Tag Archives: chicken

Chicken Quinoa Enchilada Crockpot Meal

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This is an incredibly easy dish that everyone in the family will love! It’s easy and makes your whole home smell delicious as it cooks throughout the day! Cheesy, warm and filling, packed full of protein!
Crockpot meals aren’t just for the winter! You can definitely make good use of the trusty Crockpot during the spring and summer as well! You can use it to make tender meat for a taco, or  a filling enchilada dish like this one so you don’t have to heat up your kitchen when you turn your oven on!
Definitely toss this in your Crock-Pot and give it a try! The leftovers were even amazing!

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Chicken and Quinoa Enchilada Crockpot Meal

INGREDIENTS

1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 cup frozen or fresh whole kernel corn
2 cups homemade enchilada sauce (recipe follows)
1 15-ounce can of Organic Diced Tomatoes, Fire Roasted with Medium Green Chilies

1/2 tsp garlic powder
6 chicken tenderloins
Handful of grape tomatoes
1 cup un-cooked White Quinoa
+ ½ cup water
salt and pepper to taste (I used about 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper)
1 cup shredded Mexican style cheese
optional: chopped cilantro, diced tomatoes, diced avocado, sour cream and a but of lime squeezed over top

Enchilada Sauce

1 1/2 TB oil (I used olive oil)
1 TB chili powder
2 cups chicken broth
6 oz. Tomato paste (1 small can)
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cumin
Salt and pepper

Stir together until well blended (with small wisk if you have one) and pour over other ingredients listed above.

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INSTRUCTIONS

Add beans, corn, chicken tenderloins (mine were frozen), 1/2 of homemade enchilada sauce, diced tomatoes and chiles, quinoa, water, garlic powder, and salt and pepper to the greased slow cooker. Stir everything together.
Pour remaining can of enchilada sauce on top, then sprinkle with shredded cheese. Cover and cook 4-5 hours on high or 5-7 hours on low.
Uncover, top with tomatoes, avocados, sour cream, and chopped cilantro and serve.

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And now for the quote of the day:
I’ve got glitter growing outta my head! 😉

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Baked Chicken Fajitas

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This recipe is a very easy one! And it’s baked, not sauteed! You get protein and veggies! Also, if you want to save a bit of calories, you can eat it over a bed of spinach or a big green salad!
Today was a bit crazy. I homeschool my daughter and this morning we decided to start school as soon as she was done with breakfast instead of waiting until our normal start time. It actually started our day our marvelously! Then, my threenager made an appearance. Did you know that a feisty 3 year old can inhibit clear thinking school time? 5 time outs and many toys and privileges taken away later… school was over, and I told my kids they must need to play outside! Luckily, they agreed! 🙂
By the time dinner time rolled around I had very little sanity or energy left! So, fajitas is easy filling and also quite delicious! Try this quick one for sure!
My recipe took a total of about 25-30 min including prep and baking time.

This is for 4 servings :

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Ingredients

1/2 pound chicken tenderloins – sliced thinly
6 mini sweet peppers – multi color – sliced
1/2 onion – cut in thin slices
2 TB olive oil
1 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne powder
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 lime plus lime zest
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground pepper

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Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Place chicken, onions and peppers on a greased cookie sheet. Drizzle olive oil over the chicken and veggies.
In small bowl combine chili powder, cumin, cayenne powder, paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Sprinkle dry ingredients over the chicken and veggies and toss together on a large cookie sheet with a lip on each side.
Spread out evenly.
Bake for 20-30 minutes until chicken is cooked and the veggies are soft with a crispy edge. Zest lime over top of chicken fajitas and serve with a lime wedge to squeeze over fajitas if desired.
Serve with tortillas, sour cream, avocado, salsa, and all your favorite fajita fixins!

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And now, an idea to have a little fun… a “quote” I saw online!

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Easy Peasy Chicken Tortilla Soup

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Ok, this soup tasted really yummy… but it did not photograph well… it was very frustrating. Honestly? I don’t know how people always get good pics of their dishes. I don’t have the time to be quite honest. My pictures aren’t perfect, but my food is good!

I have another recipe for chicken tortilla soup, but this one is pretty dang easy! It’s a thinner soup as well, and went great with some chips that I had. Start to finish it took me less than 30 minutes! You could probably let this one simmer for a while too if you wanted.

Today it was 80 degrees here!!! My kids and I spent a majority of the day outside, which was awesome!!!! I wasn’t sure if a soup would go well on such a warm day, but it was honestly just perfect!

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I couldn’t get a good picture of the whole pot of soup, so I will show 2 separate pictures of the soup in a bowl. 🙂

  • 4 chicken tenderloins
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • end of jar of salsa – add 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth to jar, shake, and pour into skillet with the chicken
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 TB olive oil

For the Soup

  • 32 – 40 oz. of low sodium free range chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup medium restaurant style salsa
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 TB tomato paste
  • 1 cup frozen sweet white corn
  • 1 can organic black beans rinsed and drained
  • 1 TB fresh chopped cilantro

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Directions

  1. Drizzle olive oil into skillet, and heat at medium high. Season the chicken tenderloins with the garlic powder, salt and pepper, and cumin. Place into the skillet. Add the salsa and chicken broth – use the end of a jar of salsa, add 1/2 cup of chicken broth, shake and pour into the skillet with the chicken and the place the lid on. Reduce to medium low heat. simmer for 4-5 min per side until cooked thru. Remove the chicken and shred. Set aside.
  2. In a Dutch oven or large pot, combine the first five ingredients under “for soup”; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  3. Add the rinsed black beans and the corn, stir in the chicken that you previously set aside.
  4. Stir cilantro into soup. Top with tortilla chips, a bit of cheese and sour cream if you desire!. If desired, serve with additional salsa. Yield: 8 servings.

Ever wonder what to do with leftover soup??? This is what I do:

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I use leftover applesauce jars, pickle jars, etc… I fill it up with a couple of inches room at the top, and let them cool. Once cooled, I place them in the freezer. Then, my husband takes them to work for lunch!!! Perfect and quick lunches!

And now, for the quote of the day, I love C.S. Lewis!

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Read more: http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/fiesta-turkey-tortilla-soup#ixzz3TTDX9Wol

Browned Butter and Balsamic Ravioli

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Do you ever just browse Pinterest for fun? Do you ever find yourself in trouble because you have gone thru endless pages because of the endless scroll in Pinterest and suddenly it’s been over and hour and your clothes are still not folded? That was me yesterday. I just wanted to check out a couple of other ideas for meals, just in case I saw something new… and an hour passed during precious naptime – when I can actually be productive – and my clothes definitely didn’t get folded. Oh well, there’s always today!!!! Plus, the weather yesterday was beyond beautiful, and we just HAD to spend a lot of the afternoon outside. I knew today was gonna be a bit gloomy… and it is!

One of my favorite chefs to watch on TV is Giada. She has a very good way to cook… she uses REAL ingredients, and just eats smaller portions. I’m still working on the smaller portions thing, but I agree with the using REAL ingredients. Even Dr. Oz has agreed that a lot of the “low fat, fat free, low cal” stuff adds chemicals and things not good for you, instead of you putting just smaller amounts of real food into your body. I try to use wholesome ingredients, as well as filling ingredients. I also try to have lighter and smaller meals throughout the day. Instead of 2 additional BIG meals, I have 3 or 4 small, snack like meals that are light and filling, and a bit higher in fiber and protein to keep me from picking junk food when I’m “STARVING”! 🙂

This dinner is not light in calories, but it IS full of AMAZING flavor! And this one has enough protein that with a smaller portion, you’ll still be satisfied!

My dish is a version of Giada’s recipe here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/ravioli-with-balsamic-brown-butter-recipe.html?soc=sharingpinterest

I changed more than 3 ingredients, so the recipe below is mine, but it was more than inspired by her recipe listed above. 🙂

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18 to 20 ounces store-bought fresh refrigerated ravioli (cheese, mushroom, or squash) (if frozen, the cooking directions are different)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup toasted, chopped walnuts (optional)
2 chicken tenderloins
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 TB – 1/4 cup white wine for deglazing pan – optional
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

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Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the ravioli and cook 4 to 5 minutes, until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally. Drain ravioli and drizzle with 1-2 tsp olive oil to keep from sticking together. Place onto serving plate, or into a bowl and set aside.

Drizzle 2 TB olive oil into skillet and place the 2 diced chicken tenderloins into the skillet. Sprinkle with garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Cook until no longer pink (5 min approx.) and remove from pan and set aside. Place skillet back on stove and deglaze with the white wine to get all the “yummy bits” off of the bottom of the pan.

Then, cook the butter in that skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the foam subsides, and the butter begins to turn a golden brown, about 3 minutes, turn off the heat. Let cool for about 1 minute. Stir in the white and regular balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper.

Transfer the ravioli and the diced chicken to the pan saucepan with the balsamic brown butter. Sprinkle walnuts (optional) and Parmesan over the top. Serve immediately.

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This one was QUITE delicious! I never would have thought pairing balsamic vinegar and butter would be so delicious, but it REALLY REALLY is!!! Give this one a try for sure!!

And now, for the quote of the day, I picked something I think of daily:

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Cheesy Chicken and Rice Skillet Meal

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What.A.Week. And it’s only Wednesday. Yes, as I type this, it’s Wednesday morning… I blog ahead sometimes. But seriously. It’s been a week that I do not wish to repeat. Was anything REALLY that bad? No. Not if I think about it. In the moment though? HORRIBLE! Isn’t that always the way it is though?

Gotta get up and out of bed, put one foot in front of the other, smile, pray, and move forward! I CAN DO THIS! 🙂

So last night I had absolutely NO CLUE what to make for dinner. I had a bunch of stuff that I had to figure out how to meld together. I had chicken tenderloins (you can also use leftover rotisserie chicken in this recipe), leftover rice, cans of beans and roasted tomatoes with chilis… etc… and I thought… I can do something “mexican themed” with that, and my husband will be quite happy!

So, here ya go!

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This dish is cheesy, a bit spicy, and quite filling! You don’t need a large portion, and this can make a whole family happy! After both my husband and I had dinner, there is enough for at least 5 more portions, 3-4 large portions! For us, we have it frozen and portioned for my husband’s lunches. It’s great when we do that because he has a stock of lunches just waiting for him to grab out of the freezer each day!

From start to finish this meal took me less than 30 minutes, because a lot of the food was either canned, or leftovers!

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 large chicken tenderloins (my FAVORITE are the Trader Joes chicken tenderloins) – no need to thaw
  • 2 TB extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 1/2 to 2 cups pre-cooked white or brown rice. (You can even use leftover rice from chinese takeout!)
  • 3/4 can (or whole can) black beans – rinsed well
  • 1 cup frozen corn – I used sweet white corn
  • 1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes with green chilis
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp oregano
  • 1/4 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp minced garlic
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 TB queso dip (I had this in my fridge – you can use leftover from Moe’s, or the white or yellow queso if you have some… but not required)
  • 1 TB tomato paste for thickening
  • 1/2 cup shredded cheese for topping

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DIRECTIONS

  • Drizzle the olive oil into a large skillet and place the chicken tenderloins into the skillet with the oil. Heat on medium to medium high heat. While they are cooking, evenly season both sides of the chicken with the dry spices. (cumin, chili powder, paprika, oregano and salt&pepper)
  • Once the chicken is seared on both sides and starts to cook through, I remove the chicken tenderloins one at a time, place onto a cutting board, cut into 1-2 inch pieces, and then scrape back into the skillet. You can cut them with scissors in the skillet as well… up to you how you would like to do it.
  • Add the can of roasted tomatoes and the 1 TB of tomato paste and let simmer for about 5 min. Then add the queso dip if you have it, for a bit of cheesiness and spice. If you want a bit more heat and spice, add some cayenne powder at this time!
  • Add the can of black beans and the corn
  • Add the leftover (or freshly COOKED) white or brown rice and stir to combine.
  • Remove the skillet from the heat. Cover the dish with 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese (or cheese of your choice) and IF you have an oven safe skillet, put the skillet into a oven preheated to 300 degrees. Bake for 5-8 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the dish is bubbling.
  • Serve immediately!

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ENJOY!!!!

And now, for the quote of the day: I need any excuse I can to add chocolate to my daily diet. 🙂

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Sun-dried Tomato Parmesan Pasta

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You know… I was actually really hoping it would snow. It’s weird coming out of my mouth, because I lived in the cold upper mid-west for most of my life, and now in the south I put on a THICK winter coat when it goes below 50 degrees… cuz that’s seriously chilly. But, when it snows, my husband gets to work from home, and then I get to see him more AND he gets to actually eat dinner with us! But, sadly, the snow and ice missed us, and he actually had to drive the 45 minutes to work… boo. Oh well, I’m glad he has a GREAT job that he loves to go to! But… for the sake of my little girl, who, as all other girls her age, is OBSESSED with Frozen STILL and really wants to see snow so that she can go outside and pretend she’s Elsa. So, I’m hoping for 1 short day of snow. Then I’ll be good. 🙂

So last night I had the girls over to watch the bachelor, and my friend brought over her kit to help me put on my jamberry wraps that I couldn’t figure out how to put on with my strangely overpowered hairdryer… with her little heater thing, it worked WAY better! HA! And we had a great girls night doing our nails and watching the strangeness that is the Bachelor. It’s like a car accident… you just can’t help but watch!

So, before the girls came over I had to quick make dinner and I had been wanting to try my own version of a sun-dried tomato pasta dish for a while since I saw this one on pinterest… so, I figured… chicken and pasta is quick, I’ll do that! I did have to eat it out with the girls, but it got done in time!!! 🙂

This one a real winner… so so good.

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Ingredients

  • 1/2 tsp minced garlic
  • 1/4 cup julienne sun-dried tomatoes in oil in a jar
  • 4 large chicken tenderloins
  • 2 TB (about 1/4 of a small onion) onion diced
  • 1/2 tsp italian seasoning
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/4 tsp paprika
  • 1 cup half and half
  • 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
  • 8 oz shell pasta (or whatever pasta you have)
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil (or dried, if that’s what you have)
  • dash cayenne pepper
  • dash hot sauce
  • 1/2 cup reserved cooked pasta water (or more)
  • salt, to taste

sundriedtomatoparmesanpasta

Instructions

  1. Note: if using sun-dried tomatoes in oil (in a jar), make sure to drain sun-dried tomatoes from oil, before using them. Reserve 2 tablespoons of this drained oil for sauteing as described below:
  2. In a large pan, on med-high heat, sautee garlic and sun-dried tomatoes (drained from oil) and diced onion in 1 tablespoons of oil (reserved from the sun-dried tomatoes jar – see note above) and 1 TB fresh olive oil for 1 minute until garlic is fragrant. (Don’t burn the garlic or it changes the flavor of the whole dish!) Remove sun-dried tomatoes from the pan, leaving the oil and onions, and add chicken tenders, salted and lightly covered in paprika and italian seasoning (for color) and cook on high heat for 5 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and cut into 2 in pieces and place back into skillet.
  3. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Reserve some cooked pasta water. Drain and rinse the pasta with cold water (to stop cooking).
  4. Place the sun-dried tomatoes back into the skillet with chicken. Add half and half and parmesan cheese to the skillet, too, and bring to a gentle boil. (Don’t put on high heat or it will curdle the half and half.) Immediately reduce to simmer and cook, constantly stirring, until all cheese melts and creamy sauce forms. If the sauce is too thick – don’t worry – you’ll be adding some cooked pasta water soon. Add cooked pasta to the skillet with the creamy sauce, and stir to combine. Add 1 tablespoon of basil, and the hot sauce and cayenne. Stir to combine.
  5. Add about 1/2 cup reserved cooked pasta water because the creamy sauce will be too thick (do not add all water at once – you might need less or more of it). This will water down the thickness of the cheese sauce and make it creamier. Immediately, season the pasta with salt and more basil, to taste, if needed. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes for flavors to combine.
  6. Note: Make sure to salt the dish just enough to bring out of the flavors of basil and sun-dried tomatoes.

And… VOILA!

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Dig in, and make your tummy happy!!!!

Ok, and for the quote of the day, it’s a funny play on what I’ve been working on. Especially since I LOVE the Duggars, I love how in their home, they don’t yell and scream at each other. It’s just not how they speak to each other. Since my husband and I have gotten married I’ve had to tame how I speak to him when I’m upset, and I’ve done SOO much better making sure I’m respectful with how I handle it…

With my children it’s an hourly battle. I literally at times have to step out of the room, count to ten, and then go back in. Otherwise it would at times come out as a full on scream. So… I’m gonna keep this in the back of my mind… read and enjoy. 🙂

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Dill Chicken and Potato Skillet

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Doggone it…

Yeah. That’s how my Tuesday went! We have a large dog. Well, I guess technically he is in the medium to large sized dog family. He is around 80 pounds…. and he’s part bloodhound. The part about him being a bloodhound mix is quite important because he can literally smell a crumb under the kids bed from last week. He’s quite persistent too. During quiet time today, both of my kids were in 1 room playing together and having a snack, and my son decided to open the door. Four times. Guess what happened each time. Yep, Duke got in, ran straight for the snacks and tried to gobble it up as quickly as he could and tried to shove himself under my daughters bed to get all of the extra crumbs. I had to run from my room where I had a pile of laundry in my lap, each time, and pull the 80 pound dog off of the snacks and drag him out of the room. I’m going to get some serious Madonna arms!!! HA! It’s like, son, can you not see that if you open the door, your NATURAL CONSEQUENCE is: the dog will eat your food. And of course my son looks at me with a blank stare and says “Duke eat my food!”. Um. Yes, yes he did. Wow.

So, this is what happens every night when I make dinner:

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After he gets in trouble around 10 to 15 times for trying to stick his nose in dinner, he will finally sit down on that rug, completely in my way, and lay there while I make dinner. 🙂 He likes to smell it I assume.

Last night I was craving beets and potatoes. Weird craving? Not sure! But it sure sounded good!

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Ingredients:

4 large yukon gold potatoes
10-12 organic baby carrots cut in half
3 frozen chicken tenderloins (for 2 people… I use 1.5 per person.)
1 small bunch fresh flat leaf parsley
2 TB olive oil
1 TB unsalted butter
3/4 cup FF low sodium free range chicken broth
1/4 sweet onion diced
1 small piece of bacon chopped
Optional: Can of beets… YUM! 🙂

Dill Seasoning: (Mix together in a small bowl and set aside)
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
2 teaspoons dried dill
2½ teaspoons garlic powder
2¼ teaspoons kosher Himalayan sea salt
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

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Directions:

Partially peel the potatoes… I peel just the “eyes” out of the potatoes, and then dice. Drizzle the olive oil into a large skillet, and heat up at med. high. Place the potatoes, bacon and carrots into the skillet and place lid on. After about 5 minutes, when the potatoes might start sticking to the bottom of the pan, add the diced onions and chicken broth and stir around to “unstick” all of the ingredients, and sprinkle 1/3 of the above seasoning (that you mixed and set aside) over the potatoes and replace the lid. In a separate skillet, place 1 TB olive oil and the 3 (or more) chicken tenderloins and 1/3 of the dill seasoning sprinkled generously over both sides of the tenderloins. Cook on medium to medium high for approximately 8-10 min. per side until there is no pink left in the middle. (This is from frozen). While the chicken is cooking, sporadically stir the potatoes and carrots, adding more seasoning as desired. When the carrots are mostly soft with a bit of crunch, they are done (about 20 minutes)! Add 1 TB butter, melt in, stir around and serve with the chicken, and some slices of beets if so desired! Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and ENJOY!

Quote of the Day:

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Baked Chicken and Gnocchi

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Oh Mondays….

Yes, today is Monday. And today, we had homeschool group. My 3 year old son… MILDLY behaved and reminded me of the previous week.

So, last week.. here’s the situation: my son thinks that he can be independent and make his own decisions. As his mother, it is my job to teach him that mommy knows what’s best and if he refuses to do what I say, consequences will follow. The problem? When we are in the car, driving 60+ mph down the freeway, it is VERY hard to discipline a little boy. So, we leave our homeschool group, and he’s tired and hungry. I hand him a baggie of veggie straws (Like… potato straws, but made from veggies… very chip like). 3 seconds later, he LOUDLY proclaims that he’s “ALL DONE!”. I, at that moment in time, cannot reach back and grab the bag from his grimy little hands. I tell him, “hold on to the bag for a minute until mommy can grab the bag”. He then proceeds to start to chuck the veggie straws AT MY HEAD! Yes, yes this is true. I am yelling “No, mommy will take the bag”, as well as telling him consequences that will happen from these bad choices. I start trying to get the bag from him and trying to grab at any part of his body that I can reach, and he stealthily, like a tiny ninja, somehow completely evades my reach! I cannot turn around to see how this is happening, as we are STILL on the freeway. He then starts throwing them all over the car, one at a time and starts yelling “na-na-na boo boo”. Yeah. That happened. By the time we got home 30 minutes later I was fuming and he was asleep. Ugh. I carry him inside, and do NOT put his cars in bed with him like he requested before he fell asleep… (that sure told him!)… and proceed to take my dog out to eat all of the veggie straws from the van floor. Whew! What’s a mom to do? Cry and an call her husband, pray that the next day will be better, and figure out how to properly discipline in the car… working on it… I think I will be a consistent work in progress.

So today… another Monday, another homeschool group day. This evening, I feed my kids their meal (rice and beans with a smoothie… easy.. so very easy) and was going to have that for me and my hubby… then I see the package of gnocchi in my fridge and just HAVE to have it tonight. So, I proceed to start cooking and then go out to my detached garage where I keep all of my meat in our deep freeze. I then find out that for some reason our lock is broken. The key gets STUCK in the door. I literally cannot get into my garage until 1.5 hours later when my husband gets home. So… dinner was late. But whatever, it was good!!!!! Gotta be honest… Mondays are always a bit rough!

So, here’s my craving meal for tonight…. cuz I needed a bit of comfort food!

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Baked Chicken and Gnocci!

And, I gotta say, it’s a comfort food and I will definitely be craving it in the future!

Inspired by: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/baked-gnocchi-with-chicken.html?soc=sharingpinterest

Ingredients
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup finely diced onions
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 tsp minced garlic
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups coconut milk (unsweetened, unflavored)
1 cup low-sodium free range, fat free chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 cups diced chicken. I used 3 large chicken tenderloins seasoned, cooked and diced (Orig. recipe called for leftover rotisserie chicken)
1 17 .5-ounce package potato gnocchi
1 1/2 cups loosely packed baby kale
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (about 1 ounce)
1/2 tsp cumin
dash cayenne pepper
2 TB lemon juice
1/2 tsp lemon zest
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Directions
Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees F. Heat the olive oil in a deep ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes, but do not let burn. Transfer to a plate and wipe out the skillet.

Melt the butter in the skillet over medium heat; add the flour and cook, whisking, 3 minutes. Add 2 TB lemon juice and the lemon zest. Whisk in the milk and chicken broth until smooth; simmer, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Whisk in 1/2 teaspoon salt and the nutmeg, cumin and cayenne.

Add the chicken, onions and garlic back in, and the gnocchi and kale to the sauce and stir until coated and the kale wilts. Sprinkle with the parmesan, transfer the skillet to the oven and bake until bubbling, about 20 minutes. Turn on the broiler; broil until lightly browned on top, about 3 more minutes.

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I definitely kept to a smaller portion with this one, because of the yummy creaminess… but it was DELICIOUS! I liked the uniqueness that the cumin and cayenne added, but you do NOT have to add those spices… that’s my addition. This one you can definitely play around with.

Well, my day is done, I have enjoyed an evening of Bachelor watching with my friends, and now I’m gonna kiss my hubby and babies goodnight! Have a good one!

And for the quote of the day:

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Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

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One of my absolute favorite soups from up in Minnesota was Byerly’s Wild Rice Soup… LOVE! This is my adaptation of it. I changed it up a bit, and don’t use ham or almonds in mine. Almonds, because I don’t keep nuts in my house since we have a food allergy in our home… and no ham because I wanted to keep the sodium and fat content a bit lower by using chicken instead.

This one is a “comfort” food… warm, creamy, thick…. eat it with bread or crackers… on a cold rainy/snowy day…  cuddle up by the fireplace and enjoy a bowl of this! My daughter gobbled this up! (So did my husband and I! 🙂 )

Ingredients

  • 3 TB butter
  • 1/4 onion minced
  • 1/4 cup white whole wheat flour
  • 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 1/2 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 cup cooked wild rice (that’s about 1/4 cup of uncooked wild rice… follow cooking instructions on bag)
  • 1/2 cup finely grated carrots
  • 1/2 cup diced chicken (I used 4 chicken tenderloins diced… you could also use leftover rotisserie chicken)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup half and half
  • 2 tablespoons dry cooking sherry, (optional)
  • snipped fresh parsley or chives
  • dash cayenne pepper

Creamychickenwildricesoup

Directions
In large saucepan, melt margarine; saute onion and carrots and garlic until tender.  Blend in flour; gradually add broth.  Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil; boil and stir 1 minute.  Stir in cooked rice, chicken, cayenne and salt; simmer about 5 minutes. Bring stove to LOW. Blend in half and half and sherry; heat to serving temperature. Garnish with snipped parsley or chives.

Amount: 4-5 cups.

Enjoy!

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Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi Soup

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Yes, some could call this a copycat recipe of the famous Olive Garden Chicken and Gnocchi soup! I, personally, think it tasted quite similar, but it wasn’t quite as salty… which I liked! I also didn’t use heavy cream, so it probably cut down on the calories as well. This one was DEFINITELY a winner! We had plenty of leftovers so my husband gets to enjoy this one for lunch for the next few days! He’s excited! 😉

So, here is the recipe! Enjoy, and slurp up this awesome soup as the weather turns more and more chilly outside! It’ll keep you warm inside!

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 TB butter
  • 3/4 lb chicken tenderloins cooked and chopped (about 6-7 chicken tenderloins chopped… makes 1 or 1 1/2 cups chicken)
  • 1/2 onion diced
  • 2 tsp minced garlic
  • 1/2 tsp garlic salt
  • 4 cups low sodium chicken broth (1 32oz. box)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 stalk of celery finely chopped (or more if you prefer… I like to go light on celery)
  • 1/2 cup grated carrots
  • 2 TB white whole wheat all purpose flour
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme
  • 1/4 tsp rubbed sage
  • 1 cup rough chopped (or whole, with stems removed) fresh baby spinach
  • 2 TB parmesan cheese
  • 1 cup half&half

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Instructions:

1. Cook your chicken in 1 Tb olive oil, about 4 minutes each side, and sprinkle garlic salt on each side as cooking. Remove from heat and chop into 1/2 inch pieces and set aside.
2. In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat and then add the celery, onion, carrots and garlic and stir for 3-5 minutes, or until the celery starts to soften.
3. Whisk in the flour, then add the chicken broth slowly while stirring.
4. Next. add the chicken, nutmeg, thyme, and sage and stir well. Increase heat to bring to a boil, then reduce to let simmer for 15 minutes or so.
5. Bring to low heat so no longer bubbling, and SLOWLY add the half&half so as not to curdle the milk. Then, add the spinach, gnocchi and parmesan cheese. I use fresh gnocchi, so it only needed to cook for 2-3 minutes after, and then it was ready to serve!
6. If needed (I did!), add equal parts corn starch and cold water in a separate bowl, stir, and then slowly incorporate it into the soup as a thickener.

DELICIOUS!!!!!

And now, for the quote of the day:

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