teacher by day - chef by night
As a teacher, I often think about my personal vs. public life. This blog makes me think about those private/personal lines and my privacy as well (especially right now as I am teaching Internet Safety/Responsibility/etc). I am an adult, but I am also an educator …
When Life gives you Lemons – You make Lemonade… SO when Life give you Tomatoes, you make Tomato Juice! We have been enjoying our garden fresh tomatoes for more than a month. I am getting to a point that I am sick and tired of chopping …
These stuffed tomatoes are everything you could want in a late summer meal…. fresh, filling, healthy. They are easily adaptable too! Think of Stuffed Tomatoes as you would Stuffed Peppers… they work basically the same way! I wanted to go full-out Italian so I stuffed these with the same type things I would use if I were making a nice bowl of summer pasta!
Prepare rice according to package directions. Cool rice a little bit, then mix in all of the rest of your ingredients (except tomatoes). Cut the tops off of your tomatoes & scoop out the insides (put them aside – they are perfect for making soup/salsa/juice/sauce). Stuff your mixture into the tomatoes, top with some mozzarella or fresh grated parmesan & place them in a lbaking/casserole dish. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes
And I leave you with this, Today’s Question of the Day… what foods do you like stuffed (chicken, mushrooms, pepper, etc) and what do you like to stuff them with!?
To create this meal I litterally just threw tomatoes in the blender & thought about flavors. Then pureeded batches of tomato & friends went into the pot to be heated/reduced/tasted/enjoyed. Perfect with a quick quesadilla on the side to finish off the “Mexican Tomato Soup & Grilled Cheese Dinner” theme.
Survey says: Rich thought it was a little “earthy tasting” (but he hates beets). My Grandmother called me when she was eating the leftovers I gave her and was “Oohing & Aahhing” over it (love you Grandma). Mom & Dad were both very impressed & thought it was better than they were expecting!
I am so glad to be back in the classroom and see all of the excitement that my students have as we start this new school year. I’m completely re-energized as we start and see so much new potential with the year and the direction things are going in my building!
Starting this year we are one of less than 600 or something schools who are doing the “Leader in Me” program based on Steven Covey’ “7 Principles of Highly Effective People” but this is based on taking that approach (which I highly recommend to anyone to try, so amazing) with students. They seem to be really enjoying it & I’m loving it too!!
My students also inspire me to be the best that I am and always keep me on my toes. They make me proud and happy and all of that warm-fuzzy stuff!! I was telling them about me (did you know – teachers are real people too and we don’t sleep in our classroom!!?) and they were “ooh-ing” and “ahh-ing” over a few pictures that I showed them from my Teacher by Day – Chef by Night blog.
It made me feel really proud of what I have done here. I also loved talking about my wonderful dogs, my love for my family (& adopted family/siblings), enjoyment of cooking/photography, theatre, skiing and all of that fun stuff. People always say to find what you love and then hopefully find someone to pay you to do it. That is what I feel with in my job – I love teaching and hope to always keep this energy