New Recipe. . . . It's a Winner!

I tried one of my new recipes over the weekend, Mexican casserole, it was a big hit with the hubbs.  I used a recipe off of Pinterest but I tweaked it and made it my own.  I always like to tweak recipes to fit my taste and of course fit what I have in my cabinets.  No sense making extra trips to the grocery store.  This recipe is quite versatile and could be a dip, casserole or even used as a filling in an enchilada.  I have some left overs so I think I may try the enchilada option for work this next week.
Here is what I used to make Mexican Casserole:
2 cans black beans
1 can Mexican corn
1 can sweet yellow corn
1 cup rice (I used basamati brown rice) cooked
1 can rotel tomatoes
1 can enchilada sauce
1 lime juiced and zested
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 small sweet orange peppers chopped
2 sweet red peppers chopped
1 jalapeno seeded and chopped
1/2 block cream cheese,
3 tsp cumin
1 tsp caynne
2tbsp cilantro

cheese and sour cream to serve

Put olive oil in bottom of dutch oven and saute garlic, then add peppers and saute,  6 minutes then add corn and black beans, rotel tomatoes, enchilada sauce, and stir and cook on medium 10-15 minutes, add your seasonings, rice and lime juice, then add your cream cheese and cover.   I add my lime zest last stir and serve with cheese sour cream and chips or use it for enchilada filling.

This is the middle of the process of cooking this casserole 

This is the end result and it was yummy

We will have this again. 

Upside Down Week and True Love. . .

It has been a horrendous week and a half, I had a migraine for four days straight and then got a stomach virus when I was finally getting over the migraine.  In all of that I was trying to work and maintain my family.  I could use a couple of days off here.  I am very thankful for my dear husband and son, bless them for taking care of themselves during my week of craziness.  I soaked in a milk bath last night and I feel somewhat human this morning. My very sweet husband came home from work the other night and I was still not feeling well and he fixed me pancakes so I could get ready for work.  I love this man to the moon and back.  The Lord truly blessed me when he lead me to my dear hubby.  I only hope that my boys turn out half as good as their daddy and they will be a blessing to their mates as well.
With my stomach and my head being so out of whack, I decided I would revisit my 100 days of real food adventure and clean my diet up.  I am looking at more recipes for real food and options for packed lunches for work and school.  I try not to use plastic when packing lunches for myself especially if it is something that I have to reheat at the office.  Big T has been eating the hubbs chicken and rice soup almost everyday for dinner and that is a change up from sandwiches for a lunch option.  I just need to find a way he can take his soup and I had rather not use glass.  I will be searching hot food transportation options in the next few weeks for Big T's lunch. 
I will be trying some new recipes in the next few weeks and I will share my triumphs and fails because, let's face it, there will be fails. 
Stay tuned for Massachusetts updates and college visit updates. . . . 

No Resolutions Here. . .

I used to do New Year's resolutions when I was much younger but, I always seemed to fall short.  I made  a decision a long time ago that I would just try to be the best Me I could be.   I make that resolution every morning as I go about my day.  I still fall short but I try every day. 
One of the things I have been trying, to be a better me, is the 100 days of real food.  I got the new book for Christmas along with some new Instant Pot accessories.  Along with the "real food" adventure I have added, very gingerly, yoga.  Don't laugh, if my mother-in-law can do it, I think I can start a beginner session.  I have only added a few poses to help with flexibility.  I took ballet for 9+ years, rode horses from the time I could walk till I had Sprat, and I cheered through high school and  college. I used to be flexible, it is a horrible feeling that I have problems getting in and out of the floor.  ughhh !!! Getting old stinks, age sucks our brains out and takes away our flexibility and agility.  Ok so it is not just age, it is our schedule and for me it is a neglect of taking care of myself.  I guess maybe I did make a resolution of sorts, I am going to do better about taking care of me this year.  You will have to stay tuned to see how this yoga business works out, I hope that I do not have to post from a hospital bed in traction or something. 

Leaping into Technology. . .

This week I leaped into technology by creating a snap chat account.  My younger hipper co workers helped me set up my account so that I could face time with my son in Boston.  He played in his first college lacrosse scrimmage this past weekend and on Wednesday last week he texts me to inform me he may have a concussion.  He said he had the worst headache he has ever had.  He has migraines and I had a migraine that same weekend for about three days.  I thought ok, this is a bad migraine.  He then informs me that he got leveled at the scrimmage with head contact.  Now is when mom drive goes into overdrive.  That is why I did the snapchat, I needed to see his face.  I felt like if I could see that face I would know one way or the other if it was a concussion or migraine. 
My co workers are the best, I was able to face time him and see that face that I have not seen since September 2nd.  I felt some better after seeing him, he did not seem loopy or disoriented or in severe pain like  I thought he could have been.  He is still having a headache and he text his dad today and told him that he saw the trainer again today and they would not let him go back to practice and that their main concern was to get him back in class.  That is troublesome too, that he has missed class because of this. 
Needless to say there has not been a lot of sleep for me.  When I worry I do not sleep.  Work keeps my mind off of everything so I have been working more filling in for folks when they need it.  Things are winding down and we will get to see him in person the week of Thanksgiving.  Cannot wait to see him.  Praying he has stayed on top of his grades, otherwise he will be home for good.  Low grades means no scholarship, means the boy comes home.  Praying he has stayed focused and diligent in his studies.
Update on Big T he made A honor roll this semester and made an A in his college class he was taking.  He did a tour of the Community College since he will be making trips there next semester for classes.  Up to this point his college classes have been online so he has not had to go to campus for anything.  Things are getting very exciting at our house. 
Update on 100 days of Real Food, I fell off the wagon, so I will attempt a re-start soon.  I was talking with a friend who is a PA and she was talking about processed food and headaches and migraines and other physical ailments that we have in common and I was telling her about this book.  We had both come to the conclusion that processed food is bad and we should be eating "Real" food.  This journey is on going at our house. 
Stay tuned as the college kid comes home and the Real Food journey starts again.

Instant Pot and Real Food

Yesterday I was off and decided I would clean the expired canned goods out of my kitchen cabinets.  I feel very wasteful right now.  I had so many canned goods that had expired.   I had a couple cans of tomato paste that were near expiration and I decided I would not let them go to waste. 
I decided a vegetable soup in the instant pot would be great.  I started with some chicken broth and my tomato paste and then I looked in the freezer and grabbed some crowder peas and sweet peas we had frozen from our garden.  I threw in a can of Lima beans, and some store bought frozen corn.  Add some garlic powder, onion powder, fresh dried oregano,  and some thyme.  I added some beef broth to give a little more liquid. 
Closed my lid and set my pot for soup.  I started the soup around 430 and we  were enjoying it by 530 ish.  Feeding the hubs and I real food pretty quick.  I did too it with some cheese and a dollop of sour cream.  
Love this pot!!! 
I am not being paid for this, I have said many times I post about things I like and believe in.

Another New Cook Book. . .. .

A friend of mine at work shared a cook book with me that she had recently purchased, 100 days of Real Food, by Lisa Leake.  I skimmed through it one night at work in between phone calls and I was intrigued.  You know I am always interested in a good cook book, especially one that has quick simple recipes, the bonus here is that they are also better for you recipes.
When you are working and trying to take care of your family you look for quick ideas to help you along, this is one of those resources. **** Full disclosure I am not being paid for this post, you all should know by now I post what I believe in and share things that I find have value. *****
There are a couple folks at work that are trying to keep everyone motivated with little tasks and helpful hints.  One is walking laps at the office when we are not taking calls to keep our energy up and our metabolism too.  Another couple of gals have created this great board to help keep us motivated and entertained with shout outs to other employees and little funny memes about talking on the phone all the time.  It is a big stress reliever and morale booster in my opinion.
So, with all of that said, my friend at work shared her cook book and I of course loved it.  I bought one of them on Amazon and have been reading it. 
The premise behind the book is to eat real food and cut out all the processed stuff that is available at the store these days.  It also hits home the amount of sugar that we consume on a daily basis.  She even tells what you can get at the different stores that are good choices for eating "real food."  I am off today and had to run some errands and decided I would go by the Whole Foods and pick up a few things suggested in my new book.  I do not normally shop at Whole Foods but I wanted some things that the book suggested that only Whole Food carry.  I am notorious for buying things not on my list and today was no different, we are having Salmon for dinner tonight with fresh dill, lemon, and butter.  I fixed my lunch today with suggestions from the book:   scrambled eggs, avocado, on a small whole wheat pita.  It was very filling and very good. 
Stay tuned, this is going to be an adventure for this crew.  Trying to cut back on eating out, eating more "real food," and cutting back on the soda (me).  This is not about calories it is about "real food."