Just Crumbs...

  
I recently had the opportunity to try KC Masterpiece's 30 minute Buffalo Marinade. I am skeptical about bottle marinades. It is easy to make your own, so why bother spending the money? Just my thoughts. KC Masterpiece sent me a bottle to try. I have been craving Buffalo wings lately and this was perfect timing. I thought about coming up with something creative or unique to do with it, but then thought against it. I wanted to give you a honest, easy, real taste of the product, so I bought some chicken leg quarters and tossed them in a bag for about an hour. Simple and easy.




When I opened the bottle I gave it a taste. It was bitey, vinegary. I really like a vinegary taste, but was unsure of the amount of tang. I proceeded to put the chicken legs in a Ziplock bag and dumped the contents of the bottle into the bag. One hour later (you only have to marinate it for 30 mins but I got busy) I removed it and baked it. It is grilling season, but being grilless for the time being is absolutely gruelling other options had to be put into play.




I pulled it out of the oven, let it rest, and made some seasoned steak and sweet potato fries as a side. Popped open an IPA and sat down to dig in. The results... surprisingly sweet. The tang and bite that was originally there had mellowed. The chicken was moist and tender. Still had a little kick. Impressive. The fries and beer were delicious too. A great meal and a craving satisfied.

Fall is in full swing. That means the flavors of fall are here too. Pumpkin, Apple, Pear, Squash, etc... are amongst us. Sunday I wanted something different for breakfast that did not involve omelets or oatmeal. Don't get me wrong they are both good, but can get tiresome (I wanted waffles, but was out-voted, as usual). Plus we have  been on a health kick lately at the Crumbs... household (again), so I wanted to continue with this theme.

I started rummaging through cupboards, the refrigerator, the freezer, the pantry, looking for items. I didn't know what I was looking for; I was just looking. I pulled out a butternut squash, that sounded good. I was just at a class where they made a squash bread pudding, it was mighty tasty. I built on that idea, but instead of sweet, I was going to make it a savory, eggy, bread dish.
I continued my hunt for ingredients. I came across some mushrooms, left over chicken breast breasts, asiago cheese from the previous nights dinner party. I cut up an onion, threw in some fresh thyme from my garden, I was pretty much set.

I diced up my pretty little butternut squash, lightly toasted some 35 calorie bread, separated my eggs (remember this is healthy so I just used the egg whites), chopped my onions, chicken, and mushrooms, and thawed some chicken stock (no need to use homemade, if you have it great, if not use broth or even bouillon). This kind of reminds me of an eggy stuffing or dressing. Leave some of the eggs out, add some celery and garlic, saute in butter with some onion, and that is pretty much what you got.
This recipe weighs in at 180 calories. The following is the break down (thanks to the calorie calculator at sparkrecipes.com.)

Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe: 8
Serving Size: 1 serving

Calories 179.7
Total Fat 5.1 g
Saturated Fat 2.6 g
Cholesterol 33.2 mg
Sodium 493.3 mg
Potassium 413.1 mg
Total Carbohydrate 16.3 g
Dietary Fiber 4.8 g
Sugars 0.8 g
Protein 23.0 g


2 c. Chicken Stock, Base, or Bouillon, heated
10 Egg whites, well beaten
8 oz. Fresh Mushrooms, quartered
1 1/2 c. Butternut Squash, cubed
1 1/2 Chicken Breasts, cooked
1 Onion, chopped
1 Tbsp Fresh Thyme, minced
8 slices 35 calorie bread, slightly toasted. I used Aunt Millie's Light Potato Bread
3 oz Asiago Cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss together all ingredients, EXCEPT egg whites, in a large casserole dish sprayed with non stick cooking spray. Then pour the well beaten, foamy egg whites over the top, do not mix the eggs will seep down into the crevices. Cover with foil. Bake 30 minutes, remove foil and bake another 30 minuted until set and golden brown.

Serves: 8




I am home from vacation and ready to get back into my kitchen. How I have missed it. I am tired of processed junk food. I am ready for a home cooked meal. I think that Mr. Crumbs is ready too. He purchased a Cooking Light magazine for me at the airport. He stated that there are a lot of recipes in here that look really good. I think that he is tired of eating out EVERY DAY as well. This week we are dedicating our menu to Cooking Light.  Our dinners each night this week are recipes or variations of a recipe from Cooking Light September 2010. Sunday we both sat down at the table, looked through the magazine, together (believe it or not Mr. Crumbs helps out quite a bit in the decision and prepartion of our meals), and decided that the Chicken Stuffed with Spinach, Feta, and Pine Nuts on page 96 was the meal we were going to start out our week with.

The recipe looked easy and stated that it would be ready in 40 minutes. That is not too bad. Well the night we were going to prepare this meal turned out too hectic and our schedules did not allow it. Since the chicken was thawed I figured why not go ahead and stuff them and prepare it for the following night. The filling was easy enough, even though I was out of Feta (oh the drama, no feta in the house). I found a bar of high quality (kidding) store brand Monterey Jack cheese and shredded to substitute for the Feta. The recipe also recommends to cut a slit in the chicken breasts to form a pouch and insert the stuffing. I had a little extra time on my hands.  I decided to butterfly the chicken, pound it out, add the stuffing, and roll them up securing with kitchen string. It worked well. I then set them on a plate and refrigerated until the next evening. The recipe does not call for this, but it added another layer of flavor to the dish.

Mr. Crumbs says that this dish is a keeper. The chicken was moist, juicy, and tender. The side of couscous was flavorful as well, the dried cranberries and raisins I added were a nice touch. The mushrooms were an added extra that the recipe did not call for, but I had a plethora in the fridge and decided to throw them in to the final baking step.  Omit or add whatever flavor combinations that will suite your tastes. And as always, make this recipe yours.