This is one of my go-to meals any time of year! I don’t remember where I got the recipe.

Zucchini Chicken

Ingredients:
1 8 oz. package uncooked pasta shells
1 tsp olive oil
½ onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 zucchini, chopped
½ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
¾ cup chicken broth
½ cup chopped cooked chicken
1 oz. roasted red peppers, diced
2 Tbsp light cream cheese
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Place pasta shells in the pot, cook for 8 to 10 minutes (until al dente), and drain.

2. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic until tender. Add zucchini and season with oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes.

3. Stir the chicken broth into the skillet, and cook 5 minutes, until heated through. Add cooked chicken, roasted red peppers, and cream cheese, and continue cooking for 5 minutes.

4. Serve over the pasta, and top with fresh basil and Parmesan cheese. Serves 2 – 4.

3 Comments + Posted in: food

I have to share this brilliant passage. Emphasis mine:

I struggle with my struggles. Knowing someone out there has way worse problems than me… but, pain is pain. Heartache is heartache… Our crosses to bare are unique, some heavy, some light — but each is ours to carry. So you can’t compare it… at the end of the day we all feel sorrow the same… with aching, heavy hearts. Often I wonder if it’s not the pain that is so throbbing as it is the realization that our lives don’t look like we thought they were going to… whether that be battling infertility at 33, still being single at 35, or pregnant and your boyfriend skipped town at 20. I think the rawest layer of our pain comes from the fact that all the other layers of our dreams and hopes that we have held onto have been removed, so our nerve endings are exposed to all of life — we feel it all — the stares, the comments, the what if this despondency never heals kind of ponderings that plague our minds. But, what I am learning is this… it’s okay to feel the hurt. It’s what actually makes the wound heal. The layers grow back with time. Your weakness is your strength if you allow it to be. The dead ends in life that knock the air out of every fiber in your being are actually sharp curves, often multiple sharp curves that bring us to higher ground. I dare say if you haven’t felt pain or disappointment you haven’t fully lived yet. Because when disappointment grows legs and walks into our lives, it much like a caterpillar — ugly, awkward, sluggish but with time it vicissitudes and turns into this butterfly … flying with wings of compassion and empathy. You just have to be willing to go through the chrysalis process. And it’s awkward and messy. There’s no way around it.

– Lindsay at Life Lived Fully

3 Comments + Posted in: quotes

Things That Are The New Black
Gray – especially when paired with yellow
Frozen yogurt, the more “local” the better
Macarons (the heir apparent to frozen yogurt)
Getting B-12 shots (I am not a believer)
Having two cats :)

Things I Have Recently Been Alarmed To Find Myself Doing
Listening to 101.9 Radio Now regularly
Watching America’s Got Talent and recognizing and having opinions about the contestants
Being a little too free with my opinions in general
Going to the library and not really feeling excited about anything there
Becoming interested in fanfiction again (not writing, just reading)

Things That Have Not Worked Consistently In Months (Causing Great Frustration)
The Twitter app on my phone
Text messaging on my phone
Phone calls on my phone (gee, you think it’s time to call Verizon?)
LiveJournal
My lawn mower (despite multiple repairs by my dad)

Songs I Currently Like Despite My Better Judgment
Give Me Everything – Pitbull
On the Floor – J.Lo and Pitbull
Till The World Ends – Britney Spears
Superbass – Nicki Minaj
Old Alabama – Brad Paisley

Things I Am Looking Forward To
Seeing most of my close friends at some point this week/weekend!
My birthday
A trip to Miami and the Keys (CANNOT WAIT)
A friend’s wedding
My next Cherry Coke Zero from Sonic

2 Comments + Posted in: life lately

My garden has grown notably over the last month or so! The only plants really thriving are the jalapenos and cucumbers. Everything else is flowering, but the flowers wither and die before turning into fruit. I’ve been watering every day and spraying regularly, and I know you’re not supposed to fertilize when it’s this hot and dry, so I don’t know how else to help them. :\

I did harvest two Roma tomatoes before this problem set in. I have six kinds of tomato plants, along the back. It’s hard to see here, but they have a definite downward-slope growth pattern from left to right. More tomatoes in more places!

In past years, I’ve gone crazy with 10-20 different potted herbs. This year I decided to keep it simple and put basil and oregano (the only fresh herbs I consistently cook with) in a container together. It was a good move – they’ve grown larger than any of my previous plants. I also had some cilantro in there for a while, but it died quickly. Cilantro is fussy.

There’s a nice planter on the north side of my garage, which gets very little light. In the past I’ve planted caladiums there, but this year I tried impatiens and coleus, and they’re doing great!

I have a major squirrel problem at my backyard bird feeder. They’re cute, but I also want to see pretty birds, and by the time they come around, the squirrels have scooped out and eaten all the seed. :P I’m not about to invest in higher-quality birdseed only to watch the squirrels eat it. So I was VERY excited to find “Squirrel Away,” which makes the seed too spicy for squirrels to eat. (Birds can’t sense spiciness like mammals can, so it doesn’t make a difference to them.) This stuff is basically pure habanero and comes with warnings and disclaimers – I had to wear gloves and protective glasses while mixing it. (I can confirm its legitimacy, because some of it got on my leg and it burned.) I gleefully filled the feeder and waited to see what would happen. To my disgust, less than 24 hours later, squirrels were not only still eating the birdseed, but they also appeared to love it. Where else have they been hanging out, in the alley behind El Porton?

It’s been a month now, and they show no signs of backing off. Sigh. :)

3 Comments + Posted in: gardening, nature

Last week I went to a one-off Beth Moore study with my mom (the topic was Jesus’ first miracle at the wedding at Cana). I wish I had written down this comment verbatim, but the gist of it was enough for me. I copied what I remembered into my prayer/thankfulness journal, because it’s so true. We love to offer God suggestions and solutions. It’s when we’re backed into a corner, all out of ideas, that things start to seem hopeless. We pray, “God, I don’t know how You’re going to fix this,” and we sort of give up.

But I’ve seen in my own life that God often chooses not to act until we reach the end of ourselves. When we realize we have nothing to offer and think all is lost, God loves to gently push us aside, roll up His sleeves, and show us what He can do. It’s hard to remember that, but when we do, it’s so reassuring.

Add a Comment + Posted in: faith