Crockpot Cowboy Chicken

I heart my slow cooker.

Sometimes, I wish the love was a little more mutual than it is.

Sometimes my slow cooker attempts taste good but look like mush. Sometimes they look pretty but taste like mush. Sometimes, everything comes together and it's pretty AND tastes good.

This recipe was one of those times. Looks good, tastes good, EASY, healthy - what more could a wife/mom/full-time-work-outside-the-home-girl ask for?

I found this recipe from Pinterest (originally from momswhothink.com). The ingredients are easy - in fact, I didn't have to buy anything - everything I needed was in my pantry already. I added garlic and cumin to make it my own - you could also add veggies (which I rarely do since my family doesn't like them!).

If you wanted to walk in the door to dinner on the table in less than five minutes, you can make the rice ahead of time...the rest of it will be ready to go! Next time, I think I will try some kind of beef instead of chicken, but the rest of the recipe will be the same...I think it will be great with beef!

Would your family like this recipe? If you try it out, let me know!

4-6 chicken breasts
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. cumin
3 garlic cloves, minced (or more, if you like garlic!)
1 (15 oz) can corn, drained
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups chicken broth (or water)
1/2 cup sour cream
brown rice
cilantro
shredded cheddar cheese
* extra ingredients to consider: chopped onion, chopped bell peppers, chopped or canned tomatoes

1. Place chicken (I used chicken breasts STRAIGHT from the freezer, so completely frozen) in slow cooker.
2. Add brown sugar, mustard, cumin, garlic, corn, beans and broth/water. * if you are adding extra veggies, you can add them here
3. Cover slow cooker and cook on low for 8-9 hours (you could probably go with less time if your schedule allows...but I don't get home until 9 hours later, and the chicken was perfect!).
4. Add sour cream to slow-cooker, shred chicken and mix with sour cream (it should literally fall apart on you).
5. Serve over brown rice - top with shredded cheese and cilantro. Enjoy!

Fiesta Salad!!!

Tonight's dinner was Fiesta Salad - one of our favorites. It's SUPER easy, completely versatile, and everyone likes it (well, except for Zoe, who decided to choose tonight's dinner as her stage for a knock-down drag-out fit. Poor girl went to bed right after not eating her dinner...).

I will be upfront about the picture on this one - not a great photo. First, I'm not a photographer by trade...second, I'm not a food styler by trade (is that what they're even called??). What I do consider myself an "expert" in, however, is the ability to make sure my family doesn't starve! ;-)

So, look past the picture and just imagine the recipe - it really is fantastic! And you can whip it up in about 10 minutes (not kidding!!). It's quite inexpensive, and goes a long way - especially if you add in some/any of the suggestions listed below the picture.


So like I said, this is such an easy and versatile recipe, we make it often. Here's the recipe, with some suggestions below. Hope you enjoy! If you try it out, be sure to leave me a comment and let me know!

FIESTA SALAD (this recipe feeds my family of five with no leftovers, so if you're cooking for more, or have some big eaters, you might want to make more!)

1 bag fritos (you will have leftovers)
1 cup uncooked rice (we use brown)
1 cup water (for rice)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. ground beef
salt/pepper
1 can black beans
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Bring water to a boil in a small pot on stove; add rice. Reduce heat to low (I actually just turn mine off) and cover; simmer for about 10 minutes.
2. While rice is simmering, pour black beans into another small pot and turn heat to medium-low; stir occasionally until heated through.
3. Spray non-stick skillet with cooking spray (or add a little olive oil) and turn heat to medium; add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
4. Add ground beef and cook (crumbling while you cook) until no longer pink.
5. Assemble salad - layer in any order you like - I prepare in this order: fritos, rice, beef, beans, cheddar cheese.

Suggestions (to make this recipe yummier and/or healthier):
- use ground turkey, or a combo of beef/turkey
- add veggies like bell peppers and onions
- add cilantro
- add taco seasoning to beef while cooking
- serve over a bed of lettuce instead of, or in addition to, the fritos
- remove meat altogether for a vegetarian version!
- remove rice/fritos for a carb-free version!

Beef Enchiladas

For dinner tonight, we had beef enchiladas - I've tried numerous recipes over the years, but none were that great at home, and if there were decent, they required too much work.

Using bits and pieces from the recipes I've found along the way, I came up with one that the boys in my house like - I didn't even make the girls try it (bad mom!!) but next time they will. I was worried about it being too spicy, and it wasn't, but there was the tiniest kick to it.

The cut of meat I used was stew meat, which can be scary...it's not a very tender cut, and can easily be grainy, chewy and downright hard to eat. This took about an hour to cook, and the meat was incredibly tender - it was great!

This recipe was really very simple, inexpensive and could be made ahead (frozen even, I think!) And, there are a ton of modifications to this that you could make - my version is pretty simple to please my household, but feel free to be adventurous and make your own version - and let me know how it goes!


Beef Enchiladas

1 Tbsp. olive oil
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 pounds stew meat
1 can enchilada sauce
1 can water (use enchilada sauce can)
1 can beef broth (use enchilada sauce can)
1 can fat-free refried beans
12 corn tortillas
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I used reduced fat cheddar)

1. Heat oil in large pot over medium heat; add garlic and stir until fragrant.
2. Add meat, enchilada sauce, and 2 cans liquid; bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to medium and cover; allow to cook for 1 hour (don't open the lid).
4. If needed at the end of the hour, add a little water or broth and simmer for a few more minutes.
5. Shred your meat - I use my kitchen-aid with the paddle attachment to make quick work of this, which is amazing!!! I would highly suggest it...if you don't have one, you can use two forks to shred right in the pot.
5. Place meat back in the liquid and add in refried beans; stir well to combine.
6. Place tortillas inside 2 paper towels; sprinkle paper towels with water and fold over to seal in tortillas.
7. Microwave on high for about 30 seconds, to soften the tortillas.
8. Place 2-3 Tbsp. mixture inside each tortillas; fold and place seam side down on a cookie sheet.
9. Repeat until all tortillas are filled and arranged on cookie sheet.
10. Pour remaining sauce over the top and sprinkle cheese evenly.
11. Broil for 4-5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Enjoy!