Southwest Chicken Sandwiches + WIAW

Luckily, my stress level was much lower today, and I even took the day off from working out to give myself a little more time in the evening. I still have high hopes for getting to bed early. Meanwhile, here are some eats for the day:

7:30 am - Breakfast

Overnight oats with sliced banana, plus tea.

12:15 pm - Lunch

Last night's dinner -- the sweet potato leftovers were today's lunch

(Source)

Weirdest lunch ever. I ate half a baked sweet potato leftover from yesterday, topped with a little butter and cinnamon. Then I munched on a pear and a peanut butter and jelly Lara bar. Some days are weird.

3:00 pm - Afternoon snack

About 10 pretzels

5:00-6:00 pm - Evening snack (is that a thing?)
A few bites of chicken while prepping dinner, two or three cherries, a bite of bread, a few sips of milk. I told you today was weird.

7:30 pm - Dinner

New recipe! And it was a HIT! I highly recommend this dinner for an easy weeknight crock pot meal.

Southwest Chicken Sandwiches

Serves 6

• 4 chicken breasts
• 6 whole cloves of garlic
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Approx. 1 cup chicken broth
• 6 slices pepper jack cheese
• 3 tablespoons BBQ sauce (we used Trader Joe's All Natural)
• 3 tablespoons sour cream
• 6 whole wheat buns
• Garnishes and toppings: 
• Guacamole - ours was similar to this one
• Sliced red onion
• Salsa (we used White Girl Salsa)

Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of a crock pot. Season with salt and pepper and add the garlic. Pour the chicken broth over the chicken to 3/4 of the way up or just covering. Cook on low for 8-12 hours.

Once cooked, take out the chicken and shred with two forks or your hands. Run the broth left in the crock pot through a strainer, saving the liquid. Return the shredded chicken to the pot, along with about 1/4 cup of the broth (just enough to moisten the chicken). Add a bit more salt and pepper. Cover and set aside. 

Meanwhile, make your guacamole and prepare the rest of your toppings. To make a seriously delicious sauce, just combine the BBQ sauce and sour cream. Yum! (Also great as a salad dressing, which you'll see tomorrow.) Toast your bun, if desired, then assemble and serve!

Get in my belly!

Terry and I both made lots of yummy noises while eating our sandwiches. We also munched on sweet potato fries and a Southwest salad, which I'll describe to you tomorrow. Are you getting excited for all these teasers?

For now, an awesome story to end the evening. Terry and I assembled the guacamole together; I did all the dicing while Terry mashed and spiced. Once we had finished, we each tried a bite, but the guac was way too spicy for me (I'm a total wimp when it comes to spice, but I had only used about 3/4 of a jalapeno!). I drank a few sips of milk, chewed on a piece of bread--nothing helped. Soon enough my lips were on fire. I tried a little Chapstick to soothe my lips, which made it worse. I was holding ice to my lips, rinsing my mouth under water, and trying not to be too upset about the fact that I might not get to eat the guacamole. Turns out I must have gotten unlucky with that one bite and likely ate a seed, because I braved the guac again later without incident.

9:30 pm - TBD
I really want to eat a macaroon (I bought some from Trader Joe's yesterday), but I'm not feeling 100%. Might just call it a night.

Hope you had a fantastic Wednesday!

Do you have strange reactions to certain foods? I am almost positive that I'm allergic to Ghirardelli chocolate, and I've always been sensitive to spicy foods. 

Just for fun:

Check out this awesome picture from last week when Terry and I busted out a little Kinect action. 

I am SO cool!