The official blog for Taste This
Ever since Rika lived with us, a native of Japan, my kids have fallen even deeper in love with anything mochi. Prior to meeting Rika we loved our visits to Japan town to buy Japanese mochi confections. And of course we went crazy for mochi covered ice cream when it hit the store shelves. Continue reading ‘Mochi Brownies’
The world splits into two camps on the definition of a perfect brownie: crumbly and cakey, and dense and fudgey. There is little love lost between them – the beauty of the recipe lies in the fact that the result IMHO resides in both camps; a deliciously rich crumbly and surprisingly dense brownie. Continue reading ‘Ewey Gooey Brownies – the brownie meshugaas’
Last Saturday morning…
>Secondo< Mom, I have a great idea for a blog post, we can make a box of brownies. Do you like that idea?
>Me< Well, we could make brownies from scratch? The challenge will be how to bake them.
>Secondo< I think it would be fun for me to make the brownies from the box. Those are good too, and I have an idea that will make them different.
>Me< Okay, so, after you make these brownies, are you going to write the blog post to go with it?
>Secondo< Mom, it is the weekend and I am not so much into writing on the weekend. This is my free time. Can’t we just take pictures? I read that article where you told people about how important it is that kids cook. And just because we don’t have a real oven (we are remodeling our kitchen), doesn’t mean we can’t cook. C’ummon Mom. Let’s do this.
>Me< Alright, let’s do this. We can make your brownies in our toaster oven. And we will make this a nearly-wordless post.
>Secondo< That would be good. I think I have a lot of good ideas, don’t you?
>Me< Of course. What will you call this recipe?
>Secondo< Brownie Dream Surprise.
So much to love in the next few weeks. Do you love the Super Bowl? Do you love the romance Valentine’s Day? Do you love the one your with? Whatever it is that you love, there are some fun days to prepare for and food is key! Yes- you need to make sure that you have your food ready to go. A fun way to ring in either of those days is to go red, get fired up or go home!
I pulled together a few recipes from the blog to get your Bowl-en-tine juices flowing:
Hot Mess Spiced Nuts (great name, easy to make, just do it!)
Savory Drumettes (a crispy juicy treat –SEE RECIPE BELOW)
Fondue Pasta (Cuz Cheese is a Crowd Pleaser)
Red Velvet Cup Cakes (for the romantics)
or if you need to connect w/your inner chocoholic and need a serious dose of caffeine to offer your guests…..skip the mini cake and opt for these amazing brownies with a twist.
The Ultimate Cappuccino Brownie (chocolate = Good)
Lemon-aid Blur (get the party started, featured drink for party of 2 or 20)
The key here is that all of these things can be done ahead of time. For a Super Bowl you can serve the mac ‘n cheese in small ramekins for easy individual servings; for the V-day meal serve the mac ‘n cheese along side a nice salad.
Whichever event you do – make it memorable. Incorporate cool serving ideas and make 90% of it ahead of time so that you can kick-back and enjoy the meal ….and the beverage!
The best part about this recipe is that there are only three ingredients besides the chicken: seasoned salt, sumac and pepper. To find other delicious dishes from Sue go to www.justforlicks.com Photo: www.justforlicks.com
Savory Sumac Drumettes
Ingredients
2 pounds chicken drumettes
2 ¼ tablespoons sumac (available at any Mediterranean market)
1 ¼ tablespoons seasoned salt
½ teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
Flat leaf parsley for garnish
Directions
Preheat oven on broil at 500 degrees.
Rinse chicken drumettes in a colander. Set aside. Line a 12 x 18 baking sheet with aluminum foil, covering the sides. This makes for easy clean up and protects your baking sheet from scraping any stuck-on chicken.
Line up the drumettes on the baking sheet making sure they do not touch.
Using half of your ingredients, sprinkle drumettes evenly first with seasoned salt, then sumac, then pepper. For even coating, it may be easier to use your fingers. With tongs, flip them over and repeat on the other side.
Broil on the second level from the top for fifteen minutes – depending on the heat of your oven. They should look dark brown and crispy. Take out of the oven. If there are any fatty drippings on the baking sheet, drain them off in the sink. Turn the chicken over and broil for ten more minutes until dark golden brown and crispy.
These drumettes do not have the texture of buffalo wings, which are slightly gooey. These are crispy and juicy. They are so flavorful that there is no need for any dipping sauce.
>Personal Gina commentary – These drumettes are great as an appetizer or to accompany another dish, like mac ‘n cheese. Just be sure to have your napkins ready because your digits will be messy. WARNING: once you have ONE drumette, you’ll have FIVE more. Just. That. GOOD! <
