There’s this old mansion in the Potter Highlands neighborhood of Denver. The mansion has some of the oldest history in Denver, which includes but is not limited to: murder, magic and ghosts.
It serves as an inn today, where they host dinner parties, high tea and overnight guests on a regular basis.
I went a few months ago with some friends to share high tea and get our tarot cards read. Getting your cards read in a haunted mansion gives you that feeling of playing with a ouija board as a kid in your basement.
Without boring you with the details I’ll outline the description of one particular card I pulled – the desert.
The reader explained to me this card is pulled when we desperately need time to be alone. Not necessarily in a physical desert but a desert in our minds. Free from distraction, lack of information or a time to reflect. We often have the answers within ourselves at all times but when we’re thinking about work, other people or our to-do list it becomes very hard to listen to our intuition or our “gut” feelings.
Being in the desert = re-learning your intuition.
As luck would have it, the world is collectively in the desert. We’ve all stopped our busy lives because we have to and let’s be honest, none of us would have done this otherwise.
This time has forced me to look at the hard realities I was either too afraid or too busy to see.
My impact on the planet. My lack of impact on my community. How it wasn’t just time I needed, but motivation and drive. My dislike for activities I used to partake in. My great love for the things I took for granted. The inequalities I knew were there, but didn’t have to see. Discrimination as a concept I understood, but didn’t fully comprehend.
The list goes on.
Is that why we’re all so emotional? These thoughts hit me in the face when I least expect it and sadness, anger or joy wave over me for just a few minutes as I bore the brunt of whatever realization I’ve had. The realizations I was too busy to have in my “normal” life.
Do you feel it too?
I don’t know about you, but I feel heartbroken for our country and for our communities. The world has been broken for far too many, for far too long.
I’m not ready to get back to normal. I’m ready to start fresh.
At the end of some days I feel so numb and tired I can barely muster the energy to walk Rayna, let alone throw together a masterpiece dinner. Other days all I want to do is unleash my creativity in the kitchen.
Today is not that day. Here’s what I make when I want to put zero effort into dinner. I want it to be healthy, taste good and require no recipe.
TexMex Sheet Pan Dinner is in the rotation, on average, once a week. It’s got crispy cheese, lots of veggies and room for all the toppings you can dream up.
TexMex Sheet Pan Dinner is flexible because you can add any veggie to this dish! The base is sweet potatoes and cheese – build around that.
TexMex Sheet Pan Dinner
(start making 65 minutes before you want TexMex Sheet Pan Dinner)
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp Chili powder
2 large sweet potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 bell peppers (any color), cut into 2 inch pieces
1 red onion, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 14oz can black beans, rinsed
1 cup frozen or canned corn
12oz any shredded cheese (Mexican blend or cheddar are my fave)
Toppings: cilantro, sour cream, yogurt, hot sauce, avocado, spring onions, tomatoes
Heat oven to 425F. Lay your sweet potatoes on a sheet pan and mix with olive oil and spices until evenly coated. Roast for 25 minutes.
Then, remove the pan from the oven, and add chopped onion and peppers. Mix together, and throw it back in the oven for 20 more minutes.
Then, remove the pan from the oven, add the black beans, corn, and shredded cheese over the roasted veggies. Cook for another 15-20 minutes until the cheese is browned and crusty on the edges.
Top TexMex Sheet Pan Dinner with anything you have in the fridge.
PS that’s my new favorite hot sauce.
Danielle
