Sunday, February 10, 2008

Recipe

So once again, I have been experimenting with new recipes and this one is definitely a keeper.

Quinoa (pronounced "keen-wah") is from South America and I like to describe it as a cross between couscous and rice. It is extremely high in protein and is in the whole grains family. You can buy it in the bulk section at HEB.

Black Bean and Quinoa Enchiladas

Prep time: ~ 40 minutes
Cook time: ~25-30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 green pepper, chopped
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 (15oz.) can of black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 (15oz.) can of diced tomatoes and green chilies
  • 1/4 cup picante sauce (I used medium)
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 2 cups cooked quinoa
  • whole wheat tortillas, warmed (at least 8 or 9 6-inch tortillas- depends on how full you make the enchiladas)
  • 1 cup salsa (I use medium)
  • shredded cheese (Cheddar, fiesta mix, etc)
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Directions
  1. In a large nonstick skillet, saute the green pepper, onion, and garlic in the olive oil until tender. Add the beans, tomatoes/chilies, picante sauce, cumin, chili powder, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until heated through and mixture thickens. Add quinoa, cook 5 minutes longer or until heated through.
  2. Sprinkle shredded cheese onto tortilla. Spoon 1/2 cup or so (more or less depending on how full you want the enchiladas to be) into the middle of the tortilla and roll. Place in 9 X 13 pan, coated with non-stick spray (I use organic olive oil spray). Repeat until the pan is full. Spoon salsa over the enchiladas and bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes. Remove and sprinkle top with cheese and chopped cilantro. Return to over for 2-3 minutes or until cheese is melted.
    Makes about 9-12 enchiladas

Saturday, February 9, 2008

Thrift shopping

Today my friend Desiree and I headed down to Westheimer and Shepherd for some good girl time. She is a busy wife and mom of three and was looking forward to a small breather. So, thanks Dave (Desiree's hubby) for taking care of the kiddos, 'cause we had a blast! We had breakfast at one of my favorite places in that area, Empire Cafe, and then hit a bunch of the thrift or rather "recycled clothing" shops. I've always been a fan of Buffalo Exchange and we definitely hit the jackpot there. I found this great hand-beaded skirt there from Bali for under $20! Excitement! Isn't it pretty? We also hit up "Recycled Fashions" and "Taxi Taxi".








We had a great time. She has all these great nuggets of Christian wisdom that I am storing up for future seasons and is just a lot of fun to be around. Love ya girlie!

Then I headed to Sonya and Grady's to take pictures of their bookcases...I still haven't built mine, but I really like the design of the ones Grady has in his study, so I'm gonna copy them.



I went for a 4.55 mile run...I seriously think the humidity is hindering me...that's my excuse and I am sticking to it! I didn't get the time I wanted...definitely felt the distance though...whew! Only another mile and some change to add before race day on March 1st!

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Thoughts on Running

So Lisa and I (and several others) have signed up to run the Houston Rodeo Run 10K on March 1st...yeah 6.1 miles. Yikes! So yesterday we did a bit of a longer run, ~3.5 miles...good pace, good breathing, great weather. All in all a very good run.

Today was a different story. I decided that I was going to run 2 miles for time. For those of you who live in Houston, you know that today is an exceptionally humid day (currently 88% in my area). My first mile was great... 9 min 38s...and then I about died...I COULDN'T breathe! Seriously, it was like the air was getting stuck in the back of my throat! Does any one know of a lung implant I can get to filter the air? (Wouldn't that be a great invention??) So needless to say my second mile was just plain awful. First, I was running into hurricane-ish gale force winds (maybe a slight exaggeration...) granted...it did help to shove the air into my lungs...and then I had the Pain of Death in my side. Horrendous side cramp...which I used to my advantage by distracting myself with morbid scenes of myself collapsing on the side of the road because it was really acute appendicitis (overactive imagination..me?...never...). So definitely not my best mile ever. Oh well...

So bottom line, pray that the humidity on March 1st isn't ridiculous..under 30% would be great (and for you Arizonans out there, 30% humidity is NOT humid :) ).

Friday, February 1, 2008

What a cutie!

Although I was really bummed that I missed my sister and nephew at Christmas by two days, they had a wonderful time. She is such a good mom and he is just so cute! I hope to make another trip to Seattle to visit them soon...



My beautiful sister and her cute kid...who is distracted by the animals at the Reid Park Zoo



Just don't fall off please...



Chatting with some javelina at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum



This is really the best picture of them all...see what he is holding? Yep, that's a soccer ball!

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Girls Group

We finally managed to get a group picture of our girls group today at our little New Years Shindig (the unofficial title). I can't believe 5 of our gals are graduating high school in May . They are just growing up so fast! :)



Serious picture...



Goofy picture

Friday, January 25, 2008

Random squawking

So a few weeks ago, I think my neighbor bought a bird of some type. It's very loud. And the noise it makes is a cross between a cat coughing up a hairball and someone stepping on a duck's tail. My cats freak out every time...it's starting to become white noise to me, but every so often, I just have to giggle....

New Attitude 08

I just registered for New Attitude. What's New Attitude you ask? It's a conference sponsored by Sovereign Grace Ministries for young adults, singles, and young married couples. This year the following men are speaking:

CJ Mahaney
Josh Harris
John Piper
Mark Dever
Al Mohler
Eric Simmons

And it is about "God's Word". Let the learning and challenging begin!

Check out the video for more info. I went to this several years ago and it was fantastic!