Good Eats

Here are some of the yummy things we've been enjoying lately.

Kid Food:

There's no fast food that says kid to me more than chicken nuggets.  I swear all kids have them until parents think they are old enough to finish off a full burger... and then some children never fully transition completely burgers because they like the crispy "chicken" filled bites.  I was that child, for a long time I preferred chicken nuggets over hamburgers.  Tim was that child too... Only thing is now we're smart enough to realize the chicken in those nuggets just doesn't look right and really they don't usually taste that great either.  This doesn't stop us from having some kid food cravings though so when Tim really wanted chicken nuggets he went on a hunt for a recipe and I was very happy when this was the result.  Grown-up chicken nuggets:

 

So good, really easy, and not too unhealthy either! 

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2/3 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
• We ground up cereal similar to wheat Chex instead of bread crumbs and then added herbs and spices to the mix (Italian seasoning OR oregano, rosemary, pepper, etc.)
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
•  We added minced garlic to the butter.  I think it added great flavor!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Cut chicken breasts into 1 1/2-inch sized pieces. In a medium bowl, mix together the bread crumbs, cheese, salt, thyme and basil. Mix well. Put melted butter in a bowl or dish for dipping.
Dip chicken pieces into the melted butter first, then coat with the breadcrumb mixture. Place the well-coated chicken pieces on a lightly greased cookie sheet in a single layer, and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Makes 3-4 adult servings.

Soups:

I really like soups, especially soups like tomato soup.  On our first anniversary Tim took me to Chef's Table where our luncheon was held.  It was so good and one of the best dishes was a butternut squash soup Tim ordered. This turned me on to soups with a beautiful orange color and creamy texture.  I've tried to recreate the recipe before, but didn't work out the first time.  Then this year I had two successful soups.  One very close to the Chef's Table and one completely different.

First, was a carrot soup.  Orange and creamy! Nothing like the CT squash soup in terms of flavor, but oh so good! 

Go to recipe is here: Stone Soup

I use 5-6 large carrots instead of the mini carrots. I think the soy sauce is key to the great flavor so don't skip it!

The second was close to the butternut squash soup was actually had no squash in it either, but tasted so much like the CT soup.  It was a carrot yam soup.  Once again beyond easy, very satisfying, and delicious.  

• 2 medium yams
• 1-2 long carrots
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 cups warm water
• 1 boullion cube (chicken or vegetable) 
• Shredded parmesan cheese (fresh) (optional)

 Peeled and cube vegetables. Put in a 9x13 pan, drizzle with olive oil, salt & pepper to taste. Cover with aluminum foil Roast at 400 degrees for 45 minutes or until tender.

Mix the boullion with water.  Next, put half of the cooled, roasted veggies in a blender. Add 2 cups of water and "Liquify" the mixture. Pour this a large soup pan. Put the second half of the roasted yams in the blender with 2 cups of water and blend again. Pour it into the soup pot as well. Let the soup come to an initial boil, then reduce the heat to Medium-Low and let it simmer for 10-20 minutes before serving (for me this depends on what time dinner is or how hungry I am). Shredded parmesan cheese (fresh) is a great topping for this soup. Serves 4 as a main dish. 

Breads:

A friend and I have been working on making bread.  So far are 2/2 in successful attempts.. well I don't know if the first one really counts as completely ours because we had another friend (we use her recipe) basically make it for us and then we just shaped the loaves.  Still it turned out great!  In other good bread news.  I'm getting a Bosch! So excited about that... and I think once we have it Tim will be more excited than me because it should mean fresh bread more often.

Another "bread" we made recently was homemade tortillas.  Honestly not too hard.  I use this recipe from my friends' cooking blog (Better Than Burgers)! The only thing was for the life of me I couldn't make a round tortilla this time. I decided it would be okay and we'll just open a restaurant "La Funky Tortilla" and wala branding will turn my oddly shaped creations into a money machine.