When my kids were little we made Chex Candy a lot–mostly on Sundays. It was very easy, very quick and the recipe made a ton. That meant it was pretty much the perfect treat for a family of seven.
As the kids got bigger we found it was also a great neighbor gift at Christmas time–for all the same reasons. So there are a select few of my children that only remember it as a treat for December. Kinda sad, when you think about it–considering it’s…you know…JULY…and I do have that stray box of Chex just laying around.
But I’m a clever girl….and not one to stand on convention.
This lovely little cheesy, potato-y egg bake has always been one of my favorite things to make for the family. Fast, easy, full of protein. In fact, it’s also one that my family chooses to make for their families a lot. I’m pretty confident when I say, that when you make this dish, it’s guaranteed to be gone in a flash.
Unless…
you live by yourself now and are cooking for one.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. My cute kids are all exactly where they belong, doing exactly what they should be doing.
I’m just saying that it does change the dynamics of dinnertime around here when you don’t have five bear cubs or even one woolly mammoth to feed.
I am learning–slowly but surely…to adjust.
It used to make sense to have double batches of cookies and triple batches of Chex candy and ten-person servings of rice, around–at all times.
Yeaaah…not anymore. It’s taken me waaay too long to figure out that what I make now, I have to be prepared to eat entirely or it’s getting thrown out–or worse, applied directly to my hips. Not to mention that when you eat the same meal for three days in a row–in order not to waste it– that meal loses it’s ummm…charm–shall we say? Blaugh.
Incredibly not awesome.
What to do?
I have discovered that if I want to have nice meals I have to cook in much smaller batches or know that the dish can be easily frozen.
For instance, this breakfast bake can be cut up into single portions and frozen for a week or so. Turns out, it is particularly good being reheated in the air fryer. Yum!
I’ll figure it out. Just takes a bit of tweaking the recipe or finding more room in the freezer. I can always thaw out 3 or 4 portions at a time if the need arises.
I mean…I may just get a visit from a woolly mammoth or some bear cubs.
Guys, guyyyys! If you’ve ever ordered the Bourbon Street Chicken from Chuck-a-Rama– and find yourself going back for more…over and over…
you’re gonna LOVE this recipe!
I’ve tried and tweaked it to perfection so that you don’t have to. And the best perk is that it’s even better than the restaurant kind because you know exactly what is in it!!
The first time I made this recipe–it was great, however there was absolutely NOT enough sauce and sauce is really important to some of us. So that was the first tweak. More sauce.
Next, I adjusted the ginger for the right amount of warmth, without causing a 3 alarm fire. Second tweak.
Lastly, some of the recipes called for actual whiskey, which ain’t happening at this place–so we’re using apple or cranberry juice. It’s perfect.
So, brace yourself. After you make this scrumptious chicken, you may just feel an overwhelming urge to send me a million dollars.
You just go right ahead.
Heh, heh.
Bourbon Street Chicken
Ingredients
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed
2-3 Tbsps olive oil
1-1/2 tsps ground ginger
1-1/2 tsps garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 C soy sauce
1 C apple or cranberry sauce
1-1/2 cups water
3T rice or apple cider vinegar
1 C brown sugar
3 T corn starch
1/2 c water
In a bowl stir together the ginger, pepper, soy sauce, apple juice, water, garlic, vinegar and brown sugar. Set sauce aside to allow sugar to disolve and spices to mix. In a separate small bowl stir cornstarch and water together until smooth.
Cut the chicken into bite size pieces and trim any excess fat, tendons and gristle. Heat olive oil in large skillet on medium high heat. Add chicken and cook until it begins to brown–about 8-10 minutes. Stir occasionally so that each piece browns evenly.
Slowly add sauce to chicken and stir well. When mixture comes to a boil, lower heat and allow sauce to simmer about 15 minutes.
With a spatula or whisk, push some of the chicken to side of the pan in order to make a little pool of sauce. Whisk cornstarch mixture briskly into the sauce. It will thicken quickly. Stir into chicken mixture evenly.
Now, it’s no big secret that many in our family dropped off the Superbowl wagon train a while back, as the players became increasingly disrespectful to the American flag and our country.
Nope, never going to have room for that sort of thing.
However, after careful observance we did notice that the main players were becoming a lot more patriotic and some even promoted Christianity openly. Well, well, well. You have my attention.
So it is with guarded optimism that we prepared for Superbowl this year–at long last.
Now, the FOOD. You may notice immediately, a distinct lack of….ummm…shall we say…
junk food?
Yes, it’s true. After all, if I intend to live forever–which I do–then I decided to act a bit more like it with the snacks.
I made seasoned lean hamburger with mustard and chopped pickles. Yum.
Tried my hand at Deviled Eggs. They were luscious–that is until I got an egg shell and it wrecked the whole experience. Gak. But before that…yum.
Ranch cucumbers and peanut butter celery. Yum.
Lastly, kiwi with raspberries and Cheddar Pickles. When I said they are addicting…I wasn’t kidding. Yum and double yum.
Since the snacks are usually the best part of the event–it’s what I decided to focus on–since the game turned out to be kinda dreadful…for Patriot fans anyway. Without Tom Brady, what’s to watch? Haha.
I could be scooching over to the Seahawks any day now. We’ll see.
Are you ready for an easy snack that’s so dang good you may have a hard time sharing?
Well, I’ve got you—try this one!!
It’s so simple and quick that you’ll be able to make a few batches in just a few minutes. If you’re not alone–you’ll need to keep them coming.
Fair warning.
All it takes is shredded cheddar cheese and pickle slices.
That’s it.
Butter all the cups in a cupcake pan. Sprinkle in a pinch of cheese. Pat 12 pickle slices dry with a paper towel and set one pickle slice on top of the cheese.
Now sprinkle another pinch of cheese on top of the pickle.
Bake for 14-16 minutes. Remove from pan to a paper towel.
I had a few left and kept them in the fridge, and was surprised at how good they were cold. I knowww…weird.
