I love a leisurely Sunday morning of enjoying my coffee and reading the paper before we head to church. Last week I read an article that really blew my mind.
When I think of a household pet, cats and dogs first come to mind. Well, I learned that about half a million families in the United States own a rat or a mouse for a pet. Umm- that’s why I got the cat! There is even an organization (AFRMA) for these folks – American Fancy Rat and Mouse Association. Mice are said to make great pets, but rats are actually smarter. OK, I did not know that. They even have recognized colors: Blue, Champagne, Lilac, Mink, Siamese, and Lynx. Some are long-haired, curly-haired and just plain shiny. They have markings classified as: Hooded, Masked, Variegated, Berkshire, and Dalmatian. There are hairless rats, tailless rats, and big-eared rats called Dumbos. I am NOT making this up – I am not that creative!!
My husband has been on a mission to rid our farmhouse of one of these pesky varmits. Several weeks ago, he went to the farm and inside the house there was toilet paper all over the front 2 rooms of the house. He put out mouse traps and poison – to no avail. The cheese is missing from the trap and the poison has been eaten. As he looked on the wall, he saw that something has eaten the fur from the face and ears of his mounted deer above the mantel.
This meant WAR! He and his brother brought in a trap and set it up in the front room, equipped with ears of corn. The next day all the corn was gone and the trap had not caught the intruder. Now sticky traps were set up side by side in the front room. He caught 2 baby snakes and a little fur.
After looking under a chair, they saw empty Mountain Dew cans, corn cobs, Coke bottles, newspapers, and toilet paper. Next attempt was bowls of anti-freeze. All the liquid was gone the next morning and the empty bowls were under the chair. They have set up deer cameras they retrieved from the woods and the creature has eluded even having his picture taken.
I’m sure that we will eventually catch whatever has invaded the farm house. I hope we take it out alive. We might get good money for something this smart.
I hope you will enjoy this weeks’ recipes. Thanks for reading.
CHICKEN BREASTS with RICE
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 stick butter, melted
1 cup rice
1 package dry onion soup mix
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
2 soup cans water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour rice into a 9 x 13 inch baking dish that has been sprayed with Pam. Place chicken on top. Mix butter, soups, and water together and pour over chicken and rice. Bake for 1 ½ hours or until done.
COMPANY CHICKEN
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, cubed
1 pound uncooked skinless chicken, chopped
1 pkg. dry Italian dressing mix
1 (14 oz.) can chicken broth
1 stick butter, sliced
Put soup, cream cheese, chicken, dressing mix, chicken broth and butter and cook in a crock pot on Low for 6 – 8 hours. Serve over noodles or rice.
CHEESE BISCUITS
½ cup butter, softened
½ pound Cheddar cheese, grated
1 cup flour
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix butter, cheese, flour, salt and pepper together. Shape the mixture into balls. Bake for 10 -15 minutes. They are ready when they are brown on the bottom.
*Great accompaniment to both of the chicken dishes!
