Cajun Chicken Salad with Salsa Ranch Dressing

I love a good, chopped salad.  A BIG salad if you will...one of my many references back to Seinfeld - it's just too easy sometimes.  :)  "It's a salad, only bigger, with lots of stuff in it" says Elaine trying to explain to her waitress.  And I can just picture her face - makes me laugh every time. 

But, I digress.  A big, full-of-great-stuff salad can make for an excellent dinner.  And that's exactly what we did last night.  I marinated chicken breasts in a super spicy mixture of salt, garlic, peppers and thyme and blackened them in my skillet.  

Add black beans, corn, some chopped tomatoes, cheese and you have yourself a nice little meal!  I must warn you, this is extremely spicy!!  Easily toned down by scaling back on the cayenne pepper or using a mild salsa so as not to add anymore heat to the ranch dressing. 

  Serves 2-3

Cajun Chicken Salad with Salsa Ranch Dressing

For the chicken 

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 tablespoons garlic powder

3 teaspoons dried thyme

2 1/2 teaspoons black pepper

2 teaspoons cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons olive oil

For the salad 

2 bunches of romaine lettuce, washed and chopped

2 Roma tomatoes, seeds removed and diced

1/4 cup black beans

1/4 cup corn 

1/2 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese

1/2 cup light ranch dressing

1/4 salsa (medium or mild)

Slice the chicken breasts in half lengthwise so you end up with 4 thin pieces.  In a large zip lock bag, combine garlic powder, thyme, black pepper, cayenne pepper and salt.  Add chicken breasts, seal bag and shake to cover each piece of chicken with spice mixture.  Let sit for 30 minutes.  

Heat olive oil over medium to medium high heat in a heavy bottomed skillet.  Pull the chicken out of the zip lock bag, shaking off the excess seasoning and place in skillet.  Cook until done throughout, about 5-6 minutes per side.  When done, set aside, allow to cool slightly and then slice for the salad. 

Split the lettuce, black beans and corn evenly into 2 large serving bowls.  Top with chicken, then cheese.  Combine the ranch dressing and salsa in a small bowl and spoon on top of each salad.

Baked Southwestern Flautas

I love Southwestern egg rolls - you know, the kind you can get at any number of restaurants like Chili's or Applebees.  I love the crispy outside and melty center, but they're not exactly the best things for you!  All in moderation, I suppose.  I decided to try baking these and making them more of like a flauta instead of an egg roll and they turned out great!  Skinny flautas, yay!  No more frying for me.    

Chicken and veggies, black beans and tons of flavor from the cumin and chili powder.  I know your whole family will love these.  They make a great party food dish too - very easy to multiply this recipe if you need to make more.

Serves 2-3 

Baked Southwestern Flautas

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced

1/2 tablespoon grill seasoning (I use Weber's Kick'N Chicken)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons minced bell pepper

1/3 frozen corn

1/4 cup black beans, drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons diced, canned jalapenos

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

pinch of cayenne pepper

3/4 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese

five 7-inch flour tortillas

vegetable oil for brushing

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and add chicken and grill seasoning.  Cook until chicken is almost done; add bell pepper and saute until tender, 2-3 more minutes.  Add corn, black beans, jalapenos, cumin, chili powder, salt and cayenne to pan and cook for another 4-5 minutes.  Remove pan from heat and stir in cheese until melted.  

Place tortillas between 2 damp paper towels and microwave for 45 seconds until soft.  Spoon about one-fifth of the mixture down the center of the tortilla and wrap tightly, placing on baking sheet seam side down.  Repeat until all tortillas are filled.  

Lightly brush the top of the tortillas with vegetable oil and sprinkle with salt.  Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown.  Serve topped with more shredded cheese, sour cream, ranch, etc.
  

Crock Pot Chicken Chili

I am constantly on the hunt for delicious, quick and easy dinners...especially for the Crock Pot.  Are you ready for how fast this one is?  I mean, like 5 minutes to put together.  Crazy, right?  Why wouldn't you make it?  Seriously, mix it up before you go to work, turn on the Crock Pot and dinner is ready for you when you get home!

I've seen quite a few variations of this recipe online and on Pinterest, and I have to admit that this recipe came about because I read one of the original recipes wrong!  That, or because it was one of those times where I thought, "Oh, I don't need a list to go to the grocery store."  And we all know how that usually turns out.  :)  So I thought it called for a packet of taco seasoning, when it really called for a packet of ranch seasoning.  Upon getting home without the ranch dressing mix, I had to make do.  And really, now, I wouldn't do it any of way! This has become a staple in our house.  My husband likes to eat it with tortilla chips, almost like a dip.  This "chili" is thick so it definitely works that way, but honestly, I like to just dig right in with my spoon.  It also reheats great the next day for lunch!

Serves 4

Crock Pot Chicken Chili

2 frozen chicken breasts*
1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn
1 can diced tomatoes (either plain or spicy red pepper works great too)
1 packet of lower sodium taco seasoning
1 cup reduced fat ranch dressing, divided
8 oz reduced fat cream cheese
Reduced fat chicken broth, optional

Place the chicken breasts in the Crock Pot and pour black beans, corn and tomatoes (both undrained) over top.  Add taco seasoning, 1/2 cup of ranch and stir all together.  Place cream cheese on top and cook on high for 5-7 hours until chicken is cooked through.  Remove chicken when done, shred and return to Crock Pot.  Stir in the remaining 1/2 cup of ranch and serve.  If it's too thick, add chicken broth to taste and stir.

*if your chicken is thawed, cook on low for 5-7 hours instead of high

Crock Pot Chicken Burritos

Are you ready for how freaking simple this is?  I literally assembled the first steps of this in maybe 2 minutes. And it makes a ton!!  Six large burritos is definitely being generous...I probably had enough to do closer to 8.  Needless to say, we ate this for a couple nights in a row and were lucky enough to have my dad visiting so we could share it with him, too!

My daughter, who is 2, also learned a new word, "spicy."  Jules is so good about eating whatever we make, but sometimes if I feel like something is too spicy for her, I will make her something separate.  Honestly, I shouldn't even be worried about it...Jules loves her chicken spicy (ha, Seinfeld)!  She could not get enough of these burritos and then kept fanning her mouth like it was too hot (but kept going back for more).  It all depends on the type of salsa you use because that is the only thing adding any heat to this.  I used medium and it had just the right kick. 

6 servings

Crock Pot Chicken Burritos

2 large frozen chicken breasts

2 cups salsa (your favorite)

1 can corn, drained

1 can black beans, drained

1 8oz brick of reduced fat cream cheese

1/2 cup light ranch dressing

Cooked rice

Large flour tortillas

Shredded cheese (I used a taco blend, but it's your preference)

With your Crock Pot on high, put in your chicken breasts followed by the black beans, corn and salsa.  Let cook for 5-7 hours until the chicken is cooked through and can be shredded.  

Once cooked through, remove your chicken, shred and put back into the Crock Pot.  Add the cream cheese and ranch and continue cooking on low until the cream cheese is melted, for at least 1/2 hour.  Meanwhile, make your rice for the burritos.  

On the flour tortillas, place a layer of the chicken mixture, followed by the rice, then cheese.  Roll and Enjoy!!