Sweet Heat

Well clearly I have felt a little better today. Still not a hundred percent, but my head is only half stuffed and I had my first cup of coffee in about three days. Maybe it's the coffee. See what one cup has done. Crazy to think in high school it was normal to drink three-triple shot small iced lattes a day. Not now, now I'm old. I drink one cup, maybe a cup and a half if I'm feeling frisky. I also realize drinking nine shots of espresso a day will probably result in an early onset for a heart attack. Either way, my cup o' joe was pretty delicious, even if it was just maxwell house. 

My day turned out pretty great. My bestest friend texted me and wanted to know if I wanted company for dinner. 

"Of course!"

I love when my ladies stop by. H gets so excited and it's just an amazing feeling to hang out with them. I can say nothing, or anything. They don't judge me, always have my back and definetly know when I need a good laugh. They make me feel home. I love them. :) 

So of course as soon as she texted me, wheels got turning. What was I going to make for dinner. I knew I needed to use the left over tacos. They were really good, but a bit spicy. I'm a baby when it comes to serious heat. Love my Sriracha but the heat of a habanero- dead. This was hot, even Mr. King thought so. Soup is always perfect when it's cold, and I am always happy with a one-pot meal. 

Mexican Stoup

Olive oil

1 chorizo link (casing removed, finely chopped)

1 clove garlic chopped

1/2 cup corn

1/2 cup edamame 

1 can beans. Any, H choose white beans.

2 cups chopped kale

1 1/2 cups of taco meat (I used a mix of veggies, beans and turkey made last night)

1 small can tomato sauce (to help dilute the heat of the meat) 

3/4 box chicken stock or 1 1/2 cups homemade stock

1 1/2 cup leftover Mexican rice (made with jasmine rice, can tomatoes, honey and spices)

2 Tbl cream cheese

Heat oil, add chorizo and brown. Add garlic, cook for a minute. Sauté corn and edamame. Add can of beans, drained of course. Next add in your taco meat, kale, sauce and stock. Cook down a little bit. Stir in the rice. The key is to not over cook the rice. Then you get mush. No one likes mooshey Stoups.(Racheal Rays word for a mix between a soup and stew). Which I now use because it fits. I love soups with a lot of textures and flavors. Thick and hearty Stoups. Stir in the cream cheese. You can whisk it in, to make sure it's all smooth in the base of the soup. Separate in bowls and top with squeeze lime juice and honey goat cheese. Yum on yum ate two bowls. So did my bestie. And H, well she ate a bowl, with the bribe of a dessert smoothie. 

Blackberry Tea-smoothie

I love tea smoothies. I used caffeine free of course. We love herbal teas too. Teas give you such a great variety of bases. They also include so many differnt health benefits. I'm not a fan of yogurt smoothies, and I don't really like a lot of juices so it's what I found really works. 

1 blackberry pomegranate decaf green tea bag 

1 blueberry zinger decade tea bag

Steap with 1 1/2  cup boiling water

1 inch nub of ginger sliced 

Teaspoon of turmeric 

2 tsp cinnamon

Grind fresh nutmeg

I let that sit while we ate dinner

Add 1 Tbl honey and chai seeds to the warmed tea- removing the bags. 

To the blender

2 chopped frozen banana

1 cup peaches frozen

1/2 cup blackberries

1 cup frozen mango

1/2 cup shaved carrots (I used yellow and orange)

I mandarin orange

1/2 cup coconut milk (I like vanilla coconut milk, I use it in my coffee and H loves it with cereal)

Add the cooled down tea with sliced ginger pieces and chai seeds. Blend to perfection. It was one of my favorites I could have puréed it a little more but, I've got dull blades and you can only make that thing purr for so long. 

I always do pineapple- banana smoothies, it was a nice change up. The blackberries and peaches together, tasted delicious. Perfect combination of tartness and sweetness with just enough coconut creaminess. 

Try a tea- smoothie and let me know what you think. It opens up a whole new world of smoothies. I think I'm obsessed. 

Goodnight all.

-k