Jan 10, 20124 min read

Cheesy Chicken Chimichangas and Meal Planning (when you have A.D.D.)

It’s no secret. I realized at about 27 years old that I had Attention Deficit Disorder (no joke! and I know many of you wondered why I didn’t know this about myself, but I thought *everyone* was like this!). And it was SUCH a relief to find out that THAT was the reason I loved making lists….and then deviating from them when I thought of something better.

ADD explains why it’s SO hard for me to grocery shop and stick to a list, because there are soooo many wonderful products that are just begging me to buy them because their labels are so nice…

And why I have a tendency to buy cookbooks simply because I adored the pictures and lovely font…

Meal Planning When You Have A.D.D. (and a recipe for Cheesy Chicken Chimichangas) : Vintage Kids | Modern World

And why I love to have multiple kitchen projects going at one time and when I get into a baking mood, I don’t just make cookies. I also make muffins, scones, biscotti, homemade reeses cups and probably some form of breakfast goody.

I’m an all or nothin’ kind of gal.

Someday there will be a post on A.D.D., what it is, what its not, and how I am able to eat naturally in order to manage it in both myself and my daughter.

But I totally digress from my meal plan for today.

{shocker.}

So let me explain how I plan my meals – without really planning them….

First, I’m all about cutting costs, so if I find I have an overabundance of, say, white beans in my cabinet, I try to fit in something with white beans for the week….thankfully it’s not rocket science.

I also like to make my meals flexible….for example, If I have burritos planned for dinner one evening, but when I realize that afternoon that I totally forgot to make/buy tortillas, then we have burrito bowls:

This allows me to maintain my desire for organization while allowing me to feel ok changing things up last minute because my organized-self was waaaay toooo constricting and maybe I didn’t feel like making burritos that night 😉

So, all that being said, I LOVE Gretchen’s meal-planning pattern (ie: Mexican one night, vegetarian one night, pizza one night) but I deviate from it so often that I can’t in good conscience say that I have a pattern. I just find things that look good (and if the labels have a pretty picture or font, then I make it fit into the menu that week… 😉 just kidding. mostly.

So, hopefully this gets your cooking-imagination going, and if you find ways to adapt my recipes for special diets, or you come up with a way to change it up – please leave me some comment-love!

All of my menu plans only include dinner, because breakfasts are pretty standard around here and not overly exciting (see some of my breakfast favorites on this post) and lunch is usually leftovers or finger food for the munchkins.

So, for this coming week at the Rea house, we will be having (unless I change my mind!):

Monday – Whole Roasted Chicken (loosely based off of this recipe) + soaked brown rice with butter and steamed broccoli

Tuesday – Cheesy Chicken Chimichangas (recipe below!)

Wednesday – Un-Stuffed Green Peppers (recipe coming tomorrow!)

Thursday – Burrito Bowls (or straight up burritos, if I remember to have tortilla shells on hand!)

Friday – Crock Pot Pizza. Oh yes. (and again, the recipe is coming tomorrow, so check back!!)

Saturday/Sunday –

leftovers (which unfortunately we never have many of these days…),
popcorn + smoothies
breakfast for dinner (using these great pancakes from this post)
omelets
fruit/veggie/cheese plates with hummus
grilled cheese….easy things that don’t take much planning and can be put together quickly. The kitchen is the last place I want to be on the weekend! (in case I’m in a baking mood, then watch out! 🙂

Here’s one of our new FAVORITE Mexican dishes!

Cheesy Chicken Chimichangas:

left-over roasted shredded chicken (approximately 1.5 cups but this is flexible. We usually have about 1/2 bird left if we have a roasted chicken one night, and then I pick it clean and save the leftovers for this and the bones for stock.)
8 tortillas
4-6 oz of cream cheese
2 Tb. Taco Seasoning
refried black beans
shredded sharp cheddar cheese
rice
sour cream
salsa
ranch dressing

Mix the shredded chicken, cream cheese and taco seasoning together well (and honestly, this first part is flexible and you can adjust to taste, depending on how cheesy or spicey you want it, and depending on how much chicken you have to work with)
layer in a tortilla shell the following: cheesy chicken mixture, refried black beans, shredded cheese, rice ( all of these are optional, but in my house, the more the merrier)
Fold the ends up, and then roll them in on the sides, so that the ingredients are entirely encompassed by the tortilla and you don’t have any openings.
Heat palm oil (think of it as healthy shortening! it’s a real food that doesn’t rot your intestines, was not created in a food lab, and isn’t in the plastic-family)(here’s the brand I’m talking about) in a large skillet for several minutes, using enough to make the oil about 1/2 inch deep.
Then carefully, with tongs, place the rolled up burritos in the hot oil, frying until brown and crispy.
Remove from the oil onto a plate to drain and immediately sprinkle with sea salt. While you are making these, it’s nice to cover them with a towel to keep warm, or place them in a warm oven to keep until you’re ready to serve.