Our FAVORITE Chicken Recipe!!!

OK, so I don't know about everyone else, but I've gotten SICK of paying high prices for things! Like Chicken. I can't stand paying $4 a pound for chicken meat!!!
I thought it was worth it because I thought the white meat was SO much better for you than the dark meat...but I found that there's not really that much difference in the nutritional value after all. And, I have always preferred dark meat over white anyway.
SO, I kept seeing whole chickens at the grocery store for less than $1 a pound...in fact, this week they were $.78 a pound! Who can beat that? You can't get any meat for $.78 a pound! Except whole chicken that is!
So, I found an AMAZINGLY tasty and simple way to prepare whole chicken that gives you the best flavor!!! It's a rotisserie style chicken, but it's cooked in the crockpot! So, you can cook it while you're home or not, and you don't have to worry about it drying out, even if you can't get it out right away! :-)
This chicken is so good, and so simple, and so cheap, that I started buying a whole chicken every week or two and cooking it up in the crockpot. Then, I pull apart the meat (the WHOLE CHICKEN FALLS APART, so it's so easy!) and stick it in a gallon size ziploc bag and toss it into the freezer. Then, as I need it for a recipe, I pull out my cooked chicken and add to pasta recipes, salads, soup, anything that calls for cooked chicken! It's SOO easy! Why pay $4 or more per pound for cooked chicken, when it's so simple to do for less than $1! :-)
I pay about $3.75 for a whole chicken, and it lasts for usually 3 full meals for my family! (I usually use a little less meat than recipes call for, just to stretch our dollars) But, you can't beat that!

So, without further delay, here it is...

Our FAVORITE Chicken Recipe

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken
2 Tbsp homemade rotisserie chicken seasoning (see below)
2 Tbsp olive oil
aluminum foil

Directions:
1. Take 5 pieces of aluminum foil and scrunch up into balls, about 1" around. Place the foil balls at the bottom of the crockpot. These will be used to set the chicken on, so it stays up out of it's juices, cooking it rotisserie style.
2. Rinse chicken off. Drizzle oil over chicken and rub around to cover whole chicken. Sprinkle seasoning all over chicken. I usually add a little inside too, just to add flavor to the meat.
3. Place in crockpot and cook on high for about 5 hours.

What's the ONLY thing better than rotisserie chicken? Rotisserie chicken with Gravy!

Just pour the meat drippings into a small saucepan over medium high heat. Whisk together 2 cups cold water with about 3 Tbsp flour. Add flour mixture to meat drippings and whisk until well blended. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Cook until thickened.


Rotisserie Style Chicken Seasoning:
4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 tsp sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix together ingredients. Store in pantry.

Grands Mini Pizzas

I found this recipe on Pillsbury.com and thought it was a great idea! Super quick and easy. Great way for the kids to help in the kitchen! We made some with pepperoni, and I used some pre-cooked bacon for the kids (they LOVE bacon pizza). Tasted pretty good...certainly not home made...but very tasty!

Grands Mini Pizzas

Ingredients:
1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® refrigerated biscuits (any variety)
1 cup pizza sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (8 oz)
1/2 package (3.5-oz size) sliced pepperoni or other pizza toppings, as desired

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Press each biscuit into 6-inch round. Place on 2 large or 3 small greased cookie sheets.
2. Top each biscuit with pizza sauce, cheese and pepperoni (and/or other pizza toppings).
3. Bake 10 to 15 minutes or until bottoms are deep golden brown and cheese is bubbly.

Bone Fish Grill's Raspberry Martini

OK, so I don't drink much...in fact, I don't like the taste of most drinks at all. BUT, I have found a few drinks here and there that I'm particularly fond of. This is one of my favorites! Enjoy!

Raspberry Martini

Ingredients:
1.25oz stoli raz
.75oz razmatazz
.5oz sprite
.5oz Simply Lemonade (found in refrigerated section of grocery store)
a skewer of raspberries (optional)

*You can use sour mix instead of the lemonade, but I've read that the simply lemonade is a closer match to what they use at Bone Fish

Baked Onion Dip

This is a recipe from Mona Rosenberger...and it was SOOOOO good! Everyone loved it! I don't know where the original recipe is, but this is her modified version :-)

Baked Onion Dip

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp margarine
1 large sweet onion, diced (about 1/2 cup diced)
2/3 cup light Mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (or 1 tsp dried)
½ tsp. hot pepper sauce

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt margarine in a large skillet on medium heat. Add onions; cook 5 to 7 min. or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Cool slightly.
2. Mix mayonnaise, sour cream, cheese, parsley and pepper sauce in medium bowl. Stir in onions. Spoon into baking dish.
3. Bake 25 min. or until heated through.

Serve with triscuits, crackers, tortilla chips.

Florentine Chicken Soup

This one came from the Taste of Home Casseroles, Slow Cooker and Soups book. It was very yummy and SUPER EASY!

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked penne pasta
6 oz cooked chicken breasts, diced
4 cups chopped fresh spinach
7 oz roasted sweet red peppers, drained and sliced
3 fresh rosemary sprigs, chopped (or 1 tsp dried rosemary)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp pepper
1 Tbsp butter
3 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup Alfredo sauce
3 Tbsp prepared pesto
2 Tbsp pine nuts
1 Tbsp shredded Parmesan

Directions:
1. Cook pasta according to directions on package.
2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, saute the chicken, spinach, red peppers, rosemary, garlic powder and pepper in butter until spinach is wilted. Stir in the broth, Alfredo sauce and pesto; cook for 4-5 minutes or until heated through.
3. Drain pasta and add to the soup. Sprinkle with pine nuts and Parmesan cheese.

Sugarpaste/Fondant

This is the recipe I used to make the sugarpaste planks for Derek's Ark cake.

It came from Carol Deacon's book Party Cakes for Children

Ingredients:
1 lb 2 oz powdered sugar
1 egg white
2 Tbsp glucose (*CORN SYRUP*)

Directions:
1. Place the sugar into a bowl and make a well in the center.
2. Tip the egg white and glucose into the well and stir in using a wooden spoon.
3. Finish binding the icing together with your hands, kneading until all the sugar is incorporated and the icing feels silky and smooth. (*I had to add extra glucose to get it to all bind together.)
4. Double wrap immediately in two small plastic bags. It may be used right away.

Use within 1 week.

Streusel Lemon Torte

Streusel Lemon Torte
by Carole Walter

Ingredients:
1 Classic Genoise Cake (see other post) baked in a 10-cup savarin or fluted ring mold

Ingredients for Lemon Cream Filling:
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/8 tsp salt
2/3 cup water
2/3 cup orange juice
4 large egg yolks
1 1/2 tsp grated lemon rind
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 Tbsp soft unsalted butter
1 Tbsp Grand Marnier
1/2 cup heavy cream

Ingredients for The Cookie Streusel:
1/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup unsifted flour
3 Tbsp finely chopped almonds
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

1/2 recipe Sugar Syrup made with Grand Marnier (see below)
1 pint large unhulled strawberries, rinsed and well dried

Directions:
1. To make the filling: Combine the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a small heavy saucepan. Whisk in the water and orange juice, blending until the dry ingredients are completely dissolved. Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Simmer for a few moments. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
2. Put the egg yolks in a small bowl and whisk lightly. Stir a small amoutn of the hot sugar/cornstarch mixture into the yolks to temper them. Then whisk the yolk mixture back into the sugar/cornstarch mixture, blending well. Cook over low heat, stirring slowly with a wooden spoon, until filling comes to a full boil and is smooth and thick.
3. Remove from the heat and blend in the grated lemon rind, lemon juice, and butter. Transfer into a medium-sized bowl. Press a piece of buttered wax paper directly onto the surface of the filling. Chill until quite cold, about 1 hour.
4. When the filling is chilled, stir in the Grand Marnier. In a medium-sized bowl, whip the heavy cream to soft peaks and fold in 1/2 of the cream, reserving the rest in the refrigerator for the lemon sauce.
5. Chill the filling again for at least 1/2 hour while you make the cookie streusel.
6. To make the cookie streusel: Preheat the oven to 350 degreees. Add the sugar, flour, and nuts to the melted butter. Stir with a kitchen fork until small crumbs form. Take a handful of crumbs and make a fist to form a large clump. Then break each clump into coarse crumbs. Repeat, making several clusters and breaking them until a nice streusel is formed.
7. Place the streusel crumbs in a 9-inch layer pan. Bake in the preheated oven for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly browned and hardened. Toss with a fork occasionally for even toasting. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

To Assemble the Cake:
1. Slice the cake into 3 even layers. Place the bottom layer on a serving plate. Line the edge of the plate with strips of waxed paper. Brush the layer with warm sugar syrup and spread with the lemon cream to about 1/8-inch thickness. Repeat with the middle layer, moistening it with sugar syrup and covering it with additional filling to the same thickness.
2. Brush the cut side of the top layer with sugar syrup and arrange it on top of the cake, cut side down. Align the layers. Using a small spatula, spread the sides and top with a 1/8-inch coating of lemon cream. Reserve leftover filling for the sauce. Place the cake in the refrigerator and chill 1/2 hour.
3. Break up large pieces of streusel and sprinkle the crumbs thickly over the sides and top of the cake, pressing them gently into the lemon cream. Using a sugar shaker, dust the entire cake generously with confectioners' sugar. Carefully remove the waxed paper strips and chill uncovered in the refrigerator for at least 3 to 4 hours to set.
4. To make a lemon sauce for garnish, fold remaining whipped cream into the leftover lemon cream filling. If desired, flavor with an additional tablespoon of Grand Marnier. Chill until ready to serve.

To Serve: Remove the cake from the refrigerator 30 to 60 minutes before serving. Fill teh center with bright red unhulled strawberries. Or place a spoonful of lemon cream sauce at the side of each slice of the torte and nestle 2 or 3 strawberries into the cream.

Storage: Store in the refrigerator, lightly covered with a foil tent, for up to 3 days.


Sugar Syrup:
1 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp dark rum or orange-flavored liqueur

Place the water and sugar in a small heavy saucepan. Bring to a slow boil and simmer 5 minutes. Off the heat, add the liqueur. Allow to cool slightly before applying to the cake. This may be made in advance. Rewarm before using.