The weather has been getting cooler. Despite my desire to just bury myself under a mound of warm blankets, sip hot chocolate or spiced apple cider, and re-watch all the Harry Potter movies, my professors have decided that they'd rather I do more assignments. However, the cooler temperatures and heavy workload haven't changed my husband's appetite. So, I'm always keeping my eyes open for nutritious, but low-effort dinner options. I especially love recipes that provide left-overs!
We have a great slow-cooker. I don't really have a lot of ideas on how to use it, but I realize that it could be the answer to my time-deprived life. This recipe is for some really awesome pulled BBQ chicken with a great blue cheese slaw. It came together quite easily and involved very little of my actual time or attention. I used a cherry-infused BBQ sauce, but I think any would do. You could definitely even make your own. In an effort to actually conserve time, I did not. Nor did I make my own buns....although I definitely thought about it. :)
BBQ Slow-cooker Pulled Chicken
makes enough for about 8-10 sandwiches
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3/4-1 cup barbecue sauce (a flavor you like)
salt and pepper
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
2-3 tbs ground flax
Place chicken in the slow cooker sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover with BBQ sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Cover and cook on low for anywhere between 4 and 6 hours. My chicken wasn't even fully thawed and still did just fine in this time. After 4-6 hours, remove the chicken, place on a cutting board, and shred with two forks. The chicken should literally fall apart; if it's not, it needs to be cooked longer. Put the slow cooker on high, toss the torn chicken back in, and add the flax seed. Let heat anywhere from 20-40 more minutes, letting the sauce thicken. Voila! Serve on whole wheat buns with Blue cheese slaw on top.
Blue Cheese Slaw
So, fun story with this one. I realized, after starting to make the recipe, that I actually didn't have any mayonnaise. Or yogurt. So....I made some changes and it really ended up being pretty awesome and healthier!
1 1/2 tbs apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 of an avocado*
1 tbs olive oil
1/4 cup blue cheese
salt
3 cups cabbage, shredded (I used Napa because that's what was available and I like the idea of a crunch, but still a little give)
Mix the vinegar and milk together in a large bowl. Let sit. Meanwhile, shred your cabbage. Add the pepper, avocado, oil, salt and blue cheese to the bowl with the vinegar/milk mixture. Whisk together until the sauce is nice and creamy, with maybe just a few blue cheese chunks to be found. Toss in the shredded cabbage and mix well (I used my hands and would recommend you do too!). Pile on top of your pulled chicken or just eat it by the fork-full
*If you don't have avocado, but DO have mayo, I would use about 2 tbs-4 tbs. Taste and adjust accordingly!
BBQ Slow-cooker Pulled Chicken
makes enough for about 8-10 sandwiches
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3/4-1 cup barbecue sauce (a flavor you like)
salt and pepper
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
2-3 tbs ground flax
Place chicken in the slow cooker sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover with BBQ sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Cover and cook on low for anywhere between 4 and 6 hours. My chicken wasn't even fully thawed and still did just fine in this time. After 4-6 hours, remove the chicken, place on a cutting board, and shred with two forks. The chicken should literally fall apart; if it's not, it needs to be cooked longer. Put the slow cooker on high, toss the torn chicken back in, and add the flax seed. Let heat anywhere from 20-40 more minutes, letting the sauce thicken. Voila! Serve on whole wheat buns with Blue cheese slaw on top.
Blue Cheese Slaw
So, fun story with this one. I realized, after starting to make the recipe, that I actually didn't have any mayonnaise. Or yogurt. So....I made some changes and it really ended up being pretty awesome and healthier!
1 1/2 tbs apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 of an avocado*
1 tbs olive oil
1/4 cup blue cheese
salt
3 cups cabbage, shredded (I used Napa because that's what was available and I like the idea of a crunch, but still a little give)
Mix the vinegar and milk together in a large bowl. Let sit. Meanwhile, shred your cabbage. Add the pepper, avocado, oil, salt and blue cheese to the bowl with the vinegar/milk mixture. Whisk together until the sauce is nice and creamy, with maybe just a few blue cheese chunks to be found. Toss in the shredded cabbage and mix well (I used my hands and would recommend you do too!). Pile on top of your pulled chicken or just eat it by the fork-full
*If you don't have avocado, but DO have mayo, I would use about 2 tbs-4 tbs. Taste and adjust accordingly!
