Super Easy Chicken Tacos

This is a really easy quick fix dinner idea. I boil chicken from frozen, enough to feed my family plus extra for left overs. (You don't have to cook from frozen, it's just faster and easier for me because my chicken is already frozen.) I hardly ever boil my chicken in straight water. To this chicken I added worchester sauce, lime juice, salt and garlic. I put everyting in a pot first, chicken included, then bring to boil. Depending on how big your peices are it will take 20-30 minutes-ish. When its done drain the chicken but save some liquid. Shred the chicken, or dice it if you prefer, then flavor however you like. You could make a bbq style chicken with a bbq sauce or make your own with ketchup, vinegar, garlic powder, brown sugar, onion powder, worchester sauce, salt, pepper and mustard. Or just add lime juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper. To this I added worchester sauce, brown sugar, a little lime juice, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper and a little of the left over cooking liquid. It was sweet and savory. Heat chicken and sauce together. Then you are ready to assemble your tacos. You can keep it simple with just cheese and lettuce or you can go big. Here are some optional toppings: tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, cilantro, avacado, green onions, olives, lemon or lime juice.
**Tip: Rice and beans are very cheap. To make my filling go farther I add white rice and beans to my tacos. Calrose rice is my favorite, it's sticky and plump and cooks pretty quick. For this taco I like to use black beans.
**This shredded chicken is also perfect for salad. Chop lettuce and top with chicken, black beans, cheese, corn, and ceasar dressing for a southwestern ceasar salad. I sent the leftover chicken from last night along with salad fixin's with
Tyler for his lunch today.

Hot Dogs ala Rose ala Aarti ala Melissa

So Aarti from Food Network made this hot dog dish that her mom, Rose, made for her growing up. I thought it would be a really fun dish to make for the boys since they would eat hot dogs all day, everyday if I let them. It was really easy. As you read the recipe think of what you can add to it to fit you family's likes. First she sauteed some onions. Then she added grated carrots and let them cook a bit. Then she added diced tomatoes, sliced ginger and garlic, a bunch of Indian spices, ketchup, sliced hot dogs, and a bit of water. I don't have many Indian spices and my boys are not really fans of onions or tomatoes so here is what I did for me and my boys.
1/2 onion diced
1 carrot, diced or grated
1/2 cup pinto beans roughly chopped
a little garlic
1/4-1/2 cup ketchup, depends on how tomatoey you like it
dash apple cider vinegar
3 hot dogs, halved length wise then sliced into 1/4ish pieces
curry powder
ginger powder
salt
pepper

Saute onions a few minutes in olive oil then add carrots and beans. Saute till carrots are tender crisp. Add garlic. If you want tomatoes add diced tomatoes now. Allow tomatoes to soften a bit. You could also just add fresh tomatoes to individual dishes when you serve it. Add ketchup, vinegar, curry to taste, ginger to taste (every one's tastes are different, especially with spices like these), salt, pepper and hot dogs. You will need to add a little water and maybe more ketchup to make it saucy. It should be like a thick gravy for the hot dogs. Aarti served hers in pita halves but I didn't have any so I put it over rice. You can serve it on Na an, or another flat bread. You can use all beef hot dogs, brats, or sausages. Or, skip the hot dogs altogether and use chicken. If you find something that makes it better or a different way to do it, let me know!