Back when they called me Emy...

I once had a friend, Chris, who lived across the street from me.  And so did his little brother Shawn.  Chris and Shawn were my first ever friends.  We spent a lot of time playing in the yard and keeping ourselves entertained with whatever we could find.  We also enjoyed playing with He-Man and She-Ra action figures and saying, "I am Skeletor!"

Then, when I was about five and half I got my first lesson that all things in life change, when Chris and his family up and moved far, far, away.  My mom and I would take weekend trips to visit them for a few years but then they moved even farther away.  My only tie to Chris was via the letters we wrote to each other which continued through our high school days, but eventually that connection was lost.

And then a few months back I was on Facebook and decided to try and find Chris.  Sure enough, there he was with his wife and three kids.  What a great re-connect.  Next thing I knew his mother was contacting me to invite me to Chris's graduation celebration in Chico.  That's right.  Somehow Chris and his brother Shawn had both ended up back in Chico.  

The kicker is that Chris did not know that I was going to be at his party.  I was definitely nervous to show up considering we hadn't spoken since we were maybe 7 or 8 years old but I was also very excited.  It was really great to see Chris, Shawn, and his family again as well as meet newer additions to the family.  This is definitely one of those unexplainable connections in my life that just doesn't want to be severed.  I mean, seriously... what an amazing, crazy world we live in.   

Interesting to note that our order in heights reversed since childhood.

Kale Chips...

They MELT in your mouth!

I've seen several recipes for kale chips while perusing my favorite recipe blogs, which usually happen to be healthy, sugar free, gluten free kind of blogs. Anyways, the kale chips just did not sound appealing. How could tough, hard kale turn into this nice crisp chip that can easily be chewed and swallowed?

Well, as soon as I placed my first kale chip into my mouth my eyes popped at the intense burst of pleasure it brought to my taste buds. The chip really did melt in my mouth.! The flavor was reminiscent of eating a french fry and I had more chips in hand ready to scarf down before I had a chance to swallow the first chip. Like potato chips, these things are addicting. Once you eat one you just can't stop.

These kale chips are the best thing that I've discovered in a long time. I've been making many batches and sharing them with co-workers, neighbors and friends. I want everyone to experience the joy of kale chips. So I'm posting the recipe I use.

1 bunch of kale
1 lemon
2 Tbsp olive oil (give or take) it really doesn't take much though
sea salt

Trim kale and rip into chip-sized pieces. The ‘chips’ shrink slightly in the oven so I make them a little bigger. In a large bowl drizzle the olive oil, squeeze the lemon and sprinkle the sea salt. Use your hands to really mix it all up and coat the kale.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place kale on baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes at 350' or until kale is crispy.