Enchiladas like a fat girl

I don't fix Enchiladas when I'm trying to be healthy, I just don't.  I know I'm going to eat more than I should, then eat it again for lunch the next day.  They freeze just fine but...so delicious!

The trick to making enchiladas that aren't rubbery is your sauce.  Not what's in it, but where you put it!  Make sure to have a nice thick layer on the bottom of your pan and another fairly thick layer on top.  Skimp at your own risk!

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef (or chuck, or whatever your beefy preference is)
Taco seasoning (I like Ortega Hot and Spicy)
3 small cans (or 1 large, 1 small) of your preference of enchilada sauce
10 burrito tortillas
1 can of good black bean refried beans (Again, I've got a preference for Ortega)
4 cups of shredded cheese (I like some mexican blend, but whatever you like works)

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 400

Brown your ground beef and fix with taco seasoning according to the package directions.  Set aside.

Coat the bottom of a LARGE, sheet pan sized, cake pan with about 1/4 inch of enchilada sauce.  DO NOT SKIMP.  I'm not kidding you here.  If you don't have enough, your enchiladas will be completely stuck to the bottom of the pan and everything will come out sort of rubbery.  It will not be good.

Pour the rest of your enchilada sauce into a large bowl.  Open your can of refried beans and put a spoon in it.  Put your cheese in a plate or a bowl.  Open up your tortillas.

What you're about to do is messy.  If you have help, great.  If not...well, I usually do it by myself and just clean off the counter afterwards.  Whichever!

Take a tortilla out of the bag and smother one side of it with enchilada sauce.  On the opposite side, put a thin layer of refried bean down the center, top with a handful of meat, then a handful of cheese.  Roll into a tube, then set seam side down in your cake pan, smooshing enchilada sauce between the tortilla and the pan.

Repeat until your pan is totally full, then top it off with the remaining sauce, meat, and cheese.  Make sure you get sauce on the edges of the tortillas unless you like crispy edges.

Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese bubbles.

(Just so you know, they're almost impossible to get out neatly.  Who really cares though?  So delicious!)

Microwave Chocolate Chip Cookie

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 packed tablespoon brown sugar
A few drops of vanilla
1 egg yolk
Slightly less than 1/4 cup of flour (level or lower)
Chocolate chips to taste (I'd go with about 1 heaping tablespoon for a normal cookie)

Directions:
Mix together butter, sugars, vanilla, and egg yolk in a microwave safe mug, then beat in flour.  Stir in chips.

Microwave for about 45 seconds: check to see if the top is dry (a little dampness around the sides is fine)

Enjoy!


[Warning: Right after microwaving, the chocolate chips are hot as lava!  You might want to let the cookie set for a few minutes before eating or risk a scorched tongue.]

Healthy "Tapioca" Pudding

I like tapioca a lot, but I'm also working on that New Year's resolution to watch my weight.  And the other New Year's resolution to clean out my cabinets of all the weird stuff I've bought and not finished because I don't know how to use it.  Viola!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons brown sugar (you can adjust this to taste)
about 1/4 tsp vanilla
3 tablespoons Chia seeds (you can get these at a health food store, usually)

Directions:
Heat the milk on a stove or in the microwave until just short of boiling so you can dissolve the brown sugar in it.  Stir in the vanilla.  Mix in the Chia seeds THOROUGHLY! Let the mixture set, covered, overnight and enjoy!

It lasts quite a while too, so you can make a larger batch and enjoy for a week or so.

Gentler, Easier, Microwave Brownie

This brownie, unlike the last one, does not punch you in the taste buds.  It caresses you.  Teases you.  Leads you to your favorite movie, comfortable pants, and a cozy spot on the sofa.  It is the light cousin of that dark brownie.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla (give or take. I always eyeball it)
2 tbsp. cocoa powder, or 3 heaping disposable spoons
1/4 cup all purpose flour
up to 3 tbsp. chocolate chips, if desired

Directions:
Put butter and brown sugar in microwave safe cup and heat on high 30-45 seconds, or until butter is melted.  Stir with fork.  Mix in egg and vanilla, then cocoa and flour.  Fold in the chocolate chips, if you're using them.  Microwave 1 to 1 1/2 minutes (if you overcook, it gets a little tough and rubbery, but still tasty)

Mug Brownie of the Aquapocalypse

Mug brownie, Aquapocalypse style!

Ok, we all knew I couldn't manage to wait out the water crisis without figuring out SOME way to cook! I was going crazy! (No comments about my probable sanity, please.) Sure, this isn't ideal, but it gets me by.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup flour...
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder (not the instant cocoa kind, Swiss Miss or the sort, but baking cocoa powder)
pinch of salt
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup melted butter
2 large eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
Chocolate chips (optional

Directions:
Melt butter in a microwave safe disposable cup, then mix with milk, eggs, and vanilla.

In a disposable bowl, blend sugar, cocoa powder, flour, and salt. Beat in liquids and fold in chocolate chips, if using.

Divide evenly between two microwave safe disposable cups (I reused the butter cup) and microwave for two minutes.

Sasha's favorite sandwich spread

I'm not a huge fan of pimento sandwiches, don't really know anyone who is.  But I do like cheese, some soft cheeses, and I do like sandwiches, so what's a girl to do?  Innovate!

Ingredients:
16oz softened (room temperature) goat cheese (may also be listed as Chevre in your store)
8oz softened (room temperature) cream cheese
3/4 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts, or almonds.  Up to you, really)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley.

Directions:
In a medium bowl, mix together goat cheese and cream cheese.  I found a lot of luck pressing them together with the back of a wooden spoon.

Add in nuts and parsley and mix well.

Store in fridge, but always let warm to room temperature before trying to spread (goat cheese gets a bit hard).  Very very good with red pepper jelly or hot pepper jelly if you can find it.

Sauteed Spinach with Nutmeg and Lemon Zest

I'm going to admit right off that I love sauteed spinach, oddball that I am.  I think, though, that a lot of people who would otherwise turn their nose up at this humble vegetable will like this due to the extra flavors.  Please give it a go!

Ingredients:
1 large bag of spinach, picked over for bad pieces, stems removed, and washed
Zest of one lemon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tablespoon butter

Directions:
After washing the spinach, leave the water on it and toss it in a large sauce pan.  Heat over medium high with a lid on it for about five minutes, then open and stir.  The spinach should be wilted.   Put back on a minute at a time until it is, if it is not.

Take off the heat and stir in butter, nutmeg, and lemon zest.  Serve warm or cool.