Sandwiches | onedadskitchen

Save Time and Effort with Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

While the temperature and humidity around here have eased a bit today, it is typical for July around these parts of New York to be very sticky and humid, making it uncomfortable all day long and making you feel like you really do not want to put much effort into dinner. Nights like that for use are usually good for really simple meals that involve little or no cooking at all, which means making things like sandwiches, salads, hot dogs and the like for dinner. Sure you can always get take out or go out if you like, but that gets expensive to do too much and you don’t have control over the ingredients you are eating. You can always compromise somewhere in the middle and buy some pre-cooked items, such as a rotisserie chicken, and make good use of that in a meal for you and your family in a bunch of ways. One thing I recently did was use a rotisserie chicken to make some pulled chicken sandwiches for a meal. You can do this just as easily with leftover chicken and simply shred it yourself and even use your favorite bottled barbecue sauce if you like, but I decided to make my own sauce to get the flavor we really like. The basis of this recipe comes from Ellie Krieger on the Food Network site.

Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (14-ounce) can tomato sauce
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
5 tablespoons molasses
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 whole rotisserie chicken, skin removed, meat shredded into thin strips (about 4 to 4 1/2 cups)
6 hamburger rolls
Lettuce leaves, for garnish

Pickle slices, for garnish

Coleslaw, store-bough or homemade, for garnish

Heat the vegetable oil in a large saute pan set over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until they are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more until the garlic is fragrant. Add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, water, cider vinegar, molasses, pepper and liquid smoke and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the chopped chicken, return the mixture to a simmer, and cook for an additional 10 minutes.

Split the hamburger rolls. Place a leaf of lettuce on each roll, then pile on 3/4 cup of the chicken mixture onto the roll and top with pickle slices, coleslaw and additional sauce, if desired.

That’s all there is to it and it tastes great. You get a nice barbecue sauce to simmer the chicken in without a lot of work and the liquid smoke adds great aroma and flavor to the sauce. I used the pickleback slaw recipe I have made before as the coleslaw for a topping and we just had the sandwiches with some chips on the side to keep things simple, though they would go well with some potato salad, macaroni salad or even just a simple side salad. You could even make these as sliders if you wanted to use them for a buffet or party and have them done in minutes.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of you day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on July 10, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Leftovers, Lunch, Poultry, Sandwiches

Tags: chicken sandwiches, Ellie Krieger, food network, pickleback slaw, pulled barbecued chicken sandwiches, pulled chicken, pulled chicken sandwiches, rotisserie chicken

Meatball Frenzy Week Continues – Turkey Meatball Panini

05 Jun

So now that I had all of these meatballs I needed to find things to do with them. Luckily, Giada didn’t let me down and I supplied several other recipes in ways that you could use these great turkey meatballs. The best part about all of them is that they con convert into really easy meals that only take a few minutes to create and you have something entirely new to enjoy for the night. The first up was this really simple meatball panini recipe. I have a panini maker, but you can just as easily do this with a grill, grill pan or skillet with a little bit of effort and it will come out great too. This recipe makes use of the meatballs and a few other simple ingredients to make awesome paninis for the family to enjoy.

Turkey Meatball Panini

1 red onion, peeled, cut into eight 1/4 -to 1/2-inch-thick rounds

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 ciabatta rolls, halved horizontally (or other bread of your choice)

1 cup tomato sauce (homemade or your favorite jarred brand)

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional

1 1/3 cups arugula

12 Classic Italian Turkey Meatballs, halved

8 thin slices prosciutto

8 slices provolone cheese

Preheat a grill pan or a panini maker. Brush the red onion slices on both sides with the olive oil. Sprinkle the onions with kosher salt and black pepper. Grill the onion slices until they are tender and lightly browned, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Set the onions aside to cool

Pull out and remove some of he bread from the ciabatta rolls from each half of the rolls. This will give the meatballs a better place to sit in the sandwich. Spoon half of the tomato sauce over the bottom halves of each of the rolls. Sprinkle the sauce with red pepper flakes, if using. Add the arugula, the turkey meatballs, the prosciutto slices, grilled onions and the remaining sauce to each sandwich. Top each sandwich with two pieces of cheese. Add the tops of the rolls and drizzle the tops with olive oil. Using a pastry brush, brush the olive oil evenly over the tops of the rolls.

Place the sandwiches in the panini maker and lower the press and cook until the cheese has melted and the meatballs are heated through, about 5 minutes. Alternatively, place the sandwiches on a grill pan or in a heated skillet and place a cast-iron pan or other heavy pot (anything heavy will really do) to press the sandwiches down and cook through until the cheese is melted and the meatballs are heated through.

Cut the panini in half and serve.

The great thing about paninis, or any sandwich really, is that you can put whatever you like best on them. If you don’t like provolone, use your favorite cheese on it instead or no cheese at all (which is how I eat it). If you don’t have prosciutto, use any type of ham that you like (which I did for Sean; I used Black Forest Ham). you can use any type of other toppings that you really like or use different meatballs and still get good results (those these meatballs are really good and you should try them out). I had mine with just the grilled onions, meatballs, red pepper flakes and arugula. Michelle had hers with the meatballs, arugula, grilled onions and provolone. Sean had his with the meatballs, Black Forest Ham and prosciutto, no onions or arugula. They all looked really good and everyone really enjoyed the sandwiches. It was a great way to re-purpose some of the meatballs for a quick meal.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

1 Comment

Posted by MikeG on June 5, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Lunch, Poultry, Sandwiches, Turkey

Tags: classic Italian turkey meatballs, Giada di Laurentiis, meatball panini, turkey meatball panini, turkey meatball recipe, turkey meatballs

Step Up the Burrito a Notch with These Surf and Turf Burritos

18 Apr

Burritos are one of those things that are great for breakfast, lunch or dinner because you can really put anything you want inside one to make it work for you. They are easy to make and take no time at all and you can even make them ahead of time and reheat them if you need a quick meal. I decided to jazz up our burritos meal last night by making some surf and turf burritos, not using lobster meat and filet mignon of course, but opting for shrimp and some skirt steak that I had placed in some carne asada marinade. The simple marinade makes a big difference with the skirt steak as it adds great flavor to the meat and helps to break it down some to make it easier to slice and eat. If you are going to use a skirt steak or flank steak for this, you want to make sure you use a marinade along the way.

Carne Asada Marinade

1/2 cup orange juice

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup soy sauce

1 teaspoon finely chopped canned chipotle pepper

1/2 tablespoon chili powder

1/2 tablespoon ground cumin

1/2 tablespoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 tablespoon black pepper

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup olive oil

2 pounds skirt or flank steak

Combine the orange juice, lemon juice and lime juice in a large bowl along with the garlic, soy sauce, chipotle pepper, chili powder, cumin, paprika, dried oregano, black pepper and the cilantro. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until all of the marinade is well combined.

Place the steak between two sheets of plastic wrap on a solid, level surface and firmly pound the steak with the smooth side of a meat mallet so that is a thickness of about 1/4-inch. After pounding the meat, poke the steak all over with a fork. Add the meat to the marinade in the large bowl, cover the bowl and allow the steak to marinade in the refrigerator for 24 hours.

Heat a grill pan or cast iron skillet over medium high heat and lightly oil the surface with vegetable oil or olive oil.

Remove the steak from the marinade and cook until your desired doneness, about 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium-rare. Discard the used marinade. When the meat is cooked to your liking, remove the steak from the grill pan or skillet and let it rest for 2 to 3 minutes before slicing thinly across the grain.

You could simply serve the meat this way with a couple of nice side dishes and you would have a great meal, but I decided to incorporate the steak into our surf and turf burritos for an extra special treat for dinner.

Surf and Turf Burritos

6 large, 10-inch flour tortillas

1 cup sour cream

1 cup guacamole or 1 avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced thinly

1 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese

2 pounds Carne Asada, sliced thinly (see above recipe)

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled, deveined and cooked, chopped

1 cup salsa or pico de gallo

On a flour tortilla, spread a layer of sour cream, then a layer of guacamole or sliced avocado and then layer liberal amounts of cheese, carne asada, shrimp and salsa or pico de gallo. With wet fingertips, fold over the sides of the tortilla and roll it up. Repeat the process until you have filled 6 tortillas.

Place the rolled burritos in a hot skillet or on a medium-hot grill. Cook the burritos until they are golden brown on both sides, about 6 minutes total.

These were really good and very filling. The great flavors of everything combined were awesome and you can make a fancy sounding and great tasting meal in just minutes with this recipe. Of course, you could probably use filet mignon and lobster if you really wanted to, but for burritos this is ideal and tastes great. I also made some Tex-Mex rice and beans to go along with the meal and I will post the recipe for them tomorrow. This recipe is definitely one we will be having again since we all loved it.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

3 Comments

Posted by MikeG on April 18, 2014 in Beef, Cooking, Dinner, Lunch, Sandwiches, Sauce, Seafood

Tags: Burritos, burritos recipe, carne asada, carne asada marinade, flank steak, shrimp, skirt steak, surf and turf burritos

Going Meatless – Sparrow Veggie Burger

30 Mar

Everyone once in a while I do try to make a meatless dish so we can stay away from red meat. We don’t eat a lot of it here, but every little bit helps some, right? It’s also no secret that I watch a lot of Food Network, especially when it isn’t baseball season, so a few weeks ago Michelle and I saw Diners. Drive-Ins and Dives and Guy Fieri was a restaurant in Queens where they made this really great looking vegetable burger. Now most vegetable burgers I have had in the past have left a lot to be desired but this one looked like it had some great stuff in it so I wanted to give it a try. It took me a while to track down a recipe online and even then it was not very specific so it took a little manipulation on my part to make this one work.

Sparrow Veggie Burger

2 shredded carrots

1 shredded zucchini

1 cup barley, cooked

Corn off the ear of 1 cob

1 cup green peas

1 large sweet potato, cooked

handful of scallions

Panko breadcrumbs

1 diced red pepper

5 large chopped mushrooms

1 cup cooked brown rice

Pita bread

Lettuce or bean sprouts

Pickles

Sweet Cayenne Mustard Sauce:

1 cup plain nonfat yogurt or mayonnaise

3 tablespoons cayenne pepper

1/2 cup grain or Dijon mustard

3/4 cup agave or maple syrup

Mix the carrots, zucchini, cooked barley, corn, green peas, sweet potato, scallions, breadcrumbs, red pepper, mushrooms and the cooked brown rice together in a large bowl until blended. Allow the mixture to sit for 1 hour so the flavors can meld together.

While the vegetables sit, make the sweet cayenne mustard sauce. Mix the yogurt or mayonnaise, the cayenne pepper, mustard and the agave or maple syrup together in a medium bowl with a whisk until smooth and well blended. Set the sauce aside.

Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees.For the veggie burgers, measure out six-ounce portions – about the size of the palm of your hand – and form patties for the burgers. Place the patties on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Cook the patties in the oven until they are cooked through, about 45 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon of vegetable and heat until the oil is shimmering. Add the patties to the skillet and cook until the burgers are browned and crunchy on the outside, about 4 minutes per side.

Drizzle the sweet cayenne pepper sauce inside a pita. Add the lettuce or bean sprouts to the pita, then add the veggie burger and the pickles and drizzle with more sauce if desired. Repeat with the remaining burgers.

Okay, here are a couple of things we noticed in this recipe. First, this recipe makes a lot more than the 6 portions the recipe purports to make. We had over twelve patties when all was said and done, so you can bake them and freeze them so you always have some ready to make when you feel like having one and just defrost it and bake it in the skillet. Second, these burgers do not hold together well because there is not much to bind them. We actually experimented with another batch and added 1 beaten egg to the mix and they held together much better than the first batch. From what I have been able to see about the Sparrow Diner, while they call it a burger, it is not really served as a burger that holds together, which is why they serve it in a pita, which is fine, but we wanted more of a burger texture so we added the egg and served it on a hamburger roll. Finally, for the sauce, I cut back on the cayenne pepper. Three tablespoons is a lot of cayenne pepper, so if you like it hot, go for it, but if you want something milder, cut back a bit and you will have a great sauce. Michelle and I both liked the results of the burger. It had great flavor with all of the vegetables and we enjoyed. In the interest of full disclosure, Sean hated it. He didn’t like the taste and said it didn’t hold together well, but I think for the majority of teenage boys who hear they are having burgers for dinner it was an understandable reaction. He did eat it, but he wasn’t happy with it, so next time around I guess it is just for me and Michelle.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. I’ve been really busy lately so I haven’t been able to blog as much as I want, but I am going to try harder to keep up regularly since I still have lots to share. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

2 Comments

Posted by MikeG on March 30, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Sandwiches, Sauce, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Tags: food network, Guy Fieri, Sparrow Diner veggie burger, vegetable burger, veggie burger, veggie burgers

More Burger-Like Options – Triple Pork Burgers

15 Mar

It seems like I have been making a lot of burger and sandwich options lately when it comes to mealtime around here. I have been doing a lot of work lately, which has left me less time to get in the kitchen and try out some new things, and it doesn’t help me any that I love sandwiches and burgers overall anyway, so I am always looking for an excuse to try out something different. I had come across this recipe on Food Network a while back and have wanted to try it for a while, but finding chorizo to use around here is not always an easy thing. When I saw some on sale when I went shopping this past week, I finally had the opportunity to get it and give this one a try. If you like your pork, this triple pork burger is a great option for you.

Triple Pork Burgers

1 1/2 pounds ground pork
1/2 pound fresh chorizo sausage, casings removed
1/4 cup finely grated Pepper Jack cheese
1 small shallot, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 slices bacon, cooked crisp
8 rolls, sliced
Curly leaf lettuce
3 sliced plum tomatoes
Smoked Paprika Mayonnaise, recipe follows

Smoked Paprika Mayonnaise:
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon hot sauce

Preheat a flat top grill pan or large skillet to medium-high heat.

In a medium bowl, mix the ground pork, sausage, Pepper Jack cheese, shallot, garlic, and salt and pepper, to taste. Form the meat mixture into equal-sized patties that will fit nicely onto the buns you chose.

When the grill pan or skillet is hot, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable and oil and heat until it is smoking. Cook the pork burgers for 4 to 5 minutes and then flip the burgers and continue to cook for another 4 to 5 minutes on the opposite side until they are cooked through and nicely browned on each side. Remove the pork burgers from the pan and serve on split rolls with a slice of bacon, lettuce, tomato and the Smoked Paprika Mayonnaise.

For the Smoked Paprika Mayonnaise:

Mix all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl. Cover the mayonnaise with plastic wrap and refrigerate until you are serving, allowing the flavors to meld. The mayonnaise can be made a day ahead.

These burgers have a little bit of everything to offer for the pork lovers. You get the ground pork, the heat and bite of chorizo and the crispness and great flavor you always get from the bacon all in one burger. Throw in the great taste you get from the smoked paprika mayo and you have a great option for a burger indoors or for when you are grilling outdoors. I personally did not have any cheese in mine, but Michelle and Sean both loved the addition of the cheese inside their burgers. You can use whatever cheese you like best, but the Pepper Jack seems to go really well with these burgers.The original recipe from Food Network uses these to make sliders, which I think they would be great for as well if you want a great snack or appetizer for a party.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on March 15, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Grilling, Pork, Sandwiches

Tags: chorizo sausage, food network, Pepper Jack cheese, smoked paprika, smoked paprika mayo, smoked paprika mayonnaise, triple pork burger recipe, triple pork burgers, triple pork sliders

Superb and Scrumptious – Curried Chicken Salad Sandwich with Peach Chutney

05 Mar

It’s no big secret that I love sandwiches. I am pretty sure I could just eat different sandwiches for meals all the time and be quite happy with it. I am always looking for new ideas for sandwiches and Michelle and I were watching “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” a few nights ago when we saw this sandwich being made at the Leaping Lizard Cafe in Virginia Beach, Virginia. it was for a chicken salad sandwich with peach chutney that looked amazing. We both immediately wanted to have one and since driving to Virginia Beach at that time wasn’t very practical, I decided we would be better off making it ourselves. They were not real specific about amounts for the ingredients and it took some searching online before I finally found a posting at Group Recipes for one that seems pretty darn close to what they made.

Curried Chicken Salad Sandwich with Peach Chutney

1 rotisserie chicken, dark and white meat picked and pulled

1 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 to 2 teaspoons curry powder (to taste)

4 scallions, sliced – white and green parts sliced into 1/2-inch pieces

1/3 cup toasted almond slices

For the Peach Chutney:

1 can sliced peaches in natural juices (16 ounces), drained but not rinsed

3/4 cup diced red pepper

3/4 cup diced onion

1/4 cup raisins

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups water

Salt and pepper to taste

For the chutney, combine the peaches, red pepper, onion, raisins, cinnamon, ground cloves, ground ginger, cider vinegar, sugar and water together in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and then turn the heat down so the mixture is at a simmer. Simmer the chutney until the liquid is reduced by 2/3, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cool the chutney to room temperature.

For the chicken salad, whisk the yogurt, mayonnaise and curry powder together in a medium bowl until well blended. Set the dressing aside for the flavors to meld, about 15 minutes.

Take about 1/3 of the picked chicken and place it in the food processor. Pulse briefly in the food processor until the chicken is finely ground. Combine the ground chicken, the remaining shredded chicken and the mayonnaise mixture. Toss in the sliced scallions and almonds and mix gently to fold in the chicken. Toss in 1/2 cup of the cooled chutney with the chicken and blend well.

To make the sandwich, take two slices of preferred bread and place sliced tomatoes on half of the bread. Spread the chicken salad over the tomatoes and top with lettuce or other leafy greens. If you desire, place the sandwich on a panini press to toast it lightly; do not press down on the sandwich while it is in the panini press. Slice the sandwich and serve.

This chicken salad was delicious and made a great sandwich. I loved the mix of the chutney with the peaches and raisins and what it added to the sandwich and the curry in the chicken salad was not overpowering at all and added some great flavor. The sandwich had everything you could want – great taste, vegetables, fruit and some crunch. I would definitely make it again and had leftovers for lunches for days and had the chutney with a bunch of other meals as well.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

2 Comments

Posted by MikeG on March 5, 2014 in Cooking, Lunch, Poultry, Sandwiches, Sauce

Tags: chicken salad, chicken salad sandwich, curried chicken salad, curried chicken salad sandwich with peach chutney, Diners Drive-ins and Dives, Leaping Lizard Cafe chicken salad, peach chutney

It’s a Chicken Invasion, Part 4 – Fried Chicken Biscuits

01 Feb

So yesterday was for a basic fried chicken sandwich from Cook’s Country, which was very tasty. Today is something that is just as easy, might taste even better and is a little more homemade. The recipe id for fried chicken biscuits and is from Bon Appetit, who got the recipe from the Pies-N-Thighs restaurant in Brooklyn, New York. The recipe sounded too good to pass up – delicate and spicy fried chicken on a nice fluffy homemade biscuit with honey butter. How could you not at least give it a try?

Fried Chicken Biscuits

For the Fried Chicken:

1 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon hot sauce
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 skinless, boneless chicken cutlets (about 1½ lb. total), pounded to ¼” thickness

For the Biscuits:

3 teaspoons baking powder
2½ teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon baking soda
5½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more
1½ cups (3 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1½ cups chilled buttermilk
1 large egg, beaten to blend
For the Honey Butter and Assembly:

½ cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
¼ cup honey
½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more
Vegetable oil, for frying; about 2½ cups
2 cups panko Japanese breadcrumbs
Freshly ground black pepper
4 Pies-N-Thighs Biscuits (recipe above)
Hot sauce, for serving

For the chicken cutlets, combine the buttermilk, hot sauce, salt, black pepper, and cayenne in a resealable plastic bag; add the chicken. Seal the bag, turn the bag several times to coat, and chill the chicken in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.

For the biscuits, preheat the oven to 375°. Pulse the baking powder, salt, sugar, baking soda, and 5½ cups of flour in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until the texture is of coarse meal with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining.
Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Mix in the buttermilk with a fork, then gently knead the dough just until a shaggy dough comes together.
Pat out the dough on a lightly floured surface until it is about 1¼ inches thick. Cut out the biscuits with a 3” biscuit cutter, re-rolling the scraps once.
Place the biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet and brush the tops with egg. Bake the biscuits until they are golden brown, about 30–35 minutes.

To make the honey butter, mix the butter, honey, and ½ a teaspoon of the salt in a small bowl until smooth; set the honey butter aside.

To prepare the chicken, pour the vegetable oil into a large skillet, preferably cast iron, to a depth of ½ an inch and heat the pan over medium-high heat until the oil bubbles immediately when a little panko is added.

Meanwhile, place the panko bread crumbs in a shallow bowl. Remove the chicken from the marinade; season it with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the panko, shaking off any excess. Working in 2 batches and maintaining the oil temperature, fry the chicken until it is golden brown, crisp, and cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a paper towel–lined baking sheet to drain.

Split the biscuits and spread each side of the biscuits with 1 tablespoon of the. reserved honey butter. Build the sandwiches with biscuits, chicken, and hot sauce, if desired and serve.

Just a couple of things about these recipes. I used chicken tenders that I had bought on sale this past week instead of the chicken breasts and they seem to work out just fine for me. I think you could probably just as easily use boneless thighs as well if you like them better. i did have a little trouble with the panko bread crumbs not sticking very well to all of the chicken pieces. I think I might flour them a little next time after they come out of the marinade to make them stick better, but overall the flavor was really good. To me, the real winner here is the biscuits. They tasted really good and were nice and fluffy. The recipe calls for you to use a 3 inch biscuit cutter, which seemed too big to me so I made them smaller, using a 2 inch cutter and got more biscuits out of the batch so we were able to use them for other meals. Everyone loved the biscuits so I know I’ll be making this one again. I made a little cole slaw to go along with the biscuits. I tried a different recipe this time, which I will post soon, but you can use any cole slaw recipe you like best.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

2 Comments

Posted by MikeG on February 1, 2014 in Biscuits, Breads, Cooking, Dinner, Poultry, Sandwiches

Tags: biscuits recipe, bon appetit, fried chicken, fried chicken biscuits, honey butter, honey butter recipe, pies-n-thighs biscuits, pies-n-thighs fried chicken biscuits

It’s a Chicken Invasion Part 3 – Fried Chicken Sandwiches

31 Jan

This recipe is actually the first of two chicken sandwiches that I tried this past week. I think they are great simple sandwiches for dinner or for lunch, but they are also great to use for football Sunday if you want something easy that is a great snack alternative. This first recipe is for a fried chicken sandwich recipe that I got from the latest issue of Cook’s Country magazine. it’s a pretty simple one that tries a little bit of a different method for the coating for the chicken, but I think it worked out pretty well.

Fried Chicken Sandwiches

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried sage

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed and halved crosswise

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 tablespoons water

2 egg whites, lightly beaten

2 quarts vegetable oil (I didn’t use this much oil, but the recipe calls for it)

4 sandwich rolls

Combine the salt, paprika, pepper, garlic powder, thyme, sage and cayenne pepper in a bowl. Measure out 1 tablespoon of the spice mixture and set it aside. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Using a meat pounder, gently pound each piece of chicken to about 1/2-inch thickness between two pieces of plastic wrap. Season the chicken all over with the remaining 2 3/4 teaspoons of the spice mixture.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and the reserved 1 tablespoon of the spice mixture together in a large bowl. Add the water to the flour mixture and rub it together with your fingers until the water is evenly incorporated and shaggy pieces form. Place the egg whites in a shallow dish.

Set a wire rack in a rimmed baking sheet. Working with 1 piece of chicken at a time, dip the chicken in the egg whites to thoroughly coat them, letting any excess drip back into the dish, then dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, pressing on the flour to make sure it adheres. Transfer the chicken to the prepared wire rack and refrigerate the pieces for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.

Add the vegetable oil to a large Dutch oven until it measures about 1 1/2 inches deep and heat the oil over medium-high heat to 375 degrees. Add the chicken to the hot oil. Adjust the burner, if necessary to maintain the oil temperature between 325 and 350 degrees. Fry the chicken, stirring gently to prevent the pieces from sticking together, until the chicken is golden brown and registers 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 4 to 5 minutes, flipping the chicken pieces halfway through the frying. Transfer the chicken to a clean wire rack and allow the pieces to cool for 5 minutes. Serve on the rolls.

Adding that little bit of liquid to the seasoned flour makes the flour clumpy, which gives it a lot more texture when it has cooked. To me it seemed a lot more like good fried chicken pieces and had better crunch to it than a typical fried chicken sandwich, which was great. As I said, I hate using that much oil for frying and I pretty much cut the amount in half and still got good results. I just don’t like to use that much myself and it is a pain to dispose of, so I try to get away with less when I can but if you want to follow the recipe exactly, go for it. I got good results with less but maybe you get a better fry with more oil. I served the sandwiches with some pickles, lettuce and bacon and some french fries, but some cole slaw would have been great with this. I actually made a cole slaw with the other chicken sandwich I made, so you’ll see that recipe next time :). Overall, I think it was a good recipe with a really crispy crunch, which was great.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another chicken recipe. until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

Leave a comment

Posted by MikeG on January 31, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Poultry, Sandwiches

Tags: chicken sandwich, chicken sandwiches, Cook's Country fried chicken sandwich, fried chicken, fried chicken sandwich, fried chicken sandwich recipe, fried chicken sandwiches

A Prime Way to Start the New Year – Prime Rib Sandwiches

01 Jan

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a wonderful day and evening yesterday and you are ready to start off 2014 in grand style. Granted, this recipe is not one that you can make very often, but since I had some leftover prime rib, this seemed like a great way to make good use of it. Of course you can always make a little prime rib if you want just to make these sandwiches. While I did get the recipe from Saveur, I altered it quite a bit to the point where I think it is mostly mine so I could make use of some items we all like in the sandwiches.

Prime Rib Sandwich

1 medium onion, peeled and thinly sliced

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

4 ounces mushrooms, cleaned, stems removed, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 1/2 cups beef broth

1/2 Roasted Prime Rib recipe or leftover prime rib, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon butter

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

4 sandwich rolls

Slices of cheese – Provolone, Colby Jack, Cheddar (whatever you really like), for topping

Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat until it is shimmering. Add the onion and cook until the onion softens and is just starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook just until the mushrooms begin to release some liquid, about 3 to 4 minutes.Whisk in the flour and cook until it is well blended into the vegetables, about 2 minutes. Slowly begin to whisk in the beef broth, a little at a time until so that it absorbs a bit into the vegetables and then just add it slowly, whisking constantly, to avoid lumps from forming in the gravy, about 4 to 5 minutes. Bring the gravy to a boil and reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the gravy is slightly thickened, about 4 to 5 minutes.Stir in the butter and add salt and pepper to taste.

Stir in the prime rib and cover the pan until the meat is heated through, about 5 minutes. Place one roll on each serving plate and place slices of prime rib in gravy, onions and mushrooms in the roll. if you desire top with any cheese that you like and serve as a cheese steak sandwich or simply serve as an open-faced sandwich without the cheese.

For the cheese steak style sandwich, you may want to place the sandwich under the broiler for a minute to get the cheese melted the way you would like it. I preferred mine without the cheese and just as an open-faced sandwich. You can add all kinds of toppings to this if you wish, like peppers, or hot peppers or even other vegetables that you might like to have. You can even serve it with some mashed potatoes or some oven baked french fries and let them get some of the delicious gravy as well. To me, there was no better way to make use of the leftover prime rib. It was super tender and tasted great with the gravy. It made me wish I had leftover prime rib around the house a little more than once a year!

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for some more recipes. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day, Happy New Year and enjoy your meal!

2 Comments

Posted by MikeG on January 1, 2014 in Beef, Cooking, Dinner, Gravy, Leftovers, Sandwiches

Tags: leftover prime rib, prime rib recipe, prime rib sandwich, prime rib sandwiches, roasted prime rib, Saveur

Another Great Holiday Appetizer – Meatball Sliders

15 Nov

There are some things you may not think of as a great holiday appetizer unless you just happen to have everything fall into place as far as ingredients and what you have on hand. This was one of those recipes for me. I had some meatballs on hand already that I had made and frozen, so it really just became a matter of putting them together with the rolls and some cheese and we were all set. Now, if you wanted to make this recipe ahead of time and use it for a holiday appetizer, it is certainly easy to do. This is the meatball recipe that I use most often, but you could easily use any meatball recipe you prefer or even use some frozen meatballs you may have on hand to make things even easier.

Meatball Sliders

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 medium carrot, roughly chopped

1 medium onion, roughly chopped

6 cloves garlic

1 cup fresh parsley leaves

1 pound ground beef

1 pound ground pork

2 large eggs

1 cup Italian-style breadcrumbs

1 cup plus 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

2 28-ounce cans tomato puree

2 large sprigs basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Slider rolls

Brush a baking sheet with olive oil. Pulse the celery, carrot, onion, garlic and parsley in a food processor to make a paste. Transfer half of the vegetable paste to a bowl; add the ground beef, ground pork, eggs, breadcrumbs, 1 cup of the Parmesan cheese and 1 teaspoon of salt and mix with your hands until it is just combined. Form the mixture into about 24 two-inch meatballs; transfer the meatballs to the prepared baking sheet. Bake the meatballs until they are firm but not cooked all the way through, about 10 minutes.

To make the sauce, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the remaining vegetable paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until it looks dry, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato puree; rinse each can with 1 cup of water and add it to the pot. Stir in the basil, oregano and 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. Bring the sauce to a simmer, then add the meatballs and simmer until the sauce thickens and the meatballs are cooked through, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the basil.

Place 1 or 2 meatballs and sauce inside each of the slider rolls and top each with mozzarella cheese. Serve.

It is a very simple recipe to put together and the sliders were devoured when I made them in no time at all. You could easily do the same thing with sausage and peppers if you had some on hand or wanted to make some ahead of time and then simply re-heat the sausage and peppers and put them into slider rolls. For me, it was just a matter of warming he meatballs and sauce on the stove top for about 5 to 10 minutes just to heat them through and then assemble the sliders.

That’s all I have for today. Keep checking back as there is plenty more along the way leading up to Thanksgiving. I have lots of side dishes to share, some desserts, breads and even things to do with leftovers. Keep checking back to see what is next. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!