Paisley has Arrived!!!

UPDATE: More pics added.

My life is forever changed. My baby girl was born on Monday, July 26. And after several days of being home and adjusting to life as a mom, I can say being a mom is the best ever.

Paisley made her arrival on her time. I had contractions off and on for a week and then Sunday morning starting having them regularly! They came in hour intervals for several hours so I started trying everything in the book to speed things along, from walking the dogs, to doing exercises and finally landed on playing Guitar Hero. The husband and I rocked it out for like 3 hours until I couldn't make it through a single song without having a contraction! The bag was packed and we were off to the hospital.

Last shot of me before we left the house

I called my parents and sister and Eric called his family. Within 30 minutes everyone was at the hospital and I was well on my way to delivering a baby for the very first time! Check out my sister's blog for a glimpse on how the day shook out for her. It's an amazing post.

Here are some more pics she got that day:

Eric's grandma and aunt and my mom entertaining themselves in the waiting room!

Like I said, Paisley took her own time making her debut so my dad took a minute to rest his eyes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank goodness for epidurals!
 

 One of my favorite pics from the day!

My new family!

Salmon Burgers from the Tasty Kitchen

photo from Tasty Kitchen

If you live in Oklahoma, chances are, you've heard of The Pioneer Woman. Although I've never read her cookbook, I hear it's amazing. I know tons of people that are HUGE fans and highly recommend the book. I'll have to check it out one of these days.

This recipe is not a "Pioneer Woman" recipe, it's a Tasty Kitchen recipe. Ree, aka the Pioneer Woman, has created a website (Tasty Kitchen) where people can find, share and cook their favorite recipes. I love this site because it's really easy to find great recipes and most all have photos - which is kind of a must for me when trying something new. If it doesn't look good, I don't want really want to try it.

When it comes to dinner at my house I usually decide on a meat to cook. I like making and trying news things so I'll do a quick search on Martha Stewart Food and then head over to Tasty Kitchen to see what I can find. Last night was salmon night and I found this recipe for salmon burgers with greek yogurt and dill. It was fast, easy and most importantly, delicious!!

Blackened (Cat) Fish Tacos

Before I can share the recipe, I think I have to explain a little on how we acquired the fish.

The husband went fishing noodling (the most primitive form of fishing known to man.) For those of you that have never heard of noodling, it's basically fishing with your hand. People usually do this type of fishing in the lake or rivers. The "fisherman" swims around the banks looking for holes that catfish may live in. When he finds a catfish in a hole he tries to get the fish to bite his hand so he can pull the fish out of the hole. Sounds fun right!? Don't worry, I think it's stupid too. Anyway, once the fish opens it's mouth to bite, the "fisherman" sticks his hand in its mouth and tries to get his fingers out through the gills so he can stick his other hand in the hole and grab his fingers - making a lock of sorts. Then, out comes the catfish.

So, that's how we got the meat used to make Blackened Catfish Tacos!

I made some firecracker slaw and salsa fresca for the topping.

Firecracker Slaw:

 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 head red cabbage - thinly sliced
• 1/2 cabbage - thinly sliced
• 1/2 dill pickle spear - seeds removed and finley diced, plus a T of pickle liquid
• 1 T malt vinegar
• 1/4 C chipotle mayo
• 1 t sugar
• 1 t celery seed
• fresh lemon juice and sea salt to taste

Slice the cabbages and put in a small bowl.

Mix the remaining ingredients together and then pour on the cabbage. Stir until coated and refrigerate.

Salsa Fresca

Ingredients:

• 1 tomato - diced
• 1 small onion - diced
• 1/2 bell pepper - diced
• 1 jalapeno - diced
• 1/2 bunch cilantro - diced
• fresh lemon juice to taste

Simply dice all the ingredients, mix in a small bowl and toss with a little lemon juice.

Blackened Catfish Tacos
Rinse meat and pat dry. Season the meat with freshly ground black pepper, Essence of Emeril and red pepper.

Heat peanut oil in a cast iron skillet until very hot, about 10 minutes. Place seasoned filets in hot oil and cook 3-5 minutes on each side. Remove from oil and set on paper towel to drain grease.

Heat a flour tortilla, put a little chipotle mayo on it, top with several blackened catfish filets, then top with firecracker slaw and salsa fresca.I think cheese makes everything better, so I added a little shredded cheese to mine.

ENJOY! Now all you have to do is noodle a catfish!

And since we're on the subject of noodling...here's a little fun fact for you. The 11th Annual Okie Noodling Tournament is THIS weekend in Pauls Valley!

So here are a couple of sites for your noodling enjoyment:
www.okienoodling.com
www.paulsvalley.com/noodling

Ways to Eat Strawberries

1. Strawberry Pancakes



I chopped up fresh strawberries and added them to the pancake batter before cooking and then topped them with sliced strawberries and homemade whipped cream! Deliciousness.

2. Wilted Lettuce Salad with Sliced Strawberries



I topped fresh greens picked from the garden with sliced radishes, sliced onions, crumbled bacon and sliced strawberries before wilting the lettuce. This is a summer must.

3. With Dry Cereal



I love eating Cheerios dry - I actually like it better than with milk. So it seems only fitting to add fresh picked strawberries from the garden along side it!

4. Fresh Picked from the Garden





Just rinse and eat. Tough to beat.

5. In a spring salad



6. And, one of my favorites, Strawberry Shortcake with homemade whipped cream!

Good on pound cake:


Even good on lady fingers:


But they're great on homemade angel food cake!


And now I think I'll go grad some strawberries I stored away in the freezer