Vegetarian Gluten-Free Avocado Enchiladas

As you probably know, we are vegetarians. We have also recently embarked on a gluten-free adventure. Ya'll eating gluten-free when you're already a vegetarian is a CHALLENGE! But we're making it work. And I may or may not have eaten some pizza last night (I've yet to find a homemade gluten-free crust that I like), but we are really trying to rid our diet of gluten.

My creative cooking skills have been in overdrive trying to figure out things to make for dinner that don't involve gluten (our previous week included pasta and pizza at LEAST once a week). And yesterday as I browsed instagram, I saw a photo of avocado enchiladas and I set to work coming up with a recipe. 

It did not disappoint and I even got "These are restaurant quality." from the Farmer (that's kind of an inside joke at our house), which means they were pretty dang good.

I haven't posted a recipe in a long time so I really want to share these, especially for Auntie Rosita since she's the one who inspired the Farmer family to go gluten-free.

The Recipe: Avocado Enchiladas (Serves 2 - can easily be doubled)

What you need:

8 corn tortillas

1 1/2 avocados (chopped)

1 c shredded cheese*

1 jar Trader Joe's Organic Tomatillo & Roasted Yellow Chili Salsa

1/4 c organic Greek yogurt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine entire jar of salsa and 1/4 c Greek yogurt in a small bowl. Set aside. Chop avocado. Grate cheese into a small bowl. Place a spoonful of avocado and a hand pinch (use all fingers to pick up a pinch of cheese) of cheese into a corn tortilla. Roll and place horizontally in a 2-qt (or 7x11) baking dish. Continue with all tortillas. Pour salsa mixture over the top of the tortillas and top with remaining cheese (or grate more if you need to). Bake for 25 minutes. 

*certain cheeses may contain gluten

Total preparation time: 15 mins
Cook time: 25 mins

We paired the enchiladas with Mexican rice I made in the rice cooker with brown rice, 1/4 c salsa and 1 tsp cumin. 

Sweet P would have loved them, but she got sick one night while my mom was making tacos and can't stand the smell of corn tortillas. Plus, I think the salsa was a tad too spicy for her. 

Next time I'll use salsa verde for a green sauce instead of red and make a larger batch! These were delish! If you don't have a Trader Joe's near you, just find another type of tomatillo based salsa. The Farmer and I both thought the tanginess of the tomatillos and Greek yogurt worked really well with the avocado. 

Did you try this recipe? Please leave a comment to let me know how it turned out or what you did differently!

21 Days of Gratitude: Day 4 - My October Baby

When Sweet P was 15 months old we began thinking about having another child, but I was SO afraid. I couldn't imagine loving another baby. I didn't want her to feel slighted. I worried that my relationship with Sweet P would change. All the normal stuff a mom of 1 worries about. I just didn't feel peace about having a 2nd baby even though in my heart of hearts I wanted more children.

Then one day while buying prenatal vitamins (of all things) I felt a peace come over me. I can't explain the feeling, but I just felt giddy when I thought about having another baby. Later that day, I heard God's voice tell me that our next baby would be born in October.

A series of events followed that led to us getting pregnant in late January of 2011 with a due date of October 5th.

As my due date neared, I wondered if I'd get to October. I wasn't doubting God's word, just being skeptical of whether or not it was my voice or His I heard that day. But when October 1st arrived without an appearance from Sprout, I knew God had shared His plan with me that day in July.

Sprout arrived October 8th, 2011 and has been our sweet snuggle bug from day one. So far, he's been a completely different ball game than his sister. His toothy smile can light up a room and the gap in his teeth makes me giggle every time. He's a laid back baby, but also knows exactly what he wants!

What a gift Sprout has been to our family. He loves pulling everything out of the cabinets, eating rice cakes, waving and saying "Muh! Muh! Muh!" (which means "More", his first word). Going on walks and being outside are two of his favorite activities and he loves pushing stuff around the house (seriously, this kid is going to be a professional mover when he's older!). If you need your house rearranged, he's your man!

Before we had Sprout, I had a miscarriage and while we may never know why, I do know that God has great things in store for our little brown-eyed boy. I am so grateful today and every day for our sweet October baby.

The Word of the Lord came to me, saying, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." ~Jeremiah 1:4-5

Have you joined the 21 Days of Gratitude Challenge hosted by Inspired by Family and many other fabulous bloggers? Join us and take time to count your blessings!

21 Days of Gratitude: Day 3 - My Sweet Girl

Oh Sweet P. My sweet girl. My sweet firstborn. I am so thankful for her and all that she is. She is independent, but loves her mama time. She adores her daddy and has finally started acknowledging the fact that she has a brother.

I wrote a post that has some of this in it (it's posting next week at some point), but it's appropriate for this post so I'm writing it again. 

Sweet P was what we like to call a surprise. I don't like to say she was an accident because God definitely had a plan for us when He placed Sweet P in our lives. Quite honestly, I cannot imagine what our lives would have become had I not become pregnant with her our first few months in Iowa. 

She is the first born grandchild on both sides and is SO loved. I pray that she feels that love and knows how important she is to so many people in her life. While she's a typical 3 year old (that girl is a sassafrass!), she is also loving, cautious, curious, thoughtful, compassionate and vibrant.

Her love for Jesus makes my heart soar and my sweet girl has such a passion for music. You can find her dancing, singing, humming or making up songs most of the day (usually at the top of her lungs while her brother is napping).

My dear Sweet P. She's our blue eyed babe (who I'm still in awe of!) and such a joy in our lives. And we have only God to thank for the blessing that she is. We love you sweet girl. 

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 

~Psalm 139:13-14

Have you joined the 21 Days of Gratitude Challenge hosted by Inspired by Family and many other fabulous bloggers? Join us and take time to count your blessings!