Chicken Wrap

Chicken Wrap
Source: Adapted from Valentina's Corner

Ingredients
1 chicken breast
2 cups lettuce, sliced thin
4 slices bacon, cooked

1/2 red pepper, 1/2 green pepper sliced thin
1 tomato, cubed
1/4 red onion, sliced
1 avocado, sliced or cubed
3 Tbsp shredded cheese, optional
1/4 cup ranch
1 tsp Southwest Chipotle seasoning
flour tortillas

chicken breast seasoning:
¼ tsp ground paprika
¼ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp salt
⅛ tsp ground pepper
1 Tbsp oil, for sautéing

OR Kickn' Chicken Seasoning


Instructions
In a bowl, combine seasonings for chicken. Season both sides of the chicken.
Cut bacon into small pieces. Over high heat, cook until crispy. Empty onto plate with paper towel. In same pan, using reserved bacon grease- Sear chicken 2-3 minutes per side. Turn heat down to low, close lid of the skillet and cook another 5-6 minutes, until chicken is tender.

Slice lettuce and onion, cube tomatoes and slice or cube avocado.
In a small bowl combine together the ranch and seasoning.
In a skillet, heat the flour tortillas until desired crispiness. (Or layout tortilla on wire rack in oven and bake until crispy.)
Slice chicken into thin strands, add to tortilla. Add remaining ingredients over top of chicken. Drizzle with the ranch.
Roll the wrap. Enjoy, friends.

Italian BMT (Subway)

The Italian BMT is one of my favorite sandwiches to get when eating at Subway (right below the Grilled Chicken with Ranch dressing). This Italian classic is filled with salami, spicy pepperoni, and ham. As I was making this recipe to post, I searched out what BMT actually stands for. Turns out that the acronym BMT stands for Biggest, Meatiest, and Tastiest. (lame!) However, in the early days of Subway restaurant history, it was a promotion that was based on the Brooklyn Manhattan Transit system in New York City that went along with the subway theme. (I love things like that.) 

If you are looking for a spicy, hearty sandwich, this fits the bill!

Italian BMT

Source: Subway Restaurant Knock-off

Ingredients:

4, 6-8" loaf soft sandwich bread, like this Italian Sandwich Bread
4-6 ounces sliced sandwich pepperoni
4-6 ounces salami
4-6 ounces sliced Ham
8 slices provolone cheese
1 tomato, sliced thin
4-8 leaves green leaf lettuce

Dressing of choice

Directions:
Slice the bread in half length-wise. Add the meats, cheeses, tomato, and lettuce. Top with dressing of choice. Secure the bread with toothpicks and cut into eight equally-sized sandwiches.

Middleton Tacos

Our friends the Middletons make the most amazing tacos. We begged for their recipe so we could add it to our repertoire. Toasted corn tortillas, melted cheese, tender marinated meat, and a avocado pico for the top. Mmmmm. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. When the Middletons invited us over for dinner, they didn't know that their name would forever live on in our dinner rotation - because we call this dish "Middleton Tacos." (Chicken tacos doesn't seem to do the dish justice.) 

Middleton Tacos

Source: Mike and Ali Middleton

Ingredients: 

Chicken

Marinade - equal parts, garlic powder, cumin, season salt, pepper, paprika, coriander, chili powder, and Caldo de Tomate, and lime juice + enough vegetable oil to coat/cover the chicken. 

Corn tortillas

Cheese

Lettuce

Avocado Pico - equal parts diced tomatoes, onion, avocado, and cilantro

(For three chicken breasts, I used about one teaspoon of each spice for the marinade and about 1 1/2 -2 cups of oil. I also used 2 tomatoes, 2 avocados, and one onion.) 

Directions: 

The night before, slice chicken breasts into tenders (allowing more of the meat to come into contact with the marinade). Combine marinade spices and oil.  Pour marinade over chicken in a tupperware container and thoroughly coat chicken. Let sit overnight. 

Grill chicken until cooked through. Slice into thin strips (or you could shred). 

Place corn tortillas on a griddle, toast on one side (abt. 1 minute) then flip and cover with cheese. When cheese is melted, add chicken, pico mixture, and lettuce - and serve! 

*When making this for a group of people, you can start crisping up the tortillas and melting the cheese right before serving, then place the tortillas on a cookie sheet. You can cover them with parchment paper and then add a second layer of tortillas for people to grab as they start making their tacos. But don't use wax paper or the cheese will stick. It's also good to have someone manning the griddle to keep the warm tortillas coming. 

Sweet Pork Salads {Costa Vida Copycat with Dr. Pepper}

When I was in college at Utah State, I had a roommate that worked at Costa Vida. She would bring home extra rice and chips and even more importantly she had a 40% discount (or something) that we used on a fairly regular basis. We loved it. To this day, thinking about digging in to a nice big Sweet Pork Salad from Costa Vida makes my mouth water! Unfortunately, our budget doesn't allow for frequent Costa Vida runs. However, for practically the same price as ONE salad - you can make your own Copycat Costa Vida meal for the whole family.

I absolutely love this meal and love that I can make it at home in my crock pot. To make our dollars stretch I try to do the following things: 

1- Buy the pork roast on sale. You can get a nice 2-3 lb roast for just a couple of bucks if you time it right. Wait for a $1.48 - $1.60/lb sale and then stock up. Pork roasts freeze well and you can use them for many things. Don't pay $3/lb. 

2-After the pork roast is cooked and shredded, but before you add all of your ingredients, pull out a tupperware-full of pork to use for BBQ Pork Sandwiches. (If you have a big family, you should only do this if you buy a big roast - but I still recommend it. It's a great way to get several meals out of one roast.)

3-Have the sweet pork on salads the first night and then use the leftover sweet pork in burritos a couple of nights later. Just add in the rice/beans and maybe a can of diced tomatoes if you need to stretch it. Wrap them up in tortillas and top with half a can of red enchilada sauce and some cheese. So yummy! 

Sweet Pork

Source: Adapted from New Day, New Dish

Ingredients:
2-3 lb. pork roast
1 (12 oz.) cans Dr. Pepper
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 jalapeno - seeded and chopped
2 carrots - shredded or finely chopped
1/4 c. onion, chopped
1 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce

1/2 c. salsa
3/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 c. brown sugar

Directions:
Slightly thaw pork roast in microwave. Remove from packaging, rinse under running water, pat dry. Place roast in crock pot with 1/2 cup Dr. Pepper. Cook on high for 4-5 hours. Remove roast from crock pot and place in kitchen aid with paddle attachment. Run kitchen aid on medium speed to shred pork. (You may want to remove the large pieces, dump the small pieces back into the crock pot, and then continue to shred the large pieces to prevent the smaller pieces from becoming too tiny.) 

Place shredded pork back into crock pot and add remaining ingredients. Stir to combine. Reduce heat to low and cook 2-3 additional hours. 

Spray a frying pan with cooking spray and heat to medium heat. Place tortilla in pan and brown both sides. This only take 15-30 seconds, but it adds so much to your salad! Place rice, beans, meat and lettuce on top of tortilla and top with yummy cilantro ranch dressing. (Recipes below.)

I've tried many sweet pork recipes (you can find them all over the internet) - but this one is my favorite by far! However, I know that sometimes so many ingredients, and all of the chopping/prep work isn't really in the cards. So, this is my other favorite recipe which is much easier: 

Easy Sweet Pork 

Source: Six Sisters Stuff

3 lb. pork roast
16 oz. chunky salsa
1 can Dr. Pepper
2 c. brown sugar

Put pork in slow cooker and fill halfway with water. Cook 4 hours on high. Drain water, cut pork in thirds, mix together sauce and pour on top. Cook 4 more hours on low. Drain liquid and shred pork. Save a little liquid and mix it in with the pork so it is really moist.



Tomatillo/Cilantro Ranch Dressing
Source: Adapted from A Mommy's Life with a Touch of Yellow

Ingredients:
1 packet of buttermilk ranch dressing
1 Cup mayo/Miracle Whip
1 Cup buttermilk (the smallest carton is perfect)
1 bunch of cilantro (after you wash, make sure you pat dry)
2 tomatillos husked
1 jalapeno (take the rib and seeds out)
Garlic powder (just a few shakes)
juice from 1 lime

Directions:
Put the mayo, dressing mix, buttermilk, and garlic in a blender and mix until blended all together. Squeeze lime juice directly into the blender. Cut up tomatillos, jalapeno, cilantro and pat dry. Add to the blender and blend until everything is mixed together and creamy. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. This can be stored in the fridge for several months - so don't throw your leftovers away. If it starts to separate - just shake it all back together.

Cilantro Lime Rice

Source: Favorite Family Recipes

(We don't always make this. Most of the time I just use regular white rice - but if I'm feeling fancy or want to go all out, I put this together and feel great about how easy it is. Also, as a side note- I never so anything special to my beans. I just open a can of black beans and a can of pinto beans and heat them up.) 

Ingredients
1 c. uncooked rice (long-grain, white rice)
1 tsp. butter or margarine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 can (15 oz) chicken broth
1 cup water
1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tsp. sugar
3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

Directions.
In a rice cooker combine rice, butter, garlic, 1 tsp. lime, chicken broth and water. Cook until rice is tender. In a small bowl combine lime juice, sugar and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and mix in as you fluff the rice.

Navajo Tacos

Growing up, whenever we had Navajo tacos it was quite the treat. My parents would fry up some scone dough - and we'd eat navajo tacos for dinner and scones for dessert. However, when we first got married - I tried to make frybread for dinner and ruined my favorite Aggie shirt. I've been wary of using frying oil ever since. Of course, I still do fry things on occasion - but that wariness in conjunction with our goal of eating healthier led me to this flatbread version of Navajo tacos. Honestly, it was just as delicious and much healthier than having the dough fried in oil. 

Navajo Tacos
Frybread Source: Adapted from Cook and Craft Me Crazy

Ingredients:
Biscuit Dough (found below)
Chili
1/2 lb hamburger (cooked)

Lettuce

Cheese

Salsa

Assorted toppings

Directions: 

Separate biscuit dough into six sections. Roll out flat. Sprinkle dough with cumin, chili powder, and salt. Place on George Forman and grill until golden brown. Cook hamburger and warm chili through. Top with chili, lettuce, cheese, salsa and other assorted toppings. Serve hot. 

Biscuits

Source:Adapted from AllRecipes

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/3 cup shortening or butter
1 cup milk

Directions:
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Cut in the shortening until the mixture resembles small peas. Gradually stir in milk until dough pulls away from the side of the bowl.
Turn out onto a floured surface, and knead 15 to 20 times.

Indian Fry Bread
Source: Adapted from Taste and Tell

Ingredients:
5 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons oil
2 cups warm water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
3 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2-4 cups additional all-purpose flour
oil for frying

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the sugar and the oil with the warm water. Stir in the yeast. Allow to sit for 5 minutes for the yeast to proof. Add in the flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix together. Add 2 more cups of flour, oil hands well and knead until dough is firm and begins pulling away from the sides of the bowl, adding more flour as needed. Heat at least an inch of oil in a large cast iron skillet.

Flour your work surface, then roll the dough into a long rope. Cut into 16 equal portions. Roll each into a ball and flatten into a disc. Keep the dough covered, and working with one or two portions at a time, fry in the hot oil until browned and bubbled. Flip and cook the opposite side. Drain on paper towels.