Over the last few weeks I have made an effort to start cooking healthier meals at night for our family. At this point, we can get Taylor to try almost anything and nine times out of ten she loves it. Carson, on the other hand, is a little more picky, so I usually just use some of the ingredients I have for the meal and tweak his a little. If I already know beforehand its a complete loss, I’ll just make both kids something different all together. I swore I would never do this, but sometimes it’s just easier and saves a whole lot of battling at the dinner table 🙂 

All four of these recipes use chicken as the source of protein, but you can also substitute the chicken, shrimp, or beef for the first two if you prefer.  

Todd and I both agreed that this recipe was our favorite! The fresh orange zest and squeezed juice gave it so much flavor and made the chicken super tender, plus, the broccoli gave it the prefect crunch.  And just a heads up, I could not find coconut aminos anywhere in the grocery store, so I ordered mine off Amazon here. 

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• ¼ cup chicken stock
• 3 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• ¼ cup fresh orange juice
• 3 tablespoons coconut aminos
• 1½ teaspoons Sriracha sauce
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds for garnish, optional
• Broccoli recipe

1. Melt coconut oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add in chicken pieces and cook until cooked through and browned, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from skillet and set aside.
2. While chicken is cooking, stir together chicken stock, honey or maple syrup, garlic, orange zest, orange juice, coconut aminos, Sriracha sauce, ginger and red pepper flakes. Pour into heated skillet once chicken has been removed and reduce to low heat. Cook, stirring often, until sauce has been reduced and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Remove from heat and pour over chicken.
3. To serve, spoon chicken over a bed of broccoli and then spoon on additional sauce. Top with sesame seeds, if desired.

 * And for the kids, I just took the heated chicken and salsa and made them chicken and cheese quesadillas with refried beans on the side.

• 1 (16 oz) can low-fat refried beans (you may not need the entire can)
• 2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
• ½ cup salsa
• vegetable oil, or cooking spray
• 8 flour tortillas, fajita or taco size
• 1 (10 oz) can red enchilada sauce (you will only need about half a can)
• 8 ounces shredded Mexican blend cheese
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 Roma tomatoes, diced

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Warm up beans in a small bowl in the microwave. Combine chicken and salsa in another bowl and warm it up in the microwave.
3. To toast the tortillas, either heat oil in a skillet and fry both sides of the tortilla, or spray both sides of tortilla with cooking spray and heat on skillet (my preferred method).
4. Lay four of the toasted tortillas on a large baking sheet. Spread with about 2 tablespoons of refried beans on each tortilla. Top with the salsa/chicken mixture, evenly dividing it among the four tortillas. Top with another toasted tortilla.
5. Spread a thin layer of enchilada sauce on the top of each tortilla. Sprinkle with shredded cheese, evenly dividing it among the four pizzas. Bake in preheated oven for 5-7 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
6. Cut into triangles and serve immediately. Enjoy!