Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Sticky Sweet Chicken Finger Salad

Sauce:
3/4 cups brown sugar
1/8 cup water
2 or more T. Frank's Original Hot Sauce (must be Frank's, no two hot sauces are created equally and it's found by the BBQ sauces at most supermarkets. I've never found it by the Tabasco!)
1 T. light corn syrup
Whisk together in small saucepan and boil for about a minute. It should look like a glossy sauce and no longer sugary. I use 2 T. Frank's for my kids and usually add 1 more T. for my husband and I. Sometimes we double the sauce.

Chicken:
I use the kind shown, found at Costco. Tyson has one, but it's pricey! It's important to use breaded chicken, but not the kind that's peppered! I've tried it and it's gross. I've also tried to bread the chicken myself and it doesn't taste right either. Anyway, I bake them on a cookie sheet and cook them a little longer than the pkg. says so that they're just a little crispy, but not overdone. You can fry them in oil, but that's way more work and too many more calories! When they're done, pour the sauce over!

Ranch:
I use the Hidden Valley Ranch Original, but mix it with buttermilk instead of milk and of course mayo! It's the closest thing to restaraunt ranch I can find. If I don't have buttermilk, I use milk and it's great, but it takes 2nd place in my opinion!

Basic Salad:
Lettuce ,tomato, cucumber, green bell pepper, purple or green onions

Assemble:
Put your salad on your plate. Put chicken with sauce on top. Pour on the Ranch and wa-la!

Black Bean and Corn Quesadillas

1/3 cup frozen corn kernals, thawed (I tripled this)
2 tsp. oil
1/3 cup minced red onion (doubled this)
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/3 cup black beans (tripled this)
2 tsp. lime juice
salt
2 plain flour tortillas, eight inch
2/3 cup pepper jack, or cheddar, or Monterey jack, or a combination
1 Tbs. minced pickled jalapenos

Heat corn in skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until kernels begin to brown and pop, 3-5 minutes;transfer corn to medium bowl. Heat 2 tsp. oil in empty skillet over medium heat until shimmering, add red onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and chili powder and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in beans and cook until heated through, about 1 minute. Return corn to skillet and toss to combine. Gently press mixture with spatula to lightly crush black beans. Transfer mixture to now-empty bowl, stir in lime juice, and season to taste with salt.

Assemble quesadillas by spreading half the corn and bean mixture, half the cheese, and half the jalapenos over half of tortilla. Fold in half and repeat with second tortilla. And cook it up!