Nuggets!

I think one of the number one foods that come to mind when I think of toddlers, is chicken nuggets.  I can't tell you how many of my friends always have them stocked in their freezer.  They're quick, simple, and yes, toddlers love foods that they can dip.  Here's my only issue with the premade ones- they aren't always chicken breast (sometimes they are chicken parts- EW), and they are packed with salt.

Laela is a chicken nugget lover.  She loves them grilled, baked, fried, spicy or sweet.  She'll eat them cold or hot.  This nugget recipe is such a hit, even my husband will take them into work and eat them cold for lunch.  They're also great tossed into a salad, or stuffed into a wrap.

The best part?  They're simple to make, easy to freeze, and taste great reheated in the oven- just like the premade ones.

Chicken Nuggets
makes about 50 nuggets

You'll need:

• 2 large chicken breasts
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk (any type is fine)
• Salt and pepper
• 2 Sprigs rosemary, chopped
• 2 Sprigs thyme (leaves only)
• Olive oil

Instructions:

• In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the egg and milk, with a dash of salt and pepper.
• In another medium sized bowl, stir the breadcrumbs, rosemary, thyme, with a dash of salt and pepper.
• Place a large piece of plastic wrap on the counter.  After cutting off all of the fat from the chicken, place the chicken on the plastic wrap.
• Place another piece of plastic wrap on top of the chicken breast.
• Pound the chicken breast with a meat tenderizer until about 1/4 inch thick.
• Using scissors, cut the breast into 3-4 long strips, about 2 inches wide.  Then, cut each strip into nuggets, making them about 1-2 inches long, depending on how big you want to make them.
• Preheat a medium skillet to medium heat.  Drizzle a bit of olive oil into the bottom of the pan.
• Dip the nuggets first into the egg mixture, then into the breadcrumbs.  Make sure the nuggets are well coated in bread crumbs.
• Place the breaded nuggets into the hot skillet.  Cook for 1/2 to 2 minutes per side, or until the breading looks crisped on each side.
• Place on a paper towel to soak the oil.
• **If you make these in batches, make sure to keep adding a bit more oil to the pan.
• If you are planning to freeze these, let them cool in the fridge first.  Then, wrap them in batches (I wrap them by serving, so I can just pull them out as I need them) using aluminum foil or plastic wrap. (I prefer aluminum foil, so that I can just unwrap it, then bake them off using that foil if it didn't get ripped up when I unwrapped it.)
• **To reheat after frozen:  You can do this one of two ways.  1.  Let the nuggets defrost overnight, then bake them in an oven at 350-degrees for about 5 minutes, or until crispy.  2.  Take them directly out of the freezer, and bake them in a preheated 350-degree oven for 20-25 minutes, or until crispy.
• These can freeze in a standard freezer for 3 months.

Pop in for Some Peppers Soup!

A while back, I had mentioned that I was going to start trying to work with what is already in my fridge, rather than run to the store every time I wanted to make dinner.  Part of the reason for this is to see what I can do at the end of the grocery week, and part of it is because I feel like sometimes trying new things with what's in the fridge can break me out of a food rut.

I've been in the mood for some hearty, soothing soups lately, so I decided to bust out some frozen mixed peppers that I had in the freezer and make a delicious pepper soup garnished with roasted potatoes.

Roasted Red, Green and Yellow Pepper Soup

Ingredients:

- Approx. 1 cup frozen mixed peppers (or one heaping handful)

- 2Tb Garlic (chopped)

- 1 small sweet onion, chopped.

- 3Tb butter

- 3Tb flour

- 2 cups chicken, vegetable, or beef stock (or 2 cups water with appropriate amount of boullion)

- 2 carrots, chopped.

- 2 celery stalks, chopped.

- 1 cup tomato sauce (you can use my super easy pasta sauce recipe if you want home made)

- Salt and Pepper to taste

- Dash of Nutmeg

- Dash of Cinnamon

- Olive Oil

Instructions:

• In a medium saucepan, boil stock.
• While the stock is boiling, put a large saucepan on high heat.  Whisk butter and flour until it forms a paste.
• Whisk in the stock, the pasta sauce, and add 1Tb garlic, the salt and pepper, nutmeg, and cinnamon.
• Lower the heat to medium heat.
• Heat a large skillet to medium high heat.
• Pour a few glugs of olive oil into the hot skillet.
• For 5- 8 minutes, fry up the carrots and celery until fork tender.
• When fully cooked, put the carrots and celery into the food processor or blender.  (KEEP THE SKILLET HOT!)
• Add the peppers, onions, and garlic to the hot skillet. 
• Once the peppers, onions and garlic start to smell really aromatic and great, and look like they're losing liquid (sweating), pour the mixture into a blender or food processor and puree with the carrots and celery.
• Whisk the puree into the cooking soup. 
• Lower the heat to medium low heat.
• Cook for at least twenty minutes.  This is one of those recipes that will taste great straightaway, but will also taste amazing the longer it cooks, or the next day as leftovers.

For the Garnish:

Ingredients:

- 3 or 4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes

- 2 Sprigs Rosemary

- 2 Sprigs Thyme

- Salt and Pepper to taste

- Onion Powder

- Garlic Powder

- Olive Oil

Instructions:

• Preheat your oven to 350- degrees.
• Wash and chop your potatoes.
• Put your potatoes in a 3 inch deep baking dish.
• Add all of the seasonings, and a drizzle of oil.
• Mix together with your hands or tongs.
• Bake for 20 minutes
• Top your soup with it and enjoy!

*This soup freezes well for 6 months in a regular freezer and 1 year for a deep freeze.  I put it in individual sized containers so that it defrosts quickly and is easy for Kyle to bring for lunch.

My family realy enjoyed this soup!  And to top it off, when Kyle and I talked about it, it cost less than $5 to make!  (and there was enough for him to bring to work for lunch and for me to feed the baby for 4 days!)  Maybe it's crazy to try to make everything in the fridge before I grocery shop next (besides for milk and eggs), but it is kind of fun to see that it is possible to make really good food with what we have, and to know that we're not wasting anything.  Isn't there enough waste in the world?  And enough people that don't have enough, that we should try to use what we've got before accumulating more?  Just a thought.

For the weekend, I'll be sharing a deliciously bad for you fried dinner that I made Kyle when he was a bit hungover.  Next stop...fried green beans and homemade chicken nuggets.