Heaven help us all

"Miss Social Worker? Do you think we could look at some colleges in Virginia?"
"Sally, you know that your financial aid will only work in North Carolina."
"Wait, Virginia isn't in North Carolina???"

I miss blogging

I do. But it's hard to know what to write about, because I have landed myself in trouble on numerous occasions in the past. I'm sure everyone is sick of my vegetarian recipes by now, but I don't really know what else to say.

Well, I guess I can write about how quickly our lives have changed in the past 3 months! As you may have read from one of my previous entries, I'm in grad school now. Finally. I'm getting my MA in counseling from Liberty University. Most of my classes are online, which is great. It's a little annoying that people tend to discredit online programs. It requires a lot of discipline and so far I have learned a lot. Also, I don't think I could actually get a masters any other way. I've been so stinking sick lately with my RA that being able to take my classes in pajamas on my sofa has been a major blessing.

The other big news is WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!! Jon would like to make it very clear that nothing is final until we close, which won't be until November. (however, things are looking very good and I'm almost positive we'll be moving in.) We are building our home about 10 minutes away from where we live now. We've had a blast picking out the flooring and other design aspects of the home and can't wait to move in! It is a 3 bed, 2.5 bath town home... which means NO EXTERIOR MAINTENANCE! Seriously, I have no desire at all to have to re-shingle a roof, maintain a yard, etc. I don't know why anyone bothers to own a single family home at all... I am too lazy to do all that work. I'm also psyched that our house is under warranty for 10 years, so we will have almost nothing to worry about once we move in.

Jon is doing amazing, by the way. He is healthy as a horse. Still on blood thinners, but he's doing well with those. He has been riding his bike to work, which is 3.5 miles away. He is crazy. I'm so happy that he is doing ok and that he is still here with me.

Well, that's all for now. I'll be back with a recipe and or/boring life update soon.

farmers market chowder

i'm making sure to take advantage of the last month or so of fresh, local veggies... yum!!

2 zucchini, peeled and chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 ears corn (cut the kernels off)
3 tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
3 cups water
1/3 cup flour
1 1/4 cup evaporated milk
2 cups cheddar cheese (i used pepper jack because thats what i had in my fridge and it turned
out excellent)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
3 vegetable bullion cubes
2 tbs butter
salt, pepper, sugar

in a large soup pot, melt 2 tbs butter. sautee zucchini and onion until tender.

mix in flour, basil, and parsley. add dash salt, dash pepper. gradually add water and bullion cubes. bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook and stir 2-5 minutes.

add evaporated milk, corn, and tomatoes. bring to a boil. reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes until corn is tender.

add cheese, stir until just melted. add a pinch of sugar to taste.


ps- my soup came out a little watery because i used regular milk instead of evaporated...

summer luvin' brushetta

summer=fresh tomatoes=love

6 or 7 roma tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
6-8 fresh basil leaves, finely chopped

1 baguette
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

parboil the tomatoes for 2 1/2 minutes, drain and then rinse with cold water. use your fingers to remove skins. quarter and remove seeds/juices, then chop. mix with the garlic, olive oil, vinegar, and basil leaves.

cut thin slices of the bread and brush one side with olive oil. toast on the top rack of your oven, oil side up, for 5 minutes at 450*.

i prefer to NOT top the bread with the brushetta before serving because the bread gets soggy. rather, i serve the bread on a plate and the brushetta in a small bowl. it's also nice to serve this with a little feta cheese to sprinkle on top. if you're feeling really fancy, you can drizzle some balsamic vinegar on the bread plate. enjoy!

makes about 8 side dish servings... or if you are lazy like me and don't feel like cooking anything else, 4 main dish servings.

tamale pie

Sorry my blog is boring.

Here's one of my favorite recipes.

TAMALE PIE

2 cans of beans (black bean, pinto bean, kidney bean) try to pick 2 different varieties
1 pepper, chopped (I prefer red but green works too if you're on a budget) You can also do 1/2 green pepper and 1/2 red pepper if you want, this adds some color
1/2 or 1 onion, chopped
1 4 oz can of diced grean chile peppers, undrained
1 or 2 cloves garlic, minced (or some garlic powder)
6 oz vegetable juice (1 small can of V8 or Wal-Mart brand)
1 box of Jiffy corn muffin mix, 1 egg, 1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup shredded cheese (cheddar, pepper jack, or whatever you happen to have in your fridge)
dash cumin
dash chili powder
dash cilantro

Preheat oven to 400* and grease a glass pie pan (or other glass dish that's about the same size, about 2 quarts)

Sautee the pepper, onion, and garlic in 1 tbs oil until tender. Stir in beans, vegetalble juice, chile peppers, chili powder and cumin. Heat through. Spoon into prepared dish.

Prepare corn muffin mix according to package directions, add cheese and cilantro. Stir until just combined. Spoon cornbread evenly over the top of the bean mixture. Bake uncovered at 400* for 20-25 minutes until golden.


I based this recipe from one I found in the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook. I love it because you can mix and match what items you have (like different varieties of beans, peppers, cheese, and clean dishes) and it comes out great. I'm always changing up what I use and probably have never made it the same way twice. Plus you get a whole pie/casserole dish worth of dinner for only a couple bucks worth of ingredients. The best part? It tastes AMAZING when you heat it up later in the week for leftovers!