Frijoles over Fry Bread and Sage Balsamic Spring Pea Pizza

What a miserable spring Saturday! It rained, it poured, it was windy, and it was cold.  The kids' moods were about as warm as the weather until I desperately relented and brought their bikes inside (once again) for them to ride.  Brian and I alternated napping all day, whether we really were just that tired or entering some weather-induced coma, I'm not sure.  And despite our best efforts to forge some fun family activity - game, yoga, music, or otherwise - it dissolved into fits of tears from alternating kids for alternating reasons.  Yes.  It was simply one of those days.

The bright spot, however,was dinner.  It simmered almost all day, smelling up the house with goodness.  It was warm, spicy, filling, nutritious, and of course, delicious.  And, in the tradition of all truly good food, it turned those frowns upside down and brought new life and better moods into a gloomy house.  The evening was finished with giggles and smiles, a much more preferable ending to any day.

Spicy Frijoles over Fry Bread
Yield: 4 servings

For the beans:
1 C dried pinto beans
1/2 large sweet onion, diced
1 14.5 ounce can stewed tomatoes
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
1 t smoked paprika
1 t cumin
1 bay leaf
1/2 t garlic powder or 2 cloves garlic, minced
1 t sea salt
2 t black pepper
about 4 C water (I never measured the water, just kept adding as they cooked)
optional:
2 T tequila or beer (I had neither yesterday and they were delicious even without)

Fry  bread, recipe cut in half

Garnishes:
chopped cilantro
shredded monterey jack cheese
sour cream, if desired

Combine the dried beans (no need to soak) with everything in a stockpot and simmer, stirring periodically, up to 8 hours, adding water as needed to get the desired consistency (loose or drier, it depends on your preference). You could do this in a crockpot, but I imagine it'd need more like 10 hours and definitely pre-soak the beans in that case.

Make the fry bread dough, let it rest one hour, then fry it in about 1 inch of vegetable or canola oil.  You want to get it fairly crisp, so about 2 minutes per side.  The crispiness will soak in all that good bean stew goodness and the resulting texture when you eat it will be a mild crunch, a bit of chew, and a pillowy center of goodness.  Seriously, the fry bread is what makes this dinner. Remove the fry bread to a towel, season with a little sea salt, and let drain until ready to eat. Serve underneath the beans garnished with cilantro and cheese and sour cream (if desired).  Yum!

A few days ago I wasn't feeling well, so I decided to keep it simple for dinner and utilize some leftover pizza sauce I had lurking in the fridge to make a basic cheese pizza.  My dough, my pizza sauce, 4 kinds of cheeses. Done.  Then I remembered my sage bush was the size of a monster truck tire after the warm winter we had, and in lieu of simply pruning it away, I am on a mission to use as much sage as humanly possible.

My pizza dough makes two pizzas so I thought, "why not!" sage and brown butter pizza.  Done.  Then I noticed the peas.  They were sitting in my fridge all sad, needing to be used, and I just couldn't let them go to waste. Pea with sage brown butter pizza.... sure, why not.  Then I put the flavors together in my mind and started to get excited, and, as with any kitchen experiment I do, the thrill of discovery overcame the ailments I was feeling until....... EUREKA! Sage and balsamic brown butter spring pea pizza.  It was so yummy!!!

Sage Balsamic Brown Butter Spring Pea Pizza
Yield: 1 large pizza (which, in this case, served only 2 - it was that tasty) 

Sauce:
6 T salted butter
3 T good balsamic vinegar

1/2 recipe my pizza dough, with those instructions exactly

7 large sage leaves, chopped
1 to 1 1/2 C frozen peas
sea salt and pepper
3/4 t garlic powder or 3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 C mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 C parmesan cheese, grated

Prepare the pizza dough and par-bake according to those instructions.

Make the brown butter sauce: melt the butter over medium heat until the foam subsides.  Cook about 3 minutes more, or until it turns a beautiful brown color - not too light and not too dark.  Remove from the heat and, turning your head away from the pan, stir in the balsamic vinegar (it will sputter a bit).  Set aside to cool.

Onto the par-baked pizza crust, spread the cooled brown butter sauce (or if its still hot you may drizzle, it just goes on evenly if the butter has cooled and hardened somewhat).  Add the peas, sage, garlic, sea salt, and pepper.  Top with  both kinds of cheeses and broil for 3 to 5 minutes.  Serve hot or cold. It was delicious both ways. :)

A Bit About our Garden

So I'm not feeling well at all this morning and I'm pretty ticked about it.  The kids and I had planned to go to the IMA 100 Acres with friends this afternoon (possibly one of my favorite places on the planet) and I'm dubious of my ability to go at this point.  *grumbles*

Oh well, there's no rest for the mom, so in a bit the kids and I will go to the library and get new books and movies for the week and then maybe I can amend our uber-fun plans for the less-exciting option of playing with said friends in our nice, controlled, fenced-in and practically mom-hands-free backyard. :) Heck, I'll even set up another Easter egg hunt and a craft if it means I don't have to walk a few miles with two energetic toddlers and instead get to sit at my kitchen table and moan.

We shall see. :)

In other news, I've talked a lot about how much time the garden is taking, so I thought I'd better start posting details about it.  For those that don't know, Brian and I both are fairly new gardeners.  We had a small garden at our previous home before moving to our house last year, but we rarely got much out of it but tomatoes and carrots.  Last year we moved on my birthday and dug a garden as quickly as we could, then hastily got it planted.  It was far from perfect and was a little late getting started, but we managed a good harvest of lettuce, broccoli, carrots, and tomatoes. The raccoon's got our corn.

So, this is the first year where we have enough land at the right time to put in what we finally feel is a "proper" garden.  Since this is our first full year as gardeners with said "proper" garden, we chose not to expand the garden as we'd previously discussed, and instead focused on planting our current plot more efficiently.  I found a great garden planner online (with a free trial or a nominal $25 per year fee) and have  been busy drafting the Ultimate Vegetable Garden plan ever since.

You can locate the planner here.  You can also view more details about our vegetable garden on this webpage.

This year we forwent traditional rows and went for an eye-catching block arrangement that also helps keep things, at least to my organized mind, tidier and easier to weed.  We're laying a flagstone pathway from the entrance (marked by the sunflowers) and around the center block of tomatoes, then each bed has a footpath between.

Much of this hasn't been planted yet, since it's still early in the season, though we do have quite a bit done already thanks to that rather unsettling "summer" we had in March.  The cucumber you see on top of the cabbages will be trellised on a PVC pipe to help shade that bed in the heat of the summer.

We've precisely measured out each bed size, thanks to the garden planner, and outlined it with kite string.

And, being a slightly OCD planner, I have even marked each.individual.seed with a wine cork saved for this purpose.  I just wrote what variety (we have 4 types of tomatoes, so one cork would say "Long Keeper Tomato," for instance) then stuck a grilling skewer into the cork and plopped it into the ground.

Also debuting this year is a tall garden fence - great for keeping out hungry kids (last year Liam ate as many tomatoes as he could, treating the garden like his own personal free food market) as well as hungry raccoons.  :)

What you don't see here is the fruit/flower/herb bed I've been feverishly digging by hand.  It's three times the length of the vegetable garden, so it's quite a lot of digging (though I will say my arms are looking more toned). :) I have a plan for that bed, too, and will share it soon.  Suffice to say, that's my pet project and I'm thrilled with it already.  Why, just this morning we have about 10 butterflies flitting around the wildflower/butterfly habitat I'm cutting in the middle of it.  The kids are thrilled and keep running after them with wild abandon. :)

So, that's just a taste of what we've been up to.  It's been wonderful to get in the dirt and work hard, and Chloe and Liam love to "help," which is something I want to continue to encourage and foster in the coming years.

While I don't have a recipe today (you got 3 the other day!), I do have the weekly menu.

As always, I'll update with any recipes I concoct during the week.  For now, I'm feeling just a smidge better, which  means a trip to the library or these restless kiddos.  Peace and grow!

Quick! Before They Wake Up!

Well, long time no post again.  I keep meaning to sit down and write, but life here keeps getting in the way.  It isn't a bad "in the way," in fact, it's pretty awesome.  I want to share a few recipes today and get this done before Chloe and Liam wake up and demand ham and cheese omelettes with lightly buttered toast without actually wanting to wait for said things to be cooked. (Subsequently, then, pawing at my legs while whining incessantly until they see things being put on their plates).  :)

In short, it is high garden season at present, which means practically every spare moment I have is spent doing something outside.  It's looking awesome, growing well, feeling great, and I'm planning a post on my birthday/1 year closing anniversary on our house that will highlight all the hard work we've been doing.  Brian and I, also, are spending a lot of spare time on our relationship.  An investment we both feel is necessary, smart, and worthwhile, but it takes a lot of time and energy.

So, that's it on personal anecdotes today.  Not quite the witty banter you're used to, but hopefully you understand.  Now onto the food!

Potato and Rosemary Pizza (recipe below)

Potato and Rosemary Pizza
Yield: 1 large pizza (4 to 6 people)

1/2 recipe my pizza dough with those instructions exactly
1 head roasted garlic
a drizzle of olive oil
sea salt and pepper
2 red-skinned potatoes, sliced thin
1 large sprig of rosemary, chopped fine
1/2 large sweet onion. sliced thin
a dash of sugar
2 T butter
1 C shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 C parmesan cheese, grated

To roast the garlic: slice the very top off the head of garlic, exposing the cloves slightly.  Set it on a square of foil and drizzle with olive oil and season well with sea salt and pepper.  Wrap it tightly in the foil and roast for 45 minutes in a 375 oven.  Cool enough to squeeze the cloves out directly onto the crust.  Spread around with a palette knife or the back of a spoon.

To prepare the potatoes and onions: in a large skillet, melt the 2 T butter with a little more olive oil over medium heat.  Add the sliced onions and a dash of sugar.  Cover and leave it alone for 10 to 15 minutes.  Come back and stir it all around, replace the cover, and leave it alone for another 10 to 15 minutes.  Repeat this process until your onions are a rich golden brown color.  (I have an electric stovetop, so it took about 45 minutes total).  When onions are done, add the thinly sliced potatoes and replace the lid.  Cook just until potatoes are no longer crunchy but still have a bit of substance to them - we're not making a mashed potato pizza here!

To assemble the pizza: Layer the par-cooked potatoes in an even circular pattern onto the roasted garlic crust, then scoop out all the caramelized onions from the pan onto the potatoes.  Chop the rosemary and sprinkle it well all around, then top with the two cheeses.  Broil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the top bubbles.

Hawaiian Pizza (recipe below)

Hawaiian Pizza
Yield: 1 large pizza (4 to 6 people)

Pizza Sauce:
1 6 ounce can tomato paste
1/2 C plus 2 T water
1/3 C olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
a few pinches sea salt
a good shy teaspoon of black pepper
1 1/2 T dried italian seasoning blend
a dash or two of sugar

1/2 recipe my pizza dough with those instructions exactly
1/2 recipe pizza sauce (freeze the remaining sauce for a later use)
1 1/2 C diced leftover cooked ham (ours was our Easter ham)
1 C crushed pineapple with a little of the juice left
1/2 sweet onion, thinly sliced and caramelized (see recipe above for caramelizing onions instructions)
1 large sprig of rosemary, chopped fine
1 C shredded mozzarella
1 C shredded swiss or monterey jack cheese

Make the pizza sauce and set aside.

Onto the par-baked pizza crust, spread the sauce in a thick layer.  Top with the cooked ham, then the pineapple, then the caramzlied onion, top with both kinds of cheeses, then finish with the rosemary.  Broil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the top is bubbly good.

Crockpot Refried Bean and Cheese Enchilada (recipe below)

Refried Bean and Cheese Enchiladas
Yield: about 16 very large enchiladas (I made two pans for two people, but the other could have frozen)

For the beans:
1 recipe crockpot refried beans (this time I used all pinto since black bean salsa was a garnish)
add a good squeeze or two of siracha
add 1 good beer in place of that amount of water
salt generously
add 1/2 t cumin instead of 1/8

For the red sauce (adapted from this blogger with much thanks)
2 C ketchup*
1/4 C chili powder
1/2 t chipotle chili powder
1/4 C olive oil
1/2 t ground oregano (if using whole leave, add another 1/2 t)
1 t cumin
1/2 t sea salt
1/4 t black pepper
1/2 t garlic powder

*(yes ketchup - it adds a mild sweet undertone to the spice of the sauce.  If you don't like ketchup, use tomato puree and mix in 1 T flour into your heating oil so that it thickens).

Heat the olive oil over medium heat until hot, then add the chili powder and chipotle chili powder and smoke for 15 to 30 seconds.  Pour in the ketchup and the remaining spices.  Simmer for 20 minutes.  Set aside.

For the enchiladas:
the "refried" beans
12 ounces each shredded sharp cheddar and shredded colby jack cheese
the red sauce
1 C sour cream
burrito-sized flour tortillas (you can make smaller enchiladas by using soft-taco-sized tortillas, or even the traditional corn tortillas.  I simply just had burritos on hand and wanted to use them).
my black bean corn salsa as garnish

In a large baking dish, layer a little of the red sauce on the bottom of the pan, just enough to cover it in a thin layer.  To assemble an enchilada, place about 1/3 C of beans in the center of the bottom half of the tortilla, and top with a handful each of the sharp cheddar and colby jack cheese.  Roll the tortilla in half, fold in the two sides, and gently drag the roll back to tighten it before folding it over.  Place it seam side down into the sauce.  Repeat until you have no more beans left and the pan is full (you may squish them together in the pan - that makes for softer enchilada sides).

To finish, spread the remaining cheese (or more if you ran out) on the top of the enchiladas.  With the remaining red sauce, combine the 1 C sour cream.  Pour it over the enchiladas, cover the pan with foil, and bake 20 minutes at 350.  Remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes.  Serve garnished with the corn salsa, if desired.

Uninspired

You can probably tell from my lack of verbose, enthusiastic updates that I'm in a bit of a writing slump.  It isn't that I don't have a lot to say, it's that I seem to be unable to sort it out in any kind of useful and thoughtful way onto the page.  My words come out wrong and jumbled, full of misspellings and grammatical errors that have me cringing on a re-read (yet I lack the desire to correct).  I'm still cooking furiously as always, yet I'm less excited to share or photograph it.

At MOPS this past week, we spoke about The 5 Love Languages of Children.  Part of the speaker's talk was an exercise in illustrating Words of Affirmation (which just so happens to be my love language - go figure).  The mom sitting to my right wrote me a "warm fuzzy" as I wrote one for the mom on my left.  My warm fuzzy reads,

"I love that you always have a wonderful sparkle in your eyes - it seems like no matter what stresses you may be going through, that joy still shines!"

That's an awesome warm fuzzy.  It's no secret if you read this blog with any consistency that I pride myself on keeping a positive attitude and believing that good is in everyone and everything.  It's something I try to do consciously with a lot of effort, and while I don't always succeed, this attitude has helped me through some pretty rough patches in life.

Yet the past few weeks I've felt decidedly less sparkly.  I've been having vivid dreams and nightmares.  My grandfather came to visit me one night.  I have no memory of what he said, but I woke up with the scent of his pipe tobacco heavy in the air.  Appropriately it was the night before a rather upsetting fight between Brian and I.  Another night I was screaming and crying at Brian. And still another I was back living in Alabama with my ex-husband and running from tornados.

I know why this is happening.  Brian and I have started going to marriage counseling together - something we're doing because we love one another enough to do it.  We want to learn to communicate better, to pinpoint the problems, and find some tools to help us work around, with, and through them ('cause they're never going to just go away).  All of the counseling, though, stirs up a lot.

So.  Yeah.  Here I sit with just a lot to ponder quietly.  It's not that I'm not very happy and full of love, because I am.  I'm just not sparkling right now because my focus is interior and not exterior. Sometimes, I suppose, that's just what one needs to do.

Everyone has problems.  Everyone has stress.  Everyone wakes up and feels like crap some days.  Everyone gets sad and mad and glad.  It's part of life.  I'm not upset that I'm feeling this way or confused by it.  I know it's a process and if I embrace it fully I'll come out the other side stronger, wiser, and more sparkly than before.

In the meantime, if you're a praying person, I'd appreciate yours, specifically for Brian and I, but also for Chloe and Liam.

Easter Madness, The Weekly Meal Plan, and a Recipe

My kids are presently riding their bikes around our house because a) it's fun and special and b) it was 26 degrees outside when we woke up this morning.  We were supposed to go to the Children's Museum but in light of the freezing temperature, Brian took the car rather than his motorcycle in to work and here we are.  A free day to laze around the house together, which so far has brought about some rice krispy treats, nearly a dozen empty Easter egg hunts, and now indoor bike riding.  Not such a bad way to spend a morning. :)

Speaking of empty Easter eggs, our Easter was really fun.  I made an Easter feast: glazed ham, curry and coconut chicken salad, baked potato salad, layered salad, and lavender cake with honey frosting (recipe link in photo).  My Mom brought her deviled eggs, which are the best deviled eggs int he world, because it simply cannot be Easter without them.  The kids tie-dyed eggs until they looked like dinosaur eggs and Liam enjoyed "t-rexing" them all to bits and pieces.  I made all homemade treats for their baskets: chocolate dipped marshmallow bunny pops, "tulips" which were chocolate dipped strawberries, and chocolate peanut butter "birds nests" with jelly bean eggs in them.  Rice krispy treat eggs were on the list to do but didn't get made in time, which wasn't a bad thing once I realized how much candy everyone else was going to bring to gift to my children.

lavender cake with honey frosting (that link goes to an outside source I found on Pinterest.  I altered the recipe to use lavender extract available at Sur La Table or online retailers and to omit the cream cheese from the frosting, which I felt weighed down the light floral of the lavender.  I used my trademark salted butter - and lots of it - instead in the frosting, which results in a less sweet and imminently creamy frosting.  Just use about a pound of butter to about 4 to 5 cups of powdered sugar.  Add in the vanilla extract and a a bit more honey than the recipe calls for.)  I garnished it with candied violets also found online.

I guess I just didn't think about it because, growing-up, my parents were in charge of our Easter baskets and candy, and if someone else, like a grandparent or uncle, wanted to give an Easter present to us, it was a little toy or trinket.  So, color me unprepared for the chocolate onslaught, but now I'll know better.  What I'll simply say about this onslaught is that I lost track of it all and didn't pick it up quickly enough, resulting in Liam actually throwing-up chocolate.  Yes.  Really.  Chocolate vomit.  He then tried to eat it again because, hey, it still looked like chocolate.  This was about the time I totally freaked out and began pumping water and nutritious things into my children all while we also battled ANOTHER flood in our kitchen from a clogged toilet.  Never a dull moment in this house.  I often wish there was. :)

I have a lot of leftover food to tackle, including yet another ham.  Some of you might remember the week-long sojourn of the Christmas ham leftovers, so thankfully I'm fully prepared this time and have even taken the liberty of freezing the ham in portions so I don't have to eat ham for a week straight. :)  Here's what the menu looks like:

Tonight for dinner is ham sliders from this recipe, which I highly recommend.  I may make some homemade potato chips to go with the leftover mac n cheese we still have and call it done.  Last night I made broccoli cheese quiche with a rice crust, which was pretty tasty (recipe below), though the kids did not get as into it as I thought.  They LOVE scrambled eggs, LOVE cheese, and like broccoli - a win all around.  Alas, the shape! The shape was different.  *sighs*

Broccoli Cheese Quiche with Rice Crust
Yield: 1 quiche, or enough to feed 6 people


Crust:
2 C cooked rice
1/3 C cheddar cheese, shredded
1 egg, beaten

Quiche:
6 eggs
1 C milk
2 C steamed broccoli, chopped
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 C cheddar cheese, shredded
3 slices good ole American cheese
a dash of curry powder
sea salt and pepper
a dash of garlic powder

For the crust, combine the rice with the egg and cheese and press into a pie plate. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 15 minutes.

Whisk the eggs with the milk and seasonings.  In the pre-baked crust, layer half the chopped green onions, half the chopped broccoli, and all 3 slices of American cheese.  Top with the other half of onions, broccoli, then the shredded cheddar cheese.  Pour the egg mix carefully over until the pie is full and covered.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 35 to 40 minutes, or until eggs are set.

Some Days are Good for Laughs

There are two things I know about God:  one, He answers prayers and two, He has a sense of humor.  Most often, I think, he uses both of these things to the same end at the same time.  You'll see.  :)

My plans for this weekend were simple, really.  I wanted the garden fence built and painted and my fruit/flower/herb bed dug out to prepare it for planting during the week.  Yesterday morning, however, it was pretty chilly and the ground was pretty wet, so that didn't happen.  Then, by afternoon, I had moved another thing up the priority list.

Let me explain.  For those that perhaps don't read this blog with voracity and consistency, my dishwasher has been a hot-button topic.  It has been brought back to life by my husband now at least twice.  In all honesty, though, it's never worked very well.  I decided that was ok, because I always pre-rinse everything thoroughly anyway, so I just looked upon the dishwasher as a sanitizing agent and not really as a washer.  Afterall, I thought, someone somewhere out there has NO dishwasher and would be thankful for mine.

This dishwasher has no handle (I have to locate these small release buttons that are in a somewhat sharp and pokey place to get the door open and closed), the dish-washing-agent won't dissolve or do anything if I actually close the door to the dispenser cup, the heated dry threatens to set my house on fire and the kids do enjoy coming along and flipping that button to "heat" without me knowing, the inside is rusting, and one of the wheels on the lower rack is missing.

The no handle and I almost forgot that lovely large gap between dishwasher and cheap-a$$ counter-top (particle board that has been laminated) so that little wood shavings drop down onto the dishwasher all the time.  :)

So yesterday I happened to find an old pacifier in the backyard, undoubtedly dropped by Liam last summer.  About to run a new load of dishes in that dishwasher, I simply ran some water over it quickly and popped it in. When the cycle ended, it looked EXACTLY the same.  So, since I pre-rinse really well, has this just been hiding the fact that my dishwasher, in fact, doesn't wash or sanitize - it pretty much does NOTHING? GROSS!!!!

We had been planning to buy a new dishwasher, so we were prepared to buy yesterday.  Off we went to Lowe's with a 10% off deal and their free delivery.  I waffle between two price points but ultimately decide for the slightly more expensive one, a Whirlpool with Sani-Rinse AND the special silverware basket in the door (which frees up lots of lower rack space for my big stuff).  Happy with my decision we find an employee to help us purchase it.  Brian decides we don't need free delivery, that we need the dishwasher now and not a day or two from now, and that we will be able to fit this dishwasher in our car, which also is carrying two kids in the backseat. For those that need reminding, here is our car.....

that's it full of pergola wood last summer. 

Yeah.  You see where this is going.  There I am, standing on the curb of Lowe's with two kids and the poor employee chosen to handle us.  He's holding our in-the-box-dishwasher on a dolly and awaiting my husband to pull-up in, undoubtedly, what he believes will be a pick-up truck or maybe even a minivan.  Instead I watch the dread spread across his face as he sees that yes, that little blue car heading towards us from the parking lot is indeed carrying my husband, who somehow thinks that dishwasher will fit.

"Houston, we have a problem," he says dryly.

I have been waiting for this moment, for I knew the dishwasher wouldn't fit in our car but have learned from years of marriage to this man to let him figure that out on his own.  I simply look at him and say, "free delivery?" Then turn to get the kids in the car and settled while he, supposedly, goes inside to handle getting it delivered.

"They want to refund our money then re-ring us back-up just to schedule a delivery," he says at he gets back in the car.

"So?" I query.

"So they agreed to let me leave it here as long as I come back for it before they close tonight."

"Um....."

*mumbles and groans about the faulty logic of such a demand and large-scale retail establishments* (We're so anti-establishment lol).

So I drive off.  Whatever.  I'll play along.  We get home and the neighbor with a pick-up truck who Brian has bonded with over beer and motorcycles is not home.  Our other neighbor with a full flatbed truck in his driveway is busy and, we're still not unconvinced, hates us.  It is my card that paid so undoubtedly will be me who has to go back to Lowe's to re-pay and get delivery scheduled all while singing the praises of my brilliant yet very stubborn husband.  I can only imagine the narrative that played in the head of the Lowe's employee or the passers-by as they watched Brian convince the Lowe's employee to give putting the dishwasher into ^that car up above a try before calling it a wash.  I think it must have been something like this:

"That dude is straight-up crazy."

"But his wife is so serene and calm about it.  She must be really cool."

"Definitely, and her kids are so darling!"

"Kids? How in the hell did that man think he was going to put that dishwasher in that little car AND manage to get his kids home in it, too?"

"LOL. Men."

Once home, on a whim I post a message to Facebook asking for truck or large capacity trunk vehicle help, and lo and behold, one of my friends pulls through!  Problem solved.  High fives all around.

Not so fast.

We have the dishwasher home and Brian has set to installing it. By this time it is 6pm.  My dinner is nearly ready but we're so off-schedule -  the kids usually eat in between 530 and 6 and a friend has come over to play with Chloe.  My kitchen is getting ripped to shreds, the friend invites herself over to stay for dinner, and both kids miss their bedtimes.  The power to the dishwasher also controls our fridge and most of our lights, so now I can't bathe them, an integral part in fostering bedtimes in overly tired kids, and I still have the friend over, who is now happily playing with Chloe in the dishwasher box that has become a cave.

It is now 10pm.  The friend left and my kids have just gone to bed (their normal bedtime is 7:30 or 8pm).  Brian has made 2 other trips to Lowe's to solve a rather frustrating discovery, that our dishwasher has a "new inlet valve design" that requires a new fitting which is, handily enough, NOT INCLUDED in the box.  One is supposed to call Whirlpool for this part and, I guess, wait 2 to 3 weeks for it to arrive. Instead of doing that, my engineer husband says a big F-you to Whirlpool and makes the separate trips to Lowe's to engineer a new fitting.

However, it's 32nds of an inch off and Lowe's is now closed. I convince Brian to restore power to things and come to bed so we can live to fight in the morning.  Night, though, holds in store yet more fun for this family!

Liam woke up at 1:30 and stayed up for an hour and a half of fun.  Then, just as I get him settled back to sleep, Chloe begins to wail from her bedroom and a quick investigation leads me to discover that I have forgotten to turn-off her potty watch for the night, so that literally every 30 minutes her wrist would light up and sing a song, waking her.  No wonder she was pissed.

We all sleep to 8, missing 8:15 church and discovering upon waking that, once again, our toilet won't flush.  Oh the humanity! Make it stop!

You see, on our anniversary I gave Brian a prayer patch, made by our church's Prayer Quilt ministry.  The idea behind it is simple: there's a loose string on the patch that one ties as they say prayers, so that the prayers are tied into the patch forever.  It's a lot like rosary beads, in that it helps foster meditative, deep prayer.  I prayed for some pretty important things for Brian and gave him the prayer patch to carry with him.  The most important things I prayed for revolved around patience and strength.

The day after our anniversary is when the septic troubles popped up again.  These got resolved last weekend and spurred some pretty deep relationship growth during this past week.  This weekend was supposed to be pastoral and serene, working as a family in our garden, and has instead blown-up into yet more frustration.

I do not think this is a mere coincidence.  God answers prayers for growth in the ways growth best takes place: challenges.  If life weren't hard we would all be stunted idiots, no more capable of provocative thought than mosquitoes.  It is only when God answers our prayers with witty challenges that we can grow into those answers we seek.  Strength from adversity, patience from frustration.  Thank you, God, for answering my heartfelt prayers for my husband so quickly.  May this growth journey be just as enlightening and empowering for me.  :)

OK, quickly since this is long, I have some food to share.  This week brought about some good good food, and more is yet to come this week.  I hope to have more time to update throughout the week, since that's much easier than one big giant post on a weekend.  So, stay tuned!

Buffalo Chicken Enchiladas.  MMMMMMMM.  Recipe Below!

Potato and Onion Pie with Runny Poached Egg.  Double MMMMMM.  Recipe Below! 

Buffalo Chicken Enchiladas
Yield: 1 13x9 inch pan of about 15 (a smaller pan is pictured)

2 chicken breasts, poached and shredded
1/4 C Frank's Original Hot Sauce plus about 2 T
1  medium can mild red enchilada sauce
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning/dressing mix
1 1/2 to 2 C shredded colby jack cheese
1 C heavy cream
flour tortillas, burrito size
1/2 red onion, diced evenly (white are pictured because I was out of red)
1 C apple cider vinegar
1/2 C sugar
chopped fresh cilantro
chopped green onions

Poach the chicken in plain salted water for an hour, or until it shreds easily when you run a knife through the hot chicken.

Toss the chicken in the ranch seasoning and 2 T Frank's sauce, then let set overnight in the fridge to marinate.

Combine the diced onions with the 1 C apple cider vinegar and 1/2 C sugar.  Bring to a boil, simmer 1 minute, then remove from the heat and pour into a tupperware container.  Store in the fridge until ready to use.

The next day, spray a baking pan with a little nonstick cooking spray.  Spread about 1/4 C of enchilada sauce on the bottom of the pan, then combine the remainder of the can with the 1/4 C Frank's and the 1 C heavy cream in a bowl.  Set aside.

Lay out a flour tortilla and spread about 1/4 C of shredded chicken onto the bottom third.  Top with a good healthy handful of cheese then roll up like a burrito, folding it over halfway, pulling it back with your fingertips to create the roll, folding in the sides tightly, then folding all the way over.  Place it seam side down into the baking pan. Repeat until the pan is full - pushing the enchiladas together as you need to to fit more.

Pour the heavy cream/Frank's/enchilada sauce mixture over the top of the enchiladas and bake, first covered for 20 minutes, then uncovered for another 15 to 20 at 350.

To serve, garnish with the pickled onions, fresh cilantro, and green onions.

Potato and Onion Pie with Poached Egg
Yield: about 4 servings

3 russet potatoes, peeled and sliced into very thin slices - like thick potato chips.
1 onion, sliced into 1/4 inch thick onion rings (leave them whole - don't separate)
2 T snipped fresh chives
1/2 t white pepper
sea salt and cracked black pepper
a handful of shredded mozzarella cheese
a handful of shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 T bacon grease or butter
6 eggs
a splash or two of white wine vinegar
barely simmering water

In a well-seasoned iron-skillet, melt the bacon grease (or butter if you want this to be vegetarian) over medium heat.  Place the whole sliced onions down into the skillet and season with salt and pepper.  Cook for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile toss together the sliced potatoes, snipped chives, white pepper, more sea salt and pepper, and cheeses.  Dump those on top of the onions and transfer the skillet to a preheated 400 degree oven for 45 minutes.

To poach the eggs set a wide bottomed skillet over medium heat and add water 2/3 of the way up with a splash or two of white wine vinegar.  Heat the water to barely simmering.  Crack one egg in a bowl and tilt the bowl into the water, one at a time.  For 4 eggs in a pan, it usually takes about 4 minutes to get the whites done and the yolk still runny.  Remove them to a plate with a slotted spoon to drain and season with salt and pepper.

Slice the pie, or invert over a serving plate if you want to be all fancy, then slice.  Serve each serving with one or two poached eggs.

*NOTE: my iron-skillet was in need of a seasoning in the oven (it had something sticky in it and I did have to scour it before I used it for this recipe).  So, I'm hoping that's why my pie fell apart and didn't hold it's pretty pie shape in the picture.  Regardless of shape, this was extra yummy!  Mine is also a little oilier in the photo, and that's because I also originally tossed the potatoes/cheeses/etc... with some olive oil, not realizing that using the cheaper pre-shredded cheeses that release oil all on their own would make this overrun with oil.  No harm no foul and lesson learned*