Sunday food prep – what went down in my kitchen (5)

Hello, hello!

I finally got back on my Sunday food prep program.  Now I feel so much more prepared for the week!

And, it’s going to be a busy one.

But, that’s good, right? It should make the week fly by!

But then, it also makes Christmas get here a little sooner and I’m not sure I’m ready for that yet.

Pssst…..there are only 86 more sleeps until Christmas……

And, moving on.

So, what went down in my kitchen yesterday?

Well, I started off my day by making some Crockpot Steel Cut Oats – the apples and cinnamon variety.

I used this recipe from The Yummy Life – used lite coconut milk instead of fat free. I also added the butter (cuz butter is awesome).

DO NOT FORGET TO SPRAY YOUR CROCKPOT WITH NON-STICK SPRAY!!!

Trust me.

It made four servings, perfect for quick reheating in the morning or as my 2nd breakfast at work. 🙂

Add in your toppings of choice.

Continuing on the scents of Fall theme, I decided I needed to make enough chili to feed a small village.

I found this recipe from Perry’s Plate and decided to give it a try.

I only made a couple of changes to fit our preferences – I went with a full teaspoon of the cayenne, I added 1/2 teaspoon of this fancy new Ghost Pepper sauce (um, ghost pepper is seriously hot) I got, and at the 3 hour mark, I added in 1/2 cup of pumpkin.

Yes, that’s random but you’ll understand further down in the post. 🙂

My only complaint is that the chili was not as thick as we would prefer.  When I was transferring it to containers, I ended up using a slotted spoon so I could get the goods and I left a lot of the soupiness behind.

It was really tasty – and, no, you won’t be a fire breathing dragon even with my additions – and the meat literally falls apart.

This will serve as lunches and dinners through the week. 🙂

And finally, ever since the Pumpkin Spice Latte made its way back to the Starbucks® menu, it seems the whole world is on a massive pumpkin kick.

So, I’ve been thinking about something different I could do with pumpkin.

I’ve made pumpkin brownies before (another kind here) but I didn’t just want to do that again.

What about brownie cookies?!

Genius!!

These little things are all soft and chocolately and pumpkin spicy and delicious! I couldn’t be happier with the way they came out!

And on the first try, even!!

I’ll share the recipe in tomorrow’s Tasty Tuesday post.

You’ll be okay. You can wait. I promise. 🙂

Finally, crockpots of yumminess bubbling away and neither one is dinner?

Madness!

OH! The extra pumpkin! Well, I had a 1/2 cup left and that chili recipe said to stir occasionally and I’ve made Pumpkin Chili before so……yeah!

Variety is the spice of life and I decided to make a double recipe of my Chana ma-Chicken for dinner and give us an additional leftover option this week.

*side note: my sailor has taken to calling this china man chicken. He thinks he’s funny.

Even though I followed my own recipe, this turned out a little spicier than the last time.

That’s fine for us but if you don’t do spicy, ease back on the cayenne.

Serve over rice or couscous or with naan to mop up all the delicious juices!

Random Spam Comment: “What a material of un-ambiguity and preserveness of valuable familiarity concerning unexpected emotions.” This was in reply to my Quick Cinnamon Buns with Buttermilk Icing post.

Talk to me: Did you food prep this weekend? What did you make? Have you jumped aboard the pumpkin train?

– jennifer

Deadlifts. Lots of them. Chana ma-Chicken

Hello, hello! Did everyone survive Monday? I did….barely. 🙂 It was touch and go there for a bit in the afternoon. I thought for sure Monday was going to strike back.

I started off with CrossFit before the butt-crack of dawn. Yes, I know that’s early.

Deadlifts, anyone? Oh, oh, OH! I did 2 double-unders! IN A ROW!!! Of course, once that happened, I was incapable of getting another one so I did a whole bunch of singles. 100 double-unders for time? Yeah, in maybe a week! Who has that kind of time?

And, no, I didn’t run. I rowed. Not quite ready for the running, yet. I also didn’t deadlift 155# pounds. That’s way more than I can even pick up off the floor! I scaled down to 105# and was able to knock out the workout without too many form breaks. Which is good. Doing deadlifts wrong isn’t good. I like good. 🙂

I’m in my 3rd week of physical therapy. I rested my leg this past weekend – it was pretty tired after last week. Definitely the right thing to do. It’s feeling good and I’m working hard on rehabbing it. I am missing so much running! I don’t feel quite like myself these days. Must. Get. Better.

Dinner!

So, I totally created dinner yesterday. Normally, I have a list and a plan when I go grocery shopping but that didn’t happen this past weekend. I just shopped. Slightly scary. So, now I have to plan around what I bought. That stresses me out sounds like fun!

Anyway, I just browsed my pantry/fridge and here’s what I pulled out.

I used many of the same spices I used in Chana Masala – hence my “creative” name for this dish. I had considered “Indian-spiced Chicken” but Thing 2 shot me down. Whatever. Like she’s the expert on naming food dishes.

Anyway, regardless of what I named it, I can most definitely call it AMAZEBALLS!

The chicken was perfectly spiced, the vegetables were crisp-tender and it took less than 30 minutes! Win! The only thing I might do differently in the future is add raisins, dried cranberries or chopped apricots or something like that. A little sweet to contrast the savory. I’d add those at the same time as the bell peppers.

Question time!
1. Have you ever created a dish? How did it turn out?
2. Has an injury ever prevented you from doing what you love? How did you handle it? Help me!

Chana ma-Chicken
serves 4

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into strips
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-inch knob fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1/2 red onion, diced
1 yellow pepper, cut into strips
1 green pepper, cut into strips
Handful cherry tomatoes
Salt & pepper

1. Blend spices, coriander through cayenne, in a small bowl. Toss with chicken until coated. Set aside.

2. Heat oil in large skillet or wok over medium high heat. Add onion and saute about 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. Add chicken. Cook 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently.

3. Add green and yellow peppers to pan and stir to incorporate. Cook 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently until chicken is done and peppers are crisp-tender. Add tomatoes and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Cook about 1-2 minutes more or until tomatoes are heated. Serve over rice, couscous, or on its own.

4. Om nom nom!

– jennifer