KitchenAid Shredded Chicken

I have had my KitchenAid mixer for 5 and a half years.  It never ceases to amaze me the things that this puppy can do.  If you are contemplating the investment and you like to cook: it's worth every penny!

So in flying by comments on a blog-post somewhere in my recent memory, I saw someone mention that you could use your KitchenAid to shred cooked chicken.  No WAY!  I filed it somewhere in my brain and the thought surfaced again today.

Sometimes I buy a full 40 pound case of boneless/skinless chicken breasts when a local restaurant supply has it on sale.  A friend of mine called and investigated their "regular" price this week and found out it wasn't that much more than when it's on sale.  I had just used the last of my chicken, so I asked if she was willing to split a case. She was game so I gave her some money and promptly forgot about it.

This morning we were in the middle of Domino Projects since Fridays are HandyMan's day off.  The dog goes nuts and up to the door walks my friend with 20 pounds of chicken.  Oh yeah.  So I quickly package about 12 pounds of it up for the freezer and I remembered the shredded chicken trick I had read.  I threw the remaining chicken in my crock pot to cook it:

Five hours later, I chopped each breast into three or four pieces and threw it in my mixer bowl:

Mixer on low, three minutes later, shredded chicken:



Oh yeah!  It was that easy.  I ended up with 8- 2.5 cup containers of shredded chicken in the freezer for tacos, chicken salad, or whatever random meal I need it for in the coming months.  I'm so glad that my mommy-brain held on to this little tid-bit of information!

The Menu Board

In the last few months, I've found that it is increasingly dangerous to have a laptop on the kitchen counter in the presence of food preparations and a toddler.  I've also found myself being sucked in by the shiny screen and going off on recipe chases and toddler activity scavenger hunts and losing large amounts of time.   It is also the information center for many of my day-to-day activities: recipes, weather, calendar, communications.

As I try to balance a home, toddler, work and life in general, I'm finding that sometime this wonderful tool is more of a hindrance than a help.  As I work on finding balance, and in an effort to save it from getting a bath in strawberry jam,  my cute little netbook is getting grounded.  I'm trying really hard to only fire it up when either a) GBaby's asleep or b) it is a designated working time.  (Read: I'm hiding somewhere and HandyMan, or some other gracious soul, has eyes on the tot).

When I tried implementing this type of limit on myself in the past, it worked great for about 3 hours until I was setting out to prep a meal and needed a recipe online.  Then I'd jump on the computer really fast to pull it up.   Then since I was already on, I needed to check the weather and the news and blogs and, oh yeah, the calendar too to see if HandyMan is home for dinner tonight... You get the idea.

So, as a solution to this problem, as well as to encourage myself to more reading and less surfing, I recently got a new toy, er, I mean organizational tool. It has basic web capabilities which is great for pulling up those recipes.   So, I've added a new page to my little corner of the internet here: The Menu Board.  See the tab up at the top?  If you click, you'll find all the recipes that are on my menu for the week with links, and a few other categories of recipes that I like to have at my fingertips.  Think of it as a notepad you might find on my kitchen counter - because there's not much glamour or organization to the page [yet].  I've bookmarked the page on my new toy and have my recipes for the week one click away.

Someday I may take the time to actually organize it into one of those nifty Monday Menu posts, but for now, I'm keeping it simple!  So if you're in need of some menu inspiration, check it out and click around.  There's some yummy stuff there!

Erasable Organization Binder

Some of the blogs I follow talk about binder systems and planners to help keep moms organized.  They have great printouts and resources – really, they’re neat.  However, they just don’t work for me.  If I print out another piece of paper, it’s going to get lost in the great paper vortex of clutter that end up in the recycle bin, and does nothing to get me organized.  I have used a few different methods for taming the paper and clutter and I think that I’ve finally been able to combine them into a system that may just work.

A few years back, HandyMan and I worked at a great summer camp (who I’m now working for again, remotely from NY- how cool is that!)  Oops, sidetrack.  Anyway, the camp had daily and weekly to-do lists that they would put into clear 3-ring page protector sleeves and we’d mark stuff off with dry erase markers.  It worked great – print once and use over and over and over.  Taking this idea, I created a weekly template with a rough schedule and the three categories that my tasks generally fall into: Chores, Menu/Meal Prep and Projects.  I also filled in permanent "chores" on the weekly schedule, as well as time blocks that are taken by the same activity every week.

The second component is a folder system.  I realized earlier this fall that the majority of the paper clutter that accumulates in my kitchen was from the mail.  In October picked up a folder thing that had a bunch of folders all bound together.  When I would go through the mail I could sort it into the folders (Bills/Attention, Filing, Shredding, Work Related, Banking and Other) and the pile of mail was neatly contained.

So, when I combined these two systems here is the resulting contents of a 1-inch, 3 ring binder that was reclaimed from a box of old college notes:

::Write-On Pages for

• Shopping Lists & Errands (because stuff always gets scribbled down somewhere before it makes it on the “take me to the store” list)


• 2 – 2 page spreads for Weekly Planning


• ThrivingMama blog notes page


• Cleaning lists (also incorporated in the weekly page- but not as detailed)


• Blank pages in sleeves for random notes that pertain to online tasks – to eliminate all those little slips of paper.

::Folders for the categories I talked about before.

::Cute dry erase markers that have magnets so they stay in the middle of the binder.

All this fits neatly in a binder that I can stick in my corner of the kitchen counter and access easily.  I debated putting something decorative in the front cover or leaving it blank to use as an extra note surface – I opted for both:



As I mentioned before, the binder, as well as the card stock, and sheet protectors were things I had around the house.  The folders and the markers were compliments of a Staples rewards certificate from recycling my ink cartridges.  So, no money really out of my [current] pocket to implement this system - so if in three months it falls by the wayside for a different system, no loss.  For me, that works for me too!

This post is linked up at WeAreThatFamily.com's Works for Me Wednesday.

System Failure!

After our wonderful break last week, I've come home to find that it's the middle of the month and all my systems seem to have broken down.  I was cruising along so nicely and I'm not sure what happened.  It is sort of like when you're working along on your computer and all the sudden you get the blue screen of death and the machine  just shuts down.

My menus are all messed up, the Toddler Tornado has made quick work of destroying the house and I'm treading quicksand trying to make order of the chaos.  I have to get things in order because I have a craft fair on Saturday and have to have our lives organized enough to leave GBaby here with Grandma while HandyMan and I are off to our respective tasks for the day.

So, this week, I am working on fixing my systems: housekeeping, work, meals and other projects.  I'm hoping to implement a few new ideas in hopes of getting things done and stop a few things from falling through the cracks - stay tuned!

Pantry & Freezer Stocking List

Are you intentional about what gets stocked in your pantry and freezer or is it a catch-all spot for leftover ingredients from meals gone by? Since shopping is a chore for me I try to be pretty intentional about what get stocked in the pantry and freezer from my shopping trips.

The first step in stocking the pantry and freezer with ingredients is to look at what you cook most often and what you like to have on hand for quick meals.  I've found that stocking the pantry with items that I rarely use ends up being a waste of the space.  While I don't usually go for prepared food I usually have a few quick meals stashed in the pantry.  Additionally, this girl can't be caught without the means to a chocolate chip cookie, so those important ingredients are usually found on my baking shelf.  In the fall and winter, I often throw together soups on a whim so the pantry is usually stocked with soup ingredients.   As fresh fruit becomes more expensive in the cooler months, canned fruits begin to make their way to the pantry.  Dried goods and snacks are also a staple items that get some of the pantry real estate.  The freezer also has a stash of frequently used ingredients.

Here's a breakdown of what's in my pantry and freezer stash:

Freezer: Orange Juice concentrate, Coffee (decaf & regular), Margarine for baking

Baking Ingredients: Unbleached Flour, Whole Wheat Flour, Chocolate Chips, Sugar, Brown Sugar, Spices

Canned Goods: "Cream of" Soups, Diced Tomatoes, Tomato Paste, Kidney Beans, Pineapple, Mandarin Oranges, Water Chestnuts,

Dry Goods: Pinto Beans, Black Beans, White Beans, Spaghetti, Pasta, Rice, Ramen, Macaroni & Cheese, Broth Cubes, Cereal

Snacks: Trail Mix, Popcorn, Chips

What are the staples in your pantry?

My Crock-Pot

(Note: the terms “slow cooker” and “crock-pot” are interchangeable and here mean the same thing.  Crock-Pot is the original trademarked name for slow cookers)

My kitchen would not be complete without my Crock-Pot.  Growing up my mom often utilized her slow cooker to get dinner on the table and I was trained early on how to cook in the crock pot.  I remember making beef stew in the crock pot for a Girl Scout badge task when I was in about fifth grade.

It should come as no surprise that as I grew up and had my own home, a crock-pot became a necessary appliance.  When we moved into our apartment in Pasadena seven years ago, a six quart slow cooker arrived at my door, a housewarming gift from my mom-in-law.  This beauty still works just as good as the day I opened it and I have give it quite the workout.

I started with meats, soups, stews, sauces and beans.  Then when I found Stephanie at A Year of Slow Cooking I got a little more creative and tried her Crème Brule recipe (yeah, it was pretty good!) and yogurt (ok, but I’ve gotten my method perfected now).  On occasion I still look for creative recipes but most of the time my slow cooker is just my workhorse for batch cooking items destined for the freezer.  It cooks while I go about my day.  No minding things on the stove.  It’s great!

So, if you’ve not tried a slow cooker, you should!  If you’ve wanted to start batch cooking, the crock-pot is a great place to start.  Fill it up, let it cook, eat some and freeze the rest.  It doesn’t get any easier than that!  If you enjoy slow-cooking, what is your favorite thing to cook in the crock-pot?

Rocked My World... How to fold fitted sheets

So, I admit it.  I am one of those people who (until this summer) has NEVER folded up a fitted sheet.  I would take one corner to another, then all four corners together.  Fold it in half again and then kind of roll it up.  All that elastic and fabric in the corners never cooperated.  Then, my friend posted this video on Facebook.  In one minute and forty-two seconds of training and now, I can fold those darn things!  If fitted sheets just get wadded up in your linen closet - spare the minute-forty-two and check this out!  What other tricks to you guys know that I need to be filled in on?

The MamaMixer

It is very stereotypical for the guys in our lives to love their gadgets.  For some guys the more powerful the tool the better. For others the more technical the gadget, the more fun they have.  We gals don’t usually get rolled into these stereo-types but I have the same fanaticism about some of my appliances as certain guys do about their chainsaws.



There are a few appliances that I use regularly that I just can’t imagine life without.  One of my biggest helpers in the house is my KitchenAid stand mixer.  I LOVE that thing. I first got the experience of playing with a KitchenAid stand mixer while we were house-sitting for friends.  It was around Christmas time so I gave my friend’s mixer a work-out: cookies, pies, cakes.  By the time we were done house-sitting I knew I needed one of those, except hers was too small.  I wanted the MamaMixer: the KitchenAid Professional Stand Mixer.

At the time we were living in a tiny apartment while HandyMan was going to grad school.  I worked all week and on Saturday mornings he’d go off to play soccer and I’d stay home and work out the stress of the week baking and cooking.  He’d come home hot and sweaty, and the counter would be full of warm treats.  Cinnamon rolls, cookies, breads, lasagnas, enchiladas, you name it.  That Christmas, I received a gift with a promise.  When I opened up the heavy box it was a pasta roller attachment and it came with the promise that when we were settled in our own house, he’d get me a KitchenAid.  “The big one?” I asked.

Fast-forward three years, and two more attachments under my belt, and we are finally settling down.  I mention the promise of the KitchenAid – we were closing on our house on December 1^st after all.  HandyMan says –I was planning on giving it to you for Christmas.  Hmmmm.  That’s like hiring the housekeeper after you’ve finished spring cleaning.  I can’t even begin to tell you how much baking happens between December 1^st and January 1^st in my house.  After some negotiation, the MamaMixer was ordered and it was one of the first things moved into the new house.  It helped the lobbying process that Amazon had it on sale the day after Thanksgiving for the same price as the regular stand mixer!

The first night in the new house, I did laundry and baked cookies.  My MamaMixer gets regular workouts all seasons of the year:  breads, cookies, cakes, and with attachments, applesauce, tomato sauce, and pastas.  This mixer is a huge help with batch cooking as I can make 3-6 loaves of quick bread at a time and freeze the extra.  It is a powerhouse on cookie dough and I can usually triple a batch.  It has been a wonderful investment for the time I've saved and it has never hiccuped, no matter how big of a batch I give it.