BBQ Chicken, Mac & Cheese, and Mashed Potatoes

I wanted to use up the leftover BBQ sauce from my brisket recipe so I decided to marinate and bake some chicken. I think by keeping it simple and homemade the food tasted better.

Ingredients
10 Chicken Drumsticks
4 Chicken Breasts
3 cups BBQ Sauce

Mac and Cheese Ingredients (found in Feb 2010 post)
Mashed Potatoes Ingredients

Directions:

1. Place chicken in a plastic bag and pour in half the marinade. Seal bag and rub chicken so marinade coats everything. Set in a bowl and place in the fridge for 4 hours or up to 2 days.

2. Make Mac and Cheese. Cover with plastic wrap and refridgerate until ready. (you can freeze the mac and cheese for a dinner at a later date)

3. Make mashed potatoes. Keep on stove top until ready to use and then reheat slowly over medium heat while stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.

To put everything together:

1. Place chicken on a foil lined pan and place into a preheated 350 degree oven. Cook until chicken reaches 160 degrees about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

2. When chicken is half finished mac and cheese (uncovered) to oven.

3. When chicken is finished remove from oven and cover with foil to keep warm. Turn broiler on in oven and place mac and cheese about 6 inches from heat source on top of oven. Heat mashed potatoes on stove top while mac and cheese browns.

4. Once everything is finished remove to the table and enjoy!







Mac and Cheese recipe in February 2010.

Dad's Chili

Dad’s Chili

Cooking oil
3 pounds lean ground beef
2 green bell peppers, seeded and chopped
2 onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed and diced fine
3 15 oz cans tomato sauce
3 or 4 T chili powder
2 t ground cumin
¼ t Tabasco sauce
1 cup water
3 15 oz cans red kidney beans

Pour oil to cover a large pot and brown beef. Remove and drain oil

Place more oil into pan and soften vegetables. Add beef, tomato sauce, spices and water. Simmer covered for an hour.

Stir in beans (do not drain liquid) and simmer another half hour.

Serve with cheese, sour cream, chives on potatoes, hot dogs or bread

Burger Options

While looking through some old recipes I found my list of burger options. By mixing and matching just a few of each category you can make tons of different and flavorful burgers. With summer coming and the weather turning nice I think it's time to start grilling again.

There are a ton of ideas below but here's the formula to make a burger that is good but isn't over the top. You want to be able to balance the tastes together but still have only a few ingredients so you can actually taste what's on the burger. Here's the formula for perfect burgers. (of course you can change this formula to your liking!)

1-2 types of protein + 3-4 seasonings + 1-2 types of cheese + 1-3 fix-ins + 1-3 condiments + 1 bun = DELICIOUS BURGER

Burger Options

Types of Protein:
Make sure protein is ground and has some fat. I like 80 protein/20 fat. If you want to use some unusually meats ask the person at the meat counter to grind it for you. Tell them you're making burgers and they can help you choose the right grind size.
Beef
Pork
Chicken
Turkey
Veal
Fish: salmon, tuna, and shrimp
Sausage
Lamb

Seasonings
Use different textures and flavors mixed in to the burger. These mix-ins work especially well with turkey, chicken and seafood burgers--they not only add flavor, but also moisture.
Grated cheeses
Barbecue sauce
Seasoned salts and spice blends
Fresh herbs, like basil, parsley, cilantro or sage
Plain yogurt (great for lean meats)
Cooked or caramelized onions
Finely chopped peppers--mild or hot
Sun-dried tomatoes
Mushrooms
Bacon or Pancetta


Fix-ins
The classic Burger is great, but sometimes you just want more than lettuce, tomato and onion. Try some of these unusual toppings to make your burgers unique.
Caramelized onion
Cooked Pancetta
Oven-roasted tomatoes
Sauteed mushrooms
Roasted peppers
Ratatouille
Tapenade
Cooked, chopped, spicy sausages
Beef broth or flavored sauce for dunking--think French Dip sandwich


Cheese
No matter what cheese you decide to use make sure that there is enough of it to give you that melty deliciousness in the burger. I suggest covering the burgers with a grill lid of stainless steel bowl so cheese melt quicker onto burger.
American
Cheddar
Swiss
Provolone
Havarti
Parmesan
Gruere
Feta
Jack
Mozzarella
Brie

Breads
Hamburger buns are certainly convenient, but there is a world of other breads out there. Consider using:
Wraps
Tortillas
Pitas
Brioche
Kaiser rolls
Baguettes
Focaccia
Lavash
Multi-grain bread and rolls
English muffins


Condiments
Take your burger to new levels by using different sauces. In place of the usual ketchup and mustard, try some of the following:
Steak sauce
Salsa
Flavored mayonnaise
Chimichurri sauce
Homemade mustard
Homemade ketchup
Homemade relish
Chutney
Cheese spreads
Pesto
Yogurt sauce like tatziki

Cinnamon Rolls

I was watching a movie and for no real reason at all, cinnamon rolls popped into my head and after rummaging through cabinets I found I actually had all the ingredients for the buns! I love finding the stuff you need to make something you're craving. I made the dough and rolled the buns up and allowed them to proof overnight in my fridge so they were ready for breakfast the next morning.

Ingredients
1 (1/4-ounce) packages dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, melted

Filling:

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Icing:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Spray a large mixing bowl with nonstick spray.

1. Dissolve yeast in water in a bowl of a standing mixer with dough hook. Let sit for 5 minutes.

2. In a large measuring cup beat together eggs, sugar and salt. Whisk in egg mixture to the bowl of yeast.

3. Add 1 cup flour and mix until smooth.

4. Add melted butter and mix well. Add remaining 1 1/2 cups of flour in stages and mix until stiff dough is formed.

5. Add dough to greased bowl. Place bowl in a warm area with a towel on top. Let rise until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.



Filling:

1. On a cutting board, sprinkle 2 tablespoons flour.

2. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and set aside.

3. Punch down and roll out dough to approximately 8 x 10-inch rectangle.

4. Spread with butter. (using your hands works best)

5. Sprinkle sugar and cinnamon.

6. Roll dough into a large pin wheel cylinder and cut ends off the roll. Cut into 8 portions. Put in greased pan, pin wheel side down and let rise to double in size.




7. Make glaze while cinnamon rolls bake: Mix all icing ingredients in medium size bowl with whisk until smooth. Drizzle glaze over on top of the cooled rolls.

If making immediately then bake for 20 to 25 minutes in a 325 oven until browned evenly. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. I flipped mine before serving so the cruncy sugary bottom of the pan ended up on top of the roll. Once cooled, pour glaze over top.

If making later after second rise cover rolls with saran wrap and place in the fridge overnight. In the morning, pull out rolls and allow to come back up to room temp. Bake as directed above.

Philly Cheese Steak

Since I have a ton of shredded beef left over I decided to whip up a different type of sandwich-the classic philly cheese steak. A basic philly is beef, cheese, and bread. For the cheese there are two schools of thought- sliced cheese that's melted or cheese sauce. The cheese can range from simple american or cheddar to fancy gouda and fontina. My personal preference is a mix of cheeses that I grate for better melting. I also like to add some caramelized onions for extra texture and flavor.

Ingredients:

1-2 cups of shredded beef (depends how big of a sandwich you want)
1/4 onion, thinly sliced
1/3 cup shredded cheese- cheddar, swiss, and mozzarella
1 bread roll
2 tbs beef broth of reserved beef juices

Directions:

1. Place a 1 tbs of butter in a saute pan over medium heat. Add sliced onion and a pinch of salt. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are a deep brown color. Set aside.

2. Add beef broth to another saute pan over low heat and add shredded beef. Stir and cook over low heat until slightly warm.

3. Add onions and shape beef in pan like roll and sprinkle cheese over beef and cover pan with a lid. Cover and cook over low heat until beef is hot and cheese is melted through. I liked to remove the lid and baste the extra hot juices over the cheese to help it melt and baste the meat.

4. Once cheese is melted, tip out of pan onto a toasted roll and enjoy!

Shredded Beef BBQ Sandwich

This is one of the most intricate and time consuming recipes I've ever made. Make this if you're bored all day like I was because this recipe takes a lot of time and patience. In the end it was really delicious and I'm glad I made it.

The BBQ sauce recipe comes from chef Rick Bayless with a few Klein twists. I was really surprised just how awesome this sauce was. It seemed to hit every part of my palette aka sweet, spicy and savory. The next time I make it I think I'll add in either a fresh jalapeno or serrano or some dried peppers for a little more kick.

For the sandwich I wanted to keep it really simple so the delicious flavors of the beef and sauce could come through. To make the sandwich combine the sauce and the shredded beef in a sauce pan. Heat for a few minutes over medium heat until beef is warmed through. Fill up a nice hoagie or french roll with the beef and eat with pickles, coleslaw, potato salad or potato chips!!!

Shredded beef:
1 boneless beef brisket (about 3 pounds) cut into 4 pieces
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup beef broth

Rub for Beef:
1 part salt
1/2 part black pepper
1/2 part white sugar
1/2 part brown sugar
1 tbs paprika
1 tbs red pepper flake
1 tbs garlic powder
1 tbs onion powder
1 t cumin
1 t thyme
1 t rosemary

1. Combine all ingredients of the rub in a bowl. Reserve 1 Tbsp and set aside for BBQ sauce.



2. Cut roast into 4 large chunks. Using the tip of a sharp paring knife, make 20 evenly spaced small slits about 1 1/2-inches deep all over the pot roast. Season the roast on all sides with the rub.



You can season the roast right before cooking but for extra flavor season the beef and then place in the fridge uncovered overnight or up to 48 hours. This allows the seasoning to really penetrate the meat and also lets the meat dry age a little. I found out this is something they do in most restaurants so if they do it, I think I should too haha.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

3. Heat a Dutch oven just large enough to hold the roast over high heat. Add the oil and, when hot, sear the meat until very well browned on all sides, about 4 to 6 minutes per side. Don't be afraid to let the roast get very brown,this is where a lot of the flavor comes from.



My meat was too big to fit in one pan so I used two pans to sear them. Once they were browned I placed them in a larger roasting pan. To get the delicious brown bits from the searing pans I added some of the beef stock and scrapped with a wooden spoon. I then poured the broth into the roasting pan. The liquid should reach about half way up the beef so add water if extra liquid is needed.

4. When the roast is evenly browned on all sides, carefully add the broth and cover the pot. Transfer the roast to the oven and cook, turning once or twice during the cooking time, until it is falling apart-tender, about 2 1/2 hours. Check occasionally to make sure that there is always at least 1-inch of liquid on the bottom of the pan. Add more broth or water, as necessary, to keep this level during the entire cooking process.



5. When the roast is very tender, remove it from the oven and let rest briefly. Using 2 forks, pull the meat apart into thin shreds, mixing the meat with the accumulated drippings left in the bottom of the pan. Allow meat to cool slightly before making the sandwich.



BBQ SAUCE:



BBQ Sauce:
2 garlic cloves
1 cup ketchup
1 Tbsp vinegar (cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar)
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3 Tbsp dark brown sugar
2 Tbsp boysenberry jam
1 tsp soy sauce
1/2 to 1 tsp barbecue spice (recipe below) or chili powder
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Salt

Peel garlic and crush through garlic press into a small saucepan. Add all the remaining ingredients and 3/4 cup water. Simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes. Taste and season with salt if you think necessary. The sauce is ready to use. It can be stored, refrigerated in a sealed jar, for up to a month. I wanted a really smooth sauce so I ran it through a fine mesh strainer before storing it in the fridge.

Pasta Carbonara

I was in the mood for something that could cook fast and while looking in my fridge I realized I had all the ingredients for pasta carbonara. I love how the eggs in the recipe get all creamy and saucy and trick the eater that the sauce has cream in it. If when making this the eggs scramble (happened to me the first time) just go ahead and eat it. It'll still be delicious even if it's "wrong" haha. Or if you don't want the lumps when plating add the pasta to the plate and then run the sauce through a fine strainer over the plate. This will catch any curdles and make everything nice and smooth.


Ingredients:
8 ounces dry fettucine
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 pieces finely chopped bacon
1 clove thinly sliced garlic
1 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup of hot pasta water, reserved
Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, salt, add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until "al dente."

2. Meanwhile, add bacon to a medium skillet and saute for about 5 minutes or until it has rendered its fat and bits are crisp. Add garlic and saute for few seconds. Remove skillet from the heat, over and set aside until pasta is done.

3. Whisk eggs and cheese together and season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. When pasta is done, RESERVE SOME COOKING LIQUID, drain well and return to pot, off heat.

5. Slowly temper egg and cheese mixture by drizzling hot pasta water into mixture while whisking furiously so eggs don't scramble.

6. Thoroughly combine pasta with bacon, garlic and oil in pan. Stir well and coat each strand with some of the bacon fat.

7. Stirring pasta continuously with a long wooden pasta fork or tongs, slowly pour in the egg mixture. Continue to stir, over low heat, until the eggs thicken into a sauce. Remove from the heat immediately or eggs will curdle.

8. Pour everything into a bowl and garnish with crispy bits of bacon.