Los Porchs

It's hard to believe that December will be upon us this week already... Because I've been doing our holiday shopping for a while now, it's hard to get into the holiday spirit.  Well, that and we just got back from 11 days on the road.  And I refuse to participate in Black Friday shopping.  Malls?  Tons of people?  A stampede for a deal I can find online on Cyber Monday?  No thanks. Tonight, we decorated our tree and hung our stockings (omg are they hideous) and it seems to have gotten us off on the right foot.  Also?  I jammed to some Christmas music at work today which was pretty great. The best part of putting up the tree is admiring all of our ornaments that family & friends have shared with us over the years. I received this angel the year my cousin Kristen passed away and she's been gracing our tree ever since. I'm so thankful for the time I got to spend with Kristen in her short time with us. Best guardian angel out there. xo Our tree has a b

We make our own chicken nuggets up in hurr. Step 1: Cut boneless chicken breasts into nugget size (and then question why it's called a nugget anyway). Step 2: Squish those little nuggets in an egg wash Step 3: Roll each nugget (I've also attempted a Shake & Bake situation but wasn't as happy with the results) in a mix of breadcrumbs, cheese, and seasoning. Sometimes, we throw some crushed red pepper in there to make the nuggets spicy. They never disappoint. Step 4: Throw that shit in the oven (350) for about 8 minutes on each side and then they are ready for your enjoyment.  We also enjoy having this with pasta or my personal favorite, spaghetti squash.  New to the squash game?  Cut that puppy in half, gut it like a cantaloupe, fill w/ 1/4C of water and place it in a microwave-safe dish so it won't roll around -- sometimes, that means cutting the bottom of the squash a bit so that you can rest it in the dish.  I usually micr

After enjoying some drunken gummy treats in La Crosse at this year's Oktoberfest, Porch & I agree that they are delicious.  And Porch, like always, had a hypothesis and the scientist in me just couldn't resist: What would the gummy bears taste like if they were soaked in bourbon? Seeing how I am not  a bourbon gal, I agreed to partake in the study if I could also make the control, vodka gummy bears, to his variable. It's not often that Porch agrees to try one of the many projects I've seen on Pinterest, so I jumped on the chance to involve him in the cooking process.   Did you see our post about Jolly Rancher Vodka ?  Still anxiously awaiting the tasting of that delicious concoction.   And hey, it's Friday night, so why not?! Porch's experimental batch  {just keep swimming} {control} The process is really quite simple, provided you have patience.  Depending on how large your container is, add the gummy bears and cover wi

While visiting my parents this past weekend, I had the opportunity to taste the "Jolly Rancher Vodka" that I had seen on Pinterest many times over.  There's something both fantastic and scary as hell about a vodka that tastes like hard candy without the bite.  Fantastically scary?  Consider it done. I made it my mission to create such a thing that we could enjoy while up north this winter fall.  Let's be honest, who wants to wait until winter?!  After work today, I practically skipped over to the grocery store near by and picked up 2 (!!!) 1.75s of vodka.  Los Porchs totally endorse/support Svedka.  Delicious and without the cringe after sipping a drink made with it.  PLUS!  I also picked up some Jolly Ranchers and canning jars.  While I hope  I appeared to be a Becky Home-ecky, I'm almost positive I just looked like a backwoods drunk. Step 1:  Buy your shit  For real.  TWO.  It didn't hit me until I saw the empty bottles in the recyclin

Day 6 It goes without saying that we are thankful for our right to vote.  To have a voice in important decisions that will shape our lives as well as the lives of future Mini Porches is something that we don't take lightly.  Further, if you didn't vote -- I will be the first to tell you to shut the hell up with your complaints about the results.