Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken

4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (we used 6 breast halves)
3/4 cup water
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons vinegar (any type)
1 teaspoon cumin
28 oz (3-1/2 cups) bottled barbecue sauce

Place chicken, water, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, and cumin in slow cooker and set on low. Cook for 6 hours. Drain juices. Shred chicken right in the slow cooker using two forks to pull it apart. Pour in barbecue sauce; stir to combine. Cook on low for an additional hour. Serve on buns.

Serves 8 to 10. (Ours was about 6 servings since we used less chicken.)

Notes: As you can tell from my lack of posts recently, I haven't been much in the mood for cooking lately... or rather, I haven't been in the mood to try anything new. So when it came to finding something for dinner last Saturday night, I wanted something easy. And since I was going to be gone most of the day, it was up to Kevin to get this going. I must say, he did well. It was so easy, I don't think it even disrupted his afternoon of watching the World Cup, Formula 1, and NASCAR at all. The recipe itself turned out pretty well. Nothing special, but it was good.

Macaroni and Cheese (Betty Crocker)

2 cups uncooked elbow, rotini, or ziti macaroni
2 tablespoons margarine or butter
1 small onion, chopped (about 1/4 cup)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cups milk
8 ounces sharp processed American or Swiss cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, or shredded Cheddar cheese

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Cook macaroni as directed on package. Heat butter in 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Cook onion in margarine about 3 minutes. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is bubbly; remove from heat. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute; remove from heat. Stir in cheese until melted. Add macaroni and stir until coated. Pour into ungreased 1-1/2 quart casserole. Bake about 30 minutes or until bubbly and light brown.

Servings: 6
Recipe from Betty Crocker's Cookbook

Notes: Macaroni and cheese is my all-time favorite food. That being said, I'm guilty of eating huge quantities of the boxed mac & cheese, and more recently, Easy Mac. But now that I'm committing myself to cooking more, I decided to venture out and make mac & cheese from scratch, so I thought I'd start with Betty Crocker. I mean, you can't go wrong with Betty, right? Wrong. The cheese separated and had a horrible texture. It was edible, but not enjoyable. Honestly, I would have preferred Easy Mac to this. The search for the perfect mac and cheese recipe continues...

My New Favorite Snack Food

Stacy's Pita Chips are my new favorite snack food. The Parmesan Garlic & Herb are great. The Pesto and Sundried Tomato are good as well. I haven't tried the Simply Naked flavor, but I'm sure they would be great with hummus or some other hearty dip.

Last week I went out on a limb and bought the Cinnamon Sugar flavor. OH. MY. I LUV them. Call me crazy, but I think they taste exactly like the left-over pieces of pie crust that my mom used to put cinnamon sugar on and bake. Do you know what I'm talking about? I'm totally transported back to my childhood when I eat these.

And an added bonus? No trans fat and only 4 grams of fat per serving.

Muggs' Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2-1/4 cups flour (or 1/4 cup more if needed)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)

Mix butter and sugars together; add eggs. Add dry ingredients and chocolate chips. Add nuts if desired. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes. (Mine took 10 minutes or less.)

Notes: This is one of the best chocolate chip cookie recipes I've made. The Angel Cookies are still my favorite, but these are a close runner-up. If you like your cookies soft, you'll like these. After four days (which is just as long as this batch lasted) they were still soft.

Recipe from In the Kitchen with Muggs (A family friend's cookbook.)

Barbecue Turkey Burgers & Baked French Fries

Barbecue Turkey Burgers
1/4 cup chopped onions
2 tablespoons barbecue sauce
2 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs
2 teaspoons prepared mustard
3/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound ground turkey

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl. Divide turkey mixture into 4 equal portions, shaping each into a 1-1/2 inch thick patty.

Heat a grill pan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Place patties in pan; cook seven minutes on each side or until done.

Servings: 4
Recipe from Cooking Light

Baked French Fries
2 large baking potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
Salt to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Cut potatoes into thick sticks. Mix oil and seasonings together in a zip-lock bag. Add potatoes and mix to coat. Place potatoes on baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, turning once. Add salt to taste.

Servings: 2
Recipe from Allrecipes.

Notes: I found this burger recipe on Eating for One and I had to give it a try. Paired with the fries, it was a great meal. I made the mistake of using super low-fat ground turkey which meant that the burgers came out a little dry, so next time I'll buy meat with a little more fat in it. But other than that, this recipe was great. Lots of flavor but not too salty, unlike the previous turkey burgers I made. I will definitely be making these again.

The fries turned out good too. Of course they don't taste as good as deep-fried fries, but this is a good alternative. The combination of spices was perfect.