Avocado Chicken Salad

I LOVE chicken salad, probably because it's usually loaded with calories from all the mayonnaise! I tend to like foods that are calories busters. Awhile back I made tuna salad with Greek yogurt instead of mayo and it was good but I still preferred the mayo version.

When I saw recipes floating around Pinterest for Avocado Chicken Salad I just had to try it! This one is a keeper! It is DELISH! This is the 2nd batch of this I have made and plan on putting into our family cookbook.

I love this as a lunch option for me instead of getting stuck eating toddler food, which sometimes happens to the best of us!

You will need:
14oz to 1 pound of skinless chicken breast (or tenders)
1 cup chicken broth (optional, for shredding chicken)
2 small avocados
1/4 of an onion, chopped
2 Tbsp cilantro, coarsely chopped
Juice of 1/2 lime
salt & pepper, to taste

Cook and shred your chicken. The easiest way I have found is to put the chicken in the crockpot with 1 cup of chicken broth on high for 2-3 hours.

It will then shred easily with 2 forks. I do this step the evening before and then store the shredded chicken in the fridge overnight so its cold for the next day. This also helps speed up the next part, and time can be an issue with little ones running around.

Next, all you have to do is mix in the rest of the ingredients. I use a fork to smash in the avocado. If your chicken is already cold, then it's ready to eat! Personally, I mix this together midmorning and put back in the fridge, covered, until lunch so the flavors blend together.

*This will last in a covered container overnight for the next day without turning brown (even without the lime juice, which I didn't have for my 1st batch).

Now that is what I call a Chicken Salad Sandwich!

Toddler Review

Scarlett is home sick today so she got to eat some with me for lunch.

She cleared it!

Blueberry Power Muffins

Every meal should include a source of protein. I learned during my weight loss journey that protein builds muscle ... and muscle burns fat. 

Breakfast can be a difficult meal to include protein into. Most people run out the door without even eating breakfast or grabbing something fast like a donut or cereal.

These Blueberry Power Muffins are packed with oats (fiber), protein, and antioxidants (blueberries)! Recipe adapted from here.

You will need:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of oats, quick-cooking
• 2/3 cup of sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 12 ounces of honey non-fat Greek yogurt
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 4 Tbsp of unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup of fresh blueberries

Suggestions: 1) If you can't find honey Greek yogurt, get plain and add real honey. 2) Splenda can be substituted for the sugar to save calories but I do not how it they will taste. 3) I'd like to try adding some ground flax seed and maybe whole wheat flour to my next batch.

Heat oven to 350° and coat muffin tin with cooking spray or use liners.

Combine flour, sugar, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl.

Combine yogurt, eggs, butter, and vanilla in a second bowl.

Fold yogurt mixture into dry mixture; stir to combine completely. Gently fold in blueberries.

Spoon into muffin tins. The batter will be thick (almost like a cookie dough).

Bake approximately 25 minutes until top is golden and springs back when you gently touch it.

*Yields 12 regular muffins

They taste great and just 1 muffin is filling! Our girls couldn't quite eat a whole muffin individually, but they got close :)

Store left over muffins in ziplock bags and reheat in microwave for 30 seconds the rest of the week!

OMG Chicken

Since my weight loss I have been on a search for new healthy recipes and I found a good one! I have seen several names for this same recipe floating around including "melt in your mouth chicken".

While tasting my very first bite of this recipe the first words out of my mouth were "Oh my God!" Yes, it's that good. Hence, the name OMG Chicken.

You will need:

• 3-4 chicken breasts (I do 2lbs of chicken breast to feed 6)
• 1 cup of plain Greek yogurt* (If you buy the single 6oz container, it is still plenty)
•  1/2 cup Parmesan cheese**
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• cooking spray

*If your not a fan of Greek yogurt, try this anyway! You will never be able to tell that it was used, meaning no weird yogurt taste. I promise! Plus it adds valuable protein!

** Use 1/2 cup of fresh parmesan shreds for clean eating (healthy/unprocessed foods).

All you have to do is mix the Greek yogurt, cheese and seasonings together in a small bowl to create a paste. Coat a cooking dish with cooking spray. Take each chicken breast and rub a layer of the yogurt paste all over it (both sides) and then place in the dish.

Bake uncovered at 375 for 40 minutes and then turn the oven up to 425 and continue baking for another 5 minutes to make it nice and golden brown. You can just do 375 degrees for the 45 minutes but it will not be a golden color.

OMG this is mouth watering! All 3 of my little girls gobble this one up!

Reese Amazes Me!

This child simply AMAZES me! Reese is 4 years & 2 months old and can do this...


p.s. I know it looks like she's reading it off a wall but she wasn't! This was in Reese's room and Emma's name is no where on display.

The other day Reese was showing Emma in the car how she can spell her name. Cody asked her if she could spell it backwards (and I honestly laughed under my breath thinking there was no way). Without hesitation she did it! Correctly. On the 1st try. Our mouths fell open! This weekend I was working with Emma on spelling her own name and I asked Reese if she could spell Emma backwards. And once again she did it perfectly on the 1st try! Then she started spelling another name...Sophia (aka: her best friend at school). I had no clue she was picking up on how her friends' names are spelled too.

Simply amazed!

Kid Friendly Corn Dog Muffins

Kid Friendly Corn Dog Muffins

You will need:

• Yellow Cornbread Mix & associated ingredients it calls for on the back
• 3 or 4 hotdogs
• cooking spray
• mini muffin pan (I suggest Cuisinart Chef's Classic Nonstick Bakeware 24-Cup Mini Muffin Pan)

Mix the cornbread according to package. In my case, add 1 egg and 2/3 cup milk (I use Mootopia for less sugar and extra protein). 

Spray your mini muffin pan with cooking spray. Evenly distribute all the prepared mix among the 24 mini muffin pan.

Take 4 hot dogs and cut each into 6 pieces. If you only have 3 hot dogs available, cut each one into 8 pieces.

Simply press each piece of hot dog into the center of the cornbread mix.

Bake according to muffin directions on the cornbread package (Mine was @375 for 12 minutes). Allow to cool slightly before trying to pull them out of the pan or the muffins will just break apart. I use a toothpick and run it around each muffin to help break the seal and allow for easier removal. Serve with ketchup or mustard (or my husband likes butter on them, which I don't understand). 

*I do cut these into bite size pieces for my 15mo old to prevent any risk of choking hazard.
*Leftovers can be kept in the fridge and reheated in the microwave.

Enjoy!

Movie Night

Cody and I regularly have movie date night once the girls are asleep. It something we enjoy doing as a couple...it's our thing I guess you could say.

Last night we rented Life of Pi from our local Redbox and I was skeptical at first if it was going to be good since I had only seen a brief preview clip, which included the tiger in the boat. Cody was even more skeptical when he realized it was rated PG! He has a thing about movies needing to be rated R but I disagree.

Life of Pi


This movie was so good! I can't believe how nicely done with graphics were. I never once thought to myself "geez, that looks fake", which I have caught myself thinking in the past. When I looked up the movie on Amazon I didn't realize they had made a 3D version of it! I bet it would be amazing to rewatch this one in 3D!

Life of Pi [Blu-ray 3D]

"After all,you cannot know the strength of your faith until it has been tested." This quote from the movie really stuck with me. There have been several different speed bumps in our path recently and they have made me look at things in a new way. I really enjoyed the perspective on faith and God in this movie. I hope you get a chance to watch it as well!

Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch

This past weekend we took the girls to the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch. This was our 2nd trip out there and it's totally worth it! This time we even got to see the Zebras (Reese's favorite animal)!

Scarlett loved sitting up front to feed the animals!

Scarlett had no reservations about feeding the animals!

Ostriches are actually quite mean. Cody 0, Ostrich 1

Reese was so excited to see her favorite animal this time!

Caution: Zebras may bite

This was the perfect time to give Reese a lesson on brushing her teeth!

If you have the opportunity to do something like this, do it! It is fun for the whole family and a great way for the kids to interact and learn about animals.