Comfort Food at it's Finest

There is nothing that I love more than mashed potatoes and gravy. I am one of those people who will load up on the mashed potatoes with extra gravy whenever it's offered as a side. The best part of the Thanksgiving feast is this yummy side. By the time I get home from work at night I just want to eat something quick and easy for dinner. A lot of times this requires throwing something in the crockpot so that it is just about ready to eat by the time I get home. I spend plenty of time on Pinterest looking for quick and easy recipes or recipes that I can make in the crockpot. I found this awesome Chicken and Gravy recipe just this last week. It is sooooooo good and super easy.

Photo Courtesy of Food.com

Ingredients:

• 3 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
• 1 can of Chicken Broth (I used the low sodium kind)
• 2 packets of chicken gravy mix (I used the low sodium kind of this as well)
• Mashed potatoes (You can make the homemade kind or if you are in a hurry I like to buy the kind that they sell in the cold food section that you just heat up and serve)

Directions:

1. Place the chicken breasts in the crockpot on the low setting if you will be cooking these for 8 hours or longer. Cook on high if you will be cooking them 4-5 hours.
2. Pour the can of chicken broth over the chicken breasts if they do not entirely cover the chicken breasts add just a little bit of water.
3. Cooking time is completed when the chicken falls off the fork and is able to be shredded.
4. Remove chicken from the Crockpot and shred with a fork in a bowl.
5. Take 2 cups of the chicken broth and put this in a saucepan with the two gravy packets. Heat until gravy thickens-About 2 minutes.

Serve chicken and gravy over mashed potatoes. Enjoy!

Written by: Katie B.

What's Going on the Grill?

I don’t know about anyone else, but this time of year I get super sick of eating brats, hamburgers and hot dogs. My boyfriend wants to grill out most weekends, but if I have to eat another plain old hamburger or brat I might just have to go on a hunger strike! OK,  not really, but I need some variety in my meals.

I recently became a Pinterest addict. We had our friends over for dinner a couple of weekends ago and, instead of making those plain old hamburgers and brats, I tried to look for a recipe on Pinterest using chicken. 

My boyfriend started grilling when we bought our own house. He had a fear of grilling chicken because chicken tends to dry out if you cook it incorrectly. I found a recipe on Pinterest for a chicken marinade that had so many flavors! I didn’t have to worry about eating any boring plain meat. The marinade calls for beer, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and Cayenne pepper. Sounds good right? Here is the recipe for this flavorful chicken:

Photo and recipe courtesy of Pinterest

Garlic Beer Marinated Chicken

Ingredients:

• 12oz beer
• 6 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp. Italian Seasoning
• 6 garlic cloves, minced (I used the minced garlic that you can buy in the jar at the store to save time)
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper (this spice was difficult to find. If you are having problems look for Ground Cayenne Red Pepper)
• 2-3 Ib boneless Chicken-You may want to pound chicken to an even thickness before marinating to ensure that the chicken cooks evenly and stays juicy.

Directions:

1. Whisk together beer, lemon juice, olive oil, Italian seasoning, garlic, salt, pepper and cayenne in a bowl. 
2. Add chicken and let marinate for 6-12 hours. I like to put a cover on the bowl and shake it around every few hours to make sure the marinade covers all of the chicken.
3. Remove the chicken from the marinade and grill until done-approximately 12-15 minutes.
4. Serve with your favorite sides. We served ours with salad, buttered noodles and dinner rolls.

Never be a victim of boring grilled meat again. Try this recipe today!  You won’t be sorry.

Happy Grilling!

Written By: Katie B.