Howdy all. Hope this finds you all doing good on this Wednesday!
It feels cooler this morning in my neck of the woods. The humidity is down just a bit, and that makes a world of difference. Yesterday I had rain showers 3X from about 1PM - 5PM. Nice soft showers. We have had sun and clouds over the past few days, and I am grateful for the clouds - as the temps have stayed just at or below 90*. None of that mid 90 stuff - thank goodness.
My garden is going nuts with tomatoes! Picking and picking and now it is time to start processing some.
Just a few ideas dealing with food today. You know I like playing with food! I like to try different things and using up what I have in some new way.
Garbanzo beans are very versatile. Have you ever had crispy beans as a snack? I have baked them in the oven until crispy before - and I have used the air fryer as well. You can fry up in a bit of oil - but I don't think they get as crispy. Crispy and habit forming (seriously), as a snack - and good for you as well!!!!
One day I had fried green tomatoes and fried peppers. See the blue arrow and that little patty? I always use the egg and the breading that is left and mix together and make a small fritter to fry up. I tend to bread with a combo of breadcrumbs, cornmeal, and a touch of flour - it ends up tasting like a little fried cornbread! I use it up, it tastes good and well, I don't waste a thing. By the way, the peppers were very tasty too.
Have you ever had Yum Yum sauce? I hadn't until I was out to lunch with friends at an Oriental restaurant. They kept asking me to try it. Oh my goodness, it was good. You can buy it at the grocery in the condiment aisle - but it is pricey. Here you go, make your own. It is good with veggies, fries, chicken strips, fish, you name it. A new favorite condiment for me!
Many people may not realize this - but it sure is true. I have always sliced lengthwise (like pic on right) to make chicken tenders (strips). I have mistakenly done it the other way, and the chicken is not anywhere as tender after cooking. Cut lengthwise for tender chicken!
It truly gets no easier!
EASY PEASY PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES
(click on recipe to enlarge)
Super easy, super tasty and using what you have for a quick treats for the young-ins or yourself!
There you go - Wednesday adventures in playing with food! LOL
It is always neat to learn new tricks and tips. Use what you have and have fun - it can save money and be quite tasty as well.
Do you have any fun treat or snack or tip to share? Look forward to learning something new!
Have a wonderful day and ENJOY the food!!!!!
I haven’t made chickpeas in the air fryer for a long time—now I need to make some! I like to drain a can of chickpeas, and toss with a few seasonings, such as cumin, chili pepper, etc. Then just throw in the air fryer until it gets a little crunchy—yum yum! Thanks for the reminder!
ReplyDeleteYes, they are so yummy. Any kinds of seasonings can be used - whatever flavors you like. They are quite a tasty treat and not bad for you at all!
DeleteExcellent ideas! I pinned the tip about cutting chicken. Every little bit of knowledge is useful. Good idea about frying up the bit of breading that is left. Kind of like putting cinnamon sugar on leftover pie crust and baking it for a treat.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, although cloudy day! Off to Costco for dog meds and a few groceries. Enjoy your day!
It really makes a difference with the chicken. YES, like using up pie dough. Mom always did that and it was such a tasty treat. I like the little batter fritter as it is crunchy outside and soft inside.
DeleteI will take the clouds - stays cooler! Temps are nice. Have a good trip to shop!
I eat a lot of chicken and never knew about slicing against the grain. Thanks! The Yum Yum sauce sounds good. I love Asian food.
ReplyDeleteI eat a lot of chicken too. My mom taught me that trick years ago. It really works.
DeleteTo me the sauce doesn't taste Asia at all - but it sure does taste good!
I've never made chicken tenders, and have always (mistakenly) cut it the wrong way. Today I learned something!
ReplyDeleteMy daughter was going to make fried rice last night but decided we'd do a stir fry instead. I had picked up a bag of frozen Asian veg at the store and needed a sauce. Soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, and brown sugar made a delicious sauce. No measurements, I just tasted as I added things. After adding the pork cubes she'd cooked earlier (marinated in soy sauce and garlic), I thickened it with a bit of cornstarch and water. She had garlic rice made up as well. It was so very good! Definitely a do-over.
I do chicken tenders or fingers a lot - just like the smaller pieces.
DeleteStir fry is so good and so is fried rice. Making a sauce is easy - and yours sounds good. Things can be so very simple - yet people go out and spend a ton of money to buy the same thing. You can adjust your own to taste and you used what you had! Love that!!
I bet the whole dinner was excellent.
The lower humidity sounds wonderful and I can't wait for that to be the case here as it's so muggy still. We love garbanzo beans in salads, and even though I've seen the roasted recipes for them, I've not tried them before, but I would like to try them someday.
ReplyDeleteFried Green Tomatoes, yum! I picked a green one up at the community garden yesterday with them in mind. It's been way too long since I've had any.
It is slowly lowering here - it should be great by the weekend.
DeleteOh you really need to try them all crispy - it is a real treat. Way better than chips.
I just love fried green tomatoes - a summer favorite. I need to make again by the weekend.
OMG I love fried green tomatoes! Never had fried peppers but I will definitely try them. We have a glut of peppers so why not?
ReplyDeleteI just finished processing 18 pints of diced tomatoes. I think the family pantry is good now for diced and sauce so the tomatoes from here out will be washed, cored and frozen for our salsa making family day.
It is quite a bit cooler today thank the Good Lord, but still humid. I really wanted to open windows but the neighbor is burning something nasty and the smoke is wafting right over on my property. I had to rack the laundry for drying inside because of the stench.
I cut my chicken breast thru the middle lengthwise and then cut them like you've shown. It works great and I need to compare the yum-yum sauce to my riff on the chic fil a sauce I make. It is good on anything and all pantry staples to make it.
JC
Well, I hadn't done peppers before and had plenty - so figured why not! They were good.
DeleteI am about ready to make some salsa. So many tomatoes - it has been a good year FINALLY!
Yeah, still humid, but not as bad. It has been cloudy all day here, so the temps have stayed down.
Hate that - neighbors can be inconsiderate sometimes.
It really does work on the chicken. I have a recipe for the chic fil a sauce too - haven't tried it. You know I have never been there!
I love those kind of recipes that you can just make from the pantry!
I also had never been to Chic-fil-A, but DS took me there for my birthday and ordered for me too. It was yummy! I won't go often as it's out of the way and I usually eat at home, but if you go I don't think you'll be disappointed. :)
DeleteIt would be nice to have a recipe for the sauce.
MaryB
I will get that recipe out soon!
DeleteI love chick peas. We grow them here and right now they can be had for free if you go get them.
ReplyDeleteOh how neat. They really are so good in so many ways. I actually only discovered I liked them a few years ago.
DeleteGoodness me Cheryl, I can’t believe you only started eating chickpeas until a few years ago !!!! We also grow them and boiled and tossed in olive oil sprinkled with salt and parsley is great.
ReplyDeleteTake care, Louise
I know right? It just isn't something I had as a kid and never really thought much about them. I do like them now!
DeleteI love chickpeas and I am going to try and get them nice and crispy in the air fryer or oven (if it ever cools down) for a nice healthy snack.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
They are so good all crispy - such a tasty snack and a healthy one too.
DeleteI eat chickpeas occasionally; though I find the flavor a bit too strong. I will definitely try roasting them and see how I like them.
ReplyDeleteMy mom’s side of the family came from Spanish heritage… so yes, we like our garbanzo beans. My grandmother made a Garbanzo Bean soup called Puchero for Christmas dinner for many years instead of the traditional American holiday meal. And Garbonzo bean salad was often seen at family gatherings. In its simplistic form, the salad was garbanzo beans, fresh minced garlic, salt, pepper, vinegar, and oil, and maybe a bit of fresh chopped parsley. You can include many add ins to the salad also. My mom liked to add boiled eggs sliced up. If ingredients are fresh and at peak of ripeness, sometimes the simplest preparation shines the best.
ReplyDelete