I cook this when I don't have the time to sit in the kitchen preparing an entire meal, but I do have time for prep-work.

I mix up the homemade BBQ sauce, chop up the onions and garlic, plop the chicken into the crock pot- turn it on, and let it GO!

And I am rewarded with a ready for later dinner for that night. It only gets better with age, and the leftovers seem to be better than the first night.

I'd never heard of adding chocolate to BBQ sauce, but when I tasted it, it seemed Oh so right! (Just make sure it's the dark variety).

I paired this BBQ pulled chicken with a toasted bun. Enjoy.

Spicy-Sweet-Smoky BBQ Slow Cooked Chicken

 

Ingredients: 1 tbsp butter 2 tbsp olive oil 1/4 cup minced red onion 1 yellow onion-sliced into thin slices 4 cloves garlic, minced 2 cups ketchup 2 tbsp molasses 2 tbsp worcestershire sauce 2 tsp chipotle chili pepper, ground 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper ¼ tsp Ancho chili powder 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp onion powder ½ cup Adobo sauce 2 tbsp honey 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar 1 teaspoon Siracha 3 tablespoons soy sauce Salt and pepper to taste 1/2 cup water 8 ounces dark chocolate squares (I used Godiva) or 1 cup cocoa powder 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast   Directions: In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the ketchup, molasses, Worcestershire, adobo, honey, vinegar, siracha, soy sauce, water, olive oil and spices. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the red onion and cook for 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add in the ketchup & spice mixture. Cook for 5 minutes, remove from heat.   Turn crockpot to medium. Add chicken, chocolate squares, and then cover with sliced onions, & pour BBQ sauce over the top.  Cook for 4-6 hours, turning heat down to low after the first hour. Stir chicken about once an hour. In the last hour, shred chicken, and then place back into sauce. Stir again. The longer you let it simmer in the sauce, the better your chicken will taste. The sauce will thicken as it cooks down. Taste before serving and make any seasoning adjustments. If the BBQ sauce gets too thick, dilute with water until you get the desired consistency.

 

Chipotle Turkey Chili

It snowed ALL DAY yesterday, & this morning was 1 degree. Icicles are covering the patio. I think a warm, hearty turkey chili is in order. Along with a little homemade cornbread....a good hearty bowl of comfort food is just what we needed. Substituting beef for turkey made for an even lighter meal. Enjoy!

Chipotle-Turkey Chili

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons Olive oil

1 pound ground Turkey

1 medium yellow Onion-diced

5-6 cloves Garlic-minced

1/2 teaspoon Penzey’s Chili 3000

1 tablespoon Chipotle Chili

3 tablespoons Hungarian Paprika

2 tablespoons ground Cumin

1 tablespoon ground Ancho chili

1/4 teaspoon ground Allspice

1 can Beans

1 Carrot- peeled and diced

1 Green Bell pepper

6 ounces of dark Beer

2 ½ cups whole peeled Tomatoes-chopped finely (retain juice)

1 teaspoon Oregano

2 teaspoons coarse Salt

4 tablespoon tomato paste

2 tablespoons Corn Masa (corn tortilla mix)

Directions:

Over medium-high heat, sauté onions & garlic till golden brown in olive oil. Add turkey, chili powders, & cumin. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add bell pepper, tomatoes & tomato paste. Cook for an additional 3 minutes. Add beer, beans, water & remaining seasonings. Simmer for 45 minutes on low heat. In the last 5 minutes, add Masa, stirring well to thicken.