Life Hacks- Shredded Chicken

I love getting cooking advice from my mom.  In my eyes, she is the queen of everything kitchen.  We were talking about her chicken noodle soup recipe when she told me about this genius idea for stocking up on shredded chicken.  With Braedon and I both in school and working there are nights during the week that if we don't plan a meal we end up eating ramen. We are usually so hungry by the time we get home that we don't have the patients to let our meat thaw and cook so we resort to a quicker meal. Hopefully with this new "life hack" we'll keep the ramen eating to a minimum!  

I'm pretty excited about it.  

So, there are two ways to do this shredded chicken timesaver hack. First I'll show you how I did it, and then I'll tell you about the easier (but more expensive) way.  

First you'll need to boil your chicken.  My chicken kind of broke apart in the pot, but I started with three large breasts.  Mine were done after about 12 minutes.  

Side note: I also added a little bit of garlic salt and chicken seasoning to the water for flavor

Remove the chicken from the pot, and place in a large mixing bowl.  Leave the boiled water- we'll use it later.  

Another great life hack, you can use your mixer to shred your chicken. No more cramped hands! Yay!    This changed my life.  

And voila!  Shredded chicken.  Now you can transfer the chicken into some tupperware, and slowly scoop the chicken stock (your boiled water is now chicken stock) into the tupperware.  I'm telling you guys, this was a break through for me.  

The point of the chicken stock is so that your chicken doesn't dry up in the freezer.  Now you have shredded chicken- already cooked- on hand for those busy nights!  Add it to a soup, a salad, tacos, whatever.  All you have to do now is defrost and reheat!  

The second way to do this is a little easier, and a little more expensive.  My mom told me when they first got married she did it this way because it was cheaper, but now she does it the easy way.  

The "easy" way:

1. Buy rotisserie chicken

2. Buy chicken stock

3. Pull apart rotisserie chicken (shredding it)

4. Add to tupperware and pour in chicken stock

I ended up just boiling the chicken while I was making our real dinner for the night and it actually didn't seem inconvenient at all to me.  I'll let you know which way I like better!  

Banana Bread Zucchini Muffins

I have a love-hate relationship with baking.  Mostly just a love relationship.  I have always loved to bake- cooking came after I got married.  The problem here is I have a major sweet tooth.  It's the Aiken girl curse I think.  I make cookies, I eat the dough while baking, and then I eat seven cookies cause they just taste too good out of the oven to go to waste!

Oh well.

I got this recipe from my sister Missy who is a great cook.  She is super picky so I know that if I get a recipe from her I'll love it.  I'm actually surprised she likes banana bread zucchini muffins because she gave me a soup recipe once and omitted the zucchini because she doesn't like it.  Like I said, very picky.  I love zucchini.  

Anyways, you should make these.  

And zucchini is spelled wrong below.  Don't worry, I'm a nurse.  

Also I forgot to include the flour in this picture.  It's been a while since I've blogged ok?

Ingredients:

3 cups flour

2 cups sugar

3 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

3 eggs

1 banana (mashed)

1 cup oil

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups zucchini (I used two medium sized zucchini's)

*Extra cinnamon and sugar to sprinkle on the pan before baking, and on the top of your muffins after baking

First set your oven to bake at 325 degrees.  Spray your muffin tin with pam and sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on top.  

Next mix your dry ingredients in a large bowl.  (Sugar, cinnamon, flour, baking soda, baking powder)

Next I grated my zucchini.  You need two cups- I used two medium sized zucchini's.  

Yum.

Now you can add your "wet" ingredients in a separate large mixing bowl. 

Once the wet ingredients are mixed, slowly add in the dry ingredients about 1 cup at a time.  

Finally, add to your muffin tin (or bread pan). Bake at 325 degrees for about 35 minutes.  The bread is supposed to bake for 45 minutes so at 25 minutes I started checking my muffins about every five minutes.  (I'll call you every five minutes! Name that movie).  Missy lives in California and says everything bakes faster there so hers only baked for 15-20 minutes.  

I've never made muffins before and I feel like I filled the cups way too high.  I had some huge muffins!  Oh well, they tasted (and smelled) amazing.  Obviously I couldn't wait until after the picture to eat one.  You'll want to take a butter knife and gently flip them out of their tins before they cool or they'll stick to the pan.  

Mmmmmm these are so dang good.  I still have tons of batter leftover so tonight I'm going to bake them in a bread tin and add lots of milk chocolate chips.  Whoops.  

Now go make them, or come eat mine so I will stop.  

Last Minute Christmas Treat

If you’re looking for an easy, inexpensive, and tasty holiday treat for your neighborhood Christmas gifts, look no further!  This salty sweet combination provides the perfect amount of crunch, chewy goodness, and holiday flare. 

What You’ll Need:
*Melting Caramel
*Melting White Chocolate
*Melting Milk Chocolate
Candy Canes
Pretzel Rods (1 bag of 30)
Parchment Paper


*You’ll need to purchase your caramel, and chocolates from a store that sells melting chocolates.  I bought all my supplies from Orson Gigi.  

I like to start by placing my candy canes in a bag and crushing them with a rolling pin. I crushed all 12 of them and had plenty to spare- I made about 40 pretzels.

You can leave the chards in a bag or place them in a bowl to use later.  Next I cut my caramel into squares.  I used about 1/4 of the block.  I chose to just fill a tall mug with the melted caramel so that it would make the dipping easier.  If your microwave is tall enough a pitcher would work great as well. 

You can use a stove top to keep your caramel and chocolates melted, but you want to be very careful they don’t burn.  If you use a stove you need to have a double broiler.  The microwave was an easier option for me and if my caramel started hardening I could just pop it back in for a few seconds!

Every microwave will differ, but these are the general cooking times…

Caramel: 30 seconds, stir, 30 more seconds

White chocolate: 30 seconds, stir, 15 more seconds (the white chocolate melts the fastest)

Milk Chocolate: 30 seconds, stir, 30 more seconds

The key to finding out the perfect time for your microwave is start low!  Try 15-30 seconds increments at most… You don’t want your candy to burn!

Now you can start dipping!  The caramel should stick pretty well to your pretzel.  If it’s falling right off, it’s too hot and you need to let it thicken up a little.  

I do a few twists and then set it down on my wax paper.  When you’ve finished with your caramel you can heat up the white chocolate (or milk chocolate, whichever you prefer).

And the process starts over!

Just dip…

And twist! 

While the white chocolate is still soft, sprinkle your peppermint over the top.  Make sure you do it soon after you’re finished dipping, or it won’t stick!

And now for the finishing touches!  This part can get a little messy.  The chocolate I used wasn’t thin enough to “drizzle” so I kind of just had to wave my spoon back and forth.  I think it it made my lines a little more artistic ;)

And you’re done!  Easy, inexpensive, yummy (and cute).  I paid $60 for my supplies and I’m going to be making these every weekend for the rest of the month if I want to get rid of them!  Consider it this way; you give 20 neighborhood gifts and they’re only $3 dollars a piece! (Plus you’ll have plenty to spare for those holiday get togethers).  

Just wrap it up with some cellophane and finish it off with a bow. Thanks for reading, hope you have a Merry Christmas!

Newlywed Dinners: Easy Crockpot Meatballs

Alright, this is the epitome of easy.  I know some people are crockpot haters, but I am definitely a supporter.  I fully embrace the laziness!  Especially as I'm working full time, and the hubs is in school all day, sometimes the crockpot is our only chance at a homemade (hot) meal.  

The key to a "Newlywed Dinner"?  It's easy, inexpensive, and fools your husband into thinking your an amazing cook.  (All you do is throw the ingredients in the pot and cook on low for 5 hours).  Fool proof. 

Ingredients:

1.25 lbs of meatballs

1 cup honey flavored bbq sauce

1/2 cup peach preserves (jam works too)

1/4 cup packed darn brown sugar (can also use light)

1 1/2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1/4 teaspoon lemon pepper

Literally all you have to do is mix together the ingredients, add in the meatballs, and pour into the crockpot.  Cook on low for 5 hours.  

I threw some rice in the rice cooker and we paired it with some edamame. Done and done!  

Side note: as I was making this dinner Braedon came over to "give me a hug".  He looked at my shirt with terror and said, "Stef, don't move".  Bad idea.  I screamed my head off and jumped around the kitchen like an idiot!  I was wearing this fuzzy sweater and was convinced a spider had made its new home!  

Wanna know the sad part?  This has happened before. My friend Micah, was the witness.  Same look of terror, same overdramatic reaction. Turns out I just had chocolate on my face.  (In my defense, all I saw was a brown glob out of the corner of my eye...I mean it could have been a spider)

Newlywed Dinners: Thanksgiving for Two

Ok, I have to admit, this was really intimidating, and definitely a learning experience! First of all, I really never cooked until I got married.  I loved to bake, but left the cooking for my mom.  I think I called her about 7 times while attempting to make my own Thanksgiving dinner today.  

Call 1: "So...um, how do you cook a turkey?? How do you make homemade gravy?  What should I stuff the turkey with?  How long do I cook it?"

Call 2: "Hey, I forgot, do I need to make a foil tent?"

Call 3: "All the recipe says is, "make a white sauce" for the cauliflower and carrots.  Where do I begin?"

Call 4: "My turkey has no juice...so now I can't make gravy"

Here's what I learned...

1. It's not as hard as it looks

2. You can't make gravy with a smoked turkey.  (oops).  I bought a smoked turkey

3. If you don't like the brown meat, just buy a turkey breast. Bonus: it's easier to cook

4. Don't be intimidated, you can do it!

I decided to make my Thanksgiving dinner favorites:

Mashed Potatoes

Cauliflower and Carrots

Turkey (of course)

Disclaimer:

Each of these are family recipes.  I come from a family of amazing cooks, which means that most of these recipes didn't have exact measurements or directions.  Apparently the cook inside of me was just supposed to know how!  My recipe posts tend to be long because I try to be very detailed- that's what my type A personality requires when it comes to cooking!  I'll do my best to be detailed, but if you have any questions just comment below. 

1. Mashed Potatoes

Directions: 

Peel your potatoes and place in a large pot. If you use large potatoes cut them in half and then lengthwise.  I chose not to cut my potatoes since they were pretty small.  Fill the pot so the potatoes are covered.  At the last second I decided to add three garlic gloves and some salt to the water to give my potatoes some flavor.  Definitely optional!  Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender.  

This turned out to be the perfect amount of potatoes (7 small).  We definitely have leftovers, but it was my intention to have leftover for this meal.  If you don't like leftovers you can easily half each of these dishes.  

Once tender carefully transfer your potatoes to a large mixing bowl.  This is where the measurements are up to you....add some butter (I started with 1/4 cup but added more later on) and a few dollops of sour cream.   

Mash those babies up!  You'll want to get all the clumps out (unless you prefer lumpy mashed potatoes).  Start adding milk little by little and beat the potatoes with a hand mixer on high speed.  I also decided to mince up one clove of garlic and add it in at this point (do not add three like I had in the water!). Also optional.  Keep beating, adding milk, sour cream, and butter until you get the consistency you want.  The key to this step is adding the mix ins little by little- you can always add more! Also, it helps to have your butter melted- at first while the potatoes are piping hot it won't matter- but I was beating and mashing for a while! 

2. Cauliflower and Carrots

Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower

5 long carrots

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup flour 

2 cups milk

1/2 cup minced onion

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Bring water to a boil in a large pot.  Chop up your carrots and cauliflower into bite size pieces, then cook until tender but still slightly crispy. (maybe 3-5 minutes) I would recommend boiling the veggies separately, but you could certainly add them together.   

I actually added more carrots after taking this picture (from 4 to 5 long sticks).  But it will look something like this.  Next you will make your "white sauce". 

After calling my mom, I got some good directions on the mysterious sauce.  First melt the butter and add in the onions-let them get soft. Pour in the flour and be sure to whisk thoroughly.  Next, add in the milk very slowly, and whisk as you add, you don't want clumps!  I kept my burner at low-medium heat the whole time.  

Lastly, you can add your cheese.  It's ok if the mixture bubbles, but at this point you do not want it to be boiling.  Turn the heat on low, keep whisking and be patient while the cheese melts.  

I wish I had made a little bit more sauce.  You'll want the sauce to completely cover the veggies- that way it'll make everything "stick".  It still tasted great, but next time I would probably do 3/4 cup butter, 3/4 cup flour, 2 1/4 cups milk, 3/4 cup cheddar cheese and probably still 1/2 cup onion.  

3. The Turkey

It's so much easier than it sounds!  After you've washed, and cleaned out the turkey (taken out the giblet, etc), rub olive oil, salt, and pepper all over. You can also add a little sage and thyme- whatever fresh herbs you prefer.  Confession: I used my hands.  Don't worry I washed them first!  

I chose to stuff the turkey with carrots, celery, and an onion.  After we ate Braedon requested that I also add a baked apple- it's his claim to culinary fame!  I'll have to try it next time just for him.  

Next, stuff your turkey.  I just did whatever I could fit, and put the rest on the outsides.  

You can use a pot like this, or a baking rack to cook your turkey.  The package will have instructions on how long to bake the turkey.  *Mom trick: if you buy a pop-up turkey be sure to still check the internal temperature with your own thermometer.  Sometimes it will reach 165 degrees F before the pop up "pops". 

Create a foil tent around the turkey and remove halfway through cooking.  My turkey cooked for about an hour and fifteen minutes, and weighed 3.87 pounds.  Personally, I didn't love the smoked turkey, it was a little too salty for me, but Braedon loved it!  I was really sad I couldn't make gravy after... my mom taught me how to make it homemade and I wouldn't settle for a packet.  I guess it just means I'll have to try again!

So there you have it! Since we were in Mexico for Thanksgiving and didn't get a "homemade" dinner, I jumped at the chance to try it on my own...with less pressure to have it be like "Mom's" Thanksgiving dinner. It was my first time making each of these recipes and I think they turned out pretty good.  I learned a lot and I figure it can only go up from here right??  

Any suggestions or family recipes are more than welcomed!  Please share with me! 

My New Job + Creme Brûlée French Toast

I recently started working as a pediatric home health nurse.  Coming from the hospital, this has been a totally different but very rewarding experience.  I get to see it all; loving parents, cute friends interacting with my patients at school, heartbreaking stories, humble living circumstances, and best of all happy families in spite of health issues.  I recently started my own nursing journal to document the many stories I'm collecting.  We truly do have the best, "how was your day?" answers.  Because of HIPAA, I can't go into detail about my patients but I'll try my best to tell "his" story. 

He is only in the first grade, and he's the most popular kid in the class.  He has a terminal illness, but has surpassed all of the doctor's expectations.  This makes his prognosis pretty unpredictable.  Although he doesn't have most of the functions others kids may take for granted, he still teases, laughs, and plays jokes on others. 

This is why my job is so great:

I get to watch him excel in spelling and math

Everyone asks to sit by him at lunch, and he says yes to everyone-it's a race to see who gets there first. 

We play tag at recess.  There are days when I'm tired, but he'll look at me with wide eyes, a bright smile, and say, "Come and get me!".  There is no way I can turn down the invitation!

During treatment, he requests we listen to Justin Bieber's Christmas Album.

After treatment, he's dancing and singing all the words to "Baby".  It's become our tradition to play that song just before we head back to class.

We arm wrestle when we get bored during math... he always wins.

He rolls his eyes and shakes his head teasingly at me when I have my "pure luck" moments; like forgetting to bring his book to the library, spilling food on myself, you know-the usual. 

I sense that he just wants to feel normal, he just wants to be treated like any other kid.  While he does have a lot of "exceptions" (like staying in from recess if he chooses) he won't accept offers to butt in line, follows all of the class rules, and tries his best to participate in class.  It's probably no secret that I've become attached- we've become really good friends.  I'm so grateful for my job, and for the relationships I've been able to build that wouldn't have been possible if I were working in the hospital.  I feel blessed to have a job that I'm actually excited to come back to!  

Alright, Creme Brûlée French Toast.  Pretty much the best breakfast ever.  I have Micah Ricks to thank for introducing me to this warm, gooey, sugary-sweet casserole of joy.  But seriously, I'm considering making it our Christmas morning tradition, which is a big deal because my family already has a "Christmas Casserole" tradition.  This is the Lion Houses's Recipe for Creme Brûlée French Toast.  

Best part?  It's so easy, and you can make it the night before (actually recommended). I count my sleeping hours as precious, so not having to get up at 6 am to accommodate Braedon's school schedule just to make him breakfast is a plus (worst wife award? yikes).  I couldn't even snap a picture because we licked the pan clean so fast.  

Ingredients:

[Egg Mixture]

5 large eggs

1 and 1/2 cups half and half

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

pinch of cinnamon (optional)

[Bread]

1 inch pieces (torn), to fill a 9 x 13 pan about 3 inches thick

Can use:

Crescent bread (this is what I use)

French baguette

Ezekiel

Challah

etc.

[Syrup Mixture]

1/2 cup butter

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons corn starch

First, tear your bread and set aside.  It is recommended that your bread be a little dried out.

Next, make your "egg mixture".  Beat the eggs, half and half, vanilla, salt (and pinch of cinnamon if desired) for two minutes.  Set aside. 

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low-medium heat.  Stir in the brown sugar and corn syrup.  Heat and stir long enough that the sugar dissolves.  Side note: corn syrup is ridiculously sticky!  I had never used it before, spilled it all down my arm and it took me a good 5 minutes to get it off!  

Now we're ready to start layering the casserole.

Start with the syrup and distribute evenly.

Next, layer the bread.  Then pour the egg mixture over the top to coat.  Sorry for the blurry picture, I was awkwardly trying to snap while pouring...

All done!  You can cover and store in the refrigerator to bake in the morning, or go ahead and bake right away.  I waited a few hours and then decided to bake it so I wouldn't have to wake up early to have it ready in time for Braedon.  I know, worst wife.  Tastes just as great reheated ;)
We cut up some strawberries to put on top, but honestly it doesn't really need anything extra! 

Hope you enjoy!