Tasty Eats…Shrimp Enchiladas with roasted sweet potatoes and parsnips…

So…Maybe this would make better fall fare.

but I live on the edge that way

The root veggies are really wonderful…and quite sweet and unexpected with the shrimp

and even on a summer day….they smell FABULOUS roasting in the oven.

Red onions, Parsnips and Sweet potatoes

mingled with olive oil, coriander, cumin and chile pepper

happily communing and roasting.

While they do that, we add a jalapeno (seeded), some garlic and cilantro to the

food processor I just use my blender…add some scallions,Roasted green chiles you know the little cans

and then some salsa verde or tomatillo sauce

This becomes a fresh…spicy little number

that we  warm  on the stove…

with some added cool and sophisticated  crema.

I love using mexican crema when I am making this kind of fare

It is smoother, sweeter, creamier than regular sour cream

There are a few different kinds we can buy in our grocery store.

Try it. Honestly…you will thank me.

Maybe even closer to a creme fraiche.

Then we take corn tortillas and quickly fry them in some hot oil

not to brown….just to blister 15 seconds at most.

But you can also omit the oil and just heat them in a hot skillet

Then… place some Queso Fresco in the middle of the tortilla….add the shrimp mixed with the roasted veggies…

roll

repeat.

add the extra sauce and cheese and crema on top

cook for 20…

and you are good to go

add a salad with some avocado

and a MUST have

for the kids

Jarritos….in a cold glass bottle.

There ya go.

It is delicious family consensus….give yourself some time to create it…
 

Do what I do….put on some GREAT latin jazz

and

enjoy the process…..

 

 

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The Recipe:

• 1 pound parsnips, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 12 ounces red-skinned sweet potatoes (yams; about 2 small), peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1/2 red onion, sliced (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 5 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 1 tsp cumin (if ya wanna do it right…..roast whole seeds then grind them)
• 1/2 tsp of corriander (I love this slightly lemony cumin taste)
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon coarse  salt
• 2 large garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 small jalapeño chile, halved, seeded
• 2 cups coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 cup chopped green onions (about 6)
• 1 4-ounce can diced green chiles (preferably fire-roasted), drained
• 2 cups purchased salsa verde or mild tomatillo salsa
• 3/4 cup crema mexicana, crème fraîche, or sour cream, divided
• 16 ounces cooked peeled deveined shrimp, coarsely chopped
• 12-15 5 1/2- to 6-inch-diameter corn tortillas
• 10 ounces crumbled queso fresco or feta cheese (about 2 cups)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°F.  Combine parsnips, sweet potatoes, and red onion in large bowl. Add spices , 2 tablespoons vegetable oil and salt; toss to coat. Transfer to prepared baking sheet (I like parchment paper or silpat on the cookie sheet). Roast vegetables until soft and browned in spots, turning occasionally, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool. DO AHEAD: Can be prepared 4 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.
Preheat oven to 375°F. With machine running, add garlic and jalapeño through feed tube of processor (or blender) and process until finely chopped. Add cilantro, green onions, and drained green chiles. Using on/off turns, process until coarse puree forms. Add salsa; process to blend. Transfer salsa mixture to large deep skillet. Add 1/2 cup crema and stir over medium-low heat just until warm (do not allow to boil). Remove from heat. Season salsa mixture to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and keep warm.
Measure 1 cup roasted vegetables; set aside. Transfer remaining vegetables to processor. Using on/off turns, process until coarsely choppedhem ( the blender purees them more…but it is all good). Transfer to large bowl. Add shrimp and toss to incorporate evenly. Season filling to taste with salt and pepper.
Heat remaining 3 tablespoons oil in medium skillet over medium-high heat. Working with 1 tortilla at a time, cook until just softened, about 15 seconds per side (do not allow to brown). Transfer tortillas to paper towels to drain.
Spread 1/2 cup salsa mixture over bottom of 15 x 10 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Place 1 tortilla on work surface; sprinkle generous 2 teaspoons crumbled cheese down center. Top with generous 1/4 cup roasted vegetable filling, arranging down center atop cheese. Roll up tortilla and place, seam side down, in prepared dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas, cheese, and filling. Scatter reserved 1 cup roasted vegetables over enchiladas. Spoon remaining salsa mixture over. Sprinkle with any remaining cheese; drizzle with remaining 1/4 cup crema (whisking if necessary to loosen enough to drizzle). Bake enchiladas until heated through, about 20 minutes.

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Anyone else think….

Summer should get

a dayum

speeding ticket??

Laughter IS the Best Medicine. I Want Some!!!

Carol Burnett & Friends Makes Me Laugh!

Now that the grandgirls are gone the house is so quiet and since their departure I’ve realized something.  I don’t laugh very often.  I know I used to, but what happened?  Children laugh approximately 400 times a day. Adults? Only 15 times.

What is up with that????

Laughter used to be an everyday thing for me but truthfully I’m not so sure that I’m hitting the 15 times mark.  
Are you?

Here’s a true confession. I used to be one of those people who would laugh at inappropriate times and that would make me laugh even more!  Remember the Mary Tyler Moore episode?

Does laughter slow down along with metabolism as we age or are things no longer funny like they used to be?  Or does the stress of life interfere with one's ability to laugh?

 Laughter is a terrific workout for the abdominals and let me tell you, I could use some laughter to help with this middle-age spread!

I love how coconuts are always smiling!

 Some of my funniest memories were really stupid things like turning a fan on a speaker in the midst of a meeting causing the speaker’s notes to scatter across the meeting room.  Or what about the time my oldest son took a laser pen to school on assembly day and shone the light on the principal 's forehead during the entire assembly (okay I should have been mad about that but it was too funny).  I couldn’t quit laughing at the other son’s graduation when during the ceremony he’d orchestrated the release of 30 beach balls during the program.  Once again the principal was mad but the entire graduating class had a blast and it made such a memory.  

What am I doing?  I can't swim!!

Last year when traveling in Italy, this same son decided to join a protest in downtown Rome having no idea what was going on, grabbed onto the banner, marching and yelling, “NO MORE LASAGNE! NO MORE LASAGNE!”  Now this made me laugh!  There he is in the blue shirt smiling at oldest son who is capturing the moment on camera!

No more lasagne! No more lasagne!

Do you laugh frequently?  What makes you laugh? Maybe we need to start a laughter movement! "LOTS MORE LAUGHTER! LOTS MORE LAUGHTER!"
I'm linking up with The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sundays. 

Reading Matters

The sheer excitement of choosing holiday reading as a child still comes to mind whenever I select which books to take on holiday. Armed with my well earned pocket money I usually had saved enough to purchase 2 or 3 Armada paperbacks to read whilst we were away. These cost 2/6 each each - a vast sum in those days. I remember reading my way through a lot of Enid Blyton books as a child - the Famous Five, the Secret Seven, Mr Galliano's Circus, the Malory Towers series etc., etc. Although her work was to come in for much criticism in later years I think that Enid Blyton's writing was responsible for my lifelong love of reading. Now many moons later the thought of what to read on holiday still keeps me pleasantly occupied some time before we go. Our recent holiday provided me with some enjoyable reading although only one title was gardening related.

For the long train journey down to Portsmouth I read my way through James Runcie's 'Sidney Chambers and the Peril of Death'. This is the first of an anticipated series of six books featuring clergyman and detective Sidney Chambers. The first book is set in 1953 and follows Sidney as he unravels several mysteries. There are several moral dilemmas for this gentle character and some in the background hints of ensuing romance. The book consisted of several short stories which took me by surprise as it was not obvious at first but several characters featured throughout. A very gentle and very English read I enjoyed it enough to have ordered the next title in the series from my local library. 

Over the sea to France where I had chosen a French related theme for the remainder of my reading. I started with Gregoire Delacort's 'The List Of My Desires'. This book has been a best seller in France since its publication in 2012 and has now been translated into English. The main character is Jocelyn. At the age of 47 she is running a haberdashery shop and spends some of her spare time running a sewing blog. She is reasonably content with her lot in life until an event of life changing implications comes her way. I'm not going to divulge any spoilers but there's an unexpected twist or two as the tale unravels. My only gripe about this book was that it was not long enough.

Next was Claire King's debut novel 'The Night Rainbow', the paperback version of which has landed on the bookshelves here very recently. Set in southern France its narrator is a five year old little girl Pea whose world has been turned upside down. It is revealed very early in the book that her father has died and this event coupled with another tragedy has a devastating effect on Peas's mother as she is left on her own to raise her family. There is much sadness in this book but the overriding emotions are of joy as Pea and her sister make a most unlikely friend who helps their mother to move forward. Pea has a great love of the outdoors and there are many references to the natural world seen through the eyes of a child. The fact that we briefly visited Provence last year helped to give this book a real sense of place. I thought that this was a beguiling read and was one of those books that I did not want to put down.

Finally my last holiday read which is still a work in progress. This is 'The Road to Le Tholonet: A French Garden Journey' by Monty Don.  It came out not long after the BBC series 'Monty Don's French Gardens' but its scope is wider than gardens and it explores what makes France unique. The author visits gardens along the way but as well as describing these gardens he makes many references to French culture. This is not a glossy book and some reviews have come down on the lack of photos in the book. There is no attempt to provide comprehensive illustrations or plans of the the gardens which might disappoint some people. Instead there is but a handful of black and white photos in the book some of these featuring a youthful Monty and friends. I found that this did not detract from the book in the least. It made me perhaps concentrate harder on the author's words as I developed a mental image of what the gardens looked like. I recently struggled to find a photo to illustrate a blog post and ended up including a photo that wasn't really relevant. The book reminded that words can paint pictures too, so perhaps if I'm brave I might post one or two photo free blog posts in the future. This is an ideal book for reading in bite sized chunks so perfect for a holiday.

All my books were on my faithful Kindle which has made transporting books on holiday so much easier and has put an end to the debate whether there is enough room in the suitcase to slip in an extra one. Now back at home I'm looking for more reading matter especially as the evenings seem to be getting shorter already. What have you read or will be reading on your holidays or if you are staying at home this year? All recommendations welcome.

Is the Decline of Camera Sales Good For Photographers?

I have read a lot lately about the declining sales of dslr and mirrorless cameras in favour of phone cameras that have boomed onto the markets in an undeniable fashion. Apparently the major camera manufacturers are scrambling to revise their targets and adjust their production and bottom lines to better reflect the current market trend. I predict that this trend will continue and that we will see a partial return to pre digital camera times when Joe Public carried small, easily portable cameras and the big cameras were left to "pros" and serious amateurs.

The cameras embedded into every smartphone are now good enough to produce nice results for the average person to get acceptable photographs without having to take an expensive course and be able to directly load the results to Facebook, Blogger, etc. Convenience always wins with the consumer public majority!

Could I now also predict a possible upturn for photography as a profession as more people decide that they would rather have a pro with a big camera take their wedding photos than Uncle John with his shiny new camera that has detachable lenses and a big flash simply because Uncle John ditched the inconvenient to carry around and use camera and now only has a Samsung S4 instead?

My theory is that as fewer people have dslr's they will come to rely on someone else, possibly the local high street professional, for their serious photography needs again. I surmise that this transition will take time to become apparent because it takes a while for these things to trickle through, but maybe the pendulum has peaked to the top of it's swing and is about to swing back.

Anybody fancy a quick look into their crystal ball and see if I'm right, or if maybe I'm just a hopeful dreamer? Haha!

Meanwhile back on Planet Earth...
;-)

Downtown Fredensborg - Deserted

Taken at 23:03 at night and totally deserted it's almost eerie, but great for taking photographs. At this time of night there was still enough light in the sky to balance nicely with the street lights and end up with a single shot containing a wide gamut of fairly even exposure. This sort of photography always requires a tripod as we have to deal with longish exposures and hand holding is impossible without getting a blurry and unusable photo. Tripod = sharp and clear. Get a good sturdy tripod, it'll do wonders for your photographs!

Most people shoot until the sun goes down and then they head indoors for dinner. I try to hang around for an hour or two (or more) after sunset to get this sort of light. It can make for long, cold, hungry evenings, but it gets pictures that very few people are willing or able to take simply because they lack the dedication and commitment to suffer a little inconvenience to get the photo they really want. But then maybe I'm a little too obsessive about these things? ;-)

Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6 VR, sturdy tripod, remote trigger, f10.0, 13.0s, 18mm, VR off, ISO 200, Auto White Balance, Matrix Metering, Aperture Priority, quick run through Dx0 Optics Pro 8, and then some adjustments in the curves tool of PSP X5.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Butterfly Convention