Realizations & A Recipe

(accountability = today's workout = ran 6.42 miles in hilly neighborhood plus 12 minutes lower body strength)

Ohmygosh, lovelies! I had no idea there would be such a response for enchiladas--no wonder I adore you all--you love Mexican food as much as I do. That's what friendships are made of, I tell ya!

(stick with me, and you'll get my half a**ed attempt at a recipe--I don't measure things, so, um, this will be interesting--but, with enchiladas, it's really up to your taste, I think)

Last night was my first meeting for my marathon training group. Holy overwhelming number of people, Batman! Like 500. I was totally overwhelmed. I don't do crowds. This should be interesting. We got our training plans, and I was really surprised to see that the number of miles they have us running is really low. I tried to follow it this AM, but, I was already out and running so, I just kept going. So sue me, training program! Also, this AM I discovered my next door neighbors steals (borrows?) everyone's newspapers. Maybe he doesn't like us because we don't get the newspaper? Interesting....

Also, whilst standing in a room full of runners, I was really struck with the notion that I'm a runner. For the first time since college (I was an NCAA athlete for a year) I felt like an athlete again, and it's an awesome feeling. I was practically skipping to my car to go call my dad and brag (but he didn't answer--these are the times I really miss my mom!).

It also reminded me that not so long ago, I was really considering becoming a nutritionist and yoga instructor. Of course, life (or paying the bills) got in the way, and I stuck to the major I had already invested a year of my life into and love my job all the same, but, it really hit me last night that I think I would love that more.... So, there may be a bit of SP revisiting those youthful ideas and getting certified--who knows!

And the husband convinced me to run the Catalina Marathon for OperationJack. We sat huddled around the computer last night trying to find "the perfect marathon" for this (after all, there are 60 to choose from!)--since I am picky about these types of things and we clicked on the Catalina Marathon link and the decision was made. From what I understand, the course is semi/mostly trail, and of course, Catalina is a very hilly island (I love Catalina!), so, this will be tres interesting. However, to quote my husband "That would be the ultimate end to a year of running and training", citing that I will have completed a two half marathons, a marathon, and a 15 mile trail run at that point that Catalina would be the perfect finale to 12 months of running and racing. And he's right. Plus, our families could come!

Annnd this means that I will sped the Christmas holiday running the back country at my in laws house getting prepped. Holy yikes. But I couldn't be more excited. If you even have a thought to complete a half, a 5k or a full next year, seriously consider running in one of the OperationJack races.

OK, you still with me? You really wanted that recipe didn't you? It's not exact, but, I'm sure we'll manage.

Green Chile Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

You'll need:

1 white onion
1 package of chicken breasts (I ended up using 2 thin sliced chicken breast and 3 chicken breast tenders because that's all we had)
1 package of spinach (not frozen)
2 cans of Ortega brand (well, any brand) green enchilada sauce
1 can of Ortega chopped (diced?) green chiles
1 container of light sour cream
1 bag of reduced fat shredded Mexican (or cheddar--I prefer the white blends to cheddar for this, but, it's your call) cheese
1-2 packages of Mission yellow corn supersize tortillas (there are ten to a package--when we made these, we ended up with 8 enchiladas, so, it's your call!)
1 can of black beans (optional)

To make:
Heat over to 400. Prepare a 13x9 or two 8x8 (what I use) pans by spraying with non stick cooking spray

-Take about 1/2-3/4 of the bag of spinach, wash and then coarsely chop or tear the spinach. Throw into a large skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes until slightly wilted but not mushy.
-Remove spinach to a plate to cool
-Dice half of your onion and throw it into the skillet and cook for about 5-10 minutes until translucent but not too soft.
-Add the chicken and about 2-3 tbs of water, 2 tbs of sour cream, 1 tbsp of the green chiles, about 1/8 cup of the enchilada sauce and simmer, simmer, simmer. (you can also toss in some cumin, chilli powder, garlic salt, cayenne--whatever your preference--I also usually add a splash of lime to the chicken as well)
-As the chicken simmer, use a fork and knife to shred the chicken as it cooks (about 10-15 minutes)
-Once the chicken is cooked, turn up the heat to absorb most of the liquid.
-Add about 3-4 tbs sour cream, another 1/8 cup of the sauce, 2 tbs of the green chiles and simmer again, until most of the sauces are absorbed.
-In a separate bowl, combine the remaining green chile sauce, about 1/4 cup of the sour cream, the remaining green chiles and any of the seasonings you want
-Add spinach to chicken and sauce mixture, blend well
-Heat tortillas in microwave for about 1 minute so they are soft and pliable
-Spoon mixture into center of tortilla, roll up and place seam side down in pan (you can also add a little bit of the black beans to each enchilada at this point by spooning it over top the chicken mixture)
-Continue this process until the chicken is used and or the pans are full
-Pour sauce that was placed in the separate bowl evenly over the enchiladas
-Sprinkle (or cover, if you're me) the cheese over the top
-Pop in the oven for 20-30 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and the enchiladas are hot. I usually broil them for a few minutes at the end to get a nice crusty cheese goin'
-Allow to cool for a few minutes out of the oven
-Enjoy!

No, go back some yummy food and consider running (even a 5 k!) for OperationJack (warning: I'm probably not going to shut up about this anytime soon).

If you really don't want to cook, I have leftovers at mi casa. Just sayin'.