Funnel Cakes

Despite our delicious supper and a few strong cocktails, we set about making funnel cakes since the oil was ready after the tortilla chip endeavor. Check out sexy, Alton Brown's recipe! http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/funnel-cake-recipe/index.html

Tortillas!

Todd was on his knees he liked the tortilla chips so much! I had some corn tortillas left from a failed attempt at enchiladas and decided to fry them up and season them for dipping in the guac. I definitely made up for the too-lemony hollandaise sauce this morning! Yum............and Old Bay Seasoning was a perfect choice.

Amazing Chicken

Amelia dubbed this dish "Amazing Chicken." We saw Rachael Ray do a version of this on T.V. recently and this is what we came up with today:

Chicken

pound chicken breasts out thin and bread with a crumb mixture of plain breadcrumbs, zest of one lemon, a bunch of parmesan cheese, black pepper (we did the classic flour, eggs, breadcrumb process) shallow fry the chicken and keep warm in the oven if you have to do it in batches. fry the remaining breadcrumbs in the hot oil and set aside.

Salad Component-serve piled up on top of the hot fried chicken

toss arugula, red cabbage, sliced scallions with the following lemon viniagrette: zest of one lemon, juice of two lemons (use the zest from the second lemon in the breadcrumbs for the chicken), a tablespoon or two honey, large squirt spicy brown mustard, 2-3 cloves garlic smashed up with salt, black pepper-whisk it all together with olive oil. I like to toss these types of greens an hour or so in advance to give the dressing a chance to penetrate the lettuces.

Focaccia with Kalamata Olives and Roasted Garlic

Easiest bread to make and so tasty!

1 T rapid yeast
2 t salt
1 T chopped fresh rosemary or other herbs
1/3 c olive oil
1 1/4 c warm water
3 cups AP flour

Mix all in bowl until doughy and slightly sticky. Cover bowl with towel and allow to rise until dough doubles in size (45 min). With oiled hands, plop dough on oiled baking sheet and shape into a 1/2" thick oval with your hands. Cover and allow dough to rest 30 min. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Make dimples in the dough with finger tips and sprinkle on your fave toppings: olives, rosemary, garlic, tomatoes, etc. Bake for 20-30 minutes. Yum!

Appetizer Supper

Stuffed Mushrooms and Baby Peppers (goat cheese and scallions)

Dijon Deviled Eggs

Guacamole and Creamy Pepper Relish Dip with Triscuits & Fritos

Sunday Dinner

Menu:

Curried Chicken Fingers
Cheater Beans
Macaroni Salad

How-to:

Chicken: cut boneless, skinless chicken breast into strips and toss with sourcream blended with a healthy dose of curry powder. After allowing this to marinate for as long as you like/have time for, roll the strips in plain panko (japanese breadcrumbs) and give it a shallow fry. Depending on the thickness of your strips, you can finish cooking in the oven.

Beans: combine a 28-ounce jar of Randall's Great Northern Beans, undrained with 1 pound chopped bacon, 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp dillweed, 2 tsp dry mustard, 2 tsp dehydrated onion. Cover and cook in the microwave on High for 35 minutes. Uncover, transfer to a 400 degree F oven for another 30 minutes or so. (These are even better the next day)

Mac Salad: cook desired amount of elbow macaroni and hard cook some eggs (my ratio is usually 4 eggs for a half pound of pasta or 6-8 eggs for a whole pound). While those items cook and/or chill, chop onion and celery and season to taste with salt, pepper, Mrs. Dash original, paprika. Peel and chop the eggs and add it to the veg mixture. Toss in the cooked macaroni and add mayonaise until it is as wet or dry as your family likes it. Chill before serving for best results.

Hearth Bread