Chicken & Cottage Cheese Enchiladas

Have you ever heard of cottage cheese enchiladas?  We certaniliy hadn't. But the rave reviews were convincing enough to give it a shot! And boy were they delicioius.  We made a few adaptations to the original recipe - to meet our tastes. Like less cheese, etc....since there is plenty of cottage cheese.  We made a double batch and froze one.  And frozen enchiladas are always great to have on hand when dinner is seemingly impossible. Please tell me I'm not the only one that happens to! 

Get the RECIPE HERE

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken {Moist & Tender}

Disclaimer: If you are one of the people that despise the word "moist", then you may want to skip this post altogether.  ;) I had a friend once tell me that she couldn't stand the word.  I thought she was just weird, but one day I realized that it's a real thing.  People really hate the "m" word.  Anyway, if you want to know how to cook non-dry, hydrated chicken breasts, then stick around.  If you can't stand the word just leave and come back another day.

I don't know about you, but I have several recipes that I need shredded chicken for.  After a few years of getting dry chicken every time I put it in the slow cooker, I finally found a way to make it moist, so it actually shreds easily with two forks and tastes good because it's not all dry and touch.  Before I would always get tough, dry chicken that was nearly impossible to shred - and made me want to say lots of bad words! I won't name those for you.

Another great thing about this chicken is you can do a big batch - as much as will fit in your slow cooker. Leesh often does up to 6 pounds and then freezes about 2 cups in each freezer bag and freezes it for easy and quick use for later. It makes quick dinners that much easier when you are short on time. 

This method has proven to Leesh and me to be easy to make, easy to shred, and perfect to use in our favorite chicken dishes.  In fact there are 2 ways. An easy way and an even easier way. 

So here it is: 

STEP 1

Salt (and pepper!) your chicken, both sides.  

There is a chemistry thing with salt and protein. 

If you salt it beforehand it helps it not be so tough and dry. 

STEP 2

(optional - but highly recommended for a better flavor.  

I know, it will dirty another pan, but it's worth it!) 

Add a tablespoon or two of olive oil to a hot skillet and cook the chicken for a couple minutes on each side until you get a nice sear. 

STEP 3

Place chicken in a slow cooker with about 1/4 cup of water per pound of chicken. If you skipped the searing step, then drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil per pound of chicken over the chicken. Cover with the lid and let it cook on low for 4-6 hour or on high for 2-3 (depending on your crock-pot it might need more or less time). 

 

STEP 4

To make sure the chicken is done, test it with a meat thermometer and make sure it reaches 165 degrees F. Once it's reached temperature you can turn it off or to warm depending on how soon you plan to use it. I don't like to let it over cook.  

STEP 5

Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and place on a cutting board and allow to rest for 5 minutes.  With two forks pull the meat apart until it's as shredded as you like.  Or be a rebel and use a knife to cut it into small pieces.  Whatev. (Sometimes I even put it in my Bosch with my cookie paddles and shred it really quick - and I have a pretty tough hand mixer that will shred it if I place it in a big bowl and turn it on medium to high).

Now you can add your shredded chicken to your favorite meals calling for cooked chicken. It's easy, it's simple, and the meat should shred nicely. Now my kids don't have to learn curse words from me!  Enjoy! 

See below for a printable version of the recipe  -  this includes a few more notes and tips. 

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken

Printable Version {Click Here}

Ingredients:

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1 pound chicken

Salt & pepper to sprinkle

¼ cup water

1 tablespoon olive oil

Notes:

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If you want to do a big batch of this shredded chicken you can do as much as you can fit in your slow cooker. Leesh likes to do about 6 pounds and then freeze about two cups of it in a freezer bag for quick and easy use.  

You can use as much chicken as will fit in your slow cooker.  Just use ¼ cup of water and 1 tablespoon of olive oil per pound of meat (skip the oil if you sear it -see below).

Directions:

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1. Salt and pepper chicken on both sides.  

2. (optional but recommended) Add a tablespoon or two of olive oil to a hot skillet and cook the chicken for a couple minutes on each side until you get a nice sear.

3. Place the chicken in the slow cooker with about ¼ cup of water per poud of chicken that you are doing.  If you skipped the searing drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil per pound of chicken over the chicken and cover with the lid.

4. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or on high for 2-3 (time may vary depending on your slow cooker).  Check temperature to make sure it reaches 165 degrees F.  I try not to over cook my chicken so it’s not dry and tough.  

5.Remove chicken from the slow cooker, reserving the liquid, and place it on a cutting board, let it rest for 5 minutes. Shred with two forks by pulling the meat apart. Or cut with a knife or use cookie paddles in Bosch or other stand mixer.   Add as much liquid as you think is necessary back to the meat - this helps it stay moist in whatever dish you are making.  

6. Add it to any meal calling for cooked chicken.

Recipe Source:

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A Leesh & Lu original

Here is a handy pinterest friendly picture for saving this for later! :)  

{Baked} Breakfast Taquitos

**If you haven't seen our giveaway going on, don't miss it. It ends Monday, February 16th.

If you've been around here a while, you know that we love taquitos.  You also probably know that we love brinner.  So, on a whim, I thought--why not combine the two?  And usually when I have these kinds of crazy ideas it requires a lot of tweaking and often just scrapping the whole recipe.  But this time it was different.  I loved the result.  I don't know what it is about the crispy taquitos that gets me, but I just can't get enough.  It also helps that they come together super quickly and that I usually have all the ingredients on hand.  My kids and hubby always eat them up without any complaints, which is always a huge bonus.  Plus, they were super filling.  

Just in case these weren't awesome enough on their own, add freezer-friendly and make-ahead to their resume and you pretty much have a winning recipe.  These are perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner--or even dinner guests and the filling is super adaptable.  You can sneak in some spinach or other veggies and add green chiles if that's your thing (and in New Mexico, you know that's Lu's thing!).  I've made these several times in the past month and I think they will definitely be a regular in our dinner rotation.  

My 4-year-old also loves to help make these.  We like to use the Tortillaland uncooked tortillas, which makes him the designated tortilla-cooker.  In my scientific studies I have found that when I can involve my kids in making dinner they are approximately a bajillion times more likely to eat it.  I hope you'll give these a try!         

{Baked} Breakfast Taquitos

Printable Version

Ingredients:

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8-10 taco-sized flour tortillas

5 eggs, scrambled

1-2 cups spinach, finely chopped and sauteed (optional)

1/2 pound sausage, browned and crumbled

1 - 1 1/2 cups hash browns or shredded potatoes

salt and pepper, to taste

1 cup shredded colby jack cheese

4 ounce can diced green chiles (optional)

½ cup sour cream

vegetable oil spray

kosher salt

Directions:

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Preheat oven to 400.  Line a baking sheet with parchment or lightly greased foil.  

Cook or heat tortillas according to package directions.  Cover and set aside until ready to assemble taquitos.  

Combine sausage, cooked scrambled eggs, spinach (if desired), hashbrowns, cheese, chiles (if desired), salt, and pepper.  (Note on the hashbrowns: if using frozen or rehydrated hash browns, make sure to cook them or remove as much liquid as possible from them so you don’t end up with soggy taquitos.  If using shredded potatoes, toss them in 2 teaspoons of oil and microwave them for 5-8 minutes stirring every minute or so to soften them.  Drain any excess liquid.)

On a clean work surface, spread out tortillas.  Spread a dollop of sour cream on the inside of each tortilla.  Distribute filling evenly across all tortillas.  Roll them tightly and place seam side down on the baking sheet.  Lightly spray each taquitos with cooking spray and sprinkle lightly with coarse or kosher salt.  

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until edges of tortillas begin to lightly brown and get crispy.  Serve with salsa and sour cream for dipping.    

Notes:

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We like the Tortillaland uncooked tortillas.  Make sure to cook them before using them in the taquitos.  You can also use corn tortillas here, which I really like.  They get a bit crispier, so it’s harder for my little kids to chew them.  If you choose to use corn tortillas here it will make 12-15 taquitos.  

For the potatoes, use whatever you have.  I have used both frozen and dehydrated hash browns, and shredded potatoes with great results.  Make sure to cook or microwave them if using grated potatoes.  

To freeze: Assemble as directed up until the spraying/salting step.  Freeze until solid on a foil or wax paper lined baking sheet and then transfer them into a gallon-sized freezer bag until ready to use. Move them to the fridge to defrost on a lined baking sheet 8-10 hours before baking or allow them to thaw at room temperature for an hour or two before baking.  Before baking, lightly spray them with cooking spray and sprinkle a little bit of kosher salt on them and bake as directed.

Can easily be adapted to be gluten-free by using corn tortillas.

Recipe Source:

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A Leesh and Lu Original--by Leesh

Our Favorite Pizza Dough & The Perfect Pizza Crust {Pizza Series #2 of 4}

Tuesday we shared our favorite pizza tools and a few tips.  Today we are talking about pizza dough and making the perfect crust. 

For the pizza crust, we started with our Breadstick recipe and tweaked it just a little bit.  My favorite thing about this recipe is how forgiving it is. Didn't plan ahead and mix up the dough?  No problem.  All you need is a minimum 10 minute rest for the dough but it can hang out for 4 hours or so if you need/want to mix up the dough in advance.  

I used to think of homemade pizza as a fairly involved, time-consuming meal to make. However, it's now one of my go-to 30 minute meals that everyone in the house will eat. Traditionally we eat pizza every Friday.  No one really complains or gets sick of eating it as long as we change up the toppings.  Plus, the leftovers are kinda my favorite Saturday morning breakfast.  (Any other cold pizza lovers??)   

In my experimenting I used to pre-bake the crust, then top it and stick in back in the oven.  No one likes doughy pizza and it was the only way I could avoid it.  Eventually, I found that by baking it at a super high temperature, you really don't need the extra step.  Plus high-temperature-baking= only 7 minutes or so in the oven (depending on how thick you roll your crust).  Even my almost-2-year-old can be patient enough to wait 7 minutes for dinner to cook.

Another thing I love about this dough is that you can make it in advance and freeze it for up to a month.  With 2 adults and 2 littles at our house we usually only eat 1 pizza, but the recipe makes enough dough for 2 pizzas.  Sometimes I want leftovers and bake both, but most of the time I make the dough, and stick half of it in a quart-sized freezer bag to use for our next pizza night.  I move it from the fridge to freezer on Friday morning, and pull it out of the fridge about an hour before I'm ready to roll it out.  It works beautifully and makes pizza night a cinch.  

Here are a few other tips and tricks that we've discovered over the years to making the perfect pizza:

• For an extra delicious crust, brush all the way to the edges with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with garlic salt before topping.  

• Roll it thinner than you think you need to.  My hubby will always choose standard crust over a thin and crispy, but the dough will rise, so I have to roll it quite a bit thinner than I actually want it to be after it is baked.  The recipe that follows will yield two 12-16" standard crusts--even bigger if you like them extra thin and cracker-like. 

• Since we eat it every week, pizza isn't really a splurge meal for us, so if you're looking to lighten it up, here are a few suggestions.  I usually use 1 cup whole white wheat flour in each recipe for a little extra fiber and nutrition.  If you substitute whole wheat flour for more than half, you will need to allow extra rise time or you'll sacrifice your light, airy crust for a pretty dense one.  Also, the olive oil in the dough can be reduced  or eliminated completely and still have a darn delicious pizza.  It will change the texture of the dough slightly.  I omit the oil about half of the time.  I'm sure you will find that the easiest way to reduce calories won't be in the crust though--it will be reducing the cheese and loading up your pizza with veggies instead of pepperoni and sausage. 
• Don't be scared of the high-baking temperature.  If your oven cooks hotter than most, you can lower the temperature by 15-25 degrees.  Also, if your oven is like mine and doesn't heat super evenly--spin your pizza pan around 180 degrees half-way through the baking for perfectly browned edges.  
• See our favorite pizza-making tools for more awesome pizza-making tips and suggestions.

Perfect Pizza Crust

Printable Version

Ingredients:

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1 1/2 cups warm water

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon instant yeast

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 - 3 1/2 cups flour (bread flour or all purpose both work great here)

Directions:

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In mixing bowl add warm water, sugar and instant yeast. Let sit for 3 minutes or so until sugar and yeast are softened. Since it's instant yeast there is really no need to let it proof like regular yeast (if all you have is regular yeast - let it sit for 5 minutes or so until it's slightly bubbly).

Add salt, oil, and flour and knead in mixer for 3 minutes or by hand for 5-8 minutes. You want the dough to pull away from the sides of the bowl or counter (just don't over flour the dough or it will turn out a little dry and chewy). You'll know the dough is floured well when it pulls from the sides and still has a slight tacky touch to it.

Let dough rest for 10 minutes. Divide dough in two. Makes two 12-14 inch (medium-sized) pizza crusts.  Roll into a circle and bake on pizza pan or stone at 500 degrees F for 6-12 minutes with desired sauce, cheese,  and toppings. It’s done when lightly browned and cheese is bubbly.  (The cooking time varies greatly with the thickness of the rolled dough and your oven, so keep a close eye on it the first time and adjust from there if necessary.)

Notes:

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This dough freezes great. I freeze it in quart freezer bags with enough dough for one crust.  Move from fridge to freezer the morning of or night before you plan to use it.  Remove from fridge 30 minutes to an hour before rolling out to allow dough to come to room temperature.  .

Recipe Source:

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Adapted from Diana King’s Breadstick recipe

Creamy Noodle & Ham Bake

We had a lot of leftover ham from our Christmas dinner. I got tired of eating just plain leftover ham and potatoes. So we made a few things. We used the ham in our easy crust-less blender quiche a few times, I froze some, and then I saw a recipe for a ham and noodle casserole that caught my eye on Taste and Tell. I love when you can cook up some meat and save or freeze the leftovers for several versatile meals.  We usually have ham around Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter. So there is a big need for good leftover ham recipes in my opinion. I'm glad to have discovered this one. Even if you don't have leftover ham, I like to buy a fat slice from the deli and dice it up.

The original recipe didn't have the kind of spice I was looking for - so I changed that up a bit and added some mushroom and garlic.  The results were delicious! A creamy garlic sauce surrounding pasta and savory ham, with just the right amount of flavor! Mmm!  The leftovers were great too!  Luckily there was enough left for my husband and I both to have some for lunch.  I love when that happens!  Peanut butter sandwiches and cheese quesadillas just don't cut it for me. And that's usually what my 4 year old requests every.day. 

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

Cinco de Mayo is tomorrow. This chicken enchilada recipe is a recipe my mom made for us growing up. It's always been a favorite of ours and anyone we've shared it with. 

The original recipe calls for cream of chicken soup in the sauce.  But I've kind of outlawed it at our house - and make my own from scratch. The recipe is a lot faster to make with the cream of chicken soup, so I've included both versions of the sauce recipe. Pick your way of making it and either way they are both tasty!

I love that I can whip these together pretty fast.  If I don't have precooked chicken in my freezer or canned chicken, I will often throw a pound of chicken in my 1 quart crock pot with a 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and 1/3 cup of water in the afternoon and cook it on low for 4 hours and it's ready just in time to bake these for dinner.  I also have froze these ready made and then thawed before baking, so it's a great freezer meal too.  (I love these kind of meals!)

I've posted a few pictures of the process of making these, it's really simple.  Enjoy some Enchiladas! 

FYI, we love these topped with fresh salsa.  Click here for my favorite quick and easy Restaurant Style Salsa. 

Recipe below pictures.  

 

Also, if you are in need of some meal ideas for cinco de mayo, check out our recipe index or these quick links to some other favorites. 

Sides/Appetizers

Restaurant Style Salsa
Guacamole {Easy Squeezy & Tasty}

Fresh Salsa 

Mexican Creamed Corn

Main Dish

Taco Salad

Super Nachos

Chicken Fajitas  (with this Fajita Seasoning)

Taco Soup

Dessert

Tres Leches Cake

Flan

Seasonings 

Taco Seasoning

Fajita Seasoning

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

Printable Version
Ingredients:

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8-12 flour tortillas

For the filling:

1 pound or 2 cups of cooked chicken

½ to 1 large can olives, sliced (use as many olives as you love)

3 green onions, sliced

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)

½ - 1 cup grated cheese (cheddar, pepper jack, monterey jack or colby)

Sauce (without cream of chicken soup):

2 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 ¾ cup milk

1 tablespoon chicken base (or 3 chicken bouillon cubes)

Salt and pepper to taste

1 3-4 oz can green chiles

½ cup sour cream

Sauce (with cream of chicken soup):

1 small can cream of chicken soup

1 cup sour cream

1 3-4 oz can green chiles

¼ - ½ cup milk (to make as runny as you like)

More grated cheese for the top (about ½ cup)

Directions:

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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  And spray grease a 9x13 casserole size dish.

Start with the sauce.  You’ll want to smother a little sauce in the bottom of the pan to help them from sticking to the pan.  

Option 1: For the from scratch sauce:

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium size sauce pan. Add 3 tablespoons flour and mix, then add milk and whisk thoroughly to make sure the mixture is smooth. Add chicken base/bouillon salt and pepper, let mixture come to a simmer and simmer for 5-10 minutes til mixture is thick and smooth.  Remove from heat and add the green chile and sour cream.

Option 2: Sauce with cream of chicken soup:

Mix soup, sour cream, green chile and ¼ - ½ cup milk until mixture is smooth and has a thick, yet runny consistency.  

Mix the filling mixture together and fill tortillas with 2-3 tablespoons of the filling mixture and roll them up.  Place them in the greased and sauce covered pan.  Smother with the sauce and top with a little cheese.

Bake for 30 minute or until bubbly and slightly browned.  

Serve with salsa on top or any other desired toppings (guacamole, sour cream, green chile sauce.)

For a Freezer Meal: 
Follow instructions but use a disposable tin pan from the dollar store, cover with heavy duty foil and freeze.  Let thaw in fridge for 24 hours before baking as directed above.