Chicken Lettuce Wraps

 This copycat recipe for PF Chang's Chicken Lettuce Wraps is very easy and super delicious.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound ground chicken
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
¼ cup hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 tablespoon Sriracha, optional
1 (8-ounce) can whole water chestnuts, drained and diced
2 green onions, thinly sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 head butter lettuce

Directions

Heat olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add ground chicken and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the chicken as it cooks; drain excess fat.

Stir in garlic, onion, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ginger and Sriracha until onions have become translucent, about 1-2 minutes.

Stir in chestnuts and green onions until tender, about 1-2 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.

To serve, spoon several tablespoons of the chicken mixture into the center of a lettuce leaf, taco-style.

Original link:

https://damndelicious.net/2014/05/30/pf-changs-chicken-lettuce-wraps/

Chicken Cracklings

Last time I made these I seasoned them with Pappy's seasoning salt.

Oven directions are below. Can also be made with the air fryer at the original link.

Chicken Cracklings

Ingredients

8 chicken skins

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

Pat chicken skins dry with a paper towel and sprinkle salt on both sides.

Heat the oven to 425 (non-convection) with the rack in the middle. Place the chicken skins in a single layer, skin-side down, on top of stainless steel wire rack on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet.

Pop the tray in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.

Flip the chicken skins skin-side up and back for 10 more minutes or until golden and crispy.

Original link: https://nomnompaleo.com/chicken-cracklings

Banana Waffles

Made some modifications and added even more bananas than the recipe calls for.  10/10, would recommend.

Banana waffles

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
pinch nutmeg
pinch cinnamon
1 cup milk
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-4 bananas, mashed

Directions

Preheat waffle iron

Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl.

Whisk in milk, egg, vanilla and mashed bananas and mix until just incorporated (you don't want to over-mix).

Pour batter onto greased waffle iron and cook until golden. Serve warm.

Original link:

https://lilluna.com/banana-waffles/

Amish Egg Noodles

I play around with this original recipe a little bit.  For example, near the end I'll add a little whole milk to make the noodles extra creamy.  Either way, these noodles are easy to make and delicious.

Amish Egg Noodles

Ingredients

6 tablespoons butter, divided
28 ounces chicken broth
1 chicken bouillon cube
12 ounces extra wide egg noodles
1 teaspoon parsley flakes
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions 

In a large pan, brown two tablespoons of butter over medium heat.

Pour the chicken stock and bouillon cube into the pan and bring to a boil.

Add the egg noodles to the chicken stock and return to a boil. Cover the pot and remove from the heat.

Let the noodles set for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so.

Test the noodles for doneness. If they are not cooked through, turn the heat back on and cook for 1-2 minutes until noodles are tender.

Top with the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste.

Serve immediately or leave in the pan, covered, until ready to serve. These will stay warm for 20 more minutes or so with no problems.

 Original link: https://www.bunsinmyoven.com/amish-egg-noodles/

Homemade Cornbread

Cornbread is so easy to make, I don't know why I used the stuff in a box for so long.  This is so much better.

Note, I often need to cook for longer than 20-24 mins (maybe more like 25-30?).  One of these days I want to cook it in a pre-heated skillet.

Homemade Cornbread

Ingredients

1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
⅔ cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 large eggs
½ cup unsalted butter melted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease an 8-x-10-inch (or 9-x-9-inch) baking dish. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in milk, eggs and butter. Stir until just combined, then pour batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for 20-24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Original link: https://lilluna.com/cornbread/

Mexican Street Corn Salad (Esquites)

I love Mexican Street Corn.  I made a version of this using canned corn, and I was missing some ingredients like cilantro and jalapeño, but it was still really delicious.  I did end up adding some extra spices, like coriander, garlic powder, onion powder, and Tajin, to try to make up for what I was missing.  However, I'm including the original recipe here, because it also sounds yummy.

Mexican Street Corn Salad (Esquites)

Ingredients

2 tablespoons (30ml) vegetable oil
4 ears fresh corn, shucked, kernels removed (about 3 cups fresh corn kernels)
Kosher salt
2 ounces (60g) feta or Cotija cheese, finely crumbled
1/2 cup finely sliced scallions, green parts only
1/2 cup (1/2 ounce) fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and stemmed, finely chopped
1 to 2 medium cloves garlic, pressed or minced on a Microplane grater (about 1 to 2 teaspoons)
2 tablespoons (30ml) mayonnaise
1 tablespoon (15ml) fresh lime juice from 1 lime
Chile powder or hot chile flakes, to taste

Directions

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet or wok over high heat until shimmering. Add corn kernels, season to taste with salt, toss once or twice, and cook without moving until charred on one side, about 2 minutes. Toss corn, stir, and repeat until charred on second side, about 2 minutes longer. Continue tossing and charring until corn is well charred all over, about 10 minutes total. Transfer to a large bowl.

Add cheese, scallions, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, mayonnaise, lime juice, and chile powder and toss to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and more chile powder to taste. Serve immediately.


Original link:

https://www.seriouseats.com/esquites-mexican-street-corn-salad-recipe

Spanish Rice

 It took me a loooooooooong time to find a Spanish Rice recipe that I like.  I've linked to the original recipe, but below is my version with lots of changes.

Spanish Rice

Ingredients

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 onion, minced

2 cups Jasmine rice

2 tbsp butter

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp minced garlic

3 cups chicken broth

8 oz tomato sauce

Spices to taste: cumin, coriander, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper

Directions

Heat oil in a large frying pan on medium heat. 

Add minced onion and saute until soft.  Add rice and cook until golden brown.  Add butter and garlic and cook until butter is melted.  Add salt.

After the rice is browned, add chicken broth, tomato sauce, and spices.  Stir and bring the broth to a boil.  Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.  Turn off heat and let sit for at least 5 minutes.  Fluff and serve.

Original link:

https://lilluna.com/food-tutorial-spanish-rice/