Chicken & Avocado Enchiladas

Love is being able to go to the bathroom with the door open.

Love is crying over something stupid (like breaking your Anthropologie measuring spoons) and knowing that the other person won't judge you.

Love is what makes you want to rush home from work everyday, even though you don't have air conditioning and it's 100 degrees in your house and your classroom happens to have a nice arctic chill to it.

Love is that funny feeling that tells you everything is just right, everything is ok and your life is going in the right direction, even though sometimes it feels like nothing is going right, everything is wrong and you have no direction.

There is no denying that the last year has been a rough one. There was a lot of stress, many tears, a few break downs and some major challenges in the last 12 months. But there was also a lot of love, support, compassion and understanding. And for that, I am incredibly lucky.

I'm currently sitting on my porch, folded up like human oragami, in my wicker patio chairs. I'm listening to the tinkling of my windchime, the barking of my neighbor's neglected dog and the constant drum of activity from the corner 7-11. The background reel is the never-ending buzz of cars heading down College Avenue.

And while this year has been hard, it's been a reminder that love really does conquer all. I wouldn't be sitting where I am now, enjoying the breeze, watching my weirdo cat eat ants and thinking about my lecture for tomorrow's photography class without all of the love that I have in my life. Sure, love doesn't buy groceries, or do the laundry or fill your car with gas... But it does give you the motivation, drive and energy to make those things happen for yourself.

With summer drawing to a close and school getting into full swing, I'm realizing just how lucky I am. I wake up everyday excited to go to a job I love. To teach kids things that I am passionate about. And I come home everyday to a man who I love more than anything in the world. And he loves me right back. And our life isn't perfect, and there have been plenty of bumps along the way, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.

And on top of that, I've been able to embrace a hobby that makes me happy. I've been able to hone a skill that I love having. I've been able to share bite-sized bits of cupcake love with so many people. I've been able to experiment with recipes and share my results with... whoever wants to read them. Food is love, and this is all my way of spreading love in whatever ways I can.

I Love You, A Whole enchil-LOT-as

6 flour tortillas

1 can enchilada sauce (red or green... I prefer green)

4 cups chopped chicken

1/2 cup chopped red onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 bell peppers, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon chipotle seasoning

1 can refried beans

2 avocados, diced

1 can diced green chiles

1 can sliced olives

3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

2 cups shredded cheddar & jack cheese, divided

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the chicken and seasonings. Once the chicken begins to cook, add the onions, garlic and peppers. Cook until the vegetables are tender and the chicken is cooked all the way through. Remove from heat.

2. In a large bowl, mix the beans, chiles, avocado, cilantro and olives. Add one cup of the cheese mixture.

3. In another bowl (shallow and wide), empty the enchilada sauce. Dip the one tortilla in the sauce, thoroughly coating it. 

4. Spread a heaping spoonful of the bean mixture in the center of the dipped tortilla. Add two spoonfuls of the chicken/veggie mix. Roll tightly. Place seam-side down in a greased baking dish.

5. Once you roll all the tortillas, pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and any leftover chicken mixture.

6. Cover and bake at 425 for 25-30 minutes. Remove the cover for the last 10 minutes of baking time and sprinkle with any remaining cilantro. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Photo by Jessica Y.

They taste like love. Really, they do. 

Almond & Raspberry Pesto

I got up at 4:30 this morning. And I am still functioning. That is an astounding accomplishment all on its own. But there is more...

I made my personal best time in the 5k that I ran today. A 9:30 minute mile pace. I'm no track star, but considering where I started at, I'm pretty damn proud.

I survived the first week of school. Fresh off newspaper camp. With zero days of prep. Teaching a course I've never taught before. No one died. Victory.

I defended my thesis on Friday. Successfully. I only have a small pile of edits to complete before I officially turn it in to the Office of Graduate Studies. That's a good feeling. (this also explains why I have not posted since August 9--I'm sorry!!!)

And here's the biggie: I RELAXED today. Granted, this was easier, given that my day started at 4:30 AM, but I layed on the couch. I vegged out.

And I made pesto. And it was delicious. I can't take all the credit for it, because my friend Kerri gave me a starting point... But I'd argue that my tweaks make this pesto border on perfection.

Perfect Pesto

photo by Jessica Y.

Simple ingredients. Amazing flavor.

1/2 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup slivered almonds

10 oz spinach

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 cup fresh basil

1 cup fresh raspberries

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup vegetable broth

1 tablespoon italian seasoning

This next part gets tricky, so pay attention....

1. Throw all that stuff in the blender or food processor (or magic bullet!).

2. Hit "puree".

3. Toss with fresh pasta, drizzle over chicken, take a bath in it, etc. ENJOY!

Famous Chicken Lasagna

In the last few weeks, my life has revolved around kids, camp, dorm food and mini vans.

Unlike many teachers, my summers aren't much of a break. I load up the school mini van with yearbook and newspaper kids and spend days at a time in warped world of copy, picas, pictures and deadlines. And I love every minute of it. Seeing students get excited about things that I fell in love with myself as a high school kid is amazing. Hearing their ideas, talking about the upcoming year and watching their leadership skills develop is so exciting.

Of course, there are things that I don't love about camp, too. For one, the food usually leaves something to be desired. The first two camps of this summer were a mundane drone of dining hall drab, without a lot of options or variety. The accommodations aren't always the most comfortable either. My days in a twin double long are kind of a thing of the past. Showering in flip flops is definitely not my favorite. Listening to kids fight over who gets the "bucket seat" or "shotgun" in the minivan for a five minute car ride makes me want to pull my hair out. The long hours are tireless, too. They are jam-packed with fun and activities, but by 11 PM on the fourth day, I can barely keep my eyes open. I think my age is catching up with me.

But newspaper camp is different. We stay at an apartment-style hotel. We cook our own food. We have down time. We sleep. There is time to go to the gym. It's kind of outstanding.

One of the best things about newspaper camp is the bonding that happens. I get to know my students on a different level. I watch them start to build relationships with each other. We all hang out together and relax. I cook dinner. I cook really, really big dinners.

Food brings people together. And this lasagna may be the new official food of my newspaper staff. I think almost every kid had a second helping and/or took it for lunch the next day. And long before it was famous with high school kids, my friends loved, craved and worshiped this dish.

The Famous Chicken Lasagna

photo by Jessica Y.

This creamy chicken lasagna had my students coming back for second 

and third helpings. And they took it for lunch the next day.

9 uncooked lasagna noodles (I use the no-bake kind)
1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon ground basil
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
4 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1/4 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Lightly coat a 9x13x2 pan with non-stick cooking spray.
3. In a medium bowl, combine chicken soup, mushroom soup, onion, Parmesan cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, milk and spices.
4. Smooth a small layer of the soup mixture on the bottom of the baking dish. Then, layer 1/3 of the noodles, soup mixture, chicken and cheese; repeat 3 times, ending with cheese. 
5. Cover with foil.
6. Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes. Remove foil.
7. Return lasagna to the oven for 15 minutes until the cheese begins to brown.

Sooner than I thought...

So many things have happened sooner than I thought they would...

I've become a grown up, seemingly overnight (and I'm really not sure how that happened).

My house is starting to come together (thanks to some heroic efforts on behalf of my boyfriend... and NOT thanks to the lil' hoodlums who tried to burn the place down).

 photo by Jessica Y.

My house? Just on the other side of that charred patch.

My thesis is done, and the end of my degree program is in sight. August 19th... can't come soon enough (and there is still some work to be done, but the hard part is over).

Summer is wrapping up and I've championed my way through leadership, yearbook and newspaper camps (and the survival here is thanks to the students, who constantly reminded my WHY I went into teaching).

photo by Jessica Y.

Yearbook Camp madness. Who would have thought that a t-shirt gun could get high school kids SO EXCITED at 8 am?

photo by Jessica Y.

My newspaper students and their PBJ assembly line. Journalists gotta eat, too!

But I think the most surprising development of the past several months has been cupcake-related. I started this blog, started baking, and started feeding everyone around me because I simply like to make people happy. Cupcakes (and baked goods in general) do that very effectively. I knew that sweets would make me popular, but I didn't really dream that people would be willing to give me anything other than "thanks" for my baking.

Almost instantly, though, I started getting requests. Because I hadn't anticipated that, I didn't really know how to respond. But what I've realized is that if I can get this little hobby of mine off the ground, I may have a rather lucrative side business. Doing something that I love (instead of the part time job that I have now, which I'm starting to hate).

So here's the deal---it's on. You want cupcakes? You got them. I'll make them. If you're local, I'll deliver. If you're not... We'll figure it out.

Get in touch with me. Tell me what you want. I'll make it happen. And you'll pay me a little. And it will be awesome.

Lemon and Oreo Cupcakes (2 recipes... not together... gross!)

Lucky you! Today you get double the fun... because, really, there's been a lot of excitement in my life lately.

First of all, last week = yearbook camp = madness. Crazy, fun, nerdy, yearbooky madness. But all in a good way! Yearbooks West kicked off with cupcakes two ways--Oreo Creme Cupcakes AND Dark Chocolate Pomegranate. Let's just say, I might have been really popular at camp. My plan was to post the recipe before I left for Orange County, but with that whole thesis business, it just didn't happen.

Second... My house almost burned down today. For real. AND NOT BECAUSE OF MY BAKING!!! How dare you even think that! I was off taking care of business at the gym, then gettin' my hairs did, and I come home to a HUGE FREAKING FIRE TRUCK in front of my house! Not quite what I wanted to see, right?

photo by Jessica Y.

Oh, hello firemen...

Apparently, my neighbors saved my house. Some neighborhood hooligans were down in the ravine, smoking their blunts and they either sparked something or lit something on fire on purpose, and then when the blaze started going, they bolted. Luckily, the folks across the ravine, saw the fire and called 911. The lady across the street dispatched her son in law and he grabbed our garden hose, while the mailman hopped our fence and grabbed the hose from the back yard. Their efforts kept the blaze under control until the fire department showed up. Our fence is a little scorched, but it could have been a lot worse!

And what better way to thank these people than with cupcakes!?!? And what says, "Hey, thanks for not letting my house burn down" better than lemon cupcakes? Nothing, of course!

photo by Jessica Y.

Delicious, lemony goodness that screams, "arson sucks!"

Summertime Lemon Cupcakes

1 Cup Butter
2 Cups Sugar
3 Eggs
2 Teaspoons Grated Lemon Zest
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
1 Teaspoon Lemon Extract
3 1/2 Cups Flour
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
2 Cups Sour Cream

1. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

2. Add the eggs, one at a time. Add the vanilla and lemon, along with the zest.

3. Sift together dry ingredients.

4. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and the sour cream.

5. Scoop into muffin cups and bake at 350 for 25 minutes.

6. Cool, frost, enjoy!

Oreo Creme Cupcakes

photo by Jessica Y.

These taste JUST LIKE cookies and milk!

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 ground oreo cookies
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup whole milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place muffin cups in tray. Split oreo cookies in half and place the side with the creme in the bottom of the muffin cup.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. 
3. Combine flour, oreo dust and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally stir in the milk until batter is smooth. Pour or spoon batter into the prepared cups, ensuring that the oreo remains in the bottom.
4. Bake for 25 minutes. Yum!