Foodie Fridays: Garlic Butter Creamed Corn Chicken

One of my favorite sources for interesting recipes is the Half Baked Harvest website.  I have tried several that I have posted here on my blog, and have many more bookmarked to try in the future.  One recipe that I made a recently is Garlic Butter Creamed Corn Chicken, and once again I was not disappointed.  The recipe is pretty easy to make and quite a satisfying meal for a cold day.  As usual I made some minor changes based on what I had available.  I also prepared the chicken by tossing it with all of the coating ingredients in a large plastic bag, which is a quick and less messy way to combine everything.  Be careful not to overcook the chicken when browning (as I did) or it will become a bit dry.  Otherwise the recipe turned out quite well, and is one I will be making again.  I highly recommend checking out the website for even more great recipes!

Garlic Butter Creamed Corn Chicken

1 1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs (I used chicken tenders)
2 T. olive oil
1 tsp. dried basil
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 C. flour
4 slices thick cut bacon, chopped (I used precooked chicken bacon)
1 small onion, diced
2 T. butter
2 C. frozen corn, thawed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (or to taste)
3/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 C. water
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Place the chicken in a large plastic bag.  Add 1 T. olive oil, basil, and salt and pepper to taste. Massage the chicken and spices together in the bag until the chicken is well coated.  Add the flour and toss with the chicken until the latter is well coated.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.  If using chicken bacon, add the remaining olive oil to the pan and cook the bacon until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pan and drain onto paper towels.

Add the chicken to the pan and sear on both sides until golden, about 5 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the pan.  Add the remaining olive oil to the pan now if you used regular bacon.  Add the onion and cook until fragrant, about 5 minutes.  Add the butter, corn, garlic, and cayenne. Cook another 5 minutes or until the corn is golden.

Reduce the heat to medium low and pour in the wine and water.  Add the chicken back to the skillet and bring to a simmer over medium heat.  Simmer the chicken for 10-15 minutes until cooked through.  Stir in the cream and Parmesan and cook a few minutes more until warmed through.  Remove from the heat and stir in the bacon.  Serves 6.

Foodie Fridays: Peppermint Muffin-Tin Cookies

Even though I did not have time to make cut-out cookies like gingerbread men or the marranitos I made last year, I decided I did have time to try these easy Peppermint Muffin-Tin Cookies from Food Network.  I have never made color-dyed cookie dough before so the minimal effort was worth it to attempt something new this year.  I must say I was surprised that these cookies were so easy to make even though they look complicated!  It is a bit of a chore to have to fill each muffin cup with tiny bits of the two dough colors to achieve the alternating colors, but this recipe only makes twelve cookies so it really does not take long.

The recipe suggests using a mixer, but I prefer to do all of my mixing by hand.  Other than ending up with a red hand thanks to the food coloring, mixing by hand worked just as well (the color wears off quickly but wear a plastic glove if you prefer).  I let my cookies cool in the pan a little too long and an offset spatula did not work to remove them, but fortunately I had a knife with a thin and flexible blade that did the trick.

I did find that these cookies are more festive than flavorful, although the mint extract does become more noticeable if you allow them to sit for a day.  If I make these again I might stir some crushed candy cane bits into the dough, and would definitely add a thin layer of chocolate ganache to the tops of the cookies before topping with the sprinkles to emphasize the Peppermint Pattie flavor more.  (The colors make these cookies suitable for Valentine's Day as well, so maybe I will try my improvements then.)  If you bake for the holidays I hope you had as much fun as I did making these!

Peppermint Muffin-Tin Cookies

2 1/2 C. flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 C. sugar
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. peppermint extract
1 large egg
Red gel food coloring
12 York Miniatures Peppermint Patties, frozen
1/4 cup red and white sprinkles

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.  Beat the sugar and butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer, or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla, peppermint extract, and egg.  Turn the mixer to low speed, add the flour mixture, and mix 1-2 minutes until completely incorporated.

Remove half of the dough and set aside.  Add 5-6 drops of the food coloring to the remaining dough in the mixer bowl and mix on low speed until completely incorporated (add more coloring if you want a more intense red - I did this accidentally by squeezing too hard on the bottle, but I like the intensely red color I got as a result!).

Alternating between the red and white doughs, spoon 8 heaping 1/4 teaspoon-sized pieces of dough (4 red and 4 white) into the bottom of each of the 12 cups of a standard muffin tin.  Press to flatten the dough so the red and white pieces intermingle and form a slight tie-dye look.  Place a frozen peppermint pattie on top of and in the middle of each dough round, pressing very gently into the dough but making sure it does not break through and touch the bottom of the pan.  Spoon 8 more heaping 1/4 teaspoon-sized pieces of dough (4 red and 4 white), alternating the colors, on top of each peppermint patty and press to flatten and completely cover the peppermint patties.

Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of the red and white sprinkles on top of the dough in each muffin cup to completely cover it.  Refrigerate until the dough is firm, about 1 hour (or freeze until firm, about 20 minutes).

Bake at 350 degrees for 13 to 15 minutes, until the edges just start to turn golden.  Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then use an offset spatula to remove the cookies from the pan to a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.  Makes 12 cookies.

This 'n That Thursdays: Gingerbread Treats for Christmas

Image from Brand Eating

While pumpkin spice may be a favorite for many, I am much more a fan of gingerbread spice, mostly because I love the combination of lots of ginger with cinnamon.  I am always on the lookout for gingerbread-flavored treats for Christmas, and this year I found several.  I recently purchased the OREO Gingerbread Sandwich Cookies shown above online as I was unable to find any locally.  I have yet to try them, but how bad could an Oreo cookie be, especially one flavored with my favorite spices?

Image from Hersheyland

I did manage to find a bag of KITKAT Gingerbread Cookie Miniatures Candy Bars a couple of weeks ago, and I am glad I got them when I did because they are all gone now!  The gingerbread flavor is subtle and they are a bit too sweet, but I liked them well enough for the holiday season that I would buy them again for Christmas next year.

Image from Amazon

I think my favorite gingerbread-flavored find this year is Twinings Gingerbread Joy, a black tea perfectly spiced with ginger and cinnamon that tastes and smells remarkably like gingerbread.  This is another product that I was lucky to find locally, as it is sold out here now.  I loved this tea so much that when I first tried it I had two cups in one day, something I never do!  I hope Twinings keeps making this tea every year for the holidays (I would even buy it at any time of the year).

If you love gingerbread as much as I do, you might want to give these products a try - if you can find them!  The only item I have had a hard time finding here is really good gingerbread man cookies, which are my husband's favorite.  I wish I had the time to bake them, but we are just too busy unpacking right now - maybe next year, if we are finally done unpacking by Christmas 2022!

Wish List Wednesdays: Talbots Reindeer Fair Isle Sweater

I mentioned in a previous post that I was on the hunt for a Christmas-themed sweater that did not fall into the category of "ugly Christmas sweater", and I do believe I finally found one!  The Reindeer Fair Isle Sweater ($89.50, but on sale for 40% off) from Talbots has the classic fair isle pattern around the bottom, cuffs, and neckline, but also features a subtle and sweet little reindeer sporting a fair isle sweater on the front.  I am always a sucker for clothing featuring animals, so for me this is the perfect Christmas sweater.  I also love the colors and the fact that it is mostly cotton.  Reviews mention that it is a lightweight sweater, but I actually prefer a less bulky sweater that can be worn as a second layer over a long-sleeved tee, so this should work well for me.  I have already placed my order - I just hope that it arrives in time for Christmas!

Wish List Wednesdays: Two Good Reads for the Holidays

Our holidays are particularly chaotic this year as we continue to unpack our moving boxes, but I still try to find a little time to relax with a good book when I can.  Currently I am reading two short story anthologies as I find it easier to quickly read one story at a time whenever I can fit in a short reading break.  I am really enjoying The Christmas Card Crime and Other Stories ($14.99 on Amazon) edited by Martin Edwards, which is one of his British Library Crime Classics featuring holiday-themed short stories written during the Golden Age of detective fiction.  If you are a fan of short mystery fiction, check out the other Martin Edwards anthologies here.

The other anthology I will be reading for the holidays this year is The Penguin Book of Christmas Stories: From Hans Christian Andersen to Angela Carter ($13.56 on Amazon), which is one of the Penguin Classics Hardcover books.  All of the stories have a Christmas theme, but the genres range from fairy tales to ghost stories, so this should be a fascinating read.  I intend to start this one on Christmas day, which I plan to spend quietly, doing as little work as possible and only engaging in cozy and enjoyable activities.  I hope your holiday plans include only fun activities as well!

Foodie Fridays: Spicy Lemon Butter Shrimp Scampi with Herbed Corn

The Half Baked Harvest website is always a good place to find great recipes, and this one for Spicy Lemon Butter Shrimp Scampi with Herbed Corn is a great example.  I modified the recipe slightly to suit our tastes, and to compensate for the fact that I did not have white wine or fresh corn, thyme, or chives.  The addition of corn makes this dish a tasty variation on shrimp scampi, and my husband and I both loved it.  We highly recommend that you give this recipe a try!

Spicy Lemon Butter Shrimp Scampi with Herbed Corn

16 oz. pasta (I used whole wheat farfalle)
1/2 C. butter (I used Country Crock Plant Butter Sticks w/Almond Oil)
1 shallot, minced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 C. frozen corn, thawed
2 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. chili powder
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
salt to taste (I used 1/2 tsp.)
24-32 oz. raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup dry white wine (I used water)
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 C. basil pesto (I used store-bought)
4 T. sliced scallions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente.

While the pasta cooks, melt together the butter, shallot, and garlic.  Cook 1 minute, until the garlic is fragrant. Add the corn, basil, chili powder, and cayenne.  Season with salt to taste.  Cook until the butter begins to brown around the corn, about 3-4 minutes.

Stir in the shrimp, tossing with the butter.  Pour in the wine and lemon juice and bring to a boil.  Cook until the shrimp is pink, 4-5 minutes.  Remove from the heat and stir in the pesto and chives.  Drain the cooked pasta and combine thoroughly with the sauce.  Serves 6.

Wish List Wednesdays: Republic of Tea Sip and Be Merry Holiday Gift Tea

I recently received a catalog in the mail from The Republic of Tea which included a free teabag for a Christmas black tea called Sip and Be Merry - smart marketing, because as soon as I tried it I decided I had to get a tin!  The Sip and Be Merry Holiday Gift Tea ($12.95 for 50) is a tasty black tea flavored with sweet blackberry leaves, natural caramel and vanilla flavors, and cardamom seeds.  It really does taste like Christmas in a cup!  This is a limited edition seasonal tea, so if you are interested you should order soon.  Hot tea is my favorite cold weather beverage, and I love a good flavored tea that is inspired by holiday spices, so I am really looking forward to having this tea for the upcoming holidays!