The best chicken salad in the world!

Apricot almond chicken salad is one of my FAVES for lunch. Here's my recipe... I just kinda wing it on amounts and adjust as I taste.

• 1 lb. chicken breast (salted/peppered, baked, cubed). I actually usually buy the tenders bc theyre cheaper and bake faster.
• 5 celery stalks chopped
• 5 green onions chopped
• Sliced almonds
• Mayo (I like reduced fat b/c it's not as gloopy and it makes my ass less gloopy as well)
• Apricot preserves (you don't use a lotta mayo cause you use this instead)
• Dried apricots chopped

I definitely didn't use all of the green onions pictured here. I just mix it all up! I usually do chicken first w/ a tiny bit o mayo, then celery and green onions, then I add some preserves and mix, then add the dried apricots, almonds, salt, and pepper, and I mix (and add additional preserves if necessary). I put it on some 100% Dark German whole wheat for lunch today... HEAVENNNN

Rick Bayless Recipes

Ryan and I both love Mexican flavor profiles so there are 3 Rick Bayless recipes I want to make soon...

chipotle cream shrimp
http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/view?recipeID=325

milanesa de pollo with avocado-tomatillo salsa
http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/view?recipeID=180

spicy fish in a packet
http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/view?recipeID=181

Chicken Enchiladas Recipe Reviews

I cannot describe in words how awesome this was. It's a totally walmart recipe but it can easily be high-browed up. For instance, using a crema fresca instead of cream cheese. Here is the straight recipe:

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas from MyRecipes.com

Ingredients:

1 Onion - chopped

2 4oz cans of chopped green chiles (The recipe only called for one. I used two.)

1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened

3 c of cooked, shredded chicken

White Pepper - to taste

8 flour tortillas

Monterrey Jack cheese

1 c whole milk (The recipe calls for 2 c of whipping cream, but I didn't have it and didn't want to use it)

Heat oven to 350*

Saute onions until soft

Add chopped green chiles and cook together for about 5 minutes

Add cream cheese and stir until melted and well mixed with veggies

Add chicken and stir until heated through and combined

Add white pepper to taste

Take a flour tortilla and fill with chicken filling, roll up and place on a baking sheet

Repeat until baking sheet is full or you run out of chicken filling or tortillas

Cover with monterrey jack cheese and pour milk/cream over all

Bake for 30-45 minutes (mine was getting golden after about 20 minutes so I took it out then)

It was so easy and so good and even better today for lunch. 

Enjoy!

June 10 - Weekly Menu

Ookkiiieee doke, my turn.

Sunday: Roasted chicken, chimichurri veggies, roasted rosemary potatoes (my first real meal since last Wednesday!! i had a super painful infection in my intestines and could only eat bananas, pudding, and toast for so long. i feel good today though finally!)
Monday: Chicken pesto potato hash with fried egg on top (this was freaking delicious and super fast)
Tuesday: Girl night at Apothecary Cafe
Weds: Mushroom/poblano tacos early then going to Zilker Park for Blues on the Green
Thurs: Shrimp and blue cheese grits (a la Ryan)
Friday: Driving to Dallas... any ideas for something easy/quick I can make for us before we hit the road??

Week of June 10th - Weekly Menu

** Don't know how this didn't post last night, but here is my menu for the week! **

I'm starting early with my menu this week because we're traveling and want the leftovers to sustain Will and Amelia while I'm gone.Will's traveling Monday, Tuesday; I'm gone Wednesday through Friday. I get in Friday night so for sure there will be some delivery going down. We'll see how this goes...

Sun- Shepherd's Pie
Monday- Chicken Enchiladas - Found this delicious looking recipe on MyRecipes.com, but I think I'll adjust to make it slightly healthier. Or maybe not...
Tuesday- Sloppy Joe's with Baked Fries and corn on the cob
Wednesday-Friday: In DC so hopefully the above will give Will and Amelia enough leftovers to survive!
Saturday - Coconut Basil Chicken Curry + Rice and Broccoli
Sunday - Baked Tilapia Fish Tacos

Hope we stick to this! I really had to rack my brain for ideas on recipes this week - even though it's not even really a full week of recipes! My creative juices must be running low. All I want is cake and macaroni and cheese. and pizza of course. Have yall been cooking? What's been going on?

S'mores Cupcakes..

So this weekend I decided to ignore my Lose it! app and pretend it wasn't bathing suit season. I have ALWAYS wanted to make s'mores cupcakes and Sunday turned out to be the perfect day for them.

While I was in Dallas for Ali's graduation I watched Tia Ana make the merengue for the Tres Leches and took serious notes. These cupcakes provided the perfect opportunity for me to practice that recipe.

*CAUTION* these are delicious cupcakes so there will be lots of sugar... and it will be worth it. (I might have had one for breakfast this morning)

makes 24 cupcakes
Components
1. Graham Cracker Bottom (from scratch)
2. Chocolate Cake/Cupcake (from box)
3. Merengue Top (from scratch)

Graham Cracker Bottom 
(I had leftovers of this so next time I'm either making the base thicker or only making half of this recipe)

3 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
10 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Line a cupcake pan with baking cups.

In a large bowl, stir together graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter until evenly coated. Place a tablespoon sized scoop of the mixture in the bottom of each baking cup. Using a glass or bottle the size of the base of the cupcake, press down the graham cracker crumbs until they form a solid crust.

Bake for 5 minutes to allow the base to harden. Cool for 5-10 minutes before filling with cupcake batter.

Cupcake Batter
I went to the grocery store and bought Betty Crocker's Devil's Food Cake Mix and made the batter according to the instructions.

Scoop the batter on top of the graham cracker base and bake for as long as the box tells you to.

Mine was on 325 degrees F for 18-22minutes.

Set aside and let cool once that is done.

Merengue Top

Sugar Part:
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup water
- Boil on med/high heat in a pot
- Until sugar drips off fork slowly (thicker than olive oil but not as thick as honey)

~Meanwhile~

-Place 4-6 egg whites in Kitchen Aide Mixer (Yoli and Tia Ana fight about how many egg whites to use- Tia Ana says 4)
- Put on speed 6
- When REALLY frothy (starbucks frothy..) increase speed to 10 then...
- Pour sugar mix (from above) sloowwlly into kitchen aide
- The bowl will get hot from the warm sugar mix - keep mixing at that speed until bowl had cooled down

*Dad says the secret is to add a pinch of Cream of Tartar during the mixing process too

Oh and I don't have one of those fire torcher things so my cupcakes look like the picture above but without the fire look..

And you're done! Sorry for the delicious temptations that are now on your kitchen counter! I brought some into work today.

Cris