Veggie Burritos w/ Sauteed Cream Cheese & Avocado Spread

SAUTEED CREAM CHEESE & AVOCADO SPREAD
2 (8-oz) containers cream cheese
1 avocado
1 Tbsp fresh, chopped oregano
(or 1 tsp dried oregano)
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp salt
dash paprika
*1-2 Tbsp teff

*Teff is an itty-bitty grain (introduced to me by Elise) that I love to throw in anything & everything. It's borderline tasteless, but uncooked, it adds a cool little crunch to stuff.

-In a nonstick skillet, add cream cheese. Saute over med-high heat. (Be careful - when the cream cheese gets hot, it splatters.) The melting cheese will get runny at first. Let the cheese turn brown where it's in contact with the skillet, but don't let it burn. Fold over the browned cheese w/ a silicone/rubber spatula so that a new layer of cheese is in contact w/ the hot skillet. Continue to let brown then fold, brown then fold, until the cheese starts to hold to itself and not be runny anymore (almost ball-like). Put cream cheese mixture in a small serving bowl.
-Dice a good avocado and add it to your cream cheese. Using a spoon or fork, mix alvocado and cream cheese, leaving a few bits or pieces of avocado. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir. (Note: I added some lime juice, thinking it might taste good and keep the avocado from browning - a dash was ok, but 2 dashes wasn't. If you want to add it, add just enough so that you CAN'T taste it.)

BURRITO FIXIN'S
tortillas (my favorite premade ones are Don Julio)
1 container salsa (I had pineapple peach - the sweet spicy paired nicely with the other flavors)
1 can black beans (my favorite is La Costena)
1 red bell pepper, sliced or diced
1 tomato, diced
cilantro, chopped

-Warm black beans in saucepot. Next, assemble burrito by spreading cream cheese/avocado mixture in tortilla, topping with warm beans. Layer on salsa, etc, and fold burrito. Enjoy!

p.s. You might think that sauteeing the cream cheese is an unnecessary step, but I promise it adds great flavor. And I'm learning that one of the secrets to good cooking is "layers of flavor" - which means using multiple cooking techniques for one thing (like when restaurants quickly grill the steak and then finish cooking it in the oven) as well as seasoning things every step of the way. Sauteeing the cream cheese adds another layer of flavor. And oh is it yummy.

p.p.s. I used to never buy salsa (never made it either) because I could never use it all up before it went bad! UNTIL someone clued me in (my mom, I think - smart woman) that I could freeze whatever I don't use. And I freeze it in amounts that I'll use in recipes, etc. Yay!

House Updates

IKEA - how do I love you? Let me count the ways. *sigh*

The shelves are from (you guessed it!) IKEA and are perfect for keeping things out of Jason's reach. For a while anyway. (At his last appointment, he was almost 3' tall!) The plant trailing above the window is being held up by tiny, clear COMMAND hooks. But riddle me this: What good does having clear hooks do, when the tape underneath the hooks is white?? The cords under the window are also being guided by the same clear/white hooks.

The furniture placement in this photo is completely different now. We have a half wall that overlooks a front room downstairs, and the smaller couch was up against that half wall before. But when Jason started climbing on the couches w/o assistance (dangerous!), it was time to move that couch away from the half wall.

So now there are no couches against the half wall, and the small couch is where the big couch was, dividing the living room from the kitchen.

The big couch is now under that window and the IKEA white storage thing is now where that storage ottoman was. (The IKEA thing had to be turned around to face the wall though, so Jason can't open it - it stores games and puzzles and the like, and Jason loved to get in there and scatter game pieces, bend all the cards in every deck, and tear or suck on paper instructions.)

And the ottoman got moved to the other side of the tv stand.

It took a while to figure out this arrangement, but I like it better than the old one. Who'da thunk?

And in keeping w/ my love of green, white, and purple:

Wall art from BYU's floral/gift shop. A friend of mine diy'ed
some w/ a super fat, pink Sharpie. They rock. Next time...

These are from Target. Goodbye tan and red plaid curtains!!

 p.s. All these changes happened a long time ago, I'm just now getting around to putting up pictures. 

Veg Main Dish Recipes

Because I don't even buy meat anymore (except for the healthy ones, like breakfast sausage, bacon, hot dogs, and frozen popcorn chicken... ... ...) I'm forced to turn side dishes into the main dish. Here are some that I've recently tried and liked.

PENNE RIGATE with BROCCOLI (my favorite)
by Anna Boiardi (Chef Boyardee's daughter)
as found on NPR.org
Serves 4

1 1/2 lbs. broccoli, washed - use only florets and cut into small pieces
1 lb. penne rigate
3/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
2/3 c. finely grated pecorino romano cheese (I use fresh parmesan - so much better) + more for serving
salt & pepper
-Bring a big pot of water to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, add a good handful of salt (apprx 1/4 c.), enough that you can taste it. Set a fine strainer in the sink. Add broccoli and wait for it to return to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for time recommended on box. Drain the penne and broccoli in the colander and dump them into a large serving bowl. Add the EVOO & cheese and mix well with a wooden spoon so that the pasta is coated and bits of broccoli are well distributed throughout, creating a nice, green-speckled sauce. Sprinkle w/ a little more cheese and top w/ a little pepper.

CHILE RELLENO CASSEROLE (super fast prep)
by Cindy & Mindy (whoever they are)

2 sm. cans chopped green chiles
1 can evaporated milk
4 eggs
1/4 c. flour (I used Harina de Maiz)
1 lb. shredded cheddar cheese
1 lb. shredded monterey jack cheese (I didn't have this on hand, so I just used cheddar)
1 (8-oz) can tomato sauce
-Preheat oven to 325. Spread chiles on bottom of 9x13 pan and top with cheeses. In a bowl, mix milk, eggs, and flour. Pour over cheese and bake for 30 min. Top w/ tomato sauce and bake for 10-15 more minutes.

SUMMER SQUASH CASSEROLE (requires a bit of prep work, but comes together fast)
by Carolyn Johnson (lady in my ward)

2 lbs yellow summer squash (or a mixture of zucchini) (makes about 6 c.)
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 can cream of chicken soup (I use the can that's a combo of Cr.o.Mush w/ Cr.o.Chk)
1 c. sour cream
1 c. grated carrot
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. grated cheese
1 (6-oz) box/pkg stovetop stuffing (I thought it could have used two packages)
1/4 c. hot water (more if you use more stuffing)
2 Tbsp butter, softened
-350. Slice squash and chop onion. In a LARGE pot, boil squash and onion w/ some salt for about 5 min; drain. Meanwhile grate carrots and cheese. In same pot, add soup, sour cream, grated carrots, milk, and cheese. In a separate bowl, use a fork to combine stuffing, water, and butter. Spray a 9x13 pan w/ cooking spray and spread 1/2 of squash mixture in bottom. Sprinkle w/ 1/2 of stuffing. Repeat. Bake at 350 for 30 min.

Teasing the Cats

I guess I deserve the major gashes and scratches in my arm and hand.

After Jason went down for bed, I let the cats inside again to feed them canned cat food. As they made their way to their food area, they noticed one of Jason's toys on the ground, a little tucked a way. It apparently spooked Kitten, who approached it slowly, cautiously, suspiciously. Elvis noticed Kitten's slow calculated movements, saw the toy, and also began approaching it carefully. I thought it would be funny to scare them by moving the toy quickly in their direction. And I was right. It was hilarious! They both, at the same time, jumped 2 feet in the air and backwards, landing w/ a loud thud and scrambling away! I laughed and laughed and laughed.

Sadly, though, it seems that I've psychologically scarred Kitten even more than she already was.

Kitten ran to the other room (Elvis just went around the corner of the kitchen island and walked it off, I guess), while I got their canned cat food ready. A routine that usually gets both cats excitedly meowing and purring around their food spot. But Kitten wouldn't even come over. So I went and picked her up and brought her over. As we approached the scene of the crime, she was scrambling in my arms, but she absolutely did NOT want me to put her down. Finally I got her to eat her food, and I thought that after that she'd be fine.
As she walked back to the family room, she noticed another of Jason's toys (completely different from the first), and again began approaching it cautiously. So I picked her up, pet her, and tried to get her calm enough so she could see that it wasn't dangerous. She let me get her pretty close to it, so I thought maybe if I set her down on top of the toy, she'd feel like she was pouncing on it and would know that it wasn't alive or anything. Bad idea. She FLIPPED out and clawed me trying to get away. PAIN!! Two deep gouges and a few long scratches, one of which runs down my hand in between two fingers - you know, where that soft web-like skin is. So much pain. And some blood. I immediately washed my wounds w/ soap and applied neosporin and put a bandaid on the deep ones. Fortunately the only one that still hurts is the one on my hand in between my fingers.

CAT ANXIETY: Kitten still has not recovered. That night she was spooked by everything. The next morning when she came inside, she was afraid of the part of garbage bag that was sticking out from under the garbage can lid. Oy! What have I done! My poor anxiety-ridden cat. She already had problems w/ pulling out her fur in huge clumps when she's bothered, and she follows me throughout the neighborhood when I take Jason for a walk, meowing sadly the whole time. (Otherwise, she NEVER meows.) I may have to take her in to a cat psychologist. Do they have those? Or are they just called vets?

DI remake

This is from a few months ago, when I was on a spray-paint-everything-white kick. Found this at the D.I. in a traditional red. Red was my favorite color when I was little, and it's been pretty popular in kitchens, but it's just not my thing. White is now my thing. So this got painted white.
I also wanted a place to put my purse (instead of just on a counter stool), so I attached 3 COMMAND hooks to the back. They face the wrong direction, but it's all good.

p.s. There are also 3 tea light candles as part of the frame. I'll probably never use them, but they just add a touch of interest.

Hmph

The green, much to my dismay, wasn't working out. So after several more coats of white and gray and green and white again... trying to make it look right, I decided to start over. No green this time :(. The silestone was so pretty. I wish I could recreate it w/ paint, but it's just not working.

Trying to take off all these layers of paint, without an electric sander, is going to take a lot of time and work, though. (I gave myself a blister last night working on its removal.) So I'm going to move on to the next piece of counterspace - the island - and work on paint removal from the first piece a little at a time.

Even though my original idea didn't work out, I did learn how to get the look I want. Now I'm ready to tackle the other areas w/o having to worry and constantly reassure myself with, 'Just keep going. It'll all turn out and look good in the end. Just keep going.'

Last night's removal efforts