Pretzel Crusted Chicken

Where have I been?  I wish I knew...I feel like the first part of this year has just flown by.  Between the strep throat/restricted airways incident in January and the flu outbreak a few weeks ago, I just can't seem to stay healthy!  Things are changing soon, I can feel it!  C and I have made a plan to ease back into working out and eating healthier.  I know that not all of my flu and strep throat is related to these things, but it can't hurt right?  Anyway, before we get into the full swing of "healthier eating," I thought I would share a family "not so healthy" favorite!  It's chicken coated in pretzels then smothered in a cheesy mustard sauce, what's not to love?

Pretzel Crusted Chicken Breasts with Cheddar Mustard Sauce
from: Rachael Ray

4 quart-size plastic food storage bags

4 small, boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 5-ounce bag of salted pretzels, any shape

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 eggs

Vegetable oil, for frying

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

2 cups milk

3/4 pound, about 2 1/2 cups, sharp yellow cheddar cheese, shredded

2 heaping tablespoons spicy brown mustard

1/4 cup flat leaf parsley leaves, a generous handful, chopped

1/4 small yellow onion, finely chopped

1 large sour dill pickle, finely chopped

1 lemon, cut into wedges

Preheat a large non-stick skillet with a 1/4-inch of vegetable oil over medium-high heat.
Sprinkle a little water into four medium food storage baggies. Place 1 chicken breast in each bag and seal it up, pushing out excess air. Use the bottom of a heavy pot or pan and pound each breast until flat, just shy of busting out of the bag. Repeat with the other 3 chicken breasts.

Place the pretzels in a food processor or blender and grind until fine. Transfer the ground pretzels to a shallow dish, add the thyme and some salt and pepper. Crack and beat 2 eggs in a second shallow dish with a splash of water. One at a time, coat each chicken breast in the egg and then the ground pretzels.

Add the pretzel-coated chicken breast to the hot oil. Cook in a single layer, in 2 batches if necessary, about 3 or 4 minutes on each side, until the juices run clear and breading is evenly browned.
While the chicken is frying, in a medium saucepot over medium heat, melt the butter and add the flour to it. Cook flour and butter for 1 minute and then whisk in the milk. When the milk comes to a bubble, stir in the cheese and mustard with a wooden spoon. Season with a little salt and pepper, and remove cheese sauce from the heat.

Transfer the fried pretzel-crusted chicken breast to a serving plate, drizzle with the mustard cheddar sauce, then sprinkle with a little parsley, finely chopped onion and sour dill pickle. Serve lemon wedges alongside.

My notes on the recipe:  I omit the lemon wedges, the onion and the dill pickle.  I'm not a fan of garnishes on top of my dishes, it just doesn't float my boat!  I love having the crunchy pretzel coating surrounding the super moist chicken!  And the cheesy mustard sauce is really good.  It does make way too much though, so I try to halve the recipe when I remember.  I like this dish, it's not one of C's favorites though.  He doesn't care for the mustard in the cheesy sauce, to each his own.

It has been SOOOOOO long since I have blogged, I almost feel like I forgot how!  :)  I promise that this blog is going back on my high priority list.  For the last few weeks the only things on that list have been laying on the couch, drinking Gatorade and trying not to cough up a lung!  I've got so many things to catch up on, but I promise there will be more posts!

Let the cooking experiments commence.  I added Peanut Butter Extract to my pantry today, now I'm just trying to figure out what to do with it! :)  Suggestions?  C already claimed it for buttercream icing...what else?  Stay tuned, I know it's going to be fantastic!

Chicken, Bacon, Ranch Sliders

So I'm apparently having a slider addiction.  I can't keep myself away from these delicious little burgers!  They are so stinkin' cute and who doesn't love a miniature version of a classic?  Ever since I first made the Beefy Onion Sliders, I've been scheming new slider recipes in my head!  I've come up with one that I think is going to be a hit.  It starts out with a spicy ranch dip, mixes in a little chicken and bacon and finishes up with some ripe sliced avocado on top.  What's not to love?  Time to get started... This recipe requires a little prep time if you want to add in the spicy ranch dip (which you totally will).  I made the dip around lunch time and let it work it's magic in the refrigerator until I was ready for it at dinner.  For the dip you will need the following:

Jalapeno Ranch Dip
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup mayo
1 package Hidden Valley Ranch dip mix
1 jalapeno (with or without seeds, depending on how much heat you want your dip to have)
1/2 cup Salsa Verde (I use Herdez brand)
a dash of cayenne pepper

Slice and dice the jalapeno.  Mix all of the ingredients together and thoroughly mix.  Refrigerator until ready to use...this gets better the longer you let it sit in the refrigerator.

Once you are ready to make your sliders, you will need the following:

Chicken Bacon Ranch Sliders
1 pound ground chicken
4 slices of bacon,
1/4 cup Jalapeno Ranch Dip (see above) plus some for spreading on the slider buns
1/2 cup Monterrey Jack and Cheddar Cheese
1 teaspoon Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning
sliced avocado.
Oh, and you need slider buns.  Oops...left those out of the photo!

Start by cooking your bacon using your favorite method.  I prefer to do it in the oven, but when I'm in a hurry I try to do it on the stove top.  Oh, and if you do it this way, make sure you pay attention to your bacon.  Don't try to take ingredient photos when you should be cooking your bacon; otherwise, you might end up with this:

a sad, sad sight.  Inedible, overcooked bacon.  I almost cried when I had to throw these pieces away.  I did try to eat them, but they were too cooked!  While your bacon (perhaps your 2nd batch) is cooking, start cooking your ground chicken in a little bit of olive oil over medium-high heat.  While the chicken is cooking, sprinkle it with about a teaspoon of the ranch seasoning.  Once cooked, add in your diced up bacon, 1/4 cup of the Jalapeno Ranch dip, and the cheese.  It will start to look like this:

as C describes it, "A little like scrambled eggs!" Thanks honey!  That doesn't make it seem at all appetizing, but it really is.  While the cheese is melting, slice the slider buns and spread a little Jalapeno Ranch dip on each side.  Evenly distribute the chicken mixture on your sliders and then top with a nice slice of avocado (you could spread some guacamole on top if you prefer, that would be delicious too).  Once all steps are complete, you should have something that looks like this!

Toss them in a 350 degree oven for 3-5 minutes, just long enough to heat the bread and get it a little crispy around the edges.  Serve them up with chips and the extra Jalapeno Ranch dip!  Just like this!

Mmm, mmm!  This was quite the delicious experiment!  This is just what you need on a night when you have to throw something together faster than the speed of light.  Even if you don't have time to make the Jalapeno dip, you could always substitute your favorite ranch dressing!  I'm loving the mini burger - I'm dreaming up a few others, stay tuned!

Beefy Onion Sliders

Wow, I can't believe it is already the 16th and I've only had one blog post in all of January.  And it wasn't even a fun one...it was about me being sick!  Yuck!  I can now say that I am feeling much better and glad to be back in the swing of things.  It seems like the first half of the month just ran me over this year.  Between being sick and catching up from the awesomeness of December, I don't know where the last few weeks have gone.  I've been busy, I've been cooking and cleaning and doing my normal things, but it seems like there aren't 24 hours in a day anymore.  Maybe I'm doing too much?  Nah...
I'm back with my first recipe post of the new year...and it's a good one.  So good that I've already made it twice this month!  When we were up in Tennessee visiting family for the holidays, C's Aunt made these yummy sliders for lunch.  I didn't get the recipe from her, I just watched her throw things in the pan and committed it to memory.  Luckily, there aren't that many ingredients so I was able to remember everything!  I love the taste of this little burgers.  And isn't there just something about eating a little burger?  You don't feel guilty for having more than you should  because they are so tiny and petite, right?  Let's get to it!
Here's your cast of characters:  one pound ground beef, Lipton Beefy Onion Mix, Mayo, Cheddar and Slider Rolls. (Not pictured because I forgot to buy them: Dill Pickle Slices, oops)

Begin by browning your ground beef.  Once the meat is browned, stir in your beefy onion mix, a generous spoonful (yes that's the accurate measurement), and 1/2 to 3/4 cup of grated cheddar cheese.  Let this all melt together until it looks like this:

Slice the rolls and place them on a cookie sheet.  Divide the beef mixture evenly among the rolls.  The package I buy has 12 rolls, I usually end up with some extra beef mixture.  I usually eat this when no one is watching, it's quite delicious.  Next, place 2-3 pickle slices on each roll.  Imagine they are in the photos that follow.  Toss the rolls in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 3-5 minutes.  That's just long enough to warm the rolls and let them get a little toasty around the edges.  Don't leave them in their too long, you'll regret it!  Mmm....yum!

Serve them up with chips or mashed potatoes for a yummy, super quick lunch or dinner.  Did I say how much I love these little sliders?  I'm scheming up other recipes because I love them so much!  I'm thinking chicken, bacon, ranch.  Anyone with me on that?  I thought so!

Back to our Regularly Scheduled Posts?

Let me start by saying - I feel so behind!  I don't know where this week or last week have gone, but they are gone!  Add to that the fact that I feel a little under the weather and it makes for an unmotivated me! :)  I will try to catch back up!  I promise I haven't deserted this blog, and I have lots of good things in store for the new year!  I'm telling you 2011 is starting out a little rough for me.  With sickness comes a lack of motivation (at least for me)...and even though I still have the same amount of time in each day, I'm feeling like my days are a little shorter.  I blame this cough I can't get rid of that is keeping me up at night!  So, I'm slowly working on catching up....bear with me as I work on it! :)
This blog is very important to me, as are you my readers!  I've got so many ideas running around in my head, a few posts I've started on, and lots of delicious pictures to share!  Once I shake this evil cough, I'll be back to my regularly scheduled programming!  Until then, stay healthy!