Easy and Old-Fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup

I have a memory of a eating chicken noodle soup with my grandpa. I was little, maybe 3 years old? And I remember sitting on swiveling bar stools at the speckled-white counter, and the walls were adorned with baby blue subway tiles from floor to ceiling. The floors were a similar shade, but speckled like the counters... And, they served the BEST chicken noodle soup.

Every time I make this recipe, I'm reminded of eating chicken noodle soup with my grandpa... whom I called 'Bumpa'... but that's probably another story ;-)

I like my soup chunky.

Ingredients:
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken (I prefer thighs; they stay nice and juicy)
4 cups of raw sliced carrots and celery
4 cups of low sodium, organic chicken stock
1 cup uncooked noodles (I like fettuccine, and I break them into 1-2" pieces)

Directions: 
Throw everything into your slow cooker, and cook on high until the chicken is cooked, the veggies are tender, and the noodles are delicious.

Options: 
If you have the time, cook the chicken first in a big splash of the chicken stock. When it's cooked (about 2 hours or so), then add the veggies and broth. Cook for 4+ more hours. About two hours before dinner, add the uncooked noodles.

Short on time? Crockpot-cook the chicken in a splash of broth. Sauté the veggies in broth or butter until semi-soft, and add them to the crockpot. Add the remainder of the broth. Cook the noodles for two hours in the crockpot, or boil them for 5-7 minutes separately, drain, and add them to the crockpot.

Not enough soupy liquid? Add more broth ;-)

Shred or chop the chicken. Serve in four equal portions. Top with sea or himalayan salt and fresh ground pepper, and enjoy!

Butternut squash soup

Last week, we made that crockpot chicken, remember? Well, here's another recipe when you can use this chicken :-)

I love that you can put whatever you want in this soup. This time, I added canned tomatoes. Mr. Picky-Big-Kiddo was not invited to eat this for dinner. Ha!

Ingredients:

14 oz cooked chicken
2 cups butternut squash, cubed frozen or fresh
2 cups diced tomatoes, canned
2 cups corn, frozen or canned
Low sodium chicken broth, more or less depending on how soup-y you like your soup

Directions:

Throw everything into your crockpot and cook on low until warmed through and veggies are tender. Cook time will be longer for fresh/raw veggies, but less for frozen and canned veggies. Serve in four equal portions, and enjoy!

Do the math:
Each serving has 3.5 oz cooked chicken (1 red), 1 cup veggies (1 green), and 1/2 cup corn (1 yellow). Feel free to mix and match your veggies and carbs/grains, but maintain the ingredient portion sizes.

Options:
Sub one cup corn for one cup cooked noodles or black beans.
Use any combination of butternut squash, tomatoes, onions, red and green peppers, etc.

Buffalo Chicken Tacos

I'm all about easy cooking, right? This recipe is EASY and customizable to whatever sort of eaters you are living with ;-)

And this is the perfect recipe to use some of the chicken you harvested from the Crockpot Chicken you made... wink, wink!

Buffalo chicken taco on a corn tortilla topped with lettuce, tomato, Paleo mayo, and homemade ranch seasoning.

Ingredients: 

3.5 oz cooked chicken, shredded or chopped (per person)
Hot sauce (more or less to taste)
1 oz cheese (per person)
Tortillas (one small wheat or two small corn, per person)
Toppings: chopped lettuce, sliced tomatoes, plain Greek yogurt (a health sub for sour cream), fresh bleu cheese, paleo mayo and homemade ranch seasoning, etc.

Directions:

In a saucepan, heat chicken and mix with hot sauce. When warm, add cheese and heat until melted. Serve in tortilla(s) and top with lettuce, tomatoes, etc. Enjoy!

Crockpot Chicken - The easiest thing to make in the crockpot, ever!

Last year, a friend shared her recipe for a crockpot chicken that feeds her family of three for four meals. Immediately, I saw money staying in my bank account, and less time spent in the kitchen. 

Here's Michelle's recipe: 

Ingredients:

1 Onion

1 5-6 lb Whole Chicken, giblets removed

2 tsp Paprika, plus 1/2 tsp

1 tsp Salt, plus 1/8 tsp

1 tsp Thyme, plus 1/4 tsp

1 tsp Garlic Powder, plus 1/4 tsp

1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper

1/4 tsp Black Pepper

Directions: 

Basically, chop the onion and put it on the bottom of your crockpot. Mix the seasonings, rub them all over your chicken, and place the chicken on top of the onions, breast-side up. Cook  on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 3-4 hours. 

When the chicken is cooked, it's fall-off-the-bone delicious! 

****

But here's the kicker!! You never actually eat this chicken as a meal...! Nope! You harvest the meat, and use that meat for your meals. 

You also save all the juices and the bones and the skin to make chicken stock. Just add some celery ends, some carrot peels, water, and a bay leaf or two, and cook for several more hours. And yes, the first time I did this, I felt totally Martha Stewart! 

Unfortunately, Michelle's recipe results in chicken stock that's too spicy for us. I have no idea which ingredient is the culprit, so of course, I've modified her recipe! 

My recipe: 

Raw and ready to go!                  Cooked, skin removed, and ready for harvesting.

Ingredients:

1 5-6 lb whole chicken*

2-10 cloves of garlic, chopped, smashed, diced, etc.

onion flakes or powder

salt and pepper

Directions: 

Throw that chicken into the crockpot, cover it with the garlic and onion, and cook it! 

****

Once you've harvested the meat, add your celery, carrots, raw onion, bay leaf, and water to the crock, and make some stock!

*Whole chickens are usually pretty cheap, but I've also done this with boneless skinless chicken breasts and bone-in skin-on chicken thighs. Use whatever you have or whatever's on sale! 

Crockpot "green" chicken chili

I'm almost never read the paragraphs and paragraphs of text authors write about their recipes. Pull me in with a yummy looking picture, and then show me the ingredients. If they're not normal looking and stuff I already have on hand, I'm moving on.

With that being said, please understand and accept my brevity. I promise, it doesn't detract from the yumminess of my creations ;-)

Ingredients

12 tomatillos, husks removed, rinsed, quartered
2-6 cloves of garlic, peeled and rinsed
fresh cilantro (I pulled the leaves from 30 "stalks")
1 lb boneless skinless chicken (breasts are leaner; thighs are juicier)
1 tsp cumin
1/2 cup frozen or canned corn
1 can of beans, rinsed and drained (butter beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, etc.)

Garnish - additional cilantro, plain Greek yogurt, cheddar cheese, hot sauce, lime juice, salt, pepper, etc.

Directions

1. Food-process the tomatillos, garlic, and cilantro. Voila, the "green stuff".

2.  Dump a bit of the green stuff in the bottom of your crock pot. Place the chicken on top, and sprinkle with the cumin. Dump the remaining green stuff on top of the chicken.

3. Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or low for 6-8 hours.

4. With the chicken still in the crockpot, shred it. Add the beans and corn, and cook for 1-3 hours longer.

5. Serve and garnish individually.

Don't have time to add the beans and corn at the end? Add it to the crockpot in Step 2, and skip Step 4. 

Serving information: Recipe makes 4 servings. Ungarnished, each serving is 1G, 1R, and 1Y.

The best pie crust ever... and why I knew this blog was a good idea

I've been toying around with the idea of a blog for MONTHS!

I like creating healthy recipes for my family, and when I'm looking for a new clean-eating recipe, I end up on a bunch of different blogs, printing out several recipes for the same dish, and then creating a concoction that combines elements from each of the recipes I printed.

Sometimes, I create something wonderful.

Other times, even I don't want the leftovers.

But most of the time, the picky eaters in my house leave the table with full bellies, and there isn't too much bribing in order to get them to eat.

But what finally set me over the edge was a pie crust! Yes, you read that right! Pie crust.

I'm willing to try most things at least once, but I have to be careful. Someone in my houses despises coconut. Coconut milk, coconut oil, shredded coconut, everything coconut. So when I found a recipe that called for coconut flour, I definitely hesitated.

But then I went for it! I made a pie crust for the Christmas pies with coconut flour! And Picky Eater #1 devoured it, and even exclaimed that the pie was "SO good!" And at that moment, I knew I had to create a blog, and share my creations.

The crust here is kinda thick. The first time I made it, I didn't split the dough ball.

Ingredients

1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup arrowroot flour/starch
2-3 grinds of Himalayan pink salt
1/2 cup butter (I like Kerrygold)
1 egg
1 egg white plus a splash of water for egg wash

Directions - My favorite kitchen tools are a fork and a food processor. Use either one for this pie crust.

1. Mix together the flours and salt.

2. Mix in the butter.

3. Mix in the egg.

4. Form two balls, and dump each onto a piece of cling wrap. Flatten each ball into a disk, and cover with the cling wrap. Each disk is enough for one pie.

5. Refrigerate for 45 min. to 2 days.

6. When you're ready to make your pie(s), preheat the oven to 375F, loosen the cling wrap, recover, and roll out with a rolling pin or smash it flat with your fists.

7. Butter your pie dish, remove the cling wrap from one side of the pie crust, and flip it into the dish. Leave the cling wrap so your fingers stay clean when you smash the pie crust to the edge of the buttered dish and up the sides.

8. Use the egg wash the edges of the crust, and bake for 10-12 minutes.

9. Cool for later use, or fill with pie or quiche filling, and bake as directed.

This recipe has been adapted from Food Republic: http://www.foodrepublic.com/recipes/holy-grail-status-perfect-paleo-pie-crust-recipe/