Day 5 of 365:

Today is my last day of winter break :( I really liked this stay at home mom thing I've got going here. I do miss my students but I do not miss waking up so early!

Today's pin is a recipe I came across a while ago and it sounded like something my hubby would love. With all this cold weather, we haven't been going out to dinner much and I'm trying to cook more. This recipe made it on my to-do list because it looked delicious and easy. The pin originates from Double the Deliousness. You can get to that blog by clicking the link below.

Mexican Stuffed Shells

2 cups chicken breast, cooked and shredded (I sprinkled my chicken with taco seasoning and olive oil before baking)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 green onions, diced
2 bell peppers, diced (I use one green and one red)
1 1/2 blocks (12 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 can diced tomatoes with chilies (Rotel)
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 cup picante sauce
1 package pasta shells, cooked al dente
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (sharp or colby jack work well)

Cook pasta shells until al dente (you don't want them too soft they will cook some more in the oven). Drain and set aside.

Mix chicken, beans, onions and bell peppers in a large bowl. Set aside.

Beat cream cheese in electric mixer until soft and smooth. Slowly add the diced tomatoes while continuing to mix. Add the cumin and mix.

Combine the cream cheese mixture with the chicken mixture and stir until well combined.

Pour the picante sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking pan. Stuff shells generously with filling and place on top of picante sauce in pan.

Sprinkle cheese over top of shells and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

This recipe made 24 STUFFED shells. I was very full after 4. In the future I will make the entire recipe but freeze 1/2 before cooking. It would make an excellent week night meal. I think that this recipe was pretty time consuming and had a lot of steps: cook chicken, shred chicken, cook noodles, stuff noodles, then bake. I could not make this dish on a work night unless I had already cooked the chicken ahead of time.

I served my shells with sour cream although the cream cheese makes them creamy enough. The sides were a garden salad and spanish rice. After the first bite the hubby was asking for seconds. Definitely a success!












***21 Day Organization Challenge Update***
 

Day 5 is purse. I am glad this is early on in the list because my purse is a mess all the Christmas shopping and returning. I have a crazy amount of receipts and coupons.

All the junk I had in my purse



My purse by Thirty One

I did the following to organize my purse:
- Threw out expired coupons and old receipts
- Got rid of my "envelope system" of organizing coupons and used an old coupon organizer I found while organizing my coat rack and glove/hat basket. I only keep coupons that I plan on using in there. I use Jill Cataldo's "clipless" system. Check it out here: http://www.supercouponing.com/clipless.html
- Got rid of 3 pens (I don't know why I had 5 to begin with)

After organizing

Just got news I'm off school tomorrow!! Yeah for cold days!  I hate that we will have to make it up but I'm not ready to go back...

Talk to you tomorrow!