adventures with chicken and paninis.

as we were walking to the door after church this afternoon, our neighbors were pulling into their driveway and they stopped to give us some devastating news. they let us know that penelope & helen (our pet chickens) had gotten out of the backyard. We searched the ours and the neighbors backyard and couldn't find them anywhere. This may sound completely stupid to any normal person who loves cats and hamsters, but we love our chickens (haha) they are so different than any other chickens (or pets) I have ever been around, seriously.






They let us hold them, pet them and they follow us around everywhere. They have been a part of our little family for months now. Even our dog has grown to love them...its so cute. heck, they love to bask in the summer sun! (blurry picture below) sorry if they notice you watching they get up and stare you down...chickens need ther privacy too :)




We had to run some errands after church and figured we'd make a trip around the block to make sure that they hadn't gotten into the yards behind ours since there are really no fences besides our chain link & a few bushes to separate the properties. One guy was outside washing his car so we pulled up to ask if he had seen any chickens and sure enough, after some confused looks he noticed some rustling in the bushes...yes! His whole family came out to see what was going on and found it humorous that we own pet chickens...and that they are actually friendly. I was so relieved, you have no idea. Enough about my our unique choice of pets.



I also made some paninis today...ironic enough CHICKEN and cheese paninis! I know it sounds terrible haha, but not to worry penelope and helen aren't going to be on the food chain anytime soon. obviously, we've grown too attatched.

I got a panini maker a few years ago for my birthday after having played with my sister in laws and it has been put to good use. They have so many useless food gadgets out there now, I know a panini maker seems just as silly. I mean seriously, I have a s'more maker, an ice cream maker and I'm sure lots of other "makers" stuffed in the cabinets or closet somewhere. Don't get me wrong, I love my ice cream maker :) But out of them all, the panini maker gets used quite regularly.I even use it to cook chicken, yes I said it, to cook chicken, because sticking them in the oven is just too darn boring.

Needless to say we love paninis, so I figured I'd share a super easy sandwich that we make: Chicken & Cheese!




We spread strawberry preserves on one slice of bread (we use either sourdough french, or chicago italian from our grocer's bakery but you can use whichever you like best) then on the other slice spread a thin layer of mayo along with thin sliced chicken breast, canadian bacon (or regular bacon...or even ham if you so choose) & swiss cheese. I let both slices sit on the panini grill for about 5 minutes, and then put them together and lower the top half of the grill for about 5-7 more minutes or until they look golden brown. then enjoy! We also like turkey, bacon and guacamole for a nice summer lunch as well. (i have a thing for avacados!)

Does anyone else love paninis as much as we do? I vote yes :)