Put-in-Bay: T-Minus 2 Days!!!

Can't wait...that's all I can say. Can't wait to get there. The weather this weekend is supposed to be beautiful too with hottest day getting to 79 degrees. The only real rain day is Thursday I think but I don't care, as long as Saturday is clear for the fireworks show. Oh, and the Peach Point picnic on Friday. Other than that, we'll have fun just hanging with everyone.

Jim just left to go look at a house exterior. A friend of a friend called last night and needs (hopefully) Jim's painting expertise. Cross your fingers. He's going to meet up with him and mow the lawn at Bishop and then come home where I will crack the whip on this damn bathrooms completion! What I would like to have completed today is the toilet and vanity put in. The plumber called last night and said he could possibly come over today to do the pipe fitting for the bathtub faucet. Jim isn't comfortable doing it since it involves soldering (that's a weird spelling but apparently right...hmm).

In a bit here, I'll take my neighborhood walk - it's so beautiful out and cool. I'll do my 2 miles again then come home and clean.

Oh, dinner last night was delicious. A little fattening but I tried to cut the fat using whole wheat pasta and NOT whole milk. Here's the recipe (I cut it in half since the one here is a double batch).

Baked Penne with Chicken and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
6 tablespoons butter, plus more for baking dishes
coarse salt and ground pepper
1 pound penne rigate
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (8 ounces each), halved horizontally
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
4 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups whole milk
10 ounces white mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced
1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups shredded provolone (6 ounces)
1 cup finely grated Parmesan (4 ounces)

1. Preheat oven to 400. Butter two shallow 2-quart baking dishes. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta 3 minutes short of al dente; drain pasta, and return to pot.
2. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Season chicken with salt and pepper; cook until opaque throughout, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Halve each piece lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise.
3. In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot, melt butter over medium. Add flour and garlic; cook, whisking, 1 minute. While whisking, gradually add milk; bring to a simmer, whisking frequently. Add mushrooms and tomatoes; cook 1 minute. Off heat, gradually stir in provolone and 1/2 cup Parmesan.
4. Add chicken and pasta to pot; season with salt and pepper. Divide pasta mixture between baking dishes; sprinkle each with cup Parmesan.
5. Bake, uncovered, until top is golden and bubbling, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

You can also freeze it - bake same temp but take out of freezer about 1 hour before and bake 1 1/2 hours with foil tightly covering.

Okay, so that's about all I've got. Jim and I are one episode away from completing the 2nd season of Big Love. If you enjoy renting/watching TV series, its a good one...I highly recommend it. The 3rd season doesn't come out until mid-July, however, so in the meantime, I rented the first DVD of True Blood. I've been trying to get this series at Blockbuster but it's always out so who knows when we'll be able to complete season 1. I've also been trying to watch Mad Men...I've watched the first DVD of the first season but the 2nd DVD has been out for weeks! Pisses me off. Oh well, best get dressed and ready to walk...later.