Author Archive: Courtney

Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken

Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken

Ever since I got on Pinterest, I’ve been wanting to cook something from there.  I looked for the easiest recipe I could find so that I could make it without my husband’s help.  When I get home from work, I want to eat RIGHT then.  It doesn’t matter if it’s 3:00 or 5:00.  I’m starved.  So, a crockpot recipe seemed like the way to go so I could make enough to eat for the week. 


Buffalo chicken is seriously the easiest thing to make.  You don’t even have to thaw out the chicken.  You just put all the ingredients in the crockpot and leave it alone for 6 – 7 hours!! 


  • 3 lb. bag of frozen chicken breasts
  • 1 bottle Wings Buffalo Sauce
  • 1 packet Ranch Dip Mix
  • 2 TBSP butter
  1. Put frozen chicken, wing sauce, and ranch dip mix into crock pot.
  2. Cook on low at least 6 to 7 hours
  3. Using two forks, shred chicken & return to crock pot.
  4. Add butter.
  5. Cook on low for an additional hour.
  6. Enjoy!


    It’s not really the prettiest thing ever, but it’s really good. It’s got a little kick to it.  You can eat it as a sandwich, a taco, over chips, etc.  Try it out!  It’s easy and delicious!!

Walking

Like almost every woman out there, I am always trying to lose weight.  Well, yesterday was Super Bowl Sunday, so the whole weekend was spent eating.  This morning I decided I needed to ramp up my morning walk.  (I walk a little over 4 miles almost every day.) I added 10 lunges at every mile.  The last block, (after the 4 miles), heading back to my house I did 20 lunges.  For those of you that are mathematically challenged, like myself, I did a total of 60 lunges today!  I think I will try to do this every other day.  I’ll add more lunges per mile as I get stronger.

Hummus!

Anyone that knows me is aware of my love of nachos.  I can eat them for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  One of the girls at work was saying that she has been making a healthier snack of the week and one of the snacks she made was hummus.  I’ve always liked hummus, so I thought I’d try making some myself as a substitute for nachos.  I am NOT a cook, so I was a little nervous about making this, but it really is a matter of throwing everything in a blender and pushing start.  It was SO easy!  I recommend this as a healthier alternative to chips and cheese!

Recipe:
2 cans of chick peas (19 oz.) 90% drained
Juice of 1 lemon
7 Roasted garlic cloves plus 1 fresh clove of garlic
7.5 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp tahini paste
1 tsp salt or garlic salt
**Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

It makes A LOT, so be prepared to feed an army!

Rugby

I’ve never been to watch Rugby before.  My friends’ son just joined a new rugby team and was in Austin for a game.  They played at Burr Field, which evidently hosts an Austin Rugby team.  It was lots of fun.  I am going to have to look up the schedule for the Austin team and head out there to watch some time.

FIRE PIT!


If you are looking for the perfect accessory for your back yard, I have two words for you:  FIRE PIT!!!  This year my husband got me a Fire Pit for Christmas.  It is one of the best gifts I have ever gotten.  I love it.  We have spent hours of endless fun seeing how big we can get the fire, roasting marshmallows, making s’mores, and just plain standing around it. This summer the goal is going to be to build a nice patio and the fire pit will be the centerpiece of it all!  Can’t wait!!

House

We’ve lived in our house for about 3 years now. You would think in all that time, we would have thought to paint. But, no. Well, I take that back. We’ve thought about it. We just never acted on it. I really like color on the walls. It makes a house feel more like a home. So it happened. We finally started painting! We have a lot to go, but at least we have one room painted!

Torchy’s Tacos

I haven’t posted anything on this blog in a really long time. I had pretty much forgotten about it until my father asked me if I had posted anything on here lately. Looking back, I focused a lot of attention on the places I had gone to eat once I moved to Austin. I haven’t stopped eating out, so I think I should resume writing about the spots where I eat! That’s where Torchy’s Tacos comes in.

Torchy’s is THE BEST taqueria I have found in Austin. I am totally addicted to their food. Their chips and queso is like crack to me. I could probably eat it every day! They mix a little guacamole in there and I have no idea what else, but it is YUMMY!! I also LOVE their baja shrimp tacos. I haven’t actually tried any of their other tacos, because once I found the baja shrimp tacos, I fell in love! My husband has pretty much tried all of their tacos and said he has yet to have one that isn’t good.

There are several locations, but my favorite is on South 1st street. Be prepared to wait in line and have trouble finding a seat if you go there. I don’t think I have been to any of their locations and slipped right in.

Star Seeds

I love to go out to eat for breakfast. I enjoy getting up on a lazy weekend and eating out with family and friends. It sets the stage for the rest of the day. I have a few favorite places to go and places that I really don’t like to go. For me, breakfast basically revolves around the breakfast taco. If a restaurant has a breakfast taco, then I’m willing to try it. This weekend, we decided we needed to try something new. I googled breakfast places in Austin and about the only one we hadn’t tried was Star Seeds. I’ve heard about it, I’ve seen it, but I’d never been there.

Star Seeds is on I35 next to a Days Inn, which in my book isn’t a good sign; but I figured I’d suck it up and try it anyway. Thank goodness I did. Luckily for me, they have breakfast tacos. They are some of the best breakfast tacos I’ve had here in Austin. I don’t even know if you can call it a taco. It is a HUGE amount of fillings on a tortilla. I had to ask for another tortilla, to turn it into two tacos. Even then, I couldn’t even finish it. Good eats!

My husband was even more happy. He said this is his new favorite breakfast place. They actually have the good old fashioned breakfast with eggs, bacon and real hashbrowns. Most restaurants these days try to get fancy with their potatoes, but that’s not what my hubby wants. He wants real hashbrowns. Evidentally, they made them just the way he liked them!

The only thing missing at Star Seeds is a latte machine. I guess that would be too fancy for this small diner. That’s ok, I can easily stop somewhere else on the way home!

Tamale House No. 3

Tamale House No. 3 on Airport Blvd. was recently written up in the Austin American Statesman, so I thought I better go try it again! I haven’t been there in forever. According to the paper, they’ve been open for 30 years now! It’s quite fascinating to see the ladies at work behind the counter. They put together many combinations of breakfast deliciousness in split seconds. Breakfast tacos are only $.85 and well worth much more!

You better bring cash, as they don’t take credit cards. Also, be prepared to take it to go, because there aren’t many tables and if it’s cold out, you can forget it!

Candle Factory

I looked up the Candle Factory on-line just to make sure they were open before I made my 30 minute trip there. It says it is open 361 days a year on their website. Excitedly, I drove out to Georgetown in hopes of finding the perfect candles. When I got there, I noticed that there were no cars out front. I drove up to the front door to read the sign: CLOSED!!!! Can you believe it!? It is going to only be open on the weekends from now until they move. Where are they moving? I guess I will have to try again another time! Maybe this weekend.

While I was out that way, I went to the Round Rock outlet stores. They didn’t have ANY candle shops. I didn’t get anything while I was there. They did have some pretty good stuff, I just wasn’t in the mood to buy!