Sunday Food Prep – what went down in my kitchen (12)

Hello!

Happy (dreary) Monday!

Are you in an area that got slammed with ice and sleet last night and this morning? Ugh. All we have here is rain. Rain, rain, and more rain. It’s a little disgusting.

But, it’s not freezing so … it could be so much worse. I’m not complaining.

Since I’ve been feeling better, I’ve gotten my motivation back.

Boy, did it really tank last week!

That’s why there was no Weekly Workout post on Saturday. I only went to CrossFit twice and I wasn’t really thrilled about either time. That’s so not me. You know I love CrossFit. It was just way more fun to come home and drink bourbon. 🙂

Okay, seriously, I only drank a little bourbon last week.  I had too much school work to do. Lots and lots of reading!! And, unfortunately, passing out into a book or my computer certainly wouldn’t help me get As in all my classes (see 2015 goals).

But, this week, I’m raring and ready to go and I totally got my food prep on yesterday.

In case you’re new and/or wonder where I found my inspiration to start food prepping on the weekend, you should totally check out Lindsay’s blog over at the Lean Green Bean. She food preps like a mad woman – it’s really pretty impressive all that she gets accomplished!  She’s even shared tips here on how to get started, foods that freeze well, and how to eat healthy during the week. Just imagine how much money you could save without all those trips out to lunch or to the snack machine during the week! Plus, if you’re eating food you’ve made, chances are it’s going to be much better for you than anything you could get at a fast food joint so you’ll definitely be doing your body a favor, too. 🙂

All it takes is just getting started. Make a plan and start small. See what works for you and your family. You can do it!

Okay, so here’s what happened in my house yesterday.

I made some of Lindsay’s Quinoa Breakfast Bars.  Seriously, I cannot get enough of them. I didn’t make them last week because I didn’t food prep and boy, was I bummed during the week! So delicious!

I also made 2 Overnight Quinoa and Blueberry Oatmeals (ugh, that’s a strange word) for grab-n-go breakfasts/mid-morning snacks.

I haven’t done overnight oats in a while (and I LOVE them) and when I saw that recipe (on Pinterest, of course!) that included quinoa, I figured since I was cooking quinoa for the breakfast bars, I would give them a shot. So, that’s what in those 2 mason jars.

I had one today as my post-spin class meal and, well, the jury is still out.  It’s pretty good but I think I need to tweak it some. Like, maybe add some almond butter or something. I’m not sure. It needs something. I added roasted almonds and blueberries to the jar when I was ready to eat. Still needs something.

I picked up an organic whole cut-up chicken at Harris Teeter and cooked it in my crockpot. I sliced up some red onion and put that in the crockpot first. Then, I seasoned the chicken with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and garlic powder and into the crockpot it went. Cook on high for 5 hours and, ta-da! Beautifully cooked chicken to be used in sandwiches, in salads, eaten whole, etc!

Finally, I made a huge batch of chili!  It served as dinner last night and will provide some nice leftovers during the week. For an extra protein punch (because 2 pounds of meat and 2 cans of beans doesn’t give enough – #sarcasm), I tossed in the remaining cup of cooked quinoa I had. Shh….don’t tell. 🙂

Not pictured are the veggies I chopped/sliced/etc – red bell peppers, cucumbers, and carrots.

That should get us through the week. Now, if I could just get my sailor to remember to actually TAKE the lunch that’s been made for him. *sigh*

Talk to me: Do you have a family member that forgets to take his lunch? What’s your favorite way to use a mason jar?

– jennifer

Sunday Food Prep – what went down in my kitchen (11)

Hello!

Can you believe it’s December 15th already?!

Only 10 more days until Christmas and 2 weeks until it’s 2015.

I can hardly believe it.

Man, this year has FLOWN by!

Of course, just because time flies and I’d like to grab onto it and slow it down doesn’t mean that I can shirk my chores and responsibilities.

Seriously, why isn’t there a loophole?

So, we got out in the yard and raked. So. Many. Leaves.

But, we built a big pile for mulching for my garden in the spring (yay!) and we hauled in another few pounds of pecans.

Did you know that the average pecan tree can yield 40 to 50 POUNDS of pecans?!

I should seriously set up a pecan stand. 🙂

In addition to all the raking, I also got some good food prep going.

I roasted a chicken in my crockpot and then made some homemade chicken stock.

I should have ended up with 8 1-cup portions but I made a mess (oops!) and ended up with 7 1/2 cups. So, I distributed the remaining half among the 7 jars.

I also have some homemade beef stock going. We went to an evening farmer’s and craft market on Friday and I nabbed some marrow bones. On Saturday night, those bones, a T-Bone steak bone, and the leftover bones from a chuck roast all went into a crockpot and have been cooking ever since.

Thank goodness for 2 6-quart crockpots!

I made some quinoa, Lindsay’s Quinoa Breakfast Bars (YUM!!!), and roasted some sweet potatoes.

Seriously, if you have not yet made those breakfast bars, you are totally missing out. I’m kinda addicted to them.

They’re so easy and so delicious! I like to put a little almond butter on mine and have it with a piece of fruit.  🙂

Finally, I chopped up some carrots and red bell peppers for the week next two days. 😉

I was wiped from doing the leaves but by the time 7pm came around, I was pretty pooped.

Ginny helped me feel better by being all warm and snuggly and cute on my lap.

Talk to me: Have you had to rake a lot of leaves this Fall? Do you bag them, burn them, or reuse them as mulch? Any recipe ideas (not Pecan Pie) for all my pecans? 🙂

– jennifer

Tasty Tuesday! – Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Hi there!

It’s Tasty Tuesday time! Whoop Whoop!

As always, make sure you head over to Lena’s page to check out all the Tasty Tuesday yumminess as she’s the leader of this linkup party.  You never know what you’ll find over there. Maybe some Russian Meatballs or something like that. Bet you didn’t see THAT coming! 😉

I’ve had a lot of interest in my homemade chicken noodle soup so I thought I would share with you how I made it.

I mean, from what I understand, it’s supposed to be a cold winter in most areas and we’ve already had some major temperature fluctuations and everyone is either coughing, sneezing, or both!

Might as well have some of the good stuff handy to help cure what ails you. 🙂

And, you should also have hand sanitizer and Lysol. Lots and lots and lots of both. Since, you know, you can’t walk around in a bubble.

First things first (because, they wouldn’t be first if they came second!), this is not a quick 30-minute recipe. Sorry.

Those are out there and usually require store bought, or previously homemade, chicken broth.

In a way, the soup COULD be a 30 minute meal if you use chicken and broth that you’ve already made.

So, yes, it’s a 30 minute meal.

With about 15-18 hours worth of prep time.

All done in a crockpot so don’t freak out. It’s not like you’re standing in front of the stove for that long. Oh gosh, how awful would that be?

Anyhoo, the first thing you do is prep the chicken.

I usually buy a 4 pound organic chicken, rinse it and pat it dry, rub it with a paste made of olive oil, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper, and cook on HIGH for about 5 hours. (You can do LOW just up the time to 8-10 hours.)

I learned a nifty trick from Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean – ball up 4 sheets of aluminum foil, put them in the crockpot, and set your chicken on top of it! They act as a rack, lifting the chicken off the bottom and allowing the air to circulate and the juices to drip freely off the bird without causing a soggy bottom.

Cuz no one likes a soggy bottom.

Once the bird is done, remove it from the crockpot, allow to cool, and start shredding!

Put all the meat in a container (you’ll have more than you need for soup so …. use some for chicken sandwiches, in salads, in BBQ sauce, etc!) and toss all the skin and bones back into the crockpot.

Um, remove the aluminum foil balls first. You’re done with those.

Throw in a roughly chopped onion, a few roughly chopped carrots (2-3 regular – you don’t even have to peel them!), a couple stalks of roughly chopped celery, some chopped garlic (3-5 cloves), a bay leaf, and fresh (or dried) herbs such as thyme, oregano, parsley, and marjoram. Then, pour about 8 cups of water into your crockpot (honestly, if you’re using a 6 quart, you could probably pour in 10 cups or so) or just to about an inch from the top.

Cover and cook on LOW 10-12 hours.

While you’re sleeping is an excellent time to do this.

Or, you could cook the chicken while you sleep, shred it when you wake up, then prep the broth and let it cook while you’re at work. Then you could totally make chicken soup when you get home!

Okay, so after the broth is done, strain it through a fine mesh sieve and discard the bones, skins, chopped veggies, etc.

Pour your broth into containers suitable from freezing/refrigerating.

I usually pour them out in one cup or two cup containers.

If you’re freezing the broth, make sure you don’t fill the container all the way full. You need to allow room for the broth to expand.

If you’re going right from the straining to the making of the chicken soup step, pour about 32 ounces of your freshly made broth into a large soup/stock pot.

Bring to a simmer.

Peel and chop a few carrots and some celery and throw those in there. Allow to cook for about 5 minutes. TASTE and adjust seasonings.

I like to add more oregano, marjoram, and thyme in addition to salt and pepper.

Tasting is hugely important because you don’t want overly salty soup.

Or at least I don’t want overly salty soup. Blech.

Then, add your noodles and cook about 5-8 minutes. Add in desired amount of previously shredded chicken and cook for about 5 minutes. This is just to finish cooking the pasta and heat the chicken up. You don’t want to overcook either.

If you prefer a creamier soup, you can add a tablespoon of butter and between 1/4 – 1/2 cup of heavy cream with the chicken.

If you’re making this from the “refrigerated broth” point, heat a small amount of butter in a large soup/stock pot.

Add about 1/4 cup chopped onion, your chopped carrots, and chopped celery. Cook for about 5 minutes and then add 2-3 cloves chopped garlic, if desired. Cook 1 minute.

Add broth and bring to a simmer.

Once at a simmer, follow the steps above for seasoning, adding pasta, chicken, and butter and cream, if desired.

EAT!!!

Talk to me: Creamy or brothy? What’s your favorite pasta shape in chicken noodle soup?