Creative Genius Spotlight #2: Crystal Burgess

I'm very excited for you to meet our latest Creative Genius to take the spotlight on the FTFC blog!



** You'll want to read this post all the way through until the end. **

Photo Credit: Chip Daniels

Introducing   Crystal Burgess  Creative Genius #2

If you close your eyes, and she opens her mouth to sing in front of you, you'll be quite surprised that such a huge strong voice is being projected from a lady with such a small frame. No microphones needed! Even with our eyes open, it's truly unbelievable. Crystal Burgess is a powerhouse. And luckily for the world, she uses her power for good and not evil.  I can personally say from close-range observation that she practices just what she preaches. She is such a sweet (and sometimes feisty) soul and a wonderful prayer warrior to have by your side.  She's an awesome woman of God on a mission to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. She isn't new to the Christian music seen and being recorded, but she is new to going solo. She's currently promoting her new single "Give Him Your Life" released on iTunes. It's only 99 cents, so download your copy today and support this ministry!  You won't regret it. More information is below.

Quick Q&A:

Q:  How many hours a day/week do you practice your craft?

        A: I actually sing everyday, but only really practice maybe twice a week for a couple of hours.  This needs improvement.

Q:  Any advice for young go-getters desiring to get into the music field?

        A: My advice is to pray and seek God for direction and instruction, because he will lead and guide you throughout your career.  Also stay focused and disregard the nay-sayers because "greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world".

Q: This is the FTFC blog so I must ask: What's your ideal meal?

        A:This is a hard question, because I love to eat. (laughter) I would have to say my ideal meal is macaroni and cheese, rice w/gravy, collard greens, cornbread, and baked chicken.

 (That's a truly southern meal right there!)

Bio:
I was born and raised in the small town of Kingstree, SC. Being born into a family in which my father was a pastor, I was blessed to be brought up in the church. I’ve been singing since the age of 5 years old, and my passion for singing grew as my relationship with God got stronger. I first began writing songs in high school and my desire for song writing and singing manifested itself even into my college years. While being a student at the University of South Carolina, I had the pleasure of joining a choir known as Chosen where in I had the privilege of meeting a group of great individuals. Shortly thereafter, I begin singing with John Lakin and BOW, formerly known as Youth On A Mission (YOAM). In 2005, God granted me favor to lead a song on John’s first CD project entitled Lord You Are Lovely. I have also had the opportunity of singing background vocals for recording artist Jabari Wade and Alisha Greene. As my knowledge of God grew, my purpose concerning his will for my life became more clear. God blessed me with the gift of singing and I must present it back to him by using it to bless others. I am an independent gospel artist dedicated to producing music that wins souls for the Kingdom of God.

  For more information or to contact her, please vist her website at:
http://www.reverbnation.com/crystalburgess


Link to purchase the single on iTunes:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/give-him-your-life-single/id736011292

And NOW IT'S TIME FOR A GIVEAWAY! *insert excitement here*  Yes, if you (1) leave an encouraging comment on this FTFC blog thread; (2) or like, comment on, or share our post with this blog link on the Art by Melanie Elaine Facebook page, or (3) leave kind and encouraging words in a comment on Crystal's Reverbnation page you will be entered in a drawing for free download of "Give Him Your Life". Each one that you do is an additional entry in our drawing. A FB share will get you double the entries. The number of winners depends on the amount of feedback received. The more the merrier and the better your chances get. Deadline for entries is 6/30/2014.

My Own Spin...ach &Tomato Chicken

I was attempting to re-create a dish (from memory) that I ordered at a couple of different restaurants the past month or so. I'd been craving this dish, and eating at those restaurants can get a little pricey. Because I didn't have an exact recipe to follow, I just drummed it up with my very own spin. Let me tell you. I surprised myself. I actually think my version was way better suited to my taste buds. (and I didn't even use a white wine sauce) I truly didn't expect that. I thought this would, like everything else, take several tries to get it right. Because I went into this blindly as a test, I only made a small portion-only 2 chicken breasts. I think it's a rule of the universe that the smaller the portion available, the better it tastes. When you have more than enough of something, you just don't want it. Go figure.

As usual, there are no exact measurements here. Here's what I did in case you'd like to try it also.

Spinach & Sun-dried Tomato Topped Chicken Breasts

You will need:
2 chicken breasts (or more if you'd like)
  *I used boneless and skinless. However the ones I had in the restaurants had skin and bones.
lemon juice (about 1/4 cup)
paprika
garlic, minced or chopped
sun-dried tomatoes
garlic powder
salt
fresh ground pepper
parsley
cumin
oregano
basil
Panko bread crumbs,lightly seasoned with Parmesan cheese
olive oil
Kraft mayo
lemon pepper seasoning
baby spinach, rinsed
feta or goat cheese, whichever you prefer
foil
a frying pan
another pan for the oven if your frying pan won't hold up in the oven

I took 2 thawed and cleaned chicken breasts and put this in a freezer bag with the lemon juice, salt, pepper,lemon pepper,  paprika, parsley,cumin, garlic powder, ground black pepper, oregano, dried basil. Mix well. Seal the bag. Shake and massage. Let it marinade in the refrigerator for about 3 hours.
After 3 hours, drain the juice.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Heat the frying pan (I used a cast iron pan) to medium heat and coat with about a tbsp of olive oil. You only want to leave it on both side long enough to sear and brown.Not to be fully cooked. Remove from the pan.  Slather a thin layer of mayo on both sides of each breast and coat with panko bread crumbs. Toss it back in the pan.Cover with foil. (Careful not to burn yourself!) Let it bake in the oven until golden brown. This took less than 30 minutes I believe.

When the chicken is nearing done, fire up a skillet to medium heat. Coat the pan with olive oil. Toss in some minced or chopped garlic, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes. Saute' until spinach is dark shiny and withered. Turn heat off. Toss in cheese so that it slightly melts but not totally.   

Remove chicken from oven. Once on plate top with sauteed topping. As you can see, I placed mine over a bed of garlic butter basmati rice on this trial run. Next time I'll do this over a bed of pasta I think. 

This came out super tender and juicy for me. It seemed so perfect in the moment. I ate every single bite and wished I'd had leftovers the next night.

Good luck to you. As always, feel free to comment and let me know how yours turned out of you tried it.

~Until Again~

A Snow Day Experiment

I experimented on a snow day back in February. (Actually we had several snow days in a row--rare for the South East--and I got bored.) Here are the results. Definitely needs some tweaking, but it has promise.  Hey, you can't win them all.  Contains graham crackers, chocolate chips, white chocolate pudding, sliced fresh strawberries, a strawberry whip mixture, and chocolate syrup, and more chocolate. Once I perfect this "Strawberry Nevermind" I'll share an actual recipe.

~Until Again~

Social Media Switch Up

FYI I've made a new Facebook page solely for recipe link dumps. It's under the name "Mama Nom Nom's". Like us please! 

Www.facebook.com/MamaNomNoms

Dress for a Successful Holiday Dinner: Cornbread Dressing

Thanksgiving is right around the corner, so is Christmas and New Year's....well basically all the important family gathering holidays. One of our family's most favorite items is my mother's cornbread dressing. I love to smell it when she's mixing the batter. I love when she asks me to taste test it for the seasoning balance (so does my sister). I love to smell it more when it's baking. And I beyond love eating it warm when it's just out of the oven. So it's definitely a recipe I had to call and ask for after moving away from home.  This is a dish that never lasts long. It's one of the first items to get gone at big dinners. The great thing is that you don't have to cook a turkey or chicken and wait for the drippings in order to get a good dressing with this recipe. I can't wait to have this in just a few weeks. It's a recipe that I'm definitely THANKFUL for. 


Dressing:
Cornbread, crumbled (recipe for cornbread is at the bottom of this recipe)
16oz  cream of chicken
about 8oz chicken broth (you'll need to eyeball this one)
pepper, to taste
salt, to taste
sage, to taste
half of an onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped (optional)
2 eggs

(If you're already plotting and planning to use some leftover Jiffy cornbread for this recipe, you may as well stop reading here. You are also banned from any further reading of the blog. There is no hope for you. Please, as much as I love a Jiffy pancakes, Jiffy mix has no business taking part in this recipe.)Ok, ok. Back to the task at hand.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13x9in pan. Mix all of these ingredients except the eggs in a large bowl. As you add salt, pepper and sage pinches at a time, mix and taste until you find the right combination for you . (I should have to remind you, but if you plan on sharing this dressing, please do not lick a spoon and dip it back into the batter. That's just nasty. Be sanitary about it.) The mixture will be lumpy. It should also smell fabulous. As far as the broth goes, you'll need to "eyeball" how much to put in. You don't want the mixture to be too dry nor too soupy. It should be thick and super moist. Once you're satisfied with the seasoning, add the eggs. Mix well. (It'll still be lumpy.) Pour the mixture into the pan. Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown.


Now, some of you may be asking if you can do this as a stuffing? I suppose that you can. But I ask, why stuff all this goodness up a dead bird's butt, when you can just have it clean out of a pan? It's up to you.

Cornbread:
2 cups cornmeal
1 cup whole milk OR buttermilk (depends on your taste preference but regular milk will work better for dressing)
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp of Crisco all-vegetable shortening (DO NOT USE vegetable oil!)
1 egg

Preheat the over to 325 degrees. Put the 2 tbsp of Crisco all- vegetable shortening in the pan. Put it in the oven to melt. In a med-lrg bowl mix the cornmeal and sugar together. Add the milk. Stir. Add the egg. Stir/whisk it until the batter is smooth and not lumpy. Once the shortening has melted to hot grease, remove the pan from the oven. Pour your batter into the pan. Return the pan to the oven. Let it bake for about 25 minutes or until it's golden brown and all the edges have drawn away from the pan. Let it sit for a few minutes before cutting/serving.


I hope your family enjoys this as much as mine. If ever my mom doesn't bring the dressing, there is certainly an uprising. And it's not pretty. 

~Until again~