"flavorful friday"

Today I sent my mom a good morning text before she could send me one so I got to pick the adjective, I chose flavorful. Also, just a fair warning, I didn't do a whole lot today so this post is pretty much only going to be about food.

My dad reminded me about my avocado tool, I think I mentioned it in another post but I haven't gotten a lot of use out of it because we haven't been eating avocados as frequently and now that we're not in school we don't eat as many meals. Also the avocados haven't looked great and I'd rather buy them less ripe so that they'll last longer.

Anyways... I woke up and stretched again. This time I didn't do an organized yoga class (video) I just did some stretching and then a little ab workout to get my day started. Then I got dressed and went downstairs to have some coffee. I made egg sandwiches for myself and Soren along with some fruit and then we ate and he left for work. I left shortly after to stop at the store to get a few things for homemade Chipotle. Yes, I did make it. Finally. So now you guys won't have to hear about it!! (After this post)

When I got to his mom's house she was on a work call and Caboose (Soren's dog) started barking at me so I played outside with him for a while. He's a lab, husky, German shepherd mix, he's not that big. I'll actually include a picture of him. He's an awesome dog, high energy and loves fetch. He likes me because whenever I'm with him I play with him, even though he knows Soren throws the ball farther, he's just happy to chase after it. Soren loves his dog, he's his favorite part of coming home. They rescued him when he was a puppy about four years ago I think. Okay, here's a picture now I'm moving on. I took this on Monday, he's a very photogenic dog.

After it started to drizzle we went inside and I got the marinade ready for the chicken. The recipe said to marinate it for six hours but I think ours sat for about 4 hours, maybe a little longer. I was planning on running or something but I really wasn't feeling up to it and the fact that it was overcast just did not motivate me at all. I played on my computer, wrote in my journal, and did some online word searches. Soren's little brother, Baden, needed to cash his paycheck so I took him to the bank, that was my "exciting adventure" for the day. Caboose came along and the bank teller gave him a treat in the little tube that she sends you. I remember thinking that those were so cool when I was little. Probably because, like Caboose, I used to receive a treat.

When we got back home I started making the salsa and guacamole so that it would be cold when we assembled our bowls and burritos. I used this recipe for the salsa: http://allyscooking.com/2016/11/10/copycat-chipotle-pico-de-gallo/, I only ended up using three tomatoes because I didn't need to make too much and I used half of a jalapeno and 1/3 of a red onion. Personally, I think Chipotle can overdo it on the onion, I know my parents agree. I think the salsa tasted good, I don't know if it tasted "exactly like Chipotle" but it's also just a mixture of vegetables and salt so I don't know how you can really mess it up. The guacamole was really good. I followed this recipe: https://www.culinaryhill.com/chipotle-guacamole/ and I make guacamole a lot. I don't normally make it this way, I normally just mash up some avocados and throw in a scoop of salsa, some garlic salt, onion powder, salt, pepper, and lime juice but I wanted to be authentic so I made it "like Chipotle." Again, I just eyeballed the onion, I don't know how much I put in but it was tasty, it did taste really similar to the kind of guac you get at Chipotle, I would recommend this recipe.

Soren's mom helped me with the rice, I used this recipe: https://sweetandsavorymeals.com/chipotle-cilantro-lime-rice-copycat/, but instead of boiling the rice she just put it in her insta-pot, is that what it's called? Instant pot, oops, I Googled it. Once it was done I added the seasoning like the recipe said. I might have overdone it with the lime juice but I feel like other than that I was really spot on. It was super yummy and I think I'd make this rice again and eat it with other foods. I also followed a black bean recipe. I don't know what made me think to check and see if Chipotle even had a black bean recipe, I thought they probably just used black beans... Well I was wrong. I did not follow this recipe very well, I mean they tasted great but I just kind of free-for-alled it. This is the recipe I referenced: https://dinnerthendessert.com/chipotle-black-beans-copycat/. I just threw everything in a pot and let it simmer and I think they turned out fine. I didn't add the onion though, I didn't feel like cutting up a tiny bit of a white onion too and I thought we'd have enough in the salsa and guac. I also didn't add any lemon juice, I couldn't find the lemon.

Okay, now the moment you've all been waiting for... the chicken! The recipe says to grill it and then pan fry it but Soren's mom offered to just grill it. The lady who wrote the black beans recipe also wrote the chicken recipe, I think she's onto something. Here it is: https://dinnerthendessert.com/chipotle-chicken-copycat/. Did the chicken taste like Chipotle? No, not really. Was it yummy and flavorful? Yes, it was really good. First of all, I used a mix of thighs and breasts, it was accidental. Also, couldn't find distilled vinegar for the marinade so I used apple cider, I don't think anyone noticed. I also got Baden's approval, he's a pretty picky eater so that means something, he said that the chicken was "really good." I can't take all of the credit, Soren's mom grilled it. Once the chicken was ready I pulled out the shredded Monterey Jack (that's the kind of cheese Chipotle uses) and we assembled our food. Soren was the only one who wanted a burrito but that's okay, I heated up his tortilla (no, I didn't get one of those cool presses Chipotle has but maybe that would've sealed the deal...) and he assembled. I did watch him take his first bite which he really doesn't like but who cares, I cooked. He gave it a 9/10, that's really good in my book. It was really tasty and I'm not craving Chipotle anymore so I guess it worked. I would recommend trying this at home, it's totally worth it. In case anyone was wondering, Soren likes a burrito with white rice, black beans, chicken and cheese. When we're at school he'll order two of them, eat one for dinner and one for a snack later. Hey what can I say, he's a simple man. He knows what he likes, he also doesn't like salsa because it makes the burrito a little soggy or something, I don't know.

I don't know what we're doing tomorrow, I'm probably going to run when I get up. I can't make any promises but I probably will. I think it's supposed to be pretty nice weather too. We'll most likely do some yard work and yeah, that's it so far. Okay, have a good night and a good weekend!