Simple Supper Friday: Slow Cooker Apricot Chicken
Slow cooker apricot chicken, served atop mashed butternut squash.
Wow, what an exhausting, but good week! I am whooped and so glad that it’s Friday. I admit, I haven’t done the greatest with my sleep this week and part of it is due to poor planning. Sure, I had an extra busy week, but most of this falls back on me. I gladly take the blame. Yesterday was especially brutal on the tiredness scale, and I even took a cat-nap before going to work in the evening. I opted to get better sleep last night, put my computer away and got to bed at my preferred time. I’ve got to get myself back on track because things are only going to get more hectic!
Anyway, pull out your slow cooker for this one! With some simple prep and steps, you can have this in your slow cooker in no time, but remember to plan ahead for the cooking time.
Slow cookers really are my saving grace. Plus, I can’t get enough shredded meat. It’s my favorite.
Ingredients:
- 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (or thighs)
- 2 tsp coconut oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2-inch piece ginger, grated
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp allspice
- Sea salt and pepper to taste
- 1 14.5 oz can no salt added diced tomatoes
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3/4 cup unsweetened, unsulphered dried apricots, halved
Directions:
- Melt the 1 tsp of the coconut oil in a pan over medium heat. Season the chicken with sea salt and pepper, and add to the pan. Brown on both sides for a couple minutes. Then, remove from heat and set aside.
- In the same pan, melt the remaining 1 tsp of coconut oil. Add more if needed. Add the onion and saute a few minutes, until it becomes translucent. Stir in the ginger, garlic, cinnamon and allspice. Cook and stir for 30 seconds, or until fragrant.
- Add the tomatoes and chicken broth. Cook a few minutes longer, until heated through. Pour mixture into slow cooker and add the dried halved apricots. Place chicken on top of the mixture and cover.
- Cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 3-4.
- When done, shred the chicken with two forks and mix together.
- Serve atop vegetable of choice (kale, squash, etc.). I used mashed butternut squash.
Yields: 4-5 servings
My sister bought me a couple of these beautiful plates for Christmas. The plates are Gmundner Keramik, ceramic handmade plates from the city of Gmunden in Austria. She said this company is known all throughout Europe, but naturally, the most popular in Austria. She also said this is probably the most famous design. It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Thanks again, Amanda!
Curried Chicken Soup
Curried chicken soup.
This is a recipe that I previously made as a vegetarian and really enjoyed. Surprisingly though, I think I only made it a total of one time. I feel like I have a lot of recipes like that, actually — I make something, am totally into it, and then forget about it somehow. Regardless, I’m glad I remembered it because it has fantastic flavors and a nice little kick. It’s no longer vegetarian because I added chicken to it to beef it up, but if you are a veggie and read my blog, just omit the chicken. Side note here, but this soup warms me up so much that I have to turn the heat off when I eat it (no exaggeration). It’s either that or shed layers, and I prefer to eat with my clothes on.
- 1 lb cooked chicken breasts, shredded
- 1 Tbsp grass-fed butter or other fat of choice
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1-inch piece of ginger, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups of chopped cauliflower florets
- 2 cups of chopped bok choy
- 2 cups homemade bone broth (or decent store-bought chicken broth)
- 2/3 cup unsweetened almond butter
- 1-1/2 cups full-fat coconut milk
- 1-1/2 Tbsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/8 tsp cayenne (or more if you want it spicier)
- Cilantro for garnishing, optional
Directions:
- Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and sauté a few minutes, until onion is translucent.
- Mix in the curry, allspice, sea salt, cumin, cauliflower and bok choy, and continue to cook for 5 minutes.
- In a separate small saucepan, mix the almond butter and 3/4 cup of broth together over medium heat. Once the mixture is smooth, add it to the vegetables and stir for a couple minutes.
- Add the shredded chicken, remaining broth, coconut milk and cayenne. Heat for about 5 minutes, or until heated through.
- Serve with cilantro garnished on top, if using.
Mmm…creamy and nutty, not to mention filling.
Up close and personal.
Simple Supper Friday: Cincinnati-Style Chili
Cincinnati-style chili.
Lately, I’ve been thinking about Cincinnati chili. I’m not really sure why or how it popped into my head, but it did. I recall really liking it in my younger years, and remember first trying it when I was in elementary school — probably third or fourth grade. My mom went through a phase of making it for a while, but then it kind of fizzled out and we stuck with standard spaghetti and standard chili. I think part of why I liked it as a kid was because it involved two certain foods (that kids often love): 1. spaghetti noodles and 2. cheddar cheese. As you can guess, this version doesn’t include either of those things, though traditionally, both foods are involved in Cincinnati-style chili. Instead, I use spaghetti squash strands as noodles and garnish with chopped kale instead of cheddar cheese. In this regard, it’s not traditional midwestern-style at all, but I like to think it’s way better!
Ingredients:
- 1 lb grass-fed ground beef
- 1 tsp grass-fed tallow (or fat of choice)
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 Tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1-1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/8 tsp cayenne
- 1-1/2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup bone broth (or decent store bought)
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp raw honey, optional
- 1-15 oz can of no salt added tomato sauce (I like Muir Glen Organic brand)
- 1 spaghetti squash, halved and seeded
- Raw, stemmed kale leaves, chopped for garnish, optional
The chili mixture.
Directions:
- Melt the tallow in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef, onion and garlic. Break up the meat with a spatula or wooden spoon and cook until the most of the meat is browned, about 7 minutes.
- Stir in the sea salt, spices and cocoa powder, and cook about 1-2 minutes.
- Next, add the apple cider vinegar, tomato sauce, bone broth and raw honey, if using (I recommend it). Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes.
- While chili is simmering, bake the spaghetti squash. Add about 1/4-inch of water to a pan and place squash halves skin side up in the pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 375 degrees F. If the squash cooks any longer than this, it often makes the strands mushy (unless you have a really big squash).
- Once the squash is done, scrape out strands for noodles and serve with the chili mixture on top. I like to mix a little dab of grass-fed butter and sea salt into my squash before scooping the chili on top, but that’s totally optional. Garnish with chopped kale, if using.
