Crock Pot Honey Garlic Chicken and Vegetables

These days anything really easy for dinner gets extra points but when it is this delicious and easy, it's going to become a LaForce home staple. Like I've already made it twice in a 3 week time frame and we were out of town for almost one of those weeks haha. Just don't forget to put the potatoes in like I did the last time I made this... what can I say... mom brain is real.

Crock Pot Honey Garlic Chicken and Vegetables
serves 4, from Damn Delicious

Ingredients:

8 chicken thighs - bone in skin on or boneless skinless
16 oz red potatoes, halved or quartered
16 oz baby carrots
16 oz green beans,stems snapped
Note: these don't have to be exact, if you want to throw in a few more green beans or whatever go for it. this recipe is very flexible I've found. 

1/2 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup ketchup
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp ground black pepper


Mix together all ingredients below the Note starting with the soy sauce. Pour a little bit of the mixture on the bottom of your crock pot. Add chicken, potatoes, carrots and green beans. Pour rest of sauce mixture over top. Cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.

If you use bone-in skin on chicken thighs you can take them out and broil them in the oven for 3-4 minutes skin side up right before serving to crisp up the skin but this is optional. I've used both kinds of chicken thighs and they are both delicious but the crisping up the bone-in skin on chicken is nice if you have the extra time.


You could add heat to this by upping the amount of crushed red pepper in the sauce.


Hope you enjoy!

My Nautical Baby Shower

I didn't get a chance to post about the awesome family baby shower my sister in law threw in April before munchkin arrived but am so excited to share it with you now! It was nautical themed and the invitations were so adorable with Ahoy It's a Boy on them.

The decor was top notch! If anyone is throwing a nautical shower, I know some of these things came from etsy. There were fun banners, various ships, a sailor hat and lighthouses that both of us and my mom happened to have for decorating the table that contained the Wishes for Baby cards and the Advice for the Parents-to-be cards. There were also thank you cards that matched the theme where the attendees went ahead and filled in their address - this is something Megan had done for her at one of her showers and it is a real time saver when you have so much going on with a new baby.

My mom gave Megan the Little People Marina to put out which I played with as a kid. Love all the old Little People stuff.

This diaper wreath was amazing! It said Baby Munchkin in the center and is from etsy.

With the wonderful host! She was so sweet to host a baby shower with a 2 month old.

Now let's talk about the amazing food. First the diaper cake on the food table was adorable. We cloth diaper but I haven't really had to buy any disposables for when we travel, etc. due to diapers from my showers.  It was the perfect centerpiece.

The food was catered by someone that catered one of Megan's showers and it was delicious! Chicken salad, veggies and dip, fruit, spinach artichoke dip and some sort of cheese dip in the hollowed pineapple that was to die for! I could totally go for some of that right now.

The cookies are from Blue Flour Bakery in Columbia and they are so so good! I first had their cookies at the shower I threw for Megan when her mom brought them. They are a great shower dessert and I prefer cookies over cake.

With Miss Abby right before we all ate.

After eating, everyone filled out the Baby Wish cards that I cannot wait to share with Munchkin one day and the Advice for the Parents-to-be. 

Then I opened the gifts. My chair even had a Mom-to-be sign and the mantle was all decorated too with BABY letters Megan made and some onesies and burp cloths y mom made.

With Eric's mom and my mom

One of our close family friends was really sweet to come up from FL for the shower.

As well as my aunt from FL and cousin from Charleston.

And my sweet niece. She was the flower girl in our wedding and is so grown up now.

There were cute cookie favors for the guests to take as they left also from Blue Flour. I actually froze two of these for us to enjoy post baby and ate them a couple weeks ago and they were still just as delicious.

Eric helped out with clean up and packing up the baby loot.

And of course this little guy dressed up for the party in his nautical wear too at a little over 2 months old!

Pregnancy Must Haves Part 2

After my Pregnancy Must Haves post, my friend Katie who had a very different pregnancy (morning sickness with "morning" being all day every day) offered to write a part 2 guest post with her pregnancy must haves. She has 8 great pregnancy must haves and tips below.

Emily and I had a blast being pregnant at the same time (and it’s even more fun now having babies so close in age!). Pregnancies come in all shapes and sizes; let’s just say mine was quite round and lacked the proverbial “glow”. As Emily mentioned in her post, the list of essentials is different for each situation so I asked her if I could write up a different perspective for all you mommas out there that aren’t even considering turning on a prenatal workout DVD. So here we go…

Trader Joe’s Organic Ginger Pear White Tea

At the first sign of morning sickness I raided my local CVS and bought every Sea-band and ginger product available. Little did I know those very products would make me just as sick as fried chicken. I found some comfort in an afternoon cup of hot tea and this one from Trader Joe’s has a little hint of ginger without the overpowering ginger flavor that sent me straight to the toilet.  I don’t think it truly solved any morning sickness problems but it made me feel like I was at least trying and it replaced my typical 3pm coffee break. 

Kleenex box

I typically keep a box somewhere in the house but during pregnancy this is a must.  Hormones are out of whack and the tears related to fear, fatigue and pure joy need something soft and gentle to soak them up.  It also came in quite handy post-birth when I had those precious moments in the middle of the night of staring at my perfect creation and realizing “This baby is mine!?!?” (uncontrolled sobbing to ensue).

Bagels/ Any other form of carb-loaded food

Clean eating? Fruits and veggies? Say what?  I ate a bagel almost every day and was once found eating a mound of mashed potatoes straight from the kitchen aid mixer bowl.  I’m not saying I didn’t gain extra weight, but it was survival and if it stayed down then I was down with it!

Saline nasal spray

Allergies and colds are tough to fight when pregnant because of medication restrictions but saline nasal spray is the bomb! I am practically addicted to this non-habit forming over-the-counter “medicine”.  I kept it on hand to help irrigate my dry nose and clear out stuffed up nasal passages.  It also helped prevent those pesky nosebleeds.

Full-sized toothbrush and toothpaste

I quickly learned the small travel sized tube of toothpaste wasn’t going to cut it. If you are beyond just nausea and not able to hold in your most recent snack, you will need to freshen your breath multiple times a day so you can smile and interact with co-workers and the pharmacy tech that you will get to know well during this time. I picked up a regular sized toothbrush and toothpaste for my work bag and I don’t think my teeth have ever been so clean.

Stool softener

Lots of anti-nausea medicine and remedies equals lots of slowed down intestines.  Ain’t nobody got time for that! Pop a couple stool softeners each night and the problem is solved.

Favorite Bible Verse

In those moments of doubt and exhaustion, cling to the promises of God’s protection and presence.  This verse became one of my favorites and was my focus during the drawn out hours of labor (notice my half-smile as I try to walk in between contractions).

2 Timothy 1:7- For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and of a sound mind.  

Modified Expectations

Like many, I dreamed of a glamorous pregnancy full of nesting, prenatal exercise and floating around with an attractive baby-baking aura.  When the morning sickness didn’t let up and my energy was put into just making to work each day I had to come to grips with the realization that my previous expectations were not only silly but truly not necessary. In the end, both baby and I remained completely healthy throughout the pregnancy and now I have more joy and love than I could have ever imagined.  Postnatal amnesia is a real thing and I would seriously do it all again.  Look at this cutie- how could I think otherwise?

Thanks for the guest post Katie! You are so right that favorite bible verses are so essential in such a changing time in your life. My favorite verse throughout pregnancy (and a verse I lean on often) was Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. And that baby is just adorable!

Avocado Mango Salsa

I love anything with Avocado in it so I was excited to try this recipe by Skinnytaste. I made it when we had friends over for dinner and with a little one it was nice to chop up everything except the avocado and mango ahead of time. I doubled the recipe since we had 6 people and leftovers also tasted great the next day as a snack. When I doubled it, I only used 1.5 jalapenos instead of 2 and it was plenty of heat. I also use more avocado than the original recipe and I was really happy with how it turned out!


Avocado Mango Salsa
from Skinnytaste, serves 5

Ingredients:

- 1 mango peeled and diced
- 2 avocados, peeled and diced
- 1 plum tomato, diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1/4 cup chopped red onion
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- salt and ground pepper to taste

Combine all the ingredients and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to serving. Serve with chips or use as a topping to a dish.

The creaminess of the avocado and mango balance the heat from the jalapeno and the flavor of the red onion nicely! I would definitely make this again. I love all the fresh ingredients it uses!