Nurturing my inner... adult milkshake

When one of my running pals mentioned on Saturday after our five mile run that he heard of a place with great burgers and adult milkshakes I said, what time can we go?  (Was trying to capitalize on the calorie deficit I had just created.)  Alas, Sunday night worked best for most of us who had Monday off.  Joe's Burgers, McLean, VA.

I forget how close McLean is and that the downtown strip has some great restaurants.  I'll have to make a list for myself so I stop forgetting.  As for Joe's, go early.  Seating is limited.  We met at old people's dinner time... 4:30 pm.  (And did I see a problem with that?  Heck no, you little whipper snapper.  You'll soon see why.)

Good thing about going early is that you get to
park right out front. Take that young people
who think it's hip to eat dinner at 10 pm.

The menu was really quite extensive.  And the burgers were super gourmet.  Some even have truffle oil and pate.  But I had one thing on my mind...

You can also build your own.

If you know me, you'll know this - I love to eat, but I can't always pack away the large portions like The Gilmore Girls.  No way I'll ever win an eating contest.  I am the person who consumes a smaller amount and then wants to eat more again in two hours.  I know people say this is great and better for your metabolism, but for me, it's mostly out of personal comfort.  (My metabolism doesn't find this way of eating engaging at all.)  I do poorly when I overstuff myself, so it's not worth the misery for me.  Thus, I began my dining experience with the Bailey's Irish Creme adult milkshake to give myself some time to digest before course two.

Oh my my.  I don't often get milkshakes, but this was the creamiest one I've ever had.  Liquid velvet.  And the Bailey's was just terrific.  Very noticeable, but appropriate.  I appreciate bold flavor.

Crazy good stuff.

Having started off with my milkshake turned out to work well for me.  That way, I could pace myself over a nice chunk of time.  Here I am looking around the interior.  *slurp*

Small, but cozy.

When dinner arrived, I was about 3/4 of the way through my shake.  I knew there was no way I could pound a burger and a shake in the same sitting (I know - wus!), so I ordered the fontina grilled cheese with caramelized onions and bacon.  A great choice for me!  (I do realize it was a burger joint, but hey, pick your food battles and live to fight another day.)

A quantity of food I could handle. For the
most part.

Some of my friends got burgers and said they were fantastic.  Others got the grilled chicken or the club and liked them equally as much.  If you're looking for a good and unique burger place with killer milkshakes for grown ups (they were also featuring a bananas foster special that I came SO close to choosing instead), then this is your place.  Go early though.  It will be worth it.  And not just for the VIP parking.  (Though it is nice to be 10 feet from the front door.)

Nurturing my inner... go caps

First fresh meal from "the box."  I decided to use the portobello mushrooms and the arugula in some way, somehow.  I didn't have a lot of time today, but I was still able to make a quick and delicious vegetarian meal in 22 minutes.  Two minutes of prep, 20 minutes of cooking.  So don't tell me you don't have time to make something nutritious out of fresh produce, because the only whining around here is gonna be done by me and likely in reference to running in sub freezing temperatures in the snow, uphill, in tights.  Capiche?!  Now on to the cooking.

Today, you're getting one picture and a wordy explanation.  I'm feeling minimalist.  (Well, visually anyway.  I'm seldom at a deficit for words.)

Portobellos With Artichokes, Sundried Tomatoes & Feta

2 portobello caps
2 tsps pesto
2 baby artichoke hearts, chopped
1 tbsp sundried tomatoes in oil, chopped
2 tbsps feta cheese, crumbled
Handful of fresh arugula, torn

Get out a medium-sized stoneware dish.  Something that will fit your two mushrooms flat.  They do shrink up a little when they cook, so if it's a bit tight at first, that's fine.

Place your wiped clean with a damp paper towel and then destemmed mushroom caps gill side up.  Put a tsp of pesto in each and spread it around to cover the inside of each cap.  Add half of the chopped artichoke hearts and sundried tomatoes on top of that and then a tbsp of the crumbled feta on top of each.  Place into a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes.  Bake away!

Remove and serve with fresh arugula scattered on each one.  That simple.

Hearty, flavorful and substantial.

So tell me now who doesn't have 20 minutes to whip up something this tasty and reasonable in calories?  Make the time.  (Or bathing suit season is going to kick you square in the cellulite six months from now.  Trust me on this.)

Wonder what excitement the box holds for tomorrow...

Nuturing my inner... cardboard box

I was so happy when I got home tonight.  Partly because I was no longer at work.  But mostly because I had a special delivery waiting in the alcove.

Okay, so this may look like an ordinary cardboard box to you.  One with LifeSavers inside as per the label.  But in reality, it is but a repurposed container for the unexpected.  That's not actually for candy.  (I know, this is confusing.  Read on.)

Don't be fooled by the outside.

It's here, it's here!  My first delivery ever from Washington's Green Grocer.  You may be wondering what WGG is.  Well I'll tell ya.  (Or you can read about it on their website.  That would save me a lot of time.)  It's a local couple who gets in a bunch of produce from nearby, and a little less nearby, consolidates it and dispenses the fruit and veggie love to those in DC, MD and VA.  Seeing as one of my goals (I prefer to not think of it as a "resolution" as most are abandoned by last Tuesday) for 2012 is to eat more veggies, I thought this would help me out.

When I opened the box! Joy! Christmas
in January! (For a vegetarian, that is.)

Oh yeah.  All that is mine!  Delivered right to my door.  Well, to the alcove outside my building's front door where I picked it up and carried it up a flight of stairs to my front door and then inside.  (We have security you know, so they can't get to my actual front door without a hammer and a bad attitude.)  But WGG will deliver to condos just as easily as single family homes or townhouses because it's not their fault you live in one of the most expensive zip codes in the US and can't afford anything bigger than a shoe box.  Plus, if someone really wants to steal a heavy box of vegetables from my place, seriously, what can I do about that?  Would you actually call the police about a scary arugula thief?  I didn't think so.  (Though I might...)

Before I tell you what was in there, I'll tell you why I picked this place over some other local agriculture places for my first try.  1.) They do this year round by getting produce from here and there.  I live in VA where winter isn't really farming season.  So if you go with just one farm in driving distance, you can only get things that grow in your backyard right at that moment from about May to October.  Not a bad thing, but hey, it's January.  2.) Some of those farms also make you buy a share or half share and you get deliveries every single week.  If I had a family of four, well sure, I could maybe go through all those carrots, turnips and squash I'd get.  But my family is of one.  Me.  WGG will do on demand.  You can order a box to be delivered every week, every other week or whenever you feel like it.  Can even mix it up like two weeks in a row and then not for two weeks.  You just add the dates into your queue.  I wanted to see how much produce came in a box and how long it would take me to go through it.  I can cook and freeze some of it, so I'm guessing I may get a couple/few weeks from this.  So with WGG, if I want another box in two weeks, I can do it.  Or three weeks, that might be perfect.  Guess time will tell.

Here's the read down of what was in the small organic box for this week:

5 Yukon Gold potatoes (PA)
1 container of grape tomatoes (FL)
2 stalks of broccoli (CA)
5 beets (PA)
3 Cara Cara oranges (FL)
3 D'Anjou pears (WA)
3 Fuji apples (WA)
4 bananas (SA)
3 kiwi (CA)
2 portobello mushrooms (PA)
1 large bunch of arugula (CA)
1 bunch of romaine (CA)

(Note: They will send you a tentative list a few days before so you can decide if you're on demand like me and then you get a firmed up list a day or two before, so you can get really excited and start dreaming up dishes.  They also have a never list with your account.  So if there is something you really hate, you can check it on the list and they will make sure not to have that in your delivery.  Ever.  Also, they have other various items like eggs and cheeses, meats and breads that you can add in for additional charges.  It's insane, this variety!  I'm so happy.)

Second layer. So much stuff in there!

I don't know about you, but $37.00 for that entire box of all organic produce seemed like a really good deal to me.  And I didn't even have to leave the house for it.  (I know, minus carrying it up from the entry way.  Do you have to be so literal?)  So now I'm trying to think of what to make with all these beautiful, nutrition-packed, pesticide-free food items.  How I can combine a couple of the ingredients into one dish - like the beets and arugula.  Oranges and banana.  Broccoli and kiwi.  (Just checking to see if you were really reading this carefully.)

I'll let you know what I come up with.  Don't change that dial!  (If you're too young to know what that means, it's okay, you're probably not my target audience.)

Nurturing my inner... macdaddy

Well, there's just no hiding it - I don't eat the most wholesome food exactly all the time.  But, when I do go off the calorie deep end with a flying bungee-like leap, I try to make it worthwhile.

Pasta doesn't get to be on my list as often as it did when I was 10 and could burn off the calories during one spirited game of "kick the ball over the roof of the house to my brother 100 times."  I try to save it for nights before long runs, vacation meals, or restaurants I may never get back to.  Lucky for me, I went to one that is close enough I can get back to it some day, but far enough away that it won't be for another six months or so.  (Thank goodness, said my weight loss goal.)  Macdaddy in Monroe, CT. (It would be good for my waistline if I could move all ice cream places that far from me as well.)

I present to you... yet another boring strip mall.  Eh, who cares where a great place is, as long as you can get some terrific grub once inside.  Enter into the bland box.

I think they should paint the outside orange.
They probably aren't allowed to.

Welcome to mac & cheese heaven!  (Well, actually in heaven it would be calorie free!  Sadly, that's not where we are.)  This was definitely a low key, casual place.  Cement floors, plastic orange chairs and a targeted menu of over 20 variations of our fav comfort food and a couple daily special flavors.  You can get a salad, but really, why would you bother?  The most challenging thing about the entire experience was choosing which ones to try.  Should I go more old school and do the version with sliced hot dogs?  Or upscale with lobster?  Oh, this was going to be tougher than I thought.  Glad my cousin was willing to split two with me, two snack portions mind you, so at least I could try a couple flavors on my first visit.  (Oh yes, there will be future returns.)

Yep, I'll take the entire right side of the
board, please.

We ordered and sat ourselves at a table.  While I'm making you wait for my lunch to arrive, I know, I am cruel, here is some wall art to enjoy.

Considering my mom's was from a box, I'd
definitely have to agree with the wall.

There are three sizes you can choose from. Snack, Mac and Macdaddy. As mentioned earlier, we went with the smallest skillet.  Snack size.  I saw some hungry younger guys unable to finish off the Mac size. And I'm sure the Macdaddy could feed a family of four.  Once my cast iron skillet was delivered to my table all hot and gooey, I knew I made the right choice.

We decided, after much deliberation, on the Mac Popeye (spinach, garlic & goat cheese) for our first choice.  It was OUT OF THIS WORLD!  Right, so you're wondering how so.  It's just lactose and semolina, you say to yourself loud enough for me to hear you.  Well, could it have been the perfect ratio of cheese to spinach to noodles?  Perhaps it was the perfect tanginess of the goat cheese mixed with other cheeses.  Maybe the crusty, buttery topping was what put it over the top.  Or, quite possibly, it was ALL of that together in one delightfully, crusty-edged, bubbling, personal-sized cauldron!

Comfort food beyond compare.

Oh my gosh, that was nearly too wonderful for words!  But I did my best.  The other one we got was the Mac Mushroom (crimini & shitake mushrooms, porcini emulsion, manchego & truffle oil).  Delightfully rich and earthy.  Dense, intense flavor.  Different from the first, yet another great choice.

Skillets so hot they come with a silicone handle
cover so you don't hurt yourself.

Admittedly, I couldn't even finish half of the two with my cousin's help.  There was a quarter of each one left.  (Food 1, Karen 0.)  The good news about that?  Leftovers!!

Inspired by my trip to Mac Daddy, I'm excited to take my own basic mac & cheese recipe and start switching out some cheeses and adding veggies, meats and other flavors.  I may even whip up a full batch and break it out into four separate dishes to try several new combinations in one day.  Pretty sure I could wrestle up some local taste testers to give me a hand with those.

Nurturing my inner... restaurant quality

I've been focused on being back to my proper eating habits since my return from visiting family in New England for the holidays.  While I was in Connecticut, and a couple days in Pennsylvania, I ate what I pleased and indulged in local items I can't get here.  (Look for blog posts to come.)  I don't regret it because I enjoy all kinds of treats every now and then.  However, I would not want to eat those things every day.  In fact, I just can't.  Not only because I like to maintain a healthy heart and weight, but also because it makes me feel ill after a short while.  I just can't stomach fried foods or lack of veggies for long.  So when my friend wanted to get together and have a movie and appetizers night, I asked her if we could make some smarter choices with the food we planned.  It's so nice to have a friend support you when you are readapting to wise behaviors.  It's much more challenging to be around the folks who are quick to send you back into the fatal direction from whence you just began to extract your slightly fluffy self from.

Before I get too far on this, I have something to say about words I hear a lot.  I don't really like when people go on about, "I'm going to eat healthy."  What is "healthy?"  I suppose you could say a rice cake is healthy when compared to French fries, but they are bland and fairly unredeemable.  I don't want to eat healthy, per se.  What I want is to eat delicious and nutritious foods.  Everyone should have that goal.

Back on topic.  I made a delicious and nutritious salad inspired by different combinations I've had at some local restaurants.  Complete with a dressing I whipped up on my very own.  I wasn't sure how it would be, as I tasted and adjusted along the way several times, but it was terrific!  Definitely restaurant quality.  And it started with learning how to make candied pecans.

Candied Pecans

1/3 cup raw pecan halves
2 tbsps water
2 tbsps sugar
1 tsp brown sugar

A tasty little treat I've enjoyed on salads are various kinds of candied nuts.  But didn't want to buy a whole bag for home.  I thought, how hard can it be to just make enough for an evening?  Well, not very hard at all.  Here's what you do:

Add the water, sugars and pecans to a sauce pan.  Stir and turn on high until it boils.

You can toast the pecans first if you like.

Keep careful watch as the mixture boils, for around seven to eight minutes or until the sauce has caramelized and become thick.  If you take it off too soon, the pecans will be more sticky due to more water content.  (They'll still taste okay, even if they aren't exactly perfect.)

It's ready if when you run a spoon through, the
caramel doesn't come right back together.

Have a baking sheet with parchment on it at the ready.  Spread the caramelized pecans out in one layer with space to harden.

Parchment prevents sticking.

Let dry for half an hour, or longer, and then separate them.  If they don't appear as dry as you'd like, I hear you can put them in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes to crisp them up more.  (For other variations, try adding some vanilla extract, sweet curry powder, black pepper or rosemary.)

They look good, no?

On to make the dressing.  Vinaigrettes are not a precise science.  You need to adjust to your taste.  I'll show you approximately what I did (because I was paying more attention to taste than exact amounts I was using) and then you can add a pinch more this and that until you get it to please your palate.  My advice to you is to start with the lemon, add a little sugar and vinegar, mix it up well, taste and then go from there.

Lemon Vinaigrette

Juice of one lemon, freshly squeezed
2 1/2 tsps sugar
2 tsps champagne vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
Sprinkle of a salad herbs (or combination of herbs)

What I love about making things like this at home is that you know exactly what's going into your food if you buy pure ingredients.

Penzey's has different spice blends that you just
add oil to and you get instant dressing.

I used a couple shakes of premixed salad herbs, but you also could combine individual flavors you prefer like dried oregano, thyme and Parmesan. Or switch out orange or pomegranate juice.  There are so many ways to tweak the flavor profile of a vinaigrette with different oils and infused vinegars that you can discover exciting new tastes each time you whip up a batch.  (Something I plan on doing more of this coming year.)

This is all I have left, but it made more than
enough for six servings.

Now to compile the restaurant presentation.

Pear, Pecan & Gorgonzola Salad

1 bag of field greens or other dark green salad blend
1 ripe Bartlett pear, cut into cubes
1/3 cup candied pecans
1/4 cup dried cranberries
3 ou Gorgonzola, crumbled

Get a big bowl, throw in the field greens, pears, pecans and cranberries.  Add the dressing right before you serve so the lettuces don't get soggy, toss it about, and then add the crumbled cheese with the last light mix so it stays in chunks.  Serve straight away.

Looks like it came right off a high class menu.

You can switch out the Gorgonzola for feta or goat if you're not a fan, but pear and blue cheese go particularly well together. I happen to love it, but my friend does not. So when I made the salad last night for our moviefest, I tossed all the other ingredients together without the cheese and then let her put feta on hers whilst I put the Gorgonzola on mine.  Everyone was happy.  (Even though I maintain my combo remained the better choice!)

Just because you're settled in front of the tube to watch a film or two for the evening, doesn't mean you need to eat junk.  Quality, tasty, vitamin rich foods can be quick to prepare when you plan for it.  A grocery list is your friend.  Don't knock a bit of forethought.

So what do you think?  Should I open a secret restaurant in my condo?

Nurturing my inner... small cookie, long name

Here's a quick Christmas "cookie" I whipped up this year for a last minute gathering at my house.  Ending 2011 on a sweet, and salty, note!

Caramel White Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzels

50ish mini pretzel knots
1 cup of Kraft caramel bits
1 8 oz bar of quality white chocolate
3 tbsps PB2 powdered peanut butter  (I know, weird, right?)

I really need a shorter name for these.  Before you get all caught up on the powdered peanut butter stuff you're suddenly super curious about, let's just start at the beginning.  This is a super simple way to make an easy treat that just looks hard.  It also happens to be all of my mother's favorite snack flavors in one location.  So I tailored these just for her.  (I know.  I proudly accept my daughter of the year award.)

There is a reason to buy the traditional pretzel knot.  I knew I needed some compartments.  Chambers to hold the next item.

Okay, so I happened to buy a really
huge bag, but they are a good
snack choice plain.

Not sure if they have these everywhere, but my mom had picked me up a bag.  Pea-sized caramel bits.  They are actually soft, if you tried to squish them between your finger and thumb.  (I did.  Just so I could tell you that.)

Good for tossing on top of brownies before
you cook them as well.

I suppose I could have bought the squares and diced them up, but this is what I had which inspired the idea anyway.

No chopping.

I put down a Silpat silicone mat on my baking sheet because I was afraid of the caramel sticking.  Into a 350 degree oven for about five minutes or until the caramels melt into the holes.

One bit per chamber. They fit perfectly.

As for the next part, buy high quality chocolate.  Do not attempt to use chocolate chips because they have a stabilizer added that changes how they melt and withstand heat.  (Hey, that's news, huh.)

It was on sale.

Use a sharp knife and shave up the chocolate for easy melting.

Smaller pieces melt faster.

Place a glass bowl on top of a pot of boiling water, but not touching the water.  The steam will heat the bowl and melt the chocolate.  Do not add any cream or you'll create a ganache that won't reharden.

Stir until all is soft.

Remove the pretzels from the oven.  Let cool for a few minutes so the caramel sets.

That was just long enough for the caramel to
adhere to the pretzel.

Okay, you've been so patient.  Now for the odd stuff.  Powdered peanut butter.  Yep, that's right.  It's peanut butter without the oil.  Which means it's 85% less fat.  Less fat = less you!  (Not that I don't like all of you, but if there was 5% less of you, I wouldn't miss it.  Unless it was the really awesome 5% of you.  Fat is not awesome.  So, I think we'll be fine.)

Comes in regular peanut and also chocolate
peanut. Makes for a fun gift too.

You can mix it into tons of things like smoothies, pancakes and even cereal. Or sprinkle on ice cream, yogurt, apple sauce or bananas. It tastes amazing and heck, you've saved yourself a lot of unnecessary fat grams without losing the nutty flavor.

Yep, looks just like cocoa or powdered sugar.

Once the pretzels with caramel have cooled a bit, take the melted chocolate and spread some on top with a small, flexible spatula.  Neatness does not count.  (At least not in my case.)  I suppose you could drizzle the chocolate as well.  You could also use more than one type of chocolate for even more contrasting flavors.  Then take a small sifter and with a spoon, quickly dust the peanut butter powder on top of the soft, warm chocolate.  So it has the best chance of adhering.

Assembly line. But don't do all the chocolate
at once or it will harden before you can get
the powder to stick.

I took the entire sheet and put it in the fridge to cool faster.  When the chocolate was set and I wasn't worried about them sticking to one another, they were ready to serve or stack in a container.

A lot going on in one little snack!
(I did try to choose the prettiest ones for you.)

My mom LOVED them.  Well, of course she did.  It was all her favorite sweet treats in one bite.  That is like toffee, pistachios and dark chocolate to me.  (Trader Joe's has that candy, BTW.  No need for me to brush up on toffee making skills quite yet.)

It's nice to get a custom made, everything you like, edible Christmas gift, no?  I have a feeling mom will be asking for these again next year.

Nurturing my inner... shake and quake

Such a busy, busy time of year.  Good busy.  But short for free time nonetheless.  Amidst all the cookie exchanges and holiday parties, who says you want to give up cooking dinner for yourself though.  (To be fair, maybe you. Yet, not me.)  So I found a great little helping hand from Wegmans.

Chicken Stuffed Peppers

2 large sweet peppers
1 premarinated chicken breast
1/2 a container of small button mushrooms, quartered
2 tbsps chopped onion (I have some in my freezer)
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 cup of cooked black rice
1 cup of pepper jack cheese, shredded
1 tbsp butter

Let's do this assembly line style and get everything prepped and ready so we just have to build them later.  First thing, slice and unseed (deseed? exseed? Just take the seeds out.) of the peppers.  Throw in some boiling water for about 20 minutes to par cook.

Yellow was what they had. But you can get
them in green, orange and red too.

Here's where it gets easy and this is one of my favorite new items from good, old reliable, Wegmans.  Individually, vacuum-packed marinated chicken breasts.  So handy.  I just throw them in the freezer as is and take one out as needed.  Today I used the mojo-flavored one.

I just slice down the middle of the package to
make individual portions.

Into a baking dish then a 400 degree oven for about 30 min. 

Stoneware is handy.

While you're baking up the chicken, you'll have plenty of time for your other tasks.  Like sauteing up some mushrooms and garlic with a bit of butter.

On medium until they become soft.

I also make lots of rice ahead of time and then freeze it in smaller containers, so I can pop it in the microwave and have it ready in minutes.  (Because it takes like 40 minutes to cook the first time!)  I love black rice, so I chose that for this dish.

Black is the new white this season. When
it comes to rice, that is.

Pop out the grater, 'cause you're gonna need some cheese.  Somethin' with a little kick!

Pepper jack in peppers. Irony? Perhaps.

Use the large shred side.  I'm not even sure if I've ever used the smaller side.  Well, maybe once for fresh Parmesan.

Piles of cheese are just the bestest.

And we're going to need some finishing flavors for when we plate it up shortly.

Topping

1/2 cup sour cream
2 tsps adobo sauce and chipotle
1/2 avocado, sliced

I really do love the chipotle pepper. I need a
tshirt that says that.

Into the blender go the sauce and the sour cream.  Give it a whirl.  Tip: Add less sauce to begin with, blend, taste and add more slowly to suit your own level of heat tolerance.  If you go all out at first, you may hurt yourself.  (I cannot be responsible for that.)

Hot and cold together. Balance.

Before I go any further, I must tell a quick tale.  I actually made this a few months back on August 23rd and just haven't posted until now.  It was during the time we had a freak earthquake here in DC.  About a 5.8.  Enough to shake our houses for about 90 seconds, but nothing broke at my place.  Well, nothing - until this freak occurrence...

How in the...

Back to the quake.  It was such an odd sensation.  I thought my above neighbors were having new furniture delivered, as is common to hear rumblings of that sort in condos because we're all attached.  But when I looked outside, there was only one other car.  Not theirs.  And the duration was much longer than any couch delivery should be, even when movers are slogging a sectional up four flights of stairs and into a living room.

Oh yes, at 1:51 pm that day, things in my place definitely shook, including me when I stood up, but nothing fell, nor broke.  Then later that day I go and make dinner and I hear a loud *bang*.  I realized it came form my oven.  I flung open the door and saw it.  A clean split of my baking dish!  Lucky for me, it was at the end of the cook time.  I pulled it out, removed the chicken immediately and looked at it totally in shock.  All I can think of, because these dishes can safely go up to much higher than 400 degrees, was that there must have been a weird flaw in the materials.  And when the heat agitated it, boom, the crack.  Somewhat like an earthquake.  On a very small scale.

Never to be deterred by a little natural disaster, inside or outside of my oven, I forged ahead.  I took the parboiled peppers and laid them in a different, and hopefully heartier, baking dish.  I had sliced up the chicken, that I rescued earlier, and placed a few pieces in the bottom of each pepper.

Pepper boats.

On top of that, a spoonful of the mushroom, onion and garlic mixture.

Gotta have a veggie. Mushrooms are packed
with such great flavor once cooked.

Next up, the rice.  Heat in microwave if frozen or use fresh while hot.  Hefty spoonfuls of that next.

Something about layers really makes a dish
turn into an adventure.

Seriously, you had to know I was going to top this with cheese.  Who wouldn't?!

I tried not to go overboard with the cheese. 
I was exercising a seldom used trait I
 do possess - self control.

Bake in the oven for 10 - 15 minutes covered with foil.  All the ingredients are already cooked and warm, so it won't take long.

Just until cheese is melted.

When hot, it's ready to plate.  That simple.

Gooey. That's a good word. But not unhealthy.

You could eat it just as is.  But it's more fun to dress it up a bit with a little sliced avocado and the chipotle sour cream we made earlier.  Makes you feel like you could have your own feature in Food Network Magazine.

Please.  Enough awesome flavors to punch you
in the face and knock you out!

I really have to thank the good practice of being prepared for this one.  Having precooked rice in my freezer (a fantastic time saver) and then Wegmans premarinated chicken breast made this SO super easy.  Baring the seismic activity of the day and the broken dish, things went rather smoothly.  Some people's earthquake kits include batteries and water.  I guess mine had chicken and rice.