Posts by: Angie Rose Randall

Adobo Chicken Bowls

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Let me start by saying, these Chicken Adobo bowls are AMAZING! I typically get bored of chicken recipes but the spices and bold flavor of this recipe make it climb to the top of my favorites. When you add the toppings and avocado crema, it just enhances the dish further and will make you go back for seconds – guaranteed!

I will say though that this recipe has a lot of steps and while nothing about it is difficult, I wouldn’t make it on a weeknight if you were in a rush or didn’t want to have a lot of dishes. You can do a lot of it in advance though – like cook the quinoa and make and store the avocado crema – so dinner can be quicker.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound chicken breast
  • 1 cup quinoa
  • 1 can of black beans
  • 1 can of corn

Avocado Crema

  • 1 avocado
  • 2 garlic gloves, minced
  • 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 cup cilantro
  • Pinch of salt

Chicken Marinade

  • 1/4 teaspoon Chipotle powder or Cayenne if you prefer spicy
  • 1/4 tablespoon Cumin
  • 1/4 tablespoon Onion powder
  • 1/4 tablespoon Garlic powder
  • 1/2 can Adobo peppers, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Toppings

  • Optional: Jalapeno, spring onions, cheddar cheese, chopped tomatoes, lettuce, peppers, lime wedges

Instructions

  • Quinoa – Heat 2 cups of water and once water reaches a boil, add in 1 cup of dry quinoa. Sprinkle in some salt, onion and garlic and lower heat to simmer. Once cooked, remove from heat and cool. Quinoa can be made in advance and store in the fridge, if necessary.
  • Chicken – Combine the chicken and the seasonings for the marinade; add both to a plastic bag and store in fridge for 1 hour – 24 hours in advance of cooking
  • Add olive oil to pan and cook chicken on medium heat for 5 minutes on each side; check to see if chicken has cooked thoroughly and if not, cover for a few more minutes. Once cooked, allow chicken to rest for 10 minutes before slicing into cubes.
  • Avocado Crema – Add avocado, minced garlic, olive oil, and salt to a food processor or hand blender
  • Gather all of your other toppings to make bowls (I like to separate all of them with these serving bowls) and heat beans, corn and quinoa in a saucepan so they’re warm
  • Assemble bowls and add avocado crema to the to. Enjoy!

Plan out your weeknight nights in advance with my Weekly Meal Planner templates.

You can find them all here. 

Not your typical New Years Resolutions

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It’s been a long yet productive year!

Lots of exciting things happened… We welcomed Jack to our family, Chloe started preschool, we celebrated our 5 year anniversary, Bill switched jobs and my business, SocialChow continued to flourish. But it was also a challenging year, too, with a scary pregnancy problem that caused Jack to be born prematurely, and I had more than my fair share of health problem including a MS relapse after his birth. My body has never endured so much but thankfully, I am now recovered and we are adjusting a family of 4. To say I feel blessed is an understatement.

As you can imagine, we need a BREAK from big goals, crazy changes and lofty New Years resolutions. As Bill recently said, “we need to do NOTHING but chill for the next few years” and I couldn’t agree more. We are planning to focus on ourselves and our family’s happiness.

BUT, since I am me, I do have a small resolution that relates back to my love for organization which helps me decompress, release stress and juggle this crazy world around me. I call this resolution “tackling the low hanging fruit on my to-do list”.

You know those things that you always plan to do or want to do but they never happen?

Maybe it’s cleaning out your garage or taking the pictures off your phone… Well, I’ve narrowed that list down and I think these “to do’s” below – which may seem small and insignificant – will actually save me time every day and make my days more efficient in the long run.

Organize the folders on my computer desktop and iPhone screen

My computer desktop and my phone folders need some major organizing! This may shock some of you because I am typically a buttoned up person but I never bother to take the time to do this. Instead I have icons all over my screen with zero rhyme or reason, duplicate folders on my desktop and quite honestly, it takes me longer to find things than it should. I need to sort through it all, organize into categories and delete a lot! I am a big purger in life so doing it with your unused apps or folders you never use is necessary too!

Updating my Username + Password excel spreadsheet

I cannot begin to tell you how often I reference this sheet for every and any thing. I feel like I constantly need to provide a username, or ID, or password and I can’t for the life of me remember what it is (so many passwords now require numbers, some kind of symbol, can’t be your name…) Ahhh! It’s a mess. So several years ago I created a password protected excel spreadsheet that’s organized them into tabs (health, financial, kids, retail etc) that houses all of that stuff. I need to take the time to get it updated and buttoned up.

Unsubscribe from emails

I’ve been wanting to do this FOREVER and it’s just never been a priority. Now, if I don’t check my phone every 30 minutes I get overloaded with emails that I NEVER read or even want. I am going to make an effort to de-clutter my life by removing this “junk” mail.

Back up all 2019 photos and make my 2019 album.

I actually make an effort to take my favorite photos off my phone monthly and organize them to my computer, so I need to do that for the final month or two of the year. (A few years ago purchased Carbonite which is a software that regularly backs up my documents and pictures in case anything goes wrong.)

When I was pregnant with Jack, I made it a priority to complete 3 years of family albums to finally catch up since Chloe was born. That look so much time but I created a system that helped me organize it all and now I simply need to replicate it to make our 2019 album.

Ok, that’s it! While these may not be your typical resolutions, I am excited to tackle them in 2020 to hopefully make my every days more streamlined and efficient.

What’s on your New Years resolution list? Let me know below.

Wishing you all a happy and healthy New Year!

How Your Kids Can Give Back This Holiday Season

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Winter in Chicago is certainly a reminder of how fortunate we are to have a roof over our heads and clothes to keep us warm. We have lots to be grateful for, so in the spirit of Thanksgiving, Chloe and I did a special activity to help those in need.

Living in the city, we often pass homeless people on the streets and giving them a few dollars hardly feels like enough (especially after explaining to a toddler why they are outside in the cold). So this season we we made “stay warm” bags to pass out to those people we see and are sending sending gently used winter gear to a local shelter.

I’m not posting this to boast about our good deed but rather to show how simple it can be for a child to “give back” this holiday season in a graspable and age appropriate way… I know many of us are struggling with time so I’ve itemized these donation items below with links directly to Amazon (you just have to add to your cart and buy – easy!).

Don’t have time to assemble bags but want to help? Purchase CTA ride passes or $5 Starbucks cards in bulk and pass them out when you see someone outside. Either buys them a warm place to go for the day.

Hoping with your help we can turn our 18 bags into hundreds more.. who is with me? ❤️

“Stay Warm” Bags

Below are the items you would need to make 12 bags. 

**Note: some items are no longer available so I subbed them for something similar.

  • Fleece hat (1 pack allows you to put 1 in each bag)

  • $5 Starbucks gift cards / Public transportation pass

Delicious Tuna Cakes

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These Delicious Tune Cakes are a staple in our house and one of my favorite meals I cook. Not only are they packed with flavor but I love them because I usually have most of the ingredients on-hand and can whip them up in no time.

It’s rare that I buy canned foods (I try to stick to fresh produce and whole meats or fish) but when I do, I always choose Wild Planet Albacore Tuna. The fish they offer is wild and sustainably-caught – not farm-raised which is important to me- and also contain less mercury than standard canned fish.

I always keep several jars in our pantry so I have them for those weeknights when I’m not sure whether I’ll cook. The rest of the ingredients in this recipe – like egg, flour, breadcrumbs, mustard, mayo – I usually have in my fridge/pantry so it’s simple to pull these tuna cakes together.

Side note: I used to buy these cans of tuna for a whopping $5 each at Whole Foods (you’re paying for the better quality fish, of course) but I recently found the exact Albacore Wild Tuna on Amazon for $3 a can, so I now purchase in bulk from there.

I usually make these tuna cakes in advance during the day and then store in the fridge for a few hours. When you’re ready to eat, they’re ready in less than 10 minutes. Let me know how you like them!

Need an easy way to plan your meals for the week? Download my weekly meal planner.

 

Fridge Organization

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Never thought the day would come but my organizational habits have now carried over to my fridge… and you know what, the outcome feels – and looks – so good!

We grocery shop once a week and I used to find myself throwing everything in our fridge without any real rhyme or reason. I always ended up forgetting that I had certain items and I couldn’t find anything easily. Insert – fridge organization.

Now, everything in our fridge has a “home” and I know exactly where to look for our proteins, veggies, fruits, condiments, etc.

Check out our fridge organization below and my guide to everything you need to organize your own fridge.

Inspired to organized your fridge? I have everything you need to get started below. It’ll feel SO good after – promise!

FRIDGE ORGANIZATION MUST-HAVES

  1. Label maker – This Dymo Label Maker is my go-to organizational item and it’s obvious why.. Everything in my house is labeled! This particular personal label maker comes with 2 tape cartridges and is super easy to use.
  2. Clear Bins – You can never have enough clear bins! These Pantry and Refrigerator Organizer Bins are perfect for kitchen or cabinet storage. I love using them because you can easily separate your groceries according to type – proteins, veggies, fruits , etc. 4 bins are included in this set which makes these a good deal too!
  3. Can holders – These Greenco can storage bins are perfect to organize cans of La Croix, beer or soda. They each hold up to 11 cans and they come in a pack of 2
  4. Egg holder – Love this iDesign Plastic Egg Holder to store your eggs safely. It holds up to 21 eggs and has a lid to protect them from other items in your fridge.