Soda Can Chicken

First things first, I need to announce the winner of Once-A-Month Cooking Family Favorites! Thank you to everyone that entered!! And if you didn't win, be sure to get yourself a copy of the book here. The winner of the book is.................

tjones330@... who said: oh WOW!! i SOOOO need this book. I'm a big fan on these authors, but have just started getting into OAMC. This sure would be a great guide!

Congrats tjones, I've emailed you, so be sure to check your email and get back with me. If I don't hear back from tjones by next week, I'll pick a new winner. Again, thanks to everyone that entered!


Now, onto the recipe for the day! I was on CafeMom, in one of my groups and someone mentioned using soda in "beer can" chicken. Since I don't drink alcohol, I thought this idea was awesome! So, I used root beer to make "soda can" chicken! It was really simple!! I know that in the original recipe it says to do this on the grill, but it's starting to get cold and windy out here (well, it's always windy out here) so I decided to make it inside in my oven! So, this recipe isn't really a recipe, but more of a technique. Either way, I hope you try it soon!! Oh, and I used root beer, but you could also use sprite or coke, maybe even dr. pepper or mt. dew! Try it out and see how your family likes it!

Soda Can Chicken

1 whole chicken
1 12 oz. can soda of your choice
seasonings of your choice, I used My Go To Seasonings

Preheat an oven to 375° F.
Season the chicken with the seasonings of your choice, be sure to season generously. Open the can of soda and pour out about half of the soda into a glass and save for another use or drink it! Place the soda can onto a baking pan or roasting pan that is large enough to collect any juices that might come out of the chicken. Carefully put the can of soda into the bottom of the chicken and sit it upright on the baking pan. Be sure that your oven racks are low enough that the chicken will fit into it while standing. Place the chicken into the oven and bake until the chicken is cooked through, about and hour to an hour and half, depending on how large your chicken is. Enjoy!

OAMC Family Favs Giveaway!!

I was asked by the creators of Once-A-Month Cooking, Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Lagerborg, to do a review and giveaway of their newest book, Once-A-Month Cooking Family Favorites. I must admit, I've never been into the OAMC (once a month cooking) way of doing things in the kitchen. I like the hands on, being in the kitchen for a few hours a day kind of cooking. It keeps me busy, it's my hobby and I just generally like to cook (obviously that's why I have this blog!). But that might change as my kids get older and we have more activities going on, so I decided to go ahead and look through the book. I really enjoyed looking through it and got quite a few recipes that I'd like to try out. The Jerk Chicken sounds way yummy, not to mention the Poppy Seed Chicken.

The book features shopping lists, pantry lists, menu charts, and the general know how of OAMC. With seven different menu cycles, there are lots of different choices!! Something for everyone from the gluten-free family to the gourmet. Something that might appeal to busy moms on the go is the fact that a whole month's worth of meals is ready for the taking in the freezer. If you know your going to be super busy, you could just pull out a meal and have it ready in no time. The book also includes lots of tips, including tips on freezing and tips on thawing. And in each recipe, they tell you what to freeze the meal in, whether it be in a zip loc bag or container.

I'm thinking this would be the perfect book for a new mother to have. Just think, you are pregnant and due in about a month, so you start cooking now!! Then, when your baby is here, you already have a month's worth of meals in your freezer and you can spend more time sleeping or with your new baby! Something I could have used after my second son was born. :)

If you would like to have a copy of Once-A-Month Cooking Family Favorites for yourself, just leave me a comment here on this post, please be sure to include a way for me to contact you. I'll be giving away one copy. You have until Tuesday the 13th at midnight mountain time. Open to US only, because I've got to mail the book out to you. And please, only one entry per person. I'll announce the winner on Wednesday the 14th. And for now, go check out their website for a free one week cycle to see how you like freezer cooking.

Oatmeal Coconut White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

As promised, here is my winning oatmeal cookie recipe from this year's fair. Sorry it's taken me so long to get it up!! This cookie has to be one of my all time favorites, it's crunchy and chewy at the same time. Has some of my favorite ingredients in them and they are just so yummy!! I was kind of worried when I entered it in the fair as an oatmeal cookie that it wouldn't win anything, because it's not your ordinary oatmeal cookie, but luckily the judges liked it! I'm sure you'll love them too!

Oatmeal Coconut White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

½ c. butter (no substitutes)
½ c. shortening (no substitutes)
1 c. packed brown sugar
½ c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 ½ c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
3 c. old fashioned oats
½ cup coconut
1 c. macadamia nut pieces
1 c. white chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350° F.
Cream the butter and shortening together in an electric mixer. Add sugars and continue mixing until nice and creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, then vanilla. Gradually add flour, a little at a time, mix well but not too much! Add baking soda and salt. Add all of the oats, and mix well. Add the coconut, macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips and mix. Drop by the rounded tablespoon onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10 – 12 minutes. I bake mine for 10. Let cool on sheet for at least 4 minutes and then transfer to a rack. Store in bags or an air tight container. Enjoy! Makes about 3 dozen.