Book 2 of 2011 Kitchen House

"Orphaned while onboard ship from Ireland, seven-year-old Lavinia arrives on the steps of a tobacco plantation where she is to live and work with the slaves of the kitchen house. Under the care of Belle, the master's illegitimate daughter, Lavinia becomes deeply bonded to her adopted family, though she is set apart from them by her white skin.

Eventually, Lavinia is accepted into the world of the big house, where the master is absent and the mistress battles opium addiction. Lavinia finds herself perilously straddling two very different worlds. When she is forced to make a choice, loyalties are brought into question, dangerous truths are laid bare, and lives are put at risk.

The Kitchen House is a tragic story of page-turning suspense, exploring the meaning of family, where love and loyalty prevail."

#19 - Get a pernament job..

Goal accomplished! I accepted a pernament job in the Operating Room as a ward assistant, which is where I was working as a casual employee, in November. The job is pernament, however I am only guaranteed 6 shifts a pay (which is every 2 weeks), but I still have the opportunity to pick up more shifts in that department plus the other departments that I work casual in. Im still job hunting though, as come summer time the Operating Room is doing closures to save money, and with my low seniority I won't even get near 6 shifts a pay, and will be needing more income :( But fingers crossed, at least I have something!

:( A goal not completed.... yet?

One of my goals is to read 50 books in one year, which I started January 2010 and unfortunatley only made it to 30! I am all set and ready to go for 2011, starting with the book "Saving Max" by Antoinette van Heugten which is off my books to read list. Hopefully it will be a good start to reading for 2011!


"Max Parkman—autistic and whip-smart, emotionally fragile and aggressive—is perfect in his mother's eyes. Until he's accused of murder.

Attorney Danielle Parkman knows her teenage son Max's behavior has been getting worse—using drugs and lashing out. But she can't accept the diagnosis she receives at a top-notch adolescent psychiatric facility that her son is deeply disturbed. Dangerous.

Until she finds Max, unconscious and bloodied, beside a patient who has been brutally stabbed to death.

Trapped in a world of doubt and fear, barred from contacting Max, Danielle clings to the belief that her son is innocent. But has she, too, lost touch with reality? Is her son really a killer?

With the justice system bearing down on them, Danielle steels herself to discover the truth, no matter what it is. She'll do whatever it takes to find the killer and to save her son from being destroyed by a system that's all too eager to convict him."

2010 Christmas Cards

Very plain, but still happy with the result. Hoping to keep on making Christmas cards every year!

Thai Peanut Chicken

Officially my 25th recipe!! Another goal off the list, but I will continue posting new and yummy recipes!

Ingredients
1 13.5- or 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons red curry paste
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 chicken legs (thigh-drumstick piece) or two 1- to 1-1/2-pound Cornish game hens, halved
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons snipped fresh cilantro
2 cups hot cooked rice

Directions
1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together coconut milk and peanut butter until nearly smooth. Whisk in broth, soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, sesame oil, curry paste, ginger, garlic, and cayenne pepper. Bring just to boiling over medium-high heat; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. In a plastic bag, combine flour, salt, and black pepper. If desired, remove skin from chicken. Add chicken pieces, one at a time, to flour mixture, shaking to coat.
3. In a large skillet, cook chicken, half at a time, in hot oil until brown, turning occasionally. Transfer chicken to an ungreased 3-quart rectangular baking dish. Pour peanut butter mixture over chicken. Cover loosely with foil. Bake for 1 hour for chicken (1-1/2 hours for Cornish hens), occasionally spooning sauce over chicken. Bake, uncovered, for 20 to 30 minutes more or until chicken is very tender.
4. Transfer chicken to a serving platter. Skim fat from sauce in dish. Spoon some of the sauce over chicken. Sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with the remaining sauce and hot cooked rice. Makes 4 servings.

** I decided to use cooked and diced boneless skinless chicken breasts instead, and it turned out yummy, I also used crunchy peanut butter which was a nice extra. Really enjoyed this recipe!

Book # 30 - Little Bee

"We don't want to tell you what happens in this book. It is a truly special story and we don't want to spoil it. Nevertheless, you need to know enough to buy it , so we will just say this: This is the story of two women. Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice, the kind of choice we hope you never have to face. Two years later, they meet again. The story starts here..."

24.....Recipes!

I am at 24 recipes!! I only need one more new recipe and I will be scratching this goal off my list, help me go out with a bang and send me some really good recipes so I can make the last one memorable.