Sarah's Shredded Chicken Burritos & Cold War Kids

This technique to do chicken is the BEST! My sister, Sarah, who was visiting recently (Sarah, COME BACK!) found this technique through David'sFreeRecipes for his chicken tacos. We made burritos but I've never had such juicy, flavorful chicken in homemade burritos before! You can use the chicken in a salad, taco, enchilada… you name it. It's now named in our family as Sarah's chicken. So everyone says, "Are we making Sarah's chicken tonight?" or, "Can we have Sarah's chicken tonight?" Let's just say, it's very popular. 

And guess what? It's so easy!

Listen to: Skip the Charades by Cold War Kids

Shredded Chicken Burritos:

Ingredients:

1.5 Lbs Chicken Breast Filets (1 package), rinsed and patted dry

3-4 Cups Water

1 tsp Salt

1/3 tsp Pepper

1/2 tsp Garlic Powder

1 tsp Onion Powder

2 tsp Chili Powder

1 tsp Dried Oregano

1/4 tsp Cumin

Fixings:

Warmed Flour Burrito Tortillas

Shredded Lettuce

Sour Cream

Salsa

Guacamole

Refried Beans

Cilantro

In a cast iron pot or large saucepan on the stove, place the chicken on the bottom and fill the pot with enough water to just cover the chicken. This will take about 3-4 cups of water. Measure your spices and add them to your water and  chicken. Bring the pot to a boil for ten minutes and then lower to a simmer, then let cook for 30-35 minutes with the lid on, slightly skewed. The water should be cooked down until only a little is left. 
When poked, the chicken should fall apart, and you can now shred it up. If you feel there is too much liquid left, bring it back to a boil until there's a little less water. Once the chicken is ready, have a warmed flour tortilla ready with your fixings and roll it up & enjoy!!

Dutch Baby & Of Monsters and Men

 My sister and parents came to visit over the last two weeks, and let me tell you I miss them so much when they're not here! There's always good food, late nights, and lots of laughs. It's so hard to let them leave at the end of their trips. 

I don't usually make anything special when it's just me and the husband in the mornings, but with a group it's always fun to whip something up that's a little sweet. 

This is my mom's recipe of dutch babies and we added some caramelized apples to the top. 

What song's playing?: Mountain Sound by Of Monsters & Men

Dutch Babies:

Oven Temp: 425

Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons Butter

1 Cup Flour

4 Eggs

1 Cup Milk

Preheat oven to 425 and place a cast iron pot inside to heat up with it (If you don't have a cast iron, use a 9x9 casserole dish or an oven safe dish of similar size, it's best to have taller sides though). Add the butter to the bottom of the pot and let it melt. While it melts, whisk together eggs in a mixing bowl. Add the milk to the eggs and then the flour. Do not over mix the flour but try to get the bigger clumps out. 

Add the eggy mixture to your cast iron and let cook for about 25 minutes.

For the Caramelized Apples:

An Apple or two, cut into slices

2 Tablespoons Butter

2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

1 Teaspoon Cinnamon

Drizzle of Honey

Powdered Sugar

In a saucepan over medium low heat, start cooking the apples at about ten minutes before your dutch baby is done. Melt the butter, then add your apples. Sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon over them, then drizzle a little honey over the top. Cook down until the apples are soft and brown. Serve on top of the individual dutch baby slices. Sprinkle powdered sugar on top of each. Enjoy :)

Sweet Honey and Soy Crock Pot Chicken, Spinach Salad, & Bleachers

Laundry has become my nemesis. You add one little 12 pound child to a regular couple's laundry and it somehow doubles. Maybe even triples. Add camping into the mix and you're ready to throw in the towel, but if you do that you might end up with a dirty towel and then would have to add that to the ever growing mass of soiled linens. It's a nightmare.

So, after camping for a few days and unintentionally bringing home buckets of sand (laundry and sweeping: YAY!), it was nice to have an easy meal to throw together. Not only easy, but absolutely delicious. This sauce, mmm…. this sauce! So yummy. This is definitely a frequent repeater. 

Rocking out to: I Wanna Get Better by Bleachers

For my husband and I, we don't need a huge amount, but if you're cooking for four: double this recipe. I paired it with a spinach salad but it'd be really great on some rice as well.

Sweet Honey and Soy Crock Pot Chicken
Recipe from: Creations by Kara
Serves: 2

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts
black pepper & salt
1 Tbl olive oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup ketchup
1/8 cup honey
2 garlic cloves
1/8 red pepper flakes

Directions:
In the bottom of the slow cooker, whisk the soy sauce, brown sugar, ketchup, honey, garlic, and red pepper flakes together.
Heat a sauce pan on medium heat and add the oil. Once hot, brown the chicken breasts on both sides. This will take about 3-4 minutes. By browning the sides, it will help the sauce thicken naturally during the cooking process in the slow cooker. Once done, add the chicken to the crock pot and cook on low for 2-3 hours.
Shred the chicken and mix into the sauce well. Serve and enjoy!

Apple and Macadamia Nut Spinach Salad
Serves: 2

Ingredients:
4 cups spinach
1/2 cup macadamia nuts
An apple, cubed
1/8 cup feta cheese
2 Tbls Brianna's blush wine vinaigrette (This is my personal favorite) or any vinaigrette you have on hand

Directions:
Toss all the ingredients together and eat up.