On the Menu this Week

Thai Chicken Sates in Lettuce Leaves, Noodles

Sweet and Spicy Salmon with Pineapple, Rice, Sauteed Spinach

Thanksgiving Dinner #1

Roasted Chicken Sausages with Roasted Potatoes and Broccoli

Slow-Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage, Buttered Bread

Pork Chops, Stewed Brussel Greens, Cornbread

Grilled Cheese and Soup

Slow Cooker Chicken Burritos

I want to like my slow cooker (actually, slow cookers, I have three of them in various sizes). The slow cooker has all the possibility of being a workhorse in the deep trenches of  the daily war against fast food. It gives the promise of a complete meal with merely a dump of ingredients and a quick flick of the On switch.

Except...Um...Well...Do you know what I mean if I say that everything that comes out of it tastes "slow-cookery"? Everything comes out soupy or all tastes the same. I love a good roast but I don't want overcooked beef juice carrots and potatoes with it (I know this is exactly what some people love about it).

I have my handful of things I make in the slow cooker which are in the meal rotation every week or two so when I find a new one I am tinkled pink! This is a recipe that my friend Alicia created and it is the bomb! So easy. No pre-cooking and just out-of-this world tasty. We had these with avocado and sour cream and they would have been so good with Monterey Jack cheese. 

With 3 chicken breasts we got 8 burritos and leftovers for 4 enchiladas. I made enchiladas by rolling up the filling and monterey jack cheese inside of 4 flour tortillas (you could also use corn) then pouring about 1/2 can of green enchilada sauce over the top, toppping with more cheese and baking at 350 for about 30 minutes.

The leftover filling froze very well and if you make enchiladas you can freeze those too just increase the cooking time to 1 hour if still frozen or 45 minutes if defrosted.

Slow Cooker Green Chile Burritos

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or 4-5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

4 oz. can chopped green chilies

1 cup salsa (I used Herdez)

1 cup chopped onion (I used frozen pre-chopped)

1 chicken bouillon cube (Alicia uses chipotle cubes but I couldn't find those at my store)

1 clove garlic (1/2 tsp of the pre-chopped stuff)

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp ancho chile powder or regular chili powder

15 oz. can green enchilada sauce

Combine everything except the enchilada sauce in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on Low for 4-6 hours until chicken is cooked through. Drain everything into a colander, remove chicken. Place contents of colander back in slow cooker, shred chicken, add back to slow cooker and pour in can of enchilada sauce, Stir, cover, and cook until just warmed through. Serve wrapped in tortillas with avocado, sour cream, and cheese.

Baked Chicken Oreganato with Potatoes and Tomatoes

One bowl. One pan. Almost everything came from the freezer or pantry. No stirring or attending. That's my kind of dinner! This was really good for something so easy and was well received by everyone in the fam and even a couple of other people from someone else's fam ;)


Baked Chicken Oreganato with Potatoes and Tomatoes
from Parenting magazine

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl, combine 1 small thinly sliced red onion, 5 small thinly sliced red-skin potatoes, one 15 oz can stewed tomatoes, drained, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 Tbsp oregano, 2 Tbsp olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.

Mix well, and arrange in a shallow baking dish or on a cookie sheet. In the same bowl, add 1 1/2 lb chicken tenders, 3 Tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well to season chicken. Arrange the chicken on top of the tomato and potato mixture, and sprinkle with 2 Tbsp store-bought seasoned bread crumbs. Drizzle with 1 Tbsp olive oil. Bake for 30 minutes, or until chicken is golden brown. (Serves 4).

On the Menu this Week

I'm going to change the way I list the weekly menu. I am still going to post it over on the side there but I am going to make it a post as well so that I can link to recipes (I'm sure there is a way to do this in the sidebar but I am not that fancy when it comes to web design). This will also allow me to search past menus for ideas because every week I feel like making a menu plan is like pulling a rabbit out of a hat.

At the end of the week I'll try to update what I did (or didn't) make and if it was good. I'm also going to ask you to comment on what you are making because I need to mine your brains for dinner ideas am interested in what's going in your kitchen.

Pizza
Slow Cooker Chicken Burritos
Chicken Oreganato
Cube Steaks, Oven Fries, Roasted Carrots
Slow Cooker Bean Soup with Spinach, Garlic Bread
Pan-Seared Salmon with Bulgur, Broccoli Pizza