Developing Community in Temple

Drew and I seem to be settling into Temple life well. It has been 4 months since we moved. I have pictures of our move and our new apartment btw. So stay tuned. I would like to post a video tour of our new apartment again, but I am waiting until we have cleaned our bedroom. :) We seem to do really well at keeping the living, dining, and kitchen areas clean, but our bedroom is a bit of a disaster area. We spend so little time in there - we are either changing, folding laundry, sleeping, or well, you know, not sleeping...

Anyway, pictures and video tour to come soon.

Drew has been meeting up with a group of guys from his med school class on Sunday nights. They gather together to talk, eat dinner, laugh, share life, and pray for each other. I only say this is what they do because that is what Drew tells me they do. I dont really know.

Anyway, I have been looking for a group of women to hang out with here in town too. I told you about my friend Ashley who lives in Temple too, but apart from her I had not really connected with anyone. Thankfully, two of the guys in Drew's group are married and have lovely wives. We thought we would like to start getting together on Sundays too - its convenient because the guys are already meeting, so we are not spending more time away from our spouses. :) We just started meeting and I really enjoyed it. I had started praying regularly with the two women on my staff team in College Station, and I was so blessed by it. I felt like I really grew in my prayer life and I always walked away so rejuvenated. I am so happy to have another couple of women to pray with together.

I also love our apartment now - it finally feels like home. We both really enjoy having people over and it feels spacious enough that we can have more than 2 people visit. Unfortunately, we do still have second-hand smoke leaking through at various times, but the air purifier seems to take care of most of it. I also just bought some indoor plants ($1 each at HEB!) to hopefully help purify.

Thats the short update on us. I have loads more to share with you about what is going on in our lives, so keep coming back.

Ina Garten Parmesan Chicken

I keep forgetting to take pictures of things...

But, believe you me, this is a great and simple recipe. I had it last night with a friend (another med school wife) while Drew was on call and again tonight with Drew.

Last night's menu:
Caprese Salad
Parmesan Chicken
Field Green salad
Garlic & Cheddar Cheesy bread

Tonight's Menu:
Caprese Salad
Parmesan Chicken
Roasted Asparagus

So besides the Parmesan chicken I have had Caprese Salad alot the last few days. Mostly, this is because my mom gave me one of her basil plants. I LOVE basil, but buying it fresh at the grocery store is really expensive. But there are a whole host of things you really can only make with fresh basil (there are plenty of herbs that I dont mind substituting dried for fresh, but basil is NOT one of them). So I am often caught in a catch-22 which means that I end up not making the things I need fresh basil for...so now that I have my own abundant and fresh supply I am going a little overboard. I need to slow down; I dont want to be left with a completely bare basil plant. That would be sad. :(

But, back to the Parmesan Chicken...like I said, tasty and simple. As you can see Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa) serves her chicken with a field green salad in a lemon vinaigrette, but you dont have to. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 4 to 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 extra-large eggs
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 1/4 cups seasoned dry bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
• Unsalted butter
• Good olive oil

Directions

Pound the chicken breasts until they are 1/4-inch thick. You can use either a meat mallet or a rolling pin.

Combine the flour, salt, and pepper on a dinner plate. On a second plate, beat the eggs with 1 tablespoon of water. On a third plate, combine the bread crumbs and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan. Coat the chicken breasts on both sides with the flour mixture, then dip both sides into the egg mixture and dredge both sides in the bread-crumb mixture, pressing lightly.

Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saute pan and cook 2 or 3 chicken breasts on medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Add more butter and oil and cook the rest of the chicken breasts. Toss the salad greens with lemon vinaigrette. Place a mound of salad on each hot chicken breast. Serve with extra grated Parmesan.

Lemon Vinaigrette:

• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
• 1/2 cup good olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Yield: 6 servings