You can't win them all

If you ask a great photographer how to get a great shot, most likely they'll tell you to take lots of pictures. It's not just about practice, but about volume. For every one good photo, even a great photographer takes probably a hundred or more that aren't good at all.

I try to keep that in mind not just when I take pictures, but when I try new things in the kitchen. Though I can't help but be very disappointed when something doesn't taste as good as I'd hoped.

First, the list from yesterday: a banana and piece of 100% whole wheat toast (with organic butter), a salad (and bread) for lunch, and enchiladas for dinner. And, okay, yeah, a couple of handfuls of Ghirardelli chocolate chips for an afternoon snack instead of the fruit that is likely now rotting in the refrigerator. One can only be so healthy.

I decided to experiment with the filling for the enchiladas. I sauteed some chopped squash, zucchini and frozen corn, mixed it with some salsa and placed it, along with some slices of cheddar and monterey jack cheese, into three corn tortillas. I topped them with more salsa and placed them in the oven for 10 minutes at 365 degrees. Since this was a mini-meal, I didn't really want to break open a can of tomato sauce. I thought I could just put a little extra salsa on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle some shredded cheese and it would be just as good. Heck, I like my tortillas crispy on top, so I thought it might even be better this way.

I was wrong. Apparently, the tomato sauce adds an essential flavor to the dish that salsa just couldn't replicate. The enchiladas looked really good, but really didn't taste all that good. So, the lesson of the day (which in its written form seems fairly obvious): don't make enchiladas without tomato sauce.

To add injury to insult, the extra salsa was a little more pepper-y and onion-y and acidic than my semi-healed ulcerated stomach was willing to put up with, particularly after eating chocolate and tomatoes earlier in the day. So I've been up since 3:30am. Should've taken my Aciphex before bed. This was a job that was too tough for Rolaids.