Today I'm thankful for sleep. Even though I feel like I never get enough of it. On that note... Goodnight! :)

Day 6

Today I an thankful for my Pastor, his wife, and our entire church family. They are always there if you need them and we love them more than words can express.

Day 5

Today I am thankful for my friends. My TRUE friends who are there through the good, the bad, and the ugly. You know who you are. :)

Day 4

Today, I am thankful that I am a Christian, and that Jesus is my Savior. Without my faith, without Him, I am nothing.

Thankfulness

Since this is the month of Thanksgiving, I am going to attempt what a majority of my friends are doing and post one thing per day that I am thankful in my life. Because today is November 3rd and I am already behind, I am going to post three for today. :)

1) My husband. He is my everything and I look forward to "growing old" with him. <3

2) My kids. Brad is our amazing 11-year-old and he has such a kind heart. Jake is our rambunctious 3-year-old and his laughter is contagious!

3) My health. Yes, I have generalized anxiety disorder. Yes, I have migraines. Yes, I have panic attacks. But it could be far worse. I don't have cancer. I don't have a terminal illness. The anxiety disorder and the migraines are frustrating, overwhelming, and painful, but I thank God I'm alive and he has made me perfect and unique in His own way. With Him I can get through this.

Pressure Cooker Jambalaya

I put this recipe together this afternoon, because I was in a pinch with a - surprise! - fellowship night at our church that I had forgotten about. It turned out to be incredible, and I saw many people go up for seconds! Hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

-INGREDIENTS-

1/2 of a large sweet onion, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp olive oil

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2 large chicken breasts, cubed

1 pound hot smoked sausage, cubed

2 tbsp olive oil

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2 boxes Zatarain's Jambalaya w/ Cheese

2 cups chicken stock

1 can diced tomatoes w/ garlic & onion (do not drain!)

-DIRECTIONS-

1. Heat up the pressure cooker and add the first four ingredients. Cook until slightly softened, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from pressure cooker and set aside.

2. Add the next three ingredients to the pressure cooker, and cook until the meat is done. Remove and set aside with the vegetables.

3. Add the last three ingredients to the pressure cooker (remember to include the juices with the diced tomatoes as well). Stir, the place the lid on. Set the cook time for 8 minutes. When done cooking, add the vegetables and meat back into the pressure cooker, stir until combined, and then place the lid back on (only to keep warm, not to cook) so that the flavors blend together.

4. ENJOY!

Wolfgang Puck Pressure Cooker - my review

For those of you who follow me on Facebook, you will know that last week I purchased my first ever HSN product - an Electric Pressure Cooker made by Wolfgang Puck. I bought it on Sunday afternoon and it was at my door by Thursday (and they said it would take up to 10 days... very quick shipping!). Ever since I have had it everything I have cooked in it has been incredible - no joke.

The thought of buying a pressure cooker had never crossed my mind. I was laying in bed trying to take a nap between the morning & evening church services when I flipped the channel to HSN. I saw that they were having their kitchen products presentation with Wolfgang Puck when I decided to watch for a few minutes. Before I knew it, Hans was in there watching with me... they were cooking frozen solid chicken breasts with dry pasta and only a cup full of chicken stock - in 8 minutes - and VIOLA! - dinner was done. When I saw that, I was sold. Before I knew it, I was on the phone with an HSN rep and had ordered the beautiful red & silver machine.

When it arrived on Thursday afternoon and I pulled it out of the box, everything was basically already put together. All I had to do was put on the gasket to vent or seal the steam and I was done (that just snapped right on so no big deal there). I read the manual and then contemplated what to make.... Aha! BBQ pulled pork!

So, I only slightly defrosted the pork roast because I definitely wanted to see if this bad boy could really make a good dinner in no time from something frozen. I put it in there, added one cup of chicken stock and some salt/pepper/garlic, set the cook timer for 40 minutes, and walked away. After it was done, and finished depressurizing (it only took maybe 3-5 minutes to do so), the pork was so tender and easily shredded with two forks. I added some BBQ sauce and was SOOO happy!

Yesterday I decided to try a recipe I found for Pressure Cooker Pot Roast. This came out so good I was practically licking the plate! I put in all the ingredients, set the timer for 45 minutes, and again - went about doing other things. When there was about 10 minutes left, I made some mashed potatoes & corn to go with it. When it was actually finished, I removed the lid and again, the roast was fork tender - and the juices and spices combined with a tad bit of cornstarch made an AMAZING gravy for the roast & the potatoes!

This has to be my new favorite kitchen product. Thank you so much, Wolfgang Puck, for an excellent product!

(In my next post I will share a recipe I created today for Pressure Cooker Jambalaya!)