Easy crockpot shredded chicken, baked taquitos

 https://thesaltymarshmallow.com/easy-crockpot-shredded-chicken/

Ingredients

• 3 Pounds Chicken Breasts About 4 Large
• 1 Cup Chicken Broth
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Pepper
• 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder

Instructions

• Place chicken breasts in bottom of crockpot.  Pour chicken broth and seasonings over chicken.
• Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.
• Remove chicken broth from crockpot carefully, and shred the chicken breast immediately with a hand mixer on low speed, right in the crockpot. Or use two forks if you must, but the electric hand mixer is so fast and effective!
• Use the chicken right away in your favorite recipes.  Or, allow chicken to cool and portion into zip-top bags and freeze for up to two months.

Notes

NOTE:  For servings on this recipe I labeled it as 6 cups of shredded chicken TOTAL, rather than serving per person.

NOTE:  Cooked/Shredded chicken is good in the refrigerator for 4-5 days, and in the freezer for up to 2 months.  Store in a well sealed zip-top bag.

Used in this recipe among others:

https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/wprm_print/10922

Ingredients

• 2 cups cooked shredded chicken (I use rotisserie)
• 6 ounces cream cheese , softened
• 1/4 cup salsa , your favorite kind
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• Cilantro to taste
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• salt and freshly ground black pepper for taste
• 
  
• (I serve on the side the below)
• 1 cup baby spinach leaves , chopped
• 15-20 corn or flour tortillas

For serving:

• guacamole, sour cream, salsa, hot sauce

Instructions

• Add cream cheese, salsa and sour cream to a mixing bowl and stir until smooth. Add remaining ingredients (except the tortillas and spinach) and toss to combine. Taste and add more seasoning, if needed.
• For corn tortillas, heat a non-stick griddle over medium high heat. Cook tortillas for about 15 - 30 seconds on each side until soft and pliable. Remove tortillas to a plate covered with tinfoil to keep them warm and pliable.
• Place a large spoonful of filling in a line along each tortilla and roll tightly. Secure with a toothpick if needed.
• Baked Taquitos: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Spray the tops of the tacos with cooking spray , or brush them lightly with oil. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the shells are crispy.
• Fried Taquitos: Add about 1 1/2 inches of oil to a large skillet and heat to medium-high. Once hot (the tortillas should sizzle immediately when added to the oil). Fry the taquitos in small batches, for a few seconds on each side, rotating them as they cook, until they are golden and crispy on all sides. Place them on a paper towel lined plate.
• Serve taquitos with guacamole, salsa and sour cream.

Creamy Tuscan shrimp

 https://gimmedelicious.com/wprm_print/16169

Creamy Tuscan Shrimp (Keto friendly)

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 pound shrimp, deveined, and tails removed
• salt (to taste)
• pepper (to taste)
• 3-4 cloves garlic (minced)
• 1 cup halved cherry or grape tomatoes (or sundried tomatoes)
• 3-4 cups baby spinach
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 2 tablespoons basil, thinly sliced (or parsley)

Instructions

• Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil is super hot and the butter has melted, add the shrimp and a generous sprinkle of salt & pepper, sautee for 1 minute. 
• Remove shrimp from pan and set aside then add the garlic, tomatoes, and spinach to the same pan. Saute for 1 minute or until the garlic is fragrant. 
• Stir in the heavy cream, parmesan cheese, and basil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until sauce is slightly reduced about 2-3 minutes. Return the shrimp to the pan and stir to combine. Taste and adjust salt if needed.

Slow Cooker Carnitas

 https://lillieeatsandtells.com/easy-low-fat-slow-cooker-crispy-carnitas

 This is super good and has been in the regular rotation for a while now. 

Ingredients

• 1.5-3 pounds pork tenderloin (I like 1.5 better for more sauciness)
• Seasoning Salt
• 16 oz jar herdez green salsa
• 8 cloves of garlic 
• 1 white onion diced

Instructions

1. Trim fat off meat and pat dry.
2. Cut into chunks, 3-4 inches long. (This helps the pieces be shorter later like carnitas.)
3. Season liberally all over with season-salt and sear on all sides in a hot pan with a little oil to lock in flavor. Get a nice brown crust on it.
4. Move to a crock pot and cover with the salsa
5. Saute the onion in the same pan with a little oil and a little salsa to get the browned bits up. Add the garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes until fragrant, then add all that to the slow cooker. 
6. Set to low and cook for 4-6 hours or until tender. Shred it and toss in juices. 

This stuff I skip, but is in the original recipe:
I like to pull out my chunks and shred them in a new dish then pour a little more than half of the liquid over it.  Toss in those juices and then proceed to fry it up.
***You can use the meat like this, or spread it on a pan and bake at 350 for about 15 minutes to get some crispy pieces, more like authentic carnitas. OR… my favorite way (AND THE ONLY WAY WE DO IT NOW… AND FOR SURE WITH ANY LEFTOVERS) is just crisp up as much as you need in a hot fry pan.  Quicker than the oven and SOO good when it gets a good brown on it!

 

Recipes from Kel

 

Pad Thai (adapted from tastesbetterfromscratch.com):

Makes about 6 servings

Ingredients:

8 oz flat rice noodles

1.5 lb cooked and shredded chicken (or shrimp or tofu)

2 eggs

4 bell peppers (all colors)

1 bunch asparagus

1 container mushrooms

1 bunch green onions

 

4 limes

½ cup fresh cilantro

3 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

5 tbsp light brown sugar

2 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp Sriracha (or to taste)

2 tbsp creamy peanut butter (or to taste)

 

Instructions:

1. Cook noodles according to package instructions.

2. Mix fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, Sriracha and peanut butter and set aside

3. Chop veggies nice and thin and then lightly sauté in cooking spray. Make room in the pan and scramble two eggs in the middle, chopping them up.

4. Add noodles, chicken, and sauce and mix to combine over low heat until everything is reheated.

5. Garnish with green onions, cilantro, and lime.

6. Sometimes I double the sauce ingredients and then add as necessary (in MFP you could make the sauce as its own recipe and track accordingly).

Macros (approximate): 373 kcal (10g f / 25 g c / 44 g p)

 

Honey Sriracha Protein Bowl (copycat of Happy + Hale Bowl):

Servings: 5

Ingredients:

0.5 cup Sriracha

6 tbsp honey

2 tbsp salted butter

4 tsp soy sauce

2 tsp lemon juice

 

20 oz. cooked shredded chicken

15 oz. canned black beans

5 oz. roasted corn

5 c. chopped kale

25 oz. chopped and roasted sweet potato (400F until tender)

1 package of bacon - cooked

5 oz. goat cheese

 

Instructions: Combine sriracha, honey, butter, soy sauce, and lemon juice in saucepan and bring to simmer to combine. Evenly divide remaining ingredients into containers. Top with sauce before serving.

Macros (approximate): 670 kcal (26 g f / 70 g c / 53 g p)

 

Carnitas:

https://lillieeatsandtells.com/easy-low-fat-slow-cooker-crispy-carnitas/

Oven pot roast

 Man this was good… a little salty but really tasty. I put the veggies on bottom and the meat on top.

https://cafedelites.com/slow-cooked-balsamic-pot-roast/#recipe

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2.5 - 4 pounds (2 kg) chuck roast or blade roast, boneless and trimmed of excess fat
• 1 yellow onion chopped
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic, or 8 cloves fresh garlic, minced
• 3 or 4 large carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 stalks celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 8 ounces mushrooms, quartered
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons bouillon (I did one beef one chicken)
• 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
• 2 cups beef broth
• 2 tablespoons plain flour (optional -- for a thick gravy)

OVEN:

• Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Heat oil in a dutch oven or heavy based oven-proof pot over medium-high heat. Season roast all over with a good amount of salt and pepper. Sear until brown on all sides (about 4-5 minutes each side).
• Transfer roast to a plate. Sauté onions until transparent, then add garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the stock and balsamic vinegar to deglaze your pan, scraping up any browned bits. Whisk in the flour and let cook for about 4 minutes (don't worry about any lumps, they will cook out).
• Transfer roast back into the pot. Add the  carrots, celery, mushrooms, mustard, brown sugar, thyme and bouillon. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Bring to a simmer, cover with lid (or foil) and transfer to the oven. Roast for 3-4 hours until the meat is tender and falling apart. 
• Transfer the roast, carrots, and potatoes to a warm plate. With a spoon, skim the fat off the surface of the cooking liquid. Cut the roast into thick slices, and serve with the vegetables. Pass the pan juices separately.

Cheeseburger sliders

 https://tasty.co/recipe/cheeseburger-sliders

Halved the recipe and made it in my cast iron. Kids didn’t want anything but the meat, which was hard to separate, so I’ll do it differently next time. Super tasty though, and reheated well for lunch the next day! I sautéed the onions with mushrooms, had some on burgers and some on the side.

Ingredients

for 12 sliders

• 2 lb ground beef
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons pepper
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• ½ white onion, diced
• 6 slices cheddar cheese
• 12 dinner rolls, or hawaiian sweet rolls
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
2. Combine the beef, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a 9x13-inch (23x33-cm) rimmed baking dish, mixing thoroughly, then pressing into a flat, even layer. Bake for 20 minutes. Drain the liquid and set the cooked beef aside.
3. Slice the rolls in half lengthwise. Place the bottom half in the same baking dish. Place the cooked beef on the rolls, followed by the onions and cheese. Top with the remaining rolls.
4. Brush the tops of the rolls with melted butter and sprinkle the sesame seeds on top. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and the cheese is melted.
5. Slice into individual sliders, then serve.
6. Enjoy!

Strawberry spinach salad with homemade dressing