some like it hot

i began this cool saturday morning with one of my favorite alternative workouts, hot yoga! i do hot yoga here in knoxville at Real Hot Yoga and love it! everyone is so nice and the instructors are great. not to mention, it is a workout. the benefits of yoga are many and when you add in a 95 degree heated room, the benefits are even greater. my favorite hot yoga class is hot power yoga which i took today. it is a combination of various poses and sequences that strengthen and tone and the "hot" element ramps up your workout by adding a cardiovascular workout and a detox! it was a great break from regular cardio and my muscles feel stretched and as a whole, i feel cleansed. afterwards, i stopped in trader joe's (they are next door to each other - so convenient) and was the definition of the classic yoga and organic food cliche.

i wanted to share my costume from last night's costume-birthday party since i think it turned out pretty cute. it was definitely one of the easiest costumes to put together! all i had to buy was the shirt since i had everything else on hand so it was also a budget friendly costume! happy (late) halloween from your one and only red-headed pumpkin!

the temperature dropped quite a bit which to me means its a perfect night for taco soup! this is an original claire recipe and it is a family favorite! it can be easily adjusted according to what you like and you can make it meatless if you prefer. i think i make it different every time and it always turns out delicious. this time instead of chopped jalepenos, i threw in some chili peppers in adobo sauce to kick the spice up quite a bit. i also used diced fire roasted tomatoes with green chiles instead of the can of rotel. it is so adaptable so make it yours! it makes a crockpot full so it can serve a crowd but also freezes wonderfully! tonight i am making some jalepeno cornbread to serve along with the soup as the perfect complement!

taco soup

1/2-1 lb cooked ground beef with taco seasoning

1 c diced onion (i used frozen)

1 c chopped or sliced bell peppers (i used frozen) 

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup corn (i used frozen)

1 can pinto beans

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can mexican stewed tomatoes

1 can hot rotel

diced jalepenos

cumin, red pepper, to taste

garlic, to taste

up to 1 cup water, as needed

cilantro

diced avocado, onion, sour cream, shredded cheese or other toppings of choice

1. combine all ingredients in a crockpot or large soup pot on stove. let simmer/warm on low. 
2. serve with toppings of choice.

mom and dad are here for their parent's council fall retreat so we are going to have taco soup and cornbread tonight and watch UT hopefully win against Missouri. i have had such a perfect weekend so far. not to mention, east tennessee is absolutely beautiful this time of year which makes me love fall even more. the view from my bedroom window could not be any prettier! 

fingers crossed for a Volunteer win tonight and have a great rest of your saturday!

xoxo,

clp

p.s. countdown to 21: 2 weeks!