Homemade Taquitos - Do It

Yesterday was a rough day. While I sat eating my lunch sandwich with mom, dad called to say their house was broken into. Again. Ugh. So we tell our respective managers and head home. They didn't take much stuff, but they took all of mom's jewelry (except for a bolo tie that was her father's - I love that thing). So it was very emotional for her.

I went home, changed into jammies and got back to work. Putting on your pjs at 2pm is basically admitting defeat for productivity (at least to me), so I skipped the gym. And for dinner I wanted nothing more than a small roll of sushi. Nothing to cook or heat up, just lift chopsticks to mouth. I already had the ingredients for dinner, though, and I couldn't waste them.

I am so glad I cooked. Heavens To Mergatroid, these were delicious!

I found this recipe through Pink Parsley, who apparently adapted it from Pennies on a Platter, who got it from Our Best Bites. So essentially it was recipe telephone (or as I call it, Recipe Purple Monkey Dishwasher). I don't care where it comes from, it is DELISH! And extremely easy, especially if you happen to have leftover cooked chicken already.

Here is my adaptation:
Creamy Baked Chicken Taquitos

3 oz cream cheese, softened (reduced fat is fine)
1/3 cup salsa verde
juice of 1/2 a lime
1 tsp chile powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
apprx 3 drops cayenne sauce
2 tsps minced garlic
2 cups cooked and shredded chicken *
1 cup shredded colby jack cheese
8-12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese with the salsa, lime juice, and all of the spices. Fold in the chicken and cheese. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper if necessary.

Working 3 tortillas at a time, stack them on a microwave-safe plate and cover with plastic wrap. Cook 20 seconds, or until tortillas are soft and pliable.

Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of filling onto the lower third of each tortilla, and roll tightly. Place seam side-down on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling.

Spray the taquitos lightly with cooking spray, sprinkle with salt. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until the tortillas are crisp and golden-brown. Serve with avocado and corn salsa or guacamole.


*This is how I prepare my chicken if I don't have leftover chicken to use: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spread a piece of aluminum foil across a baking sheet, and arrange chicken breasts in a single layer in the center. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and season as you wish. Fold the aluminum foil over the chicken breasts, and enclose them to form a "packet." Bake the chicken (on the baking sheet) 35-45 minutes, or until it is cooked through.


**To freeze, prepare the taquitos, but before baking, place the baking sheet in the refrigerator until the taquitos are completely cold. Wrap each taquito in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, and freeze. To bake, unwrap the taquitos and cook in a 425 degree oven for 20 minutes (no need to thaw first).

To be fair, I didn't measure any of my spices; I rarely do. And I used pre-made salsa verde, but Pink Parsley has a recipe, in case you would rather make it as well.

These are very simple and delicious, as well as very adaptable. I recommend you make them soon. I cooked double the necessray chciken, so I have some leftover in the fridge. I discovered (via snacking while cooking, a constant crime of mine) that the mixture makes a great dip as well. I forsee Friday lunch being tasty and familiar...

Wish List: "Good Cause" Edition

I hope I don't get any flack for putting good cause in quotes: I don't mean to suggest it isn't a good cause, merely that me buying myself an awesome shirt would be more selfish than altruistic.

The proceeds from these shirts, based on multiple fandoms, go towards the "FckH8" campaign to fight Proposition 8 (for those of you living under a rock, that is an anti-gay-marriage campaign). I just love them. When I scrolled over the design I got a close-up of the text, so just trust me that these are shirts.

Some Time Agents Marry Office Boys


Some Doctors Marry Big Blue Boxes


Some Doctors Marry Romans and Gingers

Troy Supercut

I found this amazing supercut of Troy from "Community" today - enjoy!

Decor Rambling

Having fun finding inspiration photos from Houzz...

I love this idea for a coffee table and additional seating. Plus that major art piece is (or at least can be) made from paper towel/toilet paper rolls! DIY

contemporary family room design by san diego architect twenty7 design

Awesome wall color. Fun and funky pom poms. West Elm daybed. WANT!

spaces design

I couldn't put anything like this in the kitchen because of the cats, but this could be SO MANY THINGS in a guest room. You could hang string lights or ornaments, you could create a faux mobile over a crib, you could hang family pics in a hallway - basically anything!

eclectic kitchen design

If you hung a ladder away from a wall in a bathroom (maybe with L-Brackets?) it would make a great towel rack with character.

contemporary bathroom design by montreal interior designer Deborah Derocher

I love that this room is very crisp but still has lots of patterns and energy.

eclectic bedroom design by other metros media and blogs Michelle Hinckley

I love this mirror and the way it compliments the softness of the room but remains bold.

spaces design by san francisco interior designer Melanie Coddington

Hope you enjoyed my wander through Decor Land.

In Which I Fail at Reading

Is anyone surprised that I've reviewed ONE book for the CBR III? I'm not. I made the smallest goal allowed (13 in a year), but this is still ridiculous. I do read occasionally, but I admit I've been brainnapped by Netflix Instant. Mostly when I read, I pick up something familiar to relax. I really want to start The Hunger Games, but the nearest library is... well... crappy. And books aren't high on the financial priority list right now. Especially because I have a stack of books I bought last year and still haven't read. And frankly right now I'm in the mood to read plays. I've discovered the BBC Radio 4 Podcast called "Play of the Week", and it is just as it sounds: every week they post a radio play. I'm not sure I've ever really listened to one, but I am officially in love!

I heard of it originally because the composer for Doctor Who (Murray Gold) had written music for something called "Kafka: The Musical" and David Tennant was playing Kafka. You have my attention. The title is somewhat misleading. The show is a play about a musical (mega meta), and there are some songs, but not until minute 51 of roughly 90. It is the sort of play that I wonder if it would be clearer or foggier if visualized.

Have you ever read a book and REALLY loved it, but you can't visualize it as a film or performance because, in doing so, it would lose some mystery or give something away? I remember watching Fight Club and wondering how the book reads (I am told it is one of the few movies better than the book). I love several of Palahniuk's books and most of them leave me with that sense that visualizing will tamper with the true spirit of the storytelling; Invisible Monsters is a good example.

The intertwining of reality and dreams and performance in "Kafka" is a stunning web where I was often lost. For every time I wished to see the structure there was a moment I was grateful for the necessity to imagine it.

This week's play is called "That's Mine, This is Yours" by Peter Souster, and it is a real delight. The story follows a couple mid-divorce as they divide their possessions, and while that isn't a hilarious theme the play is a soft-hearted romantic comedy. It runs at only slightly over 40 minutes and features a tight cast of only three, which leaves me thinking it would be a great UIL show (some things never leave us), so I'm suggesting it to my friends who work with high school theatre. It would also make a good piece in an evening of shorter plays. I'm going to go script hunting - wish me luck!