The Recipe
Courtesy of: Food Network Magazine - March 2014 Issue
For the waffles:
16 slices bacon
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
Kosher salt
3 large eggs plus 1 egg white
3 cups buttermilk, plus more if needed
1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
Cooking spray
For the chicken:
3 cups peanut or vegetable oil, for frying
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp sweet paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1.5-inch wide strips
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
Maple syrup, for serving
Make the waffle batter; Dice 10 bacon slices; cook in a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and crisp, about 8 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Add the remaining 6 bacon slices to the skillet and cook, turning occasionally, until golden brown and crisp, 9 to 11 minutes. Remove the paper towels; reserve the drippings in the skillet.
Combing the flour, backing powder, sugar, and 1/2 tsp salt in a large bowl. Whisk the whole eggs, buttermilk, and melted butter in a separate bowl, then whisk into the flour mixture until smooth. Stir in the cooked dived bacon. Transfer 2 cups of the batter to a separate large bowl for the chicken; reserve the remaining batter for the waffles.
Make the chicken: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Add the peanut oil to the skillet with the reserved bacon drippings; heat over medium-high heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 350 degrees. Add the thyme, paprika, and cayenne to the 2 cups waffle batter; add up to 2 tbsp buttermilk if the batter is too thick. Season the chicken with salt and black pepper, then toss with the flour. Add the chicken to the batter and set aside until ready to fry.
Set a rack on a baking sheet. Working in batches, remove the chicken from the batter, letting the excess drip off, then fry until golden brown, 2 minutes per side; transfer to the rack and reason with salt. Transfer to the oven and bake until no longer pink in the middle, about 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the waffles: spray a waffle iron with cooking spray and preheat. Whisk the egg white in a bowl until soft peaks form; fold into the reserved waffle batter. Ladle 1/2 to 1 cup batter into the waffle iron for each waffle and cook according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Serve with the fried chicken, bacon slices, and top with maple syrup.
Tips/Tweaks
Keeping it Healthy
This recipe has a pretty large (supposedly makes 6 servings) and unhealthy waffle batter. We used our favorite waffle recipe, which can be found here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/waffle-of-insane-greatness-recipe.html
The "Waffles of Insane Greatness" batter does make less than the above recipe, so we only used 1 cup of the batter for the chicken and only about 1 lb of presliced chicken tenders.
Another thing we did to try and make this recipe a little healthier was to pan fry the chicken instead of deep frying it. We used olive oil and pan fried the chicken until it was crispy, then baked it according to the above recipe.
Review
This was Sarah's first experience of chicken and waffles, something she had wanted to try for a long time. Well, it was a success! We both loved the addition of the bacon, who wouldn't? We were a little skeptical about using the batter to coat the chicken, but it was a very nice way to maintain the sweeter side of waffles with the savoriness of the chicken. Perfect combination!
The Recipe
Courtesy of: Food Network Magazine - March 2014 Issue
Kosher salt
12 oz mezzi rigatoni (or other short pasta)
4 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 bunch leeks (white and light green parts only), halved lengthwise, thinly sliced, and rinsed well
Freshly ground pepper
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
Chopped fresh parsley, for topping
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook as the label directs. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water; drain the pasta.
Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp, about 8 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels; pour off all but 1 tbsp of the drippings from the skillet.
Add the leeks to the drippings in the skillet. Season with 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the heavy cream and cook until it begins to thicken, about 2 minutes.
Add the pasta to the skillet along with the parmesan, half of the backon, and 1/2 tsp pepper; toss to coat, adding enough of the reserved pasta cooking water to loosen.
To serve, top with the remaining bacon, more parmesan, and parsley.
Tips/Tweaks
Keeping it Healthy
Although the recipe calls for heavy cream, half and half works just as well. We also always use whole grain or whole wheat pasta. The Barilla whole grain pasta tastes just like normal pasta, if you are worried about trying that. And as always with bacon, we use low-sodium bacon.
Review
This recipe was very easy to prepare and therefore, a wonderful weeknight meal idea. The use of heavy cream and bacon drippings is actually not as rich as the recipe makes it sound. We definitely would recommend this recipe.
The Recipe
Courtesy of: Joshua mom, Kris Ericson
1 lb ground beef
1/4 cup chopped onion
12-16 oz frozen green beans
1 can condensed tomato soup
salt and pepper
mashed potatoes
cheddar cheese
Brown meat and onion. Drain. Salt and pepper to taste. Add 1 12-16 oz package frozen green beans. Mix soup with one can of water. Stir into meat mixture. Heat until beans are cooked to desired doneness. While cooking, prepare 4 servings of mashed potatoes (leftovers work well). Mix potatoes a bit dry. Drop spoonfuls onto meat mixture. Garnish with cheddar cheese. Serve promptly.
Tips/Tweaks
Keeping it Healthy
Whenever a recipe calls for ground beef, we always substitute a lean beef/turkey ground mixture (found at Festival Foods). We also use reduced sodium tomato soup.
Tips
If your looking to save some time, use pre-made mashed potatoes, like Bob Evans brand, found in the refrigerated section. You can also brown the meat ahead of time.
Review
We both forgot how good this meal is that when we made it, we made it twice in one week. It makes for great leftovers (or lunch during the week). This has been a recipe that Joshua's mom has made for many years and I'm sure it'll be a go to meal for our family as well.
The Recipe
Courtesy of: Cuisine at Home Magazine
For the steak:
1.25 lb ground chuck
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
2 tbsp minced scallions
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
For the sauce:
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cups sliced onions
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 cups low-sodium beef broth
1/4 cup dry red wine
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp dried thyme
minced fresh parsley
shredded parmesean
For the cheese toasts:
4 slices italian baguette, cut diagonally (1/2-inch thick)
2 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 tsp minced garlic
Pinch of paprika
1/4 cup shredded swiss cheese
1 tbsp shredded Parmesan
Combine ground chuck, 1/4 cup parsley, scallions, salt, and pepper. Divide evenly into four portions and shape each into 3/4 to 1-inch thick oval patties. Place 2 tbsp flour in a shallow dish; dredge each patty in flour. Reserve 1 tsp flour. Heat oil in a saute pan over medium-high. Add patties and saute 3 minutes on each side, or until browned. Remove from pan.
Add onions and sugar to pan; saute 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and tomato paste; saute until paste begins to brown, 1 minutes. Sprinkle mixture with reserved flour; cook 1 minute. Stir in broth, wine, salt, and thyme. Return meat to pan; bring sauce to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the cheese toasts. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place bread on a baking sheet. Combine butter, garlic, and paprika; spread on one side of each slice of bread. Combine cheeses and sprinkle evenly over butter. Bake until bread is crisp and cheese is bubbly, 10-15 minutes.
Serve steaks on the cheese toasts with onion sauce ladled over. Garnish with parsley and Parmesan.
Tips/Tweaks
Keeping it Healthy
Whenever a recipe calls for ground beef, we always substitute a lean beef/turkey ground mixture (found at Festival Foods). We also will use reduced fat cheeses, and did for this recipe.
Review
We love french onion soup, so this recipe was a playful way of having a hearty meal with the delicious soup. The french onion flavor really cooks into the steaks to enhance the flavor. In the future, we may cube the toasted bread so that it's a little bit easier to eat. This is a very delicious meal and we definitely plan to make it again.
