Lemon Chicken Linguini

I have a new favorite recipe... it's yummy... it's good.... most importantly .... the family likes it.  Everyone in the family likes it - not just Todd.  A recipe like this is definitely a keeper.  Give it a try.

Lemon Chicken Linguini

1 pound linguini
2 Tbsp olive oil
zest from one lemon
juice from one lemon
1/2 c chopped green onion
1/4 c chopped fresh parsley
salt and freshly ground pepper
Parmesan cheese
4 chicken breasts (or 24 extra-large shrimp)

Marinade:
1/2 c olive oil
2 cloves garlic, whole
2 Tbsp cajun seasoning (or 1/2 Tbsp cayenne pepper)
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp minced parsley
1 Tbsp brown sugar (or more if you like it a little sweeter)
2 Tbsp soy sauce

Combine the marinade ingredients in a Ziploc bag. Slice thawed chicken (or shrimp). Pat dry and toss in marinade to coat. Refrigerate one to 12 hours. Cook marinated chicken with the marinade sauce in a large saute pan on medium heat until chicken is cooked. If using shrimp, preheat the oven to 450. Bake for 7-10 minutes. Be sure not to over-cook shrimp. Cook linguini in boiling salted water until done; drain well and rinse noodles. Combine juice of one lemon, zest, olive oil, green onions and fresh parsley together. Add hot pasta into bowl and toss well. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add chicken (or shrimp) with marinade into the large pasta bowl. Toss in Parmesan cheese to taste and serve warm.

Happy Birthday to Todd

Todd recently celebrated another birthday.... and we are most certainly glad he did.  We're very happy to have him in our lives and look forward to celebrating many, many more birthdays with him.

Happy Birthday to a wonderful husband and father!

Easter Time Fun

As usual, I'm a little behind on posting our events.  We had a fun Easter with the Clawson family.  Kayce was kind enough to invite us all to her home for some fun and food; we all enjoyed the Easter Egg hunt and great potluck dinner.

The kids were all so darn cute at the Easter Egg hunt.  Spencer and Evan enjoyed hiding the Easter Eggs out in the yard.... thank goodness for some snow-free weather.  It's been a crazy April for us with snow and rain almost every day.
 

It was nice having Spencer and Evan together.  They really enjoyed each others company... I think they both got a kick being "grown-ups" and hiding the Easter eggs.  I can't believe how Even is almost as tall as Spencer!















All the little kids were so excited to look for their Easter eggs.... some of them couldn't resist the temptation to peek.

Once they got a chance to head outdoors and look for the yummy Easter, sugary, goodness they were happy, happy kids.  Even Tori!

Easter Nests

Happy Easter!  Want an easy, fun, and yummy recipe for Easter?  Try making these Easter Nests.  The kids love them!

Easter Nests

1 2/3 cups Butterscotch or Semi-Sweet Chocolate morsels
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
10 oz. chow mein noodles
30 to 60 foil-covered chocolate eggs

Line cookie trays with wax paper.

Microwave morsels in large, uncovered, microwave safe bowl for one minute.  Stir.  If needed, microwave at additional 15 second intervals, stirring until morsels are melted.  Stir in peanut butter until well blended.

Add chow mein noodles to morsel mixture; toss until coated.  Using ice cream scoop, scoop and drop onto prepared cookie sheets then immediately shape into nests.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Tip:  The original recipe says to wait and top nests with foil-covered chocolate eggs but I topped them will the chocolate was still wet.  This way, when the chocolate got cold, the foil-covered eggs slightly stuck to the nests.  If you add the eggs after refrigeration the eggs keep rolling off when transferring from cookie sheet to a serving plate.

Enjoy!