Pumpkin Chili

Mandatory overtime is kinda the worst.

Feels like I haven't been able to enjoy life for a few months...do the things I love.

(Like this!)

My job is in an industrial area, so places to eat are few and far between.

Plus, it is way more cost effective to make and take your lunch.

Pumpkin season is NOT over!

I LOVE PUMPKIN!

I would eat it all year long if possible!

So, it is only fitting for lunch I make a pumpkin chili.

Nom Nom Nom.

Easy, delicious, pretty low carb.

E prefers it without the kale, I don't care either way.

Think it actually tastes better sans sour cream.

Also used diced and fire roasted tomatoes with green chilis.

(Trader Joe's version of Ro-tel)

Also changed the protein to turkey.

Oh and also changed the beans to great northern beans.

In short, this a a versatile recipe that changes it up from the typical chili recipes.

A fall staple!

Difficulty Level: 1

Yum Factor: 4

Slow Cooker Berry Coobler

Been trying so many new recipes lately, might as well share two recipes in one night!

We have been hosting poker nights on a monthly to bi-monthly basis, much to my chagrin.

It's not that I don't like having people over,

but I am in mandatory overtime at work, so there is no time to clean and get ready.

(Plus I'd rather have people over less often. #introvert)

The tiramisu was such a hit a few weeks ago,

but I wanted to take advantage of the seasonal berries.

Mmmm slow cooker berry cobbler.

Think the recipe is a bit confused.

It calls for 2 cups blueberries, 2 cups raspberries.

Since I hate blueberries, I have planned on strawberries and raspberries.

After measuring out the prescribed 2 cups of raspberries,

I couldn't imagine adding another 2 cups of any berry,

it already seemed excessive,

so I refrained from adding the strawberries.

The recipe says to use fresh or frozen.

The berries were fresh on Monday, I froze them until Friday.

It came out fine, but I am curious to try fresh next time.

I made the dough exactly as it is in the recipe, 

and it barely covered the bottom of the crock pot.

The slow cooker berry cobbler was delicious,

but it needs some improvment.

Recommendation: replace the 2 cups blueberries, 2 cups raspberries with

2 cups total berries of you choice.

Also, double the ingredients for the dough.

Difficulty Level: 2

Yum Factor: 4

Crack Slaw

Crack Slaw. Not the best sounding name,

but it is addicting because of how easy and delicious the recipe is!

This is perfect to whip up to eat for lunch at work throughout the week,

or a quick dinner.

I did not have sesame seeds, only because TJ's no longer carries them. (wtf!)

First time I made the Crack Slaw, I used TJ's broccoli slaw, it was divine.

Second time making the recipe, they were out of broccoli slaw,

so the only choice was shredded cabbage, not as good.

BOTH times making this, I had to add more liquid (soy, soyaki, etc,) after cooking.

Recommendation: Make as directed, but be ready to taste test and add more seasoning and sauce.

Difficulty Level: 1

Yum Factor: 3

Tomato Basil Artichoke Baked Chicken

Do you enjoy taking food for lunch, but get sick of eating the same old thing?

Yeah, me too.

In my new job, we have overgrown the parking lot, it's pretty insane.

So leaving for lunch is not ideal...let alone friend to the wallet.

It was time to shake up what I was making for lunch.

Tomato Basil Artichoke Baked Chicken

Those words sound so magical together, don't they? :)

The recipe calls for roma tomatoes, I used sun dried tomatoes.

Forget if I used the dried basil most of us have in the pantry,

or the fresh basil the recipe calls for.'

Doesn't even matter, because this was super easy and delicious!

Plus my lunch friends were very impressed that I made this dish for lunch.

Looking forward to making it again!

Difficulty Level: 1.5

Yum Factor: 4+

Greek Chicken Kebobs

Who wants to actually use their oven in the summer?

Not this girl!

If it can be on the grill, I want it that way all summer long.

So this recipe calls for a tzatziki, which I omitted.

My guy is not down with yogurt-based foods and I didn't want to make it.

Also Trader Joe's makes a decent tzatziki if you feel the need

(and I had it in the refrigerator if I felt said need),

but I don't think it is necessary.

Marinade for the maximum of 2 hours, no less!

I might be compelled to try it even longer, even though the recipe is strongly against it.

Also omitted the coriander, because I had whole not ground.

So yummy!

Such a refreshing twist on the standard kabob flavoring!

Definitely prefer this recipe to the other one I made recently that involved pineapples...

Difficulty Level: 1.5 cutting up veggies and such

Yum Factor: 4+

Marinated Beef Kabobs

While the cider mills back home have their opening weekend (insert crying emoji),

summer is in full swing in the mid-Atlantic.

The best part about not renting anymore is we have a grill.

It may the the world's smallest grill, but we can grill darn it!

Looking for an easy, flavorful dinner recipe? Look no further than these kabobs!

Love that it makes good use out of an open bottle of wine and

that the marinade comprises of ingredients already in the cabinet!

I usually leave the steak marinating during the day or overnight.

I always omit the bay leaves...not a fan.

Easy to grill up with kabob veggies already assembled on skewers at Trader Joe's!

Simple and delicious summer dinner! We have it almost once a week!

Difficulty Level: 1?  The grilling (which E does, not me)

Yum Factor: 4 The higher the quality of meat used, the better

Easy Tiramisu

Yay for updating in a timely fashion...hopefully this is the start of a trend. :)

We have been hosting a couple poker nights, one was after dinner in the evening.

After making a few dishes the weekend prior, I just wanted to do something easy.

Bam! Easy Tiramisu to the rescue!

Was in a bit of a panic when procuring the ingredients...

the grocery store was out of lady fingers!

With that day having a heat index of 114 degrees,

there was no chance of running around anywhere else.

A substitution for the lady fingers had to be made, but what?

I chose Sara Lee pound cake in the freezer section...

and prepared myself for the worst.

Guess what?!

The Tiramisu was not only stupid easy to make, it was also stupid delicious.

Some of the poker night players remarked it tasted better than many restaurant versions!

I should note: the recipe calls for amaretto or rum, I chose amaretto.

So if you want to impress a small gathering, make this!

Difficulty Level: 2 only if you have to whip the cream by hand, use a stand or hand mixer instead!

Yum Factor: 5 Mmmmmm

Crockpot Crustless Pizza

It's been too long yet again!

So many recipes need to be on here...shall I blog about them all at once,

or somehow magically become more regular at posting?

With a new job that has me driving quite far, hmm...what do you think?

E LOVES pizza. His favorite food by far. I don't love how getting carryout pizza makes me feel...

Ugh, is it the carbs or am I old?

Solution? The crockpot crustless pizza!

Not a dump and done recipe, but almost.

The meat needs to be browned and seasoned before being placed in crockpot.

I may have forgot to season it...added the seasonings after cooking...oh well!

Also, per E, used 1/2 the amount of cheese.

USE ALL THE CHEESE IT SUGGESTS!...especially on the top of the "pizza"!

The crockpot crustless pizza is great to take for lunch to work for the week!

Pair with a caesar salad or veggies for a side and life is yummy!

Difficulty Level: 2

Yum Factor: 3.25

Crockpot Sweet Chili Pineapple Chicken

Been meaning to post, so many recipes to catch up on!

We hosted an informal housewarming party,

and you know I utilized Pinterest in that endeavor!

But I'l catch up on those recipes and more later...

E thinks a crockpot should only be used in the cooler months, so I wanted to test that theory.

We are also trying to be more health-conscious.

(Also I had a bottle of the Sweet Chili Sauce in the pantry, expiring basically today)

This recipe is stupid easy, just the way I like my recipes!

The substitutions:

turkey tenderloins for chicken, needed a break from chicken.

diced up pineapple spears, since Trader Joe's does not carry pineapple in a can.

The result:

We did not serve it with rice, as we are trying to omit carbs.

It was better than either of us expected it to be, but I wouldn't want it again,

unless having it with chicken makes it taste better.

The original recipe calls it a sweet and sour chicken dish but better.

In my excitement to make something appropriate for summer,

I forgot that neither of us are really into sweet and sour chicken.

If you are a fan of sweet and sour chicken, give it a try!

Difficulty Level: 1

Yum Factor: 2

Crockpot Orange Chicken & Skinny Cabbage Salad

                             

Woah, it's been a long time!

Too long, but with moving, packing, moving, unpacking...

if you have moved before, you understand.

Moving never lends itself to cooking,

so easy to get sick of takeout...and spending all that money on it!

Now that our new place is mostly functional and the kitchen is set up,

the time came to be adventurous and try new recipes.

Both the crockpot orange chicken and skinny cabbage salad are SUPER easy to make!

But the flavors were both lacking.

I will admit that I slightly modified the chicken recipe,

so maybe that is the reason for the end result to be undesirable. 

Seriously, I didn't finish consuming it, and we ended up getting horrible-tasting take out.

Instead of ginger and separate sesame seeds, I used Soyaki.

Why? Because it has both in it, and I know I would use the leftover Soyaki.

So instead of the entire allotment for soy sauce,

it was half soy sauce, half Soyaki.

The cabbage salad had NO flavor. It was shocking...and I love cabbage and dill!

We added apple cider vinegar and some balsamic vinaigrette to improve it,

but it reminded me of this recipe that I like far more.

So both of these recipes are getting deleted from my Pinterest board forevermore.

Are you willing to try them?

Difficulty Level: 1

Yum Factor: 1

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

I am an awful slacker. I've been working two jobs the last two months,

so doing the hobbies I enjoy has been pretty non-existent.

Now that one of the jobs is done, hopefully there is more time to dedicate to enjoyment. :)

How have I not posted this recipe before?!

3 ingredients to create deliciousness. Salsa, cheese, chicken. Boom.

Experiment and have fun with it!

The second time making this, I used TJ's pineapple mango salsa.

I loved it, buy my man did not.

Suggestion: Use the salsa that is refrigerated as opposed to in a jar. It just tastes better.

Difficulty Level: 0. Can I give it a zero? The recipe is SO easy!

Yum Factor: 3-4 Dependent upon your salsa of choice.

Crockpot Bourbon Chicken

New Year, new job, new recipes!

My sort of mantra this year is "make the effort." Personally, professionally, and all that jazz.

Perhaps I should apply that mantra to posting on here more often? :)

In preparing for winter storm Jonas, this crockpot bourbon chicken recipe were one of the couple that peaked my man's interest, and did not require a plethora of ingredients outside our pantry.

But, due to people stocking up because of aforementioned winter storm/blizzard,

2 grocery stores were out of green onions. Sad...how I love them so.

The sauce is easy enough to make, smells yummy when poured over the chicken thighs.

So far easy, right?

Well, after cooking in the crockpot, you have the drain and thicken and add things...

it left my man swearing profusely. 

If you are going to make it, tweak the recipe when it comes to that section.

It's tasty, not amazing, or worthy of yummalicious levels.

Tastes like it is missing something,

perhaps adding green peppers or water chestnuts would help?

Difficulty Level: 3. Again, the thickening part needs adjusting

Yum Factor: 3. Adding some veggies would make the rating higher.