Jealous.

I know jealousy is wrong, but I think I'm rather justified in this situation.

Yes. My mom got to meet The Pioneer Woman, Marbolo Man and family this weekend!

{she looks rather happy, huh?}

{the friend she made while waiting in line}

 They were all in Amarillo for the rodeo and took the time for the book signing. Both of my parents said they were just the nicest, most down to earth people you've met. Funny enough, while my mom was standing in the long line waiting for autographs, my dad was at the front of the store watching the football game, chatting it up with MM, the boys and Pa-pa the whole tim! Ree even commented that her lips were so dry because of the weather and my dad whipped out his chapstick and offered it to her... and she used it! {I realize some people get grossed out by sharing chapstick. Me, not so much, especially when it comes to a celebrity:)} 

Ree totally told my mom that she was so lovely and that she loved her hair. I think it is obvious that they are clearly BFF. {Which is why I can now call her Ree and not her full title of The Pioneer Woman.} Texting with my mom during the event was so fun and I am so sad that I didn't get to be there. It's certainly on my bucket list now though! 

And one photo she couldn't resist....

Grilled Corn and Monterrey Jack Quesadillas

{If you're a new reader stopping over from the Abilene Reporter News, welcome! I hope you'll take the time to take a look around - you may want to start by looking at some of my recipes!}


So you read the announcement, saw the pictures and get a small idea of what it was like with the recap, and I'm finally sharing the recipe with you today!

I wish I had more picture of the recipe in progress, but I was totally too embarrassed and didn't want to slow down the process since the photographer was giving up some of her weekend time. So you'll just have to imagine what the process looks like!

Grilled Corn and Monterrey Jack Quesadilla
yield: Makes 2 to 4 servings

4 ounces Monterrey Jack cheese, coarsely grated (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 scallions, thinly sliced crosswise
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped canned chipotle chilies in adobo
4(8-inch) whole wheat tortillas
1 tablespoon vegetable oil


Directions
Stir together cheese, corn, mayonnaise, scallions, cilantro, and chilies in a small bowl. Lightly brush 1 tortilla with some of oil. Turn tortilla over and spread 1/2 cup filling over half, then fold other half over to form a half-moon. Assemble 3 more quesadillas in same manner.
Heat lightly oiled grill pan over moderate heat until hot, then cook quesadillas, 2 at a time, turning over once, until cheese is melted, about 4 minutes total per batch. Transfer to a cutting board and cut in half.


Cody and I both thought these were delicious, but definitely would bulk them up with more veggies. I will be making them again and will probably add black beans, bell pepper and mushrooms into the mix. I also think that you could use more cilantro and another chili to crank up the flavors a little more.

If you're looking for a quesadilla that has great flavor, is super easy and branches out from the norm, try out this recipe!

{if you don't live in abilene and want to see the article, here it is online!}

Recap.

I know you have all been anxiously awaiting hearing about how our night went with the photographer. {Here's the pictures in case you missed them!}

I have to start with the prep work first. When I committed to cooking on Thursday, I knew we were also signing up for a deep cleaning in our kitchen!

This included but was not limited too:

Cloroxing the sugar and flour containers



Removing the random clutter that has been sitting on this shelf for too long



and organizing the photos on the fridge! (sorry there's no picture!)

Funny how there's such pressure for a stranger to come take a few pictures!

The photographer got there right on the dot at 6:30. I already had everything laid out on the counter so it was ready to go when she got there. Have you ever cooked in front of a stranger? Let me tell ya... it's kinda awkward! First, I felt pressure to make conversation with her because she was going to be there a while. {she was really nice at least!} Second, I got super self-conscious of how I was cooking... I mean, normally when I drop something on the counter, I'll just pick it up and put it in the bowl. No big deal. But when someone else is standing there watching you, not so! It was like I felt like some how she could photograph it! Ha!

Once I moved past my fears of her seeing my real life cooking, it went really smoothly. The recipe was really simple {a vegetarian quesadilla} and I'll post it on here once the article has been published. It was my first time to cook with chilies in adobo sauce and I am definitely a fan! They had such great flavor. I was afraid Cody wasn't going to like the quesadillas because the recipe called for mayo {which he loathes! sometime I'll tell you about the only meal I've made that he wouldn't eat because of the mayo.} but he really liked it too.

The photographer took about 20ish pictures, but only 2 or 3 will show up in the paper. It should appear on Wednesday and if it's online, I'll definitely share it here!

This was a fun opportunity and definitely something I would love to do again! Let me know if you want an autographed cody of the paper :)

Thanks God.

God does have a sense of humor.

And I am so thankful for that.

Today was such an encouraging day. It was just what I needed after this post.

One of my friend's sister works for the newspaper in our town and she needed people to like their Facebook page and share recipes. I did it to help her out, which lead to her asking if I would be interested in helping with an article she's doing next week on healthy cooking. She has a chef's professional recipe that she wants a local to make and give her feedback on.

So, tomorrow night at 6:30, a photographer will be showing up at our house to take pictures for the newspaper!

I know. I am such a celebrity!


Just kidding :) It was certainly a bright spot in my day and gave me a huge dose of encouragement. I have already made Cody promise that even if I want to chicken out of it, he will take a picture of the photographer taking a picture of me. Because that is waaaaaaaayyyy too cool to keep off of the blog. Even if it slightly embarrassing when he pulls out our camera!

Stay tuned for a full recap, along with before and after pictures of the crazy deep cleaning I felt like I had to do to make the kitchen presentable!

Have a great Friday!

Celebrity Sighting

It's been an exciting week around the HSU campus. If you follow me on Twitter then you already know that our building is having a Biggest Loser competition between the 3 floors. If this is news to you, just to quickly explain: We all had to pay $10 to be a part of the competition. We weighed in on January 4th and every Monday there after. At your weigh in, if you gain weight, you have to pay $1 per pound. Sadly I know from experience that gaining .5 pound still equals a dollar, not fifty cents!

Each BL contestant is paired up with someone in our Physical Therapy Doctorate program and they are helping us with eating and exercise. Plus they're running several tests on us so that this is a learning experience for them. Ok, now that I have all that background information out there, here's the real news!

Our floor loves watching the actual Biggest Loser show. From the beginning, many of us were cheering for the Red team because they're from Aspermont, which is only about 60 miles from Abilene. I think it's safe to say that the Red team hasn't been presented in the best light on the show, though I'm really believing they're victims of editing. You always got to have the drama factor, right?

Somehow, this past week it was revealed that Melissa from the Red team actually graduated from Hardin-Simmons! Of course our team was even more excited to hear about the connection. My co-worker Bonnie and I searched the NBC website for her last name and then looked her up on Facebook. (Wow, stalker much? I promise we're not crazy!) We find her on Facebook and can tell from her status that she's back in Aspermont and even comes to Abilene a lot! If you only could have been there to hear the excitement in our voices as we realize all of this. As we're standing there talking, it hits me: we've got to get her on campus! Bonnie and I start throwing around ideas and I end up sending Melissa this message:

Hi Melissa,

I realize you have no idea who I am, but I attend HSU and currently work for the school as a recruiter. My coworkers and I enjoy watching the Biggest Loser and we are rooting for our fellow Texans team. We actually just recently realized that you attended Hardin-Simmons and we're very excited to have this connection with you too. I think you may have also been in the Leadership Program. I was also a part of that during my time as a student.

We are having an HSU Biggest Loser competition between the three floors of Sandefer Memorial and I thought I would ask if you might be interested in stopping by one day and giving us some work out tips or ideas on what helps keep you motivated. I realize you are probably very busy, but it's not every day that you have the chance to gain knowledge from someone who has gotten to train with Jillian and Bob so I thought I would at least see if you might be able to meet with us.

Thanks for taking the time to consider it!
Blessings!
Abby Neinast

Within TEN MINUTES, she had already sent this back:

Abby,

Are you kidding me? I would LOVE to come visit ya'll!

I am under contract w NBC so it will have to be arranged with them. I've already sent NBC legal an email. I will be in touch when I hear back from them.

Melissa

We were all going crazy! I honestly cannot stop giggling at the fact that I will get to meet a real life Biggest Loser contestant! I have since received another message from her with dates that she is available so now we're working on getting the actual date nailed down. I can't help but secretly wish that NBC would fly out to do a "Where are they now" on her and talk about how's she's sharing health tips with her alma mater :) I can at least dream, right?

So that's the most exciting thing happening on the 2nd floor of Sanderfer right now! I have to admit, knowing that she's coming to campus is definitely keeping me motivated! I don't want to appear like a slacker in front of Melissa!

Stay tuned for more Biggest Loser tips, including old pictures of me! I promise, you don't want to miss it!