Crockpot Chicken & Hominy Chili Recipe

Monday, 2/11/2013
B> scrambled eggs w/about 1-2Tbsp chopped leftover sweet potato & spam, 2 coffee w/h&h and stevia
L> pepperoni pizza (1 lc pita for crust)
S> parmesan chicken, salad, berries, 1clementine segment
Snacks> coffee w/h&h and stevia, 4 almonds, 1/2 green apple w/pb

Tried out Jorge's Crispy Parmesan Chicken recipe that he'd included in the email promoting The Aging Cure book.  Will make again!  Of course both stores that I shopped were out of roma tomatoes, which are my favorite, and the grape tomatoes cost more than I wanted to pay.  So I ended up with a big greenhouse grown tomato.  I then forgot to buy shallots, so I subbed in some red onion.  I also have some Panko left which I used instead of whole wheat bread crumbs-figure the amount's fairly small so it shouldn't make a whole lot of difference.  Besides, my salad didn't contain croutons like Jorge suggested in the video.  So there.

Tuesday, 2/12/2013
B> 2 fried eggs, 1/2c mixed berries, 1 coffee w/h&h and stevia
L> small chicken taco salad, 2 celery sticks w/pb
S> big pork chop, brocco-salad, 3 asparagus spears w/butter
Snacks> 1sf mini york patty, 1/2 apple w/pb, 1/2 lg sf caramel latte

Brocco-salad was only reduced sugar.  I used about half the amount called for and then added a touch of erythritol.  While I haven't kicked my fruit cravings, I've cut back to half sizes of smaller pieces of fruit. 

Wednesday, 2/13/2013
B> sf cinnamon coffee cake, 3 full strips bacon, 1/3 small pear, 1/2 sf caramel latte 
L> pepperoni pizza (1 lc pita for crust), 2celery sticks w/pb
S> Chicken & Hominy Chili
Snacks> 1sf hot chocolate w/scoop of sf vanilla ice cream, 1/2apple w/pb

 
Crockpot Chicken & Hominy Chili
(adapted from Family Circle magazine)
(made as directed=6servings=18g carbs each)
6 large bone-in, skinless chicken thighs*
1 tsp salt**
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 onion, chopped***
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 c reduced-sodium chicken broth****
1 - 15oz can hominy, drained and rinsed
2 Tbsp cornmeal*****
1/2c cilantro, chopped, plus more for garnish******

Spray slow-cooker with non-stick spray.  Place chicken in bottom and season with 1/2 of the salt, cumin, black pepper and oregano (reserve the other 1/2 of each).  Scatter onion, garlic, jalapeno and green pepper over chicken.  Pour broth over top.  Cover and cook on low for 10hrs. Stir in hominy, cornmeal and remaining seasonings and cook on high for an additional 15mns.  To serve, stir in cilantro.  It's suggested to serve with tortilla chips, sour cream and additional cilantro.

*We eat a lot.  I used 11 thighs.
**I omit salt.  Yuck.  What's the point if you are using reduced-sodium broth, anyway?!?
***I only had about 1/2 of a small red onion.
****We buy bouillion cubes and make broth that way.  Much cheaper.  They're not low-sodium either.  Plus I ended up using 3cups worth because I lost a lot of liquid to steaming.
*****Wanted to cut back on the carbs a tiny bit more so used 1Tbsp cornmeal.
******Cilantro... yuck.  I omitted, I'm not a fan.

My method was also different.  I fried my thighs in an electric skillet, as I'd forgotten to prep everything last night.  Added the seasonings, then the broth.  About a half hour or so before supper I added the hominy and a few bits of leftover raw green cabbage.  Very savory and just plain yummy.  Using the fryer rather than the crock also made for a drier result.  So you may decide to add extra broth.

Thursday, 2/14/2013
Cheat
Made brownies for co-workers, which, of course, I had to taste-test.  We then took family out to eat for supper at our favorite pizza/sandwich shop.

Friday, 2/15/2013
B> 2 fried eggs w/cheese & salsa, 4 strawberries, 1 coffee w/h&h and stevia
L> handful of peanuts, sliced salami, cheese curds, 1 sf homemade cappuccino
S> Chicken & Hominy Chili, roast beef, brocco-salad
Snacks> blackberries & strawberries, sf coconut chocolate bar

It was clean-the-fridge-out tonight for supper.  So if it sounds a little weird... it sort of was.  I'm pretty sure I exceeded a decent amount of berries between supper and bedtime.  It had to have been at least a cup's worth and then some.  Dang it.

Saturday, 2/16/2013
B> 1 egg/ham/cheese whole grain English muffin, 2 strawberries, 4 blackberries, 2 coffee w/h&h/stevia
L> 1/2 apple sliced, several slices salami, several slices mozzarella, small handful peanuts
S> oven fried swai, lettuce salad w/3croutons, several berries, 1/4c roasted stir-fry veggies
Snacks> few bites dark chocolate, 1 sf jolly rancher

Again, I somewhat followed one of Jorge's recipes from the before mentioned email.  He used tilapia.  I had swai.  Jorge served a risotto with it.  I had a partial bag of stir-fry vegetables and a couple baby red potatoes with eyes and sprouts to use up.  So I popped them in the oven to have alongside.  The salad was only chopped romaine and a few croutons topped with some Newman's Own dressing.  Overall, it was pretty good.  Not sure if I'd make it again.  I suspect the fact that our fish fillets were full sized has something to do with that as it looked like a lot on our plates.  Actually, it felt like a lot in our bellies, too.  Should have cut those fillets in half.  The dark chocolate is from Christmas, a bar my sister put in my stocking.  I had to have a couple of bites for research.  Yeah, that's right... research.  I won't say what kind of chocolate bar because I hope to recreate it into a lower-carb version. 

Sunday, 2/17/2013
B> scrambled eggs w/spam & cheese, 1 strawberry, 4 blackberries, couple sips coffee
L> chicken fillet on romaine w/tomato, cheese, bacon, small bunch of fries
S> chicken breast, few bits coleslaw, small serving mashed potatoes w/gravy, small bunch of fries... again
Snacks> small sf vanilla latte, few peanuts

Went shopping with family two times today.  Each time we ended up eating out and I ended up eating crap I shouldn't have.  On the bright side?  At least I didn't eat too much fruit today.  Ha ha.

Creamy Taco Soup

Looking for something a little different that uses up leftover taco meat?  I adapted Cheri's Creamy Southwestern Taco Soup to use up what I had in the freezer from our last taco night. (Clicking on the recipe name mentioned previously will bring you to Linda's Low Carb Menu & Recipes where I got it from.) The following is how I made it work for our supper tonight:

Creamy Taco Soup
approx. 1 lb leftover taco seasoned ground beef
1Tbsp minced garlic, heaping
1 - 8oz pkg. cream cheese, cubed
1 - 14.5oz can diced tomatoes with chilis, including liquid
3c hot water
3 beef bouillon cubes
1/4-1/2c frozen corn kernals

Combine water and bouillon and set aside to let bouillon soften or dissolve.
In pot, reheat taco meat.  Add cream cheese and stir until melted into ground beef.  Add tomatoes and corn and beef broth/bouillon water.  Simmer gently over low heat until all's well combined and heated through.  

We got 4 servings, with about as much still leftover for a lunch some time in the next couple of days.  I served with a sliced avocado, some tortilla chips and a dish of blackberries.  Make changes as necessary to fit within your desired carb limits, such as skipping the corn/tortilla chips.  You could also switch in canned broth, or even use ground turkey and turkey broth leftover from the holidays.


11/25 - Did a 2mile walk with a Leslie Sansone video.  Felt great.
11/26-11/28  Taking a break, felt sore in ribs from yesterday... I'm so lame.  The other couple of days?  Between work and the dentist... there was me just being lazy, I guess.
11/29 - Did a 3mile walk with a Leslie Sansone video.  By the time I finished I had warmed up and could turn the heat down.  So I got to be a little frugal, too, ha ha.  Some of the upper body work caused a little soreness in my chest.  I continued to do the moves but on a smaller/lower level.  This somehow made me feel a sense of relief as it further proves to me the chest discomfort I've been having is very likely muscle pain.

Sausage & Kale Soup

We had this soup the other night. It was very good tasting, definitely something to make again. Though, admittedly, it was a little salty. But it tasted great. However, Dad is supposed to be reducing a lot of things, salt being one. As I don't add salt often to a recipe, I think the problem lied within the sausage. So next time I will either use a lower-sodium sausage or one less bouillon cube and likely increase the water by a cup or so. If blood pressure's not an issue for you, this is how I made it (Did I already say that it tasted great?!?) :

Sausage & Kale Soup
(served 6 at our house)

1 ring Polska Kielbasa, sliced or diced
1 heaping gob of minced garlic, I mean Tbsp.
2 chicken bouillon cubes
2 & 1/2 cups water
1 can Ro-tel tomatoes with jalapeno (10 oz. can, I think)
1/2 cup carrot, shredded or diced small
1/4-1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained (14 oz. can, I think)
1 bunch kale, cut or torn into bite size chunks (I used an organic bunch that I'd bought several days before, about 3 cups worth. I also chose to cut the thick center vein out of each leaf.)

Heat large pot (I love my Dutch oven...) on high. Add sausage pieces and brown a bit. Toss in garlic, followed by the bouillon cubes and water, tomatoes, carrot, black pepper and beans. Simmer until carrots are tender, which will depend on size you cut (mine took about 10mns). Then add the kale and let simmer for about 5 mns more. Serve with crackers or a good crusty baguette.

Quick Wild Rice Casserole

Nothing much going on today. Just wanted to stay consistent and get in the habit of blogging.

I did go to Target this morning... and, boy, did I score some fantastic buys! I found three scrub tops, in varying shades of blue, and three scrub bottoms to match for... get ready for this... $15 total! They had a tag that said target.com, so maybe someone bought them online and returned them to the brick&mortar store? I also discovered knit gloves that were originally $3/pair for only 74cents each. Oh! Plus I got my son a new winter jacket for next year that originally cost $40 for $7.50! It was actually found in the men's section, but it's a small, and he is entering that in-between stage of growth. Then I had about $35 in coupons for the rest of the stuff I got... Success!


Here's a way simple supper that we're having tonight:


Wild Rice Hot Dish
1 tube Jimmy Dean sausage
2 cans cooked wild rice
2 cans cream of mushroom soup

Fry sausage until browned. Add cream of mushroom, stir in about half a can of water and mix well. Add rice and heat through.

We're also having wheat rolls and broccoli/cauliflower mix with this.