Hello, budget gourmet!!! I don't often share recipes like this with "super expensive ingredients" - like scallops. But when I do, I still try to budget hack them. Serving these with in season tomatoes and fresh herbs from your garden, over inexpensive pasta, and you'll end up with a budget gourmet meal. This is a freezer friendly meal...as the scallops, tomatoes and herbs … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Caribbean Chicken
THIS MEAL. This might just be the "perfect freezer to slow cooker meal." It's sweet, it's tangy, it cooks perfectly. It's tangy, with a touch of sweet. It's loaded with flavor and nutrients. All the ingredients hold up beautifully being frozen together and you will be the hero at the dinner table serving this one to your family. (And if you forget to take it out of the … [Read more...]
Southwest Shredded Chicken Lasagna
I need to warn you about this meal. You're gonna want to lick your plate clean. While we don't normally let our kids lick their plates, we do on occasion and when we're feeling silly. And we licked our plates at this meal. This recipe does call for jalapenos - which have a bit of kick to them. If you want to "spice it down," then you could use a milder pepper like poblano … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Mango Salsa Chicken
Lately, I've been a bit addicted to slow cooker shredded chicken - and adding as many great and delicious flavors as possible. This Mango Salsa chicken is PHENOM-ENAL. It's the perfect about of sweet and spicy, thanks to the salsa and fresh mango. Let it slow cook the day away, then you just shred the chicken with 2 forks and spoon it all into flour or corn tortillas, taco … [Read more...]
Sweet Orange Ginger Chicken
This is really a copycat Sweet Fire Chicken. Complete with real orange peels. It's what makes this meal perfect! It's the sweet Thai chili sauce with the orange peels that leak out all their flavors and aromatics into the sauce. Perfection in a bowl right there. Sweet Orange Ginger Chicken A quick and easy fake-out take-out recipe! 2 large … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Salsa Verde Beef Tacos
Love me some street tacos. Both when I order them from a taco truck...when I make them at home! These have just the right amount of spice, zest and crunch! (And salsa verde is not spicy at all, so don't let the potential spice turn you away from these amazing tacos.) Enjoy!! Slow Cooker Salsa Verde Beef Tacos This beef has stellar flavor! MUST … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Italian Beef Sandwiches
This kind of sandwich makes me drool. The beef gets to hang out in the slow cooker all day, soaking in all the amazing flavors. Then you shred up the beef with the peppers and onions...serve it on a bun with some cheese. Drool. DROOL. So good. Just so good. I didn't add this in the recipe, but you could even run these under the broiler to really get the cheese nice and … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Shredded Pork with Thai Peanut Sauce
We love shredded meats. Like, really love them. They are so easy to make (usually in the slow cooker) and you can 'sauce-ify' them easily to give them such amazing flavor. Then you can use the shredded meats in tacos, enchiladas, on "haystacks" or in soups, etc. This didn't start out as a "haystack" kind of meal...but ended up as one after I finished adding all the … [Read more...]
Freezer Friendly Cilantro Lime Chicken
I like to call meals like this "double cook" meals. It doesn't mean that they are harder to cook, or take twice the amount of time. It just means that they cook in two ways. In this case, the chicken is browned on the stovetop, then baked in the oven. All in the same cast iron skillet. The flavor in this sauce is off the hook. It's cray. It's bae. (Please pardon my … [Read more...]
Homemade Vanilla Extract
The holidays are coming. In a few months, yes. And if you want to give the gift of this homemade vanilla...I suggest that you make this RIGHT NOW. It takes at least 2 months to reach quality flavor potential, 3 to 4 months if you can swing it to really maximize the flavor. So write down on your errands list to stop at the liquor store to pick up some rum or vodka...and … [Read more...]