Quinoa Chicken Enchilada Casserole

I interrupt the regularly scheduled vacation posts to bring you a really yummy, healthy dinner. I've been trying to find recipes with quinoa lately since it's the latest health food fad. I always figured it would be dry and crunchy, but turns out if you cook it right, it is a great protein-rich base for recipes that normally call for something starchy like rice or pasta. Even though the recipe does have some sour cream and cheese in it, when you consider the proportions, you'll realize that it looks a lot more indulgent than it actually is!

Who knew eating healthy could look this yummy?! 

Let's just get started with the recipe. You'll need:

1 cup dry quinoa
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth for quinoa
2 breasts of chicken -shredded (I used the pre-cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store)
1/2-3/4 cup cheese - pepper jack and sharp cheddar
2 large poblano peppers - roasted (method below)
1-2 jalapenos - diced
1 T butter
1/4 c sour cream
1 12 oz can tomatillos
2 cloves garlic - minced
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth for enchilada sauce
2 T flour
1/2 can black beans
1 tsp cumin
cilantro - to taste

So here's how I make my quinoa - it turns out fluffy and delicious every time:
Take 1 cup dry quinoa and rinse thoroughly in a strainer with cold water. Then transfer into a bowl of ice water and let soak for 15 minutes. This is apparently an essential step so the quinoa isn't too crunchy and tough. Boil 3/4 c chicken broth and 3/4 cup water together in a medium pot. Stir in quinoa, return to a boil, then reduce heat to low and let simmer until liquid has soaked into quinoa. It should be soft and fluffy to the touch and will have absorbed the liquid when it's done.

I used the time the quinoa was cooking to prep some of the other ingredients.

To roast the poblanos:
Simply put them on a cookie sheet covered with foil, sprayed them lightly with cooking spray, and pop them onto the top shelf of the oven under the broiler for about 6 minutes on each side (I turned the peppers about 3 times each). The skin should appear blackened and bubbly. Once they are done under the broiler, transfer them to a bowl with a lid and let them sit covered for 15 minutes or longer. This "sweating" process will help the skin peel off more easily.

To make the enchilada sauce:
Melt the butter in a sauce pan, then sautee the jalapenos and garlic for a few minutes. Add the flour and stir until combined with the peppers and garlic. Add 1 cup of chicken broth and whisk well to combine. Add the 1/4 cup sour cream and continue to whisk until sauce begins to thicken a little.  Add the 1 tsp cumin and a little chopped cilantro to your liking. Take the sauce and put it in a blender with your canned tomatillos - now you have your enchilada sauce!

The quinoa should be done by now and the peppers should be roasted. Peel and chop the peppers, then combine in a bowl the quinoa, chopped roasted poblanos, 1/2 can black beans, the shredded chicken, and about 1/4 cup shredded cheese. Add about 1/2-3/4 cup enchilada sauce - just use your judgement on how much you think you'll need to sufficiently moisten the casserole. You don't want it to be runny, but you do want it to be wet. Transfer to a casserole dish, then top with the remaining cheese. Bake for about 20 minutes until cheese is bubbly, then broil for a couple minutes to crisp and brown the cheese on top.

I served the casserole with a dollop of fresh simple guacamole (mashed avocado, lime juice, and sea salt) and fresh salsa (I used the Pioneer Woman's recipe - found HERE).

Enjoy!

The Napa Chronicles: Day 2 - San Fran & Napa Night 1

After sleeping off the exhaustion of traveling, we woke up refreshed and decided to go grab some breakfast. Steven had heard there was a great spot only a couple blocks away that had been featured on one of our fave Food Network shows - Diners Drive-ins, & Dives. I don't know why I let myself watch that show...all those triple-decker burgers, greasy cheese fries, and general plethora of comfort food always make me hungry! When we got to the diner, the line was out the door and wrapping around the back of the building. After standing there for about 20 minutes with no movement, we decided to turn to Yelp for some alternatives. A quick search revealed a highly-rated place only a few blocks away, so we headed off in search of Honey Honey Cafe and Crepery.

Not knowing where we were going, we used Google maps...which, as it turns out, does not warn of crack dens en route to your destination. One second we were in a perfectly acceptable neighborhood near Union Square and the next we found ourselves in someplace known as the Tenderloin District (we didn't know this at the time, but Steven looked it up later). There are various theories for how it got its name, but the prevailing one seems to be that police officers used to get a bump in pay for working in the crime-ridden area, thereby allowing them to afford fancy steak dinners. So there we were, searching for crepes, and instead we found....creeps. And a bunch of strung out crackheads, complete with potential drug deals going down right out in the open. Needless to say, we turned down the nearest street and took a different route.

Thankfully, we finally arrived here:

Isn't it cute?

We ordered one sweet and one savory crepe to share and snagged a table on the sidewalk to enjoy the nice morning. I highly recommend this little place to anyone looking for a pretty inexpensive and tasty breakfast. Here were our lovely crepes and the view from our sidewalk table:

After stuffing ourselves, we headed back to the hotel to meet up with the others. We wanted to get the true San Francisco experience, so we hopped on a cable car headed for Fisherman's Wharf. Along the way we made friends with/annoyed the trolley driver and saw some city sights.

By the time we got to Fisherman's Wharf, it was time for lunch at the fabulous Scoma's on the pier.

Strangely enough, my parents and I ate at this place waaaaay back when we came to San Fran during one of my college spring breaks. It was even BETTER than I remembered it - mostly because I have a much greater appreciation for seafood now than I did then! Steven and I shared the Crab Louie Salad, which was basically a HUGE pile of shredded fresh crab meat with various fresh veggies and a delicious dipping sauce. It was perfect. If you go to Scoma, get the Crab Louie. Period.

Next up was the Alcatraz tour for the Sheps and me & Steven; the rest of the group posted up at a wine/cigar bar and had a grand old time.

The ride out to Alcatraz Island was gorgeous:

Windy, but gorgeous. 

Once we were on the island, we listened to an audio guide with interviews from former inmates and guards. The place was pretty amazing. The cells were TINY, and the security measures seemed so tight that it's hard to believe there was actually a successful escape (fun fact: the three who escaped were never found - did the sharks get them or are they lounging on a beach in Mexico?)

    We wouldn't have been quite as smiley if those doors to the solitary confinement cells were closed! 

We had a ton of fun on the Alcatraz tour and decided the next time we are in San Fran, we'd love to take the spooky night tour! 

After Alcatraz we were running late to catch our charter bus to Napa, so instead of hopping back on the trolley, we all piled into a tiny cab for a somewhat harrowing ride back to Union Square. The city streets are RIDICULOUS...we felt like we were on a roller coaster, and the cabbie joked that the car "hardly ever stalls out on these big hills." Hardy-har...please just let us get there in one piece! When we got back to the bus and the others, there was a mad scramble to get coolers, drinks, and snacks for the ride. It also became apparent that the group who had not gone to Alcatraz had a LOT of fun while we were away. I'm pretty sure the bus driver wanted to ditch us in the middle of the street before the drive even started. Sadly, we have no pictures from the actual drive. Everyone was too busy laughing - we whipped out my new Cards Against Humanity game and proceeded to find out exactly why it's called "the party game for terrible people." It was hilarious. And terrible. I can't even write what most of the cards said, but a good time was had by all! 

Once we got to Napa, we checked in to our lovely hotel, the Meritage. I think the poor concierge was a little apprehensive of our rowdy, wine-splashed group. The grounds of the hotel were amazing - a private vineyard, walking trails, and plenty of places to sit and relax with a glass of wine. 

We all cleaned up and pretended to be presentable for our first dinner at Bottega - which ended up being the favorite meal of the trip for most of us. Steven had really lobbied for Bottega when we were picking restaurants, and I am SO glad he did - the homestyle Italian food from chef Michael Chiarello (of Top Chef Masters) did not disappoint! Everything was amazing, but by far my favorite thing was the ricotta gnocchi. It could not have been more light and creamy. I don't think any other gnocchi will ever measure up!

The only pic that matters from our dinner at Bottega! 

It was late by the time we got back to our hotel from Bottega, so we couldn't muster up the energy to enjoy the fun nightlife offerings of the Meritage (a bowling alley, bar, and nightclub). Instead, I passed out fully clothed on top of the covers approximately 10 seconds after making it back to the room even though it was hot and muggy (something was wrong with our air conditioner).  I woke up about 30 minutes later to find a hotel worker fixing our air conditioner - at least Steven stayed up long enough to get it fixed for us! We both crashed hard that night, looking forward to our first full day of winery tours the next morning! That's for the next post, though. Spoiler alert: we explored some caves, taught our tour guide how to Dougie, and likely got ourselves placed on a watch list for a certain B-list celebrity! 

The Napa Chronicles: Day 1 - San Fran Bound!

A few months ago, a group of my favorite people decided to take a trip together. It was Cat and Josh's 5th anniversary, Lane & Lolly's 6th, and Sarah and Derek's TENTH!! Steven and I are about to celebrate our 1 year (dating) anniversary, plus both of us had birthdays in May...so, we all had a LOT of occasions to celebrate! After discussing several potential destinations, we decided on Napa...the thought of all that wine, temps in the 70s, and beautiful vineyards was just too enticing! And thanks to the months of travel at my old job, Steven and I got to fly FREE on Southwest (with my miles and his companion pass) - score!

So on the Thursday before Memorial Day weekend, we headed out to San Fran (well, technically Steven and I headed out to Oakland, since that's where Southwest flies into). Since Southwest doesn't do direct flights to California (curses!), we had to stop through in Albuquerque. The first leg of our flight was...how shall I say this...AWFUL. Horrible. Terrible. It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad flight. The turbulence started almost immediately and lasted the entire time. And this was no run-of-the-mill turbulence...this was pure hell. Sudden HUGE drops, side to side shaking, people gasping, airplane creaking, and me, the girl who hates to fly even on good flights, freaking the F out. Poor Steven, it was his first time to fly with me...not a great first impression, I'm sure. He tried to be sweet and comfort me but I refused to look at him and ignored his hand stroking my arm and leg...I was too busy thinking about how long it would take before the plane started to go down until impact. When we finally landed, I cried a few tears of relief, then promptly went to the airport bathroom and sobbed for about 5 minutes (while researching rental cars and how long it takes to drive from Albuquerque to San Fran). Upon realizing it was a 16+ hour drive, I knew I would have to suck it up and get on the next leg of our flight. Sweet Steven never told me I was being ridiculous...love that man! We spent our hour layover in an airport bar, where I downed 3 vodka sodas in about 30 minutes (to calm the nerves, ya know). In a very strange coincidence, we also ran into our friend Taylor and her sweet pup Bartlett on their way from San Diego to Texas. Between the booze and the catching up with Tay, I was finally relaxed enough to board our flight, which was smooth and  uneventful, thankfully!

Me, Leg 1 of Flight:

Aaaaand Leg 2:

Now on to a happier part of the story! We arrived in San Fran and checked into our cool hotel, the Parc 55 in Union Square. Since we were just crashing there for one night, we really didn't get to spend much time in the hotel, but it was the perfect place for  us to call home base for our quick stop in San Fran. Since our flight didn't land till 9:00, we didn't have time to do much (plus we were thoroughly exhausted). Cat and Josh landed around the same time - though at a different airport - so once we all checked in, we met up at Annabelle's Bar and Bistro down the street. They had delicious cocktails, a warm, intimate ambiance, and amazing food. Steven and I split the tomato basil soup and short ribs over polenta. Here are a few pics from dinner:
                                                                                                         

It looks weird in the pic, but this was a plate of pure deliciousness!

Me and my babe at dinner...the poor guy had to have been worn out from dealing with my neurotic flying freak-out from earlier that day!

Our dinner dates - the Sheps! So glad we got to spend the first night relaxing with these two!


After the self-proclaimed "best dressed homeless man in the city" gave us some advice for catching the trolley in the morning, we drug tired selves back to the hotel and crashed, looking forward the next day in San Francisco. That post is coming next. Spoiler alert: Steven and I found a crack den on our way to breakfast, we walked in the footsteps of Al Capone, and a charter bus driver likely turned in her resignation after driving our rowdy group to our next destination...Napa!

I'm baaaaack!

Hey friends! Sorry it's been so long! I swear I always say I will be better about posting and then...I fail! To be honest, I kinda figured I don't have a lot of interesting stuff to post about that people would actually want to read. But then I realized that I LOVE reading all my friends' blogs - their random stories and pictures, recipes, travel tales, etc...so surely they also love reading mine, right?! So once again, I am gonna make an attempt to get back into the world of blogging!

Anyway, quick update on my BUSY first semester of school (another reason I didn't blog...I barely had time to sleep, let alone blog):

In the spring semester, I took 5 classes - Intro to Communication Disorders, Phonetics, Articulation Disorders, Anatomy & Physiology of Speech and Hearing, and Language Acquisition. I really enjoyed them all, even though 15 hours was a lot of work! I also tried to work about 15-20 hours/week at a contract legal job to get some extra money. Between all that and spending time with Steven whenever possible, this semester was pretty exhausting! Even so...I never found myself getting very stressed out, and I think that was because 1) I've been through law school and 2) I've worked out in the real world as an attorney. No matter how much school work piled up, I could always say "this is a heck of a lot better than THAT!!"

I met a lot of nice girls in my program (granted most all of them are far younger than I am...but still, they are awesome!) I love how our program put all the "out-of-field" girls together for their first semester of classes. We already had something in common in that we come from different backgrounds than the typical speech path masters' students, so we bonded instantly. Can't wait for the next couple years with these crazy girls!

In all, the semester couldn't have turned out better. I came out with a 4.0 (which is something I could NEVER say about law school)! Summer classes have already started, and it's shaping up to be a busy summer. I am taking A Seminar in Autism, Dysphagia, Audiology (online), and an independent study where I get to do research for a really awesome book that is being written by a lady at our school - stay tuned for more on that! Also, I will be working 4 days a week at my clinical practicum, which is the Preverbal Program for kiddos 18-36 months who haven't started talking yet. I'm excited!

That's about all for now...check back later this week for a post about the awesome vacation I took during my short break between spring and summer semesters - a group couples trip to Napa with lots of my favorite people on the planet! Spoiler alert: an actress was sighted, the term YOLO was severely overused, a spit-take occurred, the Dougie was danced, and much wine was consumed.

Back to School

So, blog readers, can I tell you a secret? I am pretty nervous about starting school tomorrow, and I can't really pin down why. I am not scared of the subject matter - I am sure it will be challenging, but in a good and welcome way. I'll finally be studying something I'm interested in, and I truly feel that going back to school at age 30 will make me appreciate the educational experience even more. And I'm not worried that I won't be able to handle the workload. I'm pretty sure that after surviving law school and, more miserably, the bar exam and big firm law, I am prepared for just about anything. So what's my problem? I really don't know. This is a change I've been wanting to make for years. I've daydreamed about it and thought "man, I wish I had the guts, but I will probably never do that." Well now I AM doing it. And I AM excited, but also nervous. It's a big unknown looming right ahead of me. For those of you who know me or read this blog, you know that in the past couple of years, there have been some life-altering changes in my life. And here I am about to step off the cliff and into another big one. And it's incredibly exciting, but also a little scary. Particularly because I'm a "real" adult now - I guess you can't help but feel that way at age 30. A real adult who is about to have zero income until I find a part-time job that will work with my school schedule. That's a little intimidating and feels like a pretty big step back compared to lots of people my age, to be honest. But I do have to remember that in reality, it's a HUGE step forward to pursue something that will make me ultimately make me happy. And I will find a way to make it work.

As silly as it sounds, I honestly think that one other thing I'm nervous about is having a student schedule again.  How many of you just rolled your eyes and thought "yeah, tough life, POOR YOU?"  But really, let's just think about this for a minute. It's been about 6 years since I've had a student schedule. That was in law school, where my roomies (Cat and Rachel) and I would sleep till noon, lounge in PJs watching Grey's Anatomy in the afternoon, and rush home from a BUSY DAY (2 hours of class) to take a much-needed nap. Last time I checked, that's not socially acceptable for a 30 year old! Since that time, it's been kind of non-stop...gone are the days of true leisure time. In the past 6 years, there hasn't been a free moment when I haven't felt like there's something I needed to be doing. When I didn't have a job, it was searching for a job. When I worked contract, it was still searching for a full-time job while sometimes juggling two contracts at the same time. When I worked at a big firm, it was constant pressure to bill more, travel more, work more, do more, more, more. And since I've left that job, it's been getting my life together and figuring out the next step....which is this speech pathology program I'm starting tomorrow.  So when I look at the large chunks of free time in my school schedule, I can't help but wonder how I'll fill those hours.  Hopefully I'll find a part-time job soon so I can continue to fund this next chapter of my life. And I am excited to spend a little more time working out and possibly teaching spin at some gyms around town. I know I'll settle into the groove and end up loving every second of it, but I guess right now it's just hard to imagine such a huge departure.

Tomorrow I'll go up to campus for orientation. I'll get my student ID (yay cheap movie tickets and other student discounts!) and my parking pass. And I'll jump back into life as a student. Stay tuned!

Welcome, 2013!

Well, I suck! Clearly one of my New Year's Resolutions needs to be to blog more often! Now that it's 2013, let's just do a quick wrap-up of the past few months and move on with the new year!

Let's see...a LOT has happened since my last post! Last time I checked in with my 2.5 blog readers, I had just quit my job at the big law firm I'd worked for over the past 13 months. Since October, I've been doing contract legal work and loving all the extra time I've had to spend with friends, family, and myself now that I don't have to travel every week. But even that big change wasn't quite big enough for me, I guess! Before I quit my big firm job at the end of September, I applied on a whim to a Masters of Science in Communication Disorders at UTD. For those of you who know me, you'll recall that speech pathology is something I've been interested in since high school and always said "man, I wish I'd done that instead." Well, I finally decided to stop saying "I wish" and give it a shot. With zero background or experience in that area, I figured I had less than a snowball's chance in hell to get admitted. But with an incredible stroke of luck an about a week of cramming for a last-minute GRE I took on the day my application was due, I got in! So...on the Monday after next, I'm going back to school! WHAT?! That just seems crazy. Last week I went up to campus to check out the lay of the land, and let me tell you, walking by the Student Union plastered with butcher-paper signs for frats, sororities, and other campus organizations made this 30-year old feel pretty ancient! I have to buy books! And a parking pass! It hasn't quite hit me yet that I'm about to be a full-time student again. I'm excited and nervous. I'm planning to still do part-time legal work during school so that I can avoid having to eat ramen noodles for the next 2 years!

Ok, so that's my big life change for 2013! Let's see what else I can catch you guys up on. My holidays were great - I got to spend Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve in Tyler with my amazing family. In between, my sweet boyfriend Steven and I hosted an Ugly Sweater Pub Crawl here in Dallas. So if you were in Uptown on the night of December 14, you may have seen approximately 20 idiots stumbling around wearing some of the tackiest sweater vests, sweaters, and sweatshirts you've ever seen! Here are a few pics from holiday festivities:

My family at Thanksgiving - we never manage to get nicely posed pics, so this one out on the driveway between the cars will have to do! 

The Tyler Goodwill shop really came through on ugly sweater vests for all my friends! 

Oh yeah...I got bangs! They were fun...I kept them about a month and then started growing them out to be side-swept bangs so I don't have to get them trimmed as often! 

Steven and I in our lovely sweater vests - I died laughing over his turtleneck...it's just so dorky! 

 Bella participated in the ugly sweater party (somewhat unwillingly). 

Some of the girls at the ugly sweater party before we headed out for the pub crawl! 

Family pic from Christmas - too bad at least half the family wasn't there! 

Mom and her BFF Marilyn toasting to the new year. We had the best meal - Elk tenderloin dad got from Wyoming, red wine mushrooms, scalloped cheddar potato casserole, green beans, garlic bread, corn casserole, and cherry cream cheese pie! Ugh...bring on the New Years resolutions! 

Happy New Year, everyone! I definitely plan to keep up with this blog more - I should have a lot to post about in 2013!

Money-Saving Tip of the Day

So this seems like a no-brainer, but to me it was a revelation. I shop at Tom Thumb for my groceries, almost exclusively. But when it comes time to fill up my car with gas, I usually just stop into whatever gas station is closest at the time.  I definitely won't be doing THAT anymore after realizing how much I can save by going to the Tom Thumb station and using my rewards points. Now, I'm not one to keep track of 20 different reward cards, but like most places, Tom Thumb stores your reward card info for access with your phone number. If you shop at Tom Thumb, or a grocery store with a similar rewards program, I definitely recommend going onto their website to see if they participate in a gas rewards program.  Tom Thumb's is pretty awesome - $1 spent on groceries = 1 point, and 100 points gets you 10 cents off per gallon at a participating Tom Thumb gas station.  (I realize I sound like a commercial right now...but I promise Tom Thumb isn't paying me to say this - wish they were though!) This may not seem like much, but believe me it adds up quickly! When I realized I needed to get gas before heading to work this morning, I made sure to drive the extra couple of blocks to the Tom Thumb station because I thought I probably had some rewards points saved up from the past few months. Turns out I got 50 cents per gallon off!!! So I filled up my entire tank for $45, which would normally cost me about $52-$60! Not a bad way to start the day at all...