Here's one of Gordon's favourite things that I make...mind you he's very very easy to cook for. Almost never complains about a thing. He wanted to post it on allrecipes.com but I don't know...I'm a little sensitive about putting my dishes subject to review by some scathing stay at home moms. Plus half the comments are how they would change the recipe anyway, so I decided to post it for my good natured readers. This is a combination of my mum's enchiladas with my own know how. The great thing about this recipe is it's super adaptable to fit all kinds of tastes and it's easy. After a 12 hour shift...that's really the only thing that I care about. The amounts of ingredients serve two, you can obviously adjust it to your serving needs. Makes great leftovers in case you have extras!
Ingredients
5-6 flour tortillas
1-2 cups of shredded cheese for on top
Filling
2 chicken breasts (essentially you can use whatever meat you like that you can slice up and fry, my mum uses a whole cooked chicken that she cuts up)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Vegetables of your choice (red bell pepper, mushrooms are usually good choices)
Sauce
2 cans of cream of chicken soup
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 can of diced green chilis *
1 chipotle pepper, chopped*
*we buy ours at Safeway in the Mexican section, the chipotles come in a can
1 cup of shredded cheese (I usually combine cheddar and mozzarella)
Directions
-Preheat oven to 350°F
-Heat oil in frying pan on medium heat
-Season chicken to taste (I use seasoning salt, pepper, and chili powder)
-Fry chicken with until almost cooked, add garlic and sliced vegetables
-While chicken is frying, heat soup in skillet on low-medium heat, stirring every minute or two
-Once sauce becomes smooth add chilis, chipotle pepper and cheese and turn to low heat
-Heat tortillas in the oven
-Spoon small amount of sauce onto the bottom of a 9X13 dish (enough to cover)
-Spoon small amount of sauce onto the tortilla and fill with 2 large spoonfuls of filling (adjust as needed)
-Roll tortilla and place in dish (do this with all the tortillas) and cover with remaining sauce, top with cheese
-Cover with foil and place in oven for 30 minutes, remove foil for last 5 minutes
-Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes
This goes great with rice. I like to get the enchiladas in the oven and then do the rice while the enchiladas are baking. Enjoy!!
Monday, May 23, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
My only political rant. Hopefully EVER.
So I generally abide by the rule to not get into political arguments because a) everyone's entitled to their own opinion b) I like to prove my point too much c) I don't make it a point of being aware of all the political hoo hah. However, since the recent election there are certain points which have been rather annoying to me, and being the minority in my opinion (well at least among most people my age), I haven't found the energy to vent. But I'm sufficiently piqued now, and not venting will result into me making some charged political comment on someone's facebook status, or heaven forbid say something to their face.
This is my beef. I'm actually happy the Conservatives won. I'm also happy that we have a majority government. This will mean that things will actually get done in Parliament, rather than ongoing bickering and political slamming. This means that we stop spending money on election campaigns every 18 months and start acting like a country with a backbone who spends money where needed. What really gets under my skin is everyone who's complaining about the NDP coming in freaking 2nd! They should be ecstatic they did so freaking well. That's an increase of 70 seats. Frankly, I see no reason to be complaining. If you wanted the BQ, or Ignatieff to win....well I'll let you work out why that's a dumb idea for yourselves.
There are a few things I would ask the irate to consider. The NDPs or Layton have never been in power, they've never even been close. I wouldn't feel comfortable being led by any party who hadn't gained experience in being a real political force. Some may say this is naive or close minded but think about this: if you were having a major surgery and you had the choice between a surgeon who had a few minor surgeries under his belt and seemed like he had potential, or a surgeon who had years of experience in major surgeries and was successful who would you pick? You might say that you'd wanna give the surgeon a chance, you never know, he might be great. You might be willing to make that gamble. But most people prefer to let the other surgeon gain experience. The same with political leaders in my opinion. I'll feel much more comfortable with Layton in the opposition as kind of a step up from where he was before. It'll be good experience for him and we'll be able to see what he can do with the power he's given.
Of course, there is that teensy weensy problem with the lack of political experience of some of his MPs. I know that everyone has to start somewhere. You can't gain experience if you're never given the chance. Sure. Fine. But this is not a charity case. If you have the philosophy that everyone deserves an equal chance and we shouldn't consider political background, you're asking for a government that wouldn't be able to stand on two legs... or 612. Not to beat a dead horse or anything... honestly an MP who doesn't speak the language in her riding, and couldn't care enough to even be present for the election doesn't deserve to be there. This is plain disrespectful to Canadians and the democratic process. I happen to care about this country. Obviously some regions feel that the NDPs name in victory was more important than being represented at parliament. To the ones who voted for her and others with questionable political abilities-your loss. Hopefully it doesn't become everyone's loss
Don't get me wrong. I'm really happy that Layton wants to address health care issues and hire more drs and nurses. Of course, this is all depending on the fact that the majority of the nurses are from Canada since it seems that Canadian trained nurses are being left in the dust because Canada has brought so many international nurses over (=brain drain!). This is in no way intended to be a racist comment. I invested in my education here. I worked hard. It'd be nice to see some appreciation at the end of the day. If Layton can help with positive health care reform, I'm all for it. That being said, I'm really relieved Harper will be there to remind the NDPs that money does not in fact grow on trees.
That's all for me. Don't worry I'm not going to make this political corner a habit. I'm also not going to argue with anyone who doesn't agree with me. This is the way I see it. I said it. Period.
This is my beef. I'm actually happy the Conservatives won. I'm also happy that we have a majority government. This will mean that things will actually get done in Parliament, rather than ongoing bickering and political slamming. This means that we stop spending money on election campaigns every 18 months and start acting like a country with a backbone who spends money where needed. What really gets under my skin is everyone who's complaining about the NDP coming in freaking 2nd! They should be ecstatic they did so freaking well. That's an increase of 70 seats. Frankly, I see no reason to be complaining. If you wanted the BQ, or Ignatieff to win....well I'll let you work out why that's a dumb idea for yourselves.
There are a few things I would ask the irate to consider. The NDPs or Layton have never been in power, they've never even been close. I wouldn't feel comfortable being led by any party who hadn't gained experience in being a real political force. Some may say this is naive or close minded but think about this: if you were having a major surgery and you had the choice between a surgeon who had a few minor surgeries under his belt and seemed like he had potential, or a surgeon who had years of experience in major surgeries and was successful who would you pick? You might say that you'd wanna give the surgeon a chance, you never know, he might be great. You might be willing to make that gamble. But most people prefer to let the other surgeon gain experience. The same with political leaders in my opinion. I'll feel much more comfortable with Layton in the opposition as kind of a step up from where he was before. It'll be good experience for him and we'll be able to see what he can do with the power he's given.
Of course, there is that teensy weensy problem with the lack of political experience of some of his MPs. I know that everyone has to start somewhere. You can't gain experience if you're never given the chance. Sure. Fine. But this is not a charity case. If you have the philosophy that everyone deserves an equal chance and we shouldn't consider political background, you're asking for a government that wouldn't be able to stand on two legs... or 612. Not to beat a dead horse or anything... honestly an MP who doesn't speak the language in her riding, and couldn't care enough to even be present for the election doesn't deserve to be there. This is plain disrespectful to Canadians and the democratic process. I happen to care about this country. Obviously some regions feel that the NDPs name in victory was more important than being represented at parliament. To the ones who voted for her and others with questionable political abilities-your loss. Hopefully it doesn't become everyone's loss
Don't get me wrong. I'm really happy that Layton wants to address health care issues and hire more drs and nurses. Of course, this is all depending on the fact that the majority of the nurses are from Canada since it seems that Canadian trained nurses are being left in the dust because Canada has brought so many international nurses over (=brain drain!). This is in no way intended to be a racist comment. I invested in my education here. I worked hard. It'd be nice to see some appreciation at the end of the day. If Layton can help with positive health care reform, I'm all for it. That being said, I'm really relieved Harper will be there to remind the NDPs that money does not in fact grow on trees.
That's all for me. Don't worry I'm not going to make this political corner a habit. I'm also not going to argue with anyone who doesn't agree with me. This is the way I see it. I said it. Period.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Little laughs
We all need a little laughter. Here are some moments which brightened my week, and will hopefully turn up those little corners of your mouth.
#1-Seeing the grumpy bridesmaid at the royal wedding in the carriage with Prince Harry (youtube it!). I thought she was going to konk out in the carriage.
#2-Prince Harry stealing glances at Kate walking down the aisle and whispering things I can only imagine (being married to someone close to the same age as Harry) to Prince William (who was looking stoically ahead the ENTIRE TIME)
#3-Watching America's Funniest Home Videos and there was a little toddler reading an animal book with his parents. He would spell the animal listed, then look at the picture and name the animal. Then he got a little confused. He spelt parakeet (written under the picture of a parakeet), looks at the picture, then enthusiastically yells "PENGUIN!". Then he moves on to a toucan, spells toucan, and yells "CROCODILE!" It was way too cute.
#4-Holding my friend's 2 week old baby while he was waking up. He had his little fists clenched, then eyes squeezed tight together, and makes this really squishy face like the mandrakes in the Harry Potter movie (excuse the nerdy reference), and lets one rip right in my hand. My dad would have been proud.
#5-On my way to work on the bus, and there were 3-4 people who got on the bus and tried to put down the handicap seat that can fold up to accommodate people with strollers. The first funny part of this story was that one at a time they would try to pull the seat down, obviously oblivious of the instructions plastered on it, and stare perplexedly for a while and then try the exact same pulling furiously at the seat technique (what's the definition of insanity??). The next person to get on would then join the throng. The second layer of hilarity is that none of the people had strollers, mobility aids, or were elderly...or had big bags, and they spent more time trying to figure out how to get the seat down than it would have taken them to sit in one of the MANY available seats two feet back. The third facet, and the cherry on top in my opinion, was the elderly gentleman with a cane, who after watching these 3 or 4 poor unfortunate souls, stood up and showed them the little lever (where the arrow on the instructions is clearly pointing), and unfolded the seat for them. Shame shame.
#1-Seeing the grumpy bridesmaid at the royal wedding in the carriage with Prince Harry (youtube it!). I thought she was going to konk out in the carriage.
#2-Prince Harry stealing glances at Kate walking down the aisle and whispering things I can only imagine (being married to someone close to the same age as Harry) to Prince William (who was looking stoically ahead the ENTIRE TIME)
#3-Watching America's Funniest Home Videos and there was a little toddler reading an animal book with his parents. He would spell the animal listed, then look at the picture and name the animal. Then he got a little confused. He spelt parakeet (written under the picture of a parakeet), looks at the picture, then enthusiastically yells "PENGUIN!". Then he moves on to a toucan, spells toucan, and yells "CROCODILE!" It was way too cute.
#4-Holding my friend's 2 week old baby while he was waking up. He had his little fists clenched, then eyes squeezed tight together, and makes this really squishy face like the mandrakes in the Harry Potter movie (excuse the nerdy reference), and lets one rip right in my hand. My dad would have been proud.
#5-On my way to work on the bus, and there were 3-4 people who got on the bus and tried to put down the handicap seat that can fold up to accommodate people with strollers. The first funny part of this story was that one at a time they would try to pull the seat down, obviously oblivious of the instructions plastered on it, and stare perplexedly for a while and then try the exact same pulling furiously at the seat technique (what's the definition of insanity??). The next person to get on would then join the throng. The second layer of hilarity is that none of the people had strollers, mobility aids, or were elderly...or had big bags, and they spent more time trying to figure out how to get the seat down than it would have taken them to sit in one of the MANY available seats two feet back. The third facet, and the cherry on top in my opinion, was the elderly gentleman with a cane, who after watching these 3 or 4 poor unfortunate souls, stood up and showed them the little lever (where the arrow on the instructions is clearly pointing), and unfolded the seat for them. Shame shame.
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