I make a lot of chicken in my house. It easy to come by and fairly economical as a meat source. Plus, my kids will eat it. However, I am always looking for new ways to utilize this staple and easy ways to cook it. This recipe is a super easy, tasty way to make chicken. If you are a fan of mexican or southwest food, you’ll love this one. I often serve it on Fiesta Fridays in my house or anytime I know I won’t have much time for dinner prep. You also don’t have to worry about overcooking the chicken really, since you WANT it to break apart.

Ingredients:

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
oil for browning
1/4 cup gf oat flour
1 tsp garlic salt
2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp chipotle chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes*
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1 can pinto beans**

Directions:

Heat 2 to 3 tablespoons oil in a large skillet (enough to cover bottom) over medium high heat. Generously season chicken with garlic salt. Dredge in oat flour. Cook chicken a few minutes on each side just to brown. Cook in batches adding a little more oil if needed. Place chicken in crock pot. Scatter onions on top. Add cocoa powder, chili powder, cumin and cinnamon to tomatoes and stir to combine. Pour tomatoes over onions, making sure all the onions get wet. Pour in broth.

Cook in slow cooker on low for 8 hours or high for 4-6 hours. During last hour, stir in pinto beans and break up large chicken pieces. Serve as desired with rice and tortillas.

* You can also use regular diced tomatoes or fresh diced tomatoes. You will need about two cups fresh.

** If you won’t be home to stir in the beans, you can leave them out and serve on the side. My family likes the taste of the combined dish. Optionally, you can just omit the beans all together and use the chicken for tacos. Yum! For a lighter version, you can also use 1/2 chicken thighs and 1/2 chicken breast.

Get printer-friendly version here. If you try this recipe and like it, I’d love to hear from you.

© Copyright 2012. Michaela C. Jones. Please do not copy, repost or reprint without permission.

Great news. The Make It Allergy Free mixes are on the way. Soon you will be able to enjoy some of my favorite recipes all pre-packaged and ready for you to cook up a storm. The mixes have been on the horizon for a while and now all of the pieces are finally coming together. I am so excited. Stay tuned for more details. Coming very soon.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 pound ground turkey
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp chipotle chili powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp mexican oregano
2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder (yes cocoa, but not hot chocolate mix)
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
2 cans diced tomatoes with green chiles
2 cans black beans
Directions:
In dutch oven or chili pot, cook ground turkey, onion and garlic, adding a little oil if necessary to keep it from sticking to the pan. Cook until turkey is browned. While meat is browning, mix all seasonings together in a mall cup or bowl and set aside until ready to use. When meat is browned, sprinkle meat mixture with seasoning mixture. Stir and cook until seasonings are absorbed. Stir in tomatoes. Heat to boiling. Reduce to simmer. Cover and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

After 1 hour, stir in beans. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until desired thickness.
Serve as desired.

If you can’t find canned tomatoes with chiles, you can use two cans regular diced tomatoes and one can chopped green chiles. I really like the Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes with Green Chiles for this dish. You an also use fresh chopped tomatoes and jalapenos for this dish. Adjust the heat by omitting or increasing the cayenne pepper.

Get printer-friendly version here. If you try this recipe and like it, I’d love to hear from you.

© Copyright 2012. Michaela C. Jones. Please do not copy, repost or reprint without permission.

While scanning through health and news stories, I came across this interesting article regarding food allergy testing. The article notes that some studies have shown that skin pricks and blood tests may not always be accurate indicators of a food allergy; that only ingesting the food can give you a true result. While I still think it is important to get allergy tested if you suspect a food allergy, this study does lend credence to my belief that if you listen to your body, it will tell you what it does and does not like. For instance, I do not test for a full wheat allergy myself, but I have allergic symptoms to it due to a cross allergy I have with grass. I feel much better when not eating it. We additionally found out my girls have an additional allergy that we did not know about upon ingesting the allergen. A test later proved it to be true. I personally, however, would never suggest that anyone intentionally eat a food they think they are allergic to just to test it without medical supervision. However, this is interesting all the same. What do you think?