FoodFash

Adventure Begins in the Kitchen

Errr’Day Chicken Salad

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I try so, so hard not to make super bold statements on le blog. But chicken… I’ve just never had anything good to say about chicken. To me, chicken was as blah as blah could be.

And then, in order to recreate my great grandmother’s chicken and dumplins recipe, I had to boil a chicken. The boiled chicken was simple, tender, and flavorful and the broth was down right drinkable. And then I boiled another chicken. And then I started craving chicken salad like whoa.

Even though chicken salad is one of those non-recipe, recipes, I couldn’t think of anything to add besides grapes and nuts. I used the Junior League of Tampa Cookbook, EveryDay Feasts, as my grocery guide and came up with a chicken salad that I could be perfectly happy eating, well, errr’day!

I cubed two boiled breasts and added chopped celery, seedless grapes, scallions, and toasted almond slices. Then, I added a wee bit of Vegenaise (just enough to make the salad stir-able) and salt and cayenne pepper to taste. This whole salty/spicy/sweet thing, I just can’t get enough.

Root Slaw

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Tonight, while standing halfway between produce and the salad bar at Whole Foods, I performed a literal cost-benefit analysis. Chopping matchstick carrots and beets seemed like a lot of work for an exhausted chickadee who is expecting company the next day. A lot.

I took the lazy route and headed straight towards the salad bar. Perhaps it was also the smart route because I’m in dire need of a Global-esque knife and would have probably lost a finger tip or two had I attempted matchsticking on my own. But the salad bar beets and carrots only set me back about three bucks, making it the smartest of routes. Being pleasantly surprised about a lower than expected Whole Foods purchase was a total first.

FoodFash Root Salad (yields 2 servings)

1/2 cup matchstick carrots

1/2 cup matchstick beets

2 tablespoons tahini

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

juice of 1/2 lemon

Gently mix tahini and one tablespoon of water in a small bowl. When combined, add the second tablespoon of water and stir again. Add the apple cider vinegar and lemon juice, gently stir, and pour on top of carrots and beets. Mix well (or in my case, shake well in the salad bar container) and serve.

This dish was completely inspired by my favorite salad bar combo. The slight sweetness of the root veggies paired nicely with the nuttiness of the tahini and the tang of the vinegar. Thankfully it was delish, because I devoured every last bite in a last-ditch effort to give my body a break between a super long vacation and my upcoming culinary adventures with my long-time foodie friend.

Ariel’s Simple No-Mix Margaritas

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Like most industry peeps in LA, Ariel spends her time in between acting gigs working as a bartender.  Selfishly, this works out perfectly for me.  She has tons of off-time for my extended visits and she makes a meanly delicious cocktail.  And who doesn’t love a meanly delicious cocktail?

She also works a ton of promotions and always has free stuff laying around.  Hair products, jeans, tequila.  Again, this works out well for me.  Sitting around looking pretty with fabulous hair while sipping on tequila is most certainly my idea of a good time.

Ariel’s Simple No-Mix Margaritas

2 parts tequila blanco

2 parts limeade

1 part triple sec

ice & soda water to taste

Mix tequila, limeade and triple sec together.  Pour over ice, filling the glass about 3/4 of the way full.  Top off with soda water and enjoy a super delish margarita that’s free of that syrupy, artificial margarita mix taste!

Hatch Chile & Cilantro Chicken Broth

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I fully intended this post to be about hatch chile cilantro boiled chicken.  But if you scroll down to the bottom of the page and take a look-see at how unfortunate the appearance of boiled chicken is, I’m sure you can understand why this post quickly changed to hatch chile cilantro chicken broth.  Ikea lidded jars are much more photogenic than boiled chicken.  Much.

And maybe the broth knew all along that it was going to take center stage, because it ended up being impossible to toss out.  What didn’t fit in the jar has been gradually making its way into my belly.  Hatch chiles and cilantro are such a stellar combo that I bet you’d do the same.

FoodFash Hatch Chile & Cilantro Chicken (and broth)

One 3-ish pound whole chicken

2 hatch chiles, seeds removed and sliced

1 large white onion, sliced

1 bunch of cilantro

4 tablespoons salt

Place chicken in a large pot and top with hatch chiles, onion, cilantro, and salt.  Fill with the pot with water until the chicken is covered with about an inch of water.  Place pot over a burner on high heat.  When the water comes to a boil, continue boiling for 45 minutes.  Remove chicken from the broth and let cool.  Strain broth and store in a large jar.

So what to do with all this broth and meat?  How about this?