Vegetarian Quesidillas

Back to camp! I am starting yet another summer as a site director at a day camp in my home town and I am pretty pumped about it! This week we have camp training and I am excited to see all my counselors and get ready for the summer.  Plus, it will be a nice week of getting back into the swing of things after a great last week at school.  

I have been doing a lot of work for camp, catching up with my friends from home (MNL!!!!) and looking into recipes that I want to make this summer! So far, I have been too tired/lazy to do much, but I promise some great things are on the way!

Bri and I have gotten into making quesadillas and these were really yummy! Quesadillas are a great way to use up leftover veggies or try a new kind of cheese.  Since we are both pretty big fans of both, this was an awesome dinner.  

Vegetarian Quesadillas

Ingredients:

whole wheat tortillas

4 green onions, chopped

1 red pepper, diced

1 avocado, sliced

cheese (we used a mix of pepper-jack and mexican blend)

Directions:
1. Heat a skillet over medium heat and place tortilla in skillet.  Sprinkle cheese on one half of the tortilla and top with the onions, avocado, and peppers.
2.  Let cook until cheese starts to melt, about 3 minutes, then fold over and flip and let cook for another 4 minutes.  Serve with salsa and maybe even some chips or sour cream!
Enjoy :)

Quinoa and Spinach Stuffed Tomatoes

Today I have so much to share! Bri and I have been trying out lots of fun vegetarian recipes and this one was a huge hit! Also, I just had my last day of student teaching and I am finally, officially done with school/college/madison.  This means that I am sad/excited/anxious/terrified/curious all at once.  

Student teaching was an amazing journey for me.  My experiences in a middle school and a high school helped to shape me into the person I am today and the teacher I want to be.  Teaching and learning to teach is really this huge self-discovery program.  I swear I have learned so much about myself through my experiences and I have developed such an awareness in regards to those around me.  I feel so different from when I started college and I know that I am ready to take on my own classroom.  I am excited that I have a job lined up and I can't wait to continue this journey on my own.  Up until now, I have had amazing cooperating teachers there to support and assist me.  I am so grateful for my cooperating teachers and I feel that I truly lucked out.  I know that they are a support system that I can continue to keep in touch with and I will.  I even made this sweet math clock as a thank you! 

Also, my friends going through the School of Ed with me have been so important to me these past two years.  I am not sure what I would have done without others who knew what I was experiencing and could empathize.  Plus, I have an amazing family and boyfriend who have always supported and encouraged me.  I am relieved to know that these people will always be there for me and will continue to support and encourage me through my first years of teaching and beyond.  I can't wait to see what next year has in store and I can't wait to share my experiences and ideas in regards to teaching and math here!  

Bri had been fantastic and I am so glad that he has stuck around in Madison for the past few weeks.  I love having him around and I can't wait to apartment search in Chicago with him.  I am really excited about moving in with him and starting the next chapter of our relationship!  Plus, we make some darn good dinners.  Like this one! Quinoa and Spinach Stuffed Tomatoes.  We made a yummy quinoa and pesto mixture, stuffed some fresh tomatoes, baked them, and had one amazing, healthy, vegetarian, and gluten free meal! 

Quinoa and Spinach Stuffed Tomatoes

Ingredients:

8-10 medium tomatoes

1 cup quinoa, cooked according to directions

4 tbsp pesto (your favorite)

3 cups fresh spinach

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

olive oil

salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 and prepare the tomatoes.  Cut a circle into the tops of the tomatoes and scoop out the insides.  Place into a 13 by 9 inch pan.

2. Make quinoa according to directions.  Set aside.

3. Place minced garlic and about 1 tbsp of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Toast garlic for a few minutes.  Add in spinach and saute until wilted.  Stir into the quinoa.  Add in the pesto and mozzarella and stir to combine.

4. Stuff tomatoes to the top with the quinoa mixture.  Sprinkle parmesan on top.  Cover the pan with tinfoil and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.  

Enjoy :)

Foodie Friends Friday: Chocolate Ice Cream and Donuts

This week, Foodie Friends Friday is back!  This week is all about Sweet Treats!  Just follow the rules and link up your favorite ice cream recipes and doughnut recipes in honor of National Chocolate Ice Cream Day and National Doughnut Day! Also, host favorites will be featured on Daily Dish!  This week I'm linking up Ice Cream in a Bag, Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Donuts, and Baked Pumpkin Spice Donuts.

Top 3:

1. Chocolate Chip Cookies with Ice Cream

2. Frog Eye Fruit Salad

3. Delicious Potato Salad

Most Clicks:

1. Frog Eye Fruit Salad

2. Broccoli Salad

3. Delicious Potato Salad

And Host Favorites! 

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Blueberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies--No Butter!

So I really like to bake and I haven't had a ton of time to do this this year because of teaching.  However, as the year winds down and we head into finals, I found myself with a little more time on my hands.  I think I also just felt more prepared in general when it came to teaching.  I have grown so much more confident and comfortable as the year has gone by and so last week, after ensuring I was ready with my review activities for my students, I made some cookies!

Also, as the year winds down, I have been wanting to go back and visit middle school.  So, yesterday when I did not have any finals to sit through, I drove over to the middle school and visited my students and cooperating teacher.  It was so wonderful to see all of them and it put this huge smile on my face.  As students entered the classroom they looked at me, looked slightly confused, and then smiled.  They all remembered me and wanted to know if I was back to teach them.  I explained that as a student teacher you do half your teaching in middle school and then half in high school and that now I was in high school.  They were still very excited to see me and I hung around to help out during class.  I also got expressions like, "Where did you go?", "Hey look, I'm taller than you now..." and, "How are you? Where are you gonna teach next year?"  It was so cool to chat with them.  They were the bunch that really taught me my first lessons about teaching and classroom management.  Plus, it was great to see the 8th grade team.  This group of teachers, especially my cooperating teacher, helped me to learn so much about myself, teaching, and working as a team.

After my visit, I returned to high school to get some work done and then it was back home, a nice 6 mile run, and then dinner with Bri.  Yesterday was such a great day and it makes me so excited to get grounded in my new school next year.  I can't wait to have those experiences every year as I meet new students, teachers, and make connections.

But back to those cookies, I made some Blueberry White Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies and I used Coconut Oil instead of butter! The result was one fantastic tasting cookie. I shared them with the teachers at high school and everyone was a big fan.  Plus, they were shocked to learn that there was not a single stick of butter in the batter!

Blueberry White Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients:
2/3 cup virgin coconut oil
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup dried blueberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flours, oats, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
3. In a large bowl, beat coconut oil with brown sugar until well combined.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla.  Slowly mix in the dry ingredients until just combined.  Stir in the blueberries and white chocolate chips.
4. Form 1 tbsp - 2 tbsp sized balls of cookie dough and place on prepared cookie sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.  Cookies will start to brown around the bottom.  Let cool.

Enjoy :)