Food Creation 101 With Cheese and Cracker Chicken Recipe

Food Creation 101 With Cheese and Cracker Chicken Recipe

by | Feb 16, 2021 | Dinner, Poultry

My recipe inspirations borrow from my favorite shows, restaurants, and magazines…and also what makes me HUNGRY. And this is how my Cheese and Crackers Chicken was born! Click to skip to the recipe

pumpin swordfish chowder

People always ask me where I get my recipes. I tell the truth, that I love to copy food from magazines, restaurants, and tv shows. And I do.

But the real truth is that those inspirations are often, just that; an idea for a dish that makes me hungry.

For example, I’ll see a lovely magazine picture of a wine-rich beef stew, and my tummy grumbles. Or Molly Yeh will make a skillet of perfectly cheesy nachos, and I want to grab one through the tv screen.

Or I see a waiter go past my table with a dish and I’ll stop him to ask, “What’s that?”, knowing just the passing aroma and food presentation is enough to make me curious.

My food is based on inspiration but also on what makes me hungry.

It’s also based on what I have on hand. I might be hankerin’ for chicken, but if I’m lacking my favorite pieces (chicken thighs) then that plain old breast will do.

I can not stand to waste food, so those last bits of carrot or lonely sweet potato will find themselves on the dinner plate that night too.

So, when people ask me where I get my recipes, the answer is that I get hungry, I see a dish that might satisfy that hunger, and then I see what I have in the fridge that will make it happen.

This is how my recipe for Cheese and Cracker Chicken was born.

It started with my devotion to cheese and crackers. This is my go-to food when the tummy rumbles and that fasting headache emerges. Just a little bite of cheese takes the edge off. This works…for a while.

What happens next is that cheese begins to sneak its way into my dish. I love cheese on my scrambled eggs. Cheese in my salad. Cheese and crackers for my snack. Then inspiration hits.

Why not cheese and crackers in my chicken dinner?

I had the remnants of a box of everything seasoned Ritz crackers and the bottom half of a plastic container of grated Parm. Defrosted chicken breasts and some odds and ends veggies created a great meal.

I sliced the chicken breasts in half and generously coated each with cracker crumbs so that each bite contained that crackery goodness.

Then I made a simple white sauce laced with just enough Parmesan cheese to consider it cheese sauce.

Cheese and Crackers chicken was born with the perfect side dish of curry roasted sweet potatoes, carrots, and cauliflower. That ladies and gentlemen, is how I create my food.

Enjoy!

Cheese and Crackers Chicken

Serves: 4

Time:  30 minutes ’til it’s ready

Ingredients

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 tablespoons Dijon style mustard

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon coarse black pepper

1 sleeve buttery round crackers

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated

Fresh thyme

Best Italian Cookie Recipe
Best Italian Cookie Recipe
Best Italian Cookie Recipe
Best Italian Cookie Recipe

Place the chicken breasts onto your work surface. Place your hand on top of one breast. Use your very sharp knife to cut each in half horizontally. Repeat create 4 pieces. Brush each piece on both sides with mustard and season with salt and pepper.

Smash the crackers into small pieces. Use a meat mallet, rolling pin or the bottom of a sauté pan to gently crush the crackers in the sleeve. Then you can simply pour the crumbs into a shallow dish. There will be about 2 cups of crumbs.

Dredge the chicken breasts in the cracker crumbs generously coating both sides of the chicken. Transfer the coated breast to a platter.

Heat the olive oil and butter in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the butter is bubbling, place the chicken into the pan. (You can do this in batches if your pan will not accommodate all 4 breasts.) Cook until golden on one side, about 5 minutes. Turn and cook on the second side until golden making sure that the chicken is cooked through, about another 5 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a clean platter.

Sprinkle the flour over the juices remaining in the skillet. Reduce the heat to low. Whisk the flour in the pan to form a bubbly paste, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk. Stir in the Parmesan cheese. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.

Serve the Parmesan cheese sauce over the cracker-crumbed chicken. Garnish with fresh thyme.

Lofty Leftovers: Chicken Ravioli, Two Ways

Lofty Leftovers: Chicken Ravioli, Two Ways

by | Jun 22, 2020 | Appetizer, Poultry, Remix, Soup/Stew, Vegetarian

One of the things you figure out when you like to cook is that you usually make more than you need…and when you learn how to make leftover food recipes, the more meals, the merrier! Get my recipes for a hearty soup and a clever take on chicken ravioli, two ways. Click to skip to the recipe

 

 

One of the things you figure out when you like to cook is that you usually cook more than you need. This is a by-product of not getting it totally right the first time or making sure you don’t run out of food! 

On the one hand, say your making soup and upon first taste, you discover that you were a little heavy-handed with the salt. No problem, you just add more liquid or starch and the taste is repaired to delish status!

You now have not only yummy soup, but enough for an extra meal down the road. Win! Win!

On the second hand, you’ve invited pals to dinner who notoriously travel in packs and bring along more pals at the last minute. Therefore, you cook two chickens instead of one.

Both of these happened to me during the past week.

The results were some great leftovers that I morphed into two really yummy dishes. The first was what started out as my butternut squash soup and ended up as a cheesy, thick butternut and potato soup.

It’s hardly a recipe, but here’s the lowdown.

Cook onion and butternut squash chunks in oil in a deep pot over medium-high heat until the veggies are soft.

At this point, I remove the pot from the heat and a splash of sherry or dry white wine. I return the pot to the heat and add chicken or vegetable stock. Season with salt and pepper. Cool the soup to room temperature and use a blender to pulse the veggies to make a smooth soup.

But then, I returned the soup to the pot to reheat and found that it was a tad too thin and a bit too salty. So, I added a couple of spoonfuls of leftover mashed potatoes as I warmed the soup over medium-high heat. I tasted the soup and it wasn’t too bad.

So, I add more potatoes.

Then hubby came in and asked if I was making cheese soup. The butternut squash had given the soup a cheesy golden glow.

So, I nodded in the affirmative and added some grated cheddar cheese. I kept adding potatoes and cheese until the soup was rich, and velvety and hearty and really, really good.

I cooled it again, pulsed it again, reheated and poured it into bowls. Hot pepper sauce and parsley were the perfect garnish. Voila!

The second dish takes advantage of leftover chicken and wonton wrappers in place of pasta to make a yummy chicken ravioli that tastes as good as it looks. 

Leftovers are not an afterthought, they’re the new way to cook smart and cook well!

Enjoy!!

Chicken Ravioli: Two Ways

Tomato Pie

Ingredients

Make these on a day when you have leftover chicken. You can store extra ravioli in a single layer in a resealable plastic bag in the freezer. To serve, bring them to room temperature before you drop them into boiling water.

For ravioli:

2 cups cooked chicken

1 cup ricotta cheese

1 cup fresh basil leaves, plus more for garnish

2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated, about ½ cup

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon coarse black pepper

1 package Wonton wrappers, about 36

For brown butter sauce:

½ cup butter, 1 stick

4 to 6 sage leaves

For red sauce:

1 cup prepared marinara sauce

2 to 3 tablespoons half and half

Toasted pine nuts for garnish

Grated parmesan cheese for garnish

Servings: 4 or more

Time: 30-minute cuisine

glazed lemon cake with berry sauce
glazed lemon cake with berry sauce

Place the chicken into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to mince the chicken. Place the ricotta cheese, basil leaves and Parmesan cheese into the bowl and pulse to combine. Season with salt and pepper and pulse a final time.

Spread four wonton wrappers onto your works surface. Place a spoon full of the chicken filling into the center of each square. Place a small basil leaf on top of the filling. Wet the border of the wonton square with water. Place another wonton wrapper on top. Gently press with your fingers to seal the ravioli. Use the tines of a fork to firmly seal the edges. Repeat with the remaining wonton wrappers and filling.

For the brown butter sauce, warm the butter over low heat until it begins to froth and turn golden, about 5 minutes. Toss in the sage leaves and continue cooking for two minutes more.

For the red sauce, heat marinara sauce over low heat. Stir in the cream.

Fill a deep pot with water and bring to a boil. Season the water with a generous amount of salt. Lower the ravioli into the pot, one at a time. Do this in batches so that you don’t overcrowd the pot and damage the ravioli. The ravioli will cook in just minutes. Use a slotted spoon to lift the ravioli from the pot. Transfer to the brown butter or red sauce. You pick! Garnish with grated Parmesan cheese and pine nuts.