnish (optional)




DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325° and grease an 8" or 9" springform pan with cooking spray. 

Make crust: In a large bowl, mix together graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, cinnamon, sugar, and salt. Press into bottom of prepared pan and up the sides.

In a large bowl using a hand mixer (or in the bowl of a stand mixer), beat cream cheese, caramel, and sugar together until completely smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, then stir in sour cream and vanilla. Add flour, salt, and cinnamon and beat until just combined. Pour mixture over crust.

In a medium bowl, whisk together brown sugar, flour, oats, cinnamon, and salt, then cut in butter with a fork or pastry cutter. Scatter apples in an even layer over top of cheesecake, then top with an even layer of the oat topping.

Wrap bottom of pan in aluminum foil and place in a large roasting pan. Pour in enough boiling water to come up halfway in the baking pan. Bake until center of cheesecake only slightly jiggles, about 1 hour 30 minutes. 

Turn off oven, prop open oven door, and let cheesecake cool in oven, 1 hour. Remove foil and refrigerate cheesecake for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

When ready to serve, drizzle with caramel and serve slices topped with whipped topping, if desired.


Link: https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a23872239/apple-crisp-cheesecake-recipe/

Wednesday, November 11, 2020

Day's Light is live and in KU!

 The Mystic Bay series #2





What if the thing that goes bump in the night is you?

Gunshots in the dark of night change everything for Mark James. As his lifeblood stains the cold concrete, a sexy stranger with yellow eyes takes Mark from the violent scene of his parents’ death. But that one act tosses Mark into a world he never knew existed—the world of werewolves, vampires, Guardians, and fated mates.

While tracking werewolves who stole from his pack, Alpha Hunter Day not only interrupts a mugging gone wrong, he finds his mate bleeding out in a dank alleyway. Determined not to let the person fate gifted him die, Hunter bites Mark. He not only starts the transformation but also claims Mark, and he does it all without Mark’s consent.

A bitten wolf is never an Alpha, yet Mark is one. Further complicating matters is the lack of control over his hybrid form. It’s just one struggle among many Mark must overcome.

And fate isn’t done with them, either. All paths lead to Mystic Bay and the brother Mark is desperate to reconnect with. But the trip brings not only surprises but a danger no one foresaw.

Monday, November 9, 2020

Pucker Up Monday

  Welcome to Pucker Up Monday. It's not what you think, lol. Since Mondays do tend to suck, I though I'd try to start the week off right for y'all.