A Manicure and Dinner at Chuy's with Granddaughter Grace

Grace's Manicure

Last night granddaughter Grace stopped by for a visit.  We had planned to make cookies or a chocolate chess pie, but we decided to go have manicures and pedicures.  She a manicure and a pedicure for me.  Grace is sixteen now and has her driver's licence so she chauffeured me---fun!

At Lee Salon at North Hills. 

Grace is having fun. 

Grace chose a deep purple glossy.  (Somewhat a Broughton High purple)  Pretty. 

After the salon I suggested we get a bite to eat.  I asked her if she liked Mexican cuisine and she said , "Yes, let's go to Chuy's".  I responded that I didn't know that restaurant.  She couldn't believe I didn't.  It's apparently a favorite of hers and her family's.  Of course I'm always looking for new spots to eat in town.

Chuys at North Hills. 

Lovely outdoor seating. 

Colorful decor. 

Menu.  Originated in Austin where Grace's family came to love it. 

Grace ready to eat.

I had the Stacked Enchiladas with beans and rice and I had enough to take home for another meal. 

I'll have to ask Grace for other recommendations for restaurants because this one was a hit.  And it was so much fun having a gadabout with Grace.

Taco Pie

Taco Pie.

I don't know why, but I seem to be on a Mexican cuisine kick.  I like Mexican food okay, but it isn't my favorite by any means, especially if it is spicy.  After making quesadillas the other day,  I found another recipe I wanted to try, Taco Pie.  I liked it because it seemed so easy to make, and it was.   Here's the recipe modified from one I found on allrecipes.com.

Ingredients: (Makes 8 servings.)
1 (8oz) package crescent rolls
1 lb ground beef
l ounce seasoning mix (I made my own)*
1 (16 oz) container sour cream
8 oz shredded Mexican-style cheese blend
Tortilla chips crushed

 * Seasoning mix, my recipe
1 tsp chili powder (I like mine mild, but if you like spicy use 1 Tbs)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
Mix all of these together in a small bowl.

Spices.

Mix spices.

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Lay crescent dough flat on bottom of square cake pan and bake for 11 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

Crescent Rolls.

Line pan with Crescent rolls.

3.  Brown ground beef in skillet over medium heat.  Add taco seasoning and stir to mix well.

Brown meat.

Add seasoning.

4.  When dough is done, remove from oven and place meat mixture on top.

Out of oven.

Add meat.

5.  Add layer of sour cream and cheese.  Top with crushed tortilla chips.

Add sour cream.

Add cheese.

6.  Return to oven and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until cheese has melted.

Out of oven.

Ready to eat.

This is quick to make.  Add a tossed salad and you have a delicious lunch.  This also is good warmed over as leftovers, and it freezes well too.

Enjoy!

Whole-grain veggie and cheese quesadillas

A tasty homemade quesadilla.

When we go to a Mexican restaurant my favorite choice on the menu is usually quesadillas, but I had never tried making them until the other day.  I was inspired by a recipe of Dan Eaton's Cooking at Home on Channel 14.  Here is his recipe:

Ingredients:
6 10-inch whole grain tortilla rounds
8 ounces grated Mexican blend cheese
1 small-medium zucchini, cored and finely diced
1/2 large jalapeno pepper (or more to taste) I used chili powder instead.
1/2 medium Vidalia onion, diced (or regular onion)
2 medium large ears corn, kernels removed Fresh corn from friends in Cleveland Co.
1/2 15-ounce can low sodium black beans, well rinsed
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1-2 Tbs canola or vegetable oil for sauteing veggies (plus more for crisping quesadillas)

Procedure:
Finely dice one medium size zucchini, dice half of a medium Vidalia onion and remove the kernels of corn from 2 ears of corn.

Add a splash of canola oil to a large heavy bottomed nonstick pan on medium to medium high heat and saute the onion until it softens up a little bit.

Add the zucchini and corn and a good sprinkling of ground cumin and chili powder and cook until zucchini is tender crisp.

Add about one half of a 15-ounce can well drained and rinsed low sodium black beans, stir those in and turn the heat off.

Veggie mixture.

Add veggie mixture to a large shallow pan and let it cool down to room temperature.

At that point, assemble a quesadilla by sprinkling some grated cheese over half of the whole wheat tortilla.

Place cheese on half of tortilla.

Top the cheese with some of the corn-zucchini mixture.

Top cheese with veggie mixture.

Add more cheese on top of the veggie mixture. 

Second layer of cheese on top of veggie mixture.

Fold the tortilla in half. 

Fold in half.

Brush a little more oil on top, and once the first side is crisp and brown, carefully flip it over.

We had this with some homemade refried black beans and rice and a bit of salsa on top of the quesadilla.  It was really good.

Enjoy!

I'll be trying this again with different kinds of fillings.