MY PRECIOUS LITTLE PACKRAT

As I've mentioned before, my hubby loves to shop. Especially when it comes to Christmas shopping! He likes to shop early and often. In fact, he's already bought a couple of presents for next Christmas. The only problem with this is that he tends to stash them in every nook and cranny of the house, then ends up forgetting what all he bought or where he put it. That's why, a month or so after Christmas, he always ends up plopping a belated gift or two in someone's lap.

Well, hubby also likes to shop for clothes, but he doesn't much care for weeding out the old stuff. Which is why his closet eventually got so jam-packed that he couldn't get anything in or out, and he was forced to do a major overhaul. So I wasn't the least bit surprised when he found yet another Christmas gift for me.

What did flabbergast me was this:

Yep, that sucker had been in there almost EIGHT years, and he just now stumbled across it.

Gotta love 'im!

A RECIPE FOR FRIENDS WITH CHICKENS

While we're on the subject of chickens, I thought I ought to share this recipe with all my friends who have chickens. Or, for that matter, anyone with excess eggs. A foodie friend (Thanks, Kris Thomas!) posted this on Facebook recently, and since I had eggs to use up, I decided to give it a try. Oh My!  The picture isn't too pretty, since there is no natural light whatsoever in my kitchen on a cloudy evening. But, believe me, it was yummalicious! Especially when served with a bit of warm naan, to sop up the sauce.

Shakshuka With Feta
from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes
4-6 servings

3 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. sweet paprika
1/8 tsp. cayenne, or to taste
1 (28-oz.) can whole plum tomatoes with juices, coarsely chopped
3/4 tsp. salt, more as needed
1/4 tsp. black pepper, more as needed
5 oz. feta cheese, crumbled (about 1 1/4 cups)
6 large eggs
chopped cilantro, for serving
Hot sauce, for serving

Heat oven to 375 F.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion and bell pepper. Cook gently until very soft, about 20 minutes. Add garlic and cook until tender, 1 to 2 minutes; stir in cumin, paprika and cayenne, and cook 1 minute. Pour in tomatoes and season with 3/4 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper; simmer until tomatoes have thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in crumbled feta.

Gently crack eggs into skillet over tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer skillet to oven and bake until eggs are just set, 7 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve with hot sauce.

Bon Appetit!

ON MY TABLE: FUNKY CHICKENS

I was thumbing through an old Gardener's Supply catalog the other day when I spotted some metal chickens meant for use as garden decor. But they weren't ordinary chickens. They were FUNKY chickens. I thought they might be fun to draw in one of my art journals.

But, when I sat down at my art table and started thinking about how I would draw them, my mind somehow veered over to thinking about how I would carve them instead. That led to this.

I didn't bother trying to carve their little skinny legs. I knew something that fragile would just get torn off. Instead I draw them in by hand after stamping the bodies, putting them in whatever position I choose.

Of course, Funky Chickens would be a bit color-mad, would they not?

So let's hear it for Funky Chickens...

and their Funky Chicken Coops!

P.S. Did you know that Austin hosts a Funky Chicken Coop Tour each year? Check it out here.

TOO CUTE FOR WORDS

 Check out these succulent little salt and pepper shakers I stumbled upon at Tar-jay this weekend! 

Only a couple of bucks each!

Are they precious, or what?