Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

That was my middle’s story today.  My good friend Britt ended up coming for lunch (with her two youngest), and so I opted to make my dinner plan for lunch for just the two of us.  The kiddos got other things, the plan being that mine could then have our lunch for their dinner (my hubby was working a bit late).  Which was unfortunate for my middle, since she is NOT a fan of Mexican food.  There were leftovers in the fridge that needed to be eaten as well, but since she’d already had this Creamy Ham and Macaroni for lunch (SERIOUSLY good and a family staple–use sharp cheddar and you’ll be in lactose tolerant heaven!), she was left with a choice between ham and lentil soup and the Mexican food; hence this post.  (I believe I’ve already mentioned that there is only one soup I don’t have to practically force feed my middle.  Ham and lentil is not it.)

My middle’s dilemma notwithstanding, my friend and I quite enjoyed Mel’s Black Bean and Butternut Enchilada Skillet.  It had a very mild kick, but nothing this wimp couldn’t handle.  I combined two brands of green enchilada sauce to have enough (homemade didn’t happen today), and after taste testing both, I actually found I preferred the cheaper one.  (So long, Old Elpaso!  It’s Western Family from here on out!) I used three cups of chicken and I liked the ratio (I also dumped in a little extra green enchilada sauce, because it called for two cups and I had two 10 ounce cans.  Why not?).  The one thing I would watch for is the squash.  My friends is a big fan of butternut squash, but no one in my family is exactly enthusiastic about it.  My hubby said he didn’t really notice it, which is impressive for him, but my oldest complained.  I found that the smaller pieces, the ones that were creamy soft, were perfect and just added a nice note of sweetness overall; the bigger pieces were more noticeable as SQUASH.  My friend Andrea–the one I used to cook with a lot, who has now given the ok to be called by name (although an acronym would have been kind of entertaining)–suggested I let the squash simmer in the enchilada sauce for a bit for just that reason, but to make that work I needed to hold off adding the tortillas (which I realized about one minute after it became a moot point).  I will NOT make that mistake next time.  Even the boy left a suspicious number of squash pieces on his tray, although I think he enjoyed the recipe overall.  Dice it small, let it simmer, and enjoy!

By the way, a public service announcement:

Cinnamon Sugar Triscuit Thin Crisps–thumbs down.  The kids like them, but Britt and I both thought they were weird.

Wasabi & Soy Sauce Triscuit Thin Crisps–mmmmm.  Tasty.  Thumbs up!

Kettle Brand Sweet & Salty Potato Chips–thumbs down.  They were neither sweet enough nor salty enough.  (“Blah” comes to mind…)