Welcome friends! The past 8 weeks have been a busy and exciting time for us! We recently moved to Utah for Ryan to attend school, Julia got a new job (kind of), and we have been trying out new things.
First, it is important to point out that Ryan’s 25th birthday was on September 22nd! Yeah old man ~ just kidding. Ryan also started school in August at the University of Southern Nevada…yes I said we live in Utah…so what! Honestly though there is a location in South Jordan, Utah and this is where Ryan attends. The school is on a block system so every other week he has a test and this is usually when he finishes a class. So far he has passed two tests (aka two classes)! He is required to pass the test with a 90%+ or he has one chance to retake the test and get a 90%+….or he has to repeat the class in the summer – YIKES.
Right after Ryan started school he had a white coat ceremony where he and his classmates were formally “bestowed” their white pharmacist coats. The ceremony is basically to formally welcome and induct the students into the field of pharmacy. Well….as you will see from the pictures they gave Ryan a coat that was a little large, needless to say he was swimming in it, but I still took a picture and a week later they gave him a coat that was a lot smaller.
Ryan has also been busy trying to find new places to ride his quad (ATV) and some buddies to ride with here in Utah. So far Julia has tagged along…not that she minds at all but not having her own quad means that she isn’t as fun. The first time we went riding we drove down by Utah Lake to a mountain side, we unloaded the truck, started riding, even went almost all the way up the mountain side. When we were coming back down we noticed huge spider webs (icky) then we saw the massive ugly spiders that made those webs…they were everywhere! We quickly went back to the truck, loaded up, and went home. YUCKY! But hey the scenery was pretty.
Since moving Julia has been working from home doing contract work, like teaching, curriculum design, and research. She absolutely LOVES being able to work from home. Even though work has been a bit hectic trying to get everything settled and into a routine it has been worth it! She has had time to cook (which she loves), work out, and spend time with Ryan…when he isn’t studying.
Ryan and Julia were called to teach the Valiant 9’s Primary class. So far it has been a lot of fun and it is a change of pace for both of them from the nursery (where they were at in AZ) and teaching college (for Julia). Teaching primary is a little different than the nursery because when the kids act up they actually make faces at us and know they are being brats. And it is different than teaching college because the kids feel like they have an obligation to show up (hehe…). We tease but seriously it is fun.
Julia also started her own
YouTube Channel this month so that she could house her audio and video lectures that she uses for teaching. It has been a fun adventure adding audio to all of the presentations and posting them to the net to share with students. It is funny though that now she can see how long each person spends watching or listening and how many people watch/listen to the audio. She was also tickled to figure out how to split off the audio into a podcast (like a track on a CD) and how to enable the students to download the presentations to iPods, CDs, and DVDs. Soon she will build an independent film network….not.
So over the past few weeks we have watched some fun
movies:
- Made of Honor (available for rent): This was a little chick-flicky but very cute and no it is not exactly like My Best Friend’s Wedding…thankfully
- Baby Mama (available for rent): Very cute and very funny…all of you out there with or without kids will like it….I totally want to be Steve Martin’s character…when you watch it you will know why
- The Love Guru (available for rent): A silly movie with Mike Myers, Justin Timberlake, and Jessica Alba, let’s just say it has some crude humor per Mike Myers’ style but it isn’t as bad as the Austin Power’s series
- Hancock (coming soon to rental stores): Different than what we expected but still pretty funny and a decent story line, more like Will Smith in iRobot than his typical comedy role
- IronMan (coming soon to rental stores): VERY good, great story line, good action, and well come on it’s a super hero story, there is some comedic relief as well
- What Happens in Vegas (available for rent): Favorite! This movie was soooo darn funny! We loved it! All we can say is “You know why..!” You will get it when you see it.
And to of you who like food here’s the “
favorite recipe of the month” it is a modified Rachel Ray recipe and it is oh so good.
Name “
Park City Cashew Chicken”
Servings: 4 (**It works out just fine if you half the recipe, we have tried)
Ingredients:
- 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil (I subbed EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter (you can omit this and be fine)
- 1 Large onion, ¼ finely chopped, ¾ thinly sliced (again you can use a small or medium onion, it depends on how much you like onion)
- 1 ½ Cups brown rice (we subbed white rice)
- 3 Cups chicken stock or broth1
- ½ Pounds chicken tenders (you can cut chicken breasts up too) cut into 2 inch pieces, and make sure it is skinless and boneless
- 2 Tablespoons grill seasoning (I use steak seasoning from World Market but McCormick’s makes a Montreal Steak Seasoning that works too)
- 4 Garlic cloves, chopped (I used minced organic garlic, it comes in a jar, I just use a tablespoon)
- 1 Red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and finely chopped (I have subbed green pepper and Anaheim peppers on occasion, my favorite is to have a little of all 3)
- 3 Tablespoons Chipotle in Adobo (you can get it in the international food aisle, I subbed chipotle chili powder from World Market, some red pepper flakes, and a little Cayenne pepper, if you sub you only want to use about 1 ½ tablespoons of the powder)
- 1 Tablespoon ground cumin (a few short shakes)
- 2 Tablespoons honey (I suggest a clover honey, any brand)
- ¼ Cup Maple syrup (yes the stuff for pancakes)
- 2 to 3 Tablespoons of Cilantro (I use the dried flakes from World Market but if you use fresh go with 2 Tablespoons, you don’t want an over-powering taste)
- 2 to 3 Tablespoons of flat-leaf parsley (I use the dried as well)
- 1 Cup raw cashews (I subbed with Walnuts but you could also sub with pecans or macadamia nuts, peanuts are probably not a good idea)
Cooking Instructions:
In a pot over medium heat, combine 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil (once around the pan) and the butter. When the butter melts into the oil, add the chopped onions ( ¼ cup of finely sliced) and cook for 2 minutes, then add the rice and cook for 3 minutes more. Add the stock and cover the pot. Once the stock boils, reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the rice is tender 17 to 18 minutes (if you use instant rice it will be shorter).
While the rice cooks, make the chicken. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add remaining 2 Tablespoons of vegetable oil, then the chicken. Season the chicken with the grill seasoning (I do this before adding it to the skillet). Lightly brown the chicken on both sides, then move it off to one side of the pan. Add the remaining onions (you want the ¾ thinly sliced) the garlic, and the bell peppers (if you added Anaheim peppers you add those now too). Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, then mix the vegetables and meat together and the chipotles and cumin (the milder you want it to taste, the less chipotles or chili powder you add – but honestly it isn’t hot even with a full dose of the chili powders). Toss to coat. When the chicken looks like it is cooked all the way through, glaze the mixture with honey and maple syrup, mix it in, and allow it to cook for about a minute and a half, then turn off the heat. Add the chopped cilantro, parsley, and nuts, then toss to coat.
Top the rice with the chicken mixture and serve.
**If you use a rice steamer (like I do), instead of following the instructions exactly just cook up the onions and add them to the rice maker, also usually add more broth or water to the rice maker so it does not dry the rice out. Also add the rice, broth, and a little garlic directly to the rice maker, then mix in the butter/oil/onion mix when it is done cooking.
