I can’t believe that it is just 20 days until the first day of spring.

The weather we have been having suggests that it is already here. It has been 76 degrees one day and 45 degrees the next, it is just crazy. I am sure we will get another snowfall or two before winter is over. Momma Said, “Never count your chickens before they hatch.” It will get here when it gets here.

Speaking of chickens, I really miss having mine. I liked to just sit and watch them. They were a bit of work, but I really enjoyed having them. I never tried to hatch any eggs, but I did raise 24 chicks one year. I lost one and ended up with 12 roosters and 11 hens. They were so beautiful when their feathers came in. They were Black Australorps and the roosters had black plumage that turned green and blue in the sunshine. Momma Said, “It was like looking at a moving rainbow.”

I miss a lot about not having a farm anymore, especially this time of year when everything is coming to life. It was a lot of hard work but you could go to bed at night knowing that you had put in a very productive day. It was rewarding work, very long days but a healthy way to live. I think I miss having something I can call my own. Mostly I miss having my animals, I still have Bailey and the cats, but I miss the chickens and cattle.

Maybe someday I will again have my slice of paradise, but until then I will be content with what I have and make the best of it.

Baked Sweet Hawaiian Chicken

Delicious chicken that gets breaded and baked in a sweet and tangy pineapple sauce. It bakes to perfection and is so much better than takeout!

Ingredients
· 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
· Salt and pepper to taste
· 1½ cup cornstarch
· 3 eggs, beaten
· ¼ cup canola oil
· Sweet Hawaiian Ingredients:
· 1 cup pineapple juice
· ½ cup brown sugar
· ⅓ cup soy sauce
· 1 teaspoon minced garlic
· ½ tablespoon cornstarch
· 1 red pepper chopped
· 1 (20 oz) can pineapple tidbits, drained

Instructions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and pepper.
In separate bowls, place cornstarch and slightly beaten eggs. Dip chicken into cornstarch then coat in egg mixture. (Yes, you dip the chicken first in the cornstarch. This method is amazing.)
Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook chicken until browned. Place the chicken in a 9 x 13 greased baking dish.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together pineapple juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, minced garlic, and cornstarch. Add the red pepper and pineapple tidbits. Pour over chicken and bake for 1 hour.
Stir the chicken every 15 minutes so that it is coated in the sauce.