Pots, rain and Oriental Food

Sorry...this turned into a longer post than I anticipated.

So I don' think I ever showed the final version of the last pot i was working on...well final version before the glaze. So here is the final! I just love it.


And here is one more pot I started. I actually have finished it but I just haven't taken a picture of the final product. So I will add that later. But here is how it is started. I have talked a lot about pookies but haven't ever posted a pic of one. So here is what i start my pots with. It just makes them a little easier. I am actually going to making my own to take with me to California so that I can continue this hobby!



Here is the pot in process in different stages. It is amazing how much different they look when they are actually finished.


And here is a small one I finished...


And I just had to post some pics of the rain because it has been a big part of our life for a while now. Rain....



And more rain....this was on Saturday. It poured so hard! And of course it started pouring about 5 minutes after I jumped in the car to run errands. I went to take a redbox back...by the way Seven Pounds with Will Smith is really good and Will make you cry so be prepared... and take some old clothes to DI. So i pretty much was soaked by the time I made it home. Not to mention the pants I was wearing were a little big and wanted to fall off. So the drive through at DI in sugarhouse was closed because of the rain i am guessing so I had to get all 5 bags of clothes out of the car in the rain while trying to keep my pants up and not get soaked. I managed to get the bags inside and only get a little soaked and keep my pants up. It was a miracle. Also the workers at DI met me right at the door. They were very helpful. I then went and looked around in DI. Everyone seems to find stuff there but I found nothing. There was a Harry Potter book that I already had. I just can't bring myself to buy used silverware or anything else really from DI. Not to be a snob but thats just gross. Maybe someday I will find some good find there. Sorry for the sidenote rant. Where was I? Oh yes the rain....it rained a lot on Saturday.

I also wanted to share some recipes I have made lately. The first I made tonight and it turned out really good. (Also we got these recipes from Chad's uncle Tony.) The first one is Stir Fry Tomato and Beef. It is a wonderful oriental dish that is good for people like me who aren't really a fan of oriental. It has just enough oriental flavor to satisfy my husband who loves anything orietnal and not too much to overload me. The recipe is as follows:

1 lb- beef flank steak, flat iron steak, etc
1/2- teaspoon instant beef bouillon granules
1/3- cup boiling water
1/4- cup soy sauce
1 Tbs- cornstarch
2 Tbs- cooking oil
3-4 Tbs- grated ginger root (I only used about 2 Tbs but it just depends how much of that flavor you want)
1/2 Cup- thinly sliced celery or more (I used more)
4 Tomatoes- (I used about 2 tomatoes and that was a good amount but if you like more tomatoes then use 3 or 4)
1 large onion cut in small wedges or strips
1/2 Cup- Shredded carrot or more (Again I used more)
1 green bell pepper cut into strips or pieces

Partially freeze beef; slice thinly across the grain into bite size pieces. Dissolve bouillon granules in water. Blend soy sauce into corn starch. Stir in bouillon. Set aside.

Preheat a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add cooking oil. Stir-fry ginger root into hot oil for 30 seconds. Add the onion, carrot and celery. Stir fry for 2 minutes. Remove from pan. Add more oil if necessary and half of the beef to the wok. Stir-fry 2-3 minutes or until red color is gone. Remove beef and stir-fry remaining beef for 2-3 minutes or until red is gone. Return all meat to wok. Stir soy sauce mixture into beef. Cook stir-fry until thickened and bubbly. Stir in onions, carrot, celery mixture. Add green pepper and tomatoes. Stir and then cover and cook for one minute. Serve at once, makes 4 servings. Serve with rice if desired.


This one I mad a couple nights ago. It is a recipe for Chicken Enchiladas. It was pretty easy and my husband loved them. He is pretty picky about his mexican so it must be good. Also it is really easy if you buy a whole rotissere chicken and just shred that meat for th enchiladas. Thats what I did. I also cut the recipe in half but you could do the full and freeze what you don't eat.

6-8 tomatillos
4 chicken breasts
1 clove garlic
1/2 bunch cilantro (just the tops)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup of sour cream
2 small can diced mild green chilis
18 corn tortillas
1 onion diced
2 cup grated monterey jack cheese
Salt to taste
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 can black olives (optional)
Lettuce (optional)
Tomatoes (optional)
Salsa (optional)

Boil the tomatillos until they are losing their color and are looking transparent but not mushy. Remove from boiling water and set aside.

Boil the chicken breasts until they are cooked through. Remove from water, cool and shred.

Fry the corn tortillas in vegatable oil and drain on paper towels.

In a blender or food processor combine the tomatillos, garlic, cilantro, cream of chicek sous, sour cream and salt. Prcesss to a smooth consistency. If the sauce is too thick, thin with water the chicken was cooke in or milk. ONce the suace is made be sure and taste it, adjust salt or add more of any ingredient to meet your taste.

Place a corn tortilla on a plate and add some fo the shredded chicken, mild green chilis, diced onion, a tablespoon of the sauce adn some Monterey Jack cheese and roll the tortilla into a round. Place some of the sauce in the bottom of a glass or metal baking dish (9x13 is fine). Add the stuffed and rolled tortillas. Continue adding the rolled tortillas until the pan is full. Cover with sauce and sprinke with cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove the foil the last 5 minutes of the bakng time to slightly brown the cheese.

These were both really good and pretty simple.

Lastly, here is Chad's new toy. He got this 90 gallon fish tank for $100! It was a steal. They normally run $300-400. And it looks practically brand new. We won't set it up till we get settled somewhere in Cali but it was too good to pass up. It is so big compared to the 65 gallon we have now.


Oh and here are some pics of Brielle from a while ago. I keep forgetting to post them but they are too cute to not post at all. Nichole came to Salt Lake a couple weeks ago and we went to Sugarhouse park and enjoyed the beautiful day.