Cranberry BBQ Chicken Legs

This combination intrigued me and my family loves chicken legs. So easy to prep and cook, and such an easy freezer meal. My family devoured it! You can really use any amount of chicken that suits your family - I used 12 legs for my large family (I did have to add to the cooking time with that amount, so just be aware of that). I'd say if using 6 legs or less, make two batches at the same time -- meaning put 6 legs in each meal and divide the other ingredients in half, half in each meal.

chicken drumsticks (see note above about amount)
1/2 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
16-oz can whole-berry cranberry sauce
1 cup BBQ sauce
salt/pepper

Place drumsticks in a baking dish. Season with salt and pepper. In a bowl, combine onion, celery, cranberry sauce, and BBQ sauce. Mix well and pour over chicken. Bake, uncovered, for 40-50 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

To freeze: Place all ingredients in large freezer bag. Lay flat to freeze. Thaw in refrigerator then pour into baking dish and follow directions above.

Alabama White BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

This a delicious swap for the traditional BBQ chicken sandwiches. My 10-yr old loved them so much he had two large sandwiches! I'm not a fan of horseradish, so it can easily be left out of the sauce and it still fantastic. Thanks, Tori, for introducing me to these! (Original recipe here)

2.5 lbs bone-in chicken breasts, or 2 lbs boneless
14.5 oz can chicken broth
1 tbsp liquid smoke
1 tsp seasoned salt

White Sauce:
3/4 cup mayonnaise
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1.5 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp jarred horseradish
1 tbsp water
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt

Place chicken breasts in slow cooker. Pour in chicken broth and liquid smoke. Cover and cook on low 5 hours. Remove chicken, pull off skin, remove bones, then shred the meat. Sprinkle seasoned salt over the meat and mix it in using your hands.

In a medium bowl, whisk together sauce ingredients. Pour half the sauce on the chicken and toss. Put the chicken on toasted rolls and top with more sauce. Top with pickles, if desired.


To freeze: Put chicken, broth, and liquid smoke in large freezer bag. Mix sauce together and put in small bowl or small freezer bag. Thaw and follow directions above.

Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Taquitos

This is another meal I received as part of a monthly meal-swap. They were fantastic! My whole family scarfed them down. Serve them with the pineapple salsa and ranch dressing, or just eat plain. Thanks for bringing these into my recipe rotation, Bobbi! (Recipe from here)

3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup barbecue sauce
1 tbsp garlic powder
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1 tbsp liquid smoke
16 taco-sized soft tortillas (corn or flour)
1-1.5 cups shredded mexican-style cheese

Pineapple Salsa:
1 cup diced pineapple
1/2 red pepper, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder

In a small bowl, whisk together bbq sauce, garlic powder, pineapple juice, and liquid smoke until smooth. Place chicken breasts in bottom of your crockpot. Pour bbq sauce mixture over chicken. Cook on high 3 hours or low 6 hours. About 20-30 minutes before serving, shred chicken in crockpot and stir so chicken soaks up remaining juices.

Preheat oven to broil and grease a baking sheet with cooking spray. Lay tortillas on a flat surface. Sprinkle 2-3 tbsp of shredded cheese in a line down the middle of each tortilla. Top cheese with 3-4 tbsp shredded chicken. Tightly roll up tortillas and place them on prepared baking sheet 1" apart. Spray rolled taquitos heavily with cooking spray. Cook in the oven (on high broil) for 5- minutes or until cheese is melty and tortillas are crisp.

Combine all the salsa ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.


To freeze: Make and roll taquitos. Flash freeze on cookie sheets and place in large freezer bag. Bake at 400 for ~20-30 minutes (do not thaw completely or they will lose shape) Make and freeze salsa in small freezer bag.