Chicken and Waffles

Friday night, we went out to dinner as a family at a newer restaurant that our friend opened. We had been there once for dessert and once for dinner in the past and on the way there, my son shared that he wanted to order the Chicken and Waffles. Unfortunately, they were not part of the dinner menu, but part of the brunch menu, so he couldn't order them.

This weekend, in an effort to clean out the pantry and organize a little, I had cleaned up my baking shelves and realized that I had a couple of pancake/waffle mixes that I needed to use. So, when I sat down to plan the menu for this week, I decided to try making Chicken and Waffles for dinner one night. I did some searching and saw many examples of what I expected, a fried chicken chunk on a section of waffle or a fried chicken breast sandwich with waffles as the bun. I saw one post where the chicken was skewered and cooked in the waffle. I decided that this approach was the one that intrigued me the most. I decided to forgo the skewers and to fry the chicken rather than bake it, but I did elect to make the dip.

The result was great. The crisp of the fried chicken was lost for the most part in the waffle - I'm guessing that the waffle batter soaked into the crust, but the flavor was still there. I had made my pieces small enough that most of them only took up one quadrant of the waffle maker, which was a nice size to eat them as a finger food or to cut them up to eat with a knife and fork. The dip was really good - the combination of the spicy mustard and the sweet of the maple syrup was nice. In fact, we had extra and decided that we would keep it for dipping other things in this week. This dish was declared a keeper.

Chicken and Waffles
Fried Chicken
2 boneless chicken breasts
2 eggs
3 tablespoons milk
1 salt
1 pepper
1 cup crushed corn flake
1 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons canola oil

Waffle Batter
2 cups Pancake Mix
1 1/4 cups water
1/4 cup canola oil
1 egg

Maple Mustard Dip
3/4 cup light mayonnaise
1/3 cup maple syrup
3 tablespoons Ballpark mustard (could use a Dijon or Spicy mustard)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Cut the chicken breast in half (wanted to say lengthwise, what I mean is butterfly), then cut into pieces.

Whisk together 2 eggs and milk. Add the cut up chicken.

Place the oil in a frying pan and put on medium-high heat.

Place crushed corn flakes and bread crumbs on a plate. Add seasoned salt and ground chipotle pepper. Coat the chicken breast in crumbs. Place into frying pan, turning once, cooking until chicken is cooked through. Remove to a plate.

Preheat waffle iron.

Prepare waffle batter by combining the waffle mix, water, oil and egg.

Dip chicken into waffle batter then place on waffle iron (I spray mine with cooking spray).

Place in pan in oven to keep warm while you cook the remaining waffles.

Prepare dipping sauce by whisking together mayonnaise, maple syrup, and mustard.

Serve chicken waffles with dipping sauce.


Disclaimer

Cheesy Spinach Cakes

I am always looking for options for a quick healthy side dish or grab and go breakfast items. A while back, in a local publication (I think that the hospital publishes) there was a recipe for these Cheesy Spinach Cakes. I changed some of the amounts because it called for more spinach than comes in a single bag and I only bought one bag and I wanted more substance so I added more cottage cheese. I also added in some jalapeno to give it a little more kick.

The resulting 'cake' is tasty. My son didn't care for them, my daughter won't eat them because they have spinach in them and my husband didn't try them yet - so at this point, they are all mine!. I enjoyed them and according to Cook'n (the recipe software I use), they are only 55 calories per cake and 6 grams of protein, which I think makes them perfect for an on the go breakfast following my workout or a satisfying side.

Cheesy Spinach Cakes

5 ounces bag, baby spinach
3/4 cup low fat cottage cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 large eggs, beaten
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 jalapeno pepper, finely diced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Chop spinach. Transfer to a medium bowl. Add cheeses, eggs, garlic, salt and pepper; stir to combine.

Coat 8 cups of the muffin pan with cooking spray. Divide the spinach mixture among the 8 cups (they will be very full).

Bake the spinach cakes until set, about 20 minutes. Let stand in the pan for 5 minutes. Loosen the edges with a knife and turn out onto a clean plate.


Disclaimer

Chilled Plum Oatmeal Pudding

I enjoy oatmeal for breakfast. I usually make due with a simple packet of oatmeal, but in reality, my favorite is the good, goopy, slow-cooked kind that you have to add milk to. I typically get to enjoy that type when I am traveling and the hotel has it as an option on their buffet, or when I go out to Bob Evans or Panera for breakfast or occasionally at the cafeteria at work. I have pinned a few recipes for overnight oatmeal and crock-pot oatmeal, but haven't yet tried any of them. As I was reading through Martha Stewart Living this weekend (no idea which month), I found a recipe for oatmeal pudding. I thought that this sounded very interesting, as we are big fans of rice pudding. I also liked the idea that this could be a dessert or a breakfast option.

Her recipe indicated it made one serving, so I decided I needed to increase it so that I could make enough for the family to enjoy. I settled on tripling the recipe. I also decided to use unsweetened vanilla almond milk instead of plain. Even so, I had to add vanilla to the mix, because there just really wasn't any flavor outside of the plums that you serve on top. That being said, the oatmeal pudding, with vanilla extract added, is a great back drop for the juicy, tart plums that are made slightly sweet with the addition of maple syrup.

With the recipe tripled, I would say that it easily provides 6 servings if you are serving it as a breakfast, probably more like 12 if you are having it as a dessert. I definitely would make this again, I might even play with the flavors and try an almond extract or a maple extract instead of the vanilla next time I make it or even try sweetening it with a bit of brown sugar or honey. I also think it could be with other fresh fruit - cherries, blackberries, raspberries, etc. - although the tartness of the plum helps contribute to the flavor impact. Guess I will have to make this a bunch to try out all of the other options I have in mind.

Chilled Plum Oatmeal Pudding
Serves: 6

adapted from Martha Stewart Living Magazine

1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
3 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 pinch coarse salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons maple syrup
3 plums, pitted and chopped
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine oats, 2 1/4 cups of almond milk and 2 1/4 cups of water and salt in saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until oats are tender, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and let cool slightly. Stir in remaining 3/4 cups of almond milk, the vanilla and 1 tbsp of maple syrup. Chill overnight.

Toss plums, 1 tbsp maple syrup and cinnamon in a bowl. Let stand 5 minutes.

Serve oatmeal topped with fruit and juices. Sprinkle with cinnamon, if desired.

Disclaimer

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

There is nothing that can quite compare to the smell of cinnamon rolls baking in the oven. There is something so inviting about that warm smell of cinnamon filling the house. When we have company, or a breakfast gathering, one of my favorite treats to make is cinnamon rolls. They might sound overwhelming on the surface, but it really is quite easy to whip up a batch of homemade cinnamon rolls. This recipe takes about 75 minutes from start to ready to eat and the result is a wonderful, soft fragrant treat.

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
Servings 12

3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup butter
3 1/4 cups flour divided
2 1/4 tsps instant yeast (1 packet)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup water
1 egg
1 cup brown sugar packed
1 Tbsp Cinnamon
1/2 cup butter softened


Heat milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat. Mix in butter, stir until melted. Let cool.
In a large bowl, combine 2 1/4 c flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Add water, egg and milk mixture. Beat well. Add remaining flour 1/2 c at a time, stirring after each addition. When the dough starts to pull together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. Cover dough with damp cloth and let rest 10 minutes.
In a small bowl, mix together the butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.
Roll dough into a 12x9 rectangle.

Spread the brown sugar mixture over the dough. Roll up dough and pinch seams to seal.

Cut into 12 rolls. Place in a lightly greased pan.

Cover and let rise for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375F.
Bake for 20 minutes.

Serve with frosting or plain. For ease, I find that a tub of frosting is quick and easy. It is best to apply warm so that it melts in.

Sometimes, to mix things up a bit, I will add thinly sliced apple pieces with the sugar mixture.

Then, you can roll it up and cook as above. I like the added touch of the apple flavor and a bit of crunch, too.

The cinnamon rolls keep well and stay soft. We always reheat them when we serve them later - another advantage of not frosting them all.

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