August 25, 2017

Saturday On My Mind –

I am actually one of the many, who works for the weekend. My love for Saturdays is immeasurable, perhaps a little odd too. Fridays are not my favorite day of the week, a lot can happen on a Friday that can ruin my Saturdays, and many things to complete before I can fully enjoy the next day. Therefore, with careful planning, a to-do list, and an ability to complete tasks, and tie up some loose ends at my day job. I arrive at a safe haven after 5:00 pm on a Friday night – I am home, everyone is home; I let out a sigh of relief because I can say, “let the fun begin.” The weekend begins with a beer, sometimes the husband and I will pop open a Modello, or whatever is on hand, or sometimes we meet up with friends at our local beach whatever we do it always sets the tone for the next day.

Saturday… ahh!

Usually when I wake up; I have to remind myself of a few things, who am I, where am I, and what day of the week is it… on Saturdays I stretch my arms over my head; smile…roll over, kiss the pooch and head into the kitchen for my first cup of coffee.

Because I need coffee, it is my only friend in the wee hours of the morning. By the way, even though I wake up before a civilized time – I am not a morning person.

The house is quiet; as it should be; it is five in the morning. No one in my household has ever woken up that early – even the hubby who works on Saturdays and heads out early doesn’t get out of bed before I do.

Once I have my coffee I take my first sip, savor the flavor, look out my window and then head upstairs to the study/den/office or the room where the computer is. We really don’t have a name for this room.

I start out a bit slow – sipping the coffee, reading emails, lingering on Facebook, or Pinterest; then finally planning our meals for the next week, and looking at my blog.

Before I know it is 7 am Nick has long been gone, and I need to get ready and start my day.

Just the typical Saturday errands which always includes the Dollar Tree, and ends at the supermarket. I plan my meals for the week; my list of food and groceries are precise. If nothing is happening that evening; such as a get together of sorts, or even a date night. Based on either my mood or the flier from the market, I plan our Saturday supper.

Because I am home all day and Hubby is not getting home until after six, I cook – but it is usually something fun and not so, ahem, healthy…. But then again it is home-made, so let’s not judge.

This past Saturday – I spotted in the flier, frozen vegetables and 90 % sirloin ground beef, on sale.

There you have it, our dinner….

Beef Grande nachos (I am still tweaking this recipe, I’ll post it soon), Southwestern Eggrolls and homemade guacamole…..

Did you know that Southwestern Eggrolls have chicken in it, well I didn’t know… so I made my version without the chicken so it is a vegetarian.

The Southwestern Eggroll is fried, it is cheesy, spicy and everything so nice….

Enjoy…

Mangia, Mangia…No Talk!!!

[lt_recipe name=”Southwestern Egg Rolls (vegetarian )” servings=”Four to Eight” prep_time=”15 MINUTES” cook_time=”20 MINUTES TO COOK THE FILLING -10 MINUTES TO FILL THE EGG ROLLS, 20 MINUTES FOR THE FRYING ” total_time=”1 HOUR AND 15 MINUTES” difficulty=”Moderately Easy” summary=”ThSouthwestern Eggroll is fried, it is cheesy and spicy and everything so nice…. ” print=”yes” image=”https://www.mangiamangianotalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/20170819_213709.jpg” ingredients=”1/2 of onion chopped ;2 Cloves of garlic chopped or 1 teaspoon of garlic powder;1 Red Bell Pepper diced in cubes;1 Green Bell Pepper diced in cubes;2 Packages of frozen chopped spinach drained and water squeezed out ;1 Cup of frozen corn;1 Can of black beans – rinsed and drained;2 tablespoons of chili powder;1 tablespoons of cumin;Pinches of salt ( I use sea-salt);Smaller pinch of black pepper;1 or 2 pinches of cayenne pepper. (Optional);1 cup of Shredded Cheese – Mexican blend is what I used. ; A drizzle of Olive Oil – (1 teaspoon); a small grate of nutmeg ( 1/2 of a teaspoon);1/2 cup of water;1 package of egg roll wrappers; vegetable oil ( about 1/2 of a cup)” ]Saute onion, garlic, and peppers until soft and the onions are translucent in olive oil.; Season lightly with salt and black pepper, add 1 tablespoon of chili powder, along with 1 tablespoon of Cumin, let all those flavors marry together for a bit, 1 to 2 minutes. ;Add the spinach – you might need to add some more oil and as it is cooking with a wooden spoon break up the spinach, once the spinach is soft and mixed well, grate a few grates of nutmeg, then add the frozen corn, black beans, season lightly with salt and pepper, add the rest of the chili powder and cumin, I added a 1/2 a cup of water this helped the mixture become softer, once all the water evaporates stir in the cheese. Remove from heat and place it on the side.;;Stuffing the Eggrolls- Place wrappers in front of you with the corner toward you, it should look like a diamond – add about a tablespoon of the mixture (I first tried a 1/4 of a cup but thought it was too much) so I used a regular large spoon, plop the mixture in the middle of the wrapper fold the bottom corner over the mixture, then the sides try keeping it tight, before you finish the wrapping , the top of the corner seal the edges with water – in a small bowl fill it with water, dip your finger in the bowl and run it along the top corner, place the egg roll seam side down on a baking dish I made and stopped at 8, because my troop was getting hungry. I still had enough filling for 8 or 10 wraps and thought I can make more the next day. ( however, my son ate the filling for lunch the next day, it didn’t stand a chance).; With the egg rolls placed on the baking sheet – I had a fleeting thought to bake them, then I came to my senses and fried the egg rolls.;; It was a quick fry, fried until golden brown on both sides – none of them fell apart – I set the egg rolls on top of paper towels to absorb any extra oil, they were crispy and not oily at all.;;On the side we had guacamole, sour cream and I made an Avocado dipping sauce. – it was quick and not planned. -;; For the Avocado Dipping Sauce 1 tablespoon sour cream, 1 tablespoon of the guacamole, a dollop of mayonnaise, and a pinch of cayenne pepper, easy peasy the troop loved it too. – Mangia, Mangia…No Talk!!! Ssh! Let’s eat…;[/lt_recipe]