Southern Girl Cooks: Oven Fried Chicken

One thing Southern people love is fried food. I'm a victim of it, there is just something delicious about fried chicken, fried pickles, fried veggies, and even fried snickers (which I eat annually at the fair). Unfortunately all these delicious things aren't healthy for you and you can't keep your ticker tickin' if you're clogging it with grease. Well, I decided it was time to start making:

Oven Fried Chicken

 

Ingredients

• 2 to 3 pounds of chicken
• 1 cup dried bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 cup mayonnaise

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl or gallon size resealable plastic bag, mix together the bread crumbs, garlic powder, salt, pepper, thyme and paprika.
3. Coat the chicken pieces with buttermilk. Place chicken pieces in bowl/bag with bread crumb mixture and coat/shake until well coated. Place chicken pieces in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish and bake for 45 minutes or until juices run clear.

I sometimes mix things up and add other seasoning to the bread crumbs. I also mix up the toppings and use flour, corn flakes, and even French Fried Onions. Occasionally I will start frying the chicken normally and then put it in a pan and bake it the rest of the way. This way it helps cut down the calories, but still gives you the taste!



Measuring with time

You know you're an Oklahoman if: You measure distance in minutes

Have you ever had to get directions from someone and have no idea what the hell they mean? Well this is especially true if you live in the South.

When I turned 15 my mom beat into my head that I should always pay attention to where I am, not only because she wanted to me to be safe if something were to happen to the car, but she didn't want me to get lost. While I "pretended" to pay attention to my current location it took several years, getting lost numerous times, and not being able to tell AAA where I was when my car broke down, for me to actually pay attention. But now that I have an iPhone, I will never have to call AAA and sound like a bumbling idiot when describing my location.

But before GPS I had no idea how long an actual mile was. I mean sure, some people would say that it was from one main road to the next, but when someone told me that it was 106 miles from Oklahoma City to Tulsa, I really didn't understand how long that was. Now, if someone were to tell me that it would take approximately an hour and 44 minutes for me to get to Tulsa, I'd completely understand and could time my trip perfectly.

A few years ago I dated a man boy that had recently moved to Oklahoma from South Carolina. He was in the military and I thought I was in love. We got along great in the beginning, but eventually the "love bird phase" wore off and the guy drove me bonkers. One of his favorite things to do was to mess with me when I wanted directions. He knew the concept of a mile was just a vague understanding, and yet he would tell me how to give somewhere with the number of miles, and to turn North, South, East, or West. Maybe it is just a "Yankee" thing, but it drove me mad. I'll take my left, right, 10 minutes, and even a few landmarks please.
 
Thank goodness for GPS.

Newspaper Print Fingernails

If you are like me, you love to have cute finger and toenails. I recently bought some of the OPI Shattered nail polish and LOVE LOVE LOVE it. But as I was surfing the web, I found newspaper print nails and cannot wait to try it. Here's a step-by-step guide provided by Glam.com .

What You’ll Need:
▪ A shot glass
▪ Rubbing alcohol
▪ Base coat
▪ Clear top coat
▪ Pastel nail polish
▪ 10 small strips of newspaper

Step One: Apply one base coat followed by two coats of your pastel nail color. Allow to completely dry.
Step Two: Pour rubbing alcohol into a shot glass and dip a fingertip in.
Step Three: Cover damp nail with a strip of newspaper and firmly press in place for 30 seconds. Slowly peel newspaper off and allow to dry. Repeat on other fingertips.
Step Four: Set with a top coat.

Cute right?

Happy Memorial Day

I know it is a little late (I got stuck working) but I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Memorial Day. Today I took some time to remember those that risked their lives and even died to make this country free.

God Bless the Troops, thank you for all you do.

A day of destruction ...

Yesterday Oklahoma was hit by a tornado outbreak. Tons of tornadoes tore through Oklahoma like it was a playground waiting to be toyed with. Lives were taken and people lost everything. There is even a 3-year-old boy that remains missing after he was ripped out of the arms of his mother, who is in critical condition.

I am very blessed that none of my family or myself were affected by the storm. I had some very close calls and shed a lot of tears, but I woke up today knowing everything was going to be OK. Here is a look at what Oklahoman's faced yesterday:

(This is the tornado that was headed towards my house. Thank God it lifted before it got there.)

If you'd like to help, there are a lot of resources here with information on how you can do so.

The photo's were provided by NewsOK.com

Sometimes you need to shave face?

I am a huge fan of the Housewives of New Jersey. Yes it is like a 'real life' soap opera, but maybe that is why I like it so much. While I am not a fan of the traditional soap, I do love the fact that this one is real. But that isn't the point of this post, haha. So what do I mean that 'sometimes you need to shave face?'
mostly


Last season, Caroline Manzo said that she shaves her face. When watching the show, I thought ... wow that is brave to admit on national television. I'm not sure I could admit something so personal on national television. Today, on Caroline's blog she posted a response about her shaving. You can read it here.

Growing up, I have heard numerous times not to shave your face because it makes the hair grow in thicker and black. And even though I was told this, I have shaved my 'peach fuzz' on my upper lip a time or two. I tried waxing and the pain is just too unbearable for me to stand it. I don't mind it on my eyebrows, but never again will I put wax on my lip.

I know I am not the only person that deals with this type of problem, so I ask you ... What do you do to fight that pesky facial hair?

Southern Girl Cooks: Watermelon Salsa

Summer is just around the corner, and watermelons are going to be selling like hotcakes. I don't know about you, but I love love love salsa. Down here it is often refered to as redneck caviar.

I have not tried this salsa, but I am planning to as soon as watermelons get a little cheaper than $6 or more a piece. If you try it, let me know what you think!

Ingredients

• 2 cups seeded and coarsely chopped watermelon
• 2 tablespoons chopped onion
• 3 tablespoons seeded, chopped Anaheim chile
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Directions

1. In a serving bowl, mix together the watermelon, onion, and chile pepper. Season with balsamic vinegar and garlic salt. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour to blend flavors.