Did you ever count down the sleeps until Christmas? Or summer vacation?

Being somewhat numerically minded, I have a habit of counting down to things. When Mr goes away with this work, army or otherwise, I count down the days until he can come home again. I count down to Christmas, to trips, to when papers are due because it keeps you mindful of deadlines, and as things get closer excitement mounts.

Mr’s birthday is in 13 sleeps. I need to plan a party. Eep!

I’ve been counting down the days to the wedding (139, for those of you counting with me) and that certainly keeps me ticking things off of the list of things to get done and organized before that day. On one hand as the number gets smaller I get a little more worried that it’s a big deadline to meet, but on the other hand it feels like May 16th all over again and I hop up and down because it’s so exciting.

Yeah, I hop when I’m excited. It’s not that weird, right?

Only 139 more sleeps left means we’re two thirds of the way through being engaged. Time travels so fluidly. Counting down day to day makes it feel slow, gradual, but looking back and remembering that when this countdown started there was just over a year to go makes it feel as though it is going by too quickly.

Is this a habit I should have grown out of some time ago, counting down the sleeps?

I wonder.

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Chicken Saltimbocca

4 chicken breasts

3 oz harvarti cheese, cut into 4 sticks

black pepper

12 fresh sage leaves

4 slices of proscuitto

1 tsp olive oil

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 400°F.
  • Cut a slit in each chicken breast and stuff each with one of the sticks of harvarti.
  • Season the surfaces of the chicken breasts with some black pepper.
  • Lay three sage leaves across the top of each, and then wrap with a slice of prosciutto. The prosciutto will hold the sage in place. If you’d like the extra reassurance, you can affix the prosciutto with toothpicks.

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  • Set a pan over medium high heat, and saute the chicken bundles in the olive oil, turning so that the prosciutto browns on all sides, and then transfer to the oven to finish cooking. (Chicken is cooked when the juices run clear and the internal temperature is 165°F).
  • Remove from the oven and let rest a few minutes before serving.

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Saltimbocca means “jumps in the mouth” in Italian, and with prosciutto, harvarti, and sage how can it not? What I really love is the way that the prosciutto goes translucent and you can see the sage leaves. This is such a pretty main that goes well with a light, simple pasta dish, or a gorgeous crunchy salad.

Mr says: I could eat a lot of these.

This time last year: Petite Poutine

And the year before: Eggnog Ice Cream