Hiccuppie

Dearest Boo,  I found these videos on YouTube and I could not resist, since you and I are such Cupcake Fiends.

When you were a wee one you were never really into dolls.  One time, much to my surprise you asked for a Cabbage Patch Doll.  There was such a craze for these bald headed cuties and I wanted to give you the world, so I was one of those awful parent who stood in line for hours and hours just to get our hands on one.  Once you got it the doll sat on a shelf in your bedroom, still in the package.  Pretty sure it is buried someplace in our basement today.  Then there was Barbie.  It was not exactly the Barbie doll that you wanted, it was all her horses.  First there was Tawney, then Dancer, Dallas, Midnight, Honey, Dixie, Silky Mane, Sun Runner and lastly for you Western Star.  Of course, we had to get a couple of Barbies and Skippers and Ken doll just so that you would have someone to ride your horses.  And, since their clothes were so hard for little fingers to put on, all your riders were, in all sense of the words, bare back riders.  Prancing around on your bedroom floor were Lord and Lady Godivas.

The only doll that you collected and even made any attempts to play with were the ones from the Strawberry Shortcake series.  Not sure what was the attraction with these dolls.  Maybe it was because each one was made to emit a long lasting fragrance based on fruits, flowers and candies.  And, a bonus for you, each one came with their own little pet.    Some of the ones you had were:

  • Huckleberry Pie and Pupcake Pie
  • Angle Cake and Souffle Skunk
  • Blueberry Muffin and Cheesecake Mouse
  • Strawberry Shortcake and Custard Cat
  • Orange Blossom and Marmalade Butterfly
  • Raspberry Tart and Rhubarb Monkey
  • Butter Cookie and Jelly Bear
  • Apricot and Hopsalot
  • Cherry Cuddler and Gooseberry
  • Lem and Ada with Sugar Woofer
  • Apple Dumplin’ and Tea Time Turtle
  • Cafe Ole
  • Mint Tulip
  • Lemon Meringue with Frappe
  • Almond Tea
  • Crepe Suzette with Eclaire
  • Purple Pie Man with Blueberry Bird
  • Sour Grapes with Dreg the Snake

Of course, you real true collectible love was the Breyer’s Traditional Horses.  No wait, it was a tie between Breyer’s and My Little Ponies.  The My Little Ponies were ever so much cheaper and we must have several 50 gallon tubes of them in our basement.  In looking at them I am embarrassed at how much I “enabled” this addiction of yours.   This line of plastic toys came out in 1983, the same time that your obsession with horses started.  Although, to be fair, most little girls have a slight obsession with horses at about this age.  They were the rage in the 1980’s and at one time outsold Mattel’s Barbie doll.  In thinking about all your MLP we own I am thinking that Hasbro should have sent me at least a thank you note for making that event happen all by myself.

According to WikiPedia  many different sets of Little Ponies were produced, starting with the Rainbow Ponies (which all sported rainbow-colored manes and tails) in 1983. Other variations included the So-Soft Ponies (which were entirely covered in flocking), Twinkle-Eyed Ponies (with small rhinestones in place of the eyes), Twice As Fancy Ponies (with sigils covering most of the body), and Brush n’ Grow Ponies (which had a longer-than-usual tail stored inside the body that could be drawn out through brushing).   There were also the Earth Ponies (which had symbols on their haunches representing their names), followed by the Pegasus Ponies, Unicorn Ponies, Flutter Wing Ponies, Windy Wing Ponies, and Summer Wing Ponies.  The last grouping of ponies that I can remember buying were the Sea Ponies.  Each night you could find the entire “fleet” of Sea Ponies in the bathtub with you.  I realized that I had to stop the buying insanity when the three inches of water in the tub was totally displaced by the gazillion Sea Ponies who filled the tub to overflowing.

As much as you loved the MLP and loved to play with them, the Breyer’s horses were on a totally different level.  And by “level” I mean shelves.  Your Breyer horses were named, for the most part, after breds of horses or a famous horse.  For you those were the ” Piece de resistance” to your collections.  This collections was not for playing, it was strictly for collecting.  The joy for you was to collect them for their beauty and for the sheer joy of the appreciation of their workmanship.  In looking at the horse it was as if some evil Wizard had zapped them down in scale.  They were just so perfect.  And the joy was also in the hunt for the latest model in this collection.  This was long before the Internet, so we had to rely on us blindly stumbling into a store and seeing the new horse on the self, as a new one came out maybe two or three times a year.

The last time I can remember our buying on was the day that will forever be known in our family as the “Day of the Knife”.  We were visiting some friends and the men were out golfing, so we three “girls” (Barb F. you and I) decided to go shopping.  As we were shopping when what do we discover but a new Traditional Breyer horse, of course we had to buy it.  Once we were in the car Barb and I started to talk and you asked if you could open up your horse.  Of course, no problem.  The box was opened and the horse was removed, only to discover that it was attached to the cardboard insert by those nasty plastic ties, problem.  Aha!  You remembered that I had a pocket knife in my purse, so you asked to use it, problem solved.  Barb and I were busy talking in the front seat and you were busy in the back seat, quietly setting about to release your horse.  In my memory what happened next could easily have been called “Nightmare on 120th Street”.  All I remember is your tiny little voice saying that you cut yourself, sticking your arm between the front seats for me to see, and then terror set in.  In my mind you had cut your artery and your blood was pumping in a steady beat, like a geyser, all over the front windshield, the car seats, Barb and myself.  I was too terrified to turn around to see if Freddy Krueger was in the back seat with you.  Luckily, my “momsense” kicked in and we got you to an emergency room.  My memory of the emergency room is blocked, thank God, as I am sure I was a screaming whack-a-doodle about the fact that my precious daughter was bleeding to death and it was all my fault for giving her that machete knife to injure herself.  After the poor nurses got me calmed down they assured me that your finger would only need a couple of stitches.  Seriously?  All that blood from a tiny finger cut??  Lord help me if ever I am in a real emergency!  Pretty sure I will not be any help at all.  Once we got out to Barb’s car I could clearly, and sanely, see that the “geyser” of blood in my mind’s eye was only maybe four big drops and took no time at all to clean up.  All in all, it may not have been that much, but it does make for a great “family legend” of the day we learned that you are not that good with knives and I am not that good with blood.  Oh, by the way…….Happy 17th Anniversary of the Great Finger Cut!  And I can say that you have learned how to use a knife correctly and safely.  Joy Rising!

A couple of  pictures of some of the 115 cupcakes that I made for Cindy’s Dad’s 80th birthday.  So much fun to get creative in the kitchen!  The flavors we decided upon were Red Velvet with Cream Cheese Frosting, Raspberry with White Chocolate Raspberry Frosting, Mint Chocolate with Grasshopper Frosting, Apple with Apple Cinnamon Frosting, Chocolate with Mocha Frosting, Key Lime with Toasted Coconut Frosting, Vanilla with Butterscotch Frosting.  My favorite was the Key Lime, but you loved them all.  Bless your heart!  Yesterday I made Dr. Pepper Cupcakes with Whipped Chocolate Frosting and some with Cherry 7-Minute Frosting.  Way too many for us to eat, however, bless your heart you do take after me, you want to take some to work for your co-worker to enjoy and I will spend this afternoon going up and down our street looking for some dear soul who will take the rest.

Above are the birthday cupcakes and below are the Happy Friday Chocolate Cherry Dr. Pepper cupcakes.

Here is the recipe for the Chocolate Cherry Dr. Pepper Cupcake.

Ingredients:

  • 2 1/4 c Dr. Pepper soda
  • 2 c sugar
  • 2 1/2 c cake flour
  • 2 whole eggs
  • 4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
  • 1/2 c maraschino cherry syrup
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 sticks unsalted butter
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 c sour cream

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
  2. In a medium size sauce pan bring Dr. Pepper and cherry syrup to a boil.
  3. Place chocolate and butter into a bowl and pour hot Dr. Pepper mixture over it; cover and let set for 10 minutes.
  4. Whisk mixture until smooth.
  5. Stir in sugar, salt, cinnamon, baking soad, baking powder, vanilla and sour cream.
  6. Add flour in two parts, alternating with the eggs and whisk until smooth.
  7. Fill cupcake cups 2/3 full (please note mixture will be very runny).
  8. Bake approximately 15-20 minutes or until skewer comes out clean.
  9. Frost as desired.

Seven Minute Cherry Frosting

Ingredients:

  • 4 egg whites
  • 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
  • 2/3 c maraschino cherry syrup (you may need more)
  • 2# powdered sugar (also called confectioners sugar)
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Directions:

  1. In  sauce pan that is large enough for bowl to rest inside, but not touching the bottom of the sauce pan, place enough water to make water bath for frosting.  To do this place empty bowl into sauce pan making sure that the water comes to slightly below the bottom of the bowl (making your own double boiler).  The steam from the water will cook the frosting.
  2. Place the sauce pan on medium high and allow water to boil.  Should take just a couple of minutes.
  3. Put egg whites, cream of tartar, powdered sugar and salt into heat proof bowl.
  4. Using hand mixer pour 1/2 c of the cherry syrup into the mixture and mix for one minute.
  5. Place the bowl over the saucepan, allowing the edge of the bowl to rest on the edge of the sauce pan, and beat on high for seven minutes, adding more cherry syrup as needed to obtain desired consistency.
  6. Scrape down the sides of the bowl so that the frosting will not turn into large meringue cookie.
  7. Frost cupcakes.

Now Everyone, But You, Know The Rest of the Story

Dearest Boo,  well it’s out there.  It’s out there in Bloggerland.  And I am not sorry at all.  I saw a notice that a production company was looking for help for a car commercial.  After reading all the qualifications, the non-disclosure agreement, the time frame when they wanted to do the shoot, and how big my part would be, I quickly signed on the dotted line.  Imagine my surprise to learn that not only would I be paid for my time, but every time the commercial was shown on are I would get a residual check!  Holy Schnickey!!  Who needs a job??  I figured that with all the times this is on television, and you know it’s on a ton – you can hardly watch a show without it playing at least one – I would be able to retire a wealthy old broad.  I figured that I would be safe……….I can admit it, accept my responsibility and be totally safe.  You will never know what I did!  I have know put out this information online and the whole will know about it.  And why won’t you know?  Why am I feeling safe?  Why am I jumping for joy?  Is it because I got my first residual check for the month of May – for the tidy sum of $2.09?  Happy times are here again…………I can retire with ease.  Why if you multiple the $2.09 by twelve my yearly check will be $25.08.  Life is good!  So, now you know…………your messy bedroom is out there for the whole world to see!

Okay, not really.  I was just fooling.  This commercial does not show your exact bedroom.  I was just trying to shame you into cleaning.  Truth be told, you probably get your desire from cleaning from me.  Now it’s time for my confession: I don’t enjoy cleaning.  Keeping my house clean (even by my low standards) is a constant struggle for me.    I really do love a clean house.  Unfortunately, what I hate… is actually doing it.

Our basement would make it on a segment of “Hoarders” without a doubt.  When it comes to cleaning time I do try to find a place for everything and everything in it’s place.  The problem is that I have too much of “everything” and not enough places, so when I cannot find a place for the “stuff” it gets relegated to the basement.  The basement has piles and piles and boxes and boxes.  I swear, one day last week I was down there looking for some items I needed for a sewing project.  I know that some of the piles moved!!  And I know that they multiplied by themselves.  There are the patio chairs that I need to get upstairs and out to the back yard.  There is the hammock that I need to get upstairs and out to the back yard.  There are the planters that I need to get upstairs and out to the yard, filled with flowers.  And once they are out there, in now time at all it will be the fall and back down stairs they all go.

It’s just like that with cleaning.  You do it once and then you have to do it all over again next week or in two weeks or in a month……whatever.  How pointless is all that???  I have tried to make a “game” out of cleaning.  Like if I clean one room I can read three chapters in the latest murder thriller on my night stand.  That kind of works, except that I always read more than three chapters.   Or I can listen to my favorite cleaning song,   “Old Time Rock ‘n Roll” by Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band, as long as I am dusting or cleaning the hardwood floors.  I had to stop that when I got a glimpse of myself in the bathroom mirror sliding up and down the floor with used dryer sheets taped onto my feet while I was in my “white dress shirt and tighty-whities” singing into the spray can of Pledge.  Thank goodness the living room draperies were closed tight.  Pretty sure that the neighbors would have had a petition to get me out of the neighborhood started after that sight.  That cleaning gene must have skipped right over me and gave my dose to your aunts.  Their homes are always so clean…….pretty sure that I can do the white glove routine over any surfaces in their homes and the glove would be spotless.

Maybe they are really a Disney Princess who has slipped away from Disney World and is living here among the humans.  You know, like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  I can just see Aunt Bev singing this to her two grandsons:

Those two boys are always clean and when you go to her home you cannot tell that two little boys live there.  I think you can almost eat off her floor.  Amazing.  Or your Aunt Rose……..I have been there while she was cleaning.  And I cannot be certain, but I am pretty sure she is so cheerful that if I close my eyes I can see/hear this scene from “Cinderella”

Even when I try to sing those songs while I clean it just will not do the trick to make cleaning a “happy” chore.  Why, I have even tired checking into buying Hazmat suits for us to change into before we enter the house.  THAT would surely cut down on the dirt, but when I realized that it would do nothing to help with the clutter or clean the toilet bowls or scrub the shower/tub/sinks or do the laundry or mop the floors  or load the dishwasher or clean the windows.

However, if we were like your Aunt Teri life would be so much easier.  Her sweet daughter, Amanda, lives to clean.  To NOT be able to clean would be punishment for her.  Since it is summer I am thinking that I may have to invite that sweet girl to our home for a week of “fun” with us.  To come here to clean would be like winning the lottery in her world.  Of course, once she has done her thing here, we will have to move out just so that it would stay that way.  Guess that won’t work.

And lastly is your Aunt Charlotte who I think has found the “Secret” to a clean house.  She likes things to be perfectly clean, but just does not appear to be working hard while she is making it happen.  I am not at her home enough to discover her exact secret.  However, it is my belief that she uses the “10 Minute Rule for Cleaning”.  How does that work?  You set up a timer for 10 minutes exactly (a timer is an absolute must if you really want to get motivated.)  As soon as the timer starts, it’s basically “Ready, Set… GO!!!”  You then have exactly 10 minutes to do anything and everything necessary to help you get your home back into shape. This can include making the bed, washing the dishes, picking up dirty laundry from the floor, scrubbing the bathtub, dusting the shelves, sweeping the floor, vacuuming the rug, WHATEVER…  You don’t have to do everything on the list… You just have to keep going until the timer goes off.  That’s the rule: Once the timer goes off, you immediately stop what you are doing and postpone it for another day.  Next day, same thing. Timer – Do what you can – Back to life.  Pure Genius!  It’s every lazy person and procrastinator’s dream!

Oh well, there is one thing that has to be done daily that I do love to do – cook.  And part of the fun of cooking is finding and trying out new recipes.  I found this one while watching “Guy’s Big Bite” on the FoodNetwork.  It is not a hard recipe, just takes time so you need to be sure that you start early enough in the day.  It is so delicious, that I know we will have this again and soon.  I could spend all day cooking.  For me, it is Joy Rising!

Holla  Beef  Enchiladas

Prep Time:   1 hour

Cook  Time:     4 hrs   45 mintues

Source:   Guy  Fieri

Ingredients

  • 5 1/2 pounds chuck, trimmed and cut into 2-inch cubes
  • 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil, plus more for frying
  • 2 yellow onions, peeled and sliced in 1-inch rounds
  • 8 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
  • 1 cup low-sodium beef stock
  • 1/2 cup white vinegar
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • Enchilada sauce, recipe follows
  • 16 (6-inch) corn tortillas
  • 2 cups grated Cheddar
  • 2 cups grated pepper jack cheese
  • 1/2 cup sliced green onions
  • 1 (6-ounce) can sliced black olives
  • 1 cup sour cream, for garnish

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Trim, cut, pat dry and season the beef with salt and pepper.
  3. Coat the bottom of a large heavy Dutch oven with oil. Heat the oil, over medium heat, and brown the beef, in batches, being careful to not crowd. Add 1 tablespoon of oil, if needed, to finish the beef. As the beef browns, remove it to a bowl and keep warm.
  4. Add 1 tablespoon of canola oil to the pot over medium heat and add the onions; cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
  5. Add the garlic, cook for 1 minute more, then stir in the stock to deglaze the pan.
  6. Add the browned beef, the vinegar and the water and cover tightly.
  7. Put the pot in the oven and after 45 minutes, give the beef a stir.
  8. Cover and cook for an additional 2 hours and 15 minutes, stirring every 30 to 45 minutes.
  9. Remove from oven and let cool for 20 to 30 minutes.
  10. Shred with forks, incorporating the onions and garlic.
  11. When ready to assemble, put 1/2 cup enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking pan.
  12. Heat a medium saute pan over medium-high heat with just enough enchilada sauce to coat the bottom.
  13. Dip the tortillas, 1 at a time, into the sauce, and cook until tender, about 1 minute each.
  14. Combine the cheeses in a medium bowl.
  15. Remove the enchiladas to a flat surface. Fill each with some of the shredded meat and cheese, (reserve some cheese for the top of the baking pan).
  16. Roll and arrange them, seam side down, in the baking pan, packing the enchiladas tightly.
  17. Add additional sauce to come 1/3 up the sides of the enchiladas, then sprinkle a line of cheese, lengthwise, down the center of the pan.
  18. Garnish with green onions and black olives.
  19. Bake until bubbly, about 25 to 30 minutes.
  20. Remove from the oven, let sit for 5 minutes and then serve with sour cream.

Caesars Enchilada Sauce:

  • 4 cups boiling water
  • 3 ounces dried California chile pods
  • 6 ounces dried guajillo chile pods
  • 2 ounces dried pasilla chile pods
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil
  • 1 yellow onion, peeled and chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 (28-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, preferably fire roasted
  • 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions:

  1. Add the boiling water to a large bowl and add all of the chiles. Let steep in water for 1 hour.
  2. Transfer the chiles and the steeping liquid to a blender and puree for 3 to 4 minutes.
  3. Remove from the blender and strain through strainer.
  4. Heat the oil in heavy saucepan over medium heat.
  5. Add the onions and garlic, saute until soft.
  6. Stir in the diced tomatoes, strained chiles, oregano, cumin, salt, black pepper and cloves.
  7. Cover, lower the heat and simmer for approximately 30 minutes.

Come Into My Parlour Said the Spider to the Fly


Dearest Boo,  in the book “Alice in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll, beloved by so many children and made into a cartoon from Disney and now a wonderful movie.  This beloved story is almost 150 years old and the style of the story telling is still popular today.  One of your favorite musicals we were able to see last year was “Wicked”. Another all time favorite story is that of “Peanuts” where the dog, Snoppy, has very human traits.

The story of “Alice” starts when the Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson and the Reverend Robinson Duckworth rowed in a boat, on July 4th, 1862 up the River Thames with three young girls (Lorina, Alice, and Edith) in their charge.  To while away the time the Reverend Dodgson told the girls a story that, not so coincidentally, featured a bored little girl named Alice who goes looking for an adventure.

The girls love the story, and Alice asked Dodgson to write it down for her.  After a lengthy delay, over two years, he eventually did so and on November 26th, 1864 he gave Alice the handwritten manuscript of “Alice’s Adventures Under the Ground”, with illustrations by Dodgson himself.

It tells the story of a girl named Alice who falls down a rabbit hole into a fantasy world populated by peculiar and anthropomorphic (animals/plants that are given “human” characteristics and features) creatures.  The tale plays with logic in ways that have given the story lasting popularity with adults as well as children.  It is considered to be one of the best examples of the literary nonsense genre, and its narrative course and structure have been enormously influential, especially in the fantasy genre.

When you were a wee one we did have so much fun reading the story and having our very own tea parties.  It was so cute to see you acting like a grown up lady having tea with the Queen of Hearts.  It was during this time that we started collecting all kinds of teapots and we started the tradition of having a pot of tea every night in your bed, talking over the events of your day.  It was such a treat for me to hear about what was important to you that day.  How school went, how you were doing in 4-H, how were your friendships going, what fun things you experienced.  It was my favorite time of the day and all too soon you were in middle school and this tradition ceased to be.

After Alice had fallen down the rabbit-hole and had passed through her first transformation, when she shut up like a telescope until she was only ten inches high and then grew bigger and bigger until ‘her head struck the roof of the hall’, she became confused as to her identity. To make sure of it, she tried to repeat a little poem which everybody in those days knew by heart, and to such children is was very funny when it came out all wrong and Alice says,

The Spider And The Fly
Mary Howitt

‘Will you walk into my parlour?’ said the spider to the fly,
Tis the prettiest little parlour that ever you did spy,
The way into my parlour is up a winding stair,
And I’ve got many curious things to show when you are there.’
‘Oh, no, no,’ said the little fly, ‘to ask me is in vain,
For whoever goes up your winding stair can ne’er come down again.’

However,  Dodgson’s version in the story:

“Will you walk a little faster?” said a whiting to a snail.
“There’s a porpoise close behind us, and he’s treading on my tail.
See how eagerly the lobsters and the turtles all advance!
They are waiting on the shingle–will you come and join the dance?

Will you, won’t you, will you, won’t you, will you join the dance?
Will you, won’t you, will you, won’t you, won’t you join the dance?

Now, you may wonder where in the world is this story going?  Does it have any logical end?  Well, here is the deal.  I have been doing some crafts that I discovered on the internet.  I found this simple bird feeder/bath that I thought was so adorable I just had to try it out.  Once I had all the materials gathered it took me maybe two minutes, plus drying time for the epoxy.  Since I put it into the front pond garden it has been such a joy to sit in the living room window and watch the activity.  Next project is to make a butterfly feeder.  Here is a picture of the famed bird feeder/bath.

The cup holds the water for the bath, the saucer holds the food for the feeder portion and as an extra bonus I added the spoon (on the saucer on the right side) as a bird perch.  It’s like sitting on a bar stool in a diner eating at the bar, but for birds.

Knowing that we were going to have chicken for dinner that night I did feel a bit guilty.  It’s like I was luring the poor birds to their last supper.  And all that thinking was really goofy, as we were not eating Redwing Blackbirds, we were having chicken.  Pretty sure that if a chicken could manage to climb up the copper pole two feet to get to the perch, everything would fall to the ground from the excess weight.  For some reason the words “come into my parlour” kept playing in my mind as I watched the birds.  Weirdo!  However, on the upside, the birds are happy with their new “Bed and Breakfast” and I am enjoying watching Mother Nature’s creatures.  Joy Rising!

Oven  “Fried”  Chicken

Prep Time: 15 minutes, plus 1 hour+ for soaking time

Cook  Time: 10 minutes frying, 1 hour baking at 325 degrees

Source: I have no idea!!

Ingredients:

  • 1 quart buttermilk
  • chicken  (I use thighs and breasts)
  • 1/4 c oil
  • 1/2 c flour
  • 1/2 c breadcrumbs
  • salt and pepper

Directions:

  1. Earlier in the day,  or at the very least 20 minutes, place chicken into bowl and cover with buttermilk.  Place in refrigerator to marinade.  This step helps the chicken to stay juicy during the baking process.
  2. When ready to start the frying/baking process preheat oven to 325 degrees.
  3. Pat chicken dry and place onto plate.
  4. Get your “breading” station ready by placing flour into one pan, extra buttermilk (or milk if you don’t have any more buttermilk available) in a second pan, and the breadcrumbs (with 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper mixed together) into a third pan
  5. Place skillet on medium setting on your stove.
  6. Place oil in skillet, about 2 T at a time.
  7. While skillet is coming up to temp, place the largest piece of chicken into the flour and pat off the excess flour.
  8. Then place chicken piece into the buttermilk (or milk).
  9. Then into the breadcrumb mixture.
  10. Carefully place this piece of chicken into the skillet.
  11. Repeat the process with the remaining pieces, one at the time.
  12. Do not crowd the skillet.  You want to “fry” the chicken.  Add more oil as necessary.
  13. After about five minutes check to see if the chicken has the desired “browness”.  The chicken will finish baking in the oven, this process is just to get a “brown” appearance on the chicken.
  14. Turn over chicken piece and brown the second side.
  15. Once the chicken is brown place into baking pan.
  16. Place the pan into the oven and bake at 325 degrees for about one hour.  Please note, if your chicken is “on the bone” or if it is extra large it may take longer than one hour.
  17. Using your thermometer check to see when chicken reaches 165 degrees.
  18. Remove from oven and let set for ten minutes to redistribute the juices.

Enjoy!