Slow Cooker Buffalo Ranch Chicken

Let me start off by saying that this was one of the easiest chicken dishes I have ever made, and probably one of the best... Convinced yet to give it a try? Well, you should.

I know I've written here before about how my husband is super picky, so I have been limited to what I cook. Lately, he has been really digging the Frank's Hot Sauce, so I am going with it. We put that sh*t on everything... Not really, but do you remember that commercial? It is hilarious.

I know, I know I am all over with these posts and you're probably like, Heather, just effing get to it. So that is what I will do.

Three ingredients for this recipe... THREE. Maybe four if you are feeling fancy. Frozen chicken (because I can never cook thawed chicken correctly in the Crockpot and it's cheaper), Frank's Buffalo Wing Sauce, and a packet of ranch seasoning. The fourth and optional ingredient is butter... And you technically only need a couple tablespoons of it, but I Paula Deened it tonight (Yes, I just made her into a verb) and put a whopping three in the sauce at the end.

Dump the frozen chicken breasts (You know, like the ones you get in the freezer section that are $5) into the Crockpot, add a ranch seasoning packet, and then add three cups of Frank's. Let it cook low and slow for 8 hours. Once it is done, shred it in the sauce, stir in the butter and BOOM, done. And if you want to get crazy, add a brick of cream cheese instead of the butter, and throw some cheese on top and you have a dip. Throw the chicken on a tortilla, nachos, a bun, etc. The possibilities are endless and oh, so good.


Ingredients
A 2-3 pound bag of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 cups of Frank's Buffalo Wings Sauce
1 oz. packet of Ranch seasoning
3 tablespoons of butter (optional)

Directions

1. Dump the chicken, sauce and seasoning into the Crockpot and cook on low for 8 hours.
2. Shred the chicken in the sauce and stir in the butter.
3. EAT.

Guilt-free chocolate protein ice cream

It was humid today. Dew points were in the low seventies and it was gross. Now, I know all my southern friends will be like, Heather, you're crazy you live in Wisconsin. Yes, I know and I know it can be much worse from living in New Orleans and Texas for awhile. ANYWAY, I didn't want to cook, and even tho I did, I wanted something cold. Cue the thoughts about Dairy Queen, Zesty's Custard, and Culver's.
It really doesn't have to be humid or hot out for me to want ice cream. If you look in my freezer, I have at least three different flavors at one time. Is it my favorite food? YUP. Weird, I know. With that being said, I needed to find a way that I could enjoy my favorite food without being guilty about it afterward. The idea came to me when some coworkers and I were talking about the different combos of Plexus shakes we love. When I mentioned that I alway freeze bananas, Jacqui said that she likes to make ice cream with them (Thanks, girl!). I had heard about doing before but had never tried it. So not only is this guilt free, but I added protein to it to make it even better! I added chocolate this time, but my husband is a vanilla fan, so we will be adding that next time. The best part of this is that you can add whatever you want to this. Don't like the taste of bananas? Add peanut butter! It totally changes the flavor, and who doesn't love chocolate peanut butter combinations anyway? Want to get crazy and add candy? DO IT! Add some whip cream, a cherry and even some sprinkles? Get down with your bad self! Seriously though, make this recipe, because this stuff is bananas, b-a-n-a-n-a-s. (See what I did there?)

The base of this ice cream - frozen bananas! Pro tip, don't be lazy. Before putting them in the freezer, peel and cut them up into a container. It makes it much easier later.

Cut into chunks and add to food processor and mix!

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This will be your base! This is where you can get creative and add anything you want! 

I chose chocolate this time and added a little coconut milk.

I personally love when it is this consistency. It's like a thick milkshake, but if you want it more like ice cream, throw it in the freezer for a couple hours. 

You can put it in an air tight container or just add cling wrap like me. 

Ingredients

2-3 frozen bananas

1 packet of chocolate Plexus protein

A splash or two of coconut milk

Directions

1. Put everything in your food processor or blender and mix. 
2. Either eat as is or throw it in the freezer for a bit to enjoy later. 

The Plexus Slim version of the Starbucks' 'Pink Drink'

I cannot believe I haven't posted in over a year. Wow!

Well, if you don't know, Patrick and I moved from Texas to Wisconsin since the last post. Quite the move, right? I have met some pretty neat people here and work at a great station! But the other big thing going on in my life right now is Plexus.

If you've never heard of it, Plexus is an all natural health brand. They have a bunch of different products, but their most well known is called Plexus Slim. It is the most natural way to lose weight and inches by burning fat, not muscle. Slim also helps keep blood sugar, cholesterol and lipids at healthy levels. And the best part, I think, is it helps curb cravings and gives you SO much energy. I have been taking it for several months now, and I cannot even begin to tell you how much better I feel. I finally found something that I can lose weight and not eat like a rabbit. In fact, they discourage skipping meals. I could go on and on about how great the company and products are. I guess I wouldn't sell it if I didn't believe in it, right? Want to know more about the products or business opportunities? Email me. 

Okay, so back to why you came here... Pink. Drink. If you haven't seen all the rage about the new 'Pink Drink' that comes from Starbucks' secret menu, you are probably living in a hole. Just kidding, but it has been all over the news and Instagram, and it is even a go to drink for my favorite YouTuber and dear friend Jaz Jackson. I first saw the drink from her Snapchats, and I was like DANG, I gotta get that! I remember one of her many Snapchats about the drink was like, "Alright guys, get ready to screenshot this, because I am not telling you all again what is in this drink." So, I took her advice, screenshot it, and made my way to Starbucks ASAP. It was glorious. It is the Strawberry Acai Refresher and instead of water, they use coconut milk. Because I am a cheap ass, I told myself I could not keep spending $5 on a drink, so I decided to make my own.

Can we just talk about for a second how much ice is used in iced drinks at Starbucks?! I went to get the pink drink last week, and a clearly new employee, who had never made the drink before, kept filling the VENTI cup with ice when I could see she clearly did not make enough for the larger portion. It was so much damn ice. So that was a big thing I wanted to change with this drink. Less ice, more frozen strawberries. 

Ingredients:
-1 packet of Plexus Slim
-1 packet of Lipton Strawberry Acai Decaf Green Tea
-1 cup of So Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk
-1/4 cup of water
-Frozen strawberries


Directions:

1. Add all the ingredients except for the strawberries, and mix it, mix it real good.
2. Pour over strawberries or ice if you don't have the frozen strawberries. 

Zucchini Tots

Napoleon, give me some of your tots.
No, go find your own.
Come on, give me some of your tots.
No! I'm freaking starving! I didn't get to eat anything today.
[[Randy kicking the tots]]
UGH! Gross! Freaking idiot!

Tots. Zucchini tots. These are so darn good. I actually got the idea from a coworker of mine. He told me about how big the zucchini in his garden was growing and that this is what his wife makes when they have a lot of zucchini. He said his little girl absolutely loves them. So, I had to try them!

A few things to note when making these: Take the time to wring out the zucchini after your shred it. I was lazy about it and didn't do it as much as I could have. Another thing, add more cheese if you want them cheesier. And lastly, if you have a mini muffin pan, use it, but make sure your spray down the pan! If you don't have a mini muffin pan, use parchment paper (and cut it better than I did) and spray it down. I used a cookie scoop to make the shape and just plopped them on the baking sheet. If you don't have a cookie scoop or mini muffin tray, just take a tablespoon of the mixture, roll it into a ball, and place it on the well greased sheet.



RECIPE

Ingredients

3 medium to large zucchini
3 large eggs
1 white onion, minced
1 cup of Italian breadcrumbs
1 1/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
salt and pepper
cooking spray


Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°. Spray down whatever pan you're using with cooking spray (notes above).
2. Grate the zucchini and wring out the liquid (take the time to do it!). 
3. Whisk the eggs and combine the onion, breadcrumbs, and cheese. Add the zucchini and mix well with your hands. Add salt and pepper.
4. Scoop out about a tablespoon of the mixture onto your pan or into your mini muffin tray. 
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes (depending on how crispy you want the edges, you can put it in for longer). Rotate your pans half way through so that everything will cook evenly.

Adapted from SkinnyTaste.com.

Spaghetti Squash Carbonara with Grilled Chicken

No picture? Why? Because I am a perfectionist and didn't get this dish to look appetizing in my pictures. I will let you use your imagination on how this looks. So let's start. Close your eyes, think of bacon. Bacon. That should be enough to want you try this recipe, right? No? Okay. Try adding grilled chicken and Parmesan cheese to that thought. That should do it.

I was super excited to make this recipe so that picky pants and I could try something full of flavor, yet a bit on the healthier side too. Well, yeah... I say healthy, and he immediately shuns the idea. Oh well. He liked the bacon though. So, if you're not as picky as him (which should include the entire universe), then you should definitely try this recipe. Crystal, a coworker of mine, says that it is one of the best dishes I have brought in... Whether she's just being nice or she really means it, well, that's up for you to decide. 

RECIPE

Ingredients

1 large spaghetti squash

2 chicken grilled chicken breasts

6 slices of bacon, cut in small strips (or more if you'd like)

1 tablespoon of minced garlic

1/4 cup of chicken broth

2 egg yolks plus 1 egg whole egg

1 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Cut the squash lengthwise in half, scoop out the "guts" and place flesh side down in a baking dish. 
3. Add 1/4 inch of water to the pan and cook for about an hour. If the squash is not soft, continue cooking for ten more minutes.
4.  Let the squash cool and then fork out the strands.
5. Add the bacon to a saute pan and cook until crispy. Add garlic and chicken broth and let the broth cook down. 
6. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and cheese. Lower the heat of the pan and then combine mixture to the saute pan. Be careful not to cook the eggs.
7. Once eggs are warmed through, add squash, salt and pepper. Fold in the mixture to the squash, top with grilled chicken and serve immediately. 

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Weekends in the fall are dedicated to one thing and one thing only... Football. College and NFL. If you don't know me, I am a huge NIU Huskies fan. My husband and I both graduated from NIU and will live and breathe Huskies football. While I dare not to comment(even though I have PLENTY of comments) on this weekend's game versus Arkansas, I still love the Huskies even though we do not have as strong of a team as we have had in the past. And well for my NFL team, I root for whoever is on my fantasy football team and DA BEARS. I am VERY competitive when it comes to fantasy football, SO DON'T ASK ME WHY I DIDN'T START DESEAN JACKSON THIS WEEKEND. Ugh, still crying about it.
Football, food and fun. Those three need to happen. And you definitely can't be watching a big game without good gameday food.
So this. THIS dip. It's amazing. And guess what, in the past, I have been making it ALL WRONG. But now I have made it easy and so, so good. The secret ingredient to this dip? Rotisserie chicken. It will change this dip.
We have a place in our local grocery store named the Flaming Bird. They grill an entire chicken on the grill and it is nothing short of amazing. Nice part about it? Only $6 for the entire bird. Yup, quite the steal. If I were to compare the taste of the chicken, it's a lot like El Pollo Loco which is awesome. If you have never had El Pollo Loco, go now.
Quick Notes:
-As for the spiciness of this dip, well, let's just say picky pants was able to eat it and not cry. So that was a good sign. I used Franks Hot Sauce on this dip, but you can use whatever buffalo sauce tickles your fancy.
-Also, if you are a blue cheese fan, sub out the ranch for blue cheese.
-Lastly, you can prepare this beforehand. Just refrigerate it and heat it up before the big game or event.


RECIPE

Ingredients
2 - 3 cups of rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 (8 oz.) package of cream cheese, softened
1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup of ranch dressing
1/2 cup of buffalo wing sauce


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine all of the ingredients into 8x8 baking or small casserole dish. Make sure to mix everything thoroughly. You can sprinkle a bit more cheese on top if you want to get extra cheesy.
3. Cook for 25 minutes or until it is warm throughout. 

Pizza 'Spaghetti' Pie

Well, hello again. It has been a bit since I have written here but that's not going to stop me from sharing this AWESOME recipe with you. If you've been following my blog, you know that I have done the whole Paleo lifestyle and overall it was a good experience. I haven't done it quite some time, but I still follow all of the Paleo people that I love on Instagram. There is one dish that every single Paleo person would post and I told myself that one of these days, I would finally make it. And looky looky... I finally did. It's PaleOMG's Almost 5 Ingredient Pizza Spaghetti Pie. This is nothing short of amazing considering most of it is healthy. And well, leave it to me to add something else to not make it truly "healthy."

When some people see spaghetti squash, most are like, "ew, what?" My husband as the prime example. But also, I thought it was funny that when I went to buy the squash, the cashier didn't even know what the heck it was. He had to go and ask a manager. Nope, don't ask me... Ya know, the one who is actually purchasing the product. Or like my mom, not even knowing it was spaghetti squash when I sent her the picture(below), said "carbs." Well, mom, no. It's actually spaghetti squash, duh. Anyway, spaghetti squash. Where was I going with this again? I go on a rant and cannot even remember what I was going to type. Good thing I am typing and not talking or else I would have just stopped talking. SPAGHETTI SQUASH. Yes, there we go. It takes some time to make it. So prepare for that. It is not a quick meal to make but it is easy. Be careful when you are trying to cut the squash, because you don't want to chop your hand off or break your knife (like I did... The knife part, I still have both hands, thankfully).

Juli Bauer, the HILARIOUS lady at PaleOMG, is a food genius. I cannot tell you how many recipes I have made from her cookbooks and blog. If you haven't checked out her site, do it now. Like I said previously, this is mostly her recipe, I just added more to it. Here's the PaleOMG's original recipe if you want strict Paleo.


RECIPE

Ingredients
1 large spaghetti squash
1 pound of Italian sausage
1 yellow onion, diced
1 jar of pizza sauce (anywhere from 8 to 14 oz depending on how saucy you want it)
2 cups of chopped mushrooms
3 eggs, whisked
2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
1 teaspoon of basil
1 teaspoon of thyme
salt and pepper
(You can also add whatever other meats or veggies you want to this dish)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut the squash in half length wise. Scoop out the seeds and "guts." Place the squash cut side down on a baking sheet and bake for 35 minutes or until the outside softens. 
3. While the squash is cooking, you can start to cook the onion and mushrooms, or whatever other veggies, in a skillet along with browning the meat. Add your spices to the mixture of veggies and meat. 
4. Once the squash is done, reduce the temperature of the oven to 350 degrees and start to fork out the spaghetti threads. 
5. In a casserole dish, add your squash, veggie and meat mixture, pizza sauce, eggs, and 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese together. Once it is well mixed, place in the oven and cook for 50 minutes. You will start to see the top get brown nearing the end of the time which is good.
6. Add the last of the cheese to the top, and cook for another 15 minutes or until the cheese starts to brown a bit. 

Yes, I am still having it for lunch 5 days after I cooked it and it is still amazing.