Crockpot Masala Chicken & Chickpeas

Hi there!

Guess what day it is?!

Um, no. It’s not Wednesday. Yet. That’s tomorrow. Patience, grasshopper.

It’s Tasty Tuesday!!

After you check out my tasty new recipe and subsequently go to the grocery store to buy the ingredients so you can have it for dinner tomorrow, don’t forget to head on over to Lena’s page to check out all the other Tasty Tuesday yumminess!

Oh wait, check out her page first. She’s got tomorrow’s breakfast covered.  🙂

 I had picked up some organic boneless, skinless chicken thighs from Harris Teeter but I didn’t really have a plan for them.

I wouldn’t recommend doing that on a regular basis. If you’re me, you might forget that you bought them, never be inspired, never come up with a plan and then they’ll go bad and you’ve just wasted money.

Wasting money is bad.

BUT, turns out I was inspired!

I decided to make a riff on Chana Masala and my Chana ma-Chicken and use my crockpot to do the heavy lifting.

Yes, Chana ma-Chicken. I told you I need work on recipe naming. #dontjudgeme

When I got home from work, the house smelled so delicious with all the lovely curry and Indian spicy smells.

You know, it just occurred to me how much that must torture my dogs when I cook in the crockpot. A dog’s sense of smell is what, a bazillian times greater than ours? Can you just imagine the anguish they must feel smelling delicious dinner ALL DAY LONG and then, they don’t even get any?!

It’s quite possible that I’m the worst doggy mama ever.

Crockpot Masala Chicken & Chickpeas
serves 4-6

2-3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 can (14.5 ounces) fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon allspice
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
Cooked rice, for serving

1. Place chicken thighs and chickpeas in crockpot.

2. In a small bowl, mix diced tomatoes and spices. Pour over chicken and chickpeas. Cover crockpot and cook on low, 8 hours.

3. NOM. NOM. NOM.

 Talk to me: What’s your favorite chickpea recipe? How many times a week do you use your crockpot?

 

 

– jennifer

Jen’s Quick & Easy Paleo Beef Chili

Hello!

We interrupt your regularly scheduled Wine Wednesday programming for …. a recipe!

I’m in my final week of marathon taper and, out of the blue, I’m pretty sure I’m trying to get sick.

I felt like I got run over by a truck yesterday.

Tired, feverish, sneezy, achy – blech!

Well, with Flying Pig coming up on Sunday (EEEP!), I definitely don’t want to be sick.

So, I actively engaged my sickness in a battle!

I drank some tea

I put on my sweat pants  after work and enjoyed some cat cuddles

Molly is my lap cat. 🙂

and I made some spicy beef chili to help chase the ick out of my system!

I’m feeling a whole lot better today, but I’m still being cautious and loading up on Emergen-C and making sure I’m well hydrated.

You know you’re really well hydrated when you want to move your desk into the restroom. #justsayin

I decided on chili instead of chicken soup because 1. I had farmer’s market ground beef defrosted, 2. I didn’t have any chicken defrosted, and 3. I wanted chili.

I just kinda threw some things into a pot, simmered it for about 15-20 minutes, and dinner was born!

Jen’s Quick and Easy Paleo Beef Chili

2-3 tablespoons fat of your choice (coconut oil, bacon fat, etc – I used bacon fat because, duh, bacon makes everything better)
1/2 cup chopped onion (or more if you really like onion)
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound grass-fed beef or bison
3 chipotles in adobo, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 tablespoon oregano
1 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
Salt and pepper to taste
1 box chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)

1. Heat bacon fat in large pot or dutch oven. Saute onion and green pepper until vegetables have softened. Add garlic; saute 1 minute or until fragrant, stirring so it doesn’t burn. Add beef to pot and brown, breaking up with wooden spoon. Once meat is almost brown, add chopped chipotles, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and salt and pepper and continue to cook.

2. Once meat is browned and your kitchen smells amazeballs, add tomatoes, tomato paste, and chicken broth; stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low (I set mine at 3) and simmer for about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings (add crushed red pepper here, if desired) and simmer for another 10 minutes.

3. Serve it up and NOM it down.

Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of my beautifully plated chili last night. I was hungry. Don’t judge me.

But, you’re in luck, I packed leftovers for lunch and had some over a sweet tater!

YUM!!!

Have no fear, Wine Wednesday will return as scheduled next week. 🙂

Talk to me: How do you battle an oncoming cold? What’s your favorite comfort food dish when you’re sick?

– jennifer

Barking dogs, burning legs, and Spicy Chickpea Stew

Hello!

Happy holiday Monday!

Guess what I did this morning?

I went to CrossFit!!!

It was GREAT!

There’s a box about 10 minutes from my house and I was finally able to check them out.

They have 4 scheduled classes a day and I went to the 6:15 AM class.

Yes, I know it’s a holiday and I didn’t have to get up early but the neighbor’s dog had other ideas.

Incessant barking at 4:30 this morning.

Yay.

Shooting him didn’t seem like the right thing to do so I just made the best of it, got up and went to the early class.

It’s a small box (which is fine) and there were 3 of us there this morning plus the coach.

Holy. Leg burner. WOD.

I definitely appreciated the small group this morning because my front squats were a little wonky to start and I really needed the attention/coaching.

And, I learned how out of shape I really am. Running schmunning. I missed HARD WORK.

I can’t wait to check out the PM class on Wednesday!

Tomorrow is speed work. And, it’s supposed to possibly get up into the 60s! Shorts & t-shirt running weather!

CrossFit this morning was definitely the kick in the pants I needed.

My motivation really waned this past week and I’m so ready to get back to business. 🙂

I’ve also fallen off the “healthy” train a little.

Um, hello, red velvet cheesecake swirl brownies!

And lovely box of chocolates!

It was worth it. 🙂

Anywho, enough about dessert, let’s talk about dinner.

I found an AMAZING Clean Eating recipe for chickpea stew!

I do love the chickpea.

This stew is lightly spiced (seriously, use more jalapeño if you want it to fight back) and amazingly delicious.

AND, you get to cook with a whole cinnamon stick!

Okay, fine, maybe I’m a dork but I thought it was pretty cool. 🙂

And, it adds a whole different flavor level than just adding ground cinnamon.

It was a delicious combination with the toasted cumin seeds, turmeric, fresh ginger and garlic.

My kitchen smelled AWESOME!

I served this up with some toasted Naan and called it dinner.

Tomorrow, at work, I’ll call it lunch. 😉

NOTE: This stew calls for dried chickpeas that require overnight soaking. If you don’t want to do that, use canned. Just make sure you rinse them really well.

Spicy Chickpea Stew
makes 4 (1 cup) servings

1 tablespoon organic extra-virgin coconut oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped carrots, diced
1 teaspoon sea salt
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 jalapeño pepper, minced (remove seeds if you don’t want even a little kick)
1 1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 cinnamon stick
4 vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped
1 cup dried chickpeas
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, stemmed and chopped, for garnish (optional)

1. In a large bowl, add chickpeas and enough cold water to cover by 1 inch. Soak overnight, for 8 to 18 hours. Drain.

2. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat oil on medium until melted. Add cumin and toast, stirring frequently, until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add onion, celery, carrots and salt and sauté, stirring frequently, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic, jalapeño, and ginger and sauté for 1 more minute. Add turmeric and cinnamon stick and stir to combine.

3. Stir in 2 cups water, tomatoes, and chickpeas. Increase heat to bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until beans are tender, 30 to 45 minutes. Add garam masala and stir to combine; remove cinnamon stick. Ladle soup into serving bowls and garnish with cilantro (if desired), dividing evenly.

4. Nom it down! 🙂

Talk to me: Why is my cat so weird?

– jennifer