Crock Pot Barbecue Chicken

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Crock Pot Barbecue Chicken

There is nothing easier than a meal that involves 4 ingredients for the main dish.  It's even better when those 4 ingredients fill your house with a sweet, mouth watering smell all day long.

We serve this chicken over cole slaw (the same as in the Carolina Pulled Pork recipe) and with baked potatoes or (this is new) Trader Joes baked french fries!  The leftovers are fantastic the next day on a salad, or if you ask Teddy, with your hands while watching Curious George.

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Moroccan Chicken Kabobs

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Moroccan Chicken Kabobs

To kick off the summer cooking season this weekend Zach and I made grilled Moroccan chicken kabobs.  I know what you are thinking though, kabobs.  Boring, dry, bland, and tired.  Not these.  This blend of spices has a base of paprika with a touch of heat from cayenne (remove if you or your kiddos aren't fans of spice) and then the flair of exotic from the cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, and cumin. 

These kabobs are as easy as marinating the chicken in lemon juice, olive oil, and the spice blend  and then grilling!  So since I prepped the chicken earlier in the day, we had nothing to do but cut the veggies that evening and there was no kitchen clean up either!  Just marinade the chicken for the day and then slide them on kabobs (I prefer to skewer the chicken all together) and grill them to perfection.  

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Carolina Pulled Pork and Cole Slaw

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Carolina Pulled Pork and Cole Slaw

mmer time and the living's easy ...

if you aren't worried about what you are going to cook for dinner and aren't making the house hot with the stove and oven on all evening.

But what's a family to do? Grill every evening? I mean that is not a horrible option.  Salads every night?  I'd be OK with that but pretty sure Teddy would revolt.  In walks my crock pot (yet again) to save the day!  15 minutes of prep and dinner is done - BAM - and the kitchen stays cool and you have the rest of the day to work on your playground tan lines :-)

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Sweet and Sour Chicken and Veggies

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Sweet and Sour Chicken and Veggies

Well that summery weather was fun while it lasted, now back to cool, windy, springy days!  Any weather under 75 makes me crave a warm meal and apparently lately that has meant Asian food.  

One night I was craving, and I mean craving Chinese food.  Not the kind that leaves you thirsty and puffy in the morning, I just wanted something good.  So on to the interwebs I went and found some simple ideas for sweet and sour chicken.  

Jackpot!

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Basil Curry Coconut Chicken

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Basil Curry Coconut Chicken

This week and last has been just what the doctor ordered (never mind the allergies).  Sun and blue skies every day all day, and endless play.  We spent our days outside playing and running and eating picnic lunches.  Teddy was dirty head to toe every day and as happy as could be.  

On days like these, making dinner is the last thing on my mind! Enter this crockpot basil curry coconut chicken.

After a week of beautiful sunny, almost summery days you might be thinking making a crock pot meal is crazy.  It's warm out, the type of weather for grilling and salads.  Aren't crock pots reserved for the fall and winter?  Not if you have the right recipe!

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Mediterranean Chicken Bake

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Mediterranean Chicken Bake

Spring is a fickle beast.  Cool in the morning, warm in the afternoon, and cool again in the evening.  Then the next day cool and windy and drizzly. And the next day bright blue skies and almost 70 degrees.  

These cool spring days have me craving healthy veggie filled dinners but also something warm and comforting.  This is the kind of dinner that fills that special category perfectly - especially when the chicken soaks up the flavor from sautéd and roasted artichokes, carrots, onions, sundried tomatoes, and spinach.

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Menu 4/2 -4/8 (aka the week of rain)

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Menu 4/2 -4/8 (aka the week of rain)

This week's menu is brought to you by April showers, cool weather, and my need to feel all warm and cozy.  No grilling this week, a lot of soups and crock pot action though!  Yummmm.

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From Failure to Flavorful ... the story of a salvaged dinner

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From Failure to Flavorful ... the story of a salvaged dinner

I pride myself in being organize and prepared, especially when it comes to dinner.  I like to have everything ready for prep and get started cooking as soon as Zach and Teddy go upstairs for Teddy's bath.  So imagine my surprise when I started cooking last night and I didn't have my main ingredient!! Last night could have been awful but thanks to the luck of the Irish (see what I did there ... it was St. Patrick's Day) and a forgotten package of sauce in the cabinet we had a wonderful dinner!

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Cabernet Pot Roast and Veggies

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Cabernet Pot Roast and Veggies

Weather like this makes me crave a good hearty warm meal.  But after having been up with the kiddo since 3:30AM I didn't have the energy to do much besides pour a bowl of cereal, let alone cook a big meal.    Luckily this pot roast takes all of 20 minutes to prepare, thanks to Trader Joe's Cabernet Beef Pot Roast.  It's an amazing find that changed my cooking life.  Not joking.

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Broccoli Slaw Stir Fry

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Broccoli Slaw Stir Fry

So this dinner is one of Zach's favorites.  If he could have it on the menu multiple times a week he would.  And honestly, it is so easy to make I probably wouldn't object except for the fact that there are so many things that I like to cook and eat!  

When I say this meal is an easy meal to make I am not making light of anything.  When I made it last week I started at 7:05 and we were putting it into our bowls at 7:30.  That is under 30 minutes for a fresh, hot, home cooked dinner.  Pretty rockstar if you ask me.

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Slow Cooker Turkey Chili with Cocoa and Wine

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Slow Cooker Turkey Chili with Cocoa and Wine

Did the title hook you?  Wine and chocolate in a chili, you say?  Do tell ...

There are a ton of recipes for turkey chili, most of them slightly bland or overly spiced.  Turkey with a base of tomato and a mix of typical spices.  Nothing wrong with it, just the same old same old.  My recipe is warm, with a depth to it thanks to the base of chili spices layered with rich unsweetened cocoa and a good deep red wine.  All mixed together, with turkey and beans and cooked low and slow for hours, this chili fills your house with an aroma unlike any other chili.

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Slow Cooker Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemons, Olives, and Raisins

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Slow Cooker Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemons, Olives, and Raisins

Chicken tagine is one of our family's favorite dishes.  The cumin, cinnamon, turmeric and cayenne, ginger and garlic fill the house with a spicy warmth as the Chicken, raisins, olives, carrots, and onions slowly stew together.  It is such an easy meal and adds a nice balance to our regular menu of Asian, Mediterranean, and American fare. 

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