Major Catch Up

Ok. So, it has been a few days since I have posted. This was a busy weekend. I had a booth with my friend, Charlene, at the Yale Street Market in the Heights on Saturday. I sell framed crosses that I make. I have been doing it for a few months. I have done pretty well at the Yale Street Market, but this week Charlene and I barely sold anything. We had a lot of traffic and gave out a lot of cards, but no big sales. I don't know if we will do the Yale Street Market again. I am not sure if the clientele is right for my products. My ideal locale would be one with a lot of Cajun Catholic folks. They really seem to respond well to my stuff. I will have a booth at the Orange, Texas "Art in the Park" event in October. Also, I will have a booth at the Country Playhouse in Houston for a couple of nights in December. Hopefully, these will be worth my while. The website for my business is almost completed. I will post web address here when it is done.

As for my diet/detox, I am still hanging in there. I have lost almost 15 pounds in two weeks! I am really excited about that. I continue to have more and more energy and feel really great. I have been eating a ton of fresh veggies. Tonight I am having "Balsamic Chicken with Sauteed Spinach and Cannellini Beans". Yum. See below for the recipe.

My St. Louis Cardinals continue to play good baseball over the last week or so. They had two really good series, however, they could hardly manage a hit against the Washington D.C. Nationals yesterday. Hopefully, they can get back on track tonight. A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that I thought Mark Mulder was not ready to resume pitching following a stint on the disabled list. Well, it turns out I was right. He most likely will not pitch again for the rest of the season and may require surgery on his shoulder. In his place the Cardinals called up Anthony Reyes from AAA Memphis. He had a brilliant start last week, and I hope he can repeat that performance for the remainder of the season.

Well, that's all for catch up today. I will try and get back on track with my posts tomorrow. Hope everyone is having a great week!

Balsamic Chicken with Sauteed Spinach and Cannellini Beans

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon grill seasoning
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 medium onions
4 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and black pepper
1 bay leaf
3/4 cup white wine
2 cups chicken stock (low sodium)
1 - 14 oz. can cannellini beans, drained
1 - 12 oz. sack baby spinach
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Juice of 1 lemon

In a shallow dish, combine the balsamic vinegar, about 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, and the grill seasoning. Coat the chicken breasts in the mixture and set aside to marinade while you start the white beans and spinach.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, twice around the pan. Add the onions, garlic, thyme, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are a little brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the white wine and chicken stock, bring up to a bubble, and cook for 5 minutes.

Heat another large skillet over medium-high heat. When it is hot, add the chicken breasts and cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken to a plate, cover loosely with foil, and let rest of few minutes.

Add the cannellini beans to the skillet with onions and stir to combine. Cook for about 2 minutes or until the beans are heated through. Turn off the heat and discard the bay leaf. Stir in the spinach, parsley and lemon juice. Toss and stir until the spinach wilts.

To serve, place a portion of the white beans and wilted spinach on each serving plate. Thickly slice each chicken breast on an angle and arrange over the beans and spinach.

~Recipe courtesy of Rachael Ray's "Express Lane Meals".