Greek-inspired Crock Pot Chicken and a whole lotta other stuff you can call "food for thought"

Trying to keep things interesting (food wise, you sickos!) on a budget, with a family of 6, isn't all that easy. Recently I participated in a "pantry challenge" for 30 days where all I could use to create three meals a day were the items already in my pantry, freezer and 'fridge, with the exception of perishable that needed to be purchased like veggies and meats as needed. It became more like a pantry raid and each meal - especially dinner - became something along the lines of an episode of Chopped. Well, Chopped minus items like gummy brains and lamb fries but with the added challenges of screaming toddlers, bat-sh!t crazy cats and dogs and a cranky teenager congregating in the kitchen while you try to work.

Come to think of it, that would be an AWESOME episode idea. I'd love to see seasoned chefs do what we SAH-ers do every night!

I digress. The challenge had me looking at two things very differently: 1. The amount of processed food I had in my stores that had a shelf-life of "yes, it's good for eternity" and 2. The lack of want in this house. In both cases we are very blessed because we had enough in the pantry to last us the entire month of January. I also gave myself a chance to really look at what I had put away and come up with new ideas to re-purpose a lot of what I had and to research idea on how to recreate many of the packaged spice mixes, pastas, etc. to save money and cut out a lot of the preservatives. I HIGHLY recommend doing a similar challenge of you can. Involved a group of friends - you'll be amazed at what group-think can do when it comes to dinner!

Now, let me be serious here. Before you all start to think I am one of "those" people who is a no-preservative-processed food-refined flour and sugar-nutbag I need to say this: I'm not. I am NOT about to start making my own cranberry juice. Sometimes you just HAVE to have the Kraft Mac & Cheese with all its delicious yellow cheesiness and Spongebob shapes. There are times when you NEED MSG in your life. That being said, all things in moderation, right? If I can avoid MSG and its ilk in every meal than the occasional indulgence makes me feel less Mom-guilt. I am all about lessening the Mom-guilt as I am kind of an expert in heaping it on myself.

So, back to making things interesting. We eat a LOT of chicken here. Like, I buy two of the big bags of BJ's frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts (BSCB's) every three weeks. I don't know about you, but BSCB's lack a lot of things besides bones and skin... like flavor and moisture. I also don't have a lot of time to get crazy in the kitchen without running the risk of injury to myself or others so I am trying to become besties with my crockpot. Creativity is a must. So I have made my own taco seasoning and used it on the BSCB's and on fish sticks for tacos (another post for another time) and today I decided to try my hand at creating something more along the lines of a Greek-style chicken in the crockpot for dinner tonight. You never know how things are going to turn out at Casa de Stewart and, thankfully, we have had only a few missteps. I am equally thankful for the fact that I have some very adventurous eaters in my family!

The kitchen right now smells amazing and the sauce I created for the chicken tastes pretty darn delicious. Here is what I am looking at and I can't wait for dinner:

I built a batch of dry seasoning and put it in a shaker for the future, as an FYI, because I happened to have the herbs here in the kitchen already. So, here is my recipe for "Greek-inspired Crock Pot Chicken." I will be serving this with hummus, pita, crumbled feta, chopped romaine and Roma tomatoes to let la familia make their own salad or wraps (the toddlers are very fond of wraps and dipping sauces). Let me know if you decide to try it for yourself, how you liked it and if you made any changes.

Dried seasoning: 

2 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp EACH garlic powder and onion powder
2 tsp EACH ground black pepper, dried parsley and smoked paprika
1 tsp EACH iodized salt, ground cinnamon, nutmeg and thyme

Mix together and store in an airtight container. Makes about 1/2 cup of seasoning

Greek-inspired Crock Pot Chicken:

3 large BSCB's, cubed (not too small, this is going into the crockpot and you don't want it to fall apart completely)
1/3 c. dried seasoning
1 1/2 c. chicken stock (homemade, boxed or a tub of the Knorr chicken stock mixed with 1 1/2 c. water)
1 lemon zested and juiced

Cut up chicken and place in a bowl. Toss with dried seasoning and set aside. Mix together stock, zest and lemon juice in crockpot. Add chicken coated in spice mix. Cook in crockpot on LOW 6-8 hours or until cooked through if your crock runs hot like mine does.

Serve warm or cold with your choice of sides. Rice, quinoa, pita, etc. Make it fun. As I  mentioned before, we will be having ours with thick pitas warmed in the oven and topped with hummus (store bought this time), tomatoes, feta and romaine lettuce.

Enjoy - I know we will be!!

-- TAM

A little March Madness, A little Clean Livin'

Looking back I see that October was my first - and last - posting. Seems like an understatement to say that life has been really hectic and many changes have been made in the Stewart Six's world. 

On January 9th 2013 my mom passed away after a long battle with an autoimmune disease called scleroderma. There seem to be so many people I know who have Lupus, celiac disease, rheumatoid arthritis, food allergies, etc. Not being a scientist I don't know if there is any kind of a link but I started thinking about food and its relationship to our over-all health. Is there the possibility that something we are ingesting is causing our bodies to revolt? I don't believe that preservatives, GMO's, artificial sweeteners or other additives CAUSED my mother to have an autoimmune disease but I can't help but wonder if those things may have exacerbated it or hurried it along. 

Recently I posted on Facebook that the more reading I do about nutrition the more I feel like I need to start eliminating a lot of the processed food we have in the house, for my health as well as the kiddos. Now, this isn't to say that eating processed food is a bad thing. Hell if it weren't for Devil Dogs, Ramen noodles, bad takeout and strong coffee I never would have graduated college! That being said, I can't help but feel guilty giving the twinados and the new guy chicken nuggets (the box says all natural but I have a feeling that the chicken didn't NATURALLY appear from the sky in cool dinosaur shapes... but I could be wrong) at lunch time. The guilt. Oh the guilt. It's a freaking cycle. Example:

*looks in fridge* 

Hmmm. 

All Natural Dino Nuggets or Turkey dogs.

Maybe grilled cheese?

I really should be making something more wholesome but DEAR GOD, how am I going to manage that with the *ample* amount of free time I have... but if I don't make the time am I putting their health in jeopardy... but how do I find the time to make clean foods without sacrificing time with them... But I'm a SAHM, I *should* be able to do this because if I can't then I am a super-mom-FAIL... But I have three toddlers and a super-angsty 'tween... But I need to do this for them...


*cooks up nuggets AND hotdogs and eats them, too*


And so begins the mother's-guilt-cycle. In the Guilt Olympics I have medaled in Culpability Cycling and Marathon Mental Self-Flaggilation. I am THAT good at this. 

It is very clear that this is going to have to happen in steps as I start out making the time to cook more "clean" and to reduce the "OMGit's4pmthekidsarescreamingthedogsaremoochingweareoutofnewDoraTheExplorerepisodesontheDVRandIhavenoideawhattodofordinner" stress. 

First step was to plan out the month's meals. HELLA BIG CHECKMARK!

A major part of this step and meal plan is to shop weekly on Saturday mornings for the week's meals. Monday is "baking day" where I will be baking the week's bread and treats. My stand mixer and my crock pot are about to become my new best friends. If I am feeling crazy the food processor will make an appearance. The Dutch Oven and I have agreed we needed to take a break. We are seeing other cooking vessels. 

Next step is to stick to it and write about what worked and what didn't. This is the accountability portion of our program. I am hopeful that the reduced stress will allow for more free time to work this last step out. 

Keeps your eyes peeled for updates. Comment often and let me know: Are you a meal planner? Has it worked out for you? What are some of your favorite go-to recipes?

March Madness, the Stewarts are ready!!

XOXOX -

TAM