Foodie Friday: Garlic Chicken Bites

Today feels like Saturday, dear reader. Our local school district has given the students and staff a four-day weekend. Having The Bean home always throws off my schedule. Today, we will all work in the shop, preparing for the upcoming holidays and fulfilling fundraiser orders. It has been a busy few weeks since we returned from our vacation. If I am being transparent, I have not been doing a lot of elaborate cooking since our return. Many nights have been filled with easy stir-fry recipes, breakfast for supper, and simple grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup. Now that winter's weather is approaching, I must restock my pantry and get back into meal planning. My to-do list is placing an online order for bulky things I don't want to haul from the store to the car and then the car to the house. I like to order things like laundry detergent, paper products, dog food, and personal hygiene products online. It makes my life easier and more convenient.

The one meal I have made recently that my family considers outstanding is a simple garlic chicken bite stir fry. It is one pan, very quick, effortless, and very delicious. On the nights we work in the studio until seven or eight o'clock, it is imperative to have something quick and easy. My child has always been a picky, nonadventurous eater, so when she declares a meal is delicious and has seconds, I consider it a success. This dish can be served over pasta or rice. I served it with a side of broccoli and parmesan cheese. We had no leftovers, a tell-tale sign that it was a good meal.

I found this recipe on Pinterest. According to him, Pinterest is the bane of The Bibbed Wonder's existence. Insert an eye roll and a long, laborious sigh right here. If I spent half as much time doing the things I pin rather than looking at pins, I would be a force of nature. However, Pinterest inspires me and gives me a lot of really good ideas. The Bibbed Wonder believes all husbands should band together and take down Pinterest, claiming it would be a victory for handy husbands everywhere. He's a lot. Without further delay, Garlic Chicken Bites.

Garlic Chicken Bites

(Provided by Wholesome Yum)

Ingredients:

2 lbs. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-size pieces

2 tsp. Italian Seasoning

2 Tbls. Minces Garlic

4 Tbls. Butter

1 tsp. Smoked Paprika

2 Tbls. Parsley

1/2 tsp. Onion Powder

2 Tbls. Olive Oil

1 tsp. Sea Salt

1/2 tsp. Black Pepper

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels.

In a large bowl, season the chicken pieces with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Mix well to coat.

Heat the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.

Reduce heat to medium and add the chicken pieces in a single layer. Cook the chicken bites for 5-8 minutes, flipping to different sides every 2-3 minutes, until golden brown on all sides but not fully cooked. (The Internal temperature should be about 150-155 degrees F (66-68 degrees C).)

Reduce heat to low. Add the butter pieces to the pan and mix to coat the chicken. Cook for 1-3 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. It should reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F (74 degrees C). Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.

I hope you try and enjoy this easy, delicious recipe. It's great to make on a busy night and so much better for you than takeout or fast food. On this Friday that feels like a Saturday, stay safe, be smart, eat at home, eat good food, and keep washing your hands.

Winter Projects

Although I plan to take the months after the holiday rush to revamp our everyday varieties of soap and moisturizer and develop a few new products (can you say hyaluronic acid facial serum with goat's milk???!!!), I also have a few projects around the farm that I am working on. Living on a farm offers endless opportunities to jump into something new and interesting. I am also an avid do-it-yourselfer and enjoy a challenge. Most of the home projects are my doing. The Bibbed Wonder hates to do home improvement projects. However, he is always reluctantly willing to help me out should I get in over my head.

I am currently working on our dining room. I recently finished our hallway and keeping room off the kitchen, and now I am painting the dining room from ceiling to floor. I am in the final stages of painting the floor, but alas, most of my focus is on the soap studio because our rock star soap family keeps us busy packing orders and restocking inventory. My goal is to have the dining room and kitchen painted and completed by Thanksgiving. I don't believe that is a realistic goal at this point. I will complete my dining room, but the kitchen will take a lot of time and energy. I may have the ceiling and walls painted in the kitchen, but I don't think I can finish the cabinets by the holiday. I also have a few ideas I will need help with, like changing out the kitchen faucet, removing upper cabinets, and adding two sets of open shelves. I don't usually do anything with electrical work, like changing out light fixtures. However, I rewired two vintage lamps and have not burned the house down yet. I like the light fixtures my mom chose, so I will keep those. However, I have never worked on plumbing, and changing a faucet feels very intimidating. I will need my bib overall wearing buddy for that project.

I am pleased that our barn roof project is now complete. Stage one happened before our festival. We completed the east-facing side of the barn roof. This week, stage two, the west side of the barn roof and the milking parlor roof were finished. I am pleased with the final results. We went with a metal roof, which should last throughout our lifetime. We have been advised not to cover our barn in metal siding because of the ventilation needs for hay storage. So, stage three of the barn project will occur in the spring: having the barn painted. I have six months to decide what color scheme I am going with, which feels overwhelming. I am sure inspiration will strike, and I will have my answer when needed.

Once the holiday rush is over, we plan to deep clean the soap studio, add more storage, rework some of our processing areas, and reorganize. It's time to eliminate what is not working and not being used, rethink our set-up for efficiency, and give everything a good scrub. Eric is contemplating new equipment additions but is always reluctant to change what he feels is working. There would be a significant overhaul if it were up to me alone. However, we are a team, and we need to come to a compromise. We focus on efficiency but must decide what changes will benefit us most. Crunching numbers will be the deciding factor.

At some point, before the weather turns cold and unstable, I would like to go to our booth at Shaker Woods and take measurements. I want to replace all the shelves in our booth, and I think these long winter evenings would be a fantastic time to work on this project. It will take minimal woodworking skills and a lot of time to paint. In January, February, and March, I will need something to do besides going to bed at 7 p.m. My bib overall-wearing buddy might not agree with this, but come late March and April, it will be baby season and time to get ready for our live shows. We will not have as much time to work on this project once baby and market seasons begin.

I also have several ideas for additional products, including new soaps, facial products, soaks, scrubs, T-shirts, hand towels, and soap dishes. I foresee 2025 being an exciting year for the soap business. Thank goodness, Eric and Jordan seem to have lost focus on this Porch Chat YouTube idea. I truly hate my voice and how I look in front of the camera. I prefer to do well-done reels or stories or whatever they are called. Just not my voice and limited images of myself. Playing around with making videos is also something I am interested in doing in 2025. I need a few more hours added to the day in order to accomplish all my goals. Soon, it will be time to break out a new notebook and write my goals for 2025, create my new soaps, master new products, and make decisions on packaging new products.

It's good to be busy. What do you do during the long winter months, dear reader? I would love to hear how you stay busy and productive. On this warm November day, stay safe, be smart, stay busy, and wash your hands.

I Look Forward To Ad-Free Peace

Knowing this election cycle is over is a relief regardless of who you voted for or how you feel about the outcome. I look forward to not having to listen to political ads on Spotify and YouTube. I relish sitting down for a few minutes to watch a show and not being bombarded by images of either candidate. I am definitely happy no one will just show up in my driveway to randomly interrupt my day and tell me who I need to vote for and why. Sigh. It was a lot.

I am looking forward to three years of peaceful, political ad-free bliss—until it starts all over again, and heaven only knows what means will be available to pummel the public with messages three years from now. Perhaps super genius Elon will devise a way to beam a hologram of a candidate into your workspace and home so you can see and hear them quacking at you, and it feels lifelike and personal. Of course, there won't be any way to shut it off, and you just have to wait for them to disappear like a bad house guest who has overstayed their visit. Seriously, I just want to listen to Taylor Swift, make soap, and not hear someone announce that everyone will receive a "tax Cu-T" with an emphasis on the last T.

I look forward to going about my little life without political drama, stress, or nonsense. It's time to just be nice and respectful, use common sense, be a good human, and stop vilifying people who don't think like you. Neither side has all the answers. Neither side truly understands the issues the population faces. Neither party is an accurate representation of the people. It's a game. This year, the red team won. If you are on the red team, congratulations. If you are on the blue team, be a good sport. Both teams have three more years to decide their strategy and then pester the hell out of the American people. It will be interesting to see the new and improved modes of pestering. Until then, I will enjoy listening to my playlists without annoying interruptions. Enjoy the political ad-free peace while it lasts, dear friends.

On this unseasonably warm November day, stay safe, be smart, enjoy the ad-free peace while it lasts, be a good sport, be a good human, and keep washing your hands.