Tag: lunch

Sweet & Sour Turkey

This recipe has been passed down through our family for several generations. It reminds me of the holidays because every day or two after Thanksgiving, my grandfather would make up a huge batch of this with the leftover turkey. I loved it as a kid and would happily devour this morning, noon, and night until the leftovers were gone. I hope you enjoy it too! Be sure to check out my note section below the recipe for additional ideas on how to prepare this recipe. Ingredients and instructions with alternative methods are marked with (*) with the corresponding (*) found in the notes section.

  • Prep time: 10-15 minutes
  • Cook time: 30 minutes – 4/8 hours depending on your cooking method
  • Makes about 6-8 cups 

Ingredients

Ingredients used to make the sauce.
  • 4+ cups of chopped turkey (rotisserie chicken works well as a replacement*)
  • 2 Tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbsp cold water
  • ¾ cup brown sugar
  • ¼ cup soy sauce
  • ¼ cup ketchup
  • ½ cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1 cup chicken broth

Instructions

  1. In a medium sized (3 quart) cooking pot**, begin heating chicken broth on medium high heat and add in vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar and ketchup. Stir to dissolve and mix ingredients.
  2. As ingredients start to bubble and steam, add in cornstarch mix*** and stir briskly with a whisk. Continue to stir until ingredients begin to thicken.
  3. Reduce heat to low and allow ingredients to simmer together for about 10 minutes. Make sure to check and stir sauce every few minutes to prevent burning or congealing on the bottom of the pan.
  4. Once sauce is thickened, add in chopped meat and stir to evenly mix ingredients together. Let this mix simmer on low heat for about 15-20 minutes to allow the meat to absorb some of the sauce flavors.
  5. Serve over leftover mashed potatoes, on top of leftover rolls, on buns with coleslaw, or by itself!****

Notes

*As I mentioned, rotisserie chicken can be used as a substitution for turkey. You could also make this recipe in a crock pot and start with raw chicken breasts along with the sauce ingredients. If you choose to do this method, I suggest you cook it on low for 8 hours to allow the chicken breasts to fully cook. After they cook you could shred the chicken right in the sauce and then mix the ingredients together.

I used pre-cooked rotisserie chicken for a quick and easy meal!

**You can also make this recipe in a crockpot. Using this method allows for better flavor absorption by the meat but you want to make sure to cook it on low to keep the meat from over cooking if you are using pre-cooked leftovers. If you choose the crock pot method, just place all your sauce ingredients in and mix well before adding the meat (raw or cooked).

***The cornstarch mix will only slightly thicken up the sauce and it may appear more runny than you expect. You’re welcome to play around with the cornstarch mix ratio but this recipe allows for the sauce to be thin but not watery.

****There are so many ways to enjoy this recipe. Aside from using it for leftovers, it’s great on top of rice or veggies too. The sauce is very versatile so I’d love to hear how you’ve used it. Leave a comment here on the recipe page and let me know what you did with it. Thanks!

Coleslaw is a great addition to this meal. The textures and flavors compliment each other!

Nutrition

  • Serving size: 1 cup of meat and sauce
  • 1 serving is approximately 193 Calories; 1.6g Fat; 0.3g Sat. Fat; 37.5mg Cholest.; 755mg Sodium; 29.9g Carbs; 0.1g Fiber; 26g Sugar; 14.4g Protein.
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Chicken Taco Crunch Wraps

The best thing about tacos is that they’re so versatile! This is a fun variation that makes a very hearty, portable meal. This recipe is similar to the Crunchwrap Supremes you find at Taco Bell but with some changes to the ingredients. All ingredients are optional and flexible based on your personal taste.

  • Prep time: approx. 2-3 minutes per wrap
  • Cook time: approx. 6-10 minutes per wrap
  • Makes about 4 large wraps

Ingredients:

  • 3 cans of canned chicken breast
  • 1 8oz. brick of cream cheese (room temp)
  • About 4 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend
  • Small can green chilies
  • About 1/4 cup taco seasoning
  • Tostada shells (at least one for each wrap you plan to make)
  • Large flour burrito tortillas (the largest you can find)
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Pico de Gallo (or just tomatoes)
  • Sour Cream
  • Refried beans (optional)
Most of the ingredients you’ll need to make delicious Crunch Wraps. Not pictured: lettuce, taco seasoning, optional beans.

Instructions:

  1. Open and drain water from canned chicken. Place all canned chicken in a large bowl with cream cheese and about 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese. (Cream cheese can be warmed in the microwave for about 30 seconds to make mixing easier).
  2. Begin mixing ingredients with large spoon or spatula. This can also be done in a stand mixer to make things a lot easier.
  3. Mix in green chilies and taco seasoning with chicken mixture. Stir until all ingredients are evenly mixed.
  4. Create a work station with an assembly line for burrito tortilla > (opt beans) > chicken mixture > tostada shell > lettuce > pico > sour cream > shredded cheese > (opt tortilla circle).
  5. Place a burrito tortilla on a plate or cutting board.
  6. In the center of the burrito tortilla, (spread optional beans in a thin layer first) place about a cup of the chicken mixture- flatten and shape it to be about the size of the tostada shells.
  7. Place 1 tostada shell on top of chicken mixture.
  8. Place about 1 handful (or 1/2 cup) of shredded lettuce on top of tostada shell.
  9. Top lettuce with 1-2 Tablespoons of pico de gallo and 1-2 Tablespoons of sour cream.
  10. Top ingredients with about 1/4 cup shredded cheese (this will melt and work to seal the wrap during grilling).
  11. Fold one edge of the burrito tortilla up and over ingredients reaching for the middle on top of all the ingredients. *If it seems like your burrito tortilla will not reach to meet all edges in the middle, you can cut out circles from extra burrito tortillas using a cereal bowl to trace around with a sharp knife. These circles can then be used directly on top of the wrap ingredients before wrapping the burrito tortilla.* Continue to fold up the edges going around the wrap in one direction. You will end up with a wrap that is shaped like an octagon or something close to it. You can place a small salad plate on top of the wrap to keep it folded. See video below for example.
  12. Warm a large frying pan or a griddle or grill to medium heat. Oil or butter the warming surface.
  13. Carefully place wrap fold side down on your heated surface.
  14. Place a heat-resistant plate on top of the wrap as it is grilling to ensure it makes the most contact with the hot surface as possible.
  15. Heat the wrap for about 3-5 minutes depending on how hot your surface is. Use a spatula to tip up the edge of the wrap as it is cooking to check for doneness.
  16. Once desired doneness level is reached, carefully flip wrap over to other side and repeat grilling process. 3-5 minutes.
  17. Serve hot and enjoy!
Build a tower of deliciousness, one ingredient at a time.

Breakfast Scramble

I love this recipe. It’s quick, easy AND delicious. You can eat this for breakfast, lunch or dinner! We usually treat this as one of our breakfast-for-dinner recipes. It’s definitely comfort food; perfect for a cold night or any time you want something that can easily feed a whole family in about 30 minutes. It is easiest to cook this on a griddle or in a very large frying pan.

INGREDIENTS

Most of the ingredients needed for the breakfast scramble.
  • 1 package/bag of uncooked shredded hash browns (about 1-1/4lbs or 20oz)
  • Eggs (1-2 per person being served)
  • Milk (about 1/4 cup per 8 eggs)
  • Garlic salt for sprinkling
  • Pepper for sprinkling
  • Dried parsley for sprinkling
  • 1 medium onion (any color works)
  • Your favorite cheese, shredded works best
  • 1 package bacon (or preferred breakfast meat, about 12oz)

DIRECTIONS

  1. Heat griddle or pan to medium high heat (I set my griddle to 350 degrees specifically). No need to pre-grease pan because bacon will cook first, and bacon grease can be used for the remainder of foods. If other breakfast meats are used instead, grease griddle or pan accordingly.
  2. Dice onion into about 1/4″ pieces.
  3. Remove bacon from package, keeping pieces together (making it easier to cut). Using a sharp knife, make vertical slices through bacon slab about every 1/2″ until all bacon is cut into pieces about 1/2″ x 1″ pieces. It’s not necessary to separate the pieces, as they will come apart while cooking. *See photo below for example.*
  4. Break eggs into a bowl big enough for all of them plus milk and seasonings. Add milk, some garlic salt, pepper and parsley. I usually eyeball amounts, but to help you estimate- I used 8 eggs for 4 servings (2 eggs per person), about 1/4 cup milk, 1/2+ tsp garlic salt, 1/4+ tsp pepper, 1 Tbsp parsley. Mix until eggs are beaten and all ingredients are evenly mixed in.
  5. Add bacon to heated griddle/pan. Cook bacon until it’s thoroughly cooked. Remove bacon from griddle/pan and set aside on a plate with paper towels to soak up excess grease.
  6. Add cut up onion pieces to griddle/pan using the bacon grease already in place. Brown onion until it is translucent and caramelized.
  7. Remove onion from heated surface and set onion aside on a paper towel covered plate like bacon. Bacon and onion can share a plate at this point if necessary.
  8. With griddle/pan still sufficiently greased, add hash browns. Flatten hash browns with a spatula so that the majority of them are making contact with the heated surface. Sprinkle garlic salt and pepper over the hash browns. Let them cook for about 5-7 minutes on one side before flipping and doing the same on the other side. (5-7 minutes on each side while keeping close watch on them as to not let them burn).
  9. Once hash browns reach desired doneness, add bacon and onions back to the grill/pan.
  10. Slowly and carefully add beaten egg mixture into the hash brown, bacon, onion pile. Begin mixing everything together while also letting the egg cook on the hot surface. The egg mixture will begin to hold the hash brown mixture together.
  11. Once egg is completely cooked, turn off heat and cover mixture with shredded cheese. There should still be enough residual heat to melt the cheese. Enjoy while still hot!
The three stages of the bacon for this recipe. Whole, chopped, and cooked.

This meal can be easily reheated and enjoyed again IF there are leftovers!

Nutrition

  • Serving size: as cooked with 8 eggs serves about 4 people.
  • 1 serving is approximately 498 Calories; 25.2g Fat; 11.1g Sat. Fat; 468mg Cholest.; 829mg Sodium; 38.9g Carbs; 4.4g Fiber; 7.6g Sugar; 35.1g Protein.

Crock-Pot Chili

This chili is a recipe I have been making for years now. It changes a little each time depending on how many of each item we have laying around. I don’t like to waste food, so I find ways to incorporate unclaimed items into my recipes. The recipe below is the most common version that I make. There are many options for changes or substitutions that I will note below the recipe. Look for the * symbol for specific notes. It’s an easy recipe. The most time consuming part is cutting up the vegetables.

  • Prep time: approx. 30 minutes
  • Cook time: on low 6-8hrs, on high 4hrs
Most of the main ingredients for Crock-Pot Chili
  • 1 lb ground turkey*
  • About 1 lb cubed steak*
  • 1 medium yellow onion*
  • 1 red pepper
  • 1 green pepper
  • 1 jalapeño pepper (optional for spice)*
  • 1 can black beans (15 oz.)
  • 1 can kidney beans (15 oz.)
  • 2 -15 oz. cans of diced tomatoes
  • 1- 15 oz. can tomato sauce
  • 1 small can of tomato paste
  • 16 oz. chicken broth*
  • 3 cloves of garlic or 3 tsp minced garlic
  • 3 Tbsp honey
  • 1 Tbsp chili powder
  • 1 Tbsp cumin
  • 1 Tbsp cinnamon
  • 1 Tbsp Himalayan Pink Salt*
  • 2 bay leaves
The spices used in the Crock-Pot Chili recipe
  1. On medium heat, brown and crumble ground turkey in a frying pan (using a little oil to grease the pan).
  2. Trim fat from cubed steak and cut steak down to small pieces- about 1″ cubed or smaller.
  3. Using high heat and an oiled frying pan, sear (brown) each side of the steak pieces but try not to cook them all the way through. The Crock-Pot will do the rest of the cooking and this will keep the steak pieces tender.
  4. Cut onion, red and green pepper, and optional jalapeño into small pieces.
  5. Add all ingredients (except the bay leaves) to the Crock-Pot. With a large spoon, stir ingredients until evenly mixed.
  6. Tuck the bay leaves into the chili alongside the inside of the pot.
  7. Cook in the Crock-Pot on Low for 6-8 hours or on High for 4 hours. Stir ingredients occasionally but it’s not necessary.

Notes:

*This recipe calls for ground turkey but you can substitute ground beef or even take it out entirely for a vegetarian option.

*This meat is also not necessary for the option of a vegetarian chili.

*I typically use a sweeter yellow onion but any type will do. White onions are also a good option but typically yield a stronger onion-taste.

*The jalapeño is totally optional but is a great addition if you like a little bit of spice. Some jalapeños are spicier than others. Sometimes you can find mild jalapeños. You can add these but they usually won’t be spicy enough to notice in the chili. One “hot” jalapeño is a good amount of spice for this recipe. But feel free to add as much or as little as you want!

*For the chicken broth, I usually use scoops of condensed broth paste dissolved in hot water but you can also use bouillon cubes dissolved or already prepared broth from a package instead. It’s all a matter of choice and convenience.

*Himalayan pink salt has less sodium than table salt. If you have to substitute table salt, make sure to only add a teaspoon or two and possibly just add more to taste after it cooks.

Nutrition:

  • Servings: there are about 15 servings measured with a regular sized ladle.
  • 1 serving is approximately 178 Calories; 1.8g Fat; 0.2g Sat. Fat; 14.7mg Cholest.; 465mg Sodium; 24.7g Carbs; 5.5g Fiber; 8.1g Sugar; 18.5g Protein.
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