Testimony

Thursday- January 27, 2011

5:28pm- I head home after a long (but rewarding) afternoon at clinic, and hop onto the bus that takes me downtown. I flash my bus pass as I get on the bus.

5:45pm- I transfer to the express bus that takes me home. Downtown is a free ride area, so I don't think about showing my bus pass as I get onto the bus.

5:59pm- As the bus nears my stop, I start searching for my bus pass. No bus pass in my pockets or backpack. Panic sets in.

6:05pm- The bus is one stop away from where I get off, and thankfully I have enough change to pay my bus fare. My thoughts are racing, frantically thinking where my bus pass possibly could be. I feel light-headed, like I am in a dream-state. I think, "This can't be happening. I can't possibly have lost my bus pass and school ID card..."

6:10pm- I pay $2.50 in bus fare, and rush home. As soon as I get home, I exclaim to my brother and Patty, "I THINK I LOST MY BUS PASS!!!" I turn my backpack inside out, upside down, and search my jacket and pockets one more time. I finally admit that my bus pass is gone.

6:25pm- I call the Metro Lost & Found, get stuck in a telephone phone tree endless loop, and frustratingly get no adequate answers.

6:35pm- I call my mom to vent about losing my bus pass. The bus pass is worth about $100, plus I would need a replacement ID card. I can't believe how stupid I am in not taking care of my stuff better. My mom tries to comfort me by telling me that it's a small matter, and not a big deal. I exclaim, "But I'm trying to save up for an iPhone!!! This will make a dent in my budget!"

7:15pm- A few sisters from church arrive to my house to fellowship and chat and eat. The first thing I tell them is, "My day sucked! I lost my bus pass and ID card today!"

Later on in the evening, we devoted some time in prayer. I was truly comforted by all my sisters' prayers and concern for me. Even thought it was, retrospectively, a very small matter, we were able to lift up the issue in prayer. Whether or not I found my bus pass, I felt that everything would be alright.

10:30pm- Before I started studying, I had some personal prayer time with the Lord. I was able to give up the issue (it had been gnawing at me all night) of a lost bus pass into God's hands. Instead of continually berating myself about how I could possibly lose my bus pass and analyzing every step I took this afternoon and wondering where my bus pass possibly could be, I wanted to let the Lord take care of everything. A sense of peace filled my heart, to the extent that I was able to focus and study.

1:30am- I woke up in the middle of the night, and reached over to the side of my bed for my iTouch. I quickly checked my emails. I had a new email, with the subject line: "Husky card found" and the message below:

Hey Lydia,

I picked up your husky card/upass as I was walking down 3rd ave this evening. I'll just leave it with the front desk at the law library tomorrow morning.

You're welcome,

Jeff 

Praise the Lord. I do want to chalk this up to God as His miracle. It wasn't a coincidence or pure luck that a UW student picked up my bus pass, rather than some bum on the street (my downtown bus stop is SKETCHY). In God's perfect timing, He was teaching me to trust Him in all things and He will provide.

How wonderful He is.

-Lydia

Calorie Counting?!

I've recently downloaded a new app for my iTouch (after several of my friends have tried it)- MyFitnessPal. Basically it's a high-tech food diary; it's suppose to keep you informed and accountable for all the calories you eat! It was very cool the first day. I've never calorie counted before, just assuming I ate around or even less than the daily suggested allowances. On Thursday, I logged everything I ate. A few mango slices here and there racked up 120 calories... a chocolate truffle weighed in at 52 calories. But what REALLY put me over the limit were the 3 chocolate chip cookies I indulged in. MyFitnessPal told me that a homemade chocolate chip cookies was 100 calories each! So 3 cookies = 300 calories, or about 1/5 of what MyFitnessPal suggested I eat in a day (1530 calories based on current weight, height, activity level, etc.).

I refused to believe my homemade, rather puny (my cookies aren't the huge Starbucks kind) chocolate chip cookies could possibly be 100 calories each. So I tried another method on MyFitnessPal. Rather than just randomly selecting the generic "chocolate chip cookie", I inputted my ingredients on the app and calculated the total calories based on the individual calories of each ingredient. The total calories per cookie came out to be... 142 calories, even higher!

Still, I had hope- I assumed that MyFitnessPal naturally rounds UP on the calories on each ingredient (it IS a weight-loss app after all), so the exact calories may still be a bit lower. As soon as I got home, I rummaged through my kitchen, lining up all the ingredients I used with their nutrition labels.

What I found out: 
3/4 cup butter (I didn't think that was too much butter at all! I've seen worse...) = 1200 calories
1 cup brown sugar = 720 calories
1/2 white sugar = 360 calories
1 egg = 70 calories
1 egg yolk (didn't have an exact number so assumed) = about 50 calories
2 cups flour = 600 calories
1 1/2 cups Nestle chocolate chips = 1680 calories (ouch!)

Total = 4650 calories
Total cookies made = about 36
Calories per cookie = 129 calories per Lydia's chocolate chip cookie

Not as bad as 142 calories, but still higher than the generic 100 calories/cookie I started with! I admitted defeat, and decided... I need to make my cookies smaller, and hence more cookies next time! More cookies per batch = less calories per cookie!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I needed a pick-me-up today. Baking (and eating) my fav- chocolate chip cookies- usually does the trick! I remember when I first started baking, my chocolate chip cookies were always failures. They would flatten and spread into thin crisps in the oven, and then turn hard and crunchy afterwards. Yuck! I like my cookies soft and chewy! I finally discovered what I was doing wrong... after years of trial and (mostly) error. In the past, I would bake the cookies until they were golden brown all around. Wrong! It's imperative to take the cookies out of the oven as soon as the edges turn golden, even if the tops still look soft. Believe me, the cookies will finish cooking on the hot baking sheet even after they're out of the oven. The recipe below gives the chewiest, yummiest chocolate chip cookies (especially when they're fresh out of the oven)... just don't overbake them!

Who doesn't like fresh chocolate chip cookies? :D

Chocolate Chip Cookies 

3/4 cups butter, softened
1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 cups white sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg yolk

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets with cooking spray. 
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract until creamy. Mix (or continue beating with mixer) in flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix in chocolate chips with a spatula or wooden spoon. 
3. Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes, so dough is easier to handle. 
4. Take dough out of the fridge, and scoop dough with large spoon, roll into balls, and place on cookie sheets. Cookie dough should be about 2 inches apart. 
5. Bake for 15-17 minutes in preheated oven, OR UNTIL EDGES ARE JUST TURNING BROWN. Remove from oven, and cool on baking sheets for 5-10 minutes before enjoying!  

Sesame Noodles

I needed a fast and easy meal for lunch today. I pulled up a sesame noodle recipe from my Allrecipes recipe box, but made some modifications to make it even easier! It's the perfect one-bowl meal, in fact I just ate it straight out of the mixing bowl today. Yummy! Also, if you don't have one ingredient, you can substitute something else! For example, I used the Thai Kitchen's Pad Thai Sauce (instead of chili sauce) because I had it available in my fridge. You can try Sriracha or skip the chili sauce altogether, if you don't have it.

I was pleasantly surprised by the dish (and perhaps I was just really hungry)! I usually like to follow recipes (and other reviewers suggestions- I read every review possible before making a new recipe!) exactly, but today I put on my chef's hat and made it up on the go! My brother would be proud!

Also, to make it into a more complete meal, try adding shrimp or shredded chicken and some veggies. This recipe is extremely versatile!

Sesame Noodles (serves one)

3 oz. package linguine noodles
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp sesame oil
3 tbsp chili sauce (I used Thai Kitchen's Original Pad Thai Sauce since I had it on hand)
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes
1/8 tsp salt
2 green onions, sliced
1 tsp sesame seeds

Directions:

1. Cook noodles according to package directions. 
2. While noodles are boiling, in a medium-size mixing bowl combine sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, chili sauce, cayenne pepper, and salt. Whisk vigorously to combine oil and other ingredients. 
3. Drain noodles, and toss hot noodles with sauce. Sprinkle green onions and sesame seeds on top of noodles before serving. 
4. Optional: add cooked shrimp, shredded rotisserie chicken, and/or stir-fry veggies such as broccoli, snow peas, baby corn, mushrooms, etc. 

Pizza Part Deux and Genesis 24

Tonight was Pizza Part Deux with old roommates! Same Trader Joe's herb pizza dough, but lots of different toppings! Pizza really is quite versatile... different toppings, different flavors, totally different meal from what Ben and I made on Friday! Of course, the pizza was very delicious... and I'm sure Shu will contribute a photo soon!

Our pizza toppings: thinly sliced onions, yellow and green bell peppers, 'shrooms, and lot and lots of mozzarella cheese! And of course, good food with good friends make for a great meal!

I realize I love our conversations! A selection of the topics we transversed included: Amy Chua's new bestselling book that has people extremely divided on "good" parenting, The Social Network, the sketchy International District, grocery shopping, and the list goes on. Just to show, we have endless (and really diverse) things to talk about! If I didn't have school tomorrow... could've stayed all night! :D


I've been keeping up with the new English group Bible reading schedule recently, PTL! Today's chapter was Genesis 24, on Isaac and Rebekah. I was struck by some of the verses as I was reading the chapter this afternoon (on my way home on the bus):

• Just this past weekend, we had our college group meeting... and one of our topics was on relationships. Yep, I feel like I've been hearing a lot about this recently, at winter retreat, my own life, my friends' lives, at Bible study, and now at the Saturday meeting! However, Uncle Huan brought up a great point that stuck with me. At some point in our lives, we may start feeling like we need our second half (very naturally we get lonely, we feel like we're "ready" for a relationship). And God is the initiator; in other words, just like Abraham in this chapter, He is preparing someone ready for us. Even if our environment may seem bleak and hopeless ("there is absolutely no one available or appropriate I know right now!"), God will bring someone before us in His time. I think the story of Isaac and Rebekkah is quite encouraging. Just like Abraham found and prepared a companion for his son, God is eternally faithful, no matter how our circumstances right now seem. 
• Also, Isaac did not have to go out and search for a bride. God prepared the right person for him! I think it's wonderful to know that our chances in finding someone doesn't rely upon our own effort, our own likability, our own flirting ability, but as a Christian, God is willing to take care of big and small matters in our life. God is willing to bring just the right person to you, if you are willing to wait and pray. 
• I've been impressed recently by what kind of woman Rebekah was. In Gen. 24:19-20, Rebekah draws water for Abraham's servant AND all his camels. Drawing up water from a well to fill up 10 camels is not an easy task! Some math: a camel may drink 10-20 gallons of water, multiply that range by 10 camels = Rebekah may have drawn 100-200 gallons of water! So while the Bible puts it simply as, "So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and draw enough for all his camels." Rebekah definitely went "above and beyond" in such a situation, and she was greatly blessed for it! 

Peter

One of my favorite Bible characters of all-time is Peter. He is introduced in the gospels as someone headstrong, quick-tempered (remember how he sliced off a servant's ear?), brash. Yet, he undergoes such a huge transformation. He failed so badly when he denied Jesus 3 times before the rooster crowed, yet Jesus used Peter to be a pillar of the church.

Our Bible Study just finished studying 1 Peter. Uncle Huan gave a really great (great =  new and deeper insight +  touched my spirit) summary of 1 Peter. I wished we had this perspective before or while we were studying 1 Peter. First of all, the key theme of 1 Peter can be encapsulated by 1 Peter 1:9- "obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls." I've read this verse many times as we studied this book, and usually I just pass it by, regarding it as more spiritual "fluff." One of those verses that has big, spiritual words in it (salvation, faith, soul), but not sure of application. Uncle Huan revealed that this verse, when it talks about the "salvation of our souls", literally is talking about the process of sanctification. Plus, he drew a diagram that helped me understand more clearly! I love diagrams, they're always easier to remember than lots of words! 

How I understood it afterwards was that after we are saved (our spirits are saved by the redeeming work of Christ), however, our souls (comprised of our will, emotions, and mind), still need to be refined and perfected. The process of sanctification is then, becoming more like Christ in our will, in our emotions, in our mind. As those arrows represent, this refining work permeates out from our spirit, where Christ's spirit resides, and is a slow, gradual process of transformation. 

For some reason, this clicked for me last night. We (especially I) hear about these big Christian concepts (sanctification, justification, salvation) ALL THE TIME. But a lot of times, they're just words and doctrines. The diagram really helped me remember and understand what sanctification is all about. 

In other news, we have our January College Saturday Meeting tonight. We will be having a few different discussion groups, each group has a different topic. Please pray for us! My group will be leading on Time Management (balancing church life, school, friends, clubs, volunteering, etc.) and Choosing a Major/Career. Ben will be helping out with the Drinking Alcohol group. And our last group will be on Choosing Relationships. I hope that discussing these VERY PRACTICAL college issues will open up our eyes and touch our hearts, all of us including the leaders. We don't have a concrete answer for all questions, but we do want to steer people in the right direction. Lastly, I really do hope that our discussion can be a start for college students to analyze their lives right now, and really re-dedicate it to God.

Random Food Pictures From January: 

Blueberry Coffee Cake: The secret for ultra-moist cake?
Sour Cream!

Pomegranates... mmhmm!

Ben's Lunch: Steak over a Bed of Salad
He knows how to LIVE THE GOOD LIFE!

Trader Joe's and BBQ Chicken, Apple, and Onion Pizza

As I browsed Trader Joe's today, I was caught by the dried fruit section. Trader Joe's have all kinds of yummy-looking dried fruits. I really really really wanted to buy the dried mangos that Trader Joe's carries. Except, I had just promised myself last night to stop spending so much money on food and save up for an iPhone! I had already broken my promise by going to Shinka's with Melody after class, and now I was wavering on splurging for $3.99 dried mangoes. Fortunately for my wallet, I resisted (UNfortunate for my taste buds and stomach), and walked out of Trader Joe's with only the necessities... (and some cinnamon sugar pita chips *shh*).

The whole ordeal, yes it was quite an ordeal to stand in front of the grocery aisle looking at the mangoes longingly but knowing full well I had already been spending too much money on food recently, made me wish I was already working and making real money! I can't wait till I'm making muchos dinero and don't have to live the student, scrimping lifestyle. And my luxuries aren't too extravagant (I think), I just want to be able to spend on good food and not have to budget at the grocery store.

In other news, the reason I went to Trader Joe's (for the first time in many months) was to buy their fresh pizza dough. Ben and I made pizza tonight for dinner, and brought it over to the Tseng's! Tonight, Ben was master chef and I was sous chef. We came up with BBQ chicken, apple, onion pizza with 3 different cheeses. BBQ chicken was Ben's idea, and the apple slices were mine. The foodie in me thinks the sweetness of the apple will complement the spicy and tangy bbq sauce perfectly! Mmhmm... Recipe below! Bon appetite!



BBQ Chicken, Apple, Onion Pizza

Pizza dough (We used Trader Joe's herb and garlic fresh dough)
2-3 tbsp. olive oil
2/3 c. BBQ sauce
1 chicken breast, pan seared until just pink in the middle
1/2 onion, sliced
1/2 apple, thinly sliced (We used Fuji tonight)
5 white mushrooms, washed and sliced
3-4 c. cheeses (We used a mixture of cheddar, Parmesan, and Mexican blend)

Directions:

1. Rest pizza dough (per instructions) for about 15 minutes on floured surface. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. 
2. Cut chicken into chunks, cook chicken at high heat in pan and add 1/4 c. BBQ sauce. Cook for 1-2 minutes until chicken is thoroughly cooked, and sauce clings to chicken pieces. 
3. Pull and tug (we found that worked better than rolling out the dough, because the dough was so springy) pizza dough into circle-shape, about 12 inches in diameter. Lay pizza dough onto pizza stone or large baking pan. Rub olive oil into dough surface. Spread remaining BBQ sauce across pizza surface. Sprinkle 2 c. cheese, then add toppings of BBQ chicken chunks, onions, apples, mushrooms, then sprinkle remaining cheese on top. 
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until center of pizza is no longer doughy. 

The Result:

Edges are not burnt, merely, I was not too neat
in spreading the BBQ Sauce on the bottom!

Missing Mare, our photographer!

Pok Pok

My fam and I usually don't try out new restaurants. We stick with the tried-and-true... which usually translates into dim sum. Not that dim sum isn't good, I love dim sum and Portland dim sum >>> Seattle dim sum, but we are not an adventurous family. Which made today even more fun and enjoyable. Today my parents and I ventured to Pok Pok, a highly-rated, hole-in-the-wall Thai restaurant in an area of Portland we probably have never been to. I heard about Pok Pok last spring; a few friends and I had planned on trying it out, but were shocked and turned away by a 2 hour dinner wait. So this time around, I was prepared. Went for lunch rather than dinner, went on weekday instead of a weekend, went at a time past the usual lunch hour, AND called ahead to get an estimate on the wait. Even with all that forethought, we still had to sit in the outdoor patio (with outdoor heaters surrounding us). I took a glance inside at the indoor seating, and there were not more than 10 tables each seating 2-4 people, so be warned, Pok Pok is tiny and busy all the time!

Onto the food! Pok Pok isn't your usual Thai restaurant. The dishes are all quite unique, and different from what I have ordered at Thai places in the past. Rather than the build-your-own dish with choices of curry or noodles, chicken or beef, spiciness scale of 1 to 5 stars, Pok Pok has a limited menu. Each dish was accompanied by a short blurb, describing the contents of the dish and what inspired the chef to create the dish. We ordered the Pok Pok Special, Ike's Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings, Khao Soi Kai, and Pomegranate Drinking Vinegar as a beverage. Our waiter was quite helpful; since it was our first time at Pok Pok, he described the most popular items (Fish Sauce Wings) and original items on the menu (the Pok Pok Special). Most of the items on the menu are "shared" items, enough for several people. I especially liked how our waiter was friendly, without pressuring us to order more dishes or beverages. He even told us that because of the fast turnaround time from ordering to serving the dish, we could order more food if needed to later.

The Fish Sauce Wings were simply delicious... and spicy! We tried the spicy version, where the wings was rolled with a chili-type sauce. Being a spice-wimp as usual, I could only finish one wing. It's the kind of spicy where at first you don't think it's so bad, but it just gets hotter and hotter! I will order the non-spicy version next time, which comes with the spicy sauce on the side for the more daring among us. But my dad liked it (typical, he loves spicy), and I did too until my mouth start burning up! Besides spicy, the wings also had a perfect sweet and salty yin yang blend going on.

Pok Pok became famous due to its roasted game hen and papaya salad. The Pok Pok Special serves up its 2 signature dishes, half a game hen and papaya salad on the side. The salad was a bit puny, it looked like it could be finished off in a couple of bites. The game hen was really good, and it comes with 2 dipping sauces. One sauce was more spicy and salty, and the other a bit sweeter. The game hen almost reminded of Peking duck, with the crispy outside skin... yummy! I would get the game hen, and perhaps pass on the salad next time.

Khao Soi Kai is a coconut curry noodle soup. The soup came with delicate noodles, big pieces of chicken, and wontons on top. I loved the soup base, sweet due to the coconut infusion. It was a much needed rest for my taste buds after all the spice from the other dishes! The noodles were special, it almost seemed like hand-pulled noodles, with a slight chewiness to them.

The Pomegranate Drinking Vinegar combined fruit vinegar with soda. It wasn't nearly as bad as it sounds! It was plenty sweet with added sugar, but you could still taste the sourness of the vinegar. There were also other fruit flavors for the drinking vinegars (apple, Asian pear, lychee, etc.), but we couldn't taste the pomegranate too distinctly. Good to try, but I'm not sure if I would spend the $4 for it next time.

We had a lot of fun, despite having to sit outside on a winter day in Portland. Pok Pok is very chill, not formal at all. It was enjoyable to try new foods (Pok Pok isn't your average Thai restaurant!). The prices were reasonable, for the three of us we spent $48, including tip. I highly recommend Pok Pok next time you're in the Portland area... if you can put up with the wait time! I'm sad that I don't have pictures to post, since I didn't bring my camera... but that opens the door for a next visit!

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Fellowship and Crab Cakes

Had some wonderful fellowship with my darling sisters in Christ tonight! I guess I must be getting old to be saying this... but fellowship is truly a wonderful thing! I was reminded how amazing God works, by how He surrounds us with a true support system when we need it most.

I'll share a mini-miracle that happened in my life today: recently, God has placed a burden to pray for revival among the young people in my heart and He has allowed me chances to pray... well, everywhere. I've especially been learning to use my 20-25 minutes on the bus in the morning to pray (instead of idly staring out the window and wishing the bus moved faster!). It's slowly becoming a habit, to pray when I have a spare moment. But, I digress. This morning, I had an idea to re-begin the sisters' meetings we had last year. While I have been praying for revival alone, I hope to share my burden and diligently pray with others. As the Lord promises, when 2 or 3 gather, He will be among them. Yet, I didn't want to be pushy and force my ideas on others (as I often do in the past), so I asked God to allow someone else to initiate if this idea was from Him. Praise the Lord, by the evening I had my confirmation. One sister brought up the very idea of meeting together with some sisters for fellowship. When I shared my prayer burden, she had the same thought and prayer. How amazing God is!

I think it's important to document God's work in our lives, no matter how small. Because, we (especially me) have such short-term memories. The miracles God works in our lives and when God feels so real quickly fades away with the doldrum of school, work, repeat. Also, I call God's work in my life "mini miracles" not to cheapen or downgrade it, but because I know God is possible of much greater work than just events in my life. God is an Able God.


Lastly, because this is a still a FOOD blog at heart... I made crab cakes for the first time tonight. While not perfect, they were quite good, in a rich and fatty way. I didn't have a couple of the ingredients in the recipe, and was too lazy to go out and buy them tonight. Made do with what I had, but wonder what the product would've tasted like if I had followed the recipe exactly. Below is the original recipe:

Crab Cakes

4 lbs. crabmeat
1 egg
1 tbsp lemon zest
1/8 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 c. saltine crackers, crushed (can substitute with Ritz crackers)
1 c. mayonnaise
4 tbsp vegetable oil

Directions:

1. Combine crabmeat, egg, lemon zest, Old Bay Seasoning, basil, crackers, and mayonnaise in a bowl. 
2. Form mixture into 5 oz patties. Chill before cooking.
3. Heat oil in skillet. Saute crab cakes for 4 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. 

Tips: I did not have Old Bay Seasoning, and experimented with some garlic salt, black pepper, chili powder, and onion powder... and my crab cakes turned out a bit too salty. I would invest in the Old Bay Seasoning, it's fairly cheap, next time around. Also, you can broil the crab cakes in the oven, instead of frying on the stovetop. I broiled my crab cakes for about 15 minutes, and they slightly charred on the bottoms. I would stick with 5 minutes per side, until golden brown. 

Multi-Tasking Away

I told my mom today I belong to the "multi-tasking generation." I can't seem to do just one thing at a time. Right now it's watching the Ravens vs. Steelers (go ravens!) game while listening to Youtube clips (was introduced to kurthugoschneider and now can't stop watching his music videos) and intermittently blogging. The problem with multi-tasking is I can't seem to slow down my brain even when I want to sometimes. After my midterm Friday, I was so wired that I couldn't sleep on the entire bus ride from Seattle to Portland. No caffeine needed. My brain oo busy thinking about next steps and plans and to-do lists.

$3.25 Fork

This past Thursday I was at work heating up my lunch (leftover Chipotle) when I realized I did not have a fork. (Yes, I know, a burrito usually is hands-on food, but reheated tortilla wraps are too soft to be held properly.) I usually bring a ziplock bag of plastic disposable utensils with me in my backpack, but failed to do so today. The nearest cafe only had forks upon request, and I was too embarrassed/shy to ask for a fork while holding a container of leftovers. Ended up buying a cup of soup just to get a fork. Fortunately, I absolutely fell in love with tomato basil soup. Fresh tomato chunks in a creamy base. Yummy! It inspired me to make my own sometime! 

New Year, New Recipes

If you know me, you know that I absolutely love planning. Planning get-togethers, planning vacations, planning what to eat for the next week, planning my grocery shopping trip. Sometimes, I think I even get more joy and fulfillment out of the planning stage than actually doing it... Here's the next 5 recipes I want to try: (and drop me a line if you want to eat it with me!)

1. Homemade Granola Bars: I am a converted granola bar fan. I love it for it's easy inclusion into my multi-tasking, on-the-go life... essential for those mornings when I don't have time for breakfast!
2. Baked Coconut Shrimp with Sweet Thai Chili Sauce
3. Fudge Truffle Cheesecake. This was the disclaimer on the recipe: "Truffle-like chocolate cheesecake in a chocolate cookie crust. If this does not drive your mate wild, keep the recipe and replace him or her."
4. Apple Pie by Grandma Ople: This recipe has like a gazillion adoring reviews on Allrecipes.com... which means something must be right!
5. Teriyaki Chicken: carryover from my last "five upcoming dishes" challenge. 

Hmm, the predominance of dessert recipes was not planned. I guess I'm just a baker at heart!

As the Deer

verse three:
I want You more than gold or silver,
Only You can satisfy.
You alone are the real joy Giver,
And the apple of my eye.

You alone are my strength and my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship thee


This was an encouraging song led tonight at Bible study. Timely reminder that only God can satisfy every longing and every need. I had never known the story behind the lyrics until today. The fruit of a broken heart mended by God and meditation on Psalms 42:1.

Pictures Up

Pictures of food are finally up! I've updated a few of the past posts to show the food pics. Apparently, I like to upload my pictures all at once.

Other random pictures: 

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower

Red Meat- all Ben. 

Christmas Eve Dinner
(perfectly done steak with sides of mashed potatoes
in steak juice and roasted cauliflower)
A team effort between Ben and Lydia

The Marvel of the Slow Cooker

I cannot believe it took me this long to discover The Slow Cooker. It probably is one of my favorite kitchen tools already! It churns out good food without you inputting lots of time! Definitely win-win! (Favorite quote from Letters to Juliet... anyone recognize it?)

I found the perfect slow cooker recipe weeks ago, but have been too busy/lazy/too-much-leftovers-in-fridge to make it until today. Today was perfect, since my first class began at 11:30 (and I finished at 12:30!). Before class, I opened up a few cans, chopped up an onion and a few cloves of garlic, and then dumped (not an elegant word, but pretty much described the process) everything into the crock pot. And that's it! When I got home in the afternoon, lunch was waiting! Plus, Ben just said I have "some serious talent in cooking" while chowing down on the soup. My life is complete!



Chicken Tortilla Soup in a Slow Cooker

2 frozen chicken breasts (I used Costco frozen chicken breasts- so they were pretty large)
1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes
1 can (10 oz) enchilada sauce (I used green enchilada sauce)
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 can (4 oz) chopped green chile peppers
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup water
1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth
1/2 tsp chili pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 cup frozen corn

Sour cream
Avocado, sliced
Lime juice

Directions: 

1. Place chicken, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, onion, green chiles, garlic, and corn into slow cooker. Pour in water and chicken broth, then add chili pepper, salt, and pepper. Cover and cook on high setting for 3-4 hours (or low setting for 6-8 hours). 
2. After 3-4 hours, remove chicken breasts. Roughly shred chicken breasts. (I simply cut into chunks.) Toss shredded chicken back into slow cooker. 
3. Garnish soup with dollop of sour cream, avocado slices, and lime juice to taste. Serve with tortilla chips, if desired.