First day of EMPLOYMENT!

I am finally employed! I work for a company called Vanguard who contracts out employees to hospitals...in my case, Methodist Richardson Hospital. Methodist Richardson is only a 15 minute drive north. And it's a reverse commute - bonus.
Today was orientation. When the president of the hospital came in to talk about missions and visions and values and whatever and introduce himself and his background, he said that he worked in Utah. After he was done presenting and welcomed questions, I asked him where he worked in Utah. He worked at Davis Hospital in Layton and when I told him I grew up in Roy, he said, "Shut up. My in-laws are from Roy." The president of the hospital married a woman who graduated from Roy High School in 1985. She's a little younger than my parents, so they don't recognize her. But the CEO explained that if you drive up the main street in Roy and turn left at the light once you get to the airport, you'll find his in-law's house. We talked about Snowbasin, Powder Mountain, Burger Bar, and BYU vs. Utah all in front of everyone else at orientation. It was pretty funny. He was more excited about it than I was, I think.
When orientation was over at 2, I met my supervisor in the diet office. She knew before I got there that I went to the same high school as the wife of the president of the hospital, and as we walked around campus and she introduced me to everyone else, some of them knew as well. Such a small world, and an even smaller hospital.
Perhaps going to Roy High School did more for my career than I ever thought it would...automatic in with the CEO? I'll take it.

R, R, R, O Y, A, A, A, L, S. R O Y, A L S....ROOOYYY-ALS!

This week's Menu

Thought I'd share some recipes I used this week! We had some pretty tasty, healthy dinners...

Sunday: FISH TACOS

We used barramundi, but I also like to use tilapia. I make a spice rub for the fish with 1 T olive oil, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp chili powder, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, and usually a few dashes of garlic salt. I let the fish marinate in the rub while I sliced up a little yellow pepper, red pepper, and red onion. While the fish cooked, I boiled black beans with some diced onion, bell pepper, a clove of pressed garlic, and some spices. And I sauteed the veggies. Used uncooked tortillas from Costco. Served it with guacamole and some Fage greek yogurt. 

Monday: PASTA WITH SAUSAGE AND TOMATOES

Found this recipe in Real Simple magazine. It was super easy and we loved it, so I'll share.

Ingredients:

- 2 28-ounce cans whole peeled tomatoes, broken up with your hands (would have been better with garden tomatoes)

- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed (What is smashed...? I just pressed it)

- 2 T olive oil

- Salt and pepper

- 3/4 lb sweet or hot italian sausage link (we used a spicy roma sausauge - yum!)

- 12 ounces cavatappi or some other short pasta (we used orechiette)

- 2 cups baby spinach (2 1/2 ounces)

- Grated parmesan

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 450 F. Mix the tomatoes (with their juices!) and garlic with oil, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper. Roast on a rimmed baking sheet until juices have thickened, 40 to 45 minutes. 

2. After the tomatoes have roasted for 20 minutes, place the sausage on second baking sheet. Roast, turning occasionally, until browned and cooked through, 15 - 17 minutes (I thought our sausage was a little dried out after 15 minutes, so watch it). Thinly slice. 

3. Meanwhile, cook the pasta. Reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta water; drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Add the tomatoes, sausage, spinach, and a little pasta water as needed and toss to combine. 

4. Serve (in cute pasta bowls if you have them!) with grated parmesan cheese (we used a peccorino romano...tasty)

We had a slice of toasted sourdough bread with this and I didn't regret it. More advice -  watch the tomatoes because our sauce thickened by 30 minutes. So maybe put the sausage in after the tomatoes have been in for 20 minutes. Check the sausage after 10 minutes because they're likely done, along with the tomatoes. Also, I used my Silpat to roast the tomatoes, and now it smells like spaghetti sauce. But it was easy to clean my pan afterwards.

Tuesday: CHICKEN with BROCCOLI and QUINOA CASSEROLE

The casserole was delicious. I found it on Pinterest - NOT a waste of time! Find the recipe here.

Wednesday: VEGGIE PANINIS

Remember that crusty sourdough bread we had with our pasta? It came in handy here. Layered muenster cheese, sauteed zucchini, sliced bell pepper and onion (the other halves from the fish tacos), and used a yummy basil spread. For the spread, I put a clove of garlic, a little greek yogurt, a little miracle whip, salt, pepper, and fresh basil leaves in my magic bullet. A few pulses and voila! I've done these before with eggplant (on top of all the other veggies) and it was tasty! I'll try it with a portobello mushroom next time.

Thursday: PULLED PORK, Corn on the Cob, and a fresh spinach salad

For the pulled pork, we used a sirloin from Costco. It's Kirkland brand and comes in a 4-pack in the fresh meat section. I love this stuff. Like I said, it's a 4 pack of about 2 lb sirloins, which are very low in fat, and super versatile. I put it in the Crockpot on low all day or high for 5 hours with a can of coke (the real stuff). Sometimes I sprinkle it with garlic powder before I pour in the coke. When it's falling apart, drain the liquid, shred, and add your favorite BBQ sauce. We use Sweet Baby Ray's. 

Friday: OMELETS

I cook eggs for dinner once a week - they have the highest quality of protein of any food, and they're dirty cheap. What a combination. I pile them with veggies and a yummy cheese, and serve with fresh salsa and a piece of toasted sourdough. Luckily, we still had some left. I would have also served it with some slices of avocado, but I already ate all of our avocado for lunch. Guacamole is my favorite lunch. :)

On Saturday I went to a wedding in Ballinger, TX with 4 of my fellow Presby interns. Another intern was the one getting married. Ballinger is 4 hours from Dallas - fun day trip! I forgot my camera, so I'll try to get some pics and blog about it later. 

Hope you try some of these recipes (Keri) and like them! Happy, healthy cooking!