If You Like Bean Enchiladas and Getting Caught in the Rain

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What lovely weather we are having lately! I think I need to invest in a canoe or tugboat or something soon. Sheesh!

But, rainy days aren't always so bad. One thing that always screams out at me on rainy days is comfort food, so I decided to whip up a batch of black bean enchiladas. Mmmmm.

Now this is a staple dish in our house, but I don't have a recipe, necessarily. However, I will do my best to provide approximations on the ingredients...

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
1 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped (remove seeds if you want milder enchiladas)
2-3 sprigs of cilantro, finely chopped
*--- (I typically throw all 3 of the above ingredients into a mini chopper and let that do all the work.) ---*
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
Corn kernels from 2 ears of cooked corn (or 1 cup frozen corn, thawed)
1 1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
1-2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 bottle enchilada sauce (I use Trader Joe's brand -- see below)
10-12 corn tortillas

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Preheat the oven to 375°F. Coat the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with about 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce.

Mix onion, jalapeño, cilantro, black beans, corn, 1/2 cup cheese, chili powder, cumin, and 1/2 cup enchilada sauce in large bowl.

Put a few tablespoons of mixture in a tortilla.

Roll up the tortilla and place it seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat with the rest of the mixture and tortillas.

Top the tortillas with the remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.

Bake for 15 - 18 minutes until cheese is melted.

Serve up with your favorite toppings, such as fresh salsa, sour cream, or guacamole.

A tasty meal certain to spice up an otherwise dreary day! Enjoy!!

Whole Lotta Love

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Naturally, I'm a pretty big fan of Whole Foods Market. The selection of natural and organic foods is amazing to the point of overwhelming. I could easily spend hours wandering the aisles, oohing and ahhing (and I have). Hell, I could live and die right at their cheese counter!

Yes, they do deserve their nickname, "Whole Paycheck." Do you REALLY need $8 tortilla chips that badly (no matter how insanely delicious they taste)? But, when you see cute little bags like this, how can you stay mad?

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Needless to say, when Living Social offered their half off at Whole Foods deal last week, we pounced and pounced hard! Jon and I each purchased the deal, which meant $40 to spend at WF for only $20. Heck yeah!! (Yes, we may have picked up an extra artisan cheese or two this week. Yum!)

It was hard for me to believe that Whole Foods could get much more awesome, but then I saw this...

That's right, Yuengling is FINALLY coming to Whole Foods/Ohio!!! Sure, we'll still give our love to local brews from Columbus Brewing Company and Great Lakes Brewing Company (brewer of my favorite beer, Dortmunder Gold), but it will be nice to throw another great regional beer in the mix from time to time.

If you need more convincing, check out this ill video. I guarantee you'll be humming this tune for the rest of the day. For real.

Tortilla-Crusted Cod Cakes, Plus a Taste of Fall

TORTILLA-CRUSTED COD CAKES

(March 2006 Real Simple Recipe)

1 medium red onion

1 bunch fresh cilantro

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 jalapeño pepper, seeded & finely chopped
1 1/4 lb. cod fillet
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 cup finely crushed tortilla chips (from 3 cups chips)

Heat oven to 350° F. Finely chop enough onion to measure 3/4 cup and enough cilantro stems to measure 1 Tbsp. Heat 1 Tbsp of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, cilantro stems, and jalapeño and cook until softened, 4 minutes.

Pulse the cod, egg, salt, pepper, and the onion mixture in a food processor until combined but not puréed. Form 8 cod cakes. Coat each cake with the chips.

Wipe out skillet. Heat 1 Tbsp of the remaining oil over medium heat. Add 4 cakes and cook until golden brown, 3 minutes on each side. Transfer to a baking sheet. Wipe out skillet and repeat with 1 Tbsp olive oil and the last 4 cakes.

Bake until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Serves 4.

(Pictured with sides of sautéed squash & apples and sautéed green beans & onions.)

BONUS TASTY FALL RECIPE...

ACORN SQUASH & APPLES

1 acorn squash
2 apples, diced
1 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Gently drop acorn squash into a large pot of boiling water and boil for 15 minutes. Transfer to an ice bath to cool. Slice off the peel on the ridges and dig out the peel in the valleys. Slice the squash in half and remove the seeds and stems. Dice the squash into chunks.

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the squash with the apples, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon until tender. Sprinkle with a little extra brown sugar before serving, if desired.

Serves approximately 6.

The Veggie Van Always Rings Twice

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Every Tuesday is like Christmas around here. Only, Santa drives a van filled with sacks of fresh, seasonal produce from local farmers rather than sacks of cheap, plastic crap from China. You heard me...PRODUCE!

The good people of the Greener Grocer and Local Matters run this amazing produce delivery service called the Veggie Van. And luckily for us, they deliver to our son's preschool! So, for $15 dollars each week, we get a bag of some of the freshest, tastiest fare that central Ohio has to offer, delivered right to us.

What kind of fare, you ask? Check it out (but, watch the drool)...

LAST WEEK'S BAG:

Kale, Tomatoes, Acorn Squash, Onion, Garlic, Green Beans, Potatoes, Jonathan Apples, and 1/2 dozen Eggs

THIS WEEK'S BAG:

Cabbage, Kale, Cantaloupe Melon, Potatoes, Delicata Squash, Carrots, Onion, Garlic, and Jonathan Apples

Just look at that food! So fresh. So delicious. We love gobbling up these goodies each week. Can't wait to see what other delectable bounties the Veggie Van has to offer up in the weeks to come!

When It Rains, We Really Pour It On

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So, the long and short of it is that it rained cats and dogs today. Aaaaand I was stuck inside with my preschooler who's favorite phrase is, "Now what?" Since I was pretty sure the Cat in the Hat wasn't going to show up to play on this cold, cold wet day, I had to pull out my own bag of tricks.

First, a little fun with the Cars 2 Play-doh set...

Now what???

A game or two of Candy Land...

Now what???

A round of Memory Game, perhaps?...

Now what???

Sure, let's throw in some Thomas the Train UNO...

Now what???

I let Sesame Street take the reins for an hour. Then, it was time for lunch and a nap.

Yep, still raining!

I'm not gonna lie...I really could have used a nap at that point, too. However, I decided to take advantage of the rare moment of silence and enjoy some ME time.

First, some uninterrupted reading time...

THE LEFTOVERS by Tom Perrotta

Now what???

Then, a yummy meal...

Garden Thyme Luna Burger w/ side of Gala apples

Now what???

A couple relaxing hours watching a movie I've been wanting to see for a looooong time...

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(Mia Wasikowska was fabulous as Jane and now I'm crushing on Michael Fassbender more than ever! I MUST own this movie!!)


We managed to pack in a ton of great rainy day activities. The Cat in the Hat would have been so proud. All rainy days should be like this. Hopefully, next time our little Thing 2 will be home from school and can join in on the fun.

Now what???

The sun is out! Yaaaaaaay!!

Free People Read Freely

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"Censorship is telling a man he can't have a steak just because a baby can't chew it."
-- Mark Twain

There is freedom in reading. You can escape your own reality by imagining people and places grander than the biggest blockbuster movie, or find similarities with people and places you see every day. You can gain new understanding of a familiar subject, or discover a new passion. You can experience comfort, joy, hope, love, laughter, courage, sadness, remorse, fear, heartache, irritation, anger, disgust, anticipation, thrills, chills, and relief all in one little book. Pretty amazing, no?

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Sadly, there are people in this world who want to threaten your freedom to read...to read whatever you want, whenever you want, wherever you want. These people challenge and ban books for all kinds of crazy reasons, and this can be a surprisingly easy process. But, censoring one's RIGHT to read is WRONG!

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You can stand up for your RIGHT to read, your RIGHT to knowledge, your RIGHT to information! Help celebrate BANNED BOOKS WEEK this week (September 24th - October 1st) by reading a banned or challenged book, by spreading awareness about Banned Books Week on your blog/Facebook/Twitter, or by simply telling your local librarians and/or school officials that you appreciate their efforts to keep books ON our shelves.

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For more information about Banned Books Week visit: the American Library Association, deletecensorship.org, OR your local library.

I will be spending this week reading anything and everything I can. I will read because I can. I will read until they pry the books from my cold, dead hands (and they probably will). Please say you'll join me!

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"The books that the world calls immoral are books that show the world its own shame."
-- Oscar Wilde

Falling for Joe

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It's official! Fall is here! Some of you may or not know that I have quite an affair going on with Autumn. Cooler weather, football games, pumpkins, gorgeous foliage (my favorite colors!), sweaters and boots, apples and cinnamon, spooky movies, rainy days, Halloween and Thanksgiving, slanting light, soups and grilled cheese sandwiches, hayrides, my kids' birthdays -- it is easily my most favorite season. I get downright gaga upon its return every year and this year's official start to fall was no exception.

I decided to kick off this year's affair with a date with myself at a local coffee shop, Cup O' Joe. I sauntered right up to the counter and ordered my first pumpkin spice latte of the season. (*Note: Cup O' Joe uses REAL pumpkin mixed with white chocolate, vanilla, and spices in their pumpkin spice drinks, NOT syrup! LOVE!!) Armed with a delicious caffeine concoction and the latest edition of The Other Paper, I settled down in a comfy chair and began to unwind.

Seems I was a little more wound up than I initially thought because that latte was gone in about 2 seconds flat. So, I had no choice but to grab another...

And then, I started to get a little hungry so, I grabbed a Zuppa wrap at the counter and, of course, another coffee drink to wash it all down...

Roasted red pepper hummus w/ baby spinach, grilled asparagus, caramelized onions, and smoked Roman tomatoes in a spinach tortilla

Americano drink and 1/2 of my wrap

Belly full and a fresh Americano by my side, I grabbed my book out of my bag and blissfully started to read...

Life is good. I'm staying awake for it.

Before I knew it, the sky had grown dark and it was time to pack it up and head home. Perfect timing, since the baristas were threatening to cut me off and only serve me water. Hahaha! (Seriously.)

Goodnight lover...

Since my husband was such a great sport, letting me cheat on him with Joe all night, I decided to pick up a sweet treat to show him he's still my number one guy...

He was very grateful!

Such a lovely start to a lovely season! Happy Fall everyone!

All I Do is Win, Win, Win No Matter What

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In the past you've seen me blog about winning some excellent books through Goodreads. Well, it turns out that I'm some kind of lightning rod for giveaways because I WON AGAIN! That's right, more free books for moi!

A few weeks ago, I received word that I had won a copy of Emergency in Slow Motion: The Inner Life of Diane Arbus by William Todd Schulz. I was beyond giddy! I was really in the mood for something arty with an edge and this was perfecto! So, when my package from Bloomsbury arrived a few days ago, I ripped it open with gusto!

I love Diane Arbus's work. The pictures are absolutely haunting and stunning. I find myself staring at her subjects for what seems like hours, completely transported to the worlds in the photos.

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I cannot wait to dive into this little gem in the next day or two! I have a feeling it will be one that I can't help but devour in one sitting. And the weather is supposed to be perfectly crappy this weekend, so that will work out nicely.

But wait! That's not all!! Imagine my surprise when I woke up this morning, all set to write up this blog post about winning a book giveaway, only to discover I won ANOTHER book giveaway!!! That's right! Apparently, I've done something to please the book gods.

Yours truly has won a copy of...
Falling for Me: How I Learned French, Travelled to Seville, and Fell in Love by Anna David.

Okay, so it sounds a little Eat, Pray, Love-ish (which is one book that never sounded remotely interesting to me), but I'll give it a shot. After all, FREE BOOK!