chicken tortilla soup

I love Chic Fil A's chicken tortilla soup and I think I could eat it every single day! 

 As with most recipes I fall in love with I try to duplicate them at home in my own kitchen.  It was a fun task and I was happy with the results.  I love all the beans and shredded chicken in the soup.  I'm not usually a chicken fan especially shredded, but I loved the way this soup turned out and I didn't even have an aversion to the shredded chicken.  Each bite was full of chicken and the perfect amount of spice and flavor.

I looked on Pinterest for ideas and browsed a few recipes, but I didn't have the ingredients for most of the recipes I found.  

Here is what I came up with what I had on hand:  

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts cooked and shredded with two forks

1 can yellow or white corn 

1 can of black beans drained

   (I don't like the color they add to food so I always drain them.)

1 can white (cannellini) beans 

2 cups of milk

2 cans of low sodium chicken broth, I used the broth from cooking the chicken breast

(more if you like it more soupy.  I wanted a 'stoup' consistency.)

1 cup of saffron rice or whatever rice you want 

(you can omit this, but I used the rice to thicken the soup and I had it leftover in the fridge)

3 tablespoons of taco seasoning

2 tablespoons of Goya Adobo all purpose seasoning with cumin

cumin 

(just sprinkle and taste, sprinkle and taste.  I like A. LOT.)

Cayenne pepper 

(I wanted it hot.  I didn't have green chilies or Rotel on hand so I spiced it up quite a bit with all the seasonings including cayenne)

salt and pepper

I usually add sauteed garlic and onion to everything I cook, but this time I didn't.  Shocker huh?!?  You can add them if you like, and maybe some chopped and sauteed red pepper would be good, but this time I skipped it.

I started with the broth and veggies and just started pouring the ingredients into a dutch oven on the stove top.  I added the chicken last and then added the spices.  The soup sat on the stove and hung out for 2.5 hours simmering.  As it simmered I tasted it and added more spices to please my taste buds.  I added more milk to make it look and taste more creamy.  I also added the cayenne and didn't measure it, so I can't give you an exact measurement.  I will say Gary and I like our soup spicy and the kids didn't eat a bowl, so it was caliente.  We like spice!

I was lucky we had a snow day so I had time to baby this soup.  If  you want to you could throw it all in the slow cooker.  Dinners are always easier in the slow cooker.

Let me know what you think if you make it!

a little Sunday workout talk

Sometimes I update y'all on Instagram, and other times I don't.  Maybe I should stay consistent with posting all that stuff, but I'm not an all up in your face kinda person.

When I added these numbers up just playing around I thought it all sounded pretty neat-o.

I burned 2,497 calories 5 days and it only took 6 hours of my week.

The white watch-thing in the pictures is my heart rate monitor.  It has a chest strap that counts every single heart beat while I workout.  The top number on my watch in this setting shows calories burned.  The middle number shows calories burned percentage that goes toward body fat burn.  (I honestly don't pay attention to that number much).  And the bottom number is the length of time I worked out.

I found a fun and challenging arm workout on Pinterest and it is amazing.  It's working, so that is double amazing.  Each day I put on my Polar FT40 heart rate monitor and get down to the basement.  I try to do about 20-45 minutes of cardio, sometimes less.   I always plank and do the arm workout.  I started the arm workout as an experiment and I'm glad I did.  I'm planning to go pin a few more workouts and experiment with them too.  I usually throw in an ab workout or squats and lunges too.

I realized I don't need a gym or an expensive workout plan.  I don't need to spend money on videos, bu they can be fun.  I just need to stick to having fun and that proves to me that I can do whatever I want with work and dedication.  I'm hoping that adding more protein to my diet will also help with my fitness habit!

I love when the kids come down to the basement with me and play around.  They love it and I love being a good example for them, but I think I'd workout anyway because I like it!   Sometimes I miss working out in a gym setting.  I miss the social aspect of it all, but knowing I can do workouts at home and still see results, and that is very rewarding to me!

For me it's about the push ups.  Ahhhh those push ups!

yank out that tooth

Hayden's top left front tooth has been loose for what seems like forever.  Gary and Hayden devised a plan to get that booger out.  They used dental floss and tied it around the tooth.  They tied the other end of the floss to a remote control monster truck.  Then Hayden hit the go button.

Sadly nothing happened.  The tooth hasn't come out, but I'm sure they will try again and again.

Boys will be boys.

snow day turned snow days

This is our third snow day this week and we got tons of snow for Georgia!

The snow flakes were so stinkin' big!  I can't remember ever seeing flakes that large in Ohio.

Gary was home from work due to the terrible roads, so you know it must be bad.

He had fun playing with the kids and even caught a few flakes.

My fleece hat and jacket were covered in snowflakes.  I couldn't believe how fast the snow was coming down!!

We had a fun day playing in the snow and it was really pretty, but I'll be happy when it melts and spring has sprung!

orange rolls all waffled up

If you follow me on Instagram you know that I am waffling all the things.  

I have been doing tons of experimenting since Valentine's day with my new waffle maker.  I have done muffin mixes and tater tots and grilled cheese sandwiches and even apples and pears with cinnamon.

Yesterday we had a snow day and so I made orange rolls for breakfast for the kids.  They are ok, but I will do the orange rolls differently next time.  I won't smash them all on the hot iron at the same time.  You live and you learn right?!?   I think it would be fun to make them in different shapes too!

The Pillsbury orange rolls still tasted super yummy even though they looked a little odd! 

snow day!!

It snowed in the middle of the night and we have a nice coating of snow!

The snow made Lily super hyper and spastic.  She was running around the yard and the deck like a mad woman.

  

Daisy Mae was not loving the snow.  She's a princess and hates to have wet paws.

I love this picture of her looking down the stairs!

Lily sat on the stairs and watched the action down below.  She's a great babysitter because I was cold!  I didn't want any part of being out in the snow.  I got my fill of that in Ohio.

The kids decided to sled down our sidewalk in the backyard.  

I have to admit it looked fun until the snow and ice melted.  Then the sliding wasn't going so well and they had to move onto another fun activity.

Like building a snow ghost with a pinecone 'bow'.  Ha!  Silly girl!

Hayden found a fun pine cone treasure.  It was pretty cool!

After lunch they headed back out for some sledding in the front yard.  They made tons of snowballs with plans of tossing them at people as they walked down the street, but no one ever walked by.

We had a fun first day of snow here in our new house in our new state!