Taquito Tuesday! Or Thursday, or Saturday, or Anyday!

Last night I made taquitos for the first time, and I think it will be a stand by from now on. Moms, I bet this will be a great food for kids too. Finger food with nutritious fillings, and they're baked so can be quite low fat.
I adapted a recipe from She Runs, She Eats. In her taquitos she used sweet potato, which we in Canada would call yam, and in my taquitos I used pumpkin and black beans to get some protein in. Here we go!

First, chop 1 large onion quite small, and three cloves of garlic (or more to taste). Fry the onions in 1 Tbsp of oil in a non-stick skillet until translucent then add garlic for a minute or so. Then add:
2 Tbsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 Tbsp oregano
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
and stir, and cook for another minute until spices are fragrant. Remove from heat.
Meanwhile, mix up the main ingredients for the filling. I used 1 can of pumpkin puree and 1 can black beans (drained and rinsed), but you could use just about anything that will be moist and flavourful. The original recipe sauted cubes of yam until soft, then pureed them in a blender with the onions. In the future I want to make a sweet potato and bean version, or a refried bean and veggies version, maybe a cauliflower puree version with loads of cilantro, you could try mashed peas and soft potato, or even throw in some chopped hard boiled egg. You could change up the spicing too to be less hot, or try Indian spicing, or even Mediterranean. Obviously the carnivores could try shredded chicken or ground beef, but I won't condone such behaviour. ;-)
The point is, in a large bowl, mix up your main ingredients. Add onion mixture and 1 cup of shredded cheese (whatever cheese you prefer). Stir thoroughly.

Now comes the part that I imagined would be tricky but was actually shockingly easy. You get a stack of small corn tortillas. Heat your oven to about 275. Using spray oil, lightly spritz both sides of 6 or so tortillas and lay them on a baking try. Heat them in the oven for about 3-5 minutes. They will get soft and flexible. One at a time, remove from oven, place a heaping tablespoon of filling on the tortilla close to one edge. Roll tortilla up around the filling like a tight cigar. The tighter roll (and less filling) makes for a crunchier and more satisfying taquito.

Place your finished taquito on a baking try and set it aside. Continue this process with the rest of the tortillas until the filling runs out. My filling made about 20 taquitos. She Runs, She Eats has a good series of photos in her recipe post that kind of show how to roll them and what a filled tray looks like. From my experience, it's crazy easy, just make sure the rolled taquito is placed seam side down on the tray, and individual taquitos are not touching. This allows them to get evenly crunchy on all sides.

Bake at 450 for 15 minutes. Serve with salsa for dipping, and you're all set with a nutritious and delicious snack.

Just in case you need a tutorial on breakfast across the pond

Werner Herzog reads Where's Waldo

Werner Herzog, the esteemed and very strange film maker, reads a passage on Waldo, our friendly peripatetic man in stripes. You see, nothing is safe from the clammy paws of social theory and fatalist ideology.

More people with too much time on their hands

A story on the Globe and Mail website describes the newest craze: planking. For fuck's sake.

Are you getting pumped for the first ever Global Planking Day? More than 10,000 people who like to lie face down straight as a board sure are.

Planking, a phenomenon that started in Australia, is simple enough: “You must always lay face down, ensuring your face remains expressionless for the duration of the plank. Your legs must remain straight, and together with toes pointed.

Your arms must be placed by your side, held straight and fingers pointed,” according to the “Official” Planking Facebook page. The group also advises that you “must make it known that you are Planking” andd that “safety should always be considered.”
The real fun, however, seems to be photographing yourself planking on just about anything: on top of your fridge, on the sidewalk, on top of a bookshelf, on a pool table, on a store’s counter.

One man in Australia was charged after he was allegedly caught planking on top of a police car. Planking has become popular enough in Australia that police there are cracking down on it.

“Police, authorized officers and transport providers strongly discourage this type of behaviour around public transport and roads areas, and those caught will be prosecuted,” a police spokeswoman told the Herald Sun, an Australian newspaper. On Sunday, after police issued that warning, a man in his twenties fell to his death from a balcony railing while a friend was photographing him planking, the BBC reported. But it's not just a phenomenon Down Under. Enough people around the world are in to it that it’s more than 10, 000 devotees are organizing the first ever Global Planking Day on May 25.

If you’re wondering whether or not Canada will be represented on the big day, just ask these folks.

Check your head

Source: None via Holly on Pinterest

Quickie, shorty, baby

Many of you don't know her, but one of my very closest friends in Vancouver had her first baby today! Miranda (ok, you might know her as Jen K) brought a baby boy out of her body into the world. I have no more details, but I have sooooo much excitement and happiness for her, Mike, and David! YAHOOOO! Jen's going to be an amazing mom. Just you wait and see!

I'm drinking a margarita in celebration, possibly because it sounds a little like Miranda. Might get to visit the new tyke tomorrow if mom is up for it. Gosh, baby bums! Within reach! Can't wait!!! Oh, AND you'll get to meet them all at the wedding in August! So many babies will be there. Tarrooo tarray!

PS. A cow has apparently moved into our neighbourhood. Last year Dan the Hoarder bought a duck phone and it took us weeks to figure out where the quacking was coming from. Today the moment I heard an anguished "Moo-ooo" I was pretty certain I could blame the same culprit. But I haven't put my finger on it yet, and it still could be the moo of a suburban cow gone rogue. I'll keep you updated as I find out more. I love my neighbourhood!

Ireland 2011

Ireland trip March/April 2011

Here's a link to some photos from our recent trip to Ireland. Shane was best man at a friend's wedding in Dublin, then we chilled for a few days with his folks in Carlow. The following weekend was super busy with parties thrown by both of our families to celebrate our upcoming wedding. Totally fabulous to see everyone, a little odd to be at the centre of attention, and the kind of wonderful holiday that you still need a holiday to recover from once you're home. Hooray!