The same & different....

Wednesday & Thursday Recap:

Hey guys, sorry for the delay in post.  The good part?  Both Tuesday & Wednesday looked nearly identical, so you weren't missin too muchJ

Both days started with the same breakfast & lunch of banana chocolate chip Vitatops & Blended coconut yogurt...

But I DO have a new snack to share with you.  My Mom gave me these new Kashi Hummus chips to try and they are perfect and tasty snack for when a salt craving hits...

...all with the added bonus of protein from the chickpeas!

And at 120 calories for 27 chips, they are certainly a HEARTY snack.  I had half of the serving amount and it was more than enough for a quick afternoon bite. 

Anyway, back to dinner...and one that was so good that we had the leftovers again last night!  That may look like an ordinary pulled chicken sandwich, but I bet you'll never guess the 'secret ingredient'...

MANGO!!!  

Pulled Chicken with Mango BBQ Sauce to be exactJ

You can buy pureed mango at the store to cut out this first step, but honestly it really only added about 10 minutes to my prep times, so it wasn't too much of a big deal.  A quick way I cut a mango is to first slice off the 2 sides that are around the center pit...

Next, I dice the fruit into segments, leaving the skin in tact... 

...and then just take a spoon or knife and scoop out the segments... 

WALLAH! 

I tossed the mango segments into the food processor along with about 2 tablespoons of water and pulsed until smooth...or at least mostly smooth.  A few chunks of mango in there is no big deal.

2 mangos will produce a little over 1 cup of puree...

Although this may not be all too accurate seeing as how I found out Katie is a REALLY big fan of mango.  She was eating it way faster than I could even chop it upJ

 Anyway, I added the mango puree to the slow cooker along with:

• 1 diced onion
• Juice from 1/2 lime
• 1/4 cup light molasses
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• Sprinkles of salt, ginger, cumin, garlic & onion powder

Mix everything together and add the chicken breast.

I cooked my chicken on low for about 5-6 hours until it was cooked through.  I then took about 1 1/2 cups of the liquid and let it simmer in saucepan on the stove on low heat for about 15 minutes, or until it thickens up. (a good indication its ready is when it coats the back of a spoon)

Let it sit for a few minutes to thicken up while it cools.

While the sauce is simmering, give the chicken a quick shred...which should be super easy since it nearly fell apart with a mere tap of the fork.

Next, pile the chicken on some hamburger buns and top with a cheese of your choice.  Provolone or smoked gouda work great here!

Let the cheese broil for a few minutes to melt, remove from oven, top with some MORE of that great Mango BBQ sauce and DEVOUR! 

A kiss of sweet & smokey from the mango BBQ sauce, gooey cheese and tender pulled chicken and this dinner was ACES!  And it even got better the longer it sat (as evident by our EXCELLENT leftovers yesterday!) 

 I had served it up with a quick 'slaw' made of cabbage, carrots, diced onion and a little vinegar & lemon juice.  I planned on eating it ON TOP of the sandwich...but after a few bites, I decided I liked my sandwich just simple to enjoy all the yummy flavors to the fullest!

However, we did have ONE slaw fan in the houseJ  Katie enjoyed herself 2 servings worthJ 

She also inhaled our 'other' side dish...Corn on the cob!  (I think she even took a few nibbles of the husk.  Opppss....oh well, we've all been thereJ)

Corn made even more awesome by another of our 'great gifts from Austin'.  This special corn salt is made from a mix of chili powder, dehydrated lime juice & salt... 

What is it about lime that just makes the flavor of corn EXPLODE????  This simple seasoning just brought corn from great to reallllllllllllllllllllllllly great! 

So there ya go...a dinner so good that it was enjoyed TWO days in a rowJ  The one BIG difference from Tuesday to Wednesday, though?  My workout schedule!

Tuesday:  20 minutes circle pilates  (and Dance MomsJ)

Wednesday:  1+ hour power yoga (DRENCHED IN SWEAT!), 1 hour Body Jam (even MORE sweat), 1+ hour Kundalini yoga.  That's what I call a full day of body AND mind workoutsJ hahahahahahaha

And speaking of yoga, I had to laugh when I spied Katie watching "Sesame Street" this morning in near-perfect "Cobra pose"...

Point toes and allJ  That's my yoga girlJ hahahahahhaa

Alright, well let me scoot off.  Hope you have a good one (and never fear, the weekend is not too far away!!)