Are you really prepared?

Yesterday the lights went out for about 5 minutes.  I panicked!  I am not prepared in case of an emergency.
I am prepared food wise.
Plenty of snacks and boxed drinks.  Flashlight and extra batteries.  Extra battery for my cell phone.
What I am not prepared is mentally.
I freak out if we have a tiny shake.
Okay not tiny for me.  They are all HUGE to me.
I'm a New Yawker.  The most shaking we ever get is in a train.  I do remember one in 1986 (?).  I remember not being able to sleep at all.  The birds, cats and dogs were especially noisy hours before the quake.  I thought I was going to die.
Mentally I am not prepared for anything disastrous.  I scream and cry.
I really need to get my shit together.  Two out of three of my kids still living at home and they do not need to see me losing my shit because the lights went out or if we have a little shaking going on.
Or if the a/c decides not to turn on.
Seriously.
So, I am going to start calming myself down.
That means not on the verge of tears when the phone rings after 10pm (casting directors, producers, directors?  Please call me early when you need my kids on set.  You will give me a heart attack. :-)   )
Or if I hear rumbling because of an earthquake or if a truck is going by and I think it's an earthquake.  True story.
Staying calm is something I need to practice. Maybe yoga breathing and not hyperventilating breathing.
~~~~~
Over the weekend I decided to tweak my bean stew in the crockpot.  I usually just cook it over the stove but we were really busy this weekend and I wanted to come home to food.  All I had to do was make the rice and dinner was ready 20 minutes after walking in through the door.

2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced garlic (use less if you're not a fan)
1/4 cup sofrito
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup alcaparrado
2 cans beans (any will do.  I made mine with red kidney beans)
1 tsp adobo

Heat the oil in a saute pan.
Add the sofrito and tomato sauce and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and saute for 2 minutes.
Transfer to a slow cooker and the rest of the ingredients and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
You can totally double this recipe and freeze half.

Enjoy!

First Day of School

I kid you not when I tell you that a stay at home mom on my street was having a party at 8am this morning!
Classes in the elementary, middle and high schools start at 8am so I can only guess someone was celebrating the first day of school and it wasn't a child.
Today I sent my teen off to her first year of high school.  She showed me her outfit she had chosen as her debut to the high school.  A lavender off the shoulder tunic with one of her favorite skinny jeans.  She looked so cute today with her wavy and slightly curly hair.
Pray she has an awesome first year of high school.
She auditioned back in Spring to be part of the high school's glee and she was called in.  Super excited she is!  I hope it's everything she was hoping (minus the drama from the show) it to be.  She will be doing a lot this school year.  She still volunteers a a co-leader for the local AWANA club, part of the library teen club where she will help decide on activities for the teens, auditions and filming as much as her schedule allows.  On top of that she will continue taking acting classes and dance class and go to as many high school games.
She is such a wonderful teenager.  Friendly and unlike many teens, she doesn't believe she is in a higher status than others.  She is not your typical teen.  Her preference is to be behind a book and her favorite app is Good Reads.

Over the weekend I made a huge pot of beans and rice to celebrate our last summer before everyone is off to school (husband started last week and the tween is homeschooled).
Sent the huz to the Cuban store to get some Caribbean ingredients that are not normally found in our local grocery stores.  Yeah.  We're special.

Habichuelas Guisadas

2 tbsps olive oil
1/4 cup sofrito
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups vegetable stock
1/4 lb peeled and diced West Indian pumpkin
1 cup alcaparrado (you can add as little or as many as you want.  I don't like to bite into one but it does enhance the flavor)
2 16 oz cans beans (you can use just about any whole bean. I used red kidney beans)
1 tsp black pepper

Heat the oil in a large pot.
When heated add the sofrito and tomato sauce and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes.
Add the water and pumpkin.
Bring to a boil and add the alcaparrado, beans, and black pepper.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.

I actually doubled the ingredients to last us for a few more days since were are trying to get back to a school day schedule.

Enjoy!

and



GO NITROS!

the name of this title is secret...

is actually a title of one my kids favorite books.  I just typed it because I had no idea what to title this blog.  Who decided we needed a title for a blog entry.
Yesterday's Hoppin' John Salad was amazing!  My picky eater thought it was okay and so did my not so picky eater.  They didn't like the Kwik Kale, which was fine.  It was a bit bitter.  Maybe I cooked it for too long?  I never ate, much less cooked, kale before yesterday.  It was quite an adventure for my taste buds.

Dinner for Day 2 is Southern Beans and Greens and Couscous Confetti Salad.

Couscous Confetti Salad
makes about 8 1-cup servings

1 1/2 cups dry whole wheat couscous
2 cups boiling water
3-4 green onions, finely chopped, including tops
1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
1 carrot grated
1-2 cups finely shredded red cabbage
1/2 cup golden raisins or chopped dried apricots
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp curry powder
1 1/2 tsps salt

in a large bowl, combine couscous and boiling water.
stir to mix, then cover and let stand until all the water has been absorbed, 5-10 minutes.
fluff with a fork.
add green onions, bell pepper, carrot, cabbage, parsley, and raisins or apricots.
in a small bowl mix lemon juice vinegar, oil, curry powder, and salt.
add to salad and toss to mix.
serve at room temperature or chilled.

Southern Beans and Greens
1 cup vegetable broth or water
3 cups drained cooked or canned beans (any you have on hand is good)
1/2 tsp crushed garlic
4 cups chopped fresh kale, stems and center ribs removed, lightly packed
1 tsp olive oil
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
tabasco sauce, to taste

combine beans, broth or water, and garlic in a large saucepan.
place chopped kale on top of beans and bring to a boil.
cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until kale is tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.
remove from heat and stir in oil, salt, black pepper, and tabasco sauce to taste.

These and other recipes could be found at http://www.21daykickstart.org/