Summer Quesadilla De Marisco: stuffed with fresh avocado slices, shrimp, melted Havarti dill cheese and green chilies. Perfection.

Today we’re talkin’ about a seafood quesadilla like you’ve never tasted before. This one’s light and fresh, says summer.

Makes a great main dish meal or appetizer. I have to tell you the story about the night I first tasted this Summer Quesadilla De Marisco. Because, well, that’s what I do. Tell stories. And if you don’t want to hear, skip down.

But I don’t recommend it. The story is part of the experience.

So here goes. It was our 22nd anniversary last week. And Jon and I were going to go out and celebrate at one of our favorite restaurants downtown Cotton. We had a gift certificate, were looking forward to an evening out.

It’s been super busy around here (understatement) and Jon and my biggest guys were headed to Romania on a missions trip in just a few days. So this was our big night out.

So about a 1/2 hour before we leave to go, it occurs to me I should call, make sure we don’t need a reservation. I doubt we do, it’s a Monday night, but just in case. So I ring up, get an automated recording that says they are closed from Monday blah blah blah until after July 4th for restaurant upgrades and renovation. So my heart sinks and suddenly our plans change. Disappointing.

And all I can say is, there better be a significant upgrade or renovation going on at that Cotton.

Then Jon remembers we have a gift certificate in a back drawer to a Mexican restaurant, Hermanos Cocina Mexicana. He won a raffle at the  New Life Home  golf benefit last year. Well, I’m a little leery of going to a Mexican restaurant for our 22nd anniversary. It might be loud and fast paced. It could work, but I’m nervous it’s a dive.

So we check it out online and it looks nice. We get there, they ask if we’d like to sit downstairs in the restaurant or upstairs in the lounge with live music. We’re no fools, so we climb two sets of stairs, round the corner and find jazz. Two white haired, talented men on piano and sax.

Double check.

Yeah, we’re still in a Mexican restaurant. The menu’s different. The music’s different. The atmosphere’s different. It’s quiet, peaceful. Not your typical Mexican chain restaurant. So if you need a Mexican restaurant in Concord, NH, we highly recommend Hermano’s Cocina Mexicana.

The salsa was fresh to order and both our dinners were fantastic. My Summer Quesadilla De Marisco was so delicious that I’m sharing it with you here.

Layer all filling ingredients on half the wrap. Fold wrap over, and cook on both sides on medium heat ’til golden.

Print

Summery Quesadilla De Marisco

Summery Quesadilla De Marisco. Quesadilla stuffed with fresh avocado slices, shrimp, melted Havarti dill cheese and green chilies. Light, fresh and delicious!

Course Appetizer, Main Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Allie Taylor

Ingredients

• 1 - 7 ounce can chopped green chilies
• 8 ounces fully cooked salad shrimp peeled, tail off, thawed
• 1 package 10 " round wraps I used sun-dried tomato basil or 10 " round flour tortillas
• 2 avocados cut in thin slices
• 8 ounces Boar's Head Cream Havarti Cheese w/Dill thinly sliced
• Sour cream or Greek yogurt
• Optional: chopped green onions lettuce and tomatoes

Instructions

• Heat skillet or griddle on medium heat.
• Place 4 wraps/tortillas on cooking pan.
• Fill half of each wrap/tortilla with sliced cheese, salad shrimp, avocado slices and green chilies.
• Fold wrap/tortilla in half, covering the filling.
• Cook over heat until golden underneath and cheese is melting, 2-3 minutes.
• Flip and cook on the other side 'til golden, another 2-3 minutes.
• Serve with sour cream or Greek yogurt atop a bed of chopped lettuce and tomatoes.
• Sprinkle with chopped green onions.

So I looked up the term de marisco because I never took Spanish. I was a French girl. And what Jon seems to remember from his middle school Spanish days is confined to blah blah blah el bano.

Something about where’s the bathroom. I’m sure that’s an all important phrase at the necessary time but doesn’t help us now. Google translate says de marisco = seafood, so there you go. A summery seafood quesadilla.

After our delightful dinner, we have about ten minutes to sneak into Marshalls before they lock the doors and I find these funky sandals. Yeah. It gets better. Made in Italy. Stacked heels.

Even better. On clearance. So now I know why Cotton was closed for us tonight. Because we were supposed to have a romantic evening at the lovely Hermanos Mexicana Cocina, be inspired by my delicious entree, Summer Quesadilla De Marisco. 

And snag that pair of Italian leather sandals on clearance. Doesn’t get much better.

So if you see me around town kicking up my heels, now you know why.

Enjoy your quesadilla with a delicious Blueberry Basil Mojito

The post Summer Quesadilla De Marisco appeared first on Through Her Looking Glass.

Hello friends, hope you’re all having a great week and happy spring to you! I heard a lone phoebe bird faintly call this morning, confirming that spring may actually make an appearance in New England this year. (Exhale.)

So much bad news on the airwaves these days, I’m excited to share this excellent news I recently heard on Jack Heath’s local radio show. Many of you know New Life Home in Manchester, NH is near and dear to my heart. New Life, a faith-based drug and alcohol rehab center, has helped thousands of women in the past thirty-five years to permanently recover from drug and alcohol addiction.

New Life Home, all decked out at Christmas

New Life has a different treatment approach; they accept no government funds (relying on private donations only). It’s also one of the few rehabilitation programs in the country that allow children to live with their moms during treatment. And the 80% success rate is unprecedented. Over the past ten years I’ve observed women enter the program, seen amazing transformations. New Life is truly a place of hope! I’m friends personally with many of the residents, children, graduates and dedicated staff. Great things are going on, and I’m excited to be a tiny part of what’s happening at New Life. (Please catch up here for this true story: True Christmas Spirit)

This coming weekend on Friday and Saturday, March 27 – 28 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 1000 Elm St. Manchester, NH there will be a prom dress sale to benefit New Life Home. (Kudos to Brady & Sullivan for donating the space.) Two hundred high end boutique prom dresses will be sold for just $50 each. The dresses were donated by several upscale Boston boutiques for this purpose. If all dresses sell, it will raise $10,000 for New Life Home, funds desperately needed to pay utility, oil and grocery bills for the staff, residents and children.

Are you local? Are you (or someone you know) in need of a prom dress? If so, please take time to visit the sale this weekend. It’ll be a fun event and it’s all for a great cause: supporting women and children discovering a new life. Please forward this on, tweet and retweet (I’m @thruherglass), share this post on Facebook to get the word out. Use this link: http://throughherlookingglass.com/?p=6381  Let’s band together, make a difference!

Following is an excerpt from the NH Union Leader about the upcoming event:

“If you are one of the thousands of young women hunting for a perfect prom dress at a perfect price, you will want to check out a pop-up boutique opening on Elm Street this week. 

The shop will have more than 200 dresses from Boston-area formal shops, each with a price tag of only $50. The shop will be open in space at 1000 Elm St. this Friday and Saturday only from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
You should go for the bargains, but also because 100 percent of the sale proceeds are going to New Life Home for Women and Children, a long-term residential treatment program for addicted women and their children.

Grace Rosado, who started New Life Home with her husband, George, in Manchester 35 years ago, said an acquaintance heard about the work New Life was doing, and found several formal shops from Boston to donate their sample dresses.

“They donated more than 200 dresses,” Rosado said.

 At $50 each, that would mean $10,000 for the home, which does not charge its residents for treatment and operates without government funding. Rosado admits the money from the sale is needed. With heroin use on the rise, New Life gets calls every day from desperate mothers seeking a place to kick their addictions, without having to leave their children behind.

But the dress sale is also serving another purpose, Rosado said, as the women are gaining valuable skills while preparing for the big sale.

“It’s also teaching our women entrepreneurship and business ethics,” she said.

Education is not a new concept at New Life. During an average 18-month stay, women learn skills to help them get through life and become marketable employees. 

Six of the current residents are in college, Rosado said.

But more importantly, they learn to develop a relationship with Jesus, the cornerstone of everything New Life does. 

I have heard powerful testimony from several of New Life’s graduates, who all admit they would be dead or in jail if it were not for New Life and the saving power of Christ in their lives.
These young women are well-spoken and unafraid to talk about where they have been. They are also passionate about what their future holds now that they have the skills and confidence to be great moms and members of the community.

Rosado said thousands of women have been through New Life Home in the last 35 years, and 80 percent of graduates remain drug-free and go on to lead successful lives. You can learn more about the home, and the work they do, at www.NewLifeHome.org .

Rosado is very grateful to Brady Sullivan for donating the space for the pop-up boutique, complete with dressing rooms and storage. It will be in the 1000 Elm St. plaza, adjacent to Edible Arrangements.

“It’s absolutely perfect for what we are doing,” Rosado said. She hopes many women, especially those with a limited budget, will come out to find their perfect dress.”

Read more about another annual New Life fundraiser I participate in at Christmas:

A Few of My Favorite Things

The post Prom Yes Drugs No appeared first on Through Her Looking Glass.

So, a question for you. When does the Christmas season officially start? I mean, for you. Because it all starts at a different point for each of us. Is it an event? A favorite recipe? Getting the Christmas tree? I’m just curious what makes it “officially” Christmas for you.

Thought I’d take a couple minutes to share A Few of My Favorite Things from last week. (I hear you loud and clear Julie Andrews. Pipe down. No raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens. Not today.)

I’ve really enjoyed working on Christmas “projects” this week – Vanilla Bean Maple Syrup especially. If you want to try your hand at it, you’ll have just enough time for it to “cure” before Christmas. (If you don’t dilly-dally.) http://throughherlookingglass.com/?p=1156

Had fun playing with this Christmas tree wax seal for the attached gift cards. Love how this seal turned out. It would make a beautiful seal for Christmas cards too. You’ll find this wax seal and many other beautiful ones on Amazon.com. (You’ll need sealing wax too.)  http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Tree-Seal-Stamp-Sealing/dp/B00A3NXBF0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418591926&sr=8-1&keywords=christmas+tree+wax+seal

I loaned my beloved An Orange for Frankie book to a friend last week . She returned it to my porch, with the above. Wow! So gorgeous. Love it! Still haven’t heard the story of where it came from. And exactly what it is. Looks like a pear shaped lemorange to me. (Fill us in, Jen. I’m dying to know.)

Went out to the mailbox and found this beautiful box on the porch. (My porch has been an exciting place this week!)

Take a peek inside. What a gorgeous gift from our neighbors! 

Check out the amazing apples. I now have more compassion for Eve. I could never have resisted these either.

And the pears! Aren’t they lovely? If they last, we’ll have them with Christmas breakfast. One for each of us.  (Thank you, generous friends.)

If you’re still looking for a last minute gift to order for someone special, a gift box from Harry & David is such a special treat to receive. (I know.)  http://www.harryanddavid.com Their presentation is always beautiful.

A dear friend I hadn’t connected with for several years came to tea. And brought this Harney & Sons White Christmas Tea with her. We had a cup and caught up. The tea was absolutely wonderful, the company even better.

Each year I participate in a handmade ornament exchange. It’s always the first week in December. There are several ornament exchange circles going on simultaneously. These are the fun ornaments I received. (How ’bout that peacock?)

Here’s the ornament I gave out. Easy instructions here: http://throughherlookingglass.com/?p=1856

The ornament exchange is just one facet of a fundraiser benefit for New Life Home, a local faith-based drug and alcohol rehabilitation program for women and their children. A group of us meet together in a local home for appetizers, the ornament exchange and to collect anonymous monetary donations for New Life. Then we caravan a few minutes away to New Life Home and throw a Christmas party (desserts and coffee) for the staff and residents. They in turn share individual stories with us about how their lives are changing for the better. And that’s the moment when my Christmas season officially begins: when I hear the inspiring stories of hope, faith and change from courageous women at New Life Home each year. (So much generous participation, we were able to raise $1250 this year.) What a great evening. http://www.newlifehome.org

After the New Life party, I came home to find a box on the kitchen counter from my cousin. (Someone must have toted it in from that magical porch.) She sent us homemade Christmas treats. Also this box of  junket! Ha! I got such a kick out of this. You know why if you read my Junket Is Nice post.  http://throughherlookingglass.com/?p=543   I talk big, but I still haven’t made or tasted junket. But that’s all about to change, thanks to you, cousin.

So these are just A Few of My Favorite Things so far this Christmas season. How ’bout you? What are your favorite Christmas things? And when does your Christmas season officially start?

Inquiring minds want to know. Please share below!

(I know, a poet.)

The post A Few of My Favorite Things appeared first on Through Her Looking Glass.