Old Bay Marinated Chicken

I tried this recipe for the first time when one of my friends came over for dinner. We were having a streak of good weather, and I've been particularly fond of grilling ever since the weather hit anything above 60 degrees.

One of the things I'd like to do before heading to the west coast is to get one last crack at some Old Bay steamed MD blue crabs. With time running short, I've realized this is something that may not happen (although I am willing to try). I also plan to take a small stock of Old Bay to San Francisco because it's not really a "thing" there like it is here on the East Coast.

I found this recipe on Pinterest but modified it slightly for my own liking. I'm pretty sure it's my new favorite thing.

Old Bay Chicken Marinade

4 T Old Bay seasoning
1 C apple cider vinegar
3 garlic cloves - minced
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp celery seed
fresh ground pepper

Mix all items in a Ziploc bag or large bowl. I like the bag method best.

Add chicken and marinate for 24 hours. I used this recipe to marinate 2 split breasts, 4 drumsticks, and 2 thighs.


You could bake, pan fry, or grill your chicken. I grilled ours on medium heat for 20 minutes on each side (40 minutes total).

A Week of Pork Belly

When I was young (like really young) one of my favorite foods was ham. I guess I got my fill early on because now I don't even like way it smells. I probably haven't eaten ham for at least 15 years and stopped eating all pork products around the same time.

Sometime within the last 5-7 years, I decided maybe it was time to try pork again. I started with what is probably one of the least hammy pork products, sausage patties. I actually like eating vegetarian sausage patties, so it seemed like a logical step.

Now I like eating ground sausage and a select amount of Asian-style pork. Ham is still on the blacklist along with bacon.

Last week I was lucky enough to get my hands on some Korean pork belly thanks to some friends who made a stop at H-Mart. The area I live in doesn't particularly have a wide selection of any type of Asian grocery items. So the opportunity to get some items from H-Mart is always an exciting one.

The presliced marinated pork belly, to me, is less like bacon or ham and more like a thinly sliced steak. It's tender, not tough and a lot less greasy than traditional bacon. It works really well in sandwiches, lettuce wraps, and spring rolls.

Here's what I did with mine this week.

Pork Belly Sliders

Check out my Flipagram here or read about my experience making brioche here.

Fried Chicken and Pork Belly Eggs Benedict

Food Tip: Buttermilk brining your chicken first will make it extra juicy and tender.

Pork Belly Breakfast Tacos: With Eggs and Hashbrowns

What's your favorite way to eat pork belly?

Goat Cheese and Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Breasts

I've been feeling rather exhausted lately, and when I'm not feeling 100%, I get lazy with my cooking. Sunday afternoon I ended up falling asleep on the couch, and when I woke up, it was time to think about dinner. Not wanting to put on "real clothes" (non-sweatpants clothes) to go to the grocery store, I started thinking about what I could make with what leftover food we had. What I ended up with was a recipe that was much better than what I anticipated. Not that I thought it was going to taste bad, but often when you throw things together it's either a fail or proud win. This was most definitely the latter.

Even though I was only cooking for two (my boyfriend and I), I made four pieces of chicken (think lunch for work the next two days), which fit perfectly in my oval dish. I trimmed the fat and cut a slit in the top of each piece of chicken, careful not to cut through the entire way. I find it is much easier to stuff a chicken breast this way rather than cutting the side open and waiting for all the insides to run out when I bake it.

Each piece was stuffed with a mixture of mozzarella, goat cheese, garlic, salt and pepper, basil, lemon juice and heavy cream. I lightly coated the tops in mayonnaise and sprinkled with breadcrumbs and more basil. The mayo makes sure the chicken stays moist and breadcrumbs stick. Then I added a few springs of rosemary and baked it for 30 minutes at 425F. This was the perfect timing for the amount and sized pieces of chicken I had. If you have smaller or larger pieces, you will want to adjust the time a few minutes so your chicken doesn't end up raw or dry (both pretty gross).

I served the chicken with broccoli florets that were sauteed with olive oil, red pepper, garlic, salt, and Porto wine vinegar. 

This meal also passed the boyfriend inspection. He was curious how I cooked the broccoli and said the thyme in the chicken tasted great (except it was rosemary and basil). Despite the wrong herb, I am always happy to receive positive feedback...especially on new recipes...especially when they've just been thrown together.

I Cooked Soup While I Slept, and I Wasn't Sleepwalking

January is here. It feels like negative temperatures outside, and suddenly a chef salad at lunch just doesn't cut it.  I know myself, and I know that on cold days like today all I want is a hot meal and a few hot cups of coffee. But maybe you're like me and you helped yourself to a little too much Christmas stuffing or one too many cookies (I go for the stuffing). I'm left wondering what I can eat that is warm and satisfying yet doesn't make me feel like fitting effortlessly into those skinny jeans is out of reach.

Making chicken noodle soup sounded like a good idea at 5 p.m. last night as I was driving home from work. Unfortunately, I still had to walk the dog, do some laundry and clean up some leftover boxes of stuff from when I moved recently. I didn't really feel like "manning" the stove for a few hours on top of that, so Crock Pot it was.

I had all the ingredients at home and decided I would prep everything and toss it all in the Crock Pot to cook overnight. I suppose if I had planned ahead, I could have cooked it all while I was at work yesterday, but I didn't (because that's how ideas work sometime). Overnight seemed just as good and I knew it would be ready in time for me to pack for lunch today.

What a good idea. But is homemade soup on a cold day ever a bad idea?

Ready to cook!

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (mine were frozen, but they can be thawed)
4-5 carrots chopped
1/2 medium onion chopped
1 - 1 1/2 C celery chopped
Parsley to season
4 C chicken broth
2 C water
salt & pepper to taste
Dash of cayenne (I sprinkled some in because I like spicy food, but you don't have to)
1/2 C peas (fresh or frozen)
2 C noodles (your choice - I used whole wheat, but egg noodles are good, too)

Add chicken, carrot, onion, celery, parsley, chicken broth, water, salt and pepper, and cayenne (optional) to Crock Pot. Cook on low overnight. Mine cooked about 10 hours, but I estimate any time between 8-10 hours is sufficient.

In the morning, shred chicken and add peas and noodles. Turn heat to high and cook for a half hour. I packaged a cup for lunch today and carefully set the rest to cool in the fridge.

Ready to eat!

Note: This is pretty basic recipe for chicken noodle soup and can be adapted easily with herbs like sage, bay leaves, thyme, ginger, etc. You could also use 6 C of broth instead of the 4/2 that I used. I just like to watch how much sodium I'm consuming and I've never really cared too much for salt anyway. I'm the person who eats unsalted pretzels. You could also sub skinless chicken thighs/quarters for the boneless chicken breasts. Just remember to pick the bones out in the morning!

Also, waking up to the smell of chicken soup in the morning is actually pretty nice!

A Tikka Surprise: Feeding Myself After a Night at Fats

So if you've been reading along, you know I'm currently exploring what Single Girl Cooking is and what that means for me.

This week, it's meant eating a lot of sandwiches for dinner, which isn't terrible. I'm not just sitting around eating turkey sandwiches every day. I've kept it interesting by trying different combinations of food I currently have.

For example, one night I made a cheeseburger with a kimchi mayo (so good). If you're not familiar with kimchi, I wrote a post about making it last year. This is that same kimchi.

So none of that was really anything new.

This weekend, a group of friends went out to celebrate one of my girlfriends' birthdays. Dinner first. Thai food. Then bar. Single girls need to get out, get a beer, jump in a DJ booth, and do some dancing.

So this morning I wake up hungry - as you do after spending the evening drinking lager. Ignored my hunger and opted to go for a run first. By the time I got home, I was seriously hungry. But what to make?

My first impulse was to settle my tomato craving with spaghetti sauce and gnocchi. Eh. Not a great combo really. Looking in my pantry, I spied a jar of tikka sauce I bought at the PA Gourmet Show. Aha! Now that sounded really good.

So boiled up some gnocchi and cooked up some chicken. I threw them in a pan with the tikka sauce (sadly no vegetables were available) and prayed for the best. From the smell, I knew it really wouldn't be bad. I was right. Tikka heaven.

I made the whole jar, so I will have leftovers for lunch this week. This Single Girl Cooking wasn't about paring down a recipe for one. It was about feeding yourself after a night out with the girls. Next time, add vegetables.

And now I'm off to decide Star Trek movie or Game of Thrones...hey I like Chris Pine, ok?

Lemongrass Chicken (or Tofu)

Great for a quick dinner - cooks up a nice sweet and spicy sauce with a citrus tang. I make it with chicken, but you can alter the recipe for tofu, too. Serve with steamed rice, and add vegetables or steam them for a crispy, fresh side. It's a nice alternative to ordering take out! Serves 2.

Ingredients:
1/2 lb. Cubed chicken (or tofu)
Flour
1 tsp. Vegetable Oil
2 cm pc. Fresh Ginger - grated or finely chopped (or 1 tsp. dried)
1 Garlic Clove (crushed)
1 Small Red Chili
5 cm pc. Lemongrass (finely chopped or grated)
2/3 C. Chicken Stock
1 T Fish Sauce
2 tsp. Sugar
1/2 tsp. Salt
Juice of 1/2 Lime
1-2 T. honey

Other:
Medium Bowl
Medium skillet or wok

Toss cubed chicken in bowl with enough flour to coat. Add oil, ginger, garlic, chilies, and lemongrass to wok. Heat on medium and add cubed chicken 3-4 minutes.

Add chicken stock, fish sauce, sugar, salt, and lime juice. Once bubbles begin to appear (light boil), reduce heat and simmer for approximately 30 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning. Stir in honey during last 5-10 minutes of simmering.

Serve over steamed white rice and enjoy!