DRIVEBY Method recipe for the best crispy chicken thighs you'll eat

This is one of those quickie drive by method rather than recipe posts. This doesn't need amounts, it's a how to cook it, measurements aren't required.  Cook what you have, only a few? cook them in a smaller pan.  Got a ton to feed, use a gigantic pan.  I'm all about the easy way out here.

 My local grocery store has chicken thighs on sale frequently.  The bone in, skin on, chicken thighs are the tastiest bit of the chicken, the most tender and has the worst PR.  You can't overcook it, it is delicious, juicy and if you aren't a fan, try it again.

DRIVE BY RECIPE; TRACY'S DELICIOUS CRISPY CHICKEN THIGHS (oven method)

INGREDIENTS and METHOD

chicken thighs, bone in, skin on
salt, pepper
extra virgin olive oil

Trim excess fat and skin from the thighs but leave enough skin to  cover and protect the meat.
Season both sides with salt and pepper
Place in a lightly oiled pan so they fit closely together.
Bake in a preheated 450 degree oven for 1 hr and 30 mins. 
YES, and hour and a half, do it.

Don't open the door, mess with the chicken, nothing, just wait then eat.  The skin is shatteringly crisp, potato chip crisp, peel it and eat it.  The meat is tender, soft, juicy, succulent and all those great words you use to describe chicken.

I did a youtube video of the process, I am slowly trying to get my youtube channel organized to be a direct link from here, we'll see how I manage it... In the mean time, just go make this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUHud9CUVzY


/enjoy

DRIVE BY baked eggs with mashed potatoes and hollandaise (if you have it) and hard, crunchy toast

When I was a kid, the number one thing I got when I was sick was a bowl of mashed potatoes with a poached egg on top.  The runny yolk would turn the potatoes a bright marigold yellow and the firm and tender white with the soft sweet mashed potatoes, well, it was culinary nirvana to me.

SO, when mum emailed me about a :new" mashed potato egg dish she'd seen on TV and we laughed about the fact she'd been making it for EONS,  There's no new ideas people, just versions of the same revolving in space.  So, in light of the "new" combination, I had to throw it together, in trendy form, what my mother had made us for YEARS, to share.  It goes quickly so pay attention:

DRIVE BY RECIPE:  BAKED (ON THE STOVETOP) EGGS IN MASHED POTATO WITH HOLLANDAISE

1.  Obtain little pots, use any cocotte you can get your hands on.  i have two sizes of these little lidded pots, I have red minis which are great for an egg with a little cream but to add potatoes, MY new personal favorite is the 8 oz Sur la Table oven to table STONEWARE MINI COCOTTES (I have yellow!)  NO, I am NOT paid to recommend an item

http://www.surlatable.com/product/PRO-2303337/?affsrcid=AFF0005&adpos=1o3&creative=45091875941&device=c&matchtype=&network=g&gclid=Cj0KEQjwzq63BRCrtIuGjImRoIIBEiQAGLHdYbGtSv3ysklzHbhfLN-yRLxpq51viiqadPz5R7QSeUYaAutD8P8HAQ

butter the little pots and line then with left over mashed potatoes.  I use a fork to 'grate' the cold potatoes in so they don't clump and stay fluffy when they're reheated

2.  break an egg over the potatoes, into the pot.

3.  Put pot in a pan with room temperature water that comes about half way up the outside of the cocotte.

4.  Put a lid on the sauce pan and turn it on HIGH, when it comes to a boil, turn to low to simmer until the egg is cooked to your liking.  *I* like firm white and runny yellow.  You can lift the lid on the saucepan to look, just jiggle it to see how loose the egg is :)

5.  Make toast, crunchy toast, use homemade bread.  Butter it liberally and cut it into strips (soldiers!) to use to dip through the egg and into the potato, yeah, it's that good.

6.  when the egg is done to your liking drizzle a little hollandaise over it, if you have any, and shove toast in an eat with abandon, joyfully

SIDE DRIVE BY RECIPE:  EASY HOLLANDAISE

I make this recipe and put it in a small mason jar and keep it in the fridge up to a week.  Easily.  Take the lid off the jar and nuke gently to bring to room temperature or slightly warmer as many times as you can in the week.  Trust me, I do it all the time and we have not been poisoned.

I use a stick blender to make this version of a quickie hollandaise and it's indistinguishable from the 'classic' stirred over a water bath version.

IN a tall bottle, jar, vessel just slightly wider than the head of a stick blender put:

1 egg yolk (XL or the largest of the eggs you have)
1 Tablespoon water
2 tsp lemon juice (or more if you want it more tart)
salt

Put your stick blender in and whip like crazy

SLOWLY drizzle in one stick of melted butter while you blend continously.

DONE, season to taste with cayenne or paprika or herbs or whatever floats your boat.  Keep on counter to use same day other than that, store it in the fridge and heat GENTLY to loosen to use through the week.

Here are a few pics...  driveby recipes are result only :)

 

grab leftovers, throw them in a pot, crack an egg over and steam bake till they're done

QUICKIE DRIVE BY recipe - Mini Donuts because DONUTS!

Sometimes you want donuts and sometimes you realize that you always have the ingredients for donuts in your house, I'm about to ruin you for all time, you're welcome.

I treated myself to a mini donut pan because I had a weird coupon for it and, well, mini donuts have no calories, especially if you eat them standing up. I think any mini donut pan would work so I'm not recommending one or another.  *IF you make donut pans and you want me to try yours, email me :)



ANYWAY, this is the batter I settled on as my favorite.  I tested a bunch for you, you're so very welcome, I'm selfless like that.

QUICKIE DRIVE BY BAKED DONUTS

PREHEAT oven to 335

Ingredients

1/3 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
CREAM TOGETHER LIKE MAD then add all at once
1 XL egg
1/2 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
a few grates of fresh nutmeg
WHIP TOGETHER, IT WILL LOOK LIKE A CURDLED MESS, that's perfect
DUMP in all at once:
1 1/2 cup a/p flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
FOLD together with a spatula

The batter is thick and lovely.  Put it all in a Quart size ziplock bag and cut a tiny corner off so you can pipe this super thick batter into your mini donut pan. Grease the pan well with spray and only fill them about 1/2 full...  or else you'll get muffins, ask me how I know....

Pop the pan into a preheated oven and bake for 8 minutes.  Remove from oven and leave in pan about a minute then bang the pan on the counter, upside down and they all pop out.  Put the little darlings on a rack to  cool and cook the rest.

I make a glaze of

1 cup icing (confection) sugar  with enough melted butter to turn it the consistency of peanut butter, thick peanut butter.  Then drizzle in evaporated milk until it's the consistency you like for dipping the donuts, thick to top or thin to dip, your choice :)

When the donuts are cool you can top glaze them or dip them in icing sugar or you can butter them then roll in cinnamon sugar or you can dip glaze them if you make the glaze thinner or you can make ganache or ice them with icing sugar and lemon juice; the possibilities are endless.  Here's the beauty shots from the testings.  All delicious, all eaten :)

Go make some, now!

ENJOY!

 

 

 

Biscuits baked in sweet milk . Completely old fashioned comfort food and the best, sweetest, breakfast treat or dessert EVER.

We all know I love a good 'old lady' recipe.  I read antique cook books all the time.  I have a stack of old cookbooks ranging from 1890 and onward on my kitchen table at all times.  Whenever I can steal away a moment, I will sit and browse through them with a quiet glass of wine, enjoying the simple pleasure of them OR I will read them voraciously if I am in search of something new and fabulous.

A few years ago, I came across a recipe for biscuits baked in sweet milk and it tweaked my curiosity.  It is a breakfast item?  Biscuits?  Is it dessert?  It's sweet?  Is sweet milk regular milk?  I make a rather killer biscuit, can I use MY biscuits for this?  Cinnamon?  Oh wait, I LOVE cinnamon rolls... is this a cinnamon roll in milk?  OH OH this is EXACTLY the sort of recipe I needed in my repertoire. 

I started playing with the recipe and tweaking and pulling and pushing and came up with my own version that I present to you here.  It's lusciously old fashioned feeling.  It's rich and creamy and light and airy and tender and there's little crisp bits and the milk becomes thick and unctuous like a custard and you pour it over the biscuit.  There are few things I make regularly that I like better than this.  Seriously, I thought about holding this one close to the chest as my own but then I realized that you need to be as happy as I and my local tester.  It's full of nursery memories.  It's as good on a cold winters day to warm up as in the middle of Texas heat in July.  It's happiness making food 

I made it today and took it, straight from the oven to her house and had coffee and a visit and the children all had heaping helpings of it.  It confirmed to me that you need to be able to produce this at your whim.

The recipe is painfully simple but so complex and divine in it's simplicity.  It's almost the perfect example of why I read the old old old cookbooks.  They absolutely, completely, totally knew what they were doing.  

Make this, you'll feel the happy.  I promise. 

TRACY'S BISCUITS BAKED IN SWEET MILK

Biscuits: 
2 cups self raising flour
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup milk (plus a teaspoon or two if you need it to make a lovely dough)
Middle bit:
1/2 cup butter/margarine combo
handful of sugar for coating (1/4 to 1/3 cup?)
cinnamon, the amount you want to shake on
Sauce:
2 cups milk
2/3 cup sugar
pinch of salt
healthy dribble of vanilla

QUICKIE instructions: 

Make biscuit dough.  Roll it out and cover with butter/margarine.  Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon and roll up.  Cut into 1 inch pieces and arrange in a lightly greased dish.  Heat the milk/sugar/vanilla to boiling point (small bubbles around the edge) and pour over the biscuits.

Bake 350 for 30-40 minutes.  Allow to sit about 10 minutes before diving in and completely devouring. 

LONG winded, play by play, with commentary pictures and method:

Preheat the oven to 350 and lightly grease a 8x8 (I use round) baking dish.

Combine the flour and shortening.  Mix with your fingertips until it looks like wet sand.  
   
Add 1/2 cup milk, all at once, and mix with a fork until it's a lovely, soft, dough.  It should clear the side of the bowl and come together without being sticky.  You can add a little dribble of milk more if you need.
   
Put dough on lightly floured surface and roll to about 10x10?  Don't measure, here's my hand as a indication of the size.  Mix butter and margarine on a board with a fork.
   
Spread the butter/margarine on the dough, all the way to the ends!  Sprinkle with sugar, relatively generously.  I think it's about 1/4-1/3 cup's worth.
   
Ahhh, sprinkle action shot.  Then shake on cinnamon.  Not too much, not too little, just a nice light coating unless you're a cinnamon freak then have at it!!  Start at one end and start to roll, relatively tightly but don't fret about it,
   
Roll it and seal the edge if you feel the need.  I don't usually bother.  With the seam side down, cut the roll into 9-10 1 inch pieces, look at those lovely biscuit sugar cinnamon butter beauties!
   
Arrange them in the dish, in a single layer, feel free to squash them in to fit.  Heat the milk/sugar/vanilla in the microwave until little bubbles appear on the sides, I do 3 minutes.
   
Stir the hot milk and pour it over the biscuits, yeah, really!  It should perfectly cover them.  I had 2 that were a bit small so they floated, don't worry about it.
   
Bake it in the middle of  the oven (with a pan underneath because sometimes it boils over) and set timer for 30 minutes.  Check it, mine needed another 10 to brown up and be worthy of being taken for a coffee meeting with a girlfriend.
   
Let it rest about 5 minutes. Then DIVE IN!  The biscuit is light and tender and crisp on top.  The milk is sweet and thickened from the flour in the biscuit and is almost custardy.  

It's my most most favorite thing as a sweet treat.  Seriously, really and truly.  It's my dessert island treat.

I didn't get great pictures because, well, we were all trying desperately to get our own pieces and slather it with the thickened, sweet, milk to pour over top and I also wanted to eat mine as quickly as possible :)
  

I took it to my friend's house today and she and I devoured our hunks of it.  

The 2 teenagers loved it, the 10 year old loved it, and the 5 year old had seconds and thirds.  The 2 men working upstairs also cleaned their bowls.  I love a houseful of willing testers!

It's a solid hit and my gift to you :)  Go make it, you're going to love it! 

/enjoy