Sweet Potato Quinoa Tacos with Chipotle Sauce

I was searching for a new and different taco recipe and came across this one. It is so colorful and absolutely delicious. I prepared it for a group of friends and everyone agreed that it was fantastic!

Here's what you need: makes approximately 6 servings.
Whole wheat tortillas
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 medium sweet potatoes
1 red bell pepper, cored, and diced
2 tablespoons minced green onion
1 avocado, diced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
1/2 cup diced cherry tomatoes
salt and pepper

For the sauce:
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons pureed chipotle peppers in Adobo sauce

Here's what you do:
1. Make the chipotle sauce by combining all the ingredients. Keep cold in the refrigerator.
2. Cook the quinoa with a pinch of salt and 2 cups of water in a medium saucepan. Stir occasionally and let cool slightly.
3. Peel and dice the sweet potatoes. Boil in a medium saucepan until tender, around 15 minutes. Drain and cool slightly.
4. Toss together the potatoes, quinoa, bell pepper, onion, and avocado with 1/4 cup olive oil and 3 tablespoons of lime juice. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper.
5. Fill each warmed tortilla with 1/4 cup quinoa mixture. Sprinkle each with cilantro, tomatoes, and chipotle sauce.
6. Wrap each tortilla and enjoy!!

Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken

I think I'm missing the summertime when I start making BBQ in January. It has been SO cold here and all I want is a nice warm day by the pool. Since I'm not getting that anytime soon, I guess I'll eat like I'm sitting by the pool and just have to pretend.

Here's what you need:
2 chicken breasts
1 - 18 ounce bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce

Servings: 3-4

Here's what you do:
1. Place the chicken breasts in the slow cooker.
2. Smoother the chicken generously with BBQ sauce.
3. Cook on low for 8 hours. I pulled the chicken apart around hour 5 or 6 and it cook the remaining couple of hours that way.

I can't wait to make this when it is finally summer!!

Totally Tangy Juice

I have recently purchased a juicer and I couldn't be more in love with it. I went to amazon and purchased a small Black and Decker juicer to get me started. I didn't want to make a huge investment if I wasn't totally committed to it. So far, I'm a fan.

I have been all over pinterest trying to find some good recipes. I've played around with ones I've found but I have also done some experimentation and made my own! 

12 Months of Resolutions

I know it's a little late, but I've been thinking a lot about making resolutions. I read an article in The New York Times that said a third of resolutions are broken before February! I couldn't believe that. People make these promises to themselves and they don't last but a few weeks. That's when I decided I was going and make a different resolution for each month of 2014. Some of them are health related, some are about saving money, and some are breaking bad habits. I'm excited to see what I take from this and to see which resolutions stick!

My January resolution is to put my cell phone down.

After watching this video (seriously go watch it, it will change your life), I realized I need to spend more time in the moment and less time stalking miscellaneous social media. When you're hanging out with friends, nothing is worse than watching them play with their phones. Why do people feel the need to see what other people are doing instead of actually talking to the people they're surrounded with? No app on my phone should get more attention than the people I'm around. 

I mean seriously... these people don't even look like they're having that much fun:

Sweet Potato Chicken Chili

I made this chili last week when Alabama was experiencing some strange below freezing weather. I went to the store and got ingredients for two different kinds of chili. I decided to make this one first and it was perfect after a long day of running, classes, and trying to stay warm!

Here's what you need:

1 medium red onion, chopped
1 TBSP chili powder
1 TBSP ground cumin
2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 28 oz can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
1 15.5 oz can black beans, rinsed
1 15.5 oz can kidney beans, rinsed
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
2-3 chicken breasts

Here's what you do:
1. Combine the red onion, chili powder, ground cumin, cocoa powder, ground cinnamon, tomatoes, black beans, kidney beans, sweet potato, uncooked chicken, and 1 cup of water into a 4-6 oz slow cooker.
2. Cook on high heat for 4-5 hours or low heat for 7-8 hours. Cook until the sweet potatoes are tender. I cooked mine on low heat for around 7.5 hours and it was perfect!

Enjoy and stay warm!

Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs

I made these for a weekend I was spending with some of my guy friends. The recipe made about 25 meatballs and I didn't have any left over. Needless to say, it was a huge hit!

Here's what you need:
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 TBSP Italian seasoning
3 eggs
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 lb mozzarella (cut into small cubes)
Olive oil

Here's what you do:
1. Mix the beef, pork, breadcrumbs, Italian seasoning, eggs, and pepper.
2. Form the mixture into 2" balls and press a cube of mozzarella into the center.
3. Simmer 1/2" olive oil in a large skilled and brown the meatballs.

I served it over pasta with some marinara sauce from the grocery store and it was perfect!