Avocado Pita Sandwich

As most of you know, I LOVE avocados.  Not only are they delicious, but they are ridiculously good for you too! I suppose the bacon in this recipe could "cancel" out the goodness of the avocado, but I needed protein and it's all I had in the fridge.

This is super easy to throw together, especially if you have your bacon cooked ahead of time.  Also, it's something you could adapt to your own tastes.  For example, instead of bacon, how about chicken or turkey? Instead of feta, how about Parmesan or shredded Mozzarella?

To make this I mashed up half an avocado with salt and pepper, spread it on a warm pita and sprinkled a few red pepper flakes on top for some heat.  Then I layered some thinly sliced onion, feta and crumbled bacon on top.  It was so good and a wonderful afternoon pick me up! Plus, I felt BETTER after eating it instead of worse!

Sometimes the most simplest of meals are the best! ENJOY!!!!

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Question13 - Name 5 strengths you have

1.  My ability to make others laugh - I get more joy out of making someone laugh than I do anything else.  There are times that I fall flat, but overall I feel I do a good job.  I've been blessed with my mothers quick wit, and there are times where I astound myself when I think of a good comment/joke. 

2.  My ability to sleep - you would be astounded at how easily I can sleep.  I can nap pretty much anywhere, and I can count on my one hand how many times I've had trouble falling asleep.  I fear this will be a negative thing in the future once Blake and I decide to have children, because the other side of this is that I am a CRAZY person when I don't get enough. 

3.  Athletics - Aside from tennis and basketball, I can honestly say I'm pretty good at most sports.  For only playing a full golf game 3-4 times, I think even Blake is surprised at how well I can do.  Don't get me wrong though, I've got  A LOT of work to do. 

4.  Being emotionally supportive - I like to pride myself as being a friend who can not only give advice but also be supportive and understanding.  I have the ability to look at a situation from multiple points of view and I think it's helpful when giving advice.  At least that's what I hope. 

5. My ability to deal with stress - Somehow I made it through Graduate school working full time, planning a wedding, and working multiple jobs.  You'd think I'd have a mental break down, which may have happened once or twice, but overall I stayed pretty calm.  I tend to work out, nap, cook, or read a good book to calm down.  I know this will be helpful in my future, cause I'm sure I will have many more stressful moments to come!

Farm Fresh Eggs & Southwest Hash

My mom brought me home some farm fresh eggs the other day, so I knew I had to make something delicious with them this weekend.  She bought a coworker some baby chickens for her chicken coop, and this was the result.  Apparently the chickens lay an egg a day! If they were mine, I'd have some serious Cholesterol problems.

How gorgeous are those eggs, it makes me wonder why I haven't been using them forever.  There's something so natural about these multicolored eggs each one being a slightly different size, instead of the cookie cutter bleached white eggs from the supermarket.  I got started cooking a bit late, so this was more of a brunch than a breakfast.  Since Blake and I would be eating it for two meals, I wanted to make sure it had some substance.  This is "southwestern" style hash because it has sweet corn, jalapenos, and black beans in it.  It was delicious, but beware, it was very filling! Blake's mom dropped off some sweet corn that she picked up from a local stand, and it was the perfect touch of sweetness!

INGREDIENTS
2 Yukon Gold Potatoes diced
3 Slices Bacon - diced
1/2 Sweet Onion - diced
1/2 Can Black Beans - rinsed
1/4 Cup Shredded Mexican Cheese 
1 Ear Sweet Corn - cut off cob
1 Jalapeno - minced
salt and pepper to taste

1.  Begin by cooking the bacon until it is almost crispy.  Drain all grease from pan, except for 1-2 tablespoons. Add in diced onions and saute until they begin to turn soft.

2.  Add in the diced potatoes and cover for 3-4 minutes (you may need to add a tbs. of butter if there isn't enough bacon grease).  Allow the potatoes to cook and brown a bit.  This will take approximately 5-6 minutes depending on how small you cut the potatoes.  Add in the beans, corn, and jalapeno and continue cooking for 3-4 more minutes.  The beans are already cooked, and you just need to warm the corn through.

3.  Once finished cooking, mix in the shredded cheese.  Serve and top with your favorite type of egg.
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Question #11
Describe a current day in your life.

Up until yesterday I was spending my days at my internship located at Hawthorn Center Psychiatric Hospital.  As you can imagine there was rarely a boring moment.  My day often began by me pressing snooze enough times that I looked like a hot mess at work because I didn't have the time to get ready. 

I would check my emails while drinking my coffee, and the rest of my day was spent doing therapy and writing reports.  I cannot forget my favorite hour of the day though, lunch.  I absolutely loved my lunch hour.  I was able to spend it talking with my classmates about anything and everything, ranging from Disney World to girls and their crazy Facebook pictures!

Once work was over, I'd head home and feed the cat, lay on the couch, and watch Dr. Phil.  This amazing after work plan was interupted by the recent wedding planning.  Thank god that's over! Now I can get back to watching "Dr." Phil on TV again! While spending some quality time with the cat on the couch, I often search for dinner ideas on Pinterest or Google.  Once I have a idea of what I'd like to make, I head off to the kitchen. 

Blake and I clean up the kitchen (mostly Blake... that's our deal), and then watch some Breaking Bad or other TV show on Netflix.  I'm rarely awake past 10:45, and then I begin it all over again. 

Pear and Blue Cheese Pizza with Sweet Onion Jam

I've been trying to figure out what to make with blue cheese, and a lot of you suggested the combination of blue cheese and fruit.  I decided to take it a step further, and instead of just putting the two together on a cracker, I made the whole thing into a pizza.  Blake and I love pizza, and making a new and unique pizza is always fun.  It took me most of the morning to come up with another flavor to add to this recipe, and I finally settled on a Sweet Onion Jam.  I needed something to use as a sauce that wouldn't over power the pear and blue cheese, but that would enhance the sweetness of the pears.  The sweet onion jam turned out great and it was a delicious addition to the pizza.

INGREDIENTS
1 Pear
1 Pillsbury thin crust pizza dough 
1 Sweet Onion - sliced
Blue Cheese Wedge
Red Wine Vinegar
1/4 Cup Red Wine Vingar
1/4 Cup Sugar
salt and pepper

1.  Begin by prepping the onion jam.  In a medium sized pot,  add the onions, salt and pepper, and allow them to saute for 10 minutes or until they begin to get soft.

2.  Once the onions have cooked for 10 minutes, add the vinegar and sugar and allow the onions to continue cooking on medium low heat.

3.  Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees and when ready pre-cook the pizza dough for 5-6 minutes.  Once the pizza dough is finished pre-cooking, begin assembling your pizza.

4.  Spread the onion jam evenly and top with thinly sliced pears.  Sprinkle the blue cheese crumbles on top of the pears, and bake for 10 more minutes.

5.  Once finished, allow the pizza to cool for a minute or two before slicing. 

Santa Fe Chicken Salad

What do you do with a ton of left over wedding food? Repurpose it! The catering company was generous enough to pack up all the left over chicken, ribs, pulled pork, and veggies we could ever want, and my mom froze it all into individual servings (brilliant!).  Yesterday Blake and I defrosted a package of chicken and made grilled chicken pitas.  Today, I decided to make something else with the leftovers.  The best part was it didn't take long at all since the chicken was already cooked.  Instead of mayonnaise, I used Greek Yogurt and avocado.  It was delicious, especially topped off with the Sweet Onion, Jalapeno dressing.  Subbing Greek Yogurt for mayo made this dish much healthier, and I grilled the corn to add a bit of a kick!

INGREDIENTS:  
1 Chicken Breast  - cubed
1 Corn on the cob - (grilled without stalk - optional)
1/2 Red Pepper - diced
1/2 Sweet Onion - diced
1/2 Cup Black Beans - rinsed and drained
1/2 Avocado - mashed
1 Small cup plain Greek Yogurt
Salt and Pepper

1.  While the corn is grilling, begin mashing the avocado into a large bowl until smooth.  Mix the Greek Yogurt in with the avocado, adding salt and pepper to taste. 

2.  Chop up the chicken, red pepper, and onion.  Add them into a large bowl along with the black beans once rinsed.  Add the items to the bowl with the avocado mixture.  Once the corn is finished grilling, cut it off the stalk, and add it to the rest of the ingredients. 

3.  Allow the chicken salad to sit in the fridge while you set up the items for the salad and make the dressing. 



DRESSING:
2 Tbs. Dijon Mustard
2 Tbs. Honey
1 Jalapeno - minced
1/4 Sweet Onion - grated 
1/4 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

1.  Mix the mustard, honey, jalapeno, onion, and cider together until well mixed.  Once well mixed, drizzle in the olive oil, while stirring quickly.  Season with salt and pepper as needed. 

2.  Scoop a spoonful or two of the Chicken Salad on top of the lettuce, top it off with the dressing, and enjoy!