Monday, November 29, 2010

Cafe Rio recipes... for my Cochrane peeps

***Heads up, if you are printing and do not want pages and pages of my blog (like my stalker Catherine) you should probably copy and paste the recipes into a word document and then print*** sideways winky face

Hey ladies! A few of you have asked for the recipes from Friday. Here they are. They might look a bit intimidating, but I promise they are all so easy.


Traditional salad order:


*tortilla


Rice


Beans


Chicken


Romaine (or anything except iceberg lettuce. My sister likes spinach)


Tomatoes


Cheese (we used cheddar, but you could use Parmesan if you want)


Dressing


*fresh lime to squeeze on top



Seasoned Chicken


5 lbs. chicken breasts (I use 6-8 breasts)


1 large bottle Kraft Zesty Italian dressing


1 Tbsp. ground cumin


1 Tbsp. chili powder


2 cloves minced garlic *optional*


Fresh lime juice



Put everything in a crock pot and stir to coat. Cook on low 4-6 hours, or high 2-3 hours. (If frozen high 4-6 hours) 1/2 hour before serving, shred chicken (I just used 2 dinner forks) and add the juice from 2 limes.



Green Chili Rice


3 cups of water


4 tsp. chicken bouillon (I used 2 large cubes- that make 2 cups of broth per cube)


1 clove minced garlic


1 can mild diced green chilis (DON'T drain water)


1/2 bunch chopped cilantro


1 tsp. ground cumin


1/2 tsp. salt


1/2 onion chopped *I am a bit anti-onion so I didn't add this*


3 cups rice (not instant)


1 Tbsp. butter


*Tip for fluffy rice... rinse the rice in cold water until the water runs clear to remove starch before adding to the mix* Combine ingredients and add to rice cooker or cook on stove top following the cooking directions of the rice package.



Black Beans


2 Tbsp. olive oil


2 cloves of minced garlic


1 tsp. cumin


1 can of black beans, drained


1 1/3 c tomato juice


1 1/2 tsp. salt


2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro


1 can of corn, drained *optional*


In a nonstick skillet, cook cumin and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell it. Add beans, tomato juice, and salt. Continue to stir until it is heated through. Add corn- if you choose. Stir in cilantro just before serving.



Creamy Cilantro Dressing


1 package Hidden Valley Ranch dressing (only have seen it at Safeway in Cochrane. Had to buy mine at Co-op. Heard it is at Sobey's too)


1 can of diced green chilis


1 1/3 cup sour cream


3/4 cup mayo


1/2 bunch fresh cilantro


2 cloves of garlic


juice from 1-2 limes


1/8 tsp. Tabasco sauce (I added a bit more because we like it a bit spicy)


Mix everything is a blender! Super easy. It will be a bit thin, but remember that the dressing thickens as it sets in the fridge. BEST if made the day before. Leftover dressing is great for veggie dip too.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

A day of feasting...

Canada celebrates Thanksgiving in October. I do not like it so much. It takes almost 2 weeks away from the Halloween stuff. Kyle thinks that "American Thanksgiving" takes away from Christmas. Maybe... maybe not. That is how I grew up and that is what I miss. I will not be putting up my tree until after today. That is the rule.

I wish I was home today.

I will miss Thanksgiving at the DuPaix's.

But I haven't forgotten to be thankful.

I am thankful for good friends that invited us to celebrate a Thanksgiving Feast with them this past week.

I am thankful for a warm place to live and money in the bank.

I am thankful that Kyle has a good job and takes care of us. He is my very best friend and I promise to "tolerate" him for a very long time.

I am grateful for the gospel.

I am thankful for family near and far. We miss all of you...

I am thankful for my favorite little boys. They are my life and I love them so much. I love to see their cute smiles every morning when I walk into their room. I love to hear Deakon's loud giggling and Nixon's slobbery cooing.

These 2 buddies warm my heart...
even when they are reading books on the bathroom floor.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Well... it's November

My life feels like a never ending episode from Saved By The Bell...

Jessie vs. the caffeine pills...

I HAVE NO TIME.....
"I'm so excited, I'm so excited, I'm so.... scared"

Ok, so not so much the scared or the caffeine overdose (let's pretend I am not on my 3rd diet pepsi of the day), but the whole being pulled in way too many directions and feeling like I never have time to do everything...

I guess maybe that is the way my life will be for awhile. Better suck it up.

hmm... anyway, finally took some pictures on my camera today. I keep taking pictures on my phone and can't figure out how to put them on the computer so they mostly go staight to facebook and get lost in the hussle and bussle. Nixon is crazy busy getting into everything. I have offically lost the use of my fireplace unless we buy some kind of guard. He can climb up 2 stairs... and is awesome at falling down. AND, today he pulled himself straight up onto the exersaucer. Of course I took a few shots and then put my camera away just in time to see him fall over. I am fantastic at being in charge.
Here he is in all his glory. Ya, we dress like bums in the morning. So, sue me


Needed a current picture of Nixon so we did a little photo shoot this afternoon. He is so darn handsome.









Peace out...


Monday, November 15, 2010

Deakon's Christmas list...

During breakfast this morning, Deakon decided that he wanted to make a Christmas list. He brought me some paper and a crayon and asked me to write the following items:

-fighting monster that the car hits down
-sword
-bow and arrow
-new hockey sticks
-a helmet that opens
-a toy for Nixon... and one for Dad
-skateboard
-and an Angry Bird house with an Angry Bird to knock it down


Guess Santa better get busy...

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

All Hallow's Eve

I have come to the realization that in some ways I really suck at being a mom.....

My mom made the holidays. She had decorations for everything. I loved coming home from school that first week of October and seeing our house changed into a Halloween festival. Leading up to eating hot homemade soup or chili and fresh bread before being allowed to roam the streets trick or treating Halloween night. Followed by seeing that weird cornucopia and turkeys filling the tables all of November. As soon as our Thanksgiving meal was finished we all would start begging to help set up Christmas and watch the magical Christmasy spirit fill the entire house. I could go on and on about every holiday and the decoration boxes lying under the stairs. AND who can forget the monthly themed birthday reminders hanging on the wall in the kitchen. Love seeing ANGI 25 on that blue raindrop every April.

We had no decorations for October... or September... or July... or... ok, you get the picture. We did buy our first Christmas tree last year and hang a few measly lights around our windows.

This huge part, the bringing magic and fun and unforgettable holiday memories is what I suck at... and I am promising to stop sucking... today. I have lots of new Christmas ideas in mind and it will be super fantastic, right?

We did dress up for Halloween, and attended a very fun night in the "country" trunk or treating.

Deakon was "a dirt bike guy". Nix was unhappily my cute little lion. Probably would have worked better if the costume fit his little head better. Kyle dressed up at Deak's mechanic and I was a very boring employee of Deak's bike shop.

After forcing Nixon to be cute for a bit, I traded up the lion costume for his snowsuit. He was very happy then.





Monday, November 1, 2010

Deakon Funnies

*burp* Excuse me. Don't worry Nix, that was me burping and not a monster

.............................................................................

I finally had to put a password on my phone because Deakon kept messing with my settings and apps (AKA... uninstalling Angry Birds *twice* after beating 80+ levels... grrrr)
"Why can't I play?"
"You need to earn it and I need to watch you. It is a special privilege"
"I will be a special privilege, I promise"

.............................................................................

Deak thinks the car wash is so loud and so he doesn't like going. Saturday we went
Kyle: "Why don't you just plug your ears?"
"Well, I just don't have any plugs"

............................................................................

Deak: "I want some money"
Me: "Do you want loonies?"
D: "No"
M: "Do you want toonies?"
D: "No. I want sparkles"