Chicken in Tomatoes

Does your family have a recipe book or cookbook where all the family recipes are shared and passed down from generation to generation? Mine doesn't. I have a few recipes from each grandmother and an aunt. I have a few recipes that I learned from my mom and a bunch that I came up with on my own or adapted from a recipe I found. Most of them are not written down anywhere. How is my daughter, or my sons for that matter, supposed to be able to replicate the things they enjoyed eating at home while growing up?

I started this blog as a way to share pieces of my life with those who care to read it. I have shared a few recipes here. I realized the other night that searching this blog is not how I want my family to have to find their prized family recipes. I have decided to start a family cookbook. I wish to gather recipes from family members, try to recall and recreate some beloved things I had at my Mamaw's house as a child, add my own recipes in and bind it together so all family members can have the collection in one easy place to reference.

In the meantime, I will share my Chicken in Tomatoes with you. Several years ago, I had a unique craving for a dish I used to have at my Mamaw's house (my mom's mom). My mom is one of seven children....and the only girl. You would think she would have all these recipes. Nope. Apparently, my mamaw didn't record a lot of her recipes. Trips to my Mamaw and Papaw's house were always fun and always interesting. Sometimes we just went for a visit with them. Sometimes it was a large family gathering with most or all of my aunts and uncles and cousins. My mamaw did not know how to prepare a meal for just a couple of people. There was always a HUGE spread of food including, several main dishes, a bunch of vegetables/side dishes, from scratch biscuits and/or cornbread, and a number of desserts. My favorite desserts were her fried pies and peanut butter cookies. My mamaw always allowed me to eat dessert first at her house. No matter how much my mother protested. . Ummm. Seems I got a little off track there. Back to the chicken dish. It was one of my favorites. It's a little unique and I had never had a dish like it and have never since......until I decided to try to figure it out. Mom and I discussed what we thought was in the dish and about how we thought it was prepared and I got to work. Several tries later, I felt like I nailed it. I don't prepare it exactly the way Mamaw did, but it tastes like Saturday afternoon at Mamaw's table to me. So, Mamaw's untitled recipe is now "Chicken in Tomatoes".

This is not a photo filled recipe. There is only one. And it's not pretty. Chicken in Tomatoes is not a "pretty" dish. But, it sure is yummy.

What you'll need:

*Boneless, skinless chicken thighs - please don't substitute chicken breast. The thighs really make this dish!

*1-2 large cans of crushed tomatoes

*salt and pepper

*1-3 Tbsp sugar

*butter and/or olive oil

That's it. You won't believe how simple this is, yet it tastes soooooo gooood!

I am usually feeding five of us, so I use somewhere between 10-12 chicken thighs.

Begin by melting a couple of tablespoons of butter in a large skillet on medium to medium high heat. Add a tablespoon of olive oil to keep the butter from burning. You can just use olive oil if you don't want to use butter. OR, skip that mess altogether and just use ghee! Place the chicken thighs in the skillet, leaving a little room between each one. Don't crowd them. You want to sear the thighs, sealing in the juices. Once you have seared both sides of all chicken thighs (I usually have to do this step in two batches), remove them to a plate. Add the crushed tomatoes to the skillet. I use two cans for 10-12 thighs. As the tomatoes heat and begin to bubble, scrape the bottom of the skillet (don't scrape if you are using non-stick cookware) with your wooden spoon (etc.). This helps remove all the yummy bits of chicken that are stuck to the pan. Add the chicken thighs back to the pan. Season with a little pepper and salt (optional - you won't miss it if you leave it out), Add 1-3 tablespoons of sugar, depending on the size of your dish. I used three for about 12 thighs. The sugar helps remove the metal taste found in canned tomatoes. If you are using fresh or home canned tomatoes, cut the amount of sugar to about 1/2. The sugar is what makes this dish. I'm not sure exactly what it does, but the outcome is delicious. Cover the skillet and turn heat down. Simmer for at least 30 minutes. The longer it cooks, the better, Remove the lid after at least 30 minutes and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes to reduce/thicken the sauce. 

That's it! Simple AND delicious. I hope you enjoy this recipe.

Your personal invitation

Hey, friends!

Just wanted to take a minute to share an invitation with you. I am hosting a free webinar in a couple of days and I'd love for you to join me. I will be sharing some some great info on Young Living essential oils - what they are, how to use them, why we use them, and more.

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Hope to see you there!

Decorating Dilema

The change in seasons always brings about a desire to decorate my home. This usually means a simple addition of some seasonal decor--wreaths, flower arrangements, and other miscellaneous small decor to place on table tops and shelves.

Fall is just around the corner. The signs are everywhere. They days are getting shorter. It's no longer light outside when I get up in the morning and it's getting darker much earlier in the evening. I see a few leaves already beginning to change. Temperatures will be taking a cooler turn in the next week or so. I find myself longing for pumpkins, open windows, cool breezes, football games, piles of leaves, sweaters, boots, etc.

I also find myself longing to decorate with fall decor. But lately, it's more than that. I want to change EVERYTHING. I find myself dreamily reviewing photos on my Pinterest boards that showcase the decorating style that I love. Images such as this......

Source: bhg.com

I spent many years of my life trying to figure out what my style was. I often decorated with trends. We spent a lot of years surrounded by jewel tones. I could never figure out why I never really liked it. I finally figured out that though I may like a certain style and love the way it looks in someone else's home, that doesn't mean it's my style. It took me a long time and quite a bit of research to find out what my style actually is. 

How I define my style: light, bright, comfortable, kid friendly, maybe even a little "beachy", with touches of bold color. 

So....I figured out my decorating style, the decorating bug has bitten me, what's to stop me from charging ahead and making the changes that would make me more comfortable and happy in my own home? My mom. Or, better yet, my mom's stuff. 

Since we share a home with my mom, I can't just come in and change everything. We live in her home. With her things. That have been here for 30 years. *sigh* My mom's style is pretty typical of someone from her generation. Lots of wood. I mean LOTS. I like wood. I also like paint on some wood furniture pieces. Sometimes, they look better painted than stained. I like things that I don't have to worry about it getting a nick, chip, or scrape because it adds to it's character. 

We have lived under the same roof for almost 10 years. Voluntarily. Mom stayed with us after Dad died. It was easier on her. It made us worry less about her. She saved money on gas. She went home on the weekends. I did what I wanted to in my home. I decorated how I want. I rearranged furniture any way I pleased. It was grand. Then we made the decision to permanently combine our homes. We left our home and came to hers. No more double mortgages, utility bills, etc. But, double the furniture, double the dishes, pots and pans, and other kitchen gadgets, and stuff. Lots of stuff. I like to craft. I need a craft room because I could easily fill a whole room with my craft supplies. To date, most of our "stuff" is still in the attic. We got rid of most of our furniture. Mom moved her sofa and love seat out and made room for our sectional.

Before:

After:

We changed the rug. I don't love it. Still too many jewel tones. And then there's the other side of the family room that I haven't shown you. It's full of antique furniture that belonged to my dad's mother. My mom doesn't even really like it. Brace yourself....lol....

Everything is the opposite of what I love. It's dark. Always dark. Our house doesn't have a lot of windows. There are 7 windows in the whole house. We have two doors that have windows for extra light, but it is still dark in the house during the brightest part of the day. I like sunshine. Need light and bright. 

So, what's a girl to do? I've tried to decorate our bedroom in the style that I like. But, our bedroom is such a utilitarian space. It houses our office and all the supplies for our multiple businesses and my craft supplies. All my craft supplies. It's ridiculously tight in there. Doesn't feel "light and bright". 

We have plans to enclose the garage to make a suite type space for the hubs and I. That will be where I direct my decorating magic wand. The hope of that future space is what keeps me from going rogue and redecorating the whole house one day while Mom is gone. That, and the fact that though the whole act of redecorating everything would make me happy for a little while, it would make Mom unhappy - and probably mad - and that would break my heart. 

So, while everyone else is decorating for fall, I'll be doing the same........and silently dreaming of my beachy, comfy, light, bright space to come.