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Super easy chicken enchiladas

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As you can imagine, I often have friends or family sending me recipes that I just have to try.

These super delicious chicken enchiladas was one of those recipes.

My good friend, Mary Beth, and her husband Josh raved about it so I tried it out the next night. And I’m completely embarrassed to say how many we consumed.

These were oh so good and oh so easy. A similar feel to my other favorite enchilada recipe yet these are a bit more traditional with the red sauce and that you roll each one individually. Using a rotisserie chicken cuts down on prep work and you can make it your own by using your favorite jar of salsa. We went with Frontera, and it was heavenly. I used whole wheat tortillas just to feel a tad better about consuming, oh you know, four of them.

Don’t count on leftovers with this one!

Homemade Easy Chicken Enchiladas
Serves 4
A super easy yet tasty traditional enchilada recipe the whole family will enjoy!
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
40 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
40 min
Ingredients
  1. 8 count tortillas packages (I used whole wheat flour)
  2. 1 - 10 oz can red enchilada sauce
  3. 1 -20 oz can red enchilada sauce
  4. 1 15 oz jar of salsa (Fronterra worked awesome!)
  5. 2 - 7 oz cans of diced green chilies
  6. 4 cups shredded cheese (Mexican or cheddar)
  7. 1 whole cooked rotisserie chicken
  8. olives, jalapenos, guac, lettuce, etc, for topping!
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and shred chicken into a large bowl. Add chilies, salsa and 1½ bags or 3 cups of cheese to the chicken and mix well.
  2. Prepare 9x13 baking pans by coating with the small can of sauce and pouring any remaining sauce into the chicken mixture.
  3. Spoon chicken mixture into the middle of the tortilla, roll sides and place seam side down in pan.
  4. Once the pan is filled pour the large can of enchilada sauce over top making sure to coat all areas of the tortillas.
  5. Top with remaining shredded cheese.
  6. Loosely cover with foil and bake for 30 mins. Remove foil and bake for an additional 10 mins.
  7. Serve with chopped tomatoes, sour cream, shredded lettuce, and any other ingredients you like such as guac, jalapenos, pico de gallo and chopped black olives.
A Life From Scratch. http://a-life-from-scratch.com/

Slow cooker chicken tortellini bowls

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When I heard this slow cooker chicken tortellini soup was the number one rated recipe on Pinterest I of course had to give it a try. To start, anything slow cooker and I’m a total sucker. Throw in a homemade soup and I’m all yours.

The soup was stupid easy to throw together in the morning, perfect for those crazy hectic days where you aren’t home much but still want a satisfying meal at the end of the day for yourself and your family. It took me all of five minutes to get the ingredients in the slow cooker and switch to on. Perfect. Dinner is done.

Later on when we arrived home from baseball and I stirred in the fresh tortellini to cook on low for an additional 10-15 minutes or so. Then I served in big bowls with plenty of fresh spinach and of course, garlic bread for the boys.

This soup was definitely on the chunkier side so it can lean towards a ‘bowl’ like meal (which is so in right now) as opposed to a brothy soup. Up the chicken and/or veggie amount even more if you like it chunkier although this one I thought had the perfect consistency.

Tasted absolutely lovely in pajamas with my little man near the fire. Exactly what winter is all about, am I right? 

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortellini Bowls
A healthy homemade chicken tortellini soup made entirely in the slow cooker!
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Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
6 hr
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
6 hr
Ingredients
  1. 1½ pounds boneless chicken breast
  2. 3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
  3. 3 stalks celery, diced
  4. 1 medium onion, diced
  5. 3 cloves garlic, minced
  6. 6 cups chicken stock
  7. 1 cup water
  8. 2 bay leaves (I used fresh)
  9. 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, or more to taste
  10. salt & pepper
  11. 2 cups cheese tortellini
  12. Handfuls of chopped fresh spinach for serving, if you'd like
Instructions
  1. Add all of the ingredients to a slow cooker except for the tortellini, season with salt and pepper, and cook on low for 6 hours.
  2. Remove the cooked chicken from the slow cooker and shred and add back to the slow cooker.
  3. Add in the fresh tortellini and cook for 15 minutes or until they are cooked all the way through.
  4. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Discard bay leaves and serve immediately with chopped spinach.
A Life From Scratch. http://a-life-from-scratch.com/

Slow cooker Korean beef bowls

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IMG_2176You guys.

If there is ever a slow cooker recipe of mine to try can it pretty please with a cherry on top be these Korean beef bowls? It’s just that good. Thinly sliced flank steak tossed in corn starch slowly bubbles away in a sauce of soy, brown sugar, stock, garlic, onion, red pepper, and sesame oil. 

What does that leave us? Well, with the most tender and flavorful little strips of heaven begging to be served over some jasmine rice and topped with thinly sliced scallions and sesame seeds. 

A completely satisfying meal both parents and kids will enjoy. In fact, my only complaint with the original recipe is that it didn’t make enough. I’m giving you the doubled version, feel free to cut in half if you feel it’s too much although as a family of four we had no issues eating every morsel. Not sure if that is the norm though, we lean towards big eaters. 

Recommended and approved by my mom, and me, get this one going for your family this week!

Slow cooker Korean Beef Bowls
A savory and sweet Korean beef slow cooker dish the whole family will love!
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Prep Time
10 min
Prep Time
10 min
Ingredients
  1. 3 lbs pounds Flank Steal
  2. 1/2 cup cornstarch
  3. 3 tablespoons Sesame Oil
  4. 1 tsp minced garlic
  5. 1 cup Soy Sauce
  6. 1 cup beef broth
  7. 1 1/2 cups Brown Sugar
  8. 1/2 cup onion, chopped
  9. 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  10. sesame seeds and green onions, to top
Instructions
  1. Cut flank steak into thin strips. In a ziplock bag add flank steak pieces and cornstarch. Shake it up to coat!
  2. Add sesame oil, minced garlic, soy sauce, beef broth, brown sugar, onion, and red pepper flakes to the slow cooker. Stir ingredients together. Add coated flank steak (shake off excess corn starch) and stir again until fully coated in the sauce.
  3. Cook for high 2-3 hours or on low 4-5 hours until cooked throughout and tender. Serve over rice and top with scallions and sesame seeds!
A Life From Scratch. http://a-life-from-scratch.com/

Chicken and rice soup with lemon and dill

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And so it begins.

The middle of January.

AKA the countdown to spring.

I know we have a loooooong way to go, but man, the whole January/February/March combo is just rough. Deep dark cold rough. There’s just nothing really to look forward to, aside from maybe that scarce beautiful 70 degree day we are occasionally thrown in early March. That would be lovely this year, please. Yes, let’s order that.

At least the sun sets a few minutes later each day. So that means once January is over we’ll have gained about an extra 45 minutes or so of light at the end of the day. Hey, that’s something! It will be nice to have the kids off the bus with the sun still in the sky. What a concept.

So my friends, until then, it’s lots of cooking over the stove with soup being the go to option to warm everyone up. I can’t say enough good things about this chicken and rice soup with lemon and dill. It is ridiculously easy, so tasty, healthy, and stretches so you’ve got dinner and a lunch or two all lined up. Get yourself a fire going and grab a glass of red wine and settle in with your show of choice (Homeland, anyone?). We’ve got a long few months ahead of us…..

Chicken and rice soup with lemon and dill
A healthy, easy, hearty and delicious soup perfect for a chilly winter night!
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
30 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
30 min
Ingredients
  1. 2 TBS olive oil
  2. 1 TBS butter
  3. 2 cups chopped onion
  4. 1 cup chopped carrot
  5. 1 cup chopped celery
  6. 1 cup chopped zucchini
  7. 3 cloves garlic
  8. salt & pepper
  9. 8-10 cups chicken stock (depending on how thick you like your soup)
  10. 2 cups brown rice (I used microwaveable from Trader Joes, you can use uncooked rice it will just need longer to simmer)
  11. rotisserie chicken, shredded up (or you can roast your own!)
  12. Handful of fresh dill, chopped
  13. 1 lemon, juiced
Instructions
  1. Heat your evoo and butter in a large dutch oven over medium heat. Add in onion, carrot, celery, zucchini and saute together until softened, roughly 10 minutes.
  2. Add in garlic, and season everything with salt & pepper.
  3. Pour in your stock and rice. If using raw rice, it will need to simmer awhile now to soften (roughly 45 minutes or so). If you used already cooked rice, it's already done.
  4. At this point I let the soup simmer awhile anyways to come together, then tasted and adjusted the salt and pepper.
  5. Off the heat stir in the fresh dill and lemon juice.
  6. Serve in deep bowls with crusty bread.
Adapted from Savor
Adapted from Savor
A Life From Scratch. http://a-life-from-scratch.com/

Slow cooker chipotle chicken stew

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Confession: I’ve made this about three times in four weeks for my family. Mike and I gobble up the whole bowl, while the boys tolerated the warm tortillas and chicken. Hey, I consider that win for us! 

Slow cooker recipes can sometimes get a bad rap. I have a good friend who swears everything just tastes bland. While I certainly disagree (I live and die by my slow cooker) if you go along with her thinking this is a great recipe to start to try and change your mind. The depth of flavor is crazy with the chipotle chilis in adobo sauce. It’s got that whole roasted smoky flavor. Then there is the fire roasted corn (I grabbed the frozen bag at Trader Joes) which you just can’t go wrong with. The fresh toppings: think avocado, cilantro, Mexican cheese, tortillas – etc – leave your dinner anything but bland.

Whether you have a love affair with your slow cooker (ahem), or can barely stand the thing, give this one a try. I promise you won’t be disappointed. Oh, and the 5 minutes to prep and dinner is done thing….? How can you go wrong.

Slow Cooker Chipotle Chicken Stew
A healthy, hearty, smoky, slow cooker dish the whole family will enjoy.
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
7 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
7 min
Ingredients
  1. 1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces (have your butcher do!)
  2. 2 tsp cumin
  3. salt and freshly ground pepper
  4. 1 onion, chopped up
  5. 1 15 -ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes with green chiles
  6. 1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, seeded and chopped, plus 1 TBS of sauce from the can
  7. 1/2 tsp dried Mexican oregano (regular works too)
  8. 1 cup frozen corn (preferably fire-roasted) thawed
  9. 8 corn tortillas
  10. 1/4 cup crumbled Cotija cheese (or regular cheese works just as good)
Instructions
  1. Put the chicken in a slow cooker and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Add the onion, tomatoes, chipotle and adobo sauce, oregano, the remaining 1 teaspoon cumin and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cover and cook on low until the chicken is tender and the sauce is slightly thickened, about 7 hours or so. Add the corn and stir until warmed through.
  2. Warm the tortillas in a dry skillet or in the microwave. Top each serving of stew with cheese, avocado and cilantro. Serve with the warm tortillas.
A Life From Scratch. http://a-life-from-scratch.com/

 

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