Friday, March 11, 2016

Use Your Words: One Brick Short

Today’s post is a monthly writing challenge. If you’re new here, this is how it works: participating bloggers picked 4 – 6 words or short phrases for someone else to craft into a post. All words must be used at least once. All of the posts will be unique as each writer has received their own set of words. That’s the challenge, here’s a fun twist; no one who’s participating knows who got their words and in what direction the recipient will take them. Until now.

Use Your Words | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics


At the end of this post you’ll find links to the other blogs featuring this challenge. Check them all out, see what words they got and how they used them.
I’m using: quality vs quantity ~ safety ~ wide load ~ jobs ~ lucky

They were submitted by: Spatulas on Parade .

I'm usually really lucky with these Use Your Words posts. Whatever the words are that I end up with, they speak to me. It may be right away, it may take days but eventually they tell me where to go with them. Something about the list jumps out at me and I know just where to go.

Today, not so much.

The first few words were leading me to talk about cliches. But I really didn't want to do that. One of my most popular posts ever, The Whole Truth, featured not just on my blog but on The Huffington Post, the TODAY show parenting team, ArtisanLife, Daily, and even mentioned on a friend's blog's Saturday Spotlight Series, was about cliches (and a whole lot more, if you haven't read it, you should . . . if I do say so myself).

So, as much as I didn't really want to talk about cliches, the words seem to be demanding it. And sometimes as writers our jobs are not to reason why, ours is but to do or die. Or something like that.
 
OK, cliches. I use them, but I hate them. For a few reasons. First of all because even if they're true, they're so over-used. Half the time people just roll their eyes, I mean I do. But they are cliches for a reason, because they do happen to be a one-size-fits-all way to express what you're feeling. People know what you're getting at when you use them. And they give us an easy way out when we're at a loss for what to say. I hate them because they're a conversational no-brainer, but . . . confession time . . . I do sometimes end up using them myself.

And then there are the ones that just aren't necessarily true. Like quality vs quantity. Quality is not always better than quantity. Many of us, meaning me, are so much better off having had a number relationships, good and bad, before choosing a life partner. How can you really appreciate one good man without having had your heart ripped out and stomped on a time or two?

Or like "better safe than sorry". Because sometimes safety is overrated. Who wants this on their tombstone: "She didn't have a whole lot of fun, but she stayed safe"?

"Absence makes the heart grow fonder". Even if this is true, is this really what you want to hear when you're sad and missing someone?

"Unlucky at cards, lucky at love". Damn, just lost all my money but that's OK 'cause it means I'll get laid? 

Or I'll get lucky and my family will love this new recipe idea?

One Pot Chicken Dinner: Chicken pieces of your choice, veggies and potoes cook in one pot in the oven for an easy and flavorful dinner | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #dinner

One Pot Chicken Dinner 

One Pot Chicken Dinner: Chicken pieces of your choice, veggies and potoes cook in one pot in the oven for an easy and flavorful dinner | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #dinner


going in the oven 

One Pot Chicken Dinner: Chicken pieces of your choice, veggies and potoes cook in one pot in the oven for an easy and flavorful dinner | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #dinner
coming out of the oven

And now we've reached the point where this whole post blows up in my face. I've got one more word grouping to use and I'm in jeopardy of having to delete this whole post and start over. Right at the very end, how frustrating is that? But it seems I'm one penny short of a pound, one rung short of a ladder, one fry short of a Happy Meal, one brick short of a wide load. I bet at this point I'm looking like a lost dog in a meat house. Whatever the hell that means . . .

Links to the other Use Your Words posts:
P.S. I'm on the Huffington Post again this week with Pi Day Pie. Eleven recipe options including chocolate, fruit, and no-bake for your Pi Day (3/14) celebration. Stop by, leave me a comment and tell me which one(s) you'll be trying.

Baking In A Tornado signature | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics


One Pot Chicken Dinner
                                                                        ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup Bloody Mary mix
1/2 cup olive oil
3/4 cup white wine
1 large onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 roma tomatoes, chopped
6 - 7# chicken pieces, bone in
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
5 new potatoes, sliced
1 sweet potato, peeled and sliced
1 tsp paprika
1/2# baby bella mushrooms, quartered
1/2# green beans

Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
*Spray a large dutch oven or extra large baking dish with non-stick spray.
*Place the Bloody Mary mix, olive oil, wine, onion, garlic and tomatoes in the dish and mix.
*Mix together the salt, pepper and garlic powder and sprinkle over the chicken. Add the chicken to the pot and press into the sauce. Top with the potato and sweet potato slices. Sprinkle the potatoes with paprika.
*Cover tightly and cook for one hour. 
*Carefully remove the cover, mix, cover again and cook another 45 minutes.
*Carefully remove the cover again. Temporarily remove the chicken pieces to a plate and mix the mushrooms and green beans into the sauce, then place the chicken on top. Sprinkle with garlic powder and paprika. Cook another 45 minutes, uncovered.

33 comments:

  1. Yes, sometimes, cliches are used as an excuse. "Quality vs Quantity" what if the little you have achieved, sucks? Quality, much like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder, anyway, right?
    I'm glad I wasn't the only one struggling with her word(s), maybe sometimes 6 is just an awfully wide load?
    Have a wonderful weekend with your family reunited!

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  2. Those were good words, lucky girl! And you used them well. By the way, I'm coming to your house for dinner. Just sayin' (Oh, and I loathe that one!)

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  3. Pinned and printed, Karen...this looks great. I need good recipes to take to friends when someone has been hospitalized or after surgery. I am going to give this a try. Thanks!

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  4. so loved what you did and laughed at all the cliches. Good one! One pot dinner??? Who can beat that....saving the recipe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Love that you laughed. And that you're going to try the recipe!

      Delete
  5. Mmmmm! The "classic" one pot chicken recipe I always run across is so bland, my family didn't care for it until I doctored it up the second time and still, it's not a favorite. Now this one, I know already they're gonna love. Can't wait to try it out soon!

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  6. Isn't chicken a cliche too? Lol! I have a chicken up in my freezer with this written all over it. One pot meals I can do. It's when you have to use stove-top/oven that I fall apart.

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  7. LOL I think you covered all the cliches perfectly here. The chicken looks YUMMY!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Covered the cliches AND used my words!
      Yes, the chicken really is worth a try, we love it.

      Delete
  8. I use clichés all the time. I love to hate them. Hate to love them. Definitely a love hate thing. I loved how you used your words.

    This one pot dish looks AMAZING. Absolutely amazing. Yum.

    I've been meaning to mention something to you... Sort of as a hint hint or inspiration.... There are limited time Coffee Nut Peanut M&Ms

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are kidding me! Coffee Nut Peanut M&Ms. Damn, I just bought M&Ms to use in a recipe and didn't see them. I NEED them!

      Delete
    2. Did you try the Coffee Nut M&Ms?!?

      So... I'm kinda wanting this. I had to come find it. I'm torn. I kinda just want a yummy potato side dish. Then again, I kinda want this. Though, I kinda thought I'd make pork tonight, since last night was chicken (Alfredo).

      Delete
  9. Any white wine?!? What is Bloody Mary Mix? Isn't that V8?!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Any dry white, I wouldn't use a dessert wine. And Bloody Mary Mix is similar to V8 but kicked up a notch in terms of spices.

      Delete
  10. You killed it Karen. I get the use of cliches but have to agree it's sometimes used at inappropriate times when the commenter doesn't know what to say but feels obligated to contribute. Loved this post.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, exactly. And I'm guilty too of falling back on them when at a loss for words.

      Delete
  11. It's so hard to read your blog now that I am dieting and training! No more pastries and only eating fish nowadays. Running a 5K tomorrow!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm so proud of what you're doing in support of Stacey. Good luck tomorrow.

      Delete
  12. Heehee! Well done with those words!
    Our Pi-Day invitations have gone out! Had over 200 people last year. Let's see what this year brings!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You remember I told you to be sure to take pictures, right?

      Delete
  13. A chicken in every pot? Is that a cliche or ??? You used your words well. I like the secret ingredient in this recipe. Should be tangy!

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  14. *snort* I was literally just thinking about cliches the other day and how ridiculous they are! Too funny.

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  15. Great use of the words and as always, the recipe looks yummy!

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  16. Job well done or is that cliche too? I knew whoever received my list of words was going to say "WTH is this?" but you used them like a champ.
    Now for this recipe! YUM I want to bite into that chicken right now and it's only 10:34 in the morning.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lately I fight with my words every month, I don't know if they're getting harder to use or it's just me. But that's what I love about the challenge.

      Delete

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