Category: dinner

Easy Shredded Chicken Crockpot Recipe (To Use For Other Recipes)

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This is an easy shredded chicken recipe that you can use to make chicken pot pie, chicken enchiladas, chicken Alfredo, chicken tacos, chicken salad, etc!

Make this shredded chicken and let it serve you for the rest of the week with your chicken dinners!

What You Need:

  • 3-4 Pounds of boneless chicken thighs
  • 1 large onion
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • 1 can of chicken broth
  • cooking spray or unsalted butter (plus 1/4 of a stick for the crock pot)

Steps:

1. Spray the bottom and sides of your crock pot with cooking spray or you can substitute with butter.

2. Slice your onion into round circle slices.

3. Lay your chicken thighs on top of the onions, fatty sides up.

4. Drizzle olive oil over the top of the chicken.

5. Sprinkle garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, salt and paprika over chicken. Give it a quick rub to ensure that the spices are distributed evenly (optional).

6. Add the chicken broth and the butter to the crock pot.

7. Close and cook the chicken in your crock pot on LOW for 6 hours or on HIGH for four hours.

Now make something yummy with it! 🙂

Easy Pork Loin Crockpot Recipe

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What You Need:

  • 3-4 Pounds boneless pork loin
  • 1 large onion
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • 2 cups broth – I prefer chicken broth
  • cooking spray or unsalted butter

Instructions

1. Spray the bottom and sides of your crock pot with cooking spray or you can substitute with butter.

2. Slice your onion into round circle slices.

3. Lay your pork loin on top of the onions, fat side up.

4. Drizzle olive oil over the top of the pork loin.

5. Sprinkle garlic, onion powder, black pepper, salt and paprika over pork loin. Give it a quick rub to ensure that the spices are distributed evenly.

6. Add two cups of broth to the bottom of the crock pot.

7. Close and cook the pork loin in your crock pot on LOW for 6 hours or on HIGH for four hours. Your meat should register at an internal temperature of 145 with a meat thermometer.

Enjoy!

Cheesy, Saucy, Baked Pasta

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What You Need:

Between 1 1/2 lbs and 2 1/2 lbs of ground beef or sweet ground up sausage or you could do a lb of each of meat

2 jars of your favorite marinara pasta sauce we like ragu

1 lb of your favorite pasta noodle (ziti, rigatoni, macaroni, or spiral pasta are all good ones)

3 zucchini’s chopped green and yellow

3/4 of a sweet onion finely chopped

4 – 5 tablespoons of Olive oil

1 heaping tablespoon of jarred minced garlic

2 cups of Mozzarella cheese or extra depending on your cheesy level

1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese

Steps:

1. Heat up a large skillet while you chop your onion, and zucchini. Once skillet is heated through add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sauté the onion, zucchini, and garlic until soft. Lightly season with salt and pepper. Then set aside.

2. Cook pasta as directed in a large pot. (Tip: once the water begins to boil, add a few dashes of salt. THEN add your pasta. That will flavor your pasta) Once cooked, drain your water, and add the pasta to a 9 x 13 baking dish.

2. In the same skillet you cooked your veggies, add your meat. If using ground beef season as you normally would (I like to use salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, a little turmeric, and maybe a little oregano.) If you’re using the sausage you don’t need to season, should already be seasoned. Once cooked, drain fat if needed.

3. Add the veggies to the meat and mix well. Add both jars of pasta to the meat and veggie sauce, reserving about 1/2 cup of sauce. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the sauce and a tablespoon of Italian seasoning mix. Allow the sauce to cook for just of minutes or until heated through.

4. Add the reserved pasta sauce to the naked pasta in the baking dish and mix well. Along with a tablespoon of olive oil.

5. Next add the meaty and veggie sauce to the pasta and mix well. Then add in 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, give or take and mix well.

6. Once fully mixed, top with the rest of the Parmesan cheese and then top with the remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake at 375 for 25 mins covered with foil. Once the 25 minutes is completed, removed foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

7. Allow to sit for a few minutes, garnish with fresh parsley (optional ) and serve with your favorite crusty bread with unsalted butter.

Enjoy!!!

Quick Tostadas

The Wild Gems2 Comments

When you need a delicious quick dinner this is a great go-to! Now, I am not going to get specific with measurements of ingredients. Chop as much as you want, use as much as you want, just enjoy it!

What You Need:

Tostadas (Guerrero)

2 premade bags of beans (La Sierra Refried Beans)

Chopped up lettuce

Chopped up fresh cilantro

Chopped up fresh roma tomatoes

Queso fresco crumbled (Ranchero)

A couple of Avocados sliced up

A yummy salsa (your favorite)

Rotisserie chicken shredded

Lime sliced and ready for a good squeeze

How To Layer Your Tostada

1. Start with your tostada, then spread your refried beans. It works like glue.

2. Next add your shredded chicken or beef.

3. Then add your lettuce, tomato, cilantro, and cheese.

4. Top your tostada with an avocado slice and drizzle your favorite salsa. Squeeze lime juice all over and ENJOY!

A Classic Baked Sweet Potato

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You know how sometimes you don’t eat something for awhile and then you eat it and you remember how much you enjoy it? Well I’m going through that with baked sweet potatoes. I’ve been making them often and they are so good. Skin and all! Of course I add butter and brown sugar but what other way do you even eat it?

Enjoy!

What You Need:

4 sweet potatoes (wash, dried and unpeeled)

4-6 tablespoons of Olive oil

Salt

Unsalted butter and brown sugar for after baking

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 400 and line a cookie sheet with foil.

2. Rub about 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil onto each of the sweet potatoes. Next, lightly salt each sweet potato.

3. After the sweet potatoes have been rubbed with olive oil and salted you’re going to take a fork and jab it a few times into each sweet potato. 4-5 jabs in each.

4. Bake for 50 minutes or until a fork can be poked through smoothly.

5. Once done, slice each sweet potato and top with unsalted butter and brown sugar. Serve immediately.

So yummy! The skin is even delicious!

Summertime Caesar Salad With Rotisserie Chicken And Avocado

The Wild Gems

This is the perfect lunch or dinner when you need something quick and super easy!

When the husband approves, it’s a win and worth sharing.

Although, I can’t really take full credit for this. I was inspired by this salad I get every so often at this restaurant in town. Unfortunately I don’t get to eat out often and enjoy it as much as I’d love to because I have 3 little ones that take up a lot of time and energy!

Sometimes you have to improvise when you can’t get your hands on the real deal. But sometimes you come up with something even better! And easier!

Honestly, it’s just buying stuff at the grocery store and combing it all to get this delicious salad full of flavor.

I’m sharing with you all this easy recipe you can make at home that everyone will love.

You won’t feel guilty after eating, perfect for enjoying outside in some nice weather, and pairs well with sangria or your favorite mock-tail.

Enjoy!

Ultimate Rotisserie Chicken Caesar Salad

Serves 4-6 people

(Takes less then 30 mins to prepare)

What you need:

  • One rotisserie chicken
  • 1 box of suddenly pasta – Caesar flavor
  • 1/2 can of black olives chopped finely (optional)
  • 1/2-3/4 can of pinto beans
  • 1 family size bag of Caesar salad kit
  • 1/2 to 3/4 cup of Parmesan cheese
  • 1 large ripe avocado diced
  • 1-2 handfuls of grape tomatoes sliced in halves

(What to look for)

Steps:

  1. Prepare pasta as it says on the box (including the seasoning mix) set aside in a medium bowl.
  2. Shred your rotisserie chicken, chop your tomatoes, dice your avocado, open the can of beans and set aside.
  3. Prepare the Caesar salad in a bowl.
  4. Add the chopped olives (if doing) , pinto beans, and chopped tomato. Next add the tricolor pasta and the chicken. Mix well. Then add your diced avocado and mix once more. Top with cracked black pepper and enjoy!

Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps

The Wild Gems4 Comments

This is an easy dinner recipe that’s even better the next day! Perfect meal for enjoying in this summer weather.

Cool crisp lettuce cups served with ground chicken, bell peppers, pineapple, and cashews in a sweet tangy Thai Sauce. Served over rice with sweet chili sauce for drizzling.

What You Need:

1 lb to 1 1/2 lbs of ground chicken

2 bell peppers sliced

3 tablespoons of unsalted butter

3 tablespoons of olive oil

1/4 – 1/2 cup of soy sauce

2-3 tablespoons of Thai Red Curry Paste

3 tablespoons of honey

3/4 cups of cashews

3 teaspoons of minced garlic

3/4 to 1 cup of pineapple

One bunch of cilantro finely chopped (extra for garnish)

1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil

Salt and pepper

Ginger seasoning (optional)

Lettuce for lettuce wraps

And 1 rice recipe click here

Steps:

1. Start by warming up your skillet on a medium heat. Add the olive oil, then your chicken. Season with salt and pepper and the ginger if using. Once the chicken gets cooking add the 3 tablespoons of butter, the minced garlic, and the 2 tablespoons of red curry paste.

2. Once the chicken is cooked through add your sliced bell peppers, cashews, and pineapple. Cook for 5 minutes. Then add your soy sauce and honey. Cook until everything is evenly distributed. Add cilantro and basil, mix, and cook for another minute. Remove from heat.

3. Serve the chicken and peppers mix over rice with lettuce cups on the side. Garnish with additional cilantro and drizzle over sweet Thai chili.

Enjoy!

Thai Rice Noodle Soup With Red Curry

The Wild Gems2 Comments

What You Need:

1 lb to 1 1/2 lbs of cooked chopped chicken breast or tenders (shrimp would be delish with this too)

click here for my cheat sheet on not overcooking your chicken

1 pack of rice noodles (usually a pack is 6.75 oz, but I only add 3/4 of the pack of rice noodles)

6 cups of chicken broth

3 tablespoons of red curry paste or green curry paste (I’ve tried this recipe with both)

1 red bell pepper chopped up

1 tablespoon of grated ginger (optional)

1/2 to 3/4 sweet onion chopped

4 cloves of garlic minced

1 can coconut milk unsweetened (not the fat free either)

3 teaspoons of light brown sugar give or take

1 tablespoon of fish sauce

Salt and pepper for taste

1 tablespoon of chopped cilantro plus more for garnish

A handful of freshly chopped basil (optional but recommend)

Thinly sliced green onion for garnish (optional)

Steps:

1. Cook your chopped chicken on a nonstick skillet on low medium heat for 6 minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper. Set aside.

2. In a large pot drizzle 3 to 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Sauté the onion, bell pepper, and garlic until soft. Stir in the red curry paste and ginger if using for about 1 minute.

3. Add your chicken broth and coconut milk. Add the brown sugar and fish sauce. Seasoning with salt and pepper. Bring to boil, then to a low simmer for 10 minutes to allow the flavors to mix together.

4. Add 3/4 of your packed rice noodles to the pot and 1 tablespoon of chopped cilantro. Allow to cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add your chicken. Mix well.

5. Serve immediately in bowls with fresh lime juice, chopped basil, sliced green onion, cilantro, and ENJOY!

3 Ingredient Baked Ranch Chicken

The Wild Gems1 Comment

First of all I know the picture isn’t the prettiest. I discovered this recipe and wasn’t sure if I was even going to like it.

Once I pulled the chicken out of the oven I took a quick snap just in case I might share this. Well, once I tried the chicken I was going to have to share this! The chicken wasn’t overcooked and the flavor wasn’t overpowering with ranch, it was simple and delicious!

This is an easy and very kid and husband approved dinner! My kids ate this up!

What You Need:

1/4 cup of buttermilk ranch dressing (give or take)

1/2 cup of Italian breadcrumbs (give or take)

1 1/2 lbs of chicken breasts (butterfly cut each breast if the chicken is very thick)

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 375 and line a cooking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Coat chicken breast in the ranch dressing and then immediately coat in the breadcrumbs.

4. Place the chicken on the cooking pan and bake at 375 for 30 mins. Once the 30 minutes is up pull the chicken out immediately and allow to rest for 8 to 10 minutes. Then serve with suggested sides.

Enjoy!

Suggested sides; mashed potatoes and veggies

Apple Cider Vinegar Marinade For A Pot Roast In The Slow Cooker – So Juicy!

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What You Need:

3-4 lbs of boneless chuck roast

1 sweet onion cut in 4 chunks

1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 tablespoon of unsalted butter

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

1 teaspoon of chili flakes

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/2 teaspoon of pepper

1/2 teaspoon of turmeric

1/2 teaspoon of thyme

1 tablespoon of rosemary

1 teaspoon of parsley

1 tablespoon of soy sauce or light brown sugar (there was a time I didn’t have soy sauce so I substituted with brown sugar because it just seemed like it would be good and I was pleasantly surprised!)

Steps:

1. Place your meat in the slow cooker, along with the chunks of onion. In a small mixing bowl mix together the rest of the ingredients, except for the butter. Pour marinade mixture over the meat. Top the meat with the butter. Place lid.

2. Cook on low for 8 hours. Once the 8 hours are up shred the meat well and serve immediately.

Serve over white rice or with some corn tortillas. Enjoy!

Note: when putting away the leftovers I did drain a lot of the oil from the meat. We ate it for 3 days and every day was better!