Bean's Blog Recipe Book

Now that I've made the move out of St. Charles MO, I can't return to my Bean's Bites segment reviewing STC restaurants as much as I'd like to. But instead, now that I can't count on my parents for free dinners, I've been back in the kitchen quite a bit cooking up new recipes. So I thought I'd write a short little blog about 2 recipes we've tried out recently that are as easy to make as they are delicious to eat. Simple, relatively healthy (or at least protein-packed and not actively bad for you), and easy enough to make that even I was able to figure it out -- which is saying a lot.

The two recipes today, as you can see in the Instagram post/header image of this blog, are a Crockpot chicken taco recipe and turkey meatballs that we made with a homemade buffalo sauce and Goodles (the most adult way to enjoy mac and cheese).

Crockpot Chicken Tacos

Ingredients:

• Chicken Breast -- boneless/skinless (we used 4 and had tons of leftovers for the whole week, but doing it again, we'd only do 2 since it's just the 2 of us)

• 1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies (can use Rotel or generic brand)

• 1 packet taco seasoning

• 1-2 cups of Salsa Verde

• 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese

• 1 diced onion

• Flour Tortillas (can do corn as well - we prefer flour)

• 1-2 onions sliced, 1-2 Bell Peppers sliced (if 2 chicken breasts - 1 of each. We did 2 of each and had lots of extra for the rest of the week to reheat)

Optional:

• 1 block of cream cheese (we didn't add, but would make the mixture creamier/cheesier)

  • (Could also sub Greek Yogurt for similar effect, but don't add at the beginning)

• 1 small can green chiles (I wanted to add, compromised on tomato/green chile mix)

• 1 diced jalepeno or banana peppers (extra spice)

Steps:

1. Add 2-4 chicken breasts into your crockpot

2. Add diced tomatoes/green chiles, the diced onion on top

3. Add Salsa Verde and Taco Seasoning packet on top -- Mix well

   1. (can add your cream cheese here as well -- if using Greek Yogurt, I suggest waiting until there's an hour or so left so it doesn't curdle)

4. Turn crockpot to Low and let cook for 6-7 hours or until chicken is tender (3-4 hours on High)

   1. While Chicken cooks -- work on sauteed veggies

   2. Slice 1-2 onions and 1-2 bell peppers

   3. Season with what you like -- for tacos, we like to use the following spices:

      1. Salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, paprika

   4. Heat a few tbsps of olive oil over medium-low heat

   5. cook peppers and onions for 45-60 minutes until soft and tender

5. Once the chicken's tender, shred with 2 forks or hand-mixer (if you're fancy like that)

6. Add 1 cup Mexican Cheese, lid on to melt for 10 minutes, repeat with 2nd cup, mix well

7. When Chicken's ready, assemble tacos,

   1. Bean's Method:

      1. Couple scoops of chicken into tortilla, top with a little extra Mexican Cheese and Jalepenos, and those sauteed veggies from earlier

      2. Fold tacos over, heat a tbsp or so olive oil on medium heat

      3. Add tacos to pan and cook for a few minutes on both sides to crisp up tortilla

8. Serve with Pinto Beans, Black Beans, Rice -- any side of your choosing -- and enjoy

   
   

Turkey Meatballs

***I'll do just the Meatball recipe first, because they're very basic and you can use any sauce you want. Great for Spaghetti and meatballs, could do them in Barbecue sauce or chili sauce/grape jelly as an appetizer (if you know you know) -- just adjust size of meatballs and add different seasonings to match your meal (i.e. can use Italian seasoning/Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs for Spaghetti)***

Buffalo chicken meatball Recipe is from "foodiefromvt" on Instagram

Ingredients:

Meatballs:

• 1 lb Ground Turkey or Ground Chicken (ground chicken is even better for Buffalo recipe specifically -- turkey more versatile for other sauces/meals)

• 1 Egg

• 1/2 cup of Breadcrumbs

• 2 tsp Garlic Powder

• 1 tsp Onion Powder

• 1 tsp Dried Oregano

• 1/2 tsp Salt

• 1/4 tsp Pepper (I like more pepper -- I do 1/2 tsp)

• 2 tbsp Olive Oil

  • If you're making these for spaghetti/red sauce pasta -- I suggest using Italian Breadcrumbs of adding a tsp of Italian Seasoning

  • If you're making these with a barbecue sauce or sweet chili sauce, I suggest a tsp of chili powder and/or paprika

  • If you're making these with an Alfredo Sauce, I think a little extra pepper or garlic powder works well

Buffalo Sauce:

• 3/4 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce (or any hot sauce -- we used Aldi Brand)

• 2 tbsp Honey (Bean's Pro Tip -- 1 tbsp Honey, 1 tbsp Hot Honey, even better)

• 4 tbsp of Butter, Melted

  • You can always just buy your own favorite pre-made buffalo sauce, but it really is so much better when you make it on your own in this Bean's opinion

Steps:

1. Add your ground turkey/chicken to a large mixing bowl

2. Add in the egg first, followed by breadcrumbs, Olive Oil, and all your spices

3. Combine very well -- throw on some gloves if needed, get in there and mix it up so every meatball you form contains all spices/ingredients

4. Scoop 2-3 tbsp, roll in your hands to form meatballs -- should have 12 or so medium-sized balls

   1. size can vary -- make whatever size you want, just know the smaller they are, the quicker they'll cook

5. Heat Olive Oil in a large skillet over Medium Heat. Once the oil starts sliding easily, ready to add meatballs

6. Add meatballs and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side -- should be about 10ish minutes total, move them often and make sure all sides get a good sear

   1. While the meatballs cook, melt your butter for the Buffalo Sauce

   2. Add your 3/4 cup Hot Sauce to the Butter, then your Honey (+ hot honey if you're cool)

   3. Whisk ingredients together until well-combined

7. Once Meatballs are seared well and cooked through -- drain the excess grease from the pan with a paper towel

8. Turn pan to low/simmer -- add the Buffalo Sauce to the Pan

9. Turn meatballs in the sauce to fully coat on all sides -- let simmer for another 2-3 minutes, turn off the heat (sauce thickens as it cools)

10. Serve with your choice of Pasta -- we used "Goodles" mac and cheese for some extra protein, would also be great over Rice or Orzo -- or just on their own with a salad/other side of your choosing.

    
    

Not the typical Bean's Blog you'll see on this page, but were both recipes we really enjoyed and thought they'd be worthwhile to share. Let me know if you try either out and what you think! Like and comment if you enjoy this type of blog and would want to see more in the future like this.