January 27, 2012

I’m So Clumsy

Hi! I’m glad to hear a few of you also had a thing for Leo  back in the day! Smile  Too funny!  Since I shared that story, I might as well admit that a poster of Leo from Romeo and Juliet hung above my bed for quite some time in high school. Ha!

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Onto the food, shall we…

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I’ve been eating this soup most the week…I can’t seem to get enough.  Once I read Cat’s blog and spotted this delicious soup, I knew I was making it this week.  I love the simple Mexican flavors all rolled up into one simple soup.

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Refried Bean Soup (courtesy of Breakfast to Bed)

Ingredients

  • 1 can fat free refried black beans (or pinto)
  • 1 can black beans-do not drain
  • 16 oz vegetable stock
  • 1 large can or carton (26oz) chopped tomatoes-do not drain
  • 1 packet of taco seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
  • 1/2 lb carrots, chopped
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 3 bell peppers, chopped
  • 1 1/2 cup corn kernels (sadly, I forgot to buy)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • tabasco to taste
  • 1/2 cup chopped cilantro-optional

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Directions:

Heat the oil in a large stockpot on medium-high.  Add in onion and sauté one minute.

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Add in garlic and sauté one more minute.

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Add in bell pepper, carrot, and taco seasoning.

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Pour in remaining ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes to one hour.

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Although throwing it in the pan is super simple, you can also use a crock pot (YESS!).  Just combine and stir all ingredients and set it to medium for 6 hours.

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That’s it!

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In less than an hour you have a delightful and filling soup right at your fingertips…or should I say spoon. Open-mouthed smile

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I loved the creaminess the refried beans added to the soup.

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Chockfull of vegetable and beans, this bowl is just packed with fiber!

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I will make sure NOT to forget the corn next time.  I heart corn and it was sadly missed.

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Scrumptious!

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A piece of advice…

Be careful not to cut your finger opening a can like I did.  I guess it’s bound to happen being as clumsy as I am. (Thought I’d spare you a picture Smile).

Have a great Friday!

Are you clumsy in the kitchen?  What is your worst kitchen mishap?

January 25, 2012

Birthday and Book Club

Hi there!

Since I didn’t give you “typical” weekend post as usual, I thought I’d share it today.

Saturday we celebrated swanky mother’s birthday.  She couldn’t seem to decide on a spot for dinner, but eventually went with Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza .

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I can’t tell you the last time I had dinner at Sammy’s.  Their food is pretty yummy so I think I’ll be making a trip back soon.

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Since appetizers were half off (yay, happy hour!), we started off with a few different ones to share.

Hummus

Garbanzo beans, lemon, tahini and garlic dip, extra virgin olive oil, with grilled herb flat bread.

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Parmesan Crusted Artichokes

With goat cheese, served with creamy herb dressing.

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Garlic Cheese Bread

Roasted garlic sauce, mozzarella cheese, fresh oregano, imported Romano cheese.

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This cheese bread was so delicious; I swear I could have eaten the whole basket.  Maybe it’s the fact that I’ve been trying to cut back on cheese that sent me in overdrive. Winking smile

As I perused the menu, my eye kept going back to the vegetarian pizza so I happily went with that as my entrée.

Grilled vegetables including eggplant, onions, zucchini, bell peppers, red onions with fontina, roasted garlic sauce, tomatoes.

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This pizza was packed with lots of mouthwatering vegetables (well one would hope given the name, right? Winking smile).  My point is they didn’t skimp, that’s for sure.

I think my family was a bit jealous because I ended up sharing a slice with each of them.

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Can we just talk about dessert?!? 

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Um..we hated it, can’t you tell?

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I love that Sammy’s offers lots of options: gluten free pizza crust, vegan dairy-free mozzarella.  That’s great to see!

Let’s talk about Sunday.  After a long hiatus with the holidays, my friends and I met again for book club to discuss Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell.

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I have to confess, that I didn’t read the book.   I know what you’re thinking…why do I attend book club if I didn’t read the book?  Well, mainly to chat with my friends. I’m not going to lie. Smile It gives us all an opportunity to see each other every month and I look forward to it.

And have you seen the size of this book?? It’s over 1000 pages.

We also watched the movie (which is also really long) and I brushed up on the story via wikipedia.

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I know I can’t make a real opinion since I only read the summary and watched the movie, but I’m not sure that I loved the story. Gasp!  I was a bit surprised it being a classic and all.  Those of you have read it, what did you think?

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Swanky sister was too sweet and made all kinds of vegan goodies for us.  (She watched Forks over Knives with me).

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With a side of wine!

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And of course we always have lots of furry company. Smile

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All in all, it was a great weekend!  How was yours?

Gone With The Wind: yay or nay? What is the longest book you’ve read or movie you’ve watched?

Titanic was pretty lengthy and I watched that movie seriously like 6 times in theaters.  I had quite the thing for Leonardo DiCaprio..but didn’t everyone at that time??  I can’t be the only one. Smile

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