Vegetarian Enchiladas

It was very icy on Tuesday night, and I really didn't feel like braving the roads to head out and pick something up for dinner.  I scrounged some things out of my cabinets and refrigerator and put together the most amazing vegetarian enchiladas, ever.  These are not smothered in cheese--my husband and daughter are allergic to dairy products.  These are the honest to goodness, amazingly tasty enchiladas that we had for dinner!  Easy, fast, and on the table within 45 minutes.

Vegetarian Enchiladas

1 red bell pepper, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1 medium red pepper, diced
1 heaping tsp. minced garlic
1 can of chopped green chiles
1 28 ounce can corn kernels
1 32 ounce can of vegetarian refried beans
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
corn tortillas
Enchilada Sauce - recipe follows

1) Pre-heat the oven to 350*.
2) Saute the bell peppers, garlic and onion in a large skillet over medium-low heat.
3) As the onions begin to turn translucent, add the corn and the green chiles.  Stir together, mixing thoroughly.
4) Add the refried beans.  The mixture will be very thick, and can burn easily.  Keep heat on med-low, and stir frequently.
5) Add cumin, salt, and pepper. (Adjust accordingly if you like it spicier or milder.)
6) Lower the heat, and allow the mixture to simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat when time is finished.

While the bean mixture is simmering, make the enchilada sauce.  Sure, you can buy the stuff in cans at the store, but this is better for you, and doesn't take long to make.  (Recipe follows this.)

Cover the bottom of the cooking pan with a layer of enchilada sauce.

One at a time, spread each corn tortilla with about 1/3 cup of the bean mixture.  Spread the mixture down the middle of each tortilla.  Roll the tortilla up, and place it, seam side down, in the pan.
(note- the corn tortillas WILL break apart.  That's okay. They're all going to snuggle up against each other in the pan, anyway.)

Fill each corn tortilla with the bean mixture, snugging the enchiladas up against each other, until the pan is full.  I usually have enough space left at the top of my pan to add 2 more enchiladas.  I use it.  I fill every available space with enchiladas.

Cover the entire mixture with more enchilada sauce.  If you made your sauce from scratch, don't use the entire pan!  You'll drown these guys!  Instead, Use about a cup to a cup and a half of sauce, spread evenly across the entire pan.

Put the entire yummy mixture into the oven and let it bake for 15 minutes.

Enjoy!

Note- If you want to punch this up, or stretch it out, add a cup of cooked rice to the bean mixture after the mix is cooked, but before you layer into the tortillas.  Stir thoroughly to incorporate before you spread it into the tortillas.

If you really want cheese on your enchiladas, add it to the pan, over top of the sauce, before you put it into the oven.


Enchilada Sauce
Make sure you have all of the ingredients measured and lined up before you begin!
 
Olive oil- enough to cover the bottom of the pan.  Rachael Ray would say "a turn of the pan".
2 TBSP Cornstarch
1/3 cup chili powder
3 cups veggie broth
14 ounce can tomato sauce  (or whatever size that is - not the small, 8 ounce can, but the next size up)
1 TBSP cumin
1 TBSP oregano

• In a sauce pan over med heat, stir the olive oil and cornstarch together until the cornstarch begins to brown.  You're toasting it.  It should take about a minute - keep a very close eye on it so it doesn't burn!
• Add the chili powder, stir constantly for another minute.  Remember, you're toasting the spices to bring out their full flavor.
• Add 3 cups of veggie broth  (I used 3 cups of water and 3 vegetable bullion cubes.)
• Add the tomato sauce, cumin, and oregano, stirring to make certain all of the spices are incorporated into the liquid.
• Bring everything to a boil, stirring frequently. (You can raise the heat here, if you need to.)
• Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

 Note- last one, I promise!  If I had any veggie broth cubes left over, I would have used 3 or 4 of them here.  I would have thawed them in the microwave before beginning the sauce.  If it didn't measure up to the full 3 cups, I'd add water to the thawed broth cubes to make 3 cups.)

Snow

It is so beautiful, yet so treacherous.

Yesterday morning, it began snowing just as rush hour started.  Unfortunately for us, the weather was such that the snow hit the pretreated roads, melted, and then flash froze.

Talk about a fun commute!

Most schools around here delayed 2 hours, and then closed.

I attempted to get to work.  It took me half an hour to go two miles.  The main road South was closed.
My alternate route South was closed.  The back, back, back way was closed due to accidents.

I finally gave up and headed home.  I found out once I got back that my place of employment had closed for the day.  *sigh* wish I'd known that before I headed out!

The good news is, I made it safely home, without an accident.  I was able to spend the day with two of my kids.

What about the third one?  He's in Phoenix.  He sent me weather updates and pictures.  Remind me why I told him to text me and let me know how he was doing?

Snow on my Autumn Joy Sedum.

 

 

We really didn't get that much snow, considering how much havoc it caused.

A view down my street.  I took this at 3 pm - still no snow plow!

Berries in the snow.  I tried to capture a picture of the birds flitting around on this bush, but they didn't cooperate with me!

Eathquake

Book #2 of the 2015 challenge!  This is a YA book, I'm cross-posting this review from my YA blog.  You can see the post on my YA blog here: Earthquake Review


Pike, Aprilynne.  Earthquake.  2014. Penguin Group, New York, NY.
Hardcover, $17.99, ISBN: 978-1-59514-652-6.

Book Talk:

Tavia was in an airplane accident a few years ago.  The sole survivor of the flight, she remembers very little.  What she does remember is earth shattering:

She is Earthbound.  An eternal being, who reincarnates every time she dies.  Unfortunately, she can not recall her past lives until she finds a piece of her past that will remind her of who she is and all of the memories of her past lives.  Unfortunately, because of the airplane crash, she is only able to remember the most immediate past life with Logan.

Somewhere on the planet is her eternal partner.  Logan is out there, somewhere, also equally unaware of who he is, and his past life.

Someone is trying to kill her.  The airplane crash that killed 255 people was meant to kill her.

She remembered her most recent past life with Logan, from 200 years ago, when she touched a necklace that he had given her.  Somehow, she must find Logan and reawaken his memories.  And she needs to do it before the people who are trying to kill her succeed and kill either her, Logan, or both of them.

Running constantly from danger into danger, not knowing who she can trust, Tavia finally finds Logan - only to have them both captured by the Reduciata before Logan's memories are restored.

While being held in the prison of the Reduciata, they are rescued by the rival faction of Earthbounds- the Curatoria.  But, has she really been rescued, or is she just being held prisoner in a more elaborate trap?

Meanwhile, a virus is destroying earth.  The people, the land, and the monuments are all disappearing at an alarming rate.  Tavia is the only person who can find the cure to stop the ultimate destruction of the planet and all who live here.

While Tavia races to find the cure to her virus, she discovers a secret - a dangerous secret that she has kept hidden from herself and from Logan over several past lives.  It's a secret that has had her killed several different times in the last 200 years, and the reason why an airplane was crashed to the ground.

Can Tavia remember what the secret is before she is killed, again?

Can she find the cure to the virus and save the Earth and it's inhabitants?

Will Logan remember who she is in time?

Can she remember the past lives that have remained hidden from her?

Author's Web Site:
http://www.aprilynnepike.com/

Reviewer's Note:
Fantastic, riveting read!  Several unexpected plot twists and turns, loved them all!
This is the second of a series.  I have not read the first in the series, but the book stands alone.
I do feel a need to go back and read the first book in order to answer a few plot questions I had from the second book, but I am so glad that the author did not dwell on plot from the first book.  She gave enough information to keep the plot flowing, but I'm really curious about what happened first.

Disclosure Notice:  Mini-Van mom is a participant in the Amazon Associates Program.  The picture of the book cover, above is a link to my Amazon Affiliates account.  Your purchase through this program will support this site.  Thank you for supporting Mini-Van Mom.

The Money Suckers

Late last year, I set up an awesome spread sheet to figure out exactly where our money was going.  It was frittering away, and I wasn't sure exactly how to account for it all.  (You can see that post here: http://mini-van-mom.blogspot.com/2014/10/spreadsheet.html)

The largest expenses, by far, are for electricity, gas, and food.

Electricity
We have electric baseboard heat in our house.  Electric baseboard heat can be ridiculously expensive.  As a result, we heat primarily with wood- when we are home, or going to be home for a while.  I want to talk a little bit about heating with wood. While everyone thinks this is the "cheap" or "easy" way to heat, there is a considerable amount of labor involved in cutting the wood, stacking the wood, and maintaining the fire.  A wood fire does not keep itself going. You have to feed wood into the fire every so often, and you have to have a knowledge of how to work the flue and dampers in order to get the most heat from your fire.  You also have to be home to maintain the fire.  If you are at work, you are not heating the house with a wood fire.  The baseboard heat is going to kick in because you have to keep the house heated at some level, or your pipes will burst.  In addition to the labor, there is also some cash expenditure involved with cleaning your chimney- an annual chore that will help prevent the buildup of creosote and help lessen the chance of a chimney fire.

So, even though we heat primarily with wood, we still have some expenses with heat because the heat will kick on in the middle of the night after the fire dies down, and during the morning while I am at work.  After some serious thought, we turned our thermostats in the house down to 65*.  This does keep our house on the chilly side when we are not home, but it is warm enough to keep the pipes from bursting and to keep the cats warm.

Gas
Not much we can do with this one.  We are subject to the whims of the oil companies and their gas prices.  Right now, with gas prices as low as they are, that's a very good thing for my bottom line.  Even so, we still do all we can to keep our gas expenses low.  We combine errands.  If the stores I am looking for are all in one shopping center, I will park in front of the place where I expect to have the largest load coming out.  (Usually the grocery store.)  I'll walk through the rest of the center, get what's on my list, and walk back to the car to put it in the trunk.  I finish at the grocery store (or wherever I expect my largest run to be) and then walk the cart out to the car.  Right now, I'm carpooling to work with middle child to save us both on gas expenses.  When we drive long distances, we take the Civic if we can.  That car still gets phenomenal gas mileage, which helps keep our bottom line as low as possible.


Food
This is another big surprise.  Not that it's a huge expense, but where that money is going.  I do plan our meals out in advance.  I shop the sales.  I do freezer cooking.  Yes, sometimes I do spend a little more in order to buy directly from our local farmers, but I usually buy from them in bulk.  I then can or freeze the entire bushel of whatever it is so I have it on hand to use later.

Where the expense came in is around lunch and snack time.  MY lunch and snack time.

When I was subbing, I would pack my lunch.  I knew that I was going to be in the school for an entire day, and I packed accordingly.  The problem came around mid-afternoon - about the time the kids went to specials and before dismissal.  I was headachey and hungry.  I found myself hitting up the snack or soda machine more often than I'd like to admit. 

When I got this job, I thought that my bad habits would change, but no, they really didn't.  I only work until noon now.  My intention is to grab lunch when I get home.

The reality is that I am  up at 6 am, eat breakfast at 6:30, and get back home between 12:30 and 1:00.  I am starved by the time I get home.  Even worse, this job has an actual cafeteria and snack bar.  Literally less than 100 steps from where I work, you've got the cash register for the snack bar.  And they've got a couple of tasty goodies in there that my mind will start dwelling on around 10:00 if I haven't had enough for breakfast.  Some days, when I leave here, I just break down and stop at the fast food place down the street.  Yep.  That's where our money is going.  $10 for snacks alone one week.  (It's those damn dark chocolate coconut things that are killing me.) 

In an effort to help with that hunger issue, I thought through a new plan of attack this week.  I am preparing as much of my snacks and lunch as possible a few days before.  Yesterday, I made peanut butter balls and granola.  Both of these are quick and easy snacks to grab.  I have apple slices and peanut butter for when I leave work.  A quick snack that I can grab after my shift is over, and enough to keep hunger at bay until I get home.

For lunch, I packed a layered salad in mason jars.  I don't know if you remember, but years ago a certain fast food chain packed easy to go salads in large plastic drinking cups.  You'd pour the dressing over top of the lettuce, but the lid back on the cup, shake it up, and then eat.  This is my version of that thought.  I layered lettuce, carrots, bell pepper, onions, celery, and peas in my salad.  I am curious to see how these salads hold up.  I only made 2.  We'll see how they taste two days out.
I'm not planning on taking these salads to work with me.  I'm planning on having them waiting in the fridge for me when I get home.

I also packed up a couple of quick microwave meals.  Using leftover taco meat (1 meal) and leftover beans and rice (1 meal), I combined the leftovers, and then wrapped them in corn tortillas.  I then put them in my little glass freezer containers, covered them with enchilada sauce and cheese, put the lids on , and froze them.  They're supposed to be single serving size.  My plan is to take them out in the morning before I go to work and then thaw them in the refrigerator, so that all they need is a quick shot in the microwave to heat them up.

We'll see how this works out. 

Mindful Eating

Bays, Jan Chozen, MD.  Mindful Eating: A Guide to Rediscovering a Healthy and Joyful Relationship with Food.  2009.  Shambhala.  Boston and London.

Softcover, $18.95.  ISBN: 978-1-59030-531-7.

My Review:

Mindful Eating takes a very close look at the tendency of Americans to follow the three G's when it comes to food: gobble, gulp, and go.  We eat our food without tasting it, and we eat more of our food than we intend to because of the mindless practices we have attached to the consumption of food.

Through the course of this book, Dr. Bays takes the reader through a series of exercises, mediations, and conversations that will challenge the reader to look closely at their relationship with food.  From challenging the way we approach food now, to challenging us to change the way we approach our food, the reader will find thought provoking exercises that will cause them to change the way they approach meals and eating.

How do you approach your food?  Is it stuff to be consumed quickly so that you can get on to the next item on your list?  Is it a meal for the senses, from the delightful, thoughtful presentation of food on a beautiful plate, eaten slowly and savored for the tastes and textures that were prepared just for you, the eater, to enjoy?

The guided meditations on the CD will help the reader focus more squarely on food, and the issues surrounding food, and help you to become a more mindful eater.

Dr. Bays does not promise that you will lose weight by reading this book!  However, you will gain some wisdom about what your body is asking you for, and how much it really needs.

Disclosure Notice:  Mini-Van mom is a participant in the Amazon Associates Program.  The picture of the book cover, above is a link to my Amazon Affiliates account.  Your purchase through this program will support this site.  Thank you for supporting Mini-Van Mom.

The Flu

I posted a few days ago about the flu, and a young friend of ours who died of the flu last week.

The CDC has now declared this year's flu strain to be at epidemic levels.

You can read more about it here:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/12/31/cdc-child-deaths-flu-influenza/21104671/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/12/30/this-seasons-flu-activity-has-reached-the-epidemic-threshold-the-cdc-says/

I wrote about this last week, but I want to repeat it, this flu is a killer.

If you or your kids are sick, stay home.

Push lots of fluids.

If you need groceries or meds, consider using a drive through, friend, or online delivery service to minimize the impact you have on the environment around you, and to hopefully help stop the flu from spreading.  I was at Wal-Mart yesterday and saw a good 40 people, hacking, wheezing, and barely able to stand hanging around the pharmacy.  As soon as I saw them, I turned around and left.  I don't particularly want to do battle with the flu.


If you are healthy, what can you do to stay healthy?

Stay away from places where lots of people gather.

Get exercise.  If you can get out in this weather and walk, do so.

Keep drinking lots of water.  Help your body flush the toxins out.

WASH YOUR HANDS.  Let me repeat that again:  WASH YOUR HANDS.  Every time you pass a sink, every time you use the bathroom, every time you use a shared surface.  (keyboard, doorknob, shopping cart handle.)

DON'T TOUCH YOUR FACE.  Again, I'm going to repeat it: DON'T TOUCH YOUR FACE.  The mucus membranes around your eyes and nose are primary entry points for viruses.  Keep your hands away from your face.  (Admit it, your nose itches now, doesn't it?  Little itchy eye thing going on now, right?)

You can read my post from last week, along with tips from the CDC, telling you when to go to the hospital, and how to fight the flu here: http://mini-van-mom.blogspot.com/2014/12/this-years-flu-strain.html.

Tamiflu, if you can find it, will help lessen the symptoms of the flu.  In order for it to be effective, it must be begun within 48 hours of the symptoms presenting. 

Be aware that if you go to the ER, Doctor's Office, or Urgent Care center, you will be asked to wear a mask.  Just do it.  You don't want to spread what you have to others who are not yet sick, and you don't want to pick up something new, on top of what you already have.  The mask is for everyone's protection.  (Yep, people are complaining about having to wear a mask in the ER.)

My Resolutions for 2015

Last year, I accomplished over half of the resolutions I put forward.  I kept a list here, on my blog, and I checked back monthly.  Why?  Because by reminding myself every month of my list, I found that I did a better job of keeping myself on track.

So, I present my list of resolutions for 2015.  A few of them are carryovers from last year.  *sigh*.  I still need to accomplish them.

1) Exercise More.  
Last year, I set the goal of running a 5K by the end of the year.  365 days later, full of excuses and reasons, I did NOT run.  So, this year, I have the goal of exercising more.  5 out of 7 days a week, I will get at least 30 minutes of exercise.  I will walk, swim, hike, or bike, but I will find a way to get 30 minutes of exercise.  I know that should be 60 minutes, but I really want to set a small, easily attainable goal.

2) Lose 10 pounds.
Last year, I set this goal and lost 20 pounds.  I gained 2 of them back over the holidays, which really isn't bad!  This year's goal is to lose another 10 pounds.

3) Remodel the Hall Bathroom.
This is a repeat from last year.

4) Finish oldest child's quilt.
Another repeat from last year.  I have to top pieced, and the bottom cut to size.  I need to get the batting and pin the entire shebang together and start quilting it.  Goal: have it finished for his graduation in May.

5) Clean and organize the Family Room in the basement.

6) Cut back on the time I spend on Social Media.
I spend entirely too much time on Social Media over the course of the day, and it is beginning to cut into my real life.  WHY AM I DOING THIS???  I am only going to check my Social Media accounts once per day - at lunchtime, when I get home from work.  I never needed social media before now, and only in the last 5 years did I begin using social media.  In the last year- WHAM!  I seem to have let it take over my life.

7) Read 75 books this year.
Kind of a nifty thought, isn't it?  I began a career in a new field this year, and I do need to read more in my field than I have been.  I also keep a blog of young adult literature.  With my return to a "normal" (read not substitute teaching) I have not been keeping that blog as updated as I would like.  This year, I want to return to reading more YA literature and reviewing it on my blog.   Actually, maybe I should also think about blogging the books I read for work on a separate blog.  It would help keep me on track!

8) Get out of debt.
I think this dream belongs to all of us, doesn't it?  No mortgage, no credit card bills, no car payments. With most of our credit cards having been compromised last year, we skipped over to a mostly cash based system and are working on paying off debts from credit cards and from husband's car accident- all while meeting college expenses for the kids.  Can it be done?  We paid off one card completely last week.  Still more debt to go, but I really don't like having debt.

9) Spend more time with my family.
Always a priority, and it gets harder and harder as the kids go off to college and get lives of their own.

10)  365 Grateful
I will continue to find a way to be thankful for the things I have.  There are a lot of awful things that happen, but I will focus on the positive.  You can lose yourself in negativity.

11) Replace the car that was totaled.
It needs to be done, even in the midst of paying off loans, a bathroom that needs to be remodeled, and college expenses.  Our Civic has 225,000 miles on it.  It's a great car, and we keep up to date on the maintenance, but by God, do we need to make certain we have a back up plan!  The van doesn't have nearly as many miles on it, but putting gas in that behemoth is expensive. 

12) I will maintain my friendships.
Each week, I am going to call, write, or get together with a friend.  It's too easy to let friendships fall away as we keep busy in our own lives.  I need to make certain that I keep in touch with these wonderful people.  Facebook helps some- I know a little of what is going on with them, and we do chat a lot together.  But nothing, no nothing compares to sitting down face to face and talking and laughing with each other.  Most of my friends are at the same place I am in my life now- having children in high school and headed off to college. 

13) Have a few more adventures this year.
Within the budget, of course. 

14) Craft More
I used to craft a lot.  I enjoy working with my fingers and hands.  For some reason, that has fallen by the wayside this year.  (Look at goal #4 - finishing oldest child's quilt.)  I will finish one craft project- from beginning to end, each month. 

This ought to be fun!  I don't know how many of these I'll actually manage to accomplish this year, but I'm looking forward to trying!

Seriously, read 75 books AND finish 12 craft projects this year?  Am I nuts?