A typical conversation this summer for me and Chanel has been about what to eat for lunch. Seriously. We go through this conversation nearly every day we are together. After walking early in the morning with the kiddos to beat the heat, we are generally pretty hungry, but also really hot. The combination of those two things makes us irritable (hangry, perhaps) and indecisive. Being hot does not make anything that could be very filling sound particularly appetizing.

During one of these endless conversations, Chanel finally said she wanted buffalo chicken. I immediately said no. It's not really a secret, but I'll share it again for those who don't know: I hate messy foods. I absolutely can not eat things that make me messy while I am eating them, it ruins the whole experience to me, not enhances it. This mean that things like wings, ribs, drippy ice cream cones, and the like are immediately off the list.

The second she said Buffalo chicken, I thought of all the sticky wing sauce and nixed that right away. But she persisted. So we finally worked out a way to appease us both - shredded buffalo chicken wraps! They came out with immense flavor, moist-fall-apart chicken, and wrapped up with veggies for a super filling, but light lunch. The final bonus? They all came together really fast and with not a whole lot of ingredients.

Buffalo Chicken Wraps

Makes about 4 Large Burritos

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed
2-3 cups of chicken broth
1-2 cups of buffalo sauce (we used Frank's)
4 large burrito-sized tortillas
Spinach, for garnish
Red onion, sliced, for garnish
Avocado, sliced, for garnish
Blue cheese crumbles, for garnish (optional)
Blue cheese dressing (we used Brianna's, my absolute favorite)
2 tbs. butter

In a stock pot, over high heat, combine 2 cups of chicken broth with 1 cup of buffalo sauce. Add your chicken breasts*, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly, so it is gently boiling, cover and boil until the chicken is cooked through.**

*If this amount of liquid isn't enough to cover the tops of your chicken, add more chicken broth and/or buffalo sauce depending on your spice preference. I do not recommend attempting to boil chicken in just the sauce alone, it will stick and burn to the bottom of your pot and your chicken will not absorb enough moisture.

**Depending on the size of your chicken breasts, cooking time will vary. You will want to stir the pot every five minutes or so to ensure your chicken doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot.

Crock Pot Variation: I'm sure you could achieve the same results with a crock pot. I would set the crock pot on low and let it cook for six hours, tear the chicken in to smaller pieces, then cook on high for 30 minutes to an hour, if need be.

While your chicken is cooking, prepare and slice your wraps. We used chopped spinach, sliced red onion and avocado.

Once you chicken is cooked, you will want to use two forks to pull it apart into smaller chunks, while it is still simmering in the pot. You are not shredding it all the way, just pulling it into the smaller pieces it will break into with little effort. Allowing the smaller pieces to simmer in the sauce for longer will make the chicken pieces more moist and flavorful. Continue this process every five minutes or so until the chicken is very tender.

Remove the pot from the heat, and using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken from the pot to a mixing bowl. Using two forks, shred the chicken to your desired size. Give it a taste and drizzle some buffalo sauce over it and toss together.

Heat a large non-stick skillet (or flat top) over medium-high heat.

Assemble your wraps. We layered chicken, topped with spinach, onion and then avocado. We drizzled a little buffalo sauce and blue cheese dressing over top. Then we wrapped up our burritos.

Melt your butter in the skillet, it should be bubbling. Place your wraps seam side down onto the skillet and using a flat spatula, apply pressure to the top to keep it from rolling over or popping open. Cook for 3-5 minutes, until the bottom is golden brown, then carefully roll it over, and using your spatula to keep the bottom closed, repeat this process for the top side of the burrito. Transfer to a plate, drizzle with blue cheese dressing, buffalo sauce, and garnish with some avocado and enjoy!

To be honest, I have no idea if these are Korean at all. I made up the recipe and its based off a combination of how I make Korean BBQ Short Ribs and Chinese Take-Out Style Beef and Broccoli. Both of which are a huge hit with all the boys in this house.

In any case, last week I was exhausted, it was hot and I needed something to make for dinner and couldn't think of anything that didn't seem too heavy for such a hot day. I don't know about you, but I can't even think of eating meatloaf and mashed potatoes when its 90 degrees outside. Light meals like fish or salads sound refreshing - except I was also starving.

Chanel suggested some kind of tacos and we somehow talked ourselves into creating these absolutely delicious shredded pork tacos with an asian red cabbage slaw (thats a salad, right?). They came together really fast with a few ingredients tossed into the crock pot, set it, came back a few hours later and threw it all together! Instant dinner hit.

Korean Shredded Pork Tacos

Serves 4 - 6

Ingredients:

4 lb pork loin
4 cups beef broth
10 oz. soy sauce
3 tbs. sesame oil
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 tbs. finely chopped fresh garlic
12-16 small flour or corn tortillas
1 batch Asian Red Cabbage Slaw (Below)
1 batch Sriracha mayo (Below)

In the bowl of a large crock pot, whisk together all of the ingredients except the pork. Place the pork into the crock pot, turning it over a few times with tongs to coat the meat with the sauce. Cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 6-8 (all crock pots cook differently, so these times are a guide). The pork is done when its comes apart easily with a fork.

*I like to cut the large pork loin into a couple smaller pieces about halfway through cooking, I feel like it allows more of the flavor to get into every nook and cranny*

Remove the pork from the crock pot into a large mixing bowl, and using two forks or some tongs, pull the pork into shreds. Let the pork cool slightly before assembling tacos.

To make the tacos, spread some of the Sriracha mayo on the tortilla (I used about a tablespoon per taco), then about a 1/3 cup of pork and top with 1/4 cup of slaw. Obviously, make your taco with whatever proportions suite your taste. My husband hates vegetables so he went heavy on the pork and light on the slaw.

Asian Red Cabbage Slaw

3 cups chopped red cabbage (about 1/2 of a small head)
8-10 green onions, white and green parts sliced thin
2 cups shredded carrots (about 4-6 carrots, depending on size)
1/2 cup mayo
2-4 tbs. soy sauce
1 tsp. ground ginger
Juice and zest of 1 lime
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large mixing bowl, toss together the cabbage, green onions and shredded carrots. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the mayo, 2 tbs. of soy sauce, ginger, juice and zest. You will want to create a dressing that is thin enough to pour over the slaw, but thick enough to stick to the veggies and not just sit at the bottom of the bowl. Add more soy sauce or lime juice to thin it out, and more mayo to thicken it up. Taste it as you go along and adjust the seasoning to your preference (including the salt and pepper).

When the dressing is ready, pour it over the veggie mixture and toss together. I suggest covering the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerating the slaw for at least an hour (or up to six) before serving. The flavors really meld together with some time.

Srirarcha Mayo

Small jar of mayo
Small bottle of Sriracha

This is not complicated. Mix some Sriracha and some mayo together to taste and serve away. Some like it hot, some do not. Mix carefully.