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Buffalo Chicken Soft Tacos

By Elle on May 3, 2013 in food

I have been on a Buffalo chicken kick. One of my favorite recipes I’ve found is the Buffalo Chicken Soup, so good, and then I came across these soft tacos. These tacos are so filling and delicious. They knocked my socks off. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 pound chicken breasts, skinless, boneless
⅓ cup flour
3 tablespoon cornstarch
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
⅓ cup buffalo wing sauce (Frank’s Buffalo Wing)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
10 6-inch yellow corn tortillas

Toppings:

Shredded lettuce
Cilantro
Chopped avocado
Ranch dressing
Green onions, sliced thinly

Preparation:

Heat a large pan over medium-high heat.

In a large bowl, combine cornstarch, flour, cayenne, and garlic powder. Coat the chicken in the flour mixture.

Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. When hot, add chicken and cook on both sides – about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Once the chicken is done, set it aside on a plate and let cool.

Once cool, shred the chicken with your fingers. Mix the shredded chicken with the wing sauce. Set aside.

Heat the corn tortillas in a skillet for about a minute on each side or until warm. Assemble the tacos and add optional toppings.

Tip: Set the chicken in the freezer of fridge, checking every five minutes until cool.

Have a great weekend, everyone!!

I know writing is like hopping back onto a bike but I’m kind of stuck. Our move to Maine next month has been a, no pun intended, main distraction. If you have any questions you’d like me to answer…. Anything at all… or a writing prompt suggestion, please leave them in the comments!

Or if you’d like me to ask you questions, leave them there. xx I think that would be cool.

*Photo courtesy of The Kitchen Life Of A Navy Wife.

**Jack White – I Fought Piranhas.

Comments { 0 }

WTFlicka Wrap Up.

By Elle on April 21, 2013 in food, wrap up review

“Seriously, chicky, more links??”, you say.

I know, I’m sorry!! I’ll get my writing up and going very soon.

My snarkiness and sense of humor are currently rebooting.

In case you missed me on What The Flicka?

Oatmeal Cookie Bath Soak – This is an older post but soak for 20 minutes and it’ll be bliss. So relaxing!

Zucchini Bread With Pecans – I added Greek yogurt to the recipe (protein!) so it’s awesome before or after a work out.

DIY Cinnamon Sugar Foot Scrub – Your feet will love you!

Eggplant Parmesan Rollatini – So fucking good!

Dark Chocolate Bourbon Pudding – Do I really need to say more? Nope? Good!

Oat Straw And Goat’s Milk Bath Tea – This bath soak is great for problematic skin. Helps eczema and acne. Helps ease the pain of rheumatism and burns.

Recycled Chunky Tie Dye Crayons – These are so easy to make. Getting the wrappers off the crayons were kind of a pain in the ass though. That’s why it’s more fun to make while drinking wine.

Iced Lemon Ricotta Cookies – Cookie, cookie, cookie, starts with C. These were easier to make than I was expecting.

Buffalo Chicken Soft Tacos – Fuck, yeah! Add a few beers and enjoy!

Comments { 0 }

Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Brownies

By Elle on April 16, 2013 in food

I couldn’t sleep last night and I thought since I was up and the house was quiet, I could bake a late night treat and not have my piece eaten by my 4 year-old. These gluten-free brownies were pure bliss.

I’m not gluten intolerant but damn, these were fucking awesome. Just as orgasmic as regular brownies.

Ingredients:

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature

12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips, seperated unto 8-ounce and 4-ounce portions

1 1/4 cup sugar

3 extra-large eggs

1 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour

1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum

1/4 cup unsweetend cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8-inch square baking panwith two criss-crossed strips of parchment paper long enough to overhang all the sides of the pan. Butter the parchment paper as best as you can (note: I just used non-stick cooking spray).

As long as the parchment paper covers the entire inside surface of the pan, the brownies will come out of the pan well. Set the pan aside.

In a medium-size, microwave-safe bowl, combine the butter and 8 ounces of chocolate chips. Microwave for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, 30 seconds at a time, stirring well at each 30-second interval, until the chocolate is melted and smooth.

Allow the chocolate mixture to cool slightly, about 2 minutes.

Once the chocolate mixture has cooled, add it to the sugar and the eggs, one at a time, stirring to combine well after each addition. Next, add the flour, xanthan gum, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt, reserving a few tablespoons of flour.

Beat the batter well until it becomes thicker and a bit more elastic. Toss the remaining 4 ounces of chocolate chips with the reserved flour to coat the chocolate chips.

Add the chocolate chips and remaining flour to the batter, stirring until the chips are evenly distributed throughout the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

Place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean, with a few moist crumbs attached.

Cool the brownies in the pan for at least 30 minutes. Lift the brownies out of the pan with the overhung parchment paper, invert onto a cutting board, peel off the parchment paper, and slice into squares with a moistened, serrated knife.

Enjoy!

Comments { 0 }

Roasted Cauliflower And White Cheddar Soup

By Elle on March 20, 2013 in food

This is an excellent soup to make on a cold night. It’s creamy and has a nice tang to it from the white cheddar. Have I told you about my white cheddar addiction? No? Well, I have a really big one. Someone needs to give me a cheese intervention!

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 small head cauliflower, cut into florets

2 tablespoons oil

1 tablespoon oil

1 medium onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tablespoon thyme, chopped

3 cups vegetable broth

2 cups white cheddar, shredded

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon butter

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Toss the cauliflower florets in the oil along with the salt and pepper and arrange them in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Roast the cauliflower in a preheated 400 degree F oven until lightly golden brown, about 20-30 minutes.

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme and saute until fragrant, about a minute.

Add the broth and cauliflower, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.

Puree the soup until it reaches your desired consistency with an immersion blender. Mix in the cheese, let it melt, and season with salt and pepper. Mix in the butter and milk and remove from heat.

Comments { 3 }

Apple Pie Rolls

By Elle on February 28, 2013 in food

Looking for something different?

These baked apple pie egg rolls are crazy good and easy too. I judge how easy a recipe is by how many f-bombs I drop. For this recipe, I dropped one, okay two, and that was only because I couldn’t find the heavy whipping cream that was hidden way back in the refrigerator where I couldn’t reach.

The homemade whipped cream was orgasmic. I’ve never made fresh before and holy shit, it is so worth it if you haven’t tried it yet. Get a spoon ready for it.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 apples, about 2 heaping cups worth (I like granny smith)
1 large lemon, juiced
1/3 cup sugar
4 Tbsp. flour
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. all spice
1/8 tsp. salt
package of egg roll wrappers
1 egg lightly beaten
Sweetened whipped cream dip:
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
cinnamon to sprinkle on top

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Peel and chop up apples. This isn’t Top Chef so nobody will be judging you on your knife skills. Although I’d love to have Tom Colicchio come on over to my house and judge mine, if you know what I mean. Ahem. Anyway… add to a medium bowl. Add remaining filling ingredients to bowl and stir together until well combined. Allow mixture to sit for about 10 minutes.

Lay 1 egg roll wrapper onto a clean surface and brush edge with a 1 inch perimeter of egg wash. Spread 2-3 tablespoons of the filling across one side of the prepared egg roll wrapper.

You don’t want to over stuff these. Fold the sides over and brush with egg wash. Carefully roll filling tightly in the wrapper and press gently to seal.

Place onto a baking sheet lined with parchment and coat with a thin layer of cooking spray. Repeat until all the filling and wrappers have been used. Bake egg rolls for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.

During the last 5 minutes of cook time, pull out and brush with a little melted butter and sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on top.

Put back in oven for remaining 5 minutes. Serve immediately with sweetened whipped cream.

To make sweetened whipped cream: Place cream in a mixing and whip with a hand mixer, on medium-high speed. As the mixture thickens, slowly add sugar until fully incorporated. Add vanilla. Whip until stiff peaks form. I sprinkled a little cinnamon on top as well.

Comments { 3 }

No Machine Needed: Easy Ice Cream!

By Elle on January 28, 2013 in food

Sure, it may be 20 below where you live, but every day is a good day for ice cream.

Since I only started to enjoy cooking (sometimes) last year, I don’t have any cool kitchen gadgets because I never needed them before. I still have an electric hand mixer and don’t see getting a stand mixer anytime soon.

I don’t have an ice cream maker so I’ve been on the lookout for an ice cream recipe that doesn’t need a machine and bingo, I found one.

I have a strong memory of when I was younger and my mom made homemade ice cream. This wasn’t by any means a regular occurrence but I thought it was the coolest thing and I still remember how good it tasted.

I really suck at letting the little hummingbird cook with me since I can get frazzled easily while cooking. I usually like to be left alone to do my thing. This time I let her help me but she mostly just ate the cream and mini chocolate chips, as did I.

There are so many flavors you can come up with for this recipe; crumbled brownies, nutella, chopped up cinammon rolls, layer the ice cream with chocolate syrup, add crushed cookies, etc, etc.

With the ice cream I made, I used mini chocolate chips and swirled in some peanut butter before freezing. It’s so good! Enjoy!

2 cups (1 pint) heavy cream

1 14 oz. sweetened condensed milk

1/2 -3/4 cup mini chocolate chips

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

Whip heavy cream to stiff peaks in large bowl. Whisk sweetened condensed milk, chocolate chips, and vanilla in large bowl. Fold in whipped cream. Swirl in the peanut butter.

Pour into a 2-quart container and cover. Freeze 10 hours or until firm. Store in freezer.

I also made cookies and cream ice cream with a chocolate swirl. Here’s how that recipe would go. It’s so easy to play around with the ingredients you can use. This ice cream flavor was so fucking good. I was very impressed that I made this AND it’s so easy.

Sure if you’re like me and still have an electric hand mixer, you may think screw this, I have to mix it too long and my hand feels like it’s going to fall off.

Let it. It’s so worth it. Anyway, if your hand falls off, you still have another one.

2 cups (1 pint) heavy cream

1 14 oz. sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cups crushed peanut butter oreos

1 bottle magic shell chocolate fudge

Whip heavy cream to stiff peaks in large bowl. Whisk sweetened condensed milk, crushed cookies, and vanilla in large bowl. Fold in whipped cream. Pour 1/4 of the ice cream mixture in a 2-quart container. Layer with 1/4 bottle of the magic shell. Repeat until mixture is layered. Freeze for 10 hours or until firm. Enjoy!

Comments { 7 }

Chai Spiced Sugar Cookies

By Elle on January 21, 2013 in food

My husband loves anything chai spiced so I made these cookies for him a few days ago. I was worried the flavor would be too overpowering but it was nice and mellow. They were so good, my 3 year-old asked me if I really made them.

I think that’s a compliment…maybe…kind of. I didn’t think my cooking was that bad.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups white sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl combine sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, allspice and black pepper. Remove 1/4 cup of the sugar-spice mixture, set aside to reserve for rolling the cookies. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar-spice mixture, about 3 minutes.

Beat in eggs and vanilla extract, combine until fully incorporated. Slowly blend in dry ingredients mixing until just combined. Using a small scoop (2 teaspoons) roll dough into balls and then into the reserved sugar-spice mixture.

Place dough balls on prepared baking sheet about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Let stand on baking sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.