Hello again. I’m back on le YouTube with another non-15-minute, non-quick-and-easy, non-health-conscious recipe.
It took way longer than I had hoped, but it’s finally here! PUTZY – Episode 2: Le Croissant! Video editing a 20 minute video takes me about 50 hours! Sadly, I don’t do food blogging full-time, so spreading out video editing over five weeks is where I am at now.
I was really happy with my first PUTZY video on making fresh pasta, but I got some feedback that it was too rambling and not helpful. It spurred an identity crisis, I think, and that contributed to me neurotically editing the next video so it is more informative. Honestly, I’m not really thrilled with it because I thought the rambling rapport was what made it fun! Alas, I still haven’t figured it all out just yet. Sorry if you hate it. I also did a blog post on how to make croissants if you’re more of a skimmer than a watcher!
In other news, I have decided we will do something Christmas-y each of the 12 days before Christmas. Monday, I sent out my Baker’s Boxes Part II:
These included coffee toffee with peanuts, more sugar cookie bars, marshmallows, shortbread, walnut Russian teacakes, and Italian Reeses cups. I also added chocolate chunk cookies and chocolate peppermint “brookies,” which are brownie cookies. It was stressful to hit the deadline, but thankfully I had help.
Jim helped me bake all of the goodies over the weekend, thank goodness. Jane must have passed on a baking gene to him because he’s a NATURAL!!
We also worked on some Christmas music on Monday! Music is how Jim and I originally became friends. He plays the piano wonderfully, and I do Bing Crosby impersonations. Lately, our project has been an old Christmas song sung by Kate Smith called Christmas Eve in My Hometown.
Yesterday we did some Christmas shopping and present wrapping! Today we are going to bundle up and drive or walk around our neighborhoods to ogle everyone’s Christmas lights. Do you have any other Christmas-activities we can do?? Hot chocolate is also on the list!
We have been crazy busy lately between the Baker’s Boxes, Christmas stuff, and work! However I did manage to make some homemade pizza. ,
Italian BBQ Chicken
When I need to make chicken in a pinch, I either use my cast iron skillet and grill it in the oven, or I slice it thinly–almost julienned–add some quick spices and sauces to it, and pan fry it.
This one got topped on a pizza with caramelized onions and grilled bell peppers, but I could see this going on a salad or pasta quite nicely, too!
It’s really easy after you julienne the chicken. I add the spices and sauces directly to the chicken on the cutting board and toss it with my hands before throwing it in some hot oil.
I just used one chicken breast here for the pizza, and that gave us four servings, but adjust for your own quantity needs!
Ingredients
1 chicken breast, about 1/3-1/2 lb
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp red wine vinegar
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Dash of soy sauce
1/4 tsp ground mustard
Dash of paprika
Pinch of salt
Oil, for frying
Process
Julienne chicken into 1/4″ thick slices. You can make the slices about 2″ long. On the cutting board that you cut the chicken on, add the spices directly onto the chicken. Add the sugar, Worcestershire, soy sauce, ground mustard, paprika, and salt. Mix it together with your hands briefly so the pieces are evenly coated.
Heat a large non-stick skillet on medium high heat with enough oil to almost cover the bottom of the pan. (If your pan is 10″ in diameter, put enough oil to cover 8″ in diameter.) When the oil is very hot and shimmering, drop in all of the chicken as evenly as possible. Allow it to sear for a minute before tossing around the pan with a wooden spoon. Cook for about 5-6 minutes, or until no longer pink in the middle. You should have a nice crust on at least one side of each piece of chicken.