Resolutions and a completely awesome recipe for Enchiladas

Happy New Year!!!!

As far as resolutions for 2011 go, does anyone have any good ones to share? I'm considering some of the following:

1. Be better about accessorizing. No, seriously. I never wear jewelry (except for my wedding ring) and I am always impressed by people who can accessorize well. It really takes things up a notch or two and I would love to learn the art of styling/accessorizing with panache.

2. Be better about keeping touch with my friends all around the world-even the ones close to home. I really tend to get lost in my own little nest of domesticity and I miss out on hearing about my friends' adventures (large and small.)

3. Write more. In general. More letters, more blogging, more emails, more stories, more journal entries, etc.

I'm sure starting tomorrow most of us (myself included) will be trying to cook nothing but steamed chicken, brown rice, and vegetables and will be working out for at least an hour seven days a week (as is usually the case around New Year's.) And yet, for some reason I thought that this recipe for New Mexican Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas (given to me by my fabulous friend and native New Mexican, Angelica) was a perfectly festive, fun, easy, DELICIOUS way to ring in the new year. I just love this stuff. And if you have leftover chicken from a roast, etc. it comes together so quickly- in single digit minutes. Then you can stick it in the oven and have time to go work out or something :)

Angelica's New Mexican Chicken Enchilada Casserole

10 ounces cream of mushroom soup (Note: This is the first time in my life I have

ever done one of those "soup" recipes-I never thought I would, nor did I think

I would LOVE it.  But it's good to be less snobby about food, right?  And you

could always buy the organic, reduced guilt kind, right?)

1/4 cup chopped green chile** (canned is ok, but not as awesome)

 1/3 cup milk  (I use skim)           

 1/2 cup chopped onion 

1 1/2 cups cooked shredded chicken     

 cooking spray 

1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)                

12 corn tortillas 

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt/garlic flakes 

3 cups grated cheddar cheese (I use the reduced fat pre-shredded stuff but I say go for the 

real stuff and no guilt!)

Preheat oven to 350. 
1. Heat cooking oil/spray in a heavy pan at medium-high heat. 
2. Lightly warm each tortilla in the sprayed pan to soften. 
3. Heat the soup and milk over medium heat on the stove top and then 
add the cooked shredded or diced chicken, garlic flakes, and green chile to taste.

4. Alternate ingredients in a lightly greased, 2-quart casserole dish,

   beginning with the tortillas, then cheese, then a sprinkle of onions 

and then a layer of the soup mix and repeat. The top layer should have            

 the last layer of tortillas with some cheese sprinkled on top.

5. Cover casserole dish with foil and bake in a 350°F oven for 25-30    minutes.

Wisdom from my Mother-In-Law

Prof. Hubs and I just got back from a relaxing holiday visit with his family. We saw movies (Avatar in 3d is so wonderful!!! Young Victoria is a gem!) read, relaxed, went for walks, bonded, and feasted our way through the days...I think just about every meal we ate in the last seven days included pie of some kind... I'll really need to do some detoxing in the new year (and my posts will reflect this so keep checking in.)

In addition to being a brilliant professor, scholar and mother of four, my mother-in-law is a really good cook-the intuitive kind. No recipes used in her kitchen-she cooks based on her 'sense' of what will be delicious and beautiful. (And what can be combined in a a MAGIC BULLET...she loves her infomercial finds!) She really produced some delectable meals during our visit and the following recipe is one I asked her to make twice I liked it so much. And I also made it first thing upon arriving back in Midwestia. I learn so much from watching her cook and this quick and inexpensive meal is a new favorite.

Flank Steak (1-1.25 lbs.)

Worcestershire sauce (I used 1/3 of a bottle)

Soy sauce (again, I used 1/3 of a bottle)

Flour (for dredging)

White wine (Mother-in-law says the cheaper the better)

2 cloves Garlic, chopped

1 Onion

1/2 container of mushrooms, sliced

1 large Potato(optional)

White wine

sour cream (optional)

Rice (best with long grain white basmati, but we enjoy it with short grain brown rice.)

Start to cook rice.

Slice flank steak into very thin pieces. Put sliced beef in a bowl and add enough soy sauce and worcestershire sauce to cover (ratio of soy to worcestershire sauce is 1:1) Add a splash of dry white wine to marinade. Marinate for at least 20 minutes, up to one day.

(To my vegetarian friends, I apologize for the carnage in this post both in prose and in pictures!!!)

During marinating process prepare mushroom/onion mixture:

Slice onion into thin rings. Cook over med-high heat for 10 minutes, until soft and translucent. (you have the option here to add thinly sliced potatoes and cook until tender.) Add sliced mushrooms. Add salt and pepper. Cook for 3 minutes. Add 2-3 white wine splashes.

Cook until alcohol smell is gone and liquid is mostly reduced. Lower heat to low.

Remove meat from marinade and coat with flour.

Heat oil in large sautée pan over med-high heat. Cook steak in small batches, adding garlic cloves and splash of white wine to each batch.

(sorry this photo is so unappetizing...believe me, it looks so tasty when it's all assembled!)

Cook until browned and crispy.

Top cooked rice with beef, then with mushroom mixture. (Prof. Hubs prefers to mix in a large dollop of sour cream (of course) before eating.)

Enjoy!!!