Veggie Quesadillas

I have been wanting to make quesadillas for quite some time now, but keep forgetting about it. Well, today I thought about it. I had left over tortillas and cheese and thought it would be good for some boring cheese quesadillas.  Little did I know, my fridge/pantry had all the ingredients for the most delicious veggie quesadillas we've ever dreamed of (yes, I realize it may sound like a slight over exaggeration, but rest assured it is not). It doesn't hurt that they are ridiculously easy to prepare.

So I was looking in the fridge, and I see cheese, red pepper, onion, garlic, and tortillas.
Then, I looked in the pantry and I found cans of black beans and corn.

Well, you can probably guess that this is what our meal consisted of.

Anyways, I looked online and found a recipe that included all of these things.

The original recipe has some extra things and slight alterations, if you're interested.

The thing is, what I didn't notice until after making this, is that the recipe was enough for 12 servings. That's right. 12. I didn't see the option where you could change it to whatever serving size you want.

Needless to say, we have some left over :)

On his way home, Ruben picked up some sour cream and guacamole.
I know, it would have been cool if I made everything, but I didn't have any avocados.

So before I share the recipe,
I just want to make sure you are aware of the serving size :)
That would be 12.

Ingredients

• Pam Original Cooking Spray
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 (15 ounce) can corn, rinsed and drained
• 12 (12 inch) flour tortillas
• 1 cup shredded Colby Jack cheese

Directions

1. Heat nonstick skillet over medium heat, spray with Pam, and saute the onion and garlic until soft. Mix in beans, bell pepper, and corn; cook until heated through.
2. Spread 6 tortillas with equal amounts of the bean and vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with equal amounts of the Cheddar cheese, and top with the remaining tortillas to form quesadillas.
3. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, and spray with Pam. Place quesadillas in the skillet and cook, turning once, until cheese is melted and both sides are lightly browned.

I took the pictures with my phone, but you get the idea:

We had taco tortillas, not burrito ones.

So they turned out a smaller (6in vs 12in).

I added chips, guacamole, pico de gallo, and sour cream.

I'll be honest, this meal was seriously, unexpectedly incredible and so easy!

Try it. You'll see.

I plan to use the left overs for breakfast tacos tomorrow.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Life of Seasons

This week I've thought a lot about my life over the past year.

This my my 2nd winter and 5th season since being here.

I've seen the beauty of creation changing continuously.
It's been freezing and deathly hot.
Snowy and sunny.
Cloudy and rainy.
Windy and calm.
Happy and sad.
Laughing and crying.
Anxious and content.
Excited and worried.

It's interesting how life works.
It's a consistent season change.
Not matter what the season, it will change.

Take Summer for instance, everyone loves it.
People are outside, the beach is full, people seem happier overall.

Then there's Winter. Sad and gloomy.
People stay inside and take part in community less.

Spring and Fall seem to be pretty pleasurable for all.
You can still go outside, but have just enough time cuddling with blankets.

What's sad and exciting simultaneously is that - all of these seasons pass.
They come and go. They come back and leave again.
Sometimes for longer or shorter periods with better or worse times in between.

It wasn't until someone from school gave me this metaphor that I considered it at all.

She said something like this:
 "Think about it. Who likes Winter? Sure, some days are fun, but really - most people hate it. When you are going through it, it seems never-ending. Everything aggravates you. Your face feels cut with cold. You never seem warm enough. If someone tells you 'It will be over soon', you blankly stare at them thinking about how almost impossible it is to see the day and focus on how miserable you are right now.

Then it arrives. Spring. It's amazing really. You forget about the torture you felt all Winter, and can think only of how incredible it feels to take part in this new season. It seems worth it to have to go through such an awful, miserable, depressing season if it means you get to experience a beautiful, happy one sooner than you thought."

Right now I'm right in the middle of winter.
Both physically and mentally.
It feels like  it's never-ending.
I feel like Spring is so far away.
I long for the day the sun comes shining through the clouds,
telling me a new season has come.

I also know that I have to go through Winter to get to Spring.
And I know that even though Winter is a tough season, there are still beautiful things that come with it. Just like there are ugly things that come with the easy seasons.

Here's praying for new seasons to come soon, and to learning how to see the beauty in the not-so-pretty things in life.

After Blizzard Regrets

Ok ready for this?
I was part of the 2011Crazy Big Deal Huge Blizzard in Chicago.
Also, let me remind you that I own a camera.

Who in their right mind would be part of one of the biggest natural disasters so far in 2011and NOT take photos?
It's a no -brainer. This is prime time for photo taking.

Duh.

Are you putting 2 and 2 together?
Well,
Don't.

That's right.
I had the opportunity to take some of the most beautiful photos yet. Everything smooth white. All things covered with this beautiful, cold stuff.

So, how did the pictures come out Evie?!?
Well friends, they didn't.
I sat inside like a chicken in the warmth of my home.

Pathetic, I know. Sadly though, it's true.
Here are the few I captured from my window:

To be honest, from the pictures I've been seeing, this is nothing compared to some other areas.

The digging begins

Apparently, once you've worked most of the day digging out your car,
you are allowed to claim it with chairs until you return. Makes sense.

Our neighbors dug through and found our sidewalk!

After the digging, this is a view of the sidewalk and some dug out cars in front of our building. 

Don't worry, my plan is to go out tomorrow and take pictures of the remaining mounds of snow around the city. I'll let you know how it goes. 

Happy Super Bowl Weekend!!

Nature + Awesome

Ok, so lately I have been into nature.
I have been noticing new things about trees, bushes, grass (or lack thereof), etc.
Like I mentioned before, I am just now, 25 yrs later, getting the opportunity to experience seasons.

I love them.

Sure, it's COLD. Freezing actually.
And yes, I miss the warm Florida sun.
But honestly, I don't think I would go back.
It's just too AWESOME.

Awesome is a word I use A LOT.
Not sure if you all noticed.
But I think this word is one of the most often used in my vocabulary.

awe·some [aw-suh m] - adjective
1. inspiring awe: an awesome sight.
2. showing or characterized by awe.
3. Slang. very impressive : That new white convertible is totally awesome.


I really think that this work best describes the things I think are awesome. I have used every definition of this word when describing awesomeness.

I think God is awesome.
I think Ruben is awesome.
I think family is awesome.

I think friends are awesome.

I think creation is awesome.

I think food is awesome.

I think photography is awesome.

I think art is awesome.

I think acts of love and service are awesome.

Sure, I may need to broaden my vocabulary a bit, but I just wanted to let everyone know that when I say something is awesome it might be because of my limited vocabulary, OR it could because I really mean it.

I'll leave you with some nature photos I took recently:

Have a great weekend!

Hot dogs for Breakfast

Ok so this morning Ruben and I were like, "What should we make today so we can have something different?"

So Ruben was like, "Let's make scrambled eggs and bagels."

And I was like, "What if we use the hot dogs we just bought too?"

Ruben was like, "Hot dogs with eggs? That actually sounds good.. I used to eat that when I was little."

I was like, "AWESOME! Let's do it!"

THEN, I was like, "Should we use hot dog buns instead of bagels?"

Ruben was like, "Good idea!"

Then, Ruben was like, "Oh! I'm gonna melt cheese on top of my eggs, do you want it on yours too?"

And I was like, "OHHH!! WHAT IF WE MELT THE CHEESE ON THE BUNS FIRST AND THEN PUT THE EGGS ON IT!!?!"

So, that's what we did, and it was AMAZING!!!!

You can't tell that the hot dog buns were stuffed with the egg/cheese/ hot dog mixture cause I took the pictures too late, but you have to believe me that it was SOOOO GGOOOODDDD!!!!! 

I will make sure to take photos before eating almost the entire thing next time :)

Ingredients:

2 Hebrew National hot dogs (seriously, the best brand I've ever had)

6 eggs

4 slices American cheese (the real kind, not the processed cheese food slices)

2 hot dog buns (we had pretty big ones with sesame seeds on top)

Directions:

Cut the hot dogs into small pieces. Fry them until you are pleased. I prefer mine almost burnt. :) Once your hot dogs are how you want them, add in the eggs. Wait till they cook a little before you scramble them in the pan. Meanwhile, get your buns ready by putting 2 slices of cheese on each bun and microwaving them for 40 seconds each so that they cheese is perfectly melted. Finally, add your egg/hot dog mixture to your buns and enjoy!