Cooking Chicken 3 Ways on Fox 46's Good Day Charlotte

Consider the following post a bit of a #humblebrag.

We at Hot Dinner Happy Home have been grinning ear to ear and virtual high-fiving all weekend. You see, Charlotte's Fox affiliate asked Amy to come on Good Day Charlotte and demonstrate a recipe in a "What's Your Dish?" segment that features local food bloggers. Ever the overachiever, Amy opted to show three recipes: her signature Amy's Roasted Chicken, Slow Cooker Chicken Stock and Pressure Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup. 

(VIDEO): What's Your Dish? Amy George Makes Roasted Chicken

Our favorite line in the three-and-a-half  minute segment: "Do not fear the whole chicken." As Erin put it in one of many group texts between your three Bringers of Hot Dinner: "That's our message on HDHH. Just get in the kitchen  and don't be afraid! BRAVO!"

Thank you, dear readers, for keeping up with our culinary adventures and indulging us as we say, "Yay, us!"

XOXO,

Erin, Andrea & Amy

PS: Amy's family -- husband, Jeff,  and daughters,  Lucy and Penny -- tagged along for moral support. The girls even  got to be in a promo spot in which the anchor said they were studying up to come back and cook with Mom! A good day in Charlotte, indeed!

Slow Cooker Turkey Breast

You guys. Thanksgiving is less than three weeks away. I. Am. So. Excited.

Are you hosting this year? Going to your mom's house? Maybe heading to the neighbors' for Friendsgiving? And the most important question...what are you making for the big day?

This is the first year since 2006 that I'm not hosting Thanksgiving, and I'm pretty psyched to be taking a back seat. It'll be a nice change of pace, especially with the baby and all. Babies aren't conducive to cooking all of the things. I'll be putting all of my Thanksgiving culinary love into the cranberry sauce. And then I'll just enjoy the hard work of my sister-in-law and brother-in-law.

Today's Slow Cooker Turkey Breast is perfect if you're feeding a small group for Thanksgiving. Or if you're not hosting, but you'd still like some turkey to slice for sandwiches the next day. This is easy, set-it-and-forget-it cooking. Plus it frees up your oven for the stuffing, green bean casserole, rolls, apple pie...

Let's get cooking!
Erin

P.S. Like the idea of a turkey breast, but looking for a more traditionally cooked bird? Look no further! Check out this recipe for a brined and oven-roasted turkey breast.

Slow Cooker Turkey Breast

6-7 pound bone-in, skin-on turkey breast
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1 large onion, peeled and cut into 8 wedges
3 carrots, peeled and cut into big chunks
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups chicken broth

Sprinkle salt and poultry seasoning evenly over turkey breast. Place onion, carrots, and bay leaves on the bottom of the slow cooker and pour the broth on top of the vegetables. Top with turkey.

Cook on low for 4-6 hours, until turkey reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Allow turkey to rest for 10 minutes. The skin gets a little soggy, so I recommend removing it before slicing and serving the turkey.

Zucchini Pancakes

Yes, I'm using zucchini in yet another recipe. The prolific vegetable is the ideal blank slate or accompaniment for so many meals, as evidenced by it's frequent appearance in our happy homes.

Zucchini's mild taste and Mom-approved nutritional value make it a great food for healthy eaters.

One medium zucchini with its skin provides about 7 grams of carbohydrates, including 2 grams from dietary fiber and 3 grams from sugars. It also has 2 grams of protein and lots of vitamins and minerals, such as potassium.

Some of my favorites? Blueberry Zucchini Bread and Zucchini Rice. And of course these tasty pancakes. I try to use as little flour as possible so that the zucchini takes charge.

These savory bites are just the thing when you need a vegetarian main course or a fun side dish.

And who can say no to pancakes served up with a dollop of sour cream?

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Zucchini Pancakes

2 medium zucchini, shredded
2 teaspoons salt, divided
1 large egg
1/2 a yellow or white onion, finely chopped (or use 1 bunch green onions, finely sliced)
1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of cheddar cheese
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 to 6 tablespoons flour (white, whole wheat or gluten free)
Several tablespoons olive oil or canola oil
Several tablespoons butter

Place zucchini in a strainer and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt. Let drain for about 10 minutes. Press with wooden spoon to squeeze out moisture.

Whisk egg in a bowl. Add zucchini, onion, cheese, nutmeg, pepper and flour. Mix until well combined. If the batter is too wet, add another tablespoon of flour.

Now you're ready to fry up your fritters — in batches.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a 10-inch or 12-inch skillet (cast iron works well here) until hot. Drop heaping tablespoons of zucchini batter (about 1/4 cup) into skillet and flatten just a little with a spatula.

Cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, or until browned. Transfer pancakes to a plate lined with paper towels.

Wipe out skillet if needed and repeat the cooking process until you've used up all of the batter.

Serve with sour cream.

Zucchini pancakes freeze really well. After thawing you can reheat them in the oven. Place on a cookie sheet and broil for 1 or 2 minutes.

Sausage and Mint Stuffed Tomatoes

I brought this recipe back from France 20 years ago. Gosh, that makes me feel very grown-up. Not old, just grown-up.

Anyhow, back in Fall 1995 I was living in Paris and interning at the Associated Press. The woman I boarded with made these sausage and mint stuffed tomatoes. She'd also pick up lamb or a whole fish from the outdoor market and do nothing in the way of prep, literally just throwing them in the oven. But when dinner was ready, it was incroyable. Until I met Francoise, I'd never seen anyone cook so simply and so wonderfully at the same time.

I still haven't made a whole fish, though it is on my culinary bucket list. But I have made these tomatoes beaucoup. Merci, Francoise.

XOXO,
Amy

Sausage and Mint Stuffed Tomatoes

4 red tomatoes, beefsteak are ideal
3/4 pound to 1 1/2 pounds Italian sausage
1/3 to 3/4 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
Handful of mint, roughly chopped
Salt, pepper to taste

First, remember that all quantities are approximate. All depends on how large your tomatoes are, how much you like mint, how bready or meaty you like your sausage stuffing and how many people you are feeding. While big beefsteak tomatoes are best, heirlooms won't work due to their odd shapes, which make it hard to form a big hole inside the tomato to fill with the sausage stuffing.

The last time I made this dish, which was for this blog, I had smallish vine ripened tomatoes (see photo), which weren't ideal, but I made do. I used 3/4 pound of sausage and 1/3 cup breadcrumbs. While the meat and bread crumb ratios will change depending on the size of your tomatoes, you can pretty much always get away with using just one egg.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Hollow out your tomatoes so there is a hole for the sausage stuffing. Place tomatoes in baking dish.

Combine sausage, bread crumbs, egg and mint. Add salt and pepper to your liking.

Stuff tomatoes. Bake for 40 minutes to 1 hour. The top of the sausage should be brown and crispy and the inside should be barely pinkish.

Peanut Butter Energy Bites

I'm pretty sure my son is the pickiest eater in the history of picky eaters. Here are the things he will eat:

• Creamy Peanut Butter (Only eaten if he can lick it off a honey wheat pretzel. Please note: he doesn't eat the pretzel itself; it's merely a vehicle.)
• Saltines (Don't even try to give the kid Ritz. He eats only square-shaped crackers.)
• Annie's White Cheddar Bunnies (Not the orange ones. This I learned after purchasing a lifetime supply of the orange ones at Costco.)
• Macaroni and Cheese (Must be from a box.)
• Mashed Potatoes (Must be instant. Seriously.)
• Apples, Bananas, Melon, Grapes (Preferably purple.)
• Anything in a squeezie pouch. (As an experiment I once served him squash and a squash squeezie pouch in the same meal. He ate the pouch and refused to touch the stuff on his plate. Try explaining the irony to a three-year-old.)
• Noodles (Served plain. Don't consider adding sauce.)
• Oatmeal (He would eat oatmeal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if I let him.)
• SWEETS (Cupcakes! Ice cream! Cake! Cookies! Chocolate! The boy knows the good stuff.)

On a whim I decided to enlist his help in whipping up these Peanut Butter Energy Bites. They contained three of his food groups, so I thought there was a chance he'd try them. And, glory be, he did. And...he liked them! 

Guess what we're having for lunch every day now. 

Let's get cooking!

Erin

Peanut Butter Energy Bites
Adapted from Get Creative Juices
About 24 bites

1 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup finely chopped toasted pecans
1/3 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1 teaspoon vanilla

Place all ingredients in a large bowl and stir together until everything is evenly combined. Roll into 1" balls and place on a parchment- or waxed paper-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate until set, about 1-2 hours. Store in the refrigerator.

P.S. If at all possible, enlist the help of your adorable kid in making Peanut Butter Energy Bites. Here's mine, making his "CHEESE!" face. (Also pictured, my very messy house. Real life here, people.)

Apple Crisp

A trip to the apple orchard here in Central Illinois is one of my family's fall traditions. It gives us a chance to go out into open country and appreciate nature a little more.

My boys and any friends who come along love running down the rows of apple trees and seeing who can pick the fruit highest up the tree. The kids usually eat their weight in apples before we're done filling up our bags — it's all part of the experience. 

We pick more apples than we need. At home, we make at least one apple pie before we switch over to apple crisp.

This year, Jonathan and Golden Delicious apples were ready when we went picking. I've never used either in baking and am surprised at how well these apples melt down while keeping some firmness.

When it comes to making the crisp topping, I'm not a purist. With this dessert, I added some shredded coconut and chopped nuts, just because I had a small amount of each taking up space in the pantry. When you're mixing things up with brown sugar, cinnamon and butter, it's bound to taste delicious.

Mangia! Mangia!

Andrea

Apple Crisp

4 cups apples, peeled and sliced (A mixture works best. Add a Granny Smith for tartness.)
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup flour (white or whole wheat)
1/8 cup to 1/4 cup shredded coconut
1/8 cup to 1/4 cup chopped pecans
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger or ground cloves
1/2 cup butter, softened

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8 x 8 inch baking pan with butter or cooking spray. Place apples in pan to evenly cover the bottom. (If you double the recipe, use a 9 x 13 inch pan.)

In a medium bowl, mix brown sugar, oats, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger (or cloves.) Place butter in bowl. Using a pastry cutter or two butter knives, blend butter into dry ingredients until crumbs form.

Generously sprinkle crisp topping over apples to cover. (You might have some topping left over. Save it in the fridge or freezer to use on oatmeal.)

Place on the middle rack in your oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the topping is browned and the apples are bubbly.

Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

My boys Max and Sam and their friend John goof around after picking apples.

Slow Cooker Chicken Stock

A friend tried my roasted chicken recipe and afterward she made chicken stock in her slow cooker. She told me that once I tried it I would never make stock on the stove top again.

So, the last time I roasted a chicken, I put the frame in the slow cooker overnight along with all the necessary ingredients and when I got up in the morning...voila chicken stock! My friend was right. I will never again make chicken stock any other way.

So, then, I took that chicken stock -- all eight cups -- and made a double batch of my pressure cooker chicken noodle soup.

The dreaded Fall cold has swept through the George house, so this soup will have us all feeling better in no time -- and there's enough to freeze! BTW, both the soup and the stock by itself freeze nicely.

XOXO,
Amy

PS: No slow cooker? Check out how to make chicken stock the old fashioned way in Andrea's post "Chicken Stock & Chicken Tortellini Soup."

Slow Cooker Chicken Stock

Frame of one roasted chicken
Two carrots, peeled
Two celery stalks
1 medium to large onion, peeled and quartered
1 lemon, sliced in half
2 to 3 garlic cloves, pierced with a knife but left whole
1 bay leaf
Fresh herbs (whatever you have on hand), tied into a bouquet with kitchen twine if you have it

Place all ingredients in slow cooker and fill to top with water. Set to low for eight hours.

Remove chicken frame and all the solid ingredients. Pour stock into containers, using a mesh strainer to catch all the small bits and pieces. Place stock in refrigerator. I recommend not using the stock right away but letting it cool in the fridge so that you can remove the light layer of congealed fat that forms at the top of the broth. After you do that, use the broth in your favorite soup or recipe or freeze for later.