Spicy Chicken Tenders with Garlic Butter Dipping Hot Sauce

Forget Church’s.  Forget Popeyes.

Make chicken tenders better than these two popular fried chicken depots!

Crunchy on the outside… Tender and juicy on the inside…

That’s exactly what these babies are!

My family loves chicken tenders… And we often buy them at Popeyes Chicken or Church’s Chicken… But after countless visits to these places… And after eating hundreds of chicken tenders, which most often were overly breaded.  Over fried… and stale… I had to figure out a way to make chicken tenders at home.

I have experimented with different recipes for chicken tenders.  My goal was to exceed or at least come close to what Popeyes and Church’s sells.

My first few were good but not quite the chicken tenders I had envisioned.  And then one day, I finally got it!

I finally came up with chicken tenders that are crunchy on the outside… tender and juicy on the inside… Perfectly cooked.  Perfectly breaded.  And spicy!

My husband is absolutely thrilled about my new concoction… He simply loves these chicken tenders… and so does my son…Goodbye Popeyes.

Goodbye Church’s.

Hello… Finger Lickin’ Spicy Chicken Tenders!

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NOTE:  If you expect the same result as I have gotten… You must use chicken tenderloins and NOT chicken breasts.  They are a bit pricy – around $3.40 per poun.  But it’s cheaper to make them at home than buying them at these fast food chains which they charge about $1 a piece!…

Here’s what you need and the recipe…

4 pounds chicken tenderloins.

seasoned flour. (see recipe below)

canola oil.

Garlic Butter Hot Sauce. (see recipe below)

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How To Make ‘Em and Fry’em

First you need to make the hot sauce…

two bottles hot sauce.

combine two bottles of hot sauce in a medium size sauce pan.

sea salt, cayenne pepper, ground black pepper, granulated garlic, ground, coriander, ground cumin, and ground ginger.

add sea salt and spices to the hot sauce.

mashed garlic.

add the mashed garlic to the hot sauce. mix them up.

And then…

measure exactly one cup of the hot sauce and set it aside.

add butter to the hot sauce mixture and simmer hot sauce over low heat…

And while the sauce is simmering…

place the chicken tenderloins in a ziploc bag.  and remember that cup of hot sauce you measured and set aside… ? pour that over the chicken tenderloins.

Close the bag and shake ‘em around so the sauce will coat the chicken tenderloins.   Have this bag sit while you season the flour…

combine the flour, kosher salt, spanish paprika, granulated garlic, ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, ground cumin, ground coriander.

take out those happily marinating chicken tenderloins from the ziploc bag and coat them with the seasoned flour.  four or five pieces at a time.

place the coated chicken tenderloins on a platter for about 3 minutes before frying them in hot oil…

fry the chicken tenderloins in hot oil 350°F (for 6 – 7 minutes or until cooked and crispy.

drain on paper towels and serve…

btw… you can also use chicken wings, if you like wings…

Please note:  if using bone in wings, fry the wings 8 – 10 minutes or until cooked.

The RECIPE…

Spicy Chicken Tenders with Garlic Butter Dipping Hot Sauce

Ingredients:

4 pounds chicken tenders

Seasoned Flour – see recipe below

4 – 5 cups canola oil

Garlic Butter Hot Sauce:

1 bottle (17.5 ounces) Texas Pete Buffalo Style Barbecue Sauce

1 bottle (12 ounces) Luisiana Hot Sauce

6 cloves garlic – peeled and minced

2 tsps. cayenne pepper

1½ tsps. ground black pepper

2 tsps. coarse sea salt + 1 tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. granulated garlic

¼ tsp. ground coriander

¼ tsp. ground cumin

1/8 tsp. ground ginger

¾ stick unsalted butter

In a medium size sauce pan, combine hot sauces, garlic, cayenne, ground black pepper, coriander, cumin and ground ginger.  Stir until smooth and free of lumps.  (You will add the butter later.)

Place chicken tenders in a gallon ziploc bog.

Measure exactly 1 cup of the hot sauce mixture and pour over the chicken tenders.

Close the freezer bag and shake or toss the toss until chicken is well coated with the hot sauce.

In the meantine, place the sauce pan with the hot sauce mixture on a stove over medium low heat.  Add the butter.  Simmer sauce until boiling, stirring occassionally.

Turn off heat.

Seasoned Flour:

2 cups all purpose flour

3 tsps. kosher salt

2 tsps. Spanish paprika

1 tsp. granulated garlic

1 tsp. ground black pepper

1 tsp. cayenne pepper

½ tsp. ground cumin

½ tsp. ground coriander

In a deep dish or bowl, combine flour, salt and spices.

Dredge chicken tenders, one piece at a time, with the seasoned flour.  Place dredge chicken tenders in a large plate and allow them to sit for 5 minutes.  This process allows the breading to stick to the meat.

Using a deep heavy bottomed pot or large skillet, heat 4 – 5 cups canola oil until it reaches 350°F.

Fry chicken tenders, 5 or 6 pieces at a time, for 6 to 7 minutes or until golden brown.

Drain on paper towels.

Serve warm with Garlic Butter Dipping Hot Sauce on the side.  Or Dunk the fried chicken tenders in the hot sauce before serving.  Serve with potato salad, baked beans, and or red beans and rice.

Tess’ Kitchen Secrets:

#1 – Adding the hot sauce mixture to the chicken without the butter seasons the chicken well, and allows the breading to adhere to the chicken.

#2 – Fresh garlic, and granulated garlic, gives the sauce a double dose of garlic flavors.

#3 – Ground cumin, coriander and ginger give the sauce a nice surprise.

#4 – If you want them to be restaurant style… dunk them in hot sauce before serving.  But if you want to control the heat… serve the sauce on the side.

#5 – If using wings, please fry them 8 – 10 minutes.  One of the best ways to tell if the wings are cooked… is when the wings starts to float on the oil instead of them being at the bottom.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris

Tsukune Turkey

This turkey dish is tender, juicy and bursting with flavors in every bite.  Simmered in a teriyaki sauce that is rich in garlic and ginger.

The turkey patties can be fried or grilled on bamboo skewers over hot coals.  Dipped in teriyaki sauce instead of being simmered in it.

This recipe was originally for ground chicken made into balls or clumped around bamboo skewers, thus the term Tsukune in Japanese.  But I decided to use ground turkey because of convenience and availability.

Below is what you need to make this Japanese flavored dish…

*** Please note that I have doubled the recipe in these photos…***

Ground turkey or chicken.

Bragg’s Liquid Aminos or soy sauce, salt, ground black pepper, ground hot peppers (optional) egg yolks, carrots, ginger and cornstarch…

Place ground turkey in a large mixing bowl and sprinkle the salt, black pepper,  and ground hot pepper if using.

Add the soy…

Add the grated ginger… and stir to combine.

Add the egg yolks.  Mix.

Add the grated carrots.  Stir to combine.

Add the cornstarch.  Mix well.

Form mixture into 8 – 10 patties.

Heat a nonstick skillet and add canola oil…

Fry turkey patties in hot oil…

About 4 minutes on each side or until patties are cooked…

Transfer patties into the simmering pot of Teriyaki Sauce… Cover pot and simmer patties over low heat for about 10 minutes before serving…

Of if you want a crunchier patties, serve the sauce on the side…

The Sauce… Teriyaki Sauce

You will need teriyaki sauce, Liquid Aminos or soy sauce, water, minced garlic, and grated ginger…

And chopped onions…

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How to Make the Teriyaki Sauce…

In a medium size sauce pan over medium heat, combine teriyaki sauce, water, garlic and ginger.

In a small bowl, mix cornstarch with about 2 tablespoons water.  Mix until smooth…

Drizzle cornstarch mixture over the sauce mixture.

Bring the sauce to a boil while stirring constantly.  Once boiling, reduce heat to low…

And while the sauce in simmering over low heat… prepare and fry the turkey patties…

Transfer turkey patties to the simmering teriyaki sauce…

Serve turkey patties with the sauce sprinkled with chopped green onions and a bowl of freshly cooked Jasmine rice on the side.

The RECIPE:

Tsukune Turkey

1 pound ground chicken or turkey (93% lean)
1 small carrot – grated finely
1 extra large egg yolk
¾ tsp. salt
1 TBSPs. Liquid Aminos or soy sauce

½ tsp. ground black pepper

½ tsp. ground hot pepper (optional)
1 inch piece fresh ginger – peeled and grated
2 TBSPs. cornstarch

½ cup canola oil for frying

Place ground turkey in a medium size mixing bowl.  Add salt, ground black pepper, hot pepper.  Add the soy sauce and the grated ginger.  Stir to combine.  Add the egg yolk and mix.  Add the grated carrot and mix.  Sprinkle the cornstarch over the mixture. Mix well.

Form mixture into 8 – 10 patties.

Heat a nonstick skillet and add vegetable oil.  Fry turkey patties over medium heat until golden brown, about 4 minutes on each side.
Remove fried turkey patties from the skillet shaking off excess oil and place them in the simmering Teriyaki Sauce.

Teriyaki Sauce:
1 cup teriyaki sauce
½ cup water

1 inch piece ginger – peeled and grated

8 garlic cloves – smashed, peeled and chopped

¼ tsp. ground black pepper

½ tsp. ground hot pepper (optional)

1 TBSP. + 1 tsp. cornstarch

1 bunches of green onions – chopped (to be added to the chicken patties right before serving.)

In a medium size sauce pan, combine all the sauce ingredients except the cornstarch over medium heat.  Whisk until combined.

In a small bowl, combine cornstarch with 3 tablespoons water.  Drizzle cornstarch mixture over the teriyaki sauce.  Whisk until mixture comes to a boil and sauce slightly thickens.  Reduce heat to low.  Let the sauce simmer while you fry the turkey patties.

Add the fried turkey patties into the simmering Teriyaki Sauce.

Serve turkey patties with the sauce sprinkled with chopped green onions and a bowl of freshly cooked Jasmine rice on the side.

Tess Kitchen Secrets:

#1 – Prepare the Teriyaki Sauce and have it simmering over very low heat while you prepare and fry the turkey patties.

#2 – Forming the turkey patties can be a messy business.  So I have 2 tablespoons of canola oil in a small bowl.  Lightly oil the spoon and your hands before forming the patties.  I also wear disposable gloves to keep my hands clean.   (I always keep a box of non-latex gloves in the kitchen.  And they are much cheaper at Sam’s Club – $9.99 for a box of 100 gloves.)

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris

Baked Broccoli Casserole

The first time I had Baked Broccoli Casserole was 18 years ago.  We were in Jacksonville, Arkansas then.  My husband’s co-worker invited us for dinner at their house.

Back then I was very shy, and was therefore too timid to ask for the recipe.  I did not get the recipe until two years later when we visited my husband’s brother in Sumter, South Carolina.  His wife, Val… is a great cook.  And one of the dishes that she cooked while we were visiting was – you guessed it – Baked Broccoli Casserole.

The contrasts between sharp cheddar cheese (salty) and sweet corn bread is what made this dish luscious.  I usually make a big pan every time… that’s how much my husband and son like it.

Baked Broccoli Casserole is one of those dishes that have almost everything in it – protein (chicken), vegetables (broccoli) and carbohydrates (rice).  So we eat it by itself, unless I have other leftovers that go with this dish…

I know… it looks like a lot of work.  But most of the work is really in the preparation of the ingredients you will need to assemble the casserole.  And once you have the ingredients prepared as detailed below, you’ve done most of the work.

Here’s what you  need:

Steamed or blanched broccoli, cooked rice, cooked chicken, cream of mushroom and cream of chicken, chicken broth, shredded sharp cheddar cheese, and cornbread batter.

The key is to have all these ingredients ready.  And once they are ready, then you are ready to assemble the casserole.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

In a large pot over medium heat, combine cream of chicken and cream of mushroom.

Add 2 cans of chicken broth.  I used one of the cans for the cream of mushroom or chicken to measure the broth I need.

Also, this is the broth from the cooked chicken breast…

Whisk mixture until soupy.

Add the chopped or shredded chicken breast meat…

Add cooked rice… stir to combine.

Add the broccoli…

Stir to combine.

That’s why it’s always good to measure the broth.  Because if you’re like me, which I don’t think you are, I am bad when it comes to “eyeballing.”

*** Always have an extra cup of cooked rice to thicken the casserole if there’s too much broth in it. Like this one here…

Butter a 10.5 x 15.5 baking dish

Pour the broccoli and rice mixture into the buttered baking pan…

Add the shredded cheddar cheese on top of the broccoli and rice mixture…

In medium size mixing bowl, prepare the cornbread batter…

And pour this over the cheddar cheese layer.  (I can’t believe I do not have a photo for this step… I don’t know where I was that day.  I know I was in the kitchen, but I can’t guarantee where my mind was…)

Bake Broccoli Casserole for 27 – 30 minutes or until corn bread is golden brown.

Serve warm…

Baked Broccoli Casserole

Ingredients:

2 large heads of Broccoli, cut into flowerets (about 4 cups broccoli) – STEAMED

5 – 6 cups cooked rice

1 (10 ¾ ounces) can cream of mushrooms

1 (10 ¾ ounces) can cream of chicken

2 cans chicken stock

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

2 large chicken breasts cooked and shredded (see cooking instructions below)

Herbed Corn Bread – see recipe

*** Below are the ingredients that MUST be prepared before assembling the Baked Broccoli Casserole in a baking pan:

1)      Cut the Broccoli into flowerets or bite sizes.  Steam for 3 minutes.  Or if you don’t have a steamer, blanched in boiling water for 3 minutes.  Remove and drain and set aside.

2)      Cook the rice.  Uncle Ben’s Rice is fine… In my case I use a rice cooker.  I usually cook 3 cups of rice just to be on the safe side. In case I need more rice to thicken the casserole.

3)      Cook the Chicken Breasts.  You could simply boil the chicken breasts.  But I like my chicken to have flavors.  So I boil the chicken breasts along with these ingredients.  And I use the broth for the chicken broth needed.

• 2 large chicken breasts
• 2 carrots – cut into 3 or 4 large pieces
• 2 celery sticks – cut into 4 large pieces
• 1 medium onion – quartered
• 4 cloves garlic – cut in half, unpeeled
• 4 sprigs parsley
• 1 large bay leaf
• 10 black pepper corns
• ½ tablespoon salt
• 6 cups cold water – enough to cover the chicken and vegetables.

In a medium size pot, combine chicken, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, parsley, bay leaf, pepper corns, salt, and water.

Bring to a slow boil and simmer for 45 minutes.  Skim any foam that may arise to the top.

Turn the off heat and remove the chicken breasts onto a plate to cool.  Strain the broth to be used later.

When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and bones.  Cut the chicken meat into bite size chunks.  Set aside.

4)      Prepare the Herbed Corn Bread mixture – last:

• 1 ¼ cup corn meal
• ¾ cup self- rising flour
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. thyme
• ½ tsp. marjoram
• 1 tsp. celery seeds
• 1 ¼ cup milk or chicken broth
• ¼ cup canola oil
• 2 extra large eggs – well beaten

In a large mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients.  Add milk and canola oil.  Add the well – beaten eggs.  Stir until thoroughly combine.  (You should have a mixture with no lumps.)  Set aside.

5)      Preheat oven to 350°F.

Assembling all the ingredients:

In a large pot, combine cream of mushrooms, cream of chicken and chicken broth.  Whisk until free of lumps and mixture is soupy.

Add the steamed broccoli, chopped chicken, and rice.  (You should have a thick but NOT dry broccoli casserole mixture.  The rice should absorb most of the liquid.)

Grease a 10 ½ x 15 ½ inch baking dish.

Layer the bottom of the baking dish with the broccoli casserole mixture.   (The baking dish should only be half – filled.  If you have too much broccoli casserole mixture… remove some. Because you’re going to need the remaining space for the shredded cheese and Herb Corn Bread mixture.)

Top broccoli casserole mixture with shredded cheddar cheese.

Pour the Herb Corn Bread mixture over the shredded cheese layer

Bake Broccoli Casserole for 27 – 30 minutes or until corn bread is golden brown.

Serve warm.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris

Double Frosted Strawberry Ice Cream Cake

I could barely lift this heavy, monstrous ice cream cake.  It serves at least 20 people.  Of course I did not have that many people to feed.  This means we will have ice cream cake for dessert for a whole week!

And the draw back of course, is storage space.  It occupies 75% of the space in our freezer.  Why did I make a cake so big? You’d probably ask…

I have a problem with estimation.  And I have issues with small, miniature things.

I am stuck in some kind of pattern.   I seem to always cook or bake for a large number of people; even though there are only three of us in our family.  And then I get stuck with all these foods, wishing I have friends and family to invite over…

I don’t like waste.  I especially hate throwing food away.  And yet I cook so much that most leftovers end up in the trash.  A vicious cycle I fall into over… and over… again!

Last year, for Ramon’s birthday, I bought a small ice cream cake from Dairy Queen.  The ice cream was good.  But the cake was hard and dry as a cardboard!  So I told myself… I bet I can make ice cream cake better than the ones I bought at the store.  I decided then and there that next year, for Ramon’s birthday, which was last Sunday, I will make an ice cream cake.  And this is exactly what I did.   I made the cake two days before.  Stored them in the freezer and the next day, frosted the layers with strawberry frosting and filled the layers with strawberry ice cream.  The cake stayed in the freezer until the next day for final frosting of whipped cream.

Of all the flavors I could choose from, why strawberry?  That’s because my son loves strawberries and strawberry flavors.  Though he complained that the strawberry icing for this cake is a bit overpowering.  It sorta overpowered the taste of the strawberry ice cream.

OK… so lessons learned.  This is my first attempt at making home made… really, more like semi-home made ice cream cake.  So for next time, I might just double up on the whippped cream frosting and use that in place of the store bought frosting.  But then again, Ramon said he wants a strawberry cheesecake next time.

So… for my next ice cream cake… It’s going to be all about what I want… And I want a French vanilla cake filled with Ben and Jerry’s Heath Bar Crunch and Americone Dream.  Mmmmm!  I can already feel it.  I’m going to have a seizure!

Here’s what you need…

Boxed cake mixes, frosting, and instant vanilla pudding.

Extra large eggs, water and canola oil.

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer.

Mix on low speed for about 45 seconds.

Increase speed to medium and blend for about 2 minutes or until mixture is smooth, creamy and free of lumps.

Please note:  Before you begin mixing the cake, preheat the oven to 350°F and butter two 10 inch cake pans and dust them with granulated sugar.

Pour cake batter into the prepared pans.

Bake cakes in a preheated oven at 350°F for 30 minutes.  Reduce the oven to 325°F and bake the cakes for another 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool cakes in the pan for 1 hour.

Loosen the cakes from the pan by scraping the sides of the pan with a thin knife before freezing.

Freeze cake for at least eight hours before slicing.

Cut cakes in half, horizontally.

Frost the cakes.

Frost each layer with the canned frosting.  I used about half a can for each layer.

Take the tub of ice cream about 10 minutes.  Just so it’s spreadable.

Spread about 1/3 of the ice cream on the first or bottom layer.

SStack the cakes as you fill each layer with ice cream.

Align and press the cake down.  Freeze ice cream filled cakes for 3 hours, unwrap or uncovered.  After three hours, pull the cake from the freezer and cover or wrap with plastic wrap.

Freeze the ice cream filled cake overnight.

Prepare the Heavy Whip Cream Frosting:

Here I have heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract.

Whip heavy cream until frothy.

Add powdered sugar.

Whisk for a few seconds.

Add vanilla extract.

Whip heavy cream and powdered sugar mixture until thick.

Take a spatula and generously spread whipped cream over the frozen cakes, from the top down to the bottom.

Like this…

At this point, you can decorate the cake if you like.

I don’t bake this type of cake often, and therefore do not have the tools for decorating pastries, and this cake.  So I left it plain…

Take the cake out of the freezer no longer than 15 minutes before serving.

Slice the cake and enjoy.

The RECIPE:

Please note that I used a stand (Kitchen Aid) mixer to mix the cake.  I’m sure you could manually mix these, it would just take longer.  And if you do, a wooden spoon is a great tool.

Please also note that I used two 10 inch cake pans and took 1 hour to bake the cakes:  30 minutes at 350°F and another 30 minutes at 325°F.

Fail Proof Cake Recipe:

2 (18.5 ounce) box cake mixes, any flavor you like

1 (3.4 ounce) box vanilla instant pudding

7 extra large eggs

2 1/3 cups water

5/6 cup canola oil (a line below 1 cup)

Place oven rack on the third shelf from the bottom.  Preheat oven to 350°F.

Butter two 10 inch cake pans and dust them with granulated sugar.

Using the bowl for a stand mixer (Kitchen Aid), combine all the ingredients as listed above.

Using the paddle attachment, mix the cake on low speed for 45 seconds.  Increase the speed to medium and mix the cake for 2 minutes.

Pour batter, equally, into the prepared cake pans.

Bake cakes in a preheated oven at 350°F for 30 minutes.  Reduce the oven to 325°F and bake the cakes for another 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Remove cakes from the oven and cool them in the pans for 1 hour.

Loosen the cakes by scraping a knife all around the pans.

Freeze cakes in the pans, covered with aluminum foil.

Frosting and Filling the Cake with Ice Cream:

2 (16 ounce) cans frosting, strawberry or your favorite flavor

Half gallon strawberry ice cream or your favorite flavors

Remove the cakes from the freezer and cut them in half, horizontally.

Spread half a can of frosting on each layer.

Spread 1/3 of the ice cream on the first/bottom layer.  Do the same with the second and third layer.

Align and press down the cakes after each layer had been filled with ice cream.  Freeze the ice cream filled cakes.

Whipped Cream Frosting:

2 cups heavy whipping cream

½ cup powdered sugar

2 tsps. vanilla extract

Using the bowl for the stand mixer, whisk heavy cream until frothy.

Add powdered sugar and vanilla extract.  Whisk cream and powdered sugar until thick and it clings to the whisk.  This process will take about less than 2 minutes.

Spread whipped cream over the top and sides of the frozen ice cream filled cakes.

Remove the cake from freezer no longer than 15 minutes before serving.

Tess’ Kitchen Secrets:

#1 – Bake and freeze the cakes two days before you need them.  Slicing a frozen cake eliminates if not reduces the chance of the cakes crumbling.

#2 – To easily remove the frozen cakes from the pan, place the cake pans over hot water for a few minutes.

#3 – To easily and cleanly slice the cake, have a glass jar filled with boiling water.  (Please be sure the jar can withstand very hot water.)  Place a large knife in the hot water.  Slice the ice cream cake with the hot knife.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking.  Or should I say baking?

Tess Harris

Apple Coffee Cake with Citrus Glaze

I love all pastries with apples.  Especially if it doesn’t involve kneading.  Like this Apple Coffee Cake.  Easy and simple to make, yet delicious.

I made this a few years ago.  And it came out really good.  So I thought I’d resurrect the recipe and make it again.

Also, to add some richness on the cake, I’ve decided to drizzle a brown sugar glaze over the cake before serving.

Here’s what you need…

Apples.  5 apples.  I like to use different varieties…

Peel. Core.  Slice and chop the apples… Add lemon juice.

Add brown sugar and cinnamon to the apples.  Mix until thoroughly combined…

In a large bowl, combine flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and orange zest… Set aside…

… Sorry.  I have no photos for these steps guys…

Using a stand-up mixer (I use Kitchen Aid)… Whisk the eggs and safflower oil until smooth and creamy… Add the orange juice

Remove the whisk and replace with the paddle attachment.

Add the flour mixture. Stir over low speed until flour ingredients are moistened. Turn the speed to medium and blend until smooth and free of lumps.

Cake batter should look like this…

Pour 1/3 of the cake batter evenly into the greased and floured bundt pan…

And then add evenly over the the batter, 1/2 of the chopped apples…

Repeat the process…

And pour the last third of the cake batter over the second and last layer of apples…

Bake cake in a preheated oven for 60 minutes.

Apple Coffee Cake after 60 minutes of baking…

Cool in the pan on a wire cooling rack for 1 hour.

Invert the pan to remove the cake…

At this point… you can now glaze the cake.  If you want.  See Citrus Glaze recipe below…

Glazing is optional…

Serve with or without glaze…

Here’s the recipe:

Apple Coffee Cake with Citrus Glaze

5 cups apples – peeled, cored and chopped (about 5 medium apples)

2 tsps. fresh lemon juice

½ cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 tsps. ground cinnamon

3 cups all purpose unbleached flour

1 ¾ cups granulated sugar

1 TBSP. baking powder

½ tsp. kosher salt

1 TBSP. grated orange zest (about 1 medium orange)

4 extra large eggs – room temperature (see tip below)

1 cup safflower oil or any nut oil

½ cup freshly squeeze orange juice

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Generously grease and flour the bundt or tube pan.

Peel, core and chop apples. Place them in a large bowl. Add the lemon juice and mix. Sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon over the apples. Mix until thoroughly combined. Set aside.

In another large mixing bowl… whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and grated orange zest. Set aside.

Using the stand up mixer, bowl and whisk attachment, whisk the eggs and safflower oil until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the orange juice and continue to whisk for another minute.

Remove the whisk and replace with the paddle attachment.

Add the flour mixture. Stir over low speed until dry ingredients are moistened. Turn the speed to medium and beat mixture for about 2 minutes or until batter is smooth, creamy and free of lumps.  Do not over beat.

Pour 1/3 of the batter, evenly, into the prepared bundt or tube pan.

Discard or drain any liquid that may have accumulated from the apple mixture.

And then, using a slotted spoon, spoon ½ of the chopped apple mixture over the batter.

Pour another third of the batter over the layered chopped apples.

Spoon the last half of the chopped apples over the layered batter, and then evenly pour the last third of the batter over the layered chopped apples.

Bake cake in a preheated oven for 60 minutes.

It is very important that you carefully watch the cake during the first 30 minutes of baking. As soon as the cake turns golden brown, immediately cover the pan, loosely, with aluminum foil. Continue baking until the cake is done or when a bamboo skewer comes out clean when inserted. (Mine got done in 60 minutes.  Yours might differ depending on your oven.

Remove the cake from the oven… and remove the foil.

Cool cake in the pan over a cooling wire rack for at least 1 hour.

Invert the pan to remove the cake unto a cooling wire rack.

Prepare the glaze as directed below.  Pour over glaze over the cake.  Wait until glaze slighlty hardens.  Serve.

Citrus Glaze:

2 cups powdered sugar

2 TBSPs. butter, melted

1 TBSP. freshly squeezed orange juice

1 TBSP. freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ tsp. vanilla extract

In a small saucepan, over low heat, combine all the ingredients.  Mix with a wooden spoon until smooth. Drizzle over Apple Coffee Cake and allow glaze to harden slightly.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Tess’ Kitchen Secrets:

#1 – In greasing bakings pans, including bundt pans, Baker’s Joy Spray is a convenient spray that contains flour.  Granulated sugar is also a great alternative to flour.

#2 – The Citrus Glaze adds richness to this Apple Coffee Cake.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris

Strawberry Lemonade

This Strawberry Lemonade was inspired by our visit to Chili’s Bar and Grill Restaurant several weeks ago.

I prefer flavored tea and lemonade over carbonated soda at any time.  And that day, I decided to order Strawberry Lemonade.  It tasted so good.  Not too sweet and not too tart, I drank 2 large full glasses.  And I hated leaving my third glass unfinished!

Their lemonade left an impression in my mind.  I wanted to make it when I got home.  I know how it tasted, therefore I can recreate it while the taste still vivid in my memory.  And so I did…

I know I should be drinking water.  Because plain, filtered water is good for the body.  But damnit!  I get tired of drinking water!  So sometimes, or maybe more often than not, I want to drink something other than water.  And this Strawberry Lemonade feels like heaven compared to water.  And besides, I reason to myself, drinking other types of liquid, like this lemonade is better than completely dehydrating myself.  Which I often do.

When I was little, we had to walk 2 miles to fetch drinking water.  And we only drank water when we felt thirsty.  And so I had this moronic understanding that I only drink water when I’m thirsty.  That’s what we did when I was little!

But as I got older, I learned that by the time you feel thirsty.  It’s too late.  Your body is already dehydrated.  So I should drink water – a minimum of  32 ounces for my body weight, every 3 hours.  Or 2½ hours after eating a meal.  My goal is to drink 4 quarts of water daily, before bedtime…

Drinking water every 3 hours is easier said than done.  It is difficult to drink water when one is not thirsty.  I honestly don’t know how others keep themselves hydrated when most of their fluid intake is carbonated soda or sweetened drinks.  I guess drinking some kind of fluid is better than no fluid at all.  And besides, our bodies adapt to anything.

This is where I run into trouble.  We do not regularly keep carbonated sodas or sweet drinks in our home.  What we have are gallons of spring water for drinking.

So when I started making this Strawberry Lemonade, we have an excuse to avoid spring water in between our “water drinking schedule.”  At least there are no artificial or chemical additives in this lemonade.  And it’s loaded with vitamin C.  So there… that’s my excuse for not drinking water like I’m supposed to…

So if you’re like me.  You would want to make this Strawberry Lemonade to treat yourself in between your plain water intake.  Besides, strawberries are in season right now.  So if you have abundant access to strawberries.  This lemonade is a great way to get rid of those strawberries.  Though in my case, I use frozen whole strawberries.  Just because they’re much cheaper than the fresh ones.  Texas is far away from strawberry growing farms, so strawberries here, even when they are in season, are still not dirt cheap.

Anyway…

Here’s how to make this thirst quenching Strawberry Lemonade…

You will need: 16 ounce package of frozen whole strawberries.  Or you could use fresh ones, granulated sugar, and filtered water.

In a large pot, combine strawberries and sugar.

And then add clean, filtered water.

Stir until sugar is dissolve over medium heat.

Bring mixture to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer strawberries for about 10 minutes.  Or until strawberries are pale pink.

Mash the strawberries on the side of the pot using a spoon.

Stir.

Remove mashed strawberries using a strainer and discard.

Add the freshly squeezed lemon juice into the strawberry liquid.

Take 2 half gallon pitchers or glass jars, and pour the strawberry syrup into the jars, dividing syrup equally between two jars.

Fill each jar with cold water.

Serve with ice.

The Recipe:

Strawberry Lemonade – Yield: 1 gallon

1 – 16 ounces pkg. frozen whole strawberries

2 ¾ cup granulated sugar

4 cups water

3 large lemons – juiced

In a large pot, combine frozen strawberries, sugar and water.

Stir over medium heat and bring mixture to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes or until strawberries are mushy and have turned into pale pink in color.

Turn off heat.

Using the back of the spoon, mash strawberries.  And then remove them into a strainer, pressing the strawberries through the strainer, to squeeze as much liquid from them.  Discard mashed strawberries.

Take 2 half gallon pitchers or glass jars, and pour the strawberry syrup into the jars, dividing syrup equally between two jars.  Fill each jar with cold water.

Chill strawberry lemonade before serving.

Serve with crushed ice.

Tess’ Kitchen Secrets:

#1 – The bright, red colors of strawberries give this lemonade that bright red color.   So if your strawberries are not as red, then the strawberry syrup is not going to be as red as well. (If you like, add a drop of red food coloring into the syrup before pouring it into the jars.)

#2 – Fresh lemon juice has no substitute.  Use more or less depending on how tart your like your lemonade.

#3 – You get all that goodness and colors from strawberries by simmering them.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris

Barbecued Pork Steaks in a Bun

One stormy day several years ago, I was watching Food Network and they were showing one of Pillsbury’s Bake – Off Contests, where contestants win as much as $1 million dollars for their recipes…

My reaction was – WOW!  A $1 million dollar for a recipe?  Are these recipes really worth that much?  Do they really taste that good to be awarded a $million dollars?  So I went to the library and borrow one of Pillsbury’s Cookbooks.  I was curious to try some of these million dollar  recipes.  I want to know, and taste for myself, what makes these recipes won $1 million dollars.

One of the $1 million dollar winning recipes that caught my eye was the Chinese Roast Pork Buns by Wayne Hu.  The picture looked good and the buns reminded me of Siopao, another Chinese dish that I used to enjoy in the Philippines years ago.  Siopao is a steamed bun filled with pork and boiled eggs, served with a sauce.  Thus, I decided to give this dish a try…

The verdict…?

Overall… my family loves these buns.  They are great travel food.  And can be eaten as a snack, lunch, or dinner accompanied with a light soup.

And the preparation is fairly easy because I did not make my own buns.  Instead, I used store bought Pillsbury Buttermilk Biscuits.

My question is… are the really worth $1 million dollars…?

The Barbecued Pork Blade Steaks are awesome.  This is a stand alone dish that can be served with cooked rice and sauteed vegetables on the side.  And they’re easy to make.

As for the buns…

I don’t think so.  They are good… and the preparation is easy, but I don’t think it’s worth a $1 million dollars.  But then again, this is a very good example that food and taste is very subjective!  According to the judges of the Pillsbury Bake – Off Contest in 1994, this recipe – Chinese Roast Pork Buns is worth the $million dollar prize.

The recipe that I am posting here is my own adaptation of that $million dollar winning recipe.  I made a slight deviation from the original recipe by using red wine and olive oil, instead of using sherry and peanut oil, but I think the taste is still pretty close.  Also, I made extra barbecue sauce for the pork and I mixed about ½ cup of the remaining barbecue sauce with the filling below.

This recipe serves 4.  Two buns per person.

(I apologize.  But I don’t have step by step photos for this, yet…)

Prepare the Barbecued Pork Blade Steaks first.

I realized that I cooked four blade steaks but I only need 2 for these buns.  So I made sandwiches with the ones I did not need…

Barbecued Pork Steaks

4 large pork blade steaks – about 3 pounds

Sweet Barbecue Sauce:

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 cup ketchup

½ cup soy sauce

½ cup hoisen sauce

¼ cup red wine

¼ cup deli style mustard with horseradish

2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled

 

Combine barbecue sauce ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour sauce into a large bowl.  Reserve 1/2 cup of this sauce to be used for the Barbecued Pork Steaks in a Bun…

 

Preheat oven to 400°F.

 

Line a heavy duty cookie sheet with foil.  Place a wire rack in the cookie sheet.

 

Wash pork steaks and pat dry with paper towels and place them on the wire rack.  Liberally brush both sides of each pork steak with the barbecue sauce.

 

Bake pork steaks in a preheated oven at 400°F for 30 minutes.

Brush pork steaks again, on both sides, with the remaining barbecue sauce.  Return to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes.

Remove pork steaks from the oven and cool enough to handle.  Chop pork steaks into small pieces, discarding the bones.  Serve pork steaks as sandwiches or use as filling for the Barbecued Pork in a Bun.

~~~

So once the pork steaks are ready…

Prepare the filling for the buns:

1 TBSP. olive oil or vegetable oil

½ medium onion – finely diced

1 – 8 ounces can water chestnuts, finely diced

1 TBSP. cornstarch

1 TBSP. red wine or dry sherry

1 TBSP. soy sauce

1 TBSP. hoisen sauce

½ cup chicken stock (broth)

2 Barbecued Pork Blade Steaks – chopped

Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet.  Sauté the onions until translucent.  Add the water chestnuts and stir a few minutes.

In a small bowl, combine soy sauce and hoisen sauce and pour over the sautéed onions and water chestnuts, stirring to combine.  Stir in chicken stock or broth and bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat.

In another small bowl, combine wine or sherry and cornstarch.  Gradually stir in cornstarch mixture into onions and water chestnuts, whisking constantly until thick.  Remove skillet from the heat and add chopped barbecued pork.  I mixed ½ cup of the remaining barbecue sauce to this mixture to make the filling more saucy.

As for the buns, you will need 1 can Pillsbury Buttermilk Biscuits…

Take the biscuits out of the can and separate them…

On a lightly floured board or clean counter, roll each biscuit, using a lightly floured rolling pin, into a 6 inch circle.

Scoop about 6 tablespoons of the barbecued pork and fill the center of the flattened biscuit.  Gather the edges towards the middle, twisting and pressing to seal.

Place buns seam side down on the greased cookie sheet.   Brush each bun with the glaze and bake in a preheated oven at 375°F for 18 minutes or until golden brown.  Serve warm.

Bun Glaze:

1 large egg

1 tsp. brown sugar

1 tsp. water

Beat all ingredients.  Brush each barbecued pork buns with this glaze before baking.

After 18 minutes or so… the buns are ready to serve.

 

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris

 

Texas Country Turnip Green Soup

My husband ate several bowls of this soup.  A testament of how much he liked it…

He doesn’t always like every dish that I cook.  And when he does… when there’s a dish that he really likes, he’ll eat it until it’s gone.  And if there is some left over, he’ll eat it the next day.

He’s afraid I’m not going to cook it as good.  So he wants to enjoy the moment.  Savor every spoonful.

My poor husband.  I am to blame for his behavior.  I have a bad habit of tinkering with recipes I have already perfected.  And he doesn’t like it one bit.  Because when he likes a dish, he likes it exactly the same way as he has tasted it the very first time…

And with me tinkering with recipes all the time… he’s never sure if he’s going to have the same dish ever again!

I’ve successfully tested several recipes last week.  All dishes came out good.

And this soup was one of the dishes that stood out.  Even I was amazed on how tasty it was.  Considering how simple were the ingredients…

Anyway…

I wanted to share this soup with you.  I hope you enjoy it as much as my family did.

Here’s what you need…

12 ounces salt pork. Chopped.

Onion, garlic, celery, cubed ham, frozen chopped turnip greens…

Potatoes, chopped…

3 cans great northern beans, 2 cans low sodium chicken broth + 2 cups water…

herbs and spices…

What to do…?

Heat a large pot over medium heat.  Cook salt pork until it has rendered most of its fat… Remove all but 3 tablespoon of the fat.

Add onions and garlic.  Saute until onions are translucent.

Add the celery.  And saute a few minutes.

Add the beans and the ham…

Add the potatoes…

And the chicken broth.  And water…

Stir.

Add the frozen chopped turnip greens.  Stir to combine.

Cover pot and bring soup to a boil over medium heat.

Once boiling, reduce heat.

Simmer soup for 1 hour.  Stirring occasionally while simmering…

After 1 hours, soup should be lightly creamy.   Taste before adding coarse sea salt and MSG if desired…

Serve with your favorite bread or corn bread.

The RECIPE:

Texas Country Turnip Green Soup

12 ounces salt pork – chopped

1 large onion – chopped

4 garlic cloves – smashed, peeled and chopped

3 sticks celery – chopped

5 medium size potatoes

1 pound cubed ham

3 cans (14.5 ounces each) Great Northern Beans – drained and rinsed

2 cans (14 ounces each) Low Sodium chicken broth + 2 cups water

1 (16 ounce) package frozen chopped turnip greens

1 tsp. dried chives

½ tsp. dried marjoram leaves

½ tsp. ground black pepper

½ tsp. ground hot pepper (optional)

1 tsp. coarse ground sea salt – if needed

Pinch of MSG (optional)

NOTE:  If you can’t find salt pork, you can use pancetta or thick slices bacon.

Rinse salt pork under cold running water.  Pat dry with paper towels.  Slice salt pork into ½ inches.

Heat a large pot and sauté salt pork until slightly crispy and it has rendered most of its fat.  Remove most of the fat except 3 tablespoons.

Sauté onions until translucent.  Add garlic and sauté until light golden brown.

Add the celery and sauté a few minutes.

Add the cubed ham and potatoes.  Sauté a few minutes.  Add drained and rinsed Great Northern Beans.  Stir to combine.

Add chicken broth and 2 cups water.  Stir.

Add the frozen chopped turnip greens.  Stir.

Bring soup to a boil.

Once boiling, reduce heat and add the following:  dried chives, marjoram leaves, black pepper and ground hot pepper.

Simmer soup for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Taste the soup for additional salt.  And add a pinch of MSG to perk up the taste.

Serve warm with your favorite bread or corn bread.

Tess’ Kitchen Secrets:

#1 – Salt pork makes a big difference in taste when it comes to vegetable soups.  But you have to sauté it to get rid most of the fat.

#2 – Coarse sea salts are excellent in soups!

#3 – Draining and rinsing canned beans reduces gas.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris

Super Size Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

My family loves these cookies.

When I make a batch of these… They only last a few days…

I can’t help but eat a cookie after each meal.

I pack a piece with my husband’s lunch.

My son loves them when they’re a bit chewy and he eats them with a glass of soymilk.

I prefer mine to be 50/50: crispy and chewy at the same time. I like to have that crunch when I first bite into it.  And then have it linger in my mouth just for a second longer.  Savoring the chewiness of the oatmeal.  Tasting the sweetness of the raisins, while a hint of salt dances on my tongue…

I have been making a batch of these cookies every week.  And when the cookie jar becomes empty, I rush to make another batch.

For those of you, who prefer the convenience of using butter, please do.  You just have to make the following adjustments:

• Substitute 1 cup (2 sticks) butter in place of coconut oil
• Use 2 large eggs as indicated, and omit the 2 egg yolks

Here’s what you need… and do…

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ground nutmeg.

Then have these ingredients ready…

Using a Kitchen Aid Mixer, cream the following:  coconut oil (or butter if using butter), brown and granulated, eggs and egg yolks, and vanilla extract.

Blend until creamy on a medium speed.

Add the flour mixture and blend on low speed.  Increase the speed to medium and blend for 2 minutes.

Add the raisins.  And blend on low speed.

Add the oatmeal.  Blend on low speed.

Once oatmeal is incorporated into this mixture… increase the speed to medium.  And blend for 2 minutes.

Cookie Batter will be thick and sticky…

Use an ice cream scooper to scoop six cookie dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet.

Flatten cookies using a fork until they are about 4 inches round.

Bake cookies in a preheated oven at 350F for 13 – 15 minutes.

The Recipe

Super Size Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Yield: About 14 super size (5 inches or larger round) cookies

Ingredients:

1 ¾ cups all purpose flour

¾ tsp. baking soda

¾ teaspoon baking powder

½ tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

½ tsp. ground nutmeg (best when freshly grated)

5/6 cup coconut oil (1/2 cup + 1/3 cup)

1 ½ cups dark brown sugar – firmly packed

¼ cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

2 ½ tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 cup raisins

3 ½ cups old fashioned rolled oats

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, kosher salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside.

Using an electric mixer set over medium speed, cream together, coconut oil, brown and granulated sugar, eggs and egg yolks, and vanilla extract.  (If you don’t have an electric mixer, you  may use a large mixing bowl and mix by hand with a wooden spoon, until creamy.)

Add the flour mixture.  Stir over low speed, then increase the speed to medium and blend until well mixed, about 2 minutes.

Add the raisins.  Stir to mix. Add the rolled oats. Stir until well blended.  (The mixture will be thick and a bit difficult to scoop.)

Lightly grease or line 2 large cookie sheets.

I use an ice cream scooper to scoop and shape the cookie dough.

Using an ice cream scooper, scoop six cookie dough mixture onto each cookie sheet.

Flatten each cookie with a fork. (I flatten each cookie to about 4 inches round.  When baked, these cookies expand to about 5 inches.  That’s why I only bake 6 cookies at a time.)

Bake cookies in a preheated oven at 350°F for 13 – 16 minutes.

For chewy cookies, bake them for 13 – 14 minutes.  And for crispier cookies, bake them for 15 – 16 minutes.

Remove cookies from the oven and let stand for about 5 minutes, and then remove them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris

Braised Spicy Chicken with 40 Garlic Cloves

Forty garlic cloves sound like a lot of garlic!  Some of you probably wonder how pungent or garlicky this dish is… Considering the large amount of garlic cloves in it.  If you are slightly worried… don’t be.  Because the garlic cloves are left whole and undisturbed.  Peeled of course!  The garlic remained mild and slightly sweet in flavors.  Not too strong at all.  The dish gives a nice surprise… And it makes you look forward in anticipation… to have at least one garlic clove in every bite.  Maybe I should have called this dish Garlic Lovers’ Delight with chicken… (chuckle).

So for garlic lovers out there… this dish is for you…

Kitchen equipment or tools needed:  Oven proof pot or skillet with lid or a large baking dish.

Ingredients:

3 ½ – 4 pounds chicken drumsticks or other parts you like

40 large garlic cloves – about 3 large garlic heads

1 medium onion – sliced

Zest and Juice of 1 large lemon

1 tsp. dried thyme

2 TBSPs. cornstarch

2 cups chicken broth or boiling water + 2 chicken bouillon cubes

2 TBSPs. chili garlic sauce (or to taste)

3 TBSPs. olive oil + 1 TBSP. vegetable oil

Spices and Seasoning:

3 tsps. kosher salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp. cayenne

1 tsp. ground cumin

Combine seasoning spices and seasoning in a small bowl. Set aside.

Wash chicken and pat excess water with paper towels.  Generously sprinkle spices and seasoning mixture on the chicken pieces, patting lightly for it to adhere. Set aside.

Place garlic cloves in a large bowl and pour hot water over them.  Let it stand for about 2 minutes.  Immediately pour the water off the garlic.  Peel the garlic cloves and trim the root end.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Heat a large, deep, oven proof pot or skillet and the olive and vegetable oil.  Just before the oil starts to smoke… brown the chicken pieces on all sides.  Transfer browned chicken to a large dish.  Set aside.

Using the same pot or skillet… sauté the peeled garlic cloves until wilted.  Remove wilted garlic to a platter and set aside.

Sauté the sliced onions until translucent.  Deglaze the skillet with the boiling chicken broth, scraping the browned bits and pieces stock at the bottom of the skillet. Add dried thyme and lemon zest.  Stir and simmer the broth over medium heat.

In a small bowl… combine cornstarch with one tablespoon water.

Slowly whisk in the cornstarch mixture into the simmering broth.

Place the browned chicken pieces back into the skillet.  Stir to make sure the chicken is somewhat submerge in the broth.  Transfer this skillet into the preheated oven and bake chicken for 30 minutes.

Remove the skillet from the oven and stir the chicken.  Add the wilted garlic cloves and chili garlic sauce.  Stir to combine.

Bake the chicken for another 15 minutes.  Taste for additional salt and black pepper.

Serve with Wasabi Mashed Potatoes or  Rosemary Red Roasted Potatoes Or Mashed Potatoes.

Sorry guys.  I don’t have step by step instruction photos for this dish.   I will have to put this on my “to do” list.

Rosemary Red Roasted Potatoes

Creamy Wasabi Mashed Potatoes:

Ingredients:

4 large baking potatoes (about 4 pounds) – scrubbed and skin intact

3 TBSPs. butter

¾ – 1 cup warm heavy cream – start with ½ cup and go from there

½ – 1 tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 TBSP. Genuine Wasabi paste (or according to taste.  I use S & B Brand.)

Boil potatoes in their skins until tender, about 45 – 50 minutes.

Peel potatoes while still hot.  (I use a tong to hold the potatoes so I don’t burn myself.)

Place in a large bowl.  Add butter and mash the potatoes.  Add warm heavy cream, salt and black pepper. Fold in to combine.  Fold in the Wasabi paste.

Serve warm.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!

Tess Harris