Buffalo Blue Cheese Chicken Braid and Chicken Bacon Ranch Chicken Braid Recipe

Fun Weeknight Dinners

As a mom of five kids, I am always looking for quick weeknight recipes that my kids will enjoy and that are easy for me to prepare. Many of us want no-fuss, healthy meals whether you are a single person living alone or are a large family like us. My number one time-saving tip is to keep shredded, cooked chicken on hand for both quick lunches and easy dinners.

With the shredded chicken I make dinners like bbq chicken sandwiches, nachos, and tacos for those days I didn’t meal plan beforehand. Salads like this Thai Peanut Chicken Salad or this Spinach, Fruit and Nut Salad can be thrown together for a quick meal, or prepared in advance for a grab-and-go lunch to take to the office.

One of my favorite ways to use shredded chicken is in bread braids! Have you ever heard of bread braids? This recipe uses time-saving frozen bread dough thawed according to the package and filled with any of your favorite ingredients. Each side of the dough is cut into strips and folded over to create a braid-like look. You could go as simple as this Buffalo Blue Cheese braid or Chicken Bacon Ranch braid for a weeknight dinner or fancier fillings like a steak, spinach and feta braid for entertaining guests.

The best thing about bread braids is that you can create many different combinations to suit your family’s taste (or if you just want to clean out the fridge and use up whatever you have on hand)! I’ve made a braid filled with pizza toppings and even a dessert braid filled with apple pie filling. You could make this a fun activity and cut the bread dough into four small rectangles and have everyone make their own personal braids. Bread braids may just take over pizza night!

What are you filling your braids with?