Whole thirty fajita stuffed sweet potatoes

INGREDIENTS

2 sweet potatoes

½ red bell pepper, sliced

½ yellow bell pepper, sliced

½ green bell pepper, sliced

½ onion, sliced

1 chicken breast

3 tablespoons mozzarella cheese, divided

Olive oil

For the fajita seasoning:

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

PREPARATION

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F/200˚C.

2. Using a fork, poke holes down one side of each sweet potato. Microwave for 3-5 minutes, or until softened. Let sweet potatoes cool before handling.

3. Next, cut sweet potatoes in half and carve out the centers, leaving a small rim around the outside of each sweet potato.

4. Place sweet potatoes on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper. Add the bell peppers and onion to the other side of the baking sheet. Drizzle in olive oil.

5. Next, mix the fajita seasoning ingredients together. Season the sweet potatoes and veggies.

6. Add chicken breast on top of the veggies, drizzle in olive oil and add additional seasoning.

7. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until chicken reaches 165˚F/75˚C. Let cool for a few minutes.

8. Shred the chicken with 2 forks and mix together with the veggies. Fill up the sweet potatoes and top with mozzarella cheese.

9. Bake for 5 more minutes, or until cheese is melted.

10. Garnish with your favorite toppings (we used guacamole and cilantro).

11. Enjoy!

Enjoy!

Still waiting for the right opportunity

I seem to have skipped all of October. Here is a summary, more jobs to apply for rather than just sending out resumes, leading to several interviews which are continuing into November. The highlight-a small firm in Mankato, but I'm starting to let that go as I was hoping to have heard by now... Andy keeps reminding me that no news is good news.

I haven't gotten tired of reading yet, seems I'm trying to make up three years of not reading for fun in a few months! I ahve found some new authors I really like and it takes my mind of the lack of success on the job search front. Looking into some volunteer opportunities now, but I'm hesitant to start anything that will be too ongoing because so many of the jobs I'm looking at will require a move.

Sad news, Amber is moving to CA and Kristin is moving to TX. Now it seems like it would be easy to leave MPLS and start over somewhere.

What I'm reading...

The following include the books I've read since August 1.

1. Suite Francaise, Ireme Nemirovsky
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K.Rowling
3. The Prodigal Summer, Barbara Kingsolver
4. The Sunday Philosophy Club, Alexander McCall Smith
5. The Robber Bride, Margaret Atwood
6. In the Company of the Courtesan, Sarah Dunant
7. The Bean Trees, Barbara Kingsolver
8. Gods Behaving Badly, Marie Phillips

I am currently reading. . .

• The Audacity of Hope, Barack Obama
• Thomas Jefferson,
• The Bone Setter's Daughter, Amy Tan

Thank you for taking the time to consider my resume. . .

So today was mainly a "job hunt" day. I looked at over 100 firms. Literally. There were no new jobs on the usual sites, so I went to lawmoose.com and looked at the top 100 firms in Minnesota. I looked at them all. All 100! I must have sent my resume to 25 of the small/mid-sized firms on the list that I thought would fit me. The worst part is that of the 100 firms, only one was hiring an Associate Attorney with 0-3 years of experience. Actually printed out a coverletter and resume for that one!

Everyone around me is so positive and supportive--assuring me that I'll get a job--"no problem." It is hard to see where that job is going to come from. If malpractice insurance wasn't so expensive, I'd hang out a shingle and strike out on my own.

Too much zuccini? Try ratatouille

Zuccini season is here, and if you, or anyone you know have grown zuccini this year, you probably have mor than you know what to do with. As part of my search for balance, I have been spending more time in the kitchen. I love to cook, and rarely had the luxury of time during law school. Here is a recipie I've come up with that will get rid of some of your extra zuccini--I've already made it twice and it has been a great success.

Slice two medium/large onions. Heat 2T of EVOO in a dutch oven over medium heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the onions and some salt and sautee until the onions start to brown (about 6 minutes). Slice 2-3 medium potatoes (I used new red potatoes), and 2-3 medium zuccini. Once the onions have started to brown remove from pan and set aside. Add 1T EVOO to pan, allow to heat, and add the potatoes, salt and pepper, allow to cook until they begin to look translucent and soften, about 8 minutes. Remove potatoes from pan. If needed, add 1T EVOO and sautee zuccini adding about 1 tsp crushed red pepper, 1/2 tsp rubbed thyme, and S&P. Sautee until they begin to brown, about 8 minutes, remove from pan. Add 1 c. white wine to pan (and pour some for yourself, you have been slaving over a hot stove!) and deglaze, scraping up the brown bits. Add one large (32 oz ?) can of crushed tomatoes in sauce and 1/2 cup chicken or vegitable stock. Bring to a simmer. Add 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper, 1 tsp each thyme, rosemary and oregano (rubbed). Cook until reduced by half, looking for a thick consistency. Spoon the sauce out of the pan, leaving a small amount on the bottom. Place reserved onions in the bottom of the pan, then layer potatoes and zuccini, smooth over remaining sauce. Squeeze 1/2 lemon over the top and sprinkle on one cup of feta cheese. Cut a sheet of parchment paper to fit just over the ratatouille (this will allow moisture to evaporate out and prevent the top from burning) Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and enjoy. Serves 6-8 as a side dish.

In search of balance

While I may pretend otherwise, the real purpose of this blog is to help fill time while I go through the post-graduate anguish called looking for a job. The irony is that I used to be a job counselor, "job search" is what I did--now it seems like such a chore.

I am lucky, and I know that. I have marketable skills. A legal degree for one. It is still too easy to be down on the whole prospect. I took the Minnesota State Bar Exam in July, and the results will be out in October, at which point I will be sworn in the the Minnesota Bar and officially be an "attorney." Between now and then, I am virtually unemployable. For those employers looking for any attorney now, I have nothing to offer, I can't practice until October and such a patient employer would be my dream come true. For other positions, especially part time positions that I might use to fill my time, I'm over qualified. On top of that, having taken the bar is tantamount to saying "hi, I'd like a job now, but in October I'll be an attorney the first "real job" I can get I'm outta here." So, like I said unemployable.

I have been told that this time off is a blessing. That I should relax, try to enjoy myself, savor the freedom from responsibility. These well meaning advisers don't truly understand my predicament. See, I thrive on being over-exerted. At least that is what I have been telling myself for the last 28 years as I try to be everything to everyone--and so far it has worked. Now, with time to relax, I find myself anxious, distracted and breaking out as if I were going through puberty again. One friend tells me that its the "law school toxins coming out" and while she may have a point, I think that it's my need to keep busy trying to tell me to get going.

I did relax for a bit, immediately after the bar exam my husband and I took a trip to Washington D.C. and, aside from the Supreme Court being closed for "modernization" we had a great time. Here is proof:

Me "having fun" at a closed supreme court, and a fantastic dinner at Zola.

I wasn't home for long before "what-do-I-do-now-itis" set in. For a while, keeping busy was easy. My husband and I recently purchased a house in Minneapolis, built in 1905, and there are no shortages of projects. I painted the sitting room on the main floor. After deciding I loved the color, I painted the living room as well. There. . . much better. Having already painted the dining room that left only the kitchen on the first floor that had yet to be painted. Unfortunately, it only made the kitchen look even worse. Well, there was only one thing to do, paint the kitchen. Hubby got a gift card to Menard's and I promptly spent it (with his permission) on ceiling and wall paint for the kitchen. There, that is done.

Then there was the matter of the "garden." I use quotes because I'm not sure that my rectangle of dirt filled with unproductive plants can really be called a true garden. The former owners built a slightly raised garden in the south west corner of the yard, unfortunately it is shaded by a giant maple and what we have begun to call "weed trees" for most of the day. Nevertheless, to make up for my neglect early on I am taking a more nurturing approach, watering consistently and weeding more thoroughly. I have plans to move the garden to the northwest corner of the yard after the first frost, it gets full sun for most of the day.

Two weeks into my "break" it has become painfully clear that I need to find an outlet to occupy myself, and you are now reading the result. Tune in to learn how I keep myself busy by gardening, cooking, decorating, reading, exploring and otherwise occupying my mind.

Thanks for checking out my blog.