My Poems Put to Music

Posted on May 9, 2018 by Who I am

Judy Unger is a friend of mine and also a blogger here at WordPress. She took two of my poems and wrote the background music for them and then read the poems. I think her music is beautiful.

Mediterranean Crusted Chicken

Posted on May 9, 2018 by Who I am

Recipe By:Suzanne

“A deliciously rich chicken entree that is best served with mild side dishes such as sauteed vegetables and French bread. This chicken has a great fresh basil flavor.”

Ingredients

1 egg
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup crushed saltine crackers
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

1 tablespoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
2 pounds skinless chicken thighs
1/4 cup olive oil

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
In a medium bowl, combine the egg and heavy cream and beat together well. In a separate medium bowl, combine the cracker crumbs, cheese, basil, garlic powder and salt and pepper to taste.
Rinse chicken and pat dry. Dip each piece into the egg wash and then dredge liberally in the cracker crumb mixture. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Fry the chicken in the oil for 5 minutes per side, or until both sides are golden brown and crusty. Place chicken in a 9×13 baking dish and cover with foil.
Bake, covered, at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 15 minutes, then remove foil and bake, uncovered, for 15 to 20 more minutes, or until chicken juices run clear.

Chocolate Chip Toffee Shortbread Cookies

Posted on May 9, 2018 by Who I am

Chocolate Chip Toffee Shortbread Cookies

yield: 30 COOKIES

prep time: 10 MINUTES

cook time: 20-25 MINUTES

Delicious, buttery Chocolate Chip Toffee Shortbread Cookies recipe. Perfect to bake and share, or freeze for later!

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup toffee chips
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 15×10 inch baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with powdered sugar, vanilla, and almond extracts until creamy. Add in flour and mix until combined. Fold in toffee and chocolate chips.
Mixture may be very crumbly. Use your hands to combine into a ball, the warmth of your hands will bring it together.
Drop dough onto center of baking sheet, using the heels of your hands, press the dough into a large rectangle. You want the dough to be the same thickness throughout, so keep pressing until you have a rectangle about 12×10 inches and about 1/4 inch thick.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until edges begin to lightly brown. Remove from oven and immediately cut into strips (using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, going slowly). You can cut into triangles if you prefer. Cool completely. Store cooled cookies in airtight container at room temperature for about one week. ENJOY.

chocolate-chip-toffee-shortbread-cookies-4

Daily Prompt Weekly Photo Challenge

Posted on May 9, 2018 by Who I am

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/place/

Place in the World

Where do you belong? In the hustle and bustle of a big city or amongst friendly faces in a small town? For this week’s challenge, show us your place in the world.

waters lakes 9 model 18 model 14 uptown5 uptown

Daily Prompt/One Word Prompt

Posted on May 9, 2018 by Who I am

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/laughter/

The word for today; laughter

the action or sound of laughing.

“he roared with laughter”

synonyms: laughing, chuckling, chortling, guffawing, giggling, tittering, twittering, cackling, sniggering;

informalhysterics

“the sound of laughter”

[Humanity] has unquestionably one really effective weapon—laughter. Power, money, persuasion, supplication, persecution—these can lift at a colossal humbug—push it a little—weaken it a little, century by century, but only laughter can blow it to rags and atoms at a blast. Against the assault of laughter nothing can stand. — Mark Twain
A good laugh heals a lot of hurts. — Madeleine L’Engle3
A good laugh is a mighty good thing, a rather too scarce a good thing. — Herman Melville
A good laugh is sunshine in the house. — William Thackeray6
A smile is a curve that sets everything straight. — Phyllis Diller
A smile starts on the lips, a grin spreads to the eyes, a chuckle comes from the belly; but a good laugh bursts forth from the soul, overflows, and bubbles all around. — Carolyn Birmingham5
A well-balanced person is one who finds both sides of an issue laughable. — Herbert Procknow6
Against the assault of laughter, nothing can stand. — Mark Twain
Always laugh when you can. It is cheap medicine. — Lord Byron
Among those whom I like or admire, I can find no common denominator, but among those whom I love, I can: all of them make me laugh. — W. H. Auden
An optimist laughs to forget; a pessimist forgets to laugh. — Tom Nansbury12
And keep a sense of humor. It doesn’t mean you have to tell jokes. If you can’t think of anything else, when you’re my age, take off your clothes and walk in front of a mirror. I guarantee you’ll get a laugh. — Art Linkletter
And we should consider every day lost on which we have not danced at least once. And we should call every truth false which was not accompanied by at least one laugh. — Friedrich Nietzsche
As soap is to the body, so laughter is to the soul. — A Jewish Proverb
As soon as you have made a thought, laugh at it. — Lao Tsu
At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities. — Jean Houston3
Cancer is probably the unfunniest thing in the world, but I’m a comedian, and even cancer couldn’t stop me from seeing the humor in what I went through. — Gilda Radner
Each of us has a spark of life inside us, and our highest endeavor ought to be to set off that spark in one another. — Kenny Ausubel
Earth laughs in flowers. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Even the gods love jokes — Plato
Everyone is so afraid of death, but the real Sufis just laugh: nothing tyrannizes their hearts. What strikes the oyster shell does not damage the pearl.” — Mevlana Rumi
From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere. — Dr. Seuss
God has a smile on His face. — Psalm 42:5
God is a comedian playing to an audience too afraid to laugh. — Voltaire
Grim care, moroseness, and anxiety—all this rust of life ought to be scoured off by the oil of mirth. Mirth is God’s medicine. — Henry Ward Beecher

Source: Pink Sherbet Photography, D. Sharon Pruitt, CC

As someone who has had the phrase “overly serious but working on it” in their social media bios for the past year, I thought that it might be time to lighten up. I decided to look for some quotes about laughter that would help be take a break from my serious side.

Hope you enjoy reading these, and laugh a little in the process!

At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities.

–Jean Houston

I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose.

–Woody Allen

Laughter is the shortest distance between two people.

–Victor Borge

A person who knows how to laugh at himself will never cease to be amused.

–Shirley MacClain

A day without laughter is a day wasted.

–Charlie Chaplin

If you’re too busy to laugh, you are too busy.

–Proverb

If we couldn’t laugh, we would all going to go insane.

–Jimmy Buffett

Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive.

–Bob Newhart

We don’t laugh because we’re happy – we’re happy because we laugh.

–William James

A laugh is a smile that bursts.

–Mary H. Waltdrip

The earth laughs in flowers.