Monday, May 5, 2014

Welcome, May!

The beautiful month of May brings . . .

a much needed break from school. The girls will be done in less than two weeks, and Ryne has finished or will finish most his subjects in the next couple of weeks. Just don't ask me how we're doing on science.

a much needed break from the busy, busy schedule of March and April. Remember my day in the life? I haven't had a Thursday (or any other day of the week, except Sundays) that relaxed since then! I spent my whole spring break week organizing our basement/storage room, and then it was just one activity or event after another. So many fun times (and a few bleh), but just too many of them!

I don't do well with busy-stress, and I fell back into some bad habits the last fews weeks, including a few too many stops for sugary coffee or other forms of caffeine. Plus, I only got in half the exercise I had been doing. Amazing how it can take months to lose 5 pounds but just a few weeks to put it on.

Cinco de Mayo. But before I start getting all healthy again, I figured I'd go out with a bang. And it was worth it! We actually had our Mexican-themed dinner a day early, so now I can tell you that your celebration of Mexico's victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla (can you tell what we studied in history last week?) will not be complete unless you make Pioneer Woman's Tres Leches Cake right now. I want to know how I could have grown up in Texas and never had this amazing (and fairly easy) dessert before. It is a new family favorite.

 photo TresLeches1.jpg

Even better, if you're really going to do Cinco de Mayo right, you must try these Chicken Enchiladas Suizas too. The recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, Colorado Collage, but I was able to find the recipe online here.

 photo EnchiladasSuiza1.jpg

These enchiladas have been a family favorite for years and are perfect for entertaining. I typically serve them with black beans and some sauteed squash. Sadly, the recipe does not meet my standards for easy weeknight fare. There's a lot of chopping and shredding involved (although once I learned this tip for shredding chicken, life became much easier), so I generally save it for Sunday dinners.

Therefore, if you're trying to make a last minute decision on what to have for dinner tonight, and you're feeling the Cinco de Mayo spirit, I totally give you permission to skip the enchiladas this time and just make the cake. As in eat cake for dinner. Tell your family I said, "You're welcome." ; )

2 comments:

  1. I love that cake!
    So glad you're winding down...I'm looking forward to the month of June, when things wind down for us. : )
    And I may just make that cake then!

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    1. I'm sure this month is especially busy for you since you have a graduation coming up -- can't believe it!

      Just don't tell me when you're making the cake, or I might show up on your doorstep. ; )

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