Football Food

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Grilled Buffalo Chicken Pizza
 



I'm sorry for this horrid picture but it was dark and all I had was my phone.
It tasted phenomenal regardless of how it looks in the picture.

 

Hello Hello! We all know its football season and that means bbq's and parties all with food and beer. So I have for you a perfect pizza for game day!

 

 A buffalo chicken pizza on a whole wheat crust with homemade blue cheese sauce.

 

Who doesn't love buffalo chicken anything?! I love making buffalo chicken dip yet I rarely do because its just too dangerous to have in my house. I WILL eat the whole thing. I have yet to learn self control so its been a while since I have made that delicious dip, but I still wanted something buffalo. Something nice and spicy. I thought about buffalo chicken chili but I really love making pizza so I decided to create my own version of buffalo chicken pizza.

 

I used a blue cheese sauce for the base then layered it with ground chicken tossed in buffalo sauce, thin slices of red onion, mozzarella, and lots of crumbled blue cheese. MMM MMM MMM!

 

It is way better than any take out pizza and just goes great with a beer!

 

Don't be lame and order out, be cool and make your own! :)

 

 

 

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

 

Blue Cheese Sauce (optional, store bought works great too)

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 cup (2 oz.) crumbled blue cheese

Directions

1. Combine mayonnaise, sour cream and milk in small bowl and mix until smooth.
2. Stir in vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, salt, pepper and garlic powder until well blended.
3. Fold in cheese.
4. Transfer to container with tight-fitting lid. Chill until serving time.
5. Stir well before serving.

For the Pizza

Homemade or store bought whole wheat pizza dough.
1 tbs olive oil
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb ground chicken
3/4 cup Frank's Red Hot Buffalo sauce
1/2 cup Blue Cheese dressing
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/2 a medium red onion, thinly sliced

1. Preheat grill with medium high heat. You want the grill pretty hot so the oiled dough wont stick.  (IF COOKING IN OVEN: Preheat to 425 degrees)
2. In a medium or large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat for just a minute before adding ground chicken.
3. Cook over medium heat for 5-8 minutes until chicken is cooked thoroughly.
4. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and garlic powder.
5. Pour hot sauce over chicken and stir to coat evenly. Remove from heat. **Steps 2-5 can be done ahead of time**
6. On a flour surface knead the pizza dough for a minute and then flatten with hands.
7. Roll or toss (if you are that skilled) dough out to about 1/4 to 1/2 inch in thickness. Oil the face up side of the dough and transfer to the preheated grill with the oiled side down. (IF COOKING IN OVEN: lightly oil a cookie sheet, or use a preheated pizza stone, and press dough into the pan following with the toppings and cook 18-20 minutes)
8. Close the grill lid and let dough cook for 3-5 minutes, then oil the top of the dough again and carefully flip the dough.
9. Spread a thin layer of the blue cheese dressing over the crust and top with chicken and red onion.Sprinkle mozzarella to top the pizza. Finish with as much crumbled blue cheese you as you prefer.
10. Close the lid and continue cooking for another 5-10 minutes until dough is cooked and slightly crisp and cheese is melted..
11. Serve with extra blue cheese dressing and dig in!



A Dog Named Shaggy and A Tasty Dinner

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Spicy Panko Chicken Over Mixed Greens

with citrus vinaigrette and roasted red peppers

 

Hello Hello! How is everyone?! Yet again it has been a while since my last post. But so much has been coming up these past few months. Between settling into my new place, new job, new dog. Yes, I got a new dog!

 

I adopted a rescue dog who is just the sweetest. He so smart and handsome. I'm already a proud mama!

 

Anyways, I have been eating out very often lately and needed a break and really wanted to recreate this meal I had recently that I thought was amazing! It was a nice change to the normal menu options, light, fresh, and simple but full of flavor.

It was a panko crusted chicken breast over an arugula salad with roasted red peppers. It had a tangy citrus dressing which tied all the ingredients together just perfect. Of course it was a pretty good size portion and I had to stop myself from eating the whole thing, although I easily could have. But I saved a little and enjoyed it for lunch the next day :).

 

Since I was so impressed with the dish, I decided to have a go at trying this and made it at home last night. I used chicken tenders instead of chicken breasts. I also added some spice to the chicken and baked them in the oven, rather than frying. 

 

This was the "hardest" part. The salad can easily be tossed together once the chicken is done cooling. I say this because I prefer to top the salad with room temperature chicken instead of hot/warm chicken which will wilt the salad. 

 

I hope you are all enjoying the beginning of spring and the extra bit of daylight we have. 

 

Now, go make this for dinner, or even lunch, it's delish!

 

Spicy Panko Chicken

Ingredients

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
• 1 cup milk
• 2 -3 teaspoons Tabasco sauce
• 1 cup plain panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine milk and Tabasco sauce in large bowl, and add the chicken. Let sit for at least 15 minutes, allowing the chicken to marinate and tenderize.
3. Combine breadcrumbs and seasonings in another large bowl, or large shallow dish.
4. Coat chicken on both sides with breadcrumb mixture and place on a lightly greased  baking sheet.
5. Top with extra breadcrumbs, and bake 30-40 minutes, until the chicken is firm, lightly browned, and has an internal temp of 165 degrees.
6. Set aside while making salad.

Mixed Greens Salad

Ingredients

Salad

• 1 bag of spring mix, arugula, or lettuce of your liking.
• 1/2-3/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers (your preference)

Dressing

• 1/8 cup lemon juice
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ½ tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/8-tsp. fresh ground pepper

1. Combine the olive oil, garlic and lemon juice.
2. Slowly add the olive oil whisking vigorously.
3. Add the salt and pepper to suit your taste.
4. Toss the mixed greens with the vinaigrette, and the roasted red peppers.

Finally top with chicken, or dip chicken in your favorite sauce.

  

 

Mambo Italiano

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Chicken & Pasta

w/garlic white wine sauce 

Hey hey! It's been a few days since I have posted anything. I had a lot going on. Nothing of too much importance just some work, work, and work. YAY!

But this past Saturday I spent with some close friends and Incubus! It was a great show and perfect weather for lawn seats! I had such a wonderful time, I even went ahead and got one of those WAY overpriced frozen drinks int he big plastic cups I said I'd never buy. Well now I can just check that off the list because it was a 16 dollar completely flavorless drink. But hey we had fun racing our way through it, bracing the brain freeze the whole way :)

we were too far for a pic of the band so we took one of ourselves

 Anyways....I have been on an Italian kick ever since I got bac

k from that glorious and delicious country. Who doesn't love Italian food right? But I have always just preferred other cuisines a little more and ate Italian much less than other foods. But lately I have just been loving pasta and cant eat enough pizza, or drink enough Italian red wine....mmmmm! So while I was driving around for work today I was contemplating what to eat for dinner and REALLY wanted pasta.  

I have some left over white wine, which I don't drink often so I thought what better way to use up than to cook with it. This calls for just a few things.  Just some chicken breast, garlic, chicken, broth, wine, olive oil, broccoli, and some parmesan. Make yourself a nice side salad and pour a glass of wine from the wine you cooked with and you're all set for quite a lovely date. No date?! No Problem?! Just add more wine to glass and I'm sure your lonely dinner date wont seem so lonely :).

 All kidding aside, it really is a delicious dish and great if you are just cooking for yourself or a large crowd. You just adjust the recipe easily depending on how much you need. I really wanted to make some cannoli cupcake poppers to go with these for desert but didn't get around to it. But I am making them asap and recipe will follow, mmm can't wait! :)

 

Chicken and Pasta



mmmmm cheese!



w/garlic white wine sauce

Serves 4, or 1 or 2 REALLY hungry people :)

 

4oz pasta (whichever you prefer, I used organic whole wheat spagetti)   

4 chicken breasts (boneless and skinless)

2 tablespoons flour

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth

1/2 cup dry white wine

2-3 heads of broccoli

1 teaspoon dried parsley, prefer fresh if you have it (if using fresh, wait to add until the end)

1 teaspoon dried oregano

     *or whichever herbs you prefer*

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

• Cut chicken into even cubes, toss with flour, salt, and pepper.
• Coat large skillet with olive oil and heat over medium heat.
• Add the garlic and let cook for 1-2 minutes.
• Place cubed chicken in skillet and saute for about 3-4 minutes, until browned.
• Add the chicken broth, wine, and herbs.
•  When adding the herbs, pour into palms and rub hands together when pouring it. It will help realize the flavor/
• Cover and let simmer, for about 10-15 minutes.
• While waiting prepare pasta and broccoli.
•  I usually just cut the broccoli crowns off and place in microwaveable bowl. Add a few splashes of water and cover with paper towel, or microwaveable plate. Microwave for about 2-3minutes depending on how much broccoli you used. Used dish towel or oven mitts to remove from microwave, its HOT,  but broccoli comes out perfect every time, and super simple!
• Once sauce has reduced and chicken has cooked through (about 10-15minutes) Toss with pasta, broccoli, and cheese.
• Pour left over wine into glasses, and enjoy!

 Bon Apetito!