Easy Chicken Mole!

Cinco de Mayo is coming up.  If I remember my Spanish classes from fourth grade, the fifth of May is when the underdogs (the Mexican forces) beat out France's invasion troops.  Or something like that.  I figure on the first day of May they were in the process of beating the French, so May 1-5th can be a time to eat yummy Mexican food.  Also, I forgot that May 1st is May Day and even if I did, I couldn't think of a food to celebrate rebirth anyway.

So here is my Easy Chicken Mole Recipe.  I think it would serve around eight if I made it correctly.  Tonight I had twice as much sauce as necessary so I'm going to freeze the rest.  I used three boneless, skinless breasts and it made about four servings (two dinner size, two lunch size).

Easy Chicken Mole (Pretend that I was able to add the accent, please.)

2 Tbs olive oil                      1 can diced tomato

1 onion, chopped                  1 chopped bell pepper

3 cloves garlic, minced        2 chipotles in adobo, chopped

2 tbs chili powder                1 can chicken broth 

1 tsp cumin                           2 tbs peanut butter

½ tsp cinnamon                    2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

1 (5 pound) chicken, cut into pieces, or chicken of choice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

As you're chopping everything, read ahead and realize that you're going to run everything through the blender anyway- so don't bother to make everything uniform like I did.  My arthritis-y hands always seem to suffer due to my perfectionism/inattention to detail. 

Heat oil in sauté pan over medium heat.  Add onion and sauté.  Add garlic, spices, and continue to sauté until onions are soft.  Add remaining ingredients except for the chicken.  "Accidentally" drop a few chocolate chips onto the counter.  Convince yourself that it would be sacrilegious to put it back in the bag or into the pot.  It would ruin the ingredients ratio.  Or something. Simmer 10 minutes.

Use immersion blender to smooth the mix.

Sear chicken in a heavy-bottomed skillet.  If you're cooking skinless chicken breasts like I was, don't bother, I didn't.

Add to casserole dish, cover with sauce, and braise for 45 minutes to an hour.

I served ours with brown rice and Hungry Girl margaritas.  I never know what kind of veggies to serve with Mexican food.  I kinda suck at side dishes in general. Lime juice is healthy, right?  Besides, I had a nice big salad for lunch.  I can't say the same for the hubby but his body is used to a lack of greens.

What are your go-to side dishes?

How very domestic of me!

Every once in awhile I have a moment.  I realize that I'm married and I realize that I'm a grown-up.
This, as you can imagine, sucks.
The grown-up part... not the married part!

I love you, Kevin!

Nah, yesterday I just was very aware of how very domestic we are.  We bought a tomato cage, we went to costco, we bought groceries and commented on the price of ground beef.  We had croque monsieurs and salad for dinner.  I'm not sure if French sandwiches are domestic or not, but I thought I would mention it.  Also, they were quite delicious.  Ham + Bread + Swiss + Dijion Mustard= Delicious.  Did I mention it's cooked in a butter coated skillet?  Damn, I love the French.

I digress.

The thing about domestic is that while it's a bit shocking when you remember that you're twenty-three years old.  And then you sit down on your couch with your husband and your hive-covered dog (poor thing, he's better now), and then you realize how comfortable domestic is.  Domestic is safe.  Domestic is supportive.  Domestic doesn't flare up my lupus.

I have a friend who also has lupus.  She's single and she loves to go out drinking and dancing.  That just sounds exhausting, doesn't it? To each his own, I suppose.  When we go out it usually involves a bar with chairs and the expectation that you can wear jeans and tennis shoes.  And we're home by 11... at the latest! We love a good time but it's nice wake up at a decent hour the next morning and not need to nurse a hangover. 

Next weekend is the grand opening of Old Folsom- there's a Johnny Cash cover band and tons of sales.  We're  going to hit up some antique shops.  Maybe I'll find a new early addition book to add to my collection. It's going to be off the hizzie!

If I had been born in a different decade.... *swoon*

Where do you lie on the spectrum of domestic to party animal?  Are there certain aspects of yourself/your life that has led you to prefer that lifestyle?

Menu planning!

I just love being done with the stressful part of school, I love getting back to cooking!

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Thank goodness for port!

So, I ran out of Vicodin which limits my pain killer options.  Turns out having a car accident, bronchitis, sciatica, and arthritis (all one after the other and/or together) really demands narcotics.  This means that I'm coping with my current terrible arthritis pain by having a glass of port and watching Grey's Anatomy.  In related news, Kevin will probably start getting a headache soon.  He just can't handle his port... it certainly isn't the mind-numbing, terrible drama that I enjoy for some reason.

I miss the original cast.  I miss Georgie.
I slept horridly last night- every time I switched positions I hit/moved/laid on something that was achey.  So it woke me up.  It sucked. I was cranky today.
I went to the doctor today to discuss that ten-day issue that I blogged about last.  Except now it was a twelve-day issue.  *face palm*  I was in the doctor's office for over an hour before I saw the actual physician.      I had reserved a half hour of my day to the doctor's appointment with a half hour afterwards for either more appointment or getting labs done.  My doctor told me basically that it was a hormone imbalance.  No questions.  No sympathetic ear regarding my fears of miscarriage or my clotting disorder.  She filled out a lab slip for me and sent me out the door with a brief apology for being "late" to see me.  At what point does late stop being late and turn into something I can be angry about it?  15 minutes?  30?  An hour?  Seriously?  Seriously.
Meredith Grey says "seriously" a lot.  It's one of the things I like about her.  That and her admittance that bright and shiny is hard to pull off when there's lots of dark and twisty going on.
I like that kind of honesty in a television show.

I'm back, with a pep-talk!

WARNING: This post will have medical issues in it related to my lupus. This is a lupus blog, after all. If you start getting the feeling that this is TMI, you can always not read it. That's the power of self-determination.

I know I said I was done with my thesis and was going to write more.  I'm a bad kid. After I finished my abstract I still needed to hunt down signatures right in the middle of a hectic time at work. Insert a couple busy weeks between my last post and now.  Did I mention all of my physical therapists were out for those weeks too?  Craziness.

Plus, lots has been going on with me in the health department. A couple weeks ago (during that signature hunting, busy internship time) my throat and glands got super swollen. I couldn't drink water. It was intense. Then the throat calmed down and I started hacking up a lung. I sounded super sick, all the time- including at night. Poor Hubby. I was really tired, but my abs got a great workout. My doctor said I had bronchitis. I went through tons of cough drops trying to sit in a courtroom without my hacking interrupting things. Thankfully, it now seems to mostly have cleared up. Right as my cough was improving a bit, I got a double ear infection. According to my PCP, people with compromised immune systems (Hey-o!) tend to get one infection after another when they get sick. Entrance stage right some prescription ear drops. Today, my throat is a tiny bit sore and there's still some lingering phlegm, but that's no longer my biggest complaint. Hopefully, the reign of the infections is over.

Now, the biggest frustration of the past ten days: I have been bleeding, heavily, non-stop. It started out seemingly normal, and then got crazy. Let me emphasize: TEN DAYS... and COUNTING! I won't go into the details of flow, appearance, etc., but it definitely wasn't normal.  Plus, my usual first day of abdominal cramps and lower back pain also stretched itself well into a week.  It's the worst thing ever.

People with lupus get lots of fun "add-ons" with their disease. For example, I have antiphospholipid syndrome, a thing which means I clot too much. So, I take baby aspirin. Sometimes. This can cause issues for women. I'll come back to this.

Autoimmune disorders are also one of the top ten reasons for menorrhagia- or heavy menstrual bleeding. However, from my brief research on that condition, it is usually a regular experience for women on a month-
to-month basis. Let me emphasize that this has never happened to me before.

I've been googling a lot with this going on. My PCP couldn't get me in until Monday and it is a bit worrisome. So, back to the antiphospholipid syndrome. This is a common condition that people with lupus have. The likelihood of increased clotting puts women with lupus at an increased risk of miscarriage.

Yes, it's a scary word.  Miscarriage.  To clarify- we're not working on starting a family at the moment, I don't know if I was pregnant or not, and it's still unsure of whether or not this bleeding thing is a miscarriage.  But mostly I just want this thing to be finished.  

So here's the pep-talk:  Sometimes, life is one terrible thing after another.  Car accident.  Whiplash.  Bronchitis.  Ear Infection. Feeling like you're bleeding to death through your vagina (graphic, I know... I'm terrible, sorry...).  These things suck.  These things also pass.  What doesn't pass, if your don't let it, is joy- my husband, my dog who can detect sadness, a purpose-driven life, nephews and nieces, and more.   It can be hard to focus on those when you feel like you can't catch a break- but I encourage you to try.  I don't want to be that person who lingers only on the bad or who buys a McChicken Mini Meal and devours it, while crying, in her car in front of Walgreens. Hey... no judgement in blog land- and you would cry too if you realized that the purchase of a third box of tampons was necessary for a period.  

So there it is, readers: Don't let joy pass, it's there- you're probably just too discouraged and whiney to notice it.  Hang in there, It's time to work towards the top of the mountain again.

Today I'm going to go for a walk with Spartacus and Kevin and enjoy the California wildflowers.  Hopefully more blog posts will come soon.

Guess where I have been!

Ever since this:

I haven't been great about blogging.  I've been a bad little blogger.
I'm not going to go into all the details of why- just think "ow" and then remember that I'm a graduate student with a five chapter thesis to write.
Just now, I sent my final chapter to my thesis advisor for comments.  I've hired a formatter (a decision made when I was much more panicky about my thesis/internship/schoolwork) so I don't have to spend hours checking margins, making sure I'm using the right level of headings, and formatting the charts.  All that is left for me to do is an abstract.  Which is a page long.  I'm so close to being finished it's ridiculous.
This weekend is for celebrating Kevin's birthday- good food, Cold War Kids concert, booze, and a nice hotel room booked through my favorite hotel chain: Joie de Vivre.

Cold War Kids is one of our favorite bands.  We're hip like that.  Give them a listen, learn about them, love them.
I'm also looking forward to blogging a bit more.  Blogging is cathartic and relieves stress.  Plus, I have practically two fans.  I can't disappoint!
Time for bed for the evening.  Just wanted to share my return to the blogosphere!   Is that how you spell blogosphere?  Is that a word?
Okay, good night!

Yoga for Wine Lovers