Tuesday is Tasty

Sorry for the delay. Yesterday was Election Day! It was complete with an election watch party, where we had patriotic food and played games where only debating was allowed.

Quick and Easy Black Beans

My sister has been asking for a while to post this recipe. So here it is! The original is from Our Best Bites. Below is the recipe halved. I only had lemon, so limes were not used.

Ingredients:

1     can black beans, drained/rinsed
1     t olive oil
1/3  C diced onion
1-2  garlic cloves, pressed or finely minced
1/3  C chicken broth (or water,)
1/8  t cumin
1/8  t coriander
1/8  t oregano
1/4  t salt
1/8  t pepper
1/2  lime

Instructions:
In a saucepan on the stove, heat the olive oil to med-high heat. Saute onions for about 3 minutes or until they just start to become translucent. Add garlic and saute abut 30 seconds more. Add beans, broth, and remaining seasonings and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a low simmer and simmer for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. When they are done cooking, remove from heat and add in a few squeezes of fresh lime juice. Then use the back of a spoon or rubber spatula so smoosh (yes, that’s a technical culinary term) some of the beans. You don’t want to pulverize them, but you want to take a bunch of good smooshes so that some of the beans are smashed, which will thicken the sauce. I like mine on the thicker side so I smoosh quite a bit. They will thicken more upon standing.
If you want a more soupy consistency, just add a little more broth.

October Overiview

For us, October was a good month and a very long month. We went out of town once every week, so it kept us busy.

First off, we had a hike to do for work! Corona Arch and Bowtie Arch in the evening:

We documented our driving. It's sometimes a way of entertainment.... This is mostly taken between Price and Spanish Fork. And yes, we are singing at the top of our lungs in some of these pictures.

The first weekend in October was General Conference! It was wonderful. There were a lot of great words and some exciting announcements. We also got to meet baby Emrree.

There was an extra hike we could do for work, and we picked a perfect evening for it. Delicate Arch. I mentioned it earlier, here.

We went up to Salt Lake to see the first Opera of the season, Verdi's Il Trovatore. Fortunately, a friend's reception was also happening that weekend, so we got to see a lot of happy and familiar faces.

We spent some time down at City Creek and Temple Square before the opera. (Store clerks treat you differently/with more respect when you step up your grooming and even comment on it. Noted.) Everyone got a box of chocolates after the opera since it was the opening night.

The next week, Sean had a training for work in Texas. Since he was flying out of Salt Lake, I came and got to play with my mom for a day and work on projects with here. It was a nice break for both of us. While Sean was in Texas, he got to see these fabulous people! Lucky.

He got back, and there was a Gowen cousin reunion at Nathan and Brenda's. Natalie and kids were out visiting too!

We decided to stay over for Sunday to spend more time with family. It was a good choice!

The next Tuesday night, we drove up for an RSL game. It was cold with rain/snow the whole time. We lost, but it was a fun game to watch with the boys. 

Sean took the next day off so we could drive during the day, so we got to have lunch with our friend Cassi. Who knew it would be a "hello" lunch and a "congrats to your new job, Cassi!" lunch.

A little bright out...

We did a short hike for work the following Tuesday night. Apparently, we were getting in the Halloween mood....

And finally, Halloween came. We didn't pass out candy due to other events, but our neighbors said they counted around 685 trick or treaters. It was quite busy on our street, and fun to see.

Sean, was a Scientist, and I was US soccer player Mia Ham. It worked.

Hope you had a fantastic October! Whew.

Thankful for Thursday

"A clean kitchen is a happy kitchen."

-John Bytheway

I couldn't agree more! Today, I not only completely caught up on the dished and sanitized all the surfaces, I also cleaned the stove. The type of clean where the burner trays get soaked and scrubbed. 

 I'm always surprised what a difference that makes. Now the stove is not only shiny, it doesn't have the potential to smell of burning when I am working on a kitchen inspiration! Amazing. Amazing!

John Bytheway was very wise when he made the above comment. With the kitchen cleaned - including the stove - it is a much happier place!

Here's to a November: a new month, a time to try some new goals and work on some old ones. I sure am thankful for my kitchen....especially when it's clean.