This meal reminded me of the classic chicken fingers and honey mustard meal that probably made up my entire childhood diet. Although there is no honey or fried chicken, the bacon and mustard combination really nails a healthier adult version of chicken fingers. I still can't get over how good it turned out! The ingredients and directions to make this chicken are so incredibly simple. Also, since this made a sauce, I decided to pair the chicken with cauliflower rice to complete the meal. I don't usually repeat recipes too often, but this one will have to be thrown back in the rotation real soon. This is one you should definitely try out!
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Chicken with Bacon Mustard Sauce over Cauliflower Rice
Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup Dijon mustard (I use Woodstock Organic Dijon Mustard, found at local grocery store)
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper
• 8 strips of bacon, uncooked, chopped
• 1 cup chopped onion (1/2 of large onion)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 chicken breasts, 2 lb total, boneless, skinless
• 1 and 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1 head cauliflower, riced

Directions:

1. Combine Dijon mustard, paprika, salt and pepper in a small bowl, to make a paste. Spread the paste evenly on both sides of chicken breasts. Set aside.
2. Make the cauliflower rice by chopping fresh cauliflower into florets and adding to a food processor. Pulse the cauliflower until it's formed into rice, add to a bowl, and set aside.
3. In a large skillet, cook chopped bacon on medium-high heat just until it starts to brown. Remove to a plate, leaving bacon fat in a skillet. To the same skillet, add chopped onion and cook in bacon fat until softened. Remove to the same plate, with bacon.
4. With remaining fat still in pan, add cauliflower rice until softened (took me roughly 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently). Remove and set aside.
5. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the same, now empty, hot skillet. Cook chicken breast (with mustard paste on it), on medium heat, about 1.5 minutes on each side. The chicken will not be done as you will continue cooking it in the next step. Remove chicken to a plate.
6. To the same skillet, add 1 and 1/2 cups chicken broth, bring to boil, scraping the bottom of the pan. Add back bacon and onions, mix well. Add back the chicken breast, reduce the heat to low-medium and cook for about 15-20 minutes, turning chicken once, until chicken breast is fully cooked and no longer pink in the center.

Original recipe found here

If you check out the link for the original recipe below you will also really want to make this rib recipe! The pictures look amazing and had me sold right away. I have never attempted making ribs before, so I was a little nervous to try this recipe, but they turned out delicious. My only fault or note if I were to make this again would be to cook the ribs in the crock pot for another hour or two; the meat was not quite fall off the bone after 6 hours. I also paired this with roasted Brussels and sweet potatoes, which is a bit random to combine ribs with, but I just love both of those sides so I went for it. Anyways, I am glad I did because I ended up really enjoying this meal and the extra sauce over the ribs and Brussels was delicious. Broccoli would be another good, and probably more normal, vegetable to pair with the ribs too. I am seriously looking forward to every meal I made for this week! This is another great and simple crock pot recipe you should definitely try.

Slow Cooker Asian-Style Short Ribs
Ingredients: 

• 4 pounds beef short ribs 

Sauce:

• ½ cup coconut aminos (I use Bragg Liquid Aminos)
• ½ cup good quality homemade broth 
• 2 TBS apple cider vinegar 
• 4 TBS raw honey 
• 1 TBS grated ginger 
• 5 cloves of fresh garlic, minced 

Garnish:

• 1 TBS toasted sesame oil 
• green onions 
• sesame seeds

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Directions: 

1. Place short ribs at the bottom of your slow cooker. 
2. Combine all sauce ingredients and pour over top of ribs. Toss to evenly coat. 
3. Cook on LOW for at least 6 hours, turning the ribs once for more even cooking. 
4. Remove ribs from slow cooker and set aside to cool. Skim fat from top of liquid in the slow cooker. (I pour it into a large measuring cup and place it in the fridge for a bit so the fat rises to the surface.) 
5. Pour the liquid from the slow cooker into a small pot on the stove top. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and allow to simmer for 8-10 minutes to reduce liquid. Remove from heat and stir in 1 TBS toasted sesame oil. 
6. Using your fingers, pull the meat off of the bones and shred into small chunks. Pour desired amount of sauce over top and stir to evenly coat. 
7. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds. Serve over cute little lettuce cups. Eat and Enjoy! 

Original recipe found here


My Homemade Sweet Potato Fries
(Basically just roasted sweet potatoes)
Ingredients:

• 4-6 Sweet Potatoes (Depending on how much you want to make. 5 medium sized sweet potatoes usually gets me 6 oz of sweet potato fries for 6 meals. I think my idea of medium sized is bigger than most though.)
• Olive oil spray
• Sea salt (I actually use Garlic Sea Salt on everything I cook)
• Optional: Cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Skin and cut the sweet potatoes into whatever shape you want. I either do fries, wedges or circles.
3. Spray baking pan with olive oil. Lay down sweet potato fries flat (please do not just dump a pile on the pan).
4. I fill my Misto with olive oil and lightly spray the fries, then add some sea salt (sometimes cinnamon too).
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Take out of the oven and move them around or flip them over. Bake for another 15-20 minutes.
6. Keep an eye on them, if they are thin bake for less time, and vice versa. Key is to move them around or flip them over half way through baking them. I usually make mine thicker, so I bake them for at least a total of 40 minutes.

Casseroles are typically easy one dish recipes, but they hardly ever keep together for an appetizing looking picture. So despite how it looks, this recipe turned out pretty yummy. It is pretty basic with just chicken, Brussels, broccoli, Italian seasoning, and a sweet potato mash, so if you like all of those ingredients then you will enjoy this recipe; it tastes just like it sounds. If you end up trying this one out, don't skip out on adding salt to taste! That is definitely needed for this simple casserole recipe.

Italian Chicken Casserole 
Ingredients:

• 1 Large sweet potato (I used two sweet potatoes)
• 2 Tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• ½ Small yellow onion (diced)
• 1 Clove Garlic (minced)
• 8 boneless chicken thighs cubed (2-3 pounds) (I used chicken breasts)
• 1 Head broccoli
• 2 Cups Brussels sprouts (halved) (I used 1lb of Brussels)
• 1 (14 ounce) can full-fat coconut milk
• Salt, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Peel and chop the sweet potato into 1-inch cubes. Toss with 1 tablespoon coconut oil and 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning and place on a lined baking sheet. Bake for until fork tender (20-25 minutes).
3. In a pan over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon coconut oil. Add the diced onion to the pan and cook until translucent. Stir in the minced garlic and cook and additional 1-2 minutes. Toss in the cubed chicken and cook until no longer pink (10 minutes), stirring occasionally.
4. Remove the stem of the head of broccoli, keeping only the florets. Trim and halve the brussels sprouts. Toss the broccoli and brussels sprouts into the chicken, and cook an additional 1-2 minutes. Remove the pan from heat.
5. To prepare the sauce, add the roasted sweet potatoes, coconut milk and remaining 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning to a high speed blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Add salt, to taste.
6. Scoop the chicken mixture into a well-greased 8x11 glass baking dish, leaving any liquid in the pan. Pour the sweet potato sauce evenly over the chicken. Bake for 30 minutes.
7. Let the casserole sit 10 minutes before serving.

Original recipe found here

I am a sucker for simple recipes with fewer ingredients and ingredients that I know, so this crock pot recipe was a winner. I baked the slices of bacon on a cookie sheet and left the remaining fat to roast green beans in after. I also picked out three extra large sweet potatoes to bake while waiting for the beef to cook, cut them in half for six meals, and stuffed them with the beef when it was done. If you enjoy the classic meat, roasted sweet potato, and vegetable meal, this one was delicious and not any bit plain. This meal is definitely worth making to spice up your classic meal prep. 

Garlic Bacon Pot Roast
Ingredients:

• 3 lbs beef shoulder roast (I used chuck roast)
• 6 slices cooked & crumbled bacon
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 3/4 cup beef stock

Directions:

1. Trim the fat off of the beef roast. Place the roast in the slow cooker.
2. Sprinkle the crumbled bacon over top the roast.
3. Add the minced garlic to the top of the roast.
4. Pour the beef stock over top the roast.
5. Cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-9 hours, or until beef is tender.

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Original recipe found here

This is a recipe of mine that I make time-to-time when I want something basic or just don't have another recipe in mind to try out. For the Crusted Chicken I have also used just almonds and a mixture of almonds and pistachios; both options turned out great. The amounts of Dijon Mustard and Honey that I use vary and if I run out of the mix before I'm done coating the chicken, I'll just add a tiny bit more of each. For the Roasted Brussels I like cooking the bacon first and leaving the fat behind for the Brussels to bake in. This is one of my absolute favorite side dishes! I have made this for several cook outs or gatherings and it always gets eaten. You really can't go wrong with the Brussels and bacon combo. Try this one out!

Pistachio-Crusted Chicken over Roasted Brussels with Bacon
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup pistachios, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup Dijon Mustard (I use Woodstock Organic Dijon Mustard, found at local grocery store)
• 3 boneless skinless Chicken Breasts, halved (2lbs)
• 2 Tbsp Raw Honey
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425° F, and line a cookie sheet with olive oil.
2. In a small food processor, add the pistachios and chop fine. Pour into small bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together mustard and honey.
4. Coat each piece of chicken with the mustard and honey mixture, then cover in the chopped pistachios.
5. Place coated chicken breasts on cookie sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

Roasted Brussels with Bacon
Ingredients:

• 2lb Brussels, shaved 
• 6 strips of Bacon
• 1 Tbsp Raw Honey
• Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425° F, and line a cookie sheet with bacon strips.
2. Cook bacon for 8 minutes, flip strips over, and cook for an additional 6-8 minutes.
3. In a food processor, add the Brussels and shred to liking. 
4. Once bacon is cooked, remove from cookie sheet and set aside. Place shaved Brussels on the cookie sheet with leftover bacon fat. Add honey and salt and mix around.
5. Bake Brussels for 10 minutes, take them out and mix around, then bake for another 10 minutes. Keep an eye on these to make sure they do not burn!
6. Cut the cooked bacon into bite size pieces and mix into the Brussels. Cook for an additional 3-5 minutes.
7. Enjoy!

Remember last week when I said sweet potato rice might be my new favorite hack? Well it is. I added sweet potato rice to this recipe and it turned out phenomenal. Though I used about 5 large sweet potatoes, which in rice form filled a gallon sized Ziploc bag and also filled my crock pot to the very top. Next time I will not use as much sweet potato, or at least not put that much in the crock pot. Anyways, if you aren't crazy about sweet potatoes, this recipe doesn't call for them anyways, so just don't add them. The chili turned out awesome and was a super easy crock pot meal to make. I didn't end up topping with bacon or avocado, but I am sure adding those would make this meal even better. Let me know if you try this one out and enjoy it! 

Paleo Crock Pot Chili
Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. of ground beef or turkey (I used grass fed ground beef)
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 red and 1 green bell pepper, both diced
• 1 cup of carrots, finely diced
• 1 cup of celery, diced
• 1 jalapeno, minced
• (1) 28-ounce can of crushed or stewed tomatoes
• (1) 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes
• (1) 15-ounce can of tomato sauce

Spices

• 3 Tbsp. of chili powder
• 1 Tbsp. of oregano
• 1 Tbsp. of basil
• 2 tsp. of cumin
• 1 tsp. of salt
• 1 tsp. pepper
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1/2 tsp. of cayenne

Garnish (optional but highly recommended!)

• About 4 strips of cooked bacon, crumbled
• 1 or 2 avocados, diced

Directions:

1. Sauté onions and garlic together in a large saucepan over medium heat
2. Add in ground beef (or turkey) to the saucepan and cook just until browned. Drain excess fat
3. Transfer the cooked onions, garlic and meat to your crockpot/slow-cooker
4. Add all the above vegetables and spices (except garnish ingredients) to the crockpot
5. Give the pot a good stir
6. Set crockpot to LOW, cover, and slow cook for about 6 hours
7. Spoon into individual bowls. Garnish with crumbled bacon and avocado slices
8. Serve hot and enjoy!

Original recipe found here

I was out of town this past weekend, which means meal prep this week consisted of an easy recipe to make and an order of Power Supply lunches for my other meal. I found this extremely easy and delicious looking slow cooker meal to try out and it turned out SO amazing. If you enjoy making cauliflower rice like I do, you will love trying out this sweet potato rice. I have a feeling I will be using this hack a lot more in the future. Anyways, I doubled the sweet potato rice portion of this recipe to get some more carbs in my life and used about 2 lbs of chicken breasts. Also, topping this meal with some extra salsa and guacamole (or avocado) is what definitely made this meal complete, so don't skip out on that part. This meal was way too easy to throw together and turned out being the bomb. There is no reason you should not try this one out!

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken with Sweet Potato Rice
Ingredients:

• 3 chicken thighs or breasts (boneless & skinless)
• 1 jar salsa (check labels!)
• 2 peeled sweet potatoes
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil or ghee
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• salt, pepper, garlic powder
• 1 cup chopped kale

Directions:
Salsa Chicken:

1. Place 3 chicken breasts or thighs in a slow cooker with 1 cup of salsa.
2. Cook for 3-4 hours on low. (My crockpot cooks things quickly so yours may require more or less time! Take a peak at 3 but if you are doubling or tripling it could be up to 5 hours)
3. Once chicken is cooked, shred it in the slow cooker and mix with all of the juices then let sit on keep warm for at least 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Sweet Potato Rice:

1. Shred your sweet potatoes either in a food processor with the shredder attachment or on a regular grater.
2. In a large saute pan add 1 tablespoon of coconut oil or ghee over medium high heat. Add sweet potato rice and cook covered for about 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.
3. Reduce heat to medium low and add cilantro & kale then cover for 1 minute so the kale can wilt slightly.
4. Add in 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon garlic powder and some pepper. Then add lime juice and season to your liking.
5. To make your bowl add sweet potato rice and top with salsa chicken. Garnish with more salsa and guacamole!

Original recipe found here

I have seen this link for easy paleo lunch recipes many times before and finally checked it out. A lot of the recipes look pretty good, including this Smoky Pineapple Grilled Pineapple Burger I decided to try out. Plus, this one especially caught my attention because it didn't have a long list of ingredients. Anyways, I also added some Southwest Seasoning to the burgers and paired this with my roasted sweet potato fries and the meal was amazing. Between grilling and the fresh pineapple, it is the perfect summer meal. I also have to admit I had my favorite sous chef to help out on the grill, which always makes meal prep a little easier and a lot more enjoyable. Grab a friend or a few and make this while the weather is nice!
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Smoky Grilled Pineapple Burger
Ingredients:

• 2 lbs Lean Grass-Fed Ground Beef
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Organic Smoked Paprika (I like Simply Organic Smoked Paprika)
• 1 teaspoon Sea Salt (I use Celtic Sea Salt, Fine Ground)
• 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
• 1 Whole Fresh Pineapple-peeled, cored, and sliced
• 1 Onion-sliced
• Green Leaf Lettuce

Directions:

1. Preheat your grill to medium-high. In a bowl combine the ground beef and seasonings well and then form into patties. Grill to desired doneness.
2. Grill the pineapple slices 4 to 5 minutes each side.
3. Top your burgers with the pineapple and onion slices. Wrap your burgers in the leaf lettuce and enjoy!

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Original recipe found here

My Homemade Sweet Potato Fries
(Basically just roasted sweet potatoes)
Ingredients:

• 4-6 Sweet Potatoes (Depending on how much you want to make. 5 medium sized sweet potatoes usually gets me 6 oz of sweet potato fries for 6 meals. I think my idea of medium sized is bigger than most though.)
• Olive oil spray
• Sea salt (I actually use Garlic Sea Salt on everything I cook)
• Optional: Cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Skin and cut the sweet potatoes into whatever shape you want. I either do fries, wedges or circles.
3. Spray baking pan with olive oil. Lay down sweet potato fries flat (please do not just dump a pile on the pan).
4. I fill my Misto with olive oil and lightly spray the fries, then add some sea salt (sometimes cinnamon too).
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Take out of the oven and move them around or flip them over. Bake for another 15-20 minutes.
6. Keep an eye on them, if they are thin bake for less time, and vice versa. Key is to move them around or flip them over half way through baking them. I usually make mine thicker, so I bake them for at least a total of 40 minutes.

This didn't turn out looking much like a curry sauce, but it was still very yummy and so flavorful. I used chicken breasts instead of thighs and I also did not brown the chicken before adding to the crockpot, but it still turned out great! One note I had though is I used light coconut milk and I think using regular would have made the sauce even better. Other then that, this meal turned out to be awesome. There was plenty of sauce, so I just whipped up some plain cauliflower rice on the stove top to pair with the chicken. I ended up prepping all the ingredients the day before, which made for an even easier day of cooking. If you are finding that meal prep is taking way too long, try prepping the ingredients (or just some) the day or night before and that will cut your kitchen time in half when it's time to cook. Don't be deterred by my picture of this, if you like a good crockpot chicken recipe or curry sauce, give this recipe a try!

​Slow Cooker Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce
Ingredients:

• 6 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs, skin removed (about 2 and 1/2 pounds) – (I used chicken breasts instead)
• salt and pepper
• 1 teaspoon oil
• 2 (13.5 ounce) cans coconut milk (lite coconut milk is great too)
• 2 tablespoons dried basil leaves
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 3/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 and 1/2 tablespoons yellow curry powder
• 1/2 or 3/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 large red onion, chopped
• 8 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
• 1 tablespoon COLD water
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated or minced
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

1. Remove the skin from the chicken using your fingers and a serrated knife. Salt and pepper each thigh.
2. Heat a large skillet to medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon oil (or you can use nonstick spray).
3. When the oil is hot, add 3 chicken thighs. Don't put them too close together, you want to avoid steaming.
4. Cook for about 2 minutes, until nicely browned on the bottom. Then flip the chicken over to brown the other side for about 1-2 minutes.
5. Remove the chicken to a plate.
6. Repeat searing process with the other 3 chicken thighs. If there is still enough grease in the pan then you don't need to add more oil.
7. Meanwhile, in a crock pot combine coconut milk, basil, 2 teaspoons salt, 3/4 teaspoon pepper, yellow curry, and chili powder (to taste). Stir to combine.
8. Add the chopped red onions, garlic, and jalapenos.
9. Add the browned chicken and stir to combine.
10. Cook on high for 4-5 hours, or on low for 6-8 hours.
11. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and transfer to a plate or cutting board. Let cool for a couple minutes.
12. Add the ginger to the slow cooker.
13. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 1 tablespoon COLD water. Stir until it's not lumpy. Add this to the crock pot and stir.
14. Shred the chicken, removing the bones and any tough bits. It should just be falling apart.
15. Return the meat to the slow cooker and stir. Return the lid and cook for another 10 minutes.
16. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the cilantro.
17. Serve with cauliflower rice.

Original recipe found here