Making life easier, one bite at a time
Hi Busies! The arrival of January in our household brings a feeling of dread. The cold weather itself is miserable, plus it means the dogs stay cooped up in the house more and get restless. All the holiday fun is over, and I have 4 …
Hi Busies! This post goes out to my mom, who is most of the inspiration for Busy Girl (and my life in general!) Working full time as a nurse, she also managed to be a full time mom – always around to chauffeur my sister …
Hi Busies!
The football season frenzy is in full swing, and that always means all buffalo everything, but these buffalo chicken bowls are something I’ll never be tired of! Close your eyes & imagine a healthy version of buffalo chicken dip, that is totally acceptable to eat as a meal and not feel one bit guilty about – and then open your eyes, because it’s REAL.
Here’s what you have to look forward to:
Cooking the chicken is as simple as 2 ingredients in the crock pot – chicken & buffalo sauce. That’s it! By the end of cooking, the chicken is fall apart tender and super easy to shred. I like to add extra buffalo sauce after it’s done cooking too, and stir in the beans and corn before freezing.
When you’re ready to serve up the deliciousness, thaw the chicken mixture, then reheat or serve it cold. Add your desired toppings and you’re good to go!
PS – for even more of a buffalo chicken dip vibe, serve it up with tortilla chips! Or, for a healthier but more filling version, stir in 1 cup of cooked quinoa.
This also makes a great burrito filling, or a healthier version of buffalo chicken dip, served with tortilla chips. Also, if you have extra cilantro on hand, it makes a nice garnish!
Adapted from Pretty Providence
Hi Busies! Sometimes, there are busy days, and then there are busy days. My version of busy-busy is those days when you’re somehow running late before you even leave for work in the morning, spend the day watching your inbox pile up while you’re stuck …
Hi Busies! There’s nothing like a kale bowl to help you get back on track with healthy eating. I usually try to make healthy choices (except for dessert, which I’m powerless to avoid), but sometimes life gets in the way! Between: a dinner out with …
Hi Busies!
It’s officially that time of year – Happy Fall Y’all! And sorry (not sorry) if this is #basic – White Chicken Chili is something I look forward to all year. A warm, comforting bowl of spicy, savory, tender chicken & beans – all smothered in cheesy, cheesy, cheese! It’s like a fall-themed hug in your mouth. This round’s meal prep guide definitely has a “bowl” theme. Kale bowls, buffalo chicken bowls, this chili in a bowl – all the easier to lounge on the couch while eating, curled up with your bowl, a blanket, and a good TV binge-sesh.
featuring the most photogenic avocado ever ^^^
And – of course – ALL the toppings. Take this comfort bowl bliss and top it with all the fixin’s:
Chips add the perfect salty crunchy finish. I like to crumble mine and stir them in, while Drew’s more of a dipper.
Crock pot round 1 – the beans (warning, the crockpot was overfilled in this picture – you should have room for 2″ of water above the level of the beans). also featuring some overexposed Netflix, my constant cooking companion.
Plus, it’s a perfect meal prep meal. I even included it twice this round in my free meal prep guide, because it’s so easy and delicious! And eating it twice just wasn’t enough!
I’m a recent convert to using dried beans – I always thought it wasn’t worth the extra step. But it totally is!
Crock Pot Round 2 – Chicken and jalapeƱos!
Prepping this meal is easy, but if you use dried beans you either need to do it in phases or use 2 crock pots. I made the beans first, then left them in the fridge overnight and made the chicken the next day. The chicken cooks with the jalapeƱos and other spices, then that liquid gets stirred in with the beans for storage in the freezer. When you’re ready to eat, the toppings bring the chicken & beans to life with freshness and flavor.
These last few weeks have been extra extra busy. I started back volunteering at an after-school tutoring program, now that the school year is in full swing. That multiplication and division is harder than I’d like to admit… I don’t know who’s more relieved after we finish math and get to start reading – me or the kids! I’ve been working on keeping blog posts up to date, developing the Round 2 meal prep guide, and trying to enjoy every bit of good weather before fall truly hits down here in NC. That means weekly softball games, playing in the yard with the pups, football tailgates, and walking up to the free local tribute concerts nearby.
Sometimes, knowing that my prepped meals are in the freezer/fridge ready and waiting for me, I tend to slack on weekly grocery shopping (it’s honestly such a luxury to be able to slack on this!), and usually I can make do. But there was no way we were eating this chili without cheese! So I had to make a quick stop after tutoring to grab some of that, and I also picked up the most perfectly ripe and beautiful avocado I’ve ever had the joy of witnessing. Seriously – check out the evidence in the first snap above.
Which are you – a dipper or a stirrer? What’s your favorite thing about fall? Let me know in the comments below!
Check out my meal prep tips and tricks page for tips on how to best thaw and freeze your meals!
Hi Busies! If you’ve read my post on 2 ingredient pesto chicken, you know where this is going. Yes, the 2 ingredients here are cajun seasoning and chicken. Some sort of miracle happens when these 2 ingredients are cooked together. Seriously – while we’re …
Hi Busies! Q: Is there anything better than ordering takeout?! Spreading all the cartons in the middle of the table, then free-for-all passing them around in a mad dash to get the perfect combo of food on your plate, over a bed of that sweet …
Hi Busies!
I hope everyone had a great Labor Day Weekend! I had planned a nice quiet weekend of movie watching and starting Round 2 of meal prepping (check out Round 1 here), but it ended up being a crazy and fun filled weekend! From girl’s night out, to a DIY project, to a walk in the park, to a housewarming visit, to a day of lazy river tubing, to hosting a BBQ, I ended up with only Monday to meal prep. And a large portion of Monday was spent recovering from the weekend…because spending 4 hours floating down a river is (believe it or not) more tiring than it sounds – but also amazingly fun!
Enter Monday night’s dinner, which is one of my favorites – Chicken Tikka Masala. My love affair with Indian food began in London, and has continued in Raleigh and NYC. Although I’m still a bit of a wimp when it comes to spice (heat) level, I love the unique flavors that are so different from other things I’ve tried or made. And there is NOTHING better than sopping up the sauce with a piece of warm, fresh naan. Especially if it comes at the end of a long weekend. Eat those Tuesday blues away, Busies.
My homemade version is somewhat “health-ified.” I use brown rice instead of white and sub in a combination of fat-free coconut milk and cornstarch for heavy cream. I’ve also tried using full-fat coconut milk, but didn’t notice enough of a difference in taste to make it worth the extra saturated fat. Like some of my other slow cooker dishes, like chicken carnitas tacos, I like to add part of the spices at the beginning, and also give a little spice boost at the end of cooking (see note at the end of the recipe).
Q: Did I eat double the amount of naan pictured? A: maaayyybeeee….
Note: When slow-cooking with lots of spices, I prefer to add some at the beginning and some at the end of cooking. It doesn't have to be exact - the easiest way I've found is to have a small bowl on hand, and measure out the amount of the spice per the recipe above (for example, 1 tsp). Add 1/2 tsp to the crock pot and 1/2 tsp to the bowl. Cover the bowl and keep it next to the crock pot, then dump it in at the end!
Adapted from The Iron You
Busies, what is your favorite Indian dish? What did you do over LDW? Let me know in the comments below! And tag me at @busygirl_bites or #busygirlbites on Instagram to show me your cooking results!
Hi Busies! Today I’m sharing a modified version of a Blue Apron recipe I tried last year. This is not a Blue Apron sponsored post, but I will say that giving them a try helped me expand my palate and become a bit more adventurous …