Britches & Boots - Go Texan Day 2011

It is Go Texan Day today. A day when school children dress in their finest cowboy/cowgirl duds and giddy on up to school. A day where even the checkout person at Kroger is in boots & jeans...oh and don't forget the hat. We are a proud state (to say the least) My husband teases me about not being born here, but that I got here as fast as I could! I always remind him that I have given birth to three Texans...that should count for something, right?! Go Texan Day is so much more than pulling your boots out of the closet and gearing up for Rodeo. It is a day to remember the rich history of the state we call home.

Chris sent me the following poem a few weeks ago.I loved it and wanted to share it on the blog, but decided to save it for Go Texan Day. I loved what he wrote about our children. Chris is a native Texan...born in Corpus and raised in Houston. He spent his summers frolicking in Wimberley... riding horses, swimming in Blue Hole, eating greasy burgers at The Burger Barn. Crude oil runs through his veins...He is Texas and now enjoys sharing the Texas from his childhood with our children. Our kiddos are the ones frolicking on our property in Wimberley...all three have splashed and laughed in Blue Hole under the towering Cypress trees. They love eating at Burger Barn..where the motto is "Today's Special - Take it or leave it". Chris has high hopes that at least one of our kiddos will make the oil business theirs...and I musn't forget UT Football (Hook 'Em Horns). Chris and I both went to UT and we are truly a burnt orange family. We are Texas. All of us are Texas...Aggies, Longhorns, Horn Frogs and Red Raiders...truly does not matter what flag flies in front of your house... we are all steeped in Texas history and traditions.

I hope you enjoy reading this poem as much as I did!

Thought of our kids when I read this poem. They're Texans, by God. That means something. I would've included one more that went something like.... When threatened, we respond with "Come and take it".



I am Texas.

I am humble beginnings and spectacular finishes.

I am the resting place of countless heroes and the birthplace of innumerable dreams.

I am the echo of long-ago words still ringing in the room where they were spoken.

I am a silent field hallowed by valiant blood.

I am the marker on an empty stretch of highway that lets you know that destiny visited here.

I am the scene of the crime, and the seat where it was brought to justice.

I am the fertile soil from which legends grow.

I am the understanding of what made us what we are, and the hope of what we can become.

I am a reminder to our generation that we stand on the shoulders of giants.

I am a stake driven in the ground that says, “Here we choose to remember and we will never forget.”

I am Texas.

Harrison's Favorite Pumpkin Muffins with Maple Butter

My entire family loves, loves, loves these muffins...but my son Harrison adores them!!! Talking true muffin love here :) You can use regular flour, all wheat flour or a combination of both. I prefer using half white flour with half white wheat flour. The key to these tasty treats is using FRESH ground nutmeg...the pre-ground stuff is just plain nasty! You can buy a nutmeg grater at Williams Sonoma, Sur la Table...TRUST ME...it is worth the trip to purchase one. A jar of whole nutmeg lasts forever and again is oh so worth the extra cost.

You can eat these as is, or spread with a bit of maple butter or turn em into cupcakes with a smear of vanilla cinnamon buttercream (already on the blog with my Monkey cupcakes.

Pumpkin Muffins


1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup sugar
1 generous cup organic pumpkin puree
1/2 cup canola oil
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice

Preheat oven to 350.

Sift together flour, salt baking powder and sugar in a medium bowl. In stand mixer combine remaining ingredients and mix on low until just blended. Add dry ingredients and blend on medium speed just until dry and wet are combined. Scrape down bowl with spatula.

Line 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners and fill each 3/4 full with batter. Bake 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool at least 5 minutes before serving.

To make cupcakes - let muffins cool completely and frost...enjoy!

Maple Butter

1 stick unsalted butter, softened
3 tbsp pure maple syrup
pinch kosher salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon

In a small bowl, mash softened butter with fork. Add syrup, salt and cinnamon. Whisk with fork to thorougly blend. Serve immediately or store in fridge until ready to use.

Chicken and Dumplings...Talk About Comfort Food

This is pure comfort food! The dumplings are more like fluffy biscuts than the chewy doughballs from our childhoods. I rarely find a recipe that I don't tweak and play with, but this one needs no modification from the original one I found in Fine Cooking Magazine...Enjoy!

For The Gravy

8 Tbs. (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup all-purpose flour
7 cups chicken stock (homemade or store bought is fine)
2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups diced carrots
2 cups diced celery

5 cups cooked chicken (I use a rotisserie chicken)


For The Dumplings

2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 scant tsp. kosher salt
1 tbs. finely chopped fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley
3 tbs. cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2/3 cup whole milk



In a large (8- to 10-quart), heavy-bottomed saucepan or soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and mix well to make a roux. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture is pale yellow and resembles fine, wet sand, about 3 minutes.

Whisk the stock into the roux a little at a time, allowing the roux to absorb the liquid before adding more (this will help avoid lumps). Add the salt, pepper, carrots, and celery. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, then lower the heat and gently simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Keep stirring occasionally and skim off any "scum" that rises to the surface.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, and parsley together in a large bowl, then cut in the butter using a pastry blender, two knives, or a whisk until it's in small pieces. (Alternatively, you can use a food processor: Place the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl of a food processor. Pulse several times to combine. Add the parsley and pulse once or twice to incorporate. Add the butter and pulse until the butter is in small pieces.)

Add the milk and stir or pulse to moisten the flour mixture. (Do not overmix or you will develop the gluten in the flour and the dumplings will be chewy.) Gather the dough into a ball.

Using a large spoon or your hands, scoop out 1/4-cup chunks of dough, lightly roll them between your palms to round them out, then drop into the simmering gravy (it's OK if they sink down), spacing them apart. Cover the pot and simmer until the dumplings are done (a knife inserted in the center should come out clean), about 20 minutes.

To serve

Gently stir the cooked chicken into the pot with the dumplings, return the liquid to a simmer, cover, and cook for 5 more minutes to heat the chicken through. Using a serving spoon or tongs, divide the chicken and dumplings among soup bowls. Ladle the gravy over the dumplings and chicken and serve.

Chicken Stroganoff with Egg Noodles

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts - sliced into thin strips
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 tbsp sweet paprika
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 can (14.5 ounces) chicken stock
1 cup sour cream
Kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper
1 package egg noodles, cooked according to package directions


In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil.

Add chicken and saute for about 5 minutes, until golden brown.
Remove chicken and reserve. Add mushrooms, onions, garlic powder and paprika to skillet and saute 2-3 minutes until onion has softened.

Return chicken to pan and stir in chicken broth. Cook, uncovered, over medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes until chicken is cooked through and liquid has reduced by half.

Remove from heat and add sour cream, stirring to combine well.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve over egg noodles

Ladybug's Brownie Bites

Emily and I came across this recipe earlier this week...what else are a mommy and sick little ladybug to do all day...She asked if we could make them today since her fever finally dropped to 100.8 (a major milestone for us)!

Nutella Brownies

1 cup Nutella
2 eggs
10 tbsp flour


Preheat oven to 350. Line a mini muffin pan with mini liners. In a medium bowl, whisk together Nutella and eggs. Whisk untill smooth. Add flour and stir to combine untill smooth and glossy. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full.

Bake 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on baking rack.

***You can dust these with powdered sugar once cooled or before popping in oven sprinkle with mini chocolate chips.

Slow Cooked Beef Carnitas

For Carnitas

2 lbs. lean beef stew meat, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3/4 cup mild salsa*
1-2 tbsp chopped chipotle peppers in adobe sauce**
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 cup beef stock

For Serving

flour tortillas
sour cream
grated cheese
guacamole


Combine all ingriendents in crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Taste and correct seasoning with salt & pepper. Using the back of a fork, "shred" the meat a bit. Stir carnitas and serve.

To Serve - top tortillas with some of the carnitas and add your fave toppings (sour cream, cheese, guac, chopped onions, additional salsa...whatever makes you happy).

*Use your favorite mild salsa.
** Depending on your family's tastebuds.

Jenn's Slow Cooked Pulled Pork

Super Easy and Super tasty! Serve on whole wheat hamburger buns...the whole family will rave about this one.

3 lbs pork tenderloin - cubed
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
6 oz can tomato paste
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tsp salt

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Cover, cook on high for 4 hours.
Shred meat with a fork and mix into sauce.