My son the CHEF!

I love food and I love to cook!  My son does not, unless it is part of his limited menu.  On a relaxing Sunday morning before worship service, he showed me that he is growing up fast!  He taught me, and now you how you make a bowl of Cheerios!

Ingredients:  Cheerios, a small bowl, one observant kid!

First, set your bowl on a table while carrying a box of Cheerios.  My son choose to use the cheaper generic version of Crispy Oats, but it is just as good.  It is also important that you find a box that is already open and sitting on the dining room table.

Second, pour the Cheerios into the bowl and don't stop until the flow of Cheerios slows to a dribble.  You may need to lift the box at a higher angle to get the Cheerios to pour out faster, as my son is doing here.  If any Cheerios fall outside the bowl that is okay...it is part of the presentation.

Third, wait for the bag inside the box to shrink and fall outside the Cheerio box.  This is a one person job, even though I am trying to help my son would have none of it.  Observe the extra Cheerios outside the bowl.  Isn't it a lovely effect?!

Finally, toss the box on the floor.  You can eat with a spoon or your hands.  My son choose to use his hands, which is fine if you are eating the Cheerios dry!  My little chef has taught me well!

Mommy missed it...

Timing is everything in those first brief but amazing years when your child is growing up.  I don't mean to sound like an expert, but I have learned from experience.  Your child's first smile, first tooth, and other notable moments.  For my son, I have enjoyed a couple of huge firsts!  Unfortunately, both times my wife was unable to witness.  Kind of sad actually.  The first big 1st was my son's first rollover:

My wife gave me a specific time period after this artwork was completed

One morning in the spring of 2010, my wife had to leave our very young little duder with me as she left for a dentist appointment.  Up to that point as my son has grown up a little bit, we began to teach him the joys of laying on his tummy.  We called it "Tummy Time."  He HATED it.  My son would protest with crying and screaming at the top of his lungs.  Thanks to my contribution of genes, this screaming could be quite piercing.  So for 5-10 minutes that felt like hours, we sang and danced encouragement while my son would cry with increased vigor.  Finally after an eternity, he would give us the 5-10 minutes in peace, until he had enough.  Then this one eventful morning, while my wife was away, I watched as he shifted his hips and noticed he was rocking.  He continued, back and forth, and then to my amazement, he rolled onto his back.  He looked at me with eyes that spoke to me, "Daddy, what just happened!"  I'm bouncing off the walls, roll him back onto his back, and lamented that my wife missed this blessed event.  So I texted her, and we celebrated through the miracle of text messaging.

Event 2, my son's first steps;

No, there was never a bunny, except in legend

  This is a more stressful event.  My son was a late walker.  In the world of parenting, when your kid is over a year old and people say, "I bet he's walking all over the place" and you say, "Not yet," you get the look of concern and suspicion.  Concern that he isn't walking, and suspicion that your parenting skills are somewhat lacking.  At this stage in life (March 2012) no one cares when he started walking, but in those stressful months the thoughts plague you.  You compare notes, and even though you tell yourself, "He's going to walk one day, he has to!", you wonder and worry.
  Then on the quiet evening of April 30th, 2011 (thanks to Facebook's Timeline I have the post to confirm!), my son was taking toys back and forth to the fireplace hearth, on his knees of course.  I joined him to hand him some of those toys.  Then he pulled up to his feet next to the hearth to place the next toy.  He turned to see me hold out one of his building blocks.  I saw the hesitation in his face as he wondered, "Is there an easier way?  Why not."  Then he let go, walked to my outstretched hand, took the block, and took a couple of steps back to the hearth to continue!  I am cheering with sheer delight!!!  But where is my wife?  In the kitchen, cleaning up I think.  Go figure...

  I am sure my wife has witnessed such wonderful firsts with our son....I just can't think of any at the moment.  That said, if you do find yourself at the right place at the right time in the beginning of the life of your little duder, WRITE IT DOWN!  Treasure it!  You'll never get another 1st again, and these are wonderful things worth remembering.

I'm back with Chicken Roulade!

Okay, I stink. I did say that I would blog earlier but life has been insanely busy the past 2 weeks. And then I got addicted to the awesome "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" trilogy. So yes, I chose some books over blogging, I stink. But now I am back with one of my favorite recipes! I learned this one in my bachelor days while watching Hell's Kitchen one night, and it's amazing! It is Chicken Roulade with Fried Potatoes! Here we go!

Ingredients:
2 Chicken Breasts
2-3 slices of prosciutto (or substitute with ham)
2-3 Potatoes
Feta Cheese
Italian Seasoning
Rosemary
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
A Large Frying Pan you can put in your oven (no plastic handles)

First peel and cut up your potatoes into wedge-shaped slices. You'll want them to be fairly thin so they'll cook, but not potato chip thin. You want these potatoes to cook in a short time. This round I made the mistake of using 3 LARGE potatoes. 2 would have been plenty. But it all worked out. Set the potatoes aside and now work on the chicken.

Now take your 2 chicken breasts and butterfly-cut them. That means you are going to cut the chicken in half so it folds open into one large thin piece of chicken. It will look like a chicken butterfly!...sort of. A word of advice, you want to start cutting on the bumpy side of your chicken toward the side with the straighter edge (which I am pointing to). It makes the breast easier to work with. Also don't fret if you mess up, it may take some practice.

Here are my two chicken breasts butterfly opened. Now that you have that done, lay 1-2 slices of prosciutto across it. You want to cover the surface of the chicken as bast you can. That was easy!

Now it is time to add your feta cheese across your prosciutto. This cheese transforms this meal into pure magic! Next sprinkle some Italian Seasoning on it. If you buy Feta Cheese that has herbs already in it, you can skip the Italian Seasoning.
Then it is time to roll the chicken up (thus the roulade!). Using this picture as a reference, take the pointy end at the top and roll it up toward you. Once this is done you'll want to use either toothpicks or string to keep it together.

Once you have done that season the outside of your "rolled" chicken breasts with salt and pepper. It's time to heat up your pan on your stove, around medium heat. Add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and wait for it to heat up. Then add the chicken breasts and give it a good searing, one side at a time. Wait till it's a healthy brown before you do the other side. When I cook this, I start with the opening of the roulade on top and then turn it so it is on the bottom.
While this is happening pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees.

Now it is time to add your sliced potatoes around the chicken. Observe that I have way too much, but you do what you can with it. I then pour 2 - 2 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil over the potatoes. Stir the potatoes a bit so the hot olive oil is spread fairly evenly over the potatoes. Then put your pan in the oven. Time it for 20 minutes so the chicken can cook with the potatoes.
(another hint, if there is some fat on your chicken, leave some on. It will melt into the oil and give the potatoes a yummy flavor)

After 20 minutes or so get your pan out of the oven (with oven mitts) and back onto a hot stove on medium heat. The chicken should be cooked (if not, put it back in the oven), but the potatoes need more cooking. They always do. So while you prep the chicken the potatoes can continue to cook on the stove. Cool huh?
So get the chicken and place it on a cutting board.

Now remove the string or toothpicks. Then begin slicing up the chicken like a loaf of bread. You should have this pretty swirl of chicken, prosciutto, and feta cheese. Do this to both chicken breasts and remember to stir the potatoes a few times while you are doing this.

Once you are done slicing the chicken finish cooking the potatoes. This is the time I add rosemary to the potatoes. Rosemary and potatoes are always a great combo! (PS, I like my potatoes to get nice and brown.)

Now it is time to serve!

Nothing beats a snappy presentation. It will impress your guests and is a definite keeper! Bon appetit!