Shredded Beef Taquito's

Taquito's are one of my favorite go to foods in the whole entire world. They are just a roll full of gooey, hearty, delicious crunchy yum. They are so easy to make and a great meal, snack or party favor. Enjoy, spread the love!

Whatcha need:

2-3 tablespoons canola oil
10 corn tortillas (I used white, but you can use yellow as well)
2 cups cooked shredded beef (recipe follows)
2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
shredded lettuce
Guacamole- Make your own, please (recipe on blog)
non-stick spray

How to roll um:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray baking  sheet with non-stick spray.

Heat 2 tablespoons canola oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, fry each tortilla one at a time until soft, about 30 seconds per side (you want them soft so that you can roll them). Add more oil if needed. Transfer to plate using a paper towel to separate each tortilla.

To assemble, spoon 2 tablespoons of meat mixture into tortilla and roll closed. Place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat until all are rolled.

Bake in oven for 15 -20 minutes or until ends start to brown. Remove and sprinkle cheese on top. Turn oven setting to broil and broil for 2-3 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven.

Top with shredded lettuce and guacamole. Serve with salsa for dipping.

For Shredded Beef:

• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 teaspoons pepper
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 (3.3 pound) beef roast
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cups beef broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 onion quartered
• 3 garlic cloves

In a bowl mix together salt, pepper, chili powder, granulated garlic, cumin and oregano.

Rub mixture all over beef roast to completely coat.

In a large pan heat olive oil. Brown roast on all sides, about 5 minutes per side.

Place in slow cooker. Add onion and garlic. Pour in water and beef broth. Cover and cook for 8 hours.

Remove from slow cooker and shred.

Chicken salad

Well my friend Raquel makes the absolute best chicken salad my lips have ever touched. And no matter how much i try to recreate it, i fail. Something so easy is so hard. So i leave it up to her. In the mean time i stopped trying to recreate hers and just make other variations to avoid the disappointment of it not tasting like Raquel's. boo, i know. When i make chicken salad, It never seems to come out the same and always gets better each time. Chicken Salad is so easy and can have so many different add-in's that change the flavor each time. So get creative. It wont hurt!

Whatcha Need:

2 boneless chicken breast halves, cooked

1/4 cup Real Mayo (i use Dukes)

4 tablespoons Cole slaw dressing

1 teaspoon of Celery Seed or 1 rib of Celery minced

1/4 onion, minced

1/8 teaspoon of sugar

Dash of mustard

salt and pepper to taste

How to do it.

1) Boil Your chicken in Chicken Stock until cooked & cooled then shred

2) In a separate bowl mix together all your other ingredients, Well

3) stir in your chicken, well

4) Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to marinate the flavors together.

Viola!

Serve on bread, crackers or by itself!

Chicken Rosemary turn-overs

We admit it, we love things stuffed in a crescent roll and oozy with hearty goodness. So i have created lots of stuff with crescent rolls. So easy yet so satisfying. This is just one of those dishes that makes you go ahhh. I came across a similar recipe but it was turkey and all i had was chicken. I altered it to my plus 4's liking.

Whatcha Need:

Cooked chicken- I wouldn't recommend can.
Black pepper
Poultry seasoning
Seasoned salt
Dried rosemary
Cream cheese- room temperature
Crescent Roll- I recommend Pillsbury

How to make these balls of delight:


1) Smush your cream cheese so its creamy

2) Add all the seasonings

3) Mix the Cream cheese and seasonings so they are incorporated completely

4) Add your chicken and mix well, again

5) Pull out your cookie sheet, lightly grease it and separate arrange triangles on sheet

6) Place a spoonful of the mixture on the wide end of the dough

7) Close the corners and edges around the filling

8) Pinch it closed really well! Crescent roll dough is very stretchy, just make sure you don't tear it

9) Bake at 350 and the time length on package. Please tack a few extra minutes on to the recommended or until brown & golden!

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Baked Chicken Nuggets

Being the mom of plus 3, chicken nuggets are always on the menu it seems. So i came up with a healthy recipe so i could feed my kids what they wanted while they got the 'real deal' chicken. So easy and my picky plus 3 approve!

Whatcha Need:

16 oz (2 large) skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into even bit sized pieces
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp olive oil
6 tbsp whole wheat Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
2 tbsp panko
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
olive oil spray

How to do it:

Preheat oven to 425°. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil spray.

Chunk up the chicken to your bite size liking

1) Put the olive oil in one bowl and the breadcrumbs, panko and parmesan cheese in another

2) Season chicken with salt and pepper, then put in the bowl with the olive oil and mix well so the olive oil evenly coats all of the chicken.

3) Put a few chunks of chicken at a time into the breadcrumb mixture to coat, then on the baking sheet. Lightly spray the top with olive oil spray then bake 8 - 10 minutes. Turn over then cook another 4 - 5 minutes or until cooked though.

Enjoy!

Egg Salad Sammie

Who doesnt like egg salad? Unless your an alien from planet dull, you cant resist the urge to devour it! There is a quaint little joint called A-Deli in my city and they have the most amazing egg salad ever! I have tried to re-create this for months and have almost mastered it! So sit back, slap on your bib and get your eat on!

Whatcha Need:

6 eggs
1/3 cup chives, finely chopped
Salt and pepper
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoon white wine vinegar
2 teaspoon dijon mustard
Splash of honey(1/2 teaspoon)
4 slices bread
1 small bunch of Watercress

How you make it:

1) Boil your eggs & De-Shell them (I dont think i need to explain how, right?)

2) Chop the eggs.

3) In a large bowl, gently combine the eggs, chives, and salt and pepper to taste

4) Pour on the mayonnaise, vinegar, and mustard. Gently fold together.

Now ready to serve!

Been there done that note: Best to let chill for a little bit , and even add some lettuce, tomato and Cheddar Cheese! YUM 

Whole Wheat BBQChicken Pizza

Now that my friend Jenny has left for the day, its clean up from breakfast and on to feeding my little people for lunch!! Ive been making pizza for many years now! Its a quick throw together and always a crowd pleaser amoung my hard-to-please plus 4. I changed up the dough for a more 'healthier' approach, so you dont feel AS guilty about indulging in pizza!

whatcha need:

Whole Wheat BBQ Chicken Pizza
100% Whole Wheat Dough
1 packet dry active yeast
3/4 cup warm water
~2 cups 100% whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons olive oil + more to rub on bowl
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix yeast and warm water and let sit until foamy. In a separate bowl, mix flour and salt together. Once yeast is foamy, add in olive oil and honey and stir. Mix into flour and kneed to create a dough. You may need to add a bit more flour if dough is too sticky.
Place in an olive oil-rubbed bowl and cover. Let rise for 2-3 hours.

Pizza
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1 1/2 cups cheddar-jack cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
8 ounces grilled, shredded chicken
2 medium red onions, carmelized
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
1/2 cup ranch dressing

How you put it together

Preheat oven to 400.

1) Form crust into baking sheet or pizza sheet. Brush with olive oil and minced garlic.

2)Add tomato sauce and a 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Top with shredded chicken, carmelized onions, barbeque sauce, and ranch dressing. Add remaining mozzerella cheese and cheddar-jack. Sprinkle with parmesan.

3)  Bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Serve hot.

Ham & Cheese Bread

Now after breakfast, ultimately comes lunch... And I am home with just 1 of my plus 4 so we decided to make Ham & Cheese bread. Yeast is a very stubborn, tricky thing to use. I have made bread that has successfully became my kiddies new softball but practice makes perfect, so they say.

So lets get our hands dirty and jump on into it.

Whatcha need:

3 c. of all-purpose flour
1 packet of Fleischmann’s rapid rise yeast
1 c. of lukewarm water- wrist test works wonders (need it to be 105 degrees )
1/2 c. of sugar
1 tsp. of salt
1/4 c. of vegetable oil
additional flour for dusting- like your Tinkerbell
five slices of ham- More is always better
five slices of cheese- again more is always better
about 1/4 c. of softened butter plus more for brushing the top

1) Pour the lukewarm water in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the yeast (resist the urge to stir it). Leave until bubbly, about 10 minutes.

2) Stir together the flour, sugar and salt. Add half of the mixture to the yeast. Pour in the vegetable oil. Stir with a wooden spoon until the texture appears even. The dough will be very sticky at this point. Add the rest of the flour. Stir until the dough just comes together then dump onto a lightly floured work surface.

3) Knead the dough for 10 to 15 minutes or until elastic and no longer sticky. Yes i am aware your arms will hurt and you will cuss this bread wondering why you decided to even start this project....

4) Gather the dough into a ball- thats what she said, BAM. Lightly brush a large bowl with vegetable oil. Put the dough in the bowl, turning it every which way but Sunday so that every part of the surface is coated with oil.

5) Cover the bowl (cling wrap or a damp towel, each to their own fancy) and leave to rise until double in size, about one to three hours depending on the humidity. I know by now you have checked on it 3 times. Sit down turn on some boob tube and drink some coffee. Patience my friend, patience...

6) When the dough has risen sufficiently (very educated huh?), punch down then transfer to a lightly floured surface, all you moms know how important the punching part it! Take out that aggression...... now!

7) Knead for a couple of minutes then roll into a log about three inches in diameter.<insert funny inuendo here>

8) Roll the dough flat to form a rectangle. Spread the entire surface with butter. Arrange the ham and cheese slices on top.

9) Now its the braiding part... Pay attention! Cut the dough in 1 inch segments EQUALLY on each side.

Start with the top and criss cross down the ham, cheese buttery goodness. See photo below. Don't worry i have faith you will mess it up as i did but practice makes perfect!

10) So, anyway, once the dough has been filled and braided , leave to rise for another 30 to 45 minutes. I know were impatient. Right?

* About 15 minutes before the dough has risen fully a second time, preheat the oven to 350F. Brush the tops of the unbaked bread with butter

.

Bake for 30 minutes.

then VIOLA! Your ham & cheese masterpiece has been created.

Sit back and enjoy! Your hard work has paid off Betty Crocker.

Been there done that note: You can change up your ingredients- pepperoni and cheese/ Feta and Spinach the change ups are limitless!