I was going to grill up some boneless chicken thighs tonight, and serve it with refried beans and rice, but Kathy and Cait got tied up – no, not literally, though the thought has crossed my mind where Cait is concerned – so I put that meal on hold. But I had to make something with the chicken or it would go bad (having been previously frozen.) What is Mr. Mom to do?
I started by frying up a large onion – you can use two if you like – in olive oil, along with a pinch of salt. Next I diced up the chicken, about a pound and a half worth, and added it to the onion. Letting that cook on a low heat, I added cumin, white pepper and another pinch of salt. Saute that until all the chicken is cooked and the onions are translucent. Put all that aside in a big bowl.
I lightly cleaned the pan with a paper towel, leaving a slight coating of oil. Using burrito size tortillas I laid one on the bottom of the pan, ladled in some chicken, and covered it with cheese. You can use a Mexican mix, cheddar or whatever you like. Lay another tortilla on top, let it cook for a few minutes, flip it over, and you have your own home-made quesadilla. Will and I loved it, and I can make more when the girls get home.
The price of the meal was negligible. The chicken was $4.50, the tortillas $2.09, the cheese $2.00 (Sargento on special) and the onion $1.00, for a grand total of $9.59. If you make a meal of it with the refried beans and rice, the total comes to $11.59. Not bad, right? And I dare say it is better than what you can get at Sloppy Jose’s, a local Mexican restaurant (though they always made a great tortilla soup.)
On the subject of food, I have decided to make the kids lunch for school this year, as their cafeteria food leaves much to be desired. Besides the usual sandwiches, like PB&J, deli meat and such, what else can I give them? I doubt they want a thermos of soup, and how warm would it stay? Nothing worse than lukewarm soup. And they have no access to a microwave (but I’m not a fan of them anyways, as we got rid of ours years ago.) Any suggestions? Besides the basics, I haven’t a clue.
With school just over two weeks away, Will and Cait are getting nervous, as I bet all kids do. What will the new year bring (other than quiet mid-mornings for daddy?) Getting back on schedule will be a problem, as the kids are used to staying up until 11:00pm lately, and sleeping in until I force them out of their fart sacks (an old army euphemism.) They’re in for a shock that first morning, but they do have new clothes to wear, so hopefully that will motivate them.
Speaking of clothes, have you seen the price of a pair of jeans? But that’s a story I’ll save for another day. I am Mr. Mom.
breezespeaks 