Recipe of the Week...Maria's Roasted Chicken and Potatoes

Last week my friend/co-worker Maria brought the YUMMIEST smelling chicken dish for lunch! The delicious aroma wafted down the hallway from our office breakroom, (my hubby says that I have a nose like a wolf - ha! ha!), so I just had to find out how she made it! Maria was kind enough to share the recipe with me, so I prepared it for my family over the weekend and they LOVED it! (Thanks, Maria!! You're a doll!) A wonderful plus to this meal is that it's all prepared in only one pan, so clean-up is a snap!

Ingredients:

• 6 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 4 medium potatoes, washed and quartered with peels on
• 1 small onion, cut into rings
• 1 bell pepper, cut into strips
• 1 - 8 oz. can tomato sauce
• Cilantro, chopped (I didn't have cilantro so I used chopped parsley as a substitute)
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Begin by washing and patting dry the chicken breasts. Pour olive oil into a large roasting pan and spread around the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Place chicken breasts in the center of the oil coated pan and turn chicken to coat it with oil. Place the washed, quartered potatoes around the outer edges of the pan. Add the onion rings and pepper slices to the top of the chicken and potatoes. Salt and pepper the chicken and veggies to your taste and then pour the can of tomato sauce over the top. Sprinkle with parsley (or cilantro!), cover pan with foil, and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 40 minutes until chicken is done and potatoes are fork tender. Enjoy!

Have a wonderful week!

Quote Sunday

"Best of all is to preserve everything in a pure, still heart; and let there be for every pulse a thanksgiving and for every breath a song". ~Konrad VonGesner

And the Winner is.....

Good morning! All of the entries for the blog candy giveaway went into a bowl and the name that was drawn is......ALICE SNYDER!!

Alice left this sweet comment:

February 18, 2011 11:17 AM

Congrats, Becky!! I love your blog!! You ideas you share are wonderful!!. I have also made several of the recipes you share and my family LOVES them!!! You are truly an inspiration!! Thank you for all that you do!!

God Bless,

Alice Snyder

Congrats to you Alice!! Please click on the "Contact" link, located near the header at the top of my blog, and email your mailing address to me. I will get your package in the mail early next week.

Thanks to everyone for playing along and for all of the super sweet comments that you left for me! I appreciate each of you!!

Have a FABULOUS weekend!!

I'm Giving Away Some Goodies to Celebrate the One-Year Birthday of the "Scrappin' Becky B." Blog!

PLEASE NOTE: This is a "sticky post" and will remain at the top of my blog until February 26th. Please scroll down to read newer posts - thanks!

WOW! Today, 2-17-11, is the one-year birthday of my blog! (It's also my dad's 67th birthday - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!!) It's hard to believe that a year has already flown by since I started the "Scrappin' Becky B." blog...and what a TERRIFIC year it's been! I am amazed that I have 87 followers and that there have been over 17,000 visitors! I have so enjoyed your comments, sharing thoughts/ideas with you, making many new friends and corresponding with you...each of you are such a blessing in my life!

To celebrate my blog turning a year old, and to thank you for being so supportive of me in this little endeavor, I'm having a drawing for some fun blog candy to let you know how much I appreciate YOU!!

Here's a photo and the details of what's in the giveaway package:

Contents of the giveaway package - which has an estimated value of $100.00:

• 5 Sizzix Embossing Folders/Dies
• Pine Cone with Leaves
• Potted Topiary Tree
• Domino Compass
• Domino Lock and Key
• Primative Swirl Heart
• 4 Scrapbook Love Journaling Prompt Tags
• My Brother
• My Sister
• Our Little Girl
• My Daughter
• 1 Candy Tin Accordion Book Kit
• 1 package of Rub-On phrases
• 1 sheet fabric quote stickers
• 1 sheet water realism alphabet letters
• 2 Magic Scraps Monochromatics scrapbook page kits
• Motherhood
• Heaven Sent
• 1 Multi-Pack Die-cut Overlays (one each Persian Blue, Classic Red, Forest Green)
• 1 Stamping Station Lazy Layouts in blue
• 2 Stone Sentiments Titles and Matching Stone Embellishments
• Travel
• Laugh
• 1 sheet Mod Design epoxy stickers
• 2 Close to My Heart My Acrylix Petite Perks Stamp Sets
• Bee Yourself
• Deck the Halls
• 4 Simple Scrapbooks 2-Minute Memories Scrapbooks
• Ten Things I Love About My Daughter
• Ten Things I Love About My Mother
• Ten Things I Love About My Brother
• Ten Things I Love About My Pet 

All you have to do to be entered in the drawing is leave a comment on this post...yup, that's it - easy peasy, eh?

Would you like to increase your chances and have a second entry for the drawing? If so, please become a follower and let me know that you are in your comment.

Would you like a third entry? If so, please post a link to my blog/this giveaway on your blog and your name will go into the drawing a third time! Please leave a link to your blog post in the comment that you leave for me - thanks!

Would you like a fourth entry? (This is getting crazy - eh?) If so, please grab the "Scrappin' Becky B." button, which is located in the side bar to the right, and post it in the side bar of your blog. Be sure to let me know in your comment that you grabbed my button and leave a link to your site so I can visit you too!

The winner's name will be randomly drawn and posted on Saturday, February 26th - so be sure to check back to see if you've won!!

Thanks for your friendship! Have a blessed day!

Birthday Bookmark Card

Above is a photo of a card that I made for my dear friend, Diana P. who is celebrating her 44th birthday today!! Happy Birthday, Diana!! As you can see, the front of the card has a detachable bookmark. The phrase on the bookmark reads:

"Side by side or far apart, true friends live within our heart".

Diana and I have been friends since the 8th grade, when she and her family moved from Michigan to the little rural Oklahoma town that I'm originally from. Her dad is a minister, so that is what brought them from Michigan all the way to Oklahoma. Even though they only lived there for a couple of years before her dad transferred to another church, she and I have remained good friends and have stayed in touch all of these years...she is such a blessing in my life! Diana is kind, smart, sweet and hardworking...a wonderful Christian, mother, wife and friend! She now lives in Georgia, and through the years her Michigan accent has changed to a southern accent - hee! hee!

Here is a photo of Diana, (second from the right), her hubby Robert, and her three terrific kiddos - Jared, Hannah and Nolan:

Wishing you a WONDERFUL birthday and year to follow, my friend!! (I sure wish that we lived closer!)

Blessings,

Recipe of the Week...Black-Bottom Banana Bars

This is a recipe that I cut out of a magazine several years ago - I think it came out of either a "Country Woman" or "Taste of Home" magazine, but I can't recall for sure. These bars are fast and easy to whip up and are so moist and delicious...a terrific way to use up those bananas that are getting a little too ripe! (Just a note: my family thinks that they taste even better on the second day).

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 ripe, mashed bananas
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup baking cocoa

Method:
Place all ingredients, except cocoa powder, in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until well blended. Divide batter in half, add cocoa to half of the batter and spread into a buttered 13" x 9" x 2" cake pan. Spoon remaining batter on top of chocolate batter and swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the middle of the pan comes out clean. Cool and cut into bars. Dust tops of bars with powdered sugar before serving. Delicious!

Have a blessed day!

Quote Sunday

"A boy is trust with dirt on its face, beauty with a cut on its finger, wisdom with bubble gum in its hair, and the hope of the future with a frog in its pocket". ~Alan Beck

Recipe of the Week...Almost Home-made Chicken and Noodles

With the tremendous, record-setting snowfall and cold temps that we've recently had here I've been serving warm "comfort foods" to my family...which brings me to a terrific and quick recipe to share with you! I call this dish "Almost Home-made Chicken and Noodles" because most of the ingredients are either frozen or canned so all you have to do is combine all of the yummy ingredients for a quick, comfort food dinner that is sure to please your family!

Ingredients:

• 1 - 14.5 oz. can chicken broth
• 1 - 10.5 oz. can cream of chicken soup
• 1 - 4.5 oz. can Swanson 98% fat free chicken breast
• 1 - 16 oz. bag Reames frozen homestyle noodles
• 1 carrot, shredded
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 
• 1 Tablespoon dried, minced onion
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
In large pot whisk together chicken broth and cream of chicken soup. Drain canned chicken breast and shred meat with a fork. Add meat to soup/broth base. Combine the rest of the ingredients, except for the noodles, to the pot and bring to a boil. Once mixture is boiling, add frozen noodles and simmer for about 10 minutes or until noodles are cooked through. Ladle into bowls and serve with a side salad and garlic toast if desired! Yummmmm!! Refrigerate any leftovers, (if you're lucky enough to have any - ha! ha!), and warm them up to eat for lunch!

Yield: Approximately 8 - 1 cup servings

Also, for those of  you on the Weight Watchers Points Plus program, (which is what I've been using to drop 10 lbs), I took the time to figure the points on all of the ingredients of this dish for you! Anyhoo, a 1 cup serving is only 5 points!! WOO HOO!!! How AWESOME is that?!?!?

Have a blessed day!

Framed Photo Valentine Card Made From Scraps

Happy Valentine's Day to you!! Here's a quick post and photo of a Valentine's day card that I created using scraps of paper and ribbon. I wrapped black and white polka-dotted organza ribbon around a white photo slide to create a frame, and then added a photo of Mike and me. I added a red button and a twine bow to the corner of the frame and stamped a sentiment inside the card before giving it to my sweetie.

Thanks for looking! Have a WONDERFUL day!

New Feature: Quote Sunday

As many of you know, I am a collector of quotes! Through the years I've stock-piled some AWESOME quotes/sayings/verses so I've decided to begin a new feature here at Scrappin' Becky B., which is "Quote Sunday". Each Sunday I'll share a new quote with you to use on a scrapbook page/layout, a card, or just to give you a chuckle or "food for thought". If you need to look up a quote at a later date just scroll to my "Labels" list, which is located in the side bar on the right, and click on "Quotes". You'll be able to locate each quote that I post right there for easy reference.

This week's quote is:

"Lead the life that will make you kindly and friendly to everyone around you, and you will be surprised what a happy life you will live".  ~Charles Schwab

Stay inspired and make a difference!

Pocket Card with Bookmark Tutorial

My dear brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Don and Sandy, were married on Valentine's Day in 1998. They are such a wonderful, Godly couple and I am so blessed to have them in my life! To commemmorate their anniversary I created the following card that I am mailing to them tomorrow. The cover of the card has a little dog-eared pocket which holds a cute, personalized bookmark that includes their photo:

Here's how I created the card, which could be modified for any occasion! In lieu of a bookmark, a gift card could be tucked into the front pocket, or you could add a bookmark and a gift card to Barnes and Noble for your favorite reader to enjoy!

I started out with the following materials:

• Standard, white A2 card blank and envelope
• 4" x 5 1/2" piece of white cardstock
• 4" x 5 1/2" piece of decorative paper (red heart paper shown in my example)
• 3" x 4" piece of decorative paper (black and white polka-dot paper shown in my example)
• 2 3/4" x 2 3/4" piece of solid cardstock, cut in half diagonally (pink cardstock shown in my example)
• 4 3/4" x 2 1/2" piece of black cardstock, cut as outer layer of tag
• 4 1/2" x 2 1/4" piece of cream cardstock, cut as inner layer of tag
• 1 1/2" x 2" piece of cream cardstock to stamp "LOVE" sentiment on
• 2" x 2 3/8" piece of black cardstock to attach "LOVE" sentiment to
• Scrap red and pink cardstock to attch mini photo to
• 3 pink die-cut hearts
• Ribbon
• Red heart brads
• 3-D dots
• CTMH "Playful Flourishes" stamp set
• CTMH "Atomic Caps" stamp set
• CTMH "Soul Mates" stamp set
• CTMH "Say It In Style" stamp set
• Black ink
• Tulip ink

Begin by adhering the red heart paper to the 4" x 5 1/2" piece of cardstock. Fold the upper right corner down to form a right triangle that is 2 3/4" on the short sides and attach pink cardstock triangle to the flap:

Using a ruler mark off 3 spaces, 3/4" apart on the long side of the triangle flap. Using a Crop-A-Dile, punch holes where you've made marks and tie pieces of coordinating ribbon through the holes:

Attach the 3" x 4" piece of black polka-dot paper to the upper portion of the front of the card blank:

Attach the decorated red heart pocket piece to the front of the card - remember to only apply adhesive to the sides, bottom, and top left corner so that you'll form a pocket for your bookmark and/or gift card to slide into!

Using black ink, stamp the word "LOVE" onto the 1 1/2" x 2" piece of cream cardstock and sponge the edges with tulip ink. Attach the "LOVE" sentiment to the piece of 2" x 2 3/8" piece of black cardstock. Attach the sentiment to the lower left corner of the front of the card using 3-D dots for dimension. Attach a heart-shaped pink die cut to the right of the sentiment.

Trim the top corners of the black and cream colored cardstock that you've pre-cut to form a tag. Attach a piece of black and white polka-dot organza ribbon to the cream cardstock tag with a red, heart-shaped brad. Center and adhere the cream cardstock tag to the black cardstock tag. Stamp a sentiment along the left edge of the tag. (Mine says "...and they lived happily ever after").

Trim a photo to 1 5/16" x 1" and adhere to pink and red cardstock mats that you've cut slightly larger than the photo. Adhere 2 pink heart die-cuts, in a staggered fashion, under the photo:

Stamp the initials of the couple inside the hearts and then stamp flourishes on the cream cardstock as well:

Slide the bookmark into the pocket on the front of the card. If desired, attach a red, heart-shaped brad or button to the lower corner of the dog-eared flap. Open the card up and stamp a sentiment and/or decorative elements:

Decorate envelope as desired and pop in the mail!

Blessings,

Recipe of the Week..."Crispy Oven Fried Chicken"

When I was in high school I worked in the housekeeping department of the small, rural hospital in my hometown. My lunch or dinner breaks were at the same time as the kitchen staff, so I gleaned a lot of cooking tips and recipes from those gals! The recipe that I'm sharing with you this week, "Crispy Oven Fried Chicken", is one of the recipes that I got while working there. It's one of my family's favorites, so hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Ingredients:

• 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups instant potato flakes
• 1 Tablespoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray jelly roll pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside. In a large Zip-Loc bag combine instant potato flakes, paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Crack eggs into a shallow dish or pie plate and beat.

Cut chicken breasts in half vertically; and then slice each breast in half horizontally, which will give you 8 pieces of meat that will cook quickly and evenly. Coat both sides of each piece of meat with the beaten eggs; place into the Zip-Loc bag with dry ingredients and shake until well covered. Place meat on prepared jelly roll pan and put pan in oven. Bake for 15 minutes; turn meat over and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until coating is golden brown and the center of chicken is done.

If desired, serve with mashed potatoes, cream gravy and a veggie on the side. Sooooo good!!

One Card Style - 3 Variations

Just wanted to share a quick post with you to demonstrate how one card style can be transformed into many variations...here are my 3 versions of one card:

Version #1 of the card is the simplest - sorry but my scanner didn't pick up the crimped detail on the ivory cardstock bands very well!

Now for version # 2 of the card, which includes a stamped key image:

And lastly, here's version #3 of the card which includes a heart element and stamped swirl:

We are still digging out of all of the snow we received last week and are expected to get 10 to 12 more inches tonight and tomorrow - UGH! I am soooooo ready for spring! Although the main roads are fairly clear, school has been closed since last Tuesday because the neighborhood roads are still so bad. Our district administrative offices, (many of which are year round employees - including me), were also closed last Tuesday through Friday, but were open yesterday and today. I'm not sure if the admin offices will be open tomorrow or not...it all depends on how bad the roads get and if it's too dangerous for us to travel to work. We have 5 snow days built into our school calendar, and have used 9 days as of today, so we'll have to make up days to get all of our instructional time in.

I keep looking at gardening magazines and dreaming of warmer weather...can hardly wait to get some flowers planted around my yard again!! Even though we just got through January it seems like winter has gone on forever...I'm so tired of everything looking drab and colorless!

Take care and stay warm!!

Blessings,

Blog Award!!

My blogging pal, Stacie, at All Things Crafty was kind enough to bestow me with this blog award:

Thanks, Stacie!! You're such a sweetie and totally made my day!! In getting to know Stacie over the past few months I've come to realize that we have a lot in common! We both love to cook, craft, work on home improvement projects and we have mechanics/auto repair technicians in our families. We also each have a family member named "Royce"! (What are the odds of that??) Thanks, Stacie, for being a great friend and inspiration...I appreciate YOU!

Now, I am to pass this award on to 5 other bloggers and tell why I like them and their blogs. (It's tough for me to pick just 5 because I really enjoy reading everyone's blog!!) So, in no particular order, here goes:

• Lisa at Lisa's Loft: I love Lisa's kind spirit, her incredibly crafty nature and she always has a kind word to share! Also, she lives in one of the most beautiful places in the world - Colorado - which is one of my family's favorite vacation spots! I am grateful for the friendship that we've formed through our blogging...you're a blessing, Lisa!
• Ann at November Rose: Ann's great sense of humor always makes me smile! She is a terrifically talented crafter, and in getting to know her through our correspondence, I found out that she is an awesome educator as well!! (Seriously, Ann, you really need to move to BA in a few years to teach in our district!!) Her blog has a wonderful WOW! factor, so be sure to check it out for yourself!!
• Justine at Kerrafty Creations: Justine is just so sweet and talented! Not only is she a great paper-crafter but she sews beautiful items as well...some of the items that she sews are for her gorgeous baby girl! I love reading her blog and casing ideas from her...thanks, Justine, for being a wonderful inspiration to me!! 
• Tammy at The Stamper's Cottage: Tammy is amazingly creative and was one of the first people to sign up to follow my blog. Her paper-crafts are just lovely and she does beautiful quilt work too! I am a total lover of quilts...both of my grandmother's quilted and I am very, very fortunate to own some of the quilts that they lovingly made! I have dabbled in creating quilted projects, but Tammy's projects always take my breath away - they are sooooo beautiful!!!
• Margo at Margo's Garden: In getting to know Margo I've become a fan of her quick wit, which is so similar to that of all my gal pals! I'm sure that if we lived near each other we'd hang out and be great friends! Margo is always so positive and upbeat and is fabulously talented in all things paper-craft related!! I love reading her blog and always come away with great ideas and inspiration! 

Be sure to take a few minutes to check out the fantastic projects that these gals share with us on their blogs...they are super ladies and I promise that you'll totally enjoy getting to know them too!!

Have a blessed day!

Recipe of the Week..."Tortellino Soup" and a Winter Weather Update...More Snow is Coming!

What a crazy week it's been! Most folks are still snowed in, schools remain closed, and many businesses are still closed due to the terrible road conditions. More snow is on the way today, (forecasters are predicting 1 to 4 inches today); we have a 60% chance of more snow on Sunday; and a 40% chance (for now) of even more snow next Wednesday! At this rate it may be June before everyone can dig out and all of the snow drifts are gone - ha! ha!

The sun did come out on Wednesday, but the temps remained in the single digits with negative windchill factors. Here are a couple of pictures that Mike took of the front of our house/yard blanketed in snow:

As promised earlier this week, here's the recipe for yummy "Tortellino Soup". The original recipe was given to me many years ago by the media specialist at one of our elementary schools, where I used to work as a secretary.

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 can stewed tomatoes (I use Italian stewed tomatoes and squish up them up so I don't have big clumps floating around in the soup)
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 7 oz. cheese filled tortellini (I used spinach, cheese filled tortellini for this batch of soup)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup mild picante sauce
• 1 tsp. basil
• 3 cans beef broth
• Parmesan cheese to sprinkle over soup

Method:
In large soup pot cook onion, garlic and pepper in olive oil until tender. Add broth, tomatoes, picante and basil. Bring to a boil and stir in tortellini. Simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with cheese. Serve with hot home-made bread or rolls and a side salad if desired! A great, spicy soup to warm you up on a cold day or to serve when you've got a head cold! Yummm!

My Variation:
Most of the time I use chicken broth in lieu of beef broth and add about a cup or two of shredded chicken to the soup. In all honesty the chicken version is my family's favorite, but the original version, (which is what is shown in the photo), is delicious as well!

Take care and stay warm!