Thursday, May 30, 2013

Waffle of Insane Greatness

Breakfast for dinner is a regular at the Greer Household.  Many years ago I originally saw this recipe featured on the now canceled Rachael Ray show called $40 a Day.  We tried to eat at Aretha Frankensteins while Emmaline was at Erlanger, but the wait was too long.  Recently Our Best Bites featured this recipe and I knew I had to try it. 

The case:

The ruling:
Waffle of Insane Greatness from Aretha Frankensteins
Ingredients
  • 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 2/3 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • Butter and syrup, for serving

Directions
  1. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; mix well. 
  2. Add the milk, vegetable oil, egg, sugar and vanilla and mix well. 
  3. Let the batter sit for 30 minutes.
  4. Preheat a waffle iron. Do not use non-stick spray on the waffle iron; the oil in the batter will allow the waffle to release easily. Follow the directions on your waffle iron to cook the waffles. Serve immediately with butter and syrup.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/cda/recipe_print/0,1946,FOOD_9936_29006_RECIPE-PRINT-FULL-PAGE-FORMATTER,00.html?oc=linkback




The ruling:
These are some of the best waffles I've ever had!  Ryder loves them!  While I love to find new recipes for my favorite foods, sometimes I find a recipe that is so good I don't want to try another one.  This is officially my go to waffle recipe.
Rating: 5
Make again: Definitely

Honey Ginger Soy Chicken

Awhile back, I ordered a book called The Mom 100 Cookbook from Scholastic.  I read good reviews on Amazon and decided to buy it without knowing much about the book or the author.  Come to find out, Katie Workman is pretty well known in the cooking world.  She runs a website that shares famous chefs' recipes.  She lives in New York City and has two sons.  The main reason I decided to order the cookbook was because it was supposed to be for real moms and contained recipes for real food.  I was not disappointed when I received this book.  First of all, it has reviews from famous chefs such as Ina Garten and Bobby Flay on the back cover.   Next, it reads like a book.  The layout is fabulous.  She gives you 20 situations and gives you 5 recipes for each situation, everything from breakfast to bake sale to potluck.  Another thing I like is all her tips.  She has tips throughout the book on everything from getting kids to try food to cooking tips to different variations of the recipes.  Finally, there are a ton of delicious looking recipes.  I put a post it flag on each recipe I want to try and my book has more blue flags than empty white pages.  Most of the recipes are healthier and contain fresher ingredients.  Some are in my comfort zone and some aren't.  For example, there is a chicken strip recipe I plan on trying later this week but tonight's dish is something that I wouldn't typically make.  This Honey Ginger Soy Chicken recipe is found in the Potluck chapter.

The case:
Honey Ginger Soy Chicken
Adapted from The Mom 100 Cookbook by: Katie Workman
Ingredients:
  • 1/3 cup honey, at room temperature
  • 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1/8 cup grated peeled fresh ginger
  • 4 minced garlic cloves
  • 1 package skin on chicken thighs (5 pieces)
Directions:
  1. Place the honey, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic cloves in a bowl and whisk until blended.  
  2. Arrange the chicken in a foil-lined baking dish skin side down.  Pour the honey mixture over the chicken and stir so mixture evenly coats chicken.  Cover tightly with aluminum foil and marinate overnight.
  3. Preheat oven to 350.
  4. Bake covered for 30 minutes.  Uncover the pan , turn the chicken skin side up, and increase oven temperature to 375.  Continue baking for 35 minutes.  Serve the chicken with the pan sauce.


The ruling:
Absolutely loved this!!!  This chicken had so much flavor.  The pan sauce was perfect over the brown rice.  I can't wait to try more recipes in Katie's cookbook.
Rating: 6
Make again? Yes and soon!