A Settled Week

Walking at Proctor — where they were mowing.

It was a wonderfully normal week this week. Katie was traveling in Indianapolis, Jack was busy at the fire station and I got to walk every day with the dogs either at The Rail Trail or The Morris Trail. We only got rained on once. The rest of the days were really beautiful and not too hot. We ran into a couple of our dog friends which is always a lot of fun especially for Percy.

Mushrooms We Saw

I have no idea what kind of mushrooms these were but they were fascinating and caught my eye enough that I stopped and took a picture of them. Each one was totally different. I didn’t think we had enough rainy weather to encourage the mushrooms but I guess we did. This made for a very interesting walk.

Monday’s Surprise

As many of you know I enjoy making Christmas stockings for my children and grand children. This is Orin’s which I started for him before he was born. It definitely wasn’t ready for him last Christmas but it is now done and the finish work completed. I’m not sure which one is my favorite but this one comes pretty close. I love all the different animals and birds in it. As with all the other stockings each one has some threads that were used in the first and subsequent stockings which ties them together in a very special way.

A Wabun Red Canoe at Jenny Lane

Jack managed to come home with a Wabun canoe on top of his car. I guess they retire them when they get too old and need too much work and the staff have a chance to get one. This one needs a lot of repair but Jack doesn’t seem to mind. He has been working on making it able to float again (I’d say that is a prerequisite for a canoe) and then he is going to fix the gunnels and spiff it up. Meanwhile it is living in the garage.

A Delicious Recipe to Share

Once again Half-Baked Harvest comes to the rescue. This was so easy to make in the crock pot and it smelled delicious while it was cooking. Give it a try.

Crockpot Basil Butter Chicken

Photo by Half-Baked Harvest

2 pounds boneless chicken breasts or thighs, cubed cubed
⅓ cup plain Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons red curry paste
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon grated ginger
2 tablespoons garam masala
½ teaspoon chipotle chili powder
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 ½ teaspoons chili flakes
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 can (6 ounce) tomato paste
1 can (14 ounce) coconut milk
4 tablespoons salted butter
2 zucchini, chopped
½ cup chopped fresh basil
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

CROCKPOT

1. In the bowl of your crockpot, combine the chicken, yogurt, curry paste, garlic, ginger, garam masala, chili powder, cayenne, and 1 teaspoon salt. Toss to coat the chicken. Let sit 10 minutes. Add the onion, tomato paste, and coconut milk. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or on high for 2-3 hours. 

2. During the last hour of cooking, mix in the butter and zucchini. Crank the heat to high. Stir in the basil and cilantro. Cook uncovered for 15 minutes until thickened. 

3. Serve the chicken, zucchini, and sauce over bowls of rice with fresh basil and cilantro. Enjoy!