Monthly Archives: October 2007

Eating

I love enchiladas

Here’s another dish from the “Don’t Panic” cookbook. This one needs some further tweaking, but it isn’t bad as-is. Just a little too mild for my taste. Next time, I’ll add more spice to the sauce.

I made the one-time-sized serving, which was meant to make 12 enchiladas. I had more than the prescribed amount of chicken, though, so I ended up with 15. Six went into the freezer; only three went into our bellies. Rockford will be taking some for lunch tomorrow, and we’ll probably have them for lunch again on Saturday. The moral of the story: This makes a lot of enchiladas.

This is the first time I’ve tried the foil-and-plastic method of freezing, so I’m not sure how it’ll come out once it’s thawing time. We shall see.

Chicken Enchiladas
1 onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
5 tablespoons butter, divided
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
4 oz can chopped green chilies
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican-blend cheese
12 6-inch tortillas

Cook onion and green pepper in 2 tablespoons butter until tender. Combine onions, peppers, chilies and chicken in a bowl; set aside.

For the sauce, melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan and stir in flour, coriander, cayenne and salt. Stir in chicken broth all at once; cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir one to two minutes more. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream and 1/2 cup of cheese. Stir 1/2 cup sauce into chicken mixture.

Pour enough sauce into a baking dish to coat the bottom. Fill each tortilla with about 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture. Roll up. (You may need to microwave the tortillas a few seconds to make them malleable). Arrange in baking dish and cover with remaining sauce and cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes until bubbly.

Freezing it: Line baking dish with foil and plastic wrap (enough to completely cover the food) and proceed as normal. Seal the plastic wrap and the foil over the enchiladas and put the dish in the freezer. Once the enchiladas are frozen, you can pop the foil packet out of the baking dish.

To serve: Remove foil and plastic wrap and return frozen enchiladas to the baking dish. Thaw completely, then bake at 350 for 25 to 30 minutes.

adapted from “Don’t Panic: Dinner’s in the Freezer”

Family matters

34 weeks

I don’t feel as enormous this time. And I’ve gained less weight, too (probably because we’re not close enough for daily doses of the world’s best ice cream or pizza).

But I didn’t realize until I looked at this picture just how far out there little Pete is. Gee whiz.

Flotsam / Jetsam

Moms and dads: A long and winding post

There’s an interesting article in Newsweek about the “new” generation of dads. The author — a member of said new generation — defines them, basically, as fathers who spend more hands-on time with their kids than the previous generation of dads spent with their offspring. The author spent nine months at home with his daughter, a time he calls, “the most rewarding time of my life — and a bonding experience I wouldn’t trade for anything.”

When I went to work after Poppy was born, Rockford was working on writing his thesis. While he didn’t really take any paternity leave, he was able to stay home with her during the day while I was at work. We were fortunate to have a trustworthy Mother’s Morning Out program at our church, too, so Rockford was able to go to the library a few times a week to work.

I’m a little sad for Pete that he isn’t going to get the same bonding experience with his dad that Poppy had. They used to watch “Magnum PI” and “The Rockford Files” together every day. Her taste in music is enough to reveal the impact that had on her. She loves lame ’70s soft rock, like Bread. She also loves Wilco, though, so I can’t complain too much. Except when she insists on listening to “Guitar Man” 17 times in a row. Then I can complain all I want. And I do.

Continue reading Moms and dads: A long and winding post →