So You Think You Can Dance?

Once a few years ago, my DH and I took swing dance classes for over a year.
We never looked like this, however ...


Stay with it, if you can ... it gets better!

Breakfast At The Zoo With Santa

Yesterday we went to the zoo for a breakfast with Santa.  

There were 10 adults and 3 children.

This is the pretty building where the breakfast took place. It sits on a little pond with ducks and geese and swans and pelicans.

Frosty was there ...

Rudolph, too.  Everyone wanted to kiss his red nose!

Breakfast was enjoyed by all!

Next stop after breakfast was ... 

Build-a-Bear ... Conveniently located right across the path from the breakfast.

Jack chose a snowman that he would NOT give up!!

I know the kids had a good time ... 

But I think all 10 grown-ups had a better one! 

   

   

Coq a Vin, Partner!

When the weather begins to turn cold, I get me a hankerin' for some coq a vin.

(I just got finished semi-watching an old John Wayne movie.)

First I fry up some of that there bacon ... Yee-ummm!

Add garlic to the bacon grease ...

Saute the that there chicken in the bacon grease ... 

yeah, I know ... but it adds so much flavor to the chicken!  

Transfer the chicken into a heavy pot and add these here ingredients, including the bacon ...

Yep, I could have fried up the bacon along with the chicken in the heavy pot, but I was also busy doing 3 other things at the same time and my little brain didn't think that far ahead!

Simmer them there chicken breasts...

And voile' ... A yummy, satisfyin' meal that will feed my better half and me for pert-n-ear 3 days or more.

Here's the recipe:

Coq a Vin

4 - 6 slices bacon, fried

1/4 cup butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

8 skinless chicken breasts, with or without the bones

4 carrots, grated

3 medium onions, diced

4 ribs celery, diced

1/4 cup parsley

2 cups dry red wine

3/4 teaspoon dried ground thyme

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon pepper

1 large bay leaf

3 Tablespoons butter, melted

1/4 cup flour

1 can chicken broth

Turn down the heat on the bacon grease.  Add butter to bacon grease.  Add garlic when butter has melted.  Turn the heat back up then add the chicken breasts to the  bacon grease.  Saute until slightly browned on both sides, but do not cook all the way through.

Remove chicken breasts to platter for a few minutes.  Add vegetables to bacon grease and saute until tender.  Put chicken breasts back into pot with the vegetables.  Add wine and seasonings.  Add the flour to the melted butter, then mix with the broth.  Add broth mixture to chicken mixture and stir until incorporated.

Simmer for 25 minutes or just until chicken is done.  Remove chicken to platter.  Carefully boil down the  remaining liquid, stirring almost constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Remove from heat.

If serving immediately, put the amount of chicken breasts to be eaten immediately back into  liquid mixture which has been removed from the heat for a minute or two just to reheat.

Put rest of chicken breasts back into cooled mixture and store in fridge.

These victuals are good the first day  ... 'n better the next!

Happy eatin', mon cher.