Shepherds Abiding in Dry Creek Book Review

I found one more book by Janet Tronstad at the library when I was there visiting trying to use the computer before my son got out of school to do a little blogging with my "free" time after I finished painting at the new house.  Shepherds Abiding in Dry Creek (Dry Creek Series #11) (Love Inspired #421) by Janet Tronstad was the lucky winner of the extra book that I got a chance to bring home from the library.  I was excited because I don't have a lot of time to look for books or do anything super relaxing and this would help me later when I got a chance to read it!!!

Marla Gossett moved to Dry Creek, Montana from Los Angles after her husband died and she didn't have money left to support her family. She wanted a safe haven to raise her kids, far from the troubles of the past. Then an unusual theft cast suspicion on her family...and brought Deputy Sheriff Les Wilkerson into the struggling widow's life.  In Marla's young son, Les saw a lonely child in need of a guiding hand. In the plucky single mother, he saw a woman he could love. But a crisis threatened to destroy Marla's fragile trust. Unless the deputy could convince her that her family had a special place in the community...and in this bachelor's heart. You will have to pick up the book and find out all the excitement that happens in this book!!

It was a great, fast read to keep me entertained while way too many other things were going on in my life.  It was an interesting and different story with the wonderful holiday setting that these books seem to share. I love the way the town always pulls together to help others in need.  This book was a little different twist because the person didn't want to get any help.  I guess that I understand that part of it because there are many things that I wouldn't want help with either.  It is an interesting read that makes you stop and think about helping others without expecting anything in return.  The greatest part is that you get to see some of the great characters from the other books and meet a few new ones that we haven't met before.  I hope that you pick up this book and check it out for yourself.  I am still not sure what order these books go in but this seems like a little bit older book so it might go towards the top of the list.  Let me know what you think if you read it!!

Menu Plan Monday 4/20

I am not even writing down the menu on paper until after we eat it anymore.  Things have been super busy and everyone wants to see the house when they get off work (aka dinnertime).  We have spent many a night waiting to get back into our house and giving up to go to a restaurant.  This week is going to be super busy because I have two days with contractors and two days working.  We also have soccer practice and soccer game which makes evenings difficult.  I know that I am not going to be able to pull together the whole week but I have some chicken and ground beef in the freezer so I am planning on using those.  Here are the meals we are going to have this week:

Tacos with saffron rice
French Dip Sloppy Joes with chicken rice
Chicken Nugget Wraps with homemade fries
Spaghetti with pizza bites
Something with Chicken Breast
Leftovers or Eating out for the other nights
Dinner with Friends (don't know what we are bringing yet)

Here is hoping that I have time to make the pizza bites Sunday night before the week starts so that we can actually have some!!

Missing Book Review

I was glad that I reserved a bunch of books at the library to come off at different times because I was so busy with the move that I didn't have time to make it to the library to pick out books but I was able to grab them off the reserve shelf when they came in.  Missing: The Secrets of Crittenden County, Book One by Shelley Shepard Gray was the next one that appeared on my reserve shelf.

When the shocking death of a young man, Perry Borntrager, rocks a quiet Amish community, the dead man’s former girlfriend and his “Englisher” best friend find themselves murder suspects. The boy had been missing for months but the community thought that he left because he had changed and made some bad decisions until a young girl found his body in a well.  A police detective arrives to help the local sheriff and is greeted by mistrust because he is an outsider.  All of the people involved are keeping the truth hidden because they don't want to speak badly of the dead man but they are confusing the investigation by hiding information.  This is an interesting book of mystery and friendship but you have to pick up the book to find out what happens.

Although I loved the writing and can't wait to pick up the next book from the library, this book left a little to be desired.  I need a book to stand on it's own and I don't think that this one does.  It is a great story about looking into the death of a young Amish man who was murdered but the story doesn't get resolved or have any real plot twists.  The characters weren't really developed in this book although there were a few things revealed.  The whole basis of the resolution in this book is that Lydia and Walker are keeping secrets which they end up telling the detective by the end of the book.  I don't think that is enough intrigue to call this book a mystery or think that anything was solved.  The book just ended and nothing was solved.  Although I love books in sequence, this book should have had a little bit more resolution if we were to believe that these secrets were that important to breaking the case.  I don't know if you have checked out this book or others by this author but I think that some of her fiction work is better written and she was reaching too far to make this a mystery.  Still being a glutton for punishment, I got the next two books in the series to see what happens.  I might have a better view after reading the other books in the series.

Thrifty Thursday: Scrapping

My husband has been working on a little stockpile of things to scrap from the construction on the new house. Then, we went through the old house finding lots of stuff to scrap including a box of network cabling and lots of random wires.

He did a little research through the iScrap app which you can install on your Apple or Android phone.  It gives you some pointers on what recycle and where your local place is to recycle.

Then, he took a variety of things to the place to get the feel for how to do it because you can't figure it out until you go and try.  He brought some wires, copper and old lights.  They took everything and he got a receipt that he had to scan at another machine.  He came home with $48 in cash for a little bit of work and what we had around the house.  I realize that not everyone has this much stuff but it is great to recycle all the items you can so that they don't end up in a landfill instead of getting used to make something else.  The biggest bonus is we walk away with money.  I can't wait to fill up the truck again with what we have left in the garage to recycle!!

Have you ever scrapped? What tips do you have for us to know before going next time?

Spicy Honey Mustard Chicken Recipe

I read Supermarket Healthy cookbook and found my favorite recipe in the book to be Spicy Honey Mustard Chicken and most of the others weren't ones that I really loved but then I decided to try it.  Check it out on their website here.

I had some chicken that I got at Wegman's out for dinner and I didn't know what I was going to make so I decided to pull together some of the ingredients and make this recipe.

I mixed the ingredients to make the dredge for the chicken.  It looked a little gross for me but then I stirred.

It mixed up and looked like normal mustard and I only used the spatula because I knew that any lumps would bake out when it was in the oven.

I used a mix of crushed whole wheat Ritz and Panko breadcrumbs.  I didn't know anything about Panko breadcrumbs until I got a coupon for them and I love them now!  They make things extra crispy which is super useful when you are baking instead of frying so it makes it crispy but healthier.

I dipped the chicken into the mustard mixture and then pressed them into the bread crumb mixture.  I like a lot of bread crumbs so I pressed them in all over.  Then, my son decided that he wanted to help so he sprayed both sides of the chicken (I got to flip them).

I put them in the oven to bake.  I love the pizza pan because the holes in the pan mean that you don't have to flip things which is perfect for me because I am horrible at remembering to do those things and then everything goes badly.

I baked this a little long but I got a great chicken breast cutlet which I served with chicken rice for a great meal.  I am sure that I will make it again!!

I put my own twist on the recipe because that is what I do but I think that it turned out great.  My husband thought it was a little too sweet which was why I liked it so much.  I might add a little more hot sauce next time but since I didn't measure, I guess we will see how that turns out!!  I think that they would be perfect on their own or with dipping sauces too.  I look forward to trying to make them into buffalo chicken baked into buffalo sauce next time.  I think that will win my husband over next time!!

Spicy Honey Mustard Chicken

Ingredients

For the Honey Mustard:

1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons honey
1 tablespoon light mayonnaise (optional)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce (such as Frank's or Sriracha)

For the Chicken:

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 large chicken breasts) or 4 4-ounce chicken cutlets

Whole wheat cracker crumbs
Panko bread crumbs
Nonstick pan spray

Directions

To make the honey mustard: 

Whisk the mustard, honey, mayonnaise, and hot sauce together in a medium bowl.

To make the chicken: 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut chicken into strips or pound until thin.  Add the chicken to the bowl with the mustard mixture and turn to coat. In a second medium bowl, stir together the bread crumbs. Coat chicken with bread crumb mixture.  Spray each piece of chicken on both sides and set it on the pizza pan with holes. Bake the chicken until golden brown and cooked through, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Grace Book Review and Recipes from the Book

I was excited that my next book came off reserve but it took me so long to get to the library to get it that there actually two so I had to figure out which one to start with.  I picked Grace: A Christmas Sisters of the Heart Novel by Shelley Shepard Gray which was the holiday book that went with the Sisters of the Heart Novel series that I had already read.  I was trying to read a book that I found on my bookshelf at the house and I was having a horrible time getting through it so I was excited to get to read another really fast moving and interested book in this series.

It's Christmastime at the Brenneman Bed and Breakfast, and everyone is excited about closing down for the holidays. But when two unexpected visitors appear seeking shelter, the family's commitment to hospitality is tested. First Levi arrives, sullen and angry . . . but insisting on staying for five days. Next Melody shows up. She's almost nine months pregnant, but won't say a word about why she traveled all the way from Kentucky by herself. As the two strangers settle in, the Brennemans try to make the best of the situation, except for Katie, who knows a thing or two about keeping secrets. She is determined to learn the truth about these two strangers . . . all while keeping her own secret safely hidden away. The guests become part of the family through the week and there are many reveals of surprising secrets from the guests and the Brenneman family.

I really enjoyed the holiday cheer in the book that made you stop and look at all the things that you are grateful in your life.  The visitors at the bed and breakfast were going through tough times and trying to avoid the holidays by going away to enjoy the rest and relaxation of not being with family. While on the other hand, the Brenneman family was looking forward to a quiet holiday at home.  Nobody got what they expected and reading all the twists and turns with reveals makes for a good book.  As you learn the secrets about each person, more of the character is revealed and you get to like them even more.  I hope that you pick up this book and find out all of the secrets that it holds.  Get it the next time you are at your local library or bookstore and see what interesting reading this Amish fiction has that makes you grateful for your blessings in life.

In case you have never read one of the Amish fiction books, they sometimes have recipes in the back of them.  This book had two that looked really good (both sweets of course).  

Molasses Cookies

1 c butter
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1 c molasses
1 c sour milk
4 c flour
2 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda

Cream together butter, sugar, eggs and molasses and 1 tsp of baking soda.  Add dry ingredients with remaining 1 tsp of baking soda in sour milk.  Bake 375 degree until golden brown.

Best Cinnamon Rolls 

2 packets yeast
2 1/2 c water
1 box yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1/3 c oil
6 c flour
1 tsp salt

Melt margarine, brown sugar and cinnamon mix just enough to coat the tops of rolls (no measurements listed).

Dissolve yeast in warm water,  Add cake mix, eggs, oil, 1 cup flour and salt.  Beat until bubbles appear.  Slowly add remaining flour or enough to make soft dough that you can knead.  Let rise until doubled.

Roll dough 1/4 inch thick, spread with margarine, sugar and cinnamon mixed.  Roll up and slice.  Place slices in greased pans and let rise until doubled.  Bake at 350 degrees, 20 to 30 minutes.  Top with powdered sugar to glaze when cooled.

March Reading Review

I enjoyed reading a lot of books this month while trying to relax during the end of the construction project and selling our other house.  It was a lot to do but there was also a lot of waiting.  I was waiting in the car to pick up my son, waiting for the contractor to come in the 2 hour window and waiting for the contractors to finish so that I could go finish the other projects on the list.  I hope that you had a good month and enjoyed some good reading.  At one point this month, I had no books checked out the library for myself or my son so that was a first in ages.  We went without books for a very long time because we are always both reading something new but with not knowing what house we were going to be at, a lot of this month was up in the air.  Here is hoping that you enjoyed a little bit calmer month.

If you missed any of my reviews, please feel free to click on the title and it will open up my original review so that you can see if you would like to add it to your reading wish list.  I know that there were some really good books this month and I look forward to reading a few more next month!!  Stay tuned for more great reviews.

Mistletoe Courtship: Christmas Bells for Dry Creek and The Christmas Secret
by Janet Tronstad and Sara Mitchell

Blind Spot

by Reed Farrel Coleman

Supermarket Healthy
by Melissa D'Arabian

The Hope of Refuge

by Cindy Woodsmall

The Promise of Palm Grove
by Shelley Shepard Gray

A Baby for Dry Creek
A Dry Creek Christmas
by Janet Tronstad

Hidden
by Shelley Shepard Gray

Wanted
by Shelley Shepard Gray

Metro Girl
by Janet Evanovich

When Mercy Rains
by Kim Vogel Sawyer

When Grace Sings
by Kim Vogel Sawyer

Forgiven
by Shelley Shepard Gray

Total Books Read 2015

January       9

February     13
March         14 

Total Books    36