crockpot chicken taco chili

Seriously, this is by far one of my favorite dishes to make. I made this recipe the other day so Tony could have something to take for lunch at work. I hate when they work him 12-13 hour days, but on a positive note I get to experiment with my cooking ;) It definitely tastes better the 2nd and 3rd day, when the chicken has had time to soak up some of the extra juices...then again chili is ALWAYS better the 2nd day! I'm sure this recipe would be good with ground beef or turkey too.

1 onion, chopped

1 16-oz can black beans

1 16-oz can kidney beans

1 8-oz can tomato sauce

10 oz package frozen corn kernels

2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes w/chilies

1 packet taco seasoning

1 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp chili powder

24 oz (3-4) boneless skinless chicken breasts

chili peppers, chopped (optional)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro  (I omitted this as I HATE cilantro. Blegh!)

Combine beans, onion, chili peppers, corn, tomato sauce, cumin, chili powder and taco seasoning in a slow cooker. Place chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Top with fresh cilantro. Also try it with low fat cheese and sour cream.

-One change I did make while making this recipe is I boiled my chicken before I put it in the crock pot. I don't like the taste of the "chicken juice" that comes out of raw chicken when you cook it (weird I know lol), so I preferred to boil the chicken and shred it before placing it in the crockpot. It also reduced the cooking time greatly

robert's BBQ sausage and veggies

My father-in-law is responsible for this super easy and super tasty dinner. He is by far the best griller/smoker/BBQer I've ever met. One day I hope to be almost as good as he is ;).  I didn't actually watch him make it, but I saw sausage, BBQ sauce, and veggies and attempted it myself. I'm sure he smoked the sausage or something because he's just that good.

Anyways, for this recipe the BBQ sauce is what makes this dish. Plus all of the peppers are so colorful haha! I have the pleasure of being from one of the most famous places for BBQ and sauces. If you can't find a really great bottled BBQ sauce, experiment with making some homemade. The sauce I used is from Wal-mart back in Texas, I'm not really sure where all they carry it. This BBQ sauce is seriously the shiz. Will probably end up buying more online, this bottle won't last long around here. Now onto the cooking!...

Ingredients:
-a few tbsp of olive oil
-assorted bell peppers, sliced (I used 1 green, 1 red, and 1 orange)
-1 medium red onion, sliced
-1 package of smoked sausage, sliced (I used smoked turkey sausage, can't taste the difference but much healthier!)
-Your favorite BBQ sauce


Directions:
Warm the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add in bell peppers and onion, and sautee until nice and soft. Add in smoked sausage and cook until heated through (you could grill it instead for the extra flavor). Add in BBQ sauce and let simmer for 5-10 minutes..The amount of BBQ sauce is your preference really, I added enough to thoroughly cover all of the food and then maybe a little extra ;)

seven layer dip

Every once and a while Tony asks me to make dip with my homemade salsa. This recipe is a pretty basic seven layer dip with a lot of room for change, so adjust it to your liking. Seriously though, learning how to make your own salsa would benefit you for this recipe. ;)

1 package taco seasoning mix

1 can fat-free refried beans (I prefer a can of black beans, if you use black beans put the taco seasoning with the sour cream/cream cheese mix)

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened (I used 1/3 less fat kind)

1 (16 ounce) container light sour cream

1 (16 ounce) jar salsa, preferably some homemade salsa ;)

1 bunch chopped green onions

1 small head iceberg or romaine lettuce, shredded (I used chopped fresh spinach leaves)

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

-In a bowl, blend the taco seasoning mix and refried beans. Spread the mixture onto a large serving platter.  

-Mix the sour cream and cream cheese in a bowl. Spread over the refried beans. 

-Top the layers with salsa. Place a layer of lettuce, cheese and green onions. Feel free to add olives, bell peppers, whatever else you like!