Productive lunch and lazy woman's slow cooker chicken picadillo

Yesterday I had one of those days where I was ready to go back to bed by 7:30 a.m.  I woke up late, got ready late, realized too late that all of Sunny's shorts were dirty, and got to work late.  I barely had time for breakfast, didn't pack a lunch, and basically left the house a disaster.  I was having a major Tired Girl kind of day.  (For those of you who don't read The Tired Girl's Guide to the Good Life, I highly recommend you head over there right now to learn time-saving tips to navigate your day, and look awake, refreshed and put together - even when you're none of those things.   

So I decided to head back home at lunch to hopefully pick up some of the pieces from my frazzled morning.  I started by throwing in a load of wash so Sunny might have some clean clothes for this morning and not look like a unloved street rat.  On a completely unrelated note, pre-baby my laundry used to consist mainly of whites, darks, and towels.  Now I find myself doing loads that I label "bright pinks," "pastels" and "pooped-on."  What has happened? 

Next, I reheated some of Ina's Roasted Tomato Basil Soup.  I'd made a batch a few weeks ago and frozen the leftovers.  This is one of my favorite soups in the world, and perfect for this time of year when tomatoes are cheap and plentiful.  While it was heating in the microwave, I fixed myself a sandwich of whole wheat bread from my diet-busting trip to Oltimes German Bakery, mayo, mozzarella, avocado and tomato (from my trip to the Punta Gorda Farmers Market last Saturday).  I watched an episode of New Girl on Netflix while I ate and felt better about myself.

Then, because I still didn't have the energy to face the grocery store, I decided to take stock of what I could throw together for dinner.  I remembered that I had some chicken breasts in the freezer, and knew I had some leftover tomato sauce in the fridge.  Rather than leave the chicken on the counter to thaw (ewwwww), I decided to throw it in my hand slow-cooker...completely frozen.

Then, I took inspiration from one of our family's favorite meals, Skinnytaste's Cuban Picadillo.  I threw in some tomato sauce, pre-minced roasted garlic, olives (and some of their juices), bay leaf, cumin, salt, pepper and chili powder, and turned it to high.  I didn't feel like chopping anything, so I didn't add any bell peppers or onions.  Also, I think adding onions to slow cooker recipes can kind of ruin the meal.  I don't know what it is, but I find slow cooked onions to be disgusting.
 

I threw my load of bright pinks into the dryer and headed back to work, hoping that my crock pot creation wouldn't turn to disgusting mush.  I needn't have worried.  By the time I came home, dinner was basically ready and smelled yummy, clothes were dry (if wrinkled), and I felt like I almost had it all together.  All I had to do was heat up some water for brown rice (I searched my freezer high and low hoping I had some Trader Joe's organic frozen brown rice packages left, but alas, it wasn't to be), put on some yoga pants, and play with Sunny until the husband got home.  Then, it was dinner time!

As you can see, I shredded the chicken and piled it on top of the brown rice.  I also added some sautéed kale (which I had in the fridge and didn't want to go bad), and avocado (because I love avocado).  Honestly, it probably would have been better with a side salad instead of the kale, but the rest of the meal was juicy and tasty.  Plus, it took virtually no effort from me, which is always a bonus.  *Note* I like my food with a little spice, but to save my sweet daughter's taste buds, I don't add too much heat to my base recipes.  To serve, I topped my chicken with some of my favorite Mexican hot sauce (Salsa Valentina).  It adds a nice smoky flavor as well. 

Do any of you have serious lazy-day, Ican'tgotoPublixonemoretimethisweek meals in your repertoire?  If so, send them my way! 

LAZY WOMAN'S SLOW COOKER CHICKEN PICADILLO

Serves 2 adults and one toddler

Ingredients
2 frozen (or thawed) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Approximately 4 oz (1/2 can) of tomato sauce
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 cup sliced green olives
1/2 tsp minced garlic (I used the minced roasted garlic that comes in a jar)
Cilantro (optional)
Avocado (optional, for serving)
Brown rice (optional, for serving)

Directions
Dump all ingredients in a slow cooker.  Cook on high 4 hours or low 8 hours.  Shred chicken and serve over brown rice, and top with cilantro, hot sauce and avocado if you have or want them. 

Instead of serving over brown rice, you could also scoop into tortillas and have a slightly different take on chicken tacos.