Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Crock Pot Chicken Tacos

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This is one of the easiest recipes in the world. Forgot to thaw the chicken? No problem. Have some random tidbits of lettuce or beans in your fridge you need to use up? Perfect. Planning to be out of the house all afternoon and need something ready to eat when you get home…but you only have five minutes before you need to rush out the door, you forgot to make a dinner plan, your daughter can’t find her left shoe, the delivery man knocks on the door, and your toddler is running toward the toilet with your cell phone?

Chicken Tacos to the rescue.

This idea came from my friend Emily. She’s an awesome mom of two little ones. I admire how she is always working to put healthy meals on the table, while trying to save time in the process. Hmmm, kind of sounds like the majority of us, huh? We need easy, fast, tasty…and we want it to nourish our families too. That’s why I thought you’d like hearing this recipe idea.

You simply put chicken breasts into your slow cooker, dump on a jar of salsa, and walk away. (I hate to discourage you or add to your work load, but you do have to plug in the machine and turn a knob. Try not to break a nail.)

My family loves these because they can build their tacos however they like. I love this recipe because it’s adaptable based on what I have in my fridge and pantry. If I don’t have whole wheat tortillas made, but I do have some organic corn chips on hand? That’s how we eat it. And last week, I decided to fry some corn tortillas in palm shortening and have Chicken Tostadas with this recipe instead. Incredibly delicious.

Crock Pot Chicken TacosYum

Crock Pot Chicken Tacos
 
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Ingredients
  • 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 cups salsa
Instructions
  1. Place chicken (frozen, thawed, upside down, whatever) into your slow cooker.
  2. Pour salsa over the chicken.
  3. Cover and cook on low for about 4 hours.
  4. Shred chicken mixture.
  5. Serve with any of your favorite taco fixin's.

chicken_tacos_2

What is your favorite way to top a taco?  Last week when we had these, I asked Asa (our oldest) to make his famous Spicy Avocado Dip. It was so good with this chicken!

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Gratituesday: Meaningful Discussions

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Sometimes, it seems like all there is time for when it comes to talking with our families is, “go put your shoes away” and “hurry up, it’s time to leave” type conversations. Sad, but true.

I find it funny (in a not so funny way) that I can be with my kids all day – teaching them, working with them, driving them to and from games and practices, and eating with them – and not always have very many meaningful conversations. Yes, logistics have to be worked out and plans have to be made. Recounting how the soccer game played out is fun. Joking around about what might happen if a ninja alien super hero giant rat was to join our household gets the creative juices flowing (and then some). Those types of conversations serve a purpose, there’s no doubt about it. (Although, ninja alien super hero giant rat? Really? Can we not sometimes stay just a little bit more within the realm of reality while we’re eating lunch?)

Lately, Matt and I have worked to be more intentional about making our boys think about and discuss more important, and sometimes difficult, topics. They are all old enough now (ages 8-15) to go beyond silly subjects and pointless jabber. And, because of their ages, no longer do we need to keep Bible study and character training as basic and simple as we did when they were little.

Last week, we studied in depth together 1 Corinthians 13. What is love? What does it really mean to love like Jesus loves? If love isn’t rude, isn’t self-seeking, isn’t easily angered, how then can we take on those godly traits? (As in, Laura isn’t rude, Laura isn’t self-seeking, Laura isn’t easily angered… Something to meditate on, for sure.)

This week, we are studying Ephesians 6, looking in depth at the armor of God and the spiritual battle we face each day. God has already won the battle! How can we put on our armor so that we can stand our ground when evil comes our way?

This has been a great opportunity for Matt and I to share our ideas on these topics with our kids. But even better? Hearing what our boys think. Letting them express what these scriptures mean to them. Watching the wheels turn in their minds while they consider God’s love and His power to help us fight our spiritual battles.

These conversations have been rich. Our goal is to keep them going. Here’s hoping our kids will learn and grow from what they are hearing and studying. I know I sure am.

And I will brace myself for the fact that we are sure to balance these discussions with vivid and detailed accounts of a one-eyed creature whose amazing super power has everything to do with none other than earsplitting, green, gaseous bodily functions, which means that he obviously takes over large cities by….

Well anyway. You get the picture.

Share how God is working in your life on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for! Please read through the Gratituesday Guidelines so that you understand what kinds of posts you can link up to share here. Posts that are linked but do not fit our Gratituesday theme will be deleted.

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Menu Plan for the Week – The Four Boys Edition

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I had almost forgotten about this Blueberry Coffeecake recipe. It was perfect for breakfast this morning before we headed out to church. (I baked it last night so that it would be ready to serve!)

blueberry_coffeecake

This week, we decided to get our four boys into the kitchen for some more intense cooking experiences. They each get to take one full day, and have full responsibility for planning, cooking, and clean-up. That’s not to say that they won’t have help and guidance. But the majority of the work is up to them. It’s been lots of fun helping them plan their meals! They really had to give thought to their plans so that they would make the menu balanced throughout the day. I believe I should do this more often!

Later this week, I’ll share some pictures and tell you how it’s been going. 

Sunday, April 21
Blueberry coffee cake
Scrambled egg sandwiches, apples, baby carrots
Huddle at our friend’s house

Monday, April 22 – Asa’s day
Breakfast cake muffins, fruit
Chicken nuggets, homemade french fries, peas
Tacos

Tuesday, April 23 – Elias’ day
French toast, fruit
Homemade corndogs, pears, plums
Hamburger cream cheese dip, veggie yet to be determined, key lime pie

Wednesday, April 24 – Justus’ day
Chocolate chocolate chip muffins, fruit
Pasta alfredo, steamed broccoli and carrots
Chicken fried steak strips, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans

Thursday, April 25 – Malachi’s day
Breakfast cookies, fruit
Calzones, baby carrots
Lasagna, tossed salad, death by chocolate

Friday, April 26
Peanut butter honey toast, oranges
Meat and cheese burritos, tomatoes, fresh pineapple
Easy noodle stir fry with chicken, broccoli, carrots, asparagus, and zucchini

Saturday, April 27
Scrambled eggs, fruit-kefir smoothies
Leftovers
Grilled salmon, baked potatoes, green beans, tossed salad

Stay tuned to see how the boys do with executing their menu plans!! :)

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How Do You Serve Together as a Family?

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serving_3

In a world that tells our kids that they only need to think about themselves  – we long to teach our children what it means to give, what it means to be servant-hearted, and what it means to be selfless. 

I believe these are lessons we are all, as adults, still striving to learn ourselves. In fact, you should be delighted to know that just the other day, I was as selfless and servant-hearted as can be. I then proceeded to throw a tantrum because no one recognized how kind and wonderful I had been. How dare my children not pat me on the back or give me a loving round of applause for my constant selfless acts of bending-over-backwards kindness toward them?!

Selfless?  Sounds more like I was being self-absorbed, self-motivated, and self…self…selfish! I obviously still have so much to learn.

So how do we teach our kids to be humble and servant-hearted? And how do we (the wise and wonderful grown-ups) learn to die to ourselves? 

serving_7I believe we do this by looking outward. By looking to the needs of others. By stopping the focus on ourselves and instead, focusing on truly loving those around us. 

(By the way, Jesus never threw a tantrum because he wasn’t being properly appreciated for his selfless acts. Not one time. I would do well to remember this.) 

serving_6

I find that each time I serve someone in my family or in my church or community out of true, selfless love, I am so enriched by the experience that I can’t help but be drawn closer to God. This is what I want my children to learn and understand:  That service to others is a glory to God. That this world is not our home, and we are not called to be content and comfortable, but to selflessly love and to serve. That loving on others brings pure joy that can only be achieved when we follow Jesus’ servant-hearted footsteps.

serving_5I believe the best way we can learn to serve selflessly and teach our children to serve selflessly is to work at it side by side. How ridiculous is it for me to put my kids in front of a DVD so that I can have the time to work on a ministry I’m involved in? How silly is it that I would busy my kids in another room on an act of kind service while I head to the computer to get some writing done?

serving_4Admittedly, this has to happen sometimes. But what if, the majority of the time, we all work together on ministries as a family? What if we talk together, pray together, plan together, and execute together various ministries that God has given us? In doing so, we learn together, grow together, make beautiful memories together, and slowly but surely, become selfless servants…together.

I have more to share on this topic – and I have a very exciting ministry project announcement that I’ll be writing about next week! In the meantime, let’s reflect together on how we each serve within our families. This looks different for each family, depending on your season in life, how old your kids are, and the circumstances going on around you. But I believe each family can bless others in so many different ways! So share!! What do you and your family do to bless and love on others?

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Simple Almond Flour Muffins

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almond_flour_muffins
This was my first time to “play” with almond flour. Wow, is it awesome to work with!

I had ordered a package from Vitacost to experiement with. It is not an inexpensive ingredient by any means. But I know that using alternative flours occasionally to give my family variety is a healthy choice. Plus, I’d heard that almond flour is awesome. It is so true!

These simple muffins went together quickly, and the end result was amazing! The muffins taste like a cupcake – super light, sweet, and airy.

You can make your own almond flour if you prefer. Simply grind almonds in your food processor until a fine flour has formed. Just be sure you don’t grind them too long, or you’ll end up with almond butter!

Simple Almond Flour MuffinsYum

2 cups almond flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
4 eggs
1/2 cup melted butter
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix together almond flour, baking powder, and sea salt. Add eggs, melted butter, honey, water, and vanilla and whisk until smooth. Spoon batter into 12-15 paper-lined muffin cups. Bake in a 350° oven for about 20 minutes or until muffins are golden brown.

almond_muffin_1

Have you done much baking with almond flour? What are your favorite recipes using this fun ingredient?

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I Used To Only Like Apples (And Other Thoughts About Picky Eaters)

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fruit

I never would have considered myself to be a picky eater when I was younger. But the other day, as I sat eating an orange, it occurred to me how far I’ve come now that I’m “all grown up,” even if I did have juice from an orange dripping down my chin at the age of 39….

It is a fact that when I was a little girl, the only fruit I would eat is an apple. The apple had to be cut into chunks, and it had to be peeled. Otherwise I could not, would not eat it (Sam I am).

When I think about that, two thoughts come to mind:  First: Mom, I’m sorry I gave you such a hard time about trying a strawberry. And second: I am so thankful I have now learned to like so many new foods!

Let’s just reflect a moment on the “never tried a strawberry” apology. For Pete’s sake – it’s not that I really didn’t like strawberries. I don’t believe I’d ever really tried one. The same goes with fresh peaches, kiwi, blueberries, raspberries, pears, plums, grapes, oranges, and the list goes on and on. I had decided that I didn’t like any of them before I even tried them. 

I think texture had something to do with my assumption that I would not like these delicious foods. Beyond that, I sure didn’t know what I was missing!

I say all this to encourage you in several ways:

1. If you think you don’t like fruits or vegetables, ask yourself if you’ve ever really given them a chance. I seriously never even tried broccoli until after I was married. I never ate a whole orange until after I became a mother. And I was over the age of thirty when I realized that plums were amazing. I am obviously a slow learner. But I’d like to share that if I can learn, so can you. I’m so glad I did!

2. Focus on eating a variety. Try not to get stuck in a rut. There are so many great fruits and vegetables to choose from. Branch out!

3. If your kids are picky, keep trying and don’t be discouraged. I have definitely learned that my kids’ tastes change and develop with age. (I believe I have learned that about myself too, huh?!)  My pickiest son is now starting to like and eat more fruit and vegetable varieties – finally! That’s because we keep offering them, keep making him try little bites, keep giving them to him in different ways (like in smoothies or on fruit pizza). He has quite a nice, long list of his “favorite” fruits now. 

4. If you’ve tried hard and really don’t like certain fruits or vegetables, it’s okay to move on to other ones. No matter how hard I try, I really don’t like pears. Everyone else in my family loves them. I keep trying them, thinking that maybe, just maybe, someday I’ll bite into one and say, “Mmm, that is so good!” But it hasn’t happened yet because wow pears are so dog-gone grainy. (It’s that texture issue I referred to earlier, apparently.)   But guess what? My world goes on, even without pears because while I really don’t like them, I really, really like about three dozen other fruits. So I’m good to go.

I’m also proud to say that I don’t have to peel my apples anymore, or eat them only in the form of chunks – just in case you were wondering. ;)

Do you have picky eaters in your household? Have you found that you like more fruits and vegetables now that you are older? What tricks have you found to help your family eat more fruits and vegetables?

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Gratituesday: Time to Listen

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A couple of Gratituesdays ago, I wrote that I was giving myself permission to rest. Part of that is because several in my family (including myself) had come down with the flu – the fever, body ache, coughing kind of flu. And the other part? After a busy month in March, finishing and introducing my new book, plus traveling three out of four weekends of the month – I found myself completely exhausted.

For the past two weeks, I have only done bare minimum each day. I haven’t done loads of intense writing. I have rested and moved slowly as I’ve put together simple meals for my family. I’ve let my body heal from being sick. I’ve hardly left the house. (Except yes, I have gone to several of my boys’ soccer games. I needed the sunshine, and I really wanted to be with my family.)

While I still feel somewhat tired and need extra sleep each day (that flu is nasty, I tell ya), I am now starting to feel more like myself. I am beginning to feel refreshed. I have enjoyed my family in ways I haven’t taken the time to enjoy them for a while. And most importantly, I have been able to learn a lesson or two from God that I believe He has been waiting for me to hear. Apparently, it took knocking me down for a few days of feverish chills for me to listen.

While being sick hasn’t been fun, I have truly been thankful for the time to reflect and pray. These past two weeks have really made me aware of my weaknesses, and how God’s strength is made perfect through those weaknesses. I’ve learned that setting boundaries in all aspects of my life isn’t just necessary – it’s godly. 

God doesn’t expect me to be all things for all people. He’s already got that covered.  My focus is simply to be godly. In doing so, I will be able to accomplish everything He needs me to accomplish!

Share how God is working in your life on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for! Please read through the Gratituesday Guidelines so that you understand what kinds of posts you can link up to share here. Posts that are linked but do not fit our Gratituesday theme will be deleted.

If you are linking up a blog post for Gratituesday, please copy and paste the following sentence into your post! Thanks!

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Menu Plan for the Week and My Trip to Trader Joes

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I knew this weekend was going to be a busy one. As Matt rattled off our boys’ soccer game schedule late last week, and I decided that if we were going to eat well, I’d need to plan ahead. For each meal, we had a very small window of time before we’d need to leave the house again for another game. And so, I spent part of Friday getting ready.

cooking_ahead

This worked out perfectly. I made a Lasagna Casserole and a Hearty Green Bean Casserole to put into the oven as soon as we got home from games. I also made Chicken Salad for sandwiches or pitas on the run. I wish I was always able to make time to prep food ahead like this. It sure does make game days go more smoothly, as well as fill hungry soccer players who run several miles each day playing games!

I was excited that since we had to head to Lincoln for games on Saturday, and because we had a little bit of time to kill between games, I was able to run into Trader Joes for a few minutes. I spent a lot of time in the produce department, and as you can see, I had quite a bit of fun there!

trader_joes

I was able to get pears, plums, kiwi, sweet potatoes, mandarins, avocados, and sweet peppers. I love having such a yummy variety of fresh produce on hand. (We’ll see if this stash even lasts us one week…)  :)

Here’s what our menu looks like for this week:

Sunday, April 14
Breakfast cake muffins, clementines
Hearty green bean casserole (recipe in my Oh, For Real cookbook), applesauce
High school huddle at our friend’s house

Monday, April 15
Almond flour muffins (recipe coming this week), apple slices
Calico Beans, tossed salad, plums
Chicken salad on whole wheat pitas, tomatoes, fresh pineapple

Tuesday, April 16
Quick mix pancakes, blueberries
Easy noodle stir fry with broccoli, carrots, peppers, and asparagus
Chicken fried steak strips, mashed potatoes, gravy, peas

Wednesday, April 17
Honey cinnamon muffins, kiwi
Pizza boats, pears
Easy chicken pot pie, tossed salad

Thursday, April 18
Scrambled eggs, oranges
Chicken and cheese burritos, fruit salad
Cheeseburger macaroni, steamed broccoli and carrots, tossed salad

Friday, April 19
Quick mix biscuits, fruit-kefir smoothies
Calzones, apples and/or plums
Crock pot barbecue chicken breasts, baked potatoes, green beans, asparagus

Saturday, April 20
Fried eggs on toast, oranges and pears
Leftovers
Lamb chops, sweet potato fries, steamed broccoli and carrots

Do you have a Trader Joes nearby? I wish ours was closer, but it sure is fun to hop in every few months!

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Breakfast Cake Muffins

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breakfast_cake_muffins

One reader, Kim, left a comment months ago sharing that she’d made my Breakfast Cake recipe into muffins instead of baking the batter into a cake. It sounded so good that I decided to try it right away!

And then I forgot. For months.

I think it’s actually been well over a year since she left that comment. That’s practically like trying the idea right away, right? Yeah, well…

Turns out these are an easy, yummy, freezable, on-the-go breakfast muffin that is hearty enough to keep us satisfied until lunchtime. Thanks for the idea, Kim! Next time you share a great idea like this one, I’ll try to get around to trying it before thirteen months go by. Sheesh.

Breakfast Cake MuffinsYum

2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups whole rolled oats
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup butter, melted
¾ cup buttermilk or milk
¾ cup honey or 1 cup sucanat
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chocolate chips, raisins, or other dried fruit  (We like Enjoy Life Soy Free Chocolate Chips)

Stir together flour, oats, salt and baking soda. Add butter, buttermilk, honey, eggs, and vanilla. Fold in chocolate chips, raisins, or other dried fruit.

Spoon batter into 18 paper lined muffin tins. Bake in a 400° oven for 20-25 minutes or until muffins are golden brown.

Give these a try. Don’t wait a year like I did. :)

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When You’re Sick, You Buy Bread

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Stop apologizing. Stop feeling guilty. Stop feeling like you’ve failed.

Are you doing the best you can with the food you’re eating and/or putting on the table for your family? Well then – you should feel very good about that. Are you working hard to serve lots of fruits and veggies? Have you switched to healthy fats like real butter instead of margarine?

Well then, put your zucchini down for just a second and give yourself a pat on the back.

We likely all have room for improvement. Sure, maybe sometimes we compromise on days when truly, we’re just feeling lazy and don’t want to do better. But do you know what I think? I think all of us work really hard and are rarely lazy. I think we are all doing a really good job, working to put healthy food on the table most of the time. I think it’s impossible to be perfect. Therefore, we should appreciate the good steps we’re taking on our real food journey, and should feel great about how far we’ve come!

Too many times when I’m in conversation with people, it seems that they feel like they need to apologize to me because they don’t eat a perfect diet. News flash:  Neither do I. All of you who have read my book know about my compromises and occasional orange-fingered habits (shh!). Our family loves real food and loves to encourage others to eat real food too, because really – it isn’t very hard and you will feel so much better if you do. But don’t get it in your head that because I’m a “real food blogger” I somehow have “arrived” at real food perfection. And please don’t feel bad that you haven’t arrived either. 

Did you eat some fruit today? Find a great way to sneak veggies into your kid’s lunch? Put a simple but satisfying real food dinner on the table tonight? Bravo!

In an effort to remind you (again) that my family doesn’t always eat perfectly, I took a picture of my grocery store visit tonight. Our family has been passing around a nasty flu bug for about a week and a half now. I’m tired.  Therefore, I didn’t even have the energy to go “all the way to Wal-mart” where I would have had a few organic produce choices. Nor do I have the energy to make bread or the tiniest desire to stand at the counter to make tortillas. Next week? I’ll probably be all over it. But right now? We’re in survival mode. Taking care of sick kids is more important than grinding flour and kneading bread, don’t you think?

So guess what? Tonight, I bought a loaf of bread. And two packages of tortillas. And some good looking pita pockets. I checked the ingredient lists and found some without high fructose corn syrup or hydrogenated oils. So I bought them. Then I bought a bunch of fruits and veggies because our bodies need them. Man, citrus tastes good right now! Actually, everything fresh tastes good right now. 

grocery_store

I know I’ve said all of this before, but I thought it was worth saying again. Keep it simple.  Focus on eating real food. Do the best you can. Feel great about the right choices you are making!

Share!! What is one (or more) right choice you made in the food department today? (No, don’t think about where you “failed”.)  We want to know what you did right. Bet you did great!

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