Hello All!
I apologize for being radio silent so much in the past 6 or so months but I am proud to announce that I am graduate student and my journey to becoming a Student Affairs professional is beginning!
With that being said, I have moved to Lincoln, NE to begin my master's program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for the fall 2015 semester. I am going to try and keep up with the blogging more so because I would love to tell all about my graduate school adventures in Lincoln because this is the first time I am living outside the state of IL where I have lived my entire life. I will also love to share the recipes I find out here to make because I do love cooking and now that I have my own kitchen I find that I am able to cook for my own!
I moved to Lincoln on July 27th, which was an adventure in itself because the weather was treacherous, among other things. I was also fortunate to have my parents here to help me with my moving and stay with me for a couple of days to get me settled in and not to mention to cook for me (which I am not complaining about.) My parents officially left on the 30th in the early afternoon, it was kind of an emotional goodbye because I also have not ever been this far away from my parents. I did my undergrad work at Illinois State University (GO REDBIRDS!) so I was only 2 hours away. Now in Lincoln, I am 7 hours away and 500 miles with a whole state separating us as well. So Thursday was the first day all on my own here.
I've spent my time not at my apartment because I can get cabin fever easily and because it was blistering hot and since I have to pay electricity, I figured I would spend it where they have free air conditioning and internet. I will not get internet until August 7th (if I am lucky.) I have alternated between different Starbucks and Panera locations and obviously making purchases too so I don't feel like a completely horrible person.
So last night was another night by myself in the apartment and actually got to make my first meal myself, go me! My mom was super awesome and did some meal prep for me because she just wants to make sure I eat (it's like they don't even know eating is my favorite hobby!) She prepped chicken and steak that was already pre-seasoned so all I would have to do is defrost it and then cook it. I wanted to embellish it a little so I went to the grocery store because all I have in my fridge is: leftover rice, butter, fruit, eggs, jelly, more fruit, carrots, celery, more fruit, and more fruit. I was in the mood for tacos so I had to buy the proper ingredients.
The steak was already pre-cut and pre-seasoned. So I had to buy tortillas, taco seasoning, shredded cheese, tomatoes, cilantro, limes, and red onions. It kind of turned out to be a blend of steak tacos/steak fajitas. I sauteed the steak with sliced red onions, sliced green peppers, and a little diced tomatoes. While that cooked, I prepared a little bit of pico de gallo. I felt like an idiot for forgetting to buy jalepeno but it was an oversight on my part. I added roughly a teaspoon of taco seasoning when steak began to brown and let that continue to cook and then bring it down to a simmer. I finished my pico but I wanted a spicy kick to it because I LOVE spicy food so I added a bit of sriracha to it. I heated the mini corn tortillas in the microwave (probably would have been better on the stove top but I was hungry.) I could smell everything come together and you have no idea how excited I was to eat. I plated my three tortillas and added the filling, topped with pico de gallo, and a sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese. Voila! I had some instant steak tacos! Well, not exactly instant, but they didn't take too long to make. Now you can do the same thing with chicken or pork even depending on your protein preference.
Tonight, I am going to attempt to make jalepeno lime chicken on a bed of rice with a side of potatoes. The flavor palette isn't necessarily the right kind but we will see how this goes!
Check back in with you all tomorrow where the food cooking adventures continue!
I apologize for being radio silent so much in the past 6 or so months but I am proud to announce that I am graduate student and my journey to becoming a Student Affairs professional is beginning!
With that being said, I have moved to Lincoln, NE to begin my master's program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for the fall 2015 semester. I am going to try and keep up with the blogging more so because I would love to tell all about my graduate school adventures in Lincoln because this is the first time I am living outside the state of IL where I have lived my entire life. I will also love to share the recipes I find out here to make because I do love cooking and now that I have my own kitchen I find that I am able to cook for my own!
I moved to Lincoln on July 27th, which was an adventure in itself because the weather was treacherous, among other things. I was also fortunate to have my parents here to help me with my moving and stay with me for a couple of days to get me settled in and not to mention to cook for me (which I am not complaining about.) My parents officially left on the 30th in the early afternoon, it was kind of an emotional goodbye because I also have not ever been this far away from my parents. I did my undergrad work at Illinois State University (GO REDBIRDS!) so I was only 2 hours away. Now in Lincoln, I am 7 hours away and 500 miles with a whole state separating us as well. So Thursday was the first day all on my own here.
I've spent my time not at my apartment because I can get cabin fever easily and because it was blistering hot and since I have to pay electricity, I figured I would spend it where they have free air conditioning and internet. I will not get internet until August 7th (if I am lucky.) I have alternated between different Starbucks and Panera locations and obviously making purchases too so I don't feel like a completely horrible person.
So last night was another night by myself in the apartment and actually got to make my first meal myself, go me! My mom was super awesome and did some meal prep for me because she just wants to make sure I eat (it's like they don't even know eating is my favorite hobby!) She prepped chicken and steak that was already pre-seasoned so all I would have to do is defrost it and then cook it. I wanted to embellish it a little so I went to the grocery store because all I have in my fridge is: leftover rice, butter, fruit, eggs, jelly, more fruit, carrots, celery, more fruit, and more fruit. I was in the mood for tacos so I had to buy the proper ingredients.
The steak was already pre-cut and pre-seasoned. So I had to buy tortillas, taco seasoning, shredded cheese, tomatoes, cilantro, limes, and red onions. It kind of turned out to be a blend of steak tacos/steak fajitas. I sauteed the steak with sliced red onions, sliced green peppers, and a little diced tomatoes. While that cooked, I prepared a little bit of pico de gallo. I felt like an idiot for forgetting to buy jalepeno but it was an oversight on my part. I added roughly a teaspoon of taco seasoning when steak began to brown and let that continue to cook and then bring it down to a simmer. I finished my pico but I wanted a spicy kick to it because I LOVE spicy food so I added a bit of sriracha to it. I heated the mini corn tortillas in the microwave (probably would have been better on the stove top but I was hungry.) I could smell everything come together and you have no idea how excited I was to eat. I plated my three tortillas and added the filling, topped with pico de gallo, and a sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese. Voila! I had some instant steak tacos! Well, not exactly instant, but they didn't take too long to make. Now you can do the same thing with chicken or pork even depending on your protein preference.
Tonight, I am going to attempt to make jalepeno lime chicken on a bed of rice with a side of potatoes. The flavor palette isn't necessarily the right kind but we will see how this goes!
Check back in with you all tomorrow where the food cooking adventures continue!
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