Chicken Salad Sandwich

Chicken Salad Sandwich. Sounds pretty plain right?

Hmmm... now that I think of it, I do like it pretty plain!

You will never find fruit or nuts in my chicken salad... YUCK!!

Anyway... mine is very simple!



But before I start, I must warn you that more often than not, I use canned chicken for chicken salad.

I was watching 30 Minute Meals with Rachael Ray one time and she was talking about canned chicken. She said someone mentioned it to her and she couldn't believe it even existed! Then started with, "Come on now! How hard is it to poach a chicken breast?! It doesn't take any time at all!"

Now most people either Love or Hate Rachael. I love her. But I have to say, canned chicken has it's place in a kitchen.

I mostly just use it for chicken salad. But it has found its way into a casserole or dip or two along the way.

So when I need breakfast and want half a chicken salad sandwich, unless I thought of it the night before, it wouldn't happen without canned chicken.

Who has time to poach a chicken breast before work? I roll outta bed... put out some breakfast for Bob, grab breakfast for myself, jump into the shower, throw on some clothes and run out the door. This takes about 40 minutes, tops.

If I had to poach a chicken breast to have chicken salad, that breakfast idea would get scrapped and I'd end up with a McSkillet burrito from the drivethru on my way to work!

So anyway...

Canned chicken does have its place in the kitchen.

Well hey... I bake desserts Rachael... so let's call it a wash! I still love you!

Alrighty then... now that I've gotten that off my chest....

Back to my Basic Chicken Salad.

No real recipe and it changes a little based on which herbs I can actually put my hands on.

So I start with, yes, canned chicken (or leftover chicken)


I'm not a slave to any brand. I just buy whichever is on sale, all breast meat, packed in water.

Drain off water and put the chicken in a bowl.


Flake it apart with a fork.


Then add a dollop of light (NOT fat free) mayo.


I like just enough to hold it all together and not too squishy.


Ok... lately I've been on a dill kick.... but where's the dill????


Yeah... there's another pantry with more herbs & spices... and a section of my counter with my 'most used' herbs & spices that look similar to that mess.

But I couldn't find the dill.

Almost a sad face... until I remembered that even though we've had at least two hard frosts... I still have crack dill!!!



SCORE!





Plus some celery salt and celery seed... and more dill... I found it when I was looking for the celery seed!



But totally forgot the poultry seasoning and onion powder! D'oh!

Anyway... mix that all up.


Now for some nice seedy 12 grain.


Add chicken salad and a side of chips!


Yeah... that's not very pretty is it?


It would be much prettier with some lettuce, tomato and red onion.

Sometimes I put the chips inside the sandwich.




Mmmmm.... Crunchy!

If I was making Chicken Salad to be consumed when it was made, all of it... I'd add diced onion and diced celery (but still celery salt & seed... I LOVE celery flavors). But most times when I make Chicken Salad, it's so that I can have half sandwiches for breakfast for a few days. When I put the diced onion in the salad... the flavor gets a little overwhelming the longer it's in the fridge.

1/4 cup of Chicken Salad is a perfect serving for half a sandwich. Nice when you're paying attention to what you're eating. (which since I crammed my sammie full of chips, obviously I'm NOT!)

So when I put it in the fridge... I scoop all of the Chicken Salad into 1/4 cup sized balls.



Breafast, lunch or dinner... I love Chicken Salad!!

Meatloaf Sandwich

What do I like better than meatloaf?

Ok... probably lots of things. But let's stick to the meatloaf category!

Meatloaf Sandwiches!

I LOVE them!! I'd prefer to make meatloaf in the morning, so I can have a cold meatloaf sandwich for dinner!

I was in my 20s before I'd ever tried one.

A friend/co-worker invited me to her house for lunch. When we got there, she said we were having Meatloaf Sandwiches.

She asked how I'd like mine. I told her I'd never had one before and to just make mine the way she makes hers.

And so she did!



The sandwich starts with cold meatloaf. Sounds kinda gross... but it's so good!

Cut off a slice.


See the curve of the top of the meatloaf...

I like to match that to the curve of the bread.

Usually you can make it fit perfectly inside the sandwich.

Next up...

White bread.

Mayo on one half... Ketchup on the other...


If you're weird like me, carefully fit your meatloaf slice into the bread...

Matching the curve of the meatloaf to the curve of the bread...


Time to eat!


99% of the time, this is breakfast the morning after a meatloaf dinner.


Mmmm.... cold meatloaf sandwich!

Perfect for breakfast, lunch or dinner!

If you're out there Kathleen... thanks for introducing me to the Meatloaf Sandwich!!

Meatloaf

Probably about 9 years ago, I started trying to find a meatloaf recipe that I really liked.

I'd add different spices and herbs... different veggies... plus cheese... no cheese... different sauces... bacon...

But none of them seemed to be what I was looking for. I think part of the problem was that I wasn't sure what I was looking for.

Then I started dating Jon, a single dad to a preschooler, who started cooking to feed his daughter.

He used his Fanny Farmer Cookbook to add a couple dishes to his repertoire.

One of them was meatloaf.

He made it for us when we were visiting him, before we moved down there.

It was the meatloaf I had been looking for!

I had been trying to fancy it up... but what I was looking for was a plain old basic meatloaf!



Meatloaf by Fanny Farmer mostly
2 C bread crumbs
1 onion, finely chopped
2 eggs, slightly beaten
2 lbs ground beef
2 TBLS Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3/4 C milk I use beef broth instead

Preheat oven to 350F.
Combine all ingredients. Press into loaf pan. Bake for 45 minutes.

That's it! Easy right?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let's start with Jon's cookbook.


I stuck a little sticky heart in there before I moved to Pittsburgh.
I wanted him to find it next time he made meatloaf for Lilly.


And another little note for the next time he made Lyonnaise Potatoes.


The notes are still there. =)

Anyway...

I like to use the meatloaf mix... beef, pork & veal.


Sometimes they only have beef & pork.. I just grab whatever they have.




Yeah... I didn't have dry mustard, so I just squirted in some yellow.


Mix it all together with your hands.


I prefer to just make a loaf shape on a baking sheet.


And into the oven for 45 - 60 minutes at 350F.


Yeah... if this post wasn't labeled meatloaf... would you know what that was??

Me either!

I should have waited a few more minutes to cut it, so the juices calmed down a little!


And I always serve meatloaf with mashed potatoes.


The steam kinda makes the peas look like a mirage. hehe

Mmmmmm....


Jon covers his with horseradish. We also use A1 or ketchup. Everyone dresses theirs a little differently.

So there it is! Now that I've grown accustomed to the basic meatloaf I was searching for, it's time to start trying out those more interesting meatloaves!

Oh yeah... does anyone else have trouble typing meatloaf? At least 75% of the time, I type meatload first!! Then I have to correct it!

Weird!

Asian Chicken Wings

So... I had 4 pounds of chicken wings left over that never got fried for the game.

What to do with them?

I certainly don't want to freeze them! I buy them from Whole Foods, because they are fresh and never frozen. So throwing them into my freezer for a later date just seems wrong.

Hot wings for dinner? Well... it certainly wouldn't be the first time!

But I decided something Asian sounded good.... so I started scouring the web.

I found this Emeril Lagasse recipe.



Roasted Asian Chicken Wings
4 pounds chicken wings
1 TBLS Emeril's Asian Essence I made my own... see below
1 tsp salt No need for this in addition to the Asian Spice Rub
1/2 tsp ground white pepper No need for this in addition to the Asian Spice Rub
2 C fresh orange juice
1 C canned pineapple juice
1 C sugar
1/2 C soy sauce
1/2 C mirin
2 TBLS orange zest
2 TBLS minced garlic
2 TBLS minced fresh ginger
2 TBLS minced green onions
1 TBLS sesame oil
3/4 tsp crushed red pepper
2 TBLS sesame seeds
2 TBLS diagonally sliced green onions, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Line a baking sheet with sides with aluminum foil.

In a large skillet, combine everything except the chicken wings, Asian spice rub, sesame seeds and green onion. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid has reduced to a syrup.

While the sauce is cooking, in a large bowl, season the chicken wings with the Asian Seasoning and toss until they are well coated. Spread the seasoned wings in the prepared baking sheet evenly and bake until browned, about 35 minutes.

Remove the wings from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 350F.

Place the wings in a large, heat-proof bowl. Drizzle half the prepared sauce over the wings, reserving the other half, tossing to coat well. Sprinkle the sesame seeds over the wings and toss again. Place a wire cooling rack inside the large baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and arrange the coated wings on top of the rack. Return the pan to the oven and bake an additional 20 to 25 minutes, or until cooked through and crispy.

Arrange the wings on a large serving platter and top with sliced green onions. Serve immediately with the remaining sauce passed on the side for dipping.

Asian Spice Rub
2 1/2 TBLS paprika
2 TBLS salt
2 TBLS garlic powder
1 TBLS black pepper
1 TBLS onion powder
1 TBLS cayenne pepper
1 TBLS oregano
1 TBLS thyme
1 TBLS Chinese Five Spice

This makes a big batch. Save the rest for other Asian spice rub needs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

So combine all the sauce ingredients in a skillet.


(I really need to filter those LEDs above my stove!)

Bring it to a boil.


Cook, stirring occasionally until sauce has reduced and is syrupy.

Time to prep the wings.


I always pat them dry, to make them crispier.


And mix with Asian Spice Rub.


Toss until well coated.


Spread them on prepared tray and bake.


Meanwhile, keep an eye on that sauce...


So the wings are browned... pull them out of the oven and reduce the temp to 350F.


Put them in a heat proof bowl...


And toss with half of the sauce.


Don't they look yummy already??

Arrange a cooking rack in the baking sheet.


Mine didn't quite fit! But it worked out ok. =)

Put those beautiful sticky wings on the rack.


And back into the oven for 20 - 25 minutes.


Mmmmmm...

Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.




I served them with fried rice.


These wings were VERY sticky!

Typically... I hate sticky things... but they were soooo tasty I didn't care at all!!

Ok... I cared enough to go get a wet wash cloth to use at the table. But I wasn't going to let sticky keep me from these!

And check out that fried rice...


That was just a bag of frozen Asian veggies. There were water chestnuts, snap peas, edamame, baby corn, peppers, onions... a wicked yummy mix!

This dinner totally ROCKED! And the Asian Spice Rub is definitely a keeper too!!! I can't wait to put it on Asian BBQ Ribs!

Asian Spice Rub

I think this is the copy-cat recipe for Emeril's Asian Essence.

Asian Spice Rub
2 1/2 TBLS paprika
2 TBLS salt
2 TBLS garlic powder
1 TBLS black pepper
1 TBLS onion powder
1 TBLS cayenne pepper
1 TBLS oregano
1 TBLS thyme
1 TBLS Chinese Five Spice

This makes a big batch. Store in a tightly sealed container.

Great for all of your Asian spice rub needs.

I used it for Emeril's Roasted Asian Chicken Wings. But I can't wait to try it on Asian BBQ Ribs!