Homemade Chicken and Veggie Stir-Fry

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I love stir-fries! They're quick and easy to make- even homemade! Use whatever veggies you want/have on hand.

I also made this last night without meat and it was so good. My daughter and I got seconds! LOL. I have more left so I am going to make Japanese style battered chicken with it for Thursday night dinner :-) Tonight is pancake night. #teamtired

This recipe is inspired by Ellie Krieger's Teriyaki marinade which is basically the same as stir-fry sauce! Serve with rice or noodles or with nothing else.

Chicken and Veggie Stir Fry

• 2/3 cups soy sauce
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup mirin/sake/or rice wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon ginger, minced
• 1-2 tablespoons garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch/potato starch
• 1 tablespoon oil of your choice (veg/canola), divided
• 1 tablespoon sesame seed oil, divided
• 3-4 chicken breasts sliced thinly or diced 
• 1 green pepper (I used about five japanese green peppers)
• 1-2 heads of broccoli, cut into florets
• 1 cup carrots, sliced thinly
• 1 half head cabbage (optional) sliced thinly
• 1 onion (size depending on your taste) sliced thinly
• 4 cloves of garlic sliced thinly

Directions
Combine the first 7 ingredients in a small bowl and stir until evenly combined. Pour half of the marinade over the chicken, and mix until evenly coated. Marinate for 15 minutes or overnight.

Heat the 1/2 tablespoon of the oil of your choice along with 1/2 tablespoon of sesame seed oil in a non stick pan or wok over medium heat. First cook broccoli and carrots for about a minute and then add the rest of the vegetables. Stir often. Cook about 5 minutes then remove from pan and set aside. With the empty pan still on medium high heat,  add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of oil and sesame seed oil. Cook chicken until nearly cooked through about five minutes, add the veggies back to the pan and remaining stir fry sauce. Stir until mixed thoroughly.  Lower heat and allow to cook about 2 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. If the sauce looks too thick add about 1/4 cup water.


Hope you all enjoy!

Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Buttermilk Waffles: The Ultimate Comfort Meal!

I remember being a snooty little rugrat when I first heard of chicken and waffles...it was actually when I was watching an episode of "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air". I remember thinking, "Why the hell would you eat fried chicken and waffles together?" I thought that because my mom was old school, I wouldn't be here making this blog post if I had said the "H" word out loud. Back to the story, I was just weirded out by this strange combination. Waffles- ONLY eggo waffles for me- were breakfast with pork sausage, bacon and or scrapple. And fried chicken was only for lunch or dinner. NO way can you combine the 2!

Fast forward to my adult years as the microwave queen, I still couldn't stomach it. Then when I got into cooking and being the from scratch gal that I am, I could dig the combo. In fact, I wanted to try this last month before my husband left, but was distracted. Then last week, I asked my eldest child after his 2 week stay with his father, what he wanted for dinner and he asked for chicken, waffles, rice and something else in a soup. I liked the idea of chicken and waffles together so I went to work.

I marinate my chicken up to 12 hours prior. First I season, then pour buttermilk over for the juicest most flavorful fried chicken you will evah eat. Adding cornmeal makes a nice crunch, but a little goes a LONG way. No need for more than a scant 1/4 cup or you'll break yo' teeth. The waffle recipe I found on www.cooksillustrated.com. I wanted a great recipe and you can not go wrong at all with America's Test Kitchen! These were some AMAZING waffles, too. It uses powdered buttermilk which is different, but it made the lightest dry mix! I also like it because you don't get the  sour buttermilk taste. 

Also oil instead of butter was used for a crispy on the outside and fluffy in the middle waffle. It's damn good! Definitely a hit with my children and my German friends! All you chicken and waffle virgins must try this and pour some good grade b maple syrup on both waffles and chicken! Don't look at me like that, I know you like BBQ chicken and one of the main ingredients is some kind of sweetener! Give this a shot!


 
Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Buttermilk Waffles
Printable Recipe here!
Buttermilk Fried Chicken
Ingredients

• 1 Whole Chicken about 4 pounds, cut-up (alternatively you can purchase your favorite chicken pieces totaling 4 pounds)
• 2 cups buttermilk, shaken
• Pre-floured seasoning:
• 1- 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp Seasoned Salt (I love McCormick's Season All)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning or dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 onion powder
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper or white pepper
• 1/8 tsp cumin
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons cornmeal

Flour seasoning:

• 1- 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp Seasoned Salt 
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning or dried thyme
• 1/2 onion powder
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper or white pepper
• 1/8 cayenne pepper

• 24- 36 ounces peanut oil

Directions

If you're using a whole chicken, cut up into 8 pieces- remove backbone two breasts, two wings, two legs, and two thighs.

Place chicken in a large resealable bag or large bowl. Season chicken all over. Pour buttermilk over chicken and allow to sit in the fridge 12 hours to overnight or as little as 30 minutes.

While marinating or next day, add flour, additional seasonings and cornmeal to a large bowl.

Once marinated, remove chicken from bag or bowl allowing excess buttermilk to drip from piece. Dip chicken into flour and place on paper towels or a cooling rack with paper towel under.

Heat oil in a heavy skillet (I prefer a cast iron skillet!) 350 degrees using a good thermometer or candy thermometer.Once heated, place as many pieces in the skillet as possible. The reason is so each piece cooks evenly and crisp. Cook about 20-25 minutes. Wash or use another cooling rack lined with paper towels to place cooked chicken- to avoid any sogginess. Remove each piece except breast. I usually let the breast cook another 5 minutes since they're the biggest pieces.

Allow to rest about 5 minutes.

Buttermilk Waffles

Adapted from Cook's Illustrated

Ingredients 2 cups (10 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon sugar 1 tsp cinnamon 3/4 teaspoon table salt 1/2 cup dried buttermilk powder (can be found in the baking aisle) 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 cup greek yogurt* (see note) 2 large eggs 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 cup peanut oil or vegetable oil 1 1/4 cups unflavored seltzer water *I used Greek yogurt instead of sour cream in the original recipe. I allowed it to thicken by placing a paper towel on a slotted spoon on a bowl to catch the whey. Directions Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 250 degrees. Set wire rack in rimmed baking sheet and place baking sheet in oven. Whisk flour, sugar, salt, buttermilk powder, and baking soda in large bowl to combine. Whisk Greek yogurt, eggs, vanilla, and oil in medium bowl to combine. Gently stir seltzer into wet ingredients.  Make well in center of dry ingredients and pour in wet ingredients. Using a rubber spatula, gently stir until just combined. Batter should remain slightly lumpy with streaks of flour. Heat waffle iron and bake waffles according to manufacturer’s instructions (use about 1/3 cup for 7-inch round iron). Transfer waffles to rack in warm oven and hold for up to 10 minutes before serving with butter and maple syrup. Place waffles and chicken on plate and add some good grade B maple syrup to both! You'll be sent to comfort heaven for sure! Eat Sparingly or every Saturday morning I don't care it's really good! Enjoy!!!!!

Also check out Salty Seattle's GENIUS take on this classic American dish: http://www.saltyseattle.com/2011/01/chicken-and-waffles-meet-modern-gastronomy/

Peach Barbecue Chicken Personal Topped Pizzas

For a sunny winter's day a sunny dinner is the perfect fit!

I was craving mangoes, but I wanted to make pizza the following night. I looked in my fridge hoping to have some mangoes left over from a previous dinner. None they were eaten. Looked in my freezer for frozen mangoes. None. However while scrummaging, I found some frozen peaches and had an awesome idea. I love pizza with barbecue sauce and it's my son's favorite way since he isn't keen on tomato sauce. So I had the great idea of making a peach barbecue sauce. I've made mango barbecue sauces many times and the whole family thoroughly enjoys it, so I thought peaches would be a great as well. My son doesn't like peaches, or at least he THINKS he doesn't like peaches so I thought this would be a great way to sneak him some.

The peaches were completely thawed, still had specks of ice. My daughter kept sneaking chunks while I was looking the other way!

Sauces are the perfect way to sneak healthy veggies or fruits your children wouldn't at at first site. Check out how I got my son to eat a Hokkaido Squash this past autumn. I am a sneaky Mama. But hey, a mama's gotta do what a mama's gotta do.

This sauce has a great kick and you and your children will love the slight sweetness of the peach paired with the shredded chicken. It's certainly a treat for your taste-buds!! Using whole wheat flour in the makes this pizza less guilty and more healthy.  If you don't like spice, use a dash of red pepper flakes or none at all. My spice hating daughter gobbled these down! Hope you give these a try!

Peach Barbecue Chicken Topped Personal Pizzas

Printable Recipe

For dough

From Cuisine at Home Specials Simple, Healthy & Delicious

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour or whole wheat flour (i used this!)

1t kosher salt

1/2 cup warm water

2 1/4 t or one pack of active dry yeast

2 T honey

1 T olive oil

For Peach Barbecue Sauce

Adapted from Epicurious

1 lb frozen or fresh peaches 

1 medium red onion, chopped about 3/4 cup

1/2 t scotch bonnet pepper finely chopped

1 T canola oil

1/4 cup bourbon

2 1/2 T honey

2t dijon mustard

1 t dark brown sugar

1/4 t chili powder

For Chicken*

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 cups chicken broth (homemade or less sodium) or water

1t whole peppercorns

1 cloves of garlic, smashed

1 dried bay leaf

*Leftover chicken or deli rotisserie chicken may be used here instead

For Pizzas

1 cup white cheddar cheese

1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano

Directions

Proof yeast in water with honey until foamy, 5 minutes; add oil

Combine flours and salt in a large bowl making a deep well in the center

Add yeast

Stir with fork until mixture and flours come together. Once together, knead about 5 minutes until smooth. Oil a bowl and cover for 2 hours in a warm draft-free area. Or do as mama did and allow to rise in the refrigerator overnight. 

Meanwhile, make BBQ sauce. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

 Add onions and peppers, cook,  stirring occasionally for 8 to 10 minutes.

Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes stirring occasionally.
 Place in blender and blend until liquefied or use an immersion blender. Place in bowl or jar and set aside. This can be made up to 3 days in advance!

Now on to chicken. In a small saucepan, add chicken, garlic, pepper, and bay leaf.  Cover with water or broth. Bring to a boil then, turn down to low cooking for 10 minutes. Then remove from heat and allow and sit in water for 10 minutes. Once slightly cooled, shred with fingers or fork.

Preheat oven to 475F. If you have a pizza stone, warm that as well on lower rack.

Once dough is doubled in sized, punch down dough (if you did it over night, allow to come to room temp for about 15 minutes first), shape into two balls. Cover balls with plastic wrap and place in a warm draft free area for 30 minutes to rise.

Once risen, shape dough into 8 inch circle with hands or rolling pin. 

Scatter cornmeal on cast iron skillet or baking pan. add dough.

Add BBQ sauce

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Cheddar Cheese

Chicken. 

If desired add a few pieces of chicken to BBQ sauce and place on top. Then top with freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano and olive oil.

Cook for 10 minutes or desired crispness. Allow to cool slightly and remove from pan. Then ENJOY!!

This will also taste amazing with some green veggies such as broccoli florets and some crispy shallots! Hope you enjoy this as much as my family did!!!

HAPPY PIZZA MAKING!

Pale is Bon! French Chicken in a Pot

Kind of looks like my chicken is doing a Martial Arts stance- its flavor is kicking!!! (I'll get me coat)

It's flipping cold, so warm comforting dishes are staple around these parts. Recently I bought Cook's Illustrated's Holiday recipe special. How could I not with the AMAZING Stuffed Beef Tenderloin on the cover calling my name whenever I glance at the magazine section at the shoppette?

While relaxing in the tub, where I do my best thinking, I read through this issue and decided to use most of the recipes in my Christmas Day meal and some for baking. There was also this amazing French Chicken in a Pot recipe that I had to try. What I love about Cook's Illustrated is that they test everything and write all about it. Not only do I love  reading about the history of a dish, I also love to read about different techniques that makes recipes work; one of the many reasons why I love this magazine.

When I saw the French Chicken in the pot recipe I was intrigued by the subtitle: Taking cues from a French technique for cooking chicken in a covered pot we forgo crisp skin for succulent meat and unforgettable flavor. 


I must say my favorite thing about Roast Chicken is the crispy skin. My 5 year-old's too. He always ask for plenty of skin whenever I roast chicken. With this chicken, what you get is a wonderfully aromatic dish full of bold flavor. Nothing bland, but the lack of of tan *zig zag snap*! The amazing flavor of this chicken will make you  forget all about crispy golden skin. Heck, I lost my summer glow (all of my base make up is a shade darker! Don't buy foundation in the summer) my chicken did, too!


French Chicken in a Pot
Adapted from: Holiday Entertaining From Cook's Illustrated, pg 12-13


1 (4 1/2 to 5 pound) whole chicken (mine was about 3 pounds) giblets remived and discarded, wings tucked under the back
2 t of kosher salt or 1 t of table salt
1/4 t black pepper
1 T olive oil
1 small onion, chopped medium (about 1/2 cup)
1 small celery rib, chopped medium (about 1/4 cup)
6 medium garlic cloves, peeled and trimmed
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh rosemary- optional (i used thyme!)

Directions
Adjust the oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Pat Chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.

(dont forget to tuck those wings!)

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat until just smoking.



Add chicken breast side down; scatter onion, celery, bay leaf, and thyme (if using) around chicken. and vegetables are well browned, about 5 minutes.


Using a wooden spoon inserted into cavity of the bird, flip chicken breast side up and cook until chicken and vegetables are well browned, 6 to 8 minutes.



 Remove Dutch oven from heat; place large sheet of foil over pot and cover tightly with lid. Transfer pot to oven and cook until instant read thermometer registers 160 degrees Fahrenheit when inserted into thickest part of the breast and 175 degrees in the thickest part of thigh. It took my chicken about 50 minutes as it it was smaller!

Transfer to a carving board, tent with foil, then allow to rest for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, strain juices from pot. Allow to stand then skim fat from top of sauce with a spoon.



Allow liquid to settle, then simmer over low heat. Add any accumulated juices from  rested chicken and lemon juice. Douse chicken in delicious sauce!



I hope you try this delicious dinner. It's so fragrant full of flavor. Not your typical roast chicken with crispy skin, but the taste is just as amazing, if not more!! This was loved by everyone in my family! Serve it with a veg and my Skillet Potatoes and you're golden! Bon Appetit!

My Children Cleaned Their Plates Thanks to YOU.

I read blogs because I love being inspired. I only discovered the blogosphere after creating my own blog, and boy am I happy I started this! I read many different blogs almost everyday, but of course my favorites are food blogs as cooking is my passion and stuff. The following bloggers has helped my little ones join the clean plates club two nights this week.

Monday night, I cooked Ramen, Steak with Mushrooms. I was inspired to make this from reading one of my favorite people in the blogosphere, Lazaro Cooks. His Ramen with Two Bean Ragout & NY Strip Steak had me drooling! He has a plethora of recipes that are utterly beautiful and amazing. He's very knowledgeable about everything he posts about. He's also brought to my attention many other fabulous blogs with his regular guest posts. Check him out fo sho.


My children prefers mushrooms over beans so I cooked some cremini mushrooms I sliced, sauteed  until softened, added some minced garlic, after about a minute, added a little wine then let the wine cooked down a little, The mushrooms were softened, but had a bite.
For the steak, after I seasoned it with soy sauce, then  I cooked it the exact way Lazaro said he did. I cooked the steak in a low oven (100 Celsius) in my cast iron skillet for 40 minutes, then dried the skillet with a paper towel, and seared the steaks on both sides over high heat; I then let them rest for about 10 minutes then sliced them. They came out PERFECTLY. The meat was so juicy and had flavorful. My baby loooooved the steaks as did my other children My baby never ate steak before, by the way. First I plated the ramen that I seasoned with salt, pepper and a little garlic powder, placed the sliced steak and mushrooms over and together and it delicious and easy. Thanks man!


 
Yesterday I cooked a recipe from Gourmet's Kitchenette called Lemon Chicken. She put a curry spin on a classic and man was it delicious! All 3 of my children loved them and asked for seconds! We are currently eating more for lunch!!! I doubled the recipe as  knew this recipe would be good just from reading it. The only thing that confused me was that it's called Lemon Chicken, but Lime juice was used. Doesn't matter, this chicken was so flavorful and the meat fell from the bone. It was AWESOME. Give her blog a look 'round. Her exotic flavors will have your stomach rumbling and tastebuds very intrigued!  Yes, taste buds have a mind of their own. Don't wiki that.
To make this healthier, remove the skin and use skim milk.

Butterflied Sweet and Spicy Chicken!

Fellow food bloggers or people photograph food for whatever reason: have you ever gotten seriously hungry editing or going through your food flicks? I do and did this afternoon! I literally ate 15 minutes before editing, and whilst editing, I got a sudden craving for the very food I just prepared last night! Lucky for me I had just enough leftover and now I am very happy.

Hopefully when you look at my photos and read my blog you become hungry, too. More than just appetite-wise, but hungry to get in the kitchen and whip up your own amazing creation. It doesn't have to be some crazy feast, we all know or at least learn the hard way (me!), simple is better most of the time.

So yesterday, I whipped up some chicken and broccoli. Really simple and quite delicious. You can prep the chicken and sauce the night before and grill when you get home. This dinner is done within an hour, and
as my Aunt Ina Garten (ok imaginary aunt) says, "How easy is that?" Even better, you can stick the chicken in the oven!

So what makes this chicken special? It's butterflied.  A butterflied chicken is flattened and grills faster and more evenly. It's great when you're not in the mood to joint a chicken, too.

To butterfly a chicken you must remove the backbone using super sharp kitchen shears or a super sharp knife.

Ok, now remove any excess skin hanging around, and flatten the chicken out a bit. In the center you see a biggol bone. That there is the breast bone. 

With your boning knife, just lightly score around it. Bend the sides backwards to pop it free. You may need to cut it out, but be sure not to cut any flesh! Just around the bone!

Tuck the tips of the wing behind the breast if it already isn't. And there you have a pretty flattened birdy.

 Hey birdy!

Laying back ready for it's tan.

Now what to do with this bird? Grill it.

Honey Barbecue Chicken

Adapted from FineCooking September 2008 Issue

For the Rub

2T olive oil

2.5t kosher salt

1 t chili powder

1 t paprika

1 t brown sugar

1 t thyme

3/4 t freshly ground black pepper

1/4 t chipotle powder

1 t garlic powder

4-lb butterflied chicken (above technique), patted dry

Honey Glaze

1/2 cup honey

1 T soy sauce

1 T ketchup

2 t Dijon mustard

2 t Worcestershire sauce

1 t apple cider vinegar

Asian chili paste to taste (i used 1t!)

Directions

In a small bowl, mix all ingredients for rub (except chicken- just in case you're wondering!).

Now rub the season all over that bird including under the skin!

Using a spoon is the best way for me. But you can use a rubber spatula or your hands! Be careful not to tear the skin!

Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours or if you don't have the time, allow to sit at room temp for 30 minutes.

Prepare the honey glaze by combining all ingredients. Set aside, reserving 1/4 cup for for drizzling over cooked chicken.

Tinkerbell works her magic

Heat all burners on a gas grill on medium low or prepare a charcoal fire with a hot zone and a cooler zone with the lid down. Or heat your oven or 400F! Lightly oil grates. You should be able to  hold your hand a couple inches above the grill for 2 to 4 seconds. If it's too hot turn it down. It's too cool, wait a lil while. Set meat on grill and sear 5 to 10 minutes. Be sure to sear and not burn. Keep a close eye on  chicken in case of flare-ups.

Flip chicken and move to the cooler side of the fire (charcoal) or adjust burners on gas grills. For 3 burner gas grills, turn the middle burner off, and set the front and back burners to medium low.

Put grill's lid down and brush bird with honey glaze every 5 minutes, until instant read thermometer inserted in the thickes part of the thighs register 165F. Took be about 40 minutes. Depends on the grill, I guess.

Once done, allow to rest for five minutes and drizzle with reserved sauce.

This was so tender, juicy and full of flavor. This a must try at home!

I served this along with some caramelized broccoli with garlic. The children loved everything! Definitely a winner 'round here!