I've got the blues!

We are busy, busy, busy! Yesterday we had Buffalo Chicken Cauliflower for dinner....that was it. While Mr. Lawyer was away this past weekend I lived off spinach & cheese ravioli, week old stromboli from my bridal shower, and a bag of trail mix. Last night I went to bed at 8 and netted 10 hours of wondrous sleep, three cheers for summer camp exhaustion! So tonight I was ready to cook. No special recipes tonights: frozen veggies, mexican chicken, and some delicious saffron jasmine rice (a shower gift from the Mother Unit and Grandma Claire, thank you!). I did create a wonderful blue blue "tablescape" for our dinner. There were five different hues of Fiesta blue: Lapis, Peacock, Cobalt, Periwinkle, and Turquoise. 

 The saffron rice really popped against the blue!

I first had Buffalo Cauliflower at Ms. Jackie's house. It was delicious!

Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

(from skinnytaste.com)

Ingredients:
1 cup water
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp garlic powder
22 oz (6 1/2 cups) cauliflower florets
3/4 cup Franks Hot Sauce
1 tbsp melted unsalted butter

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Lightly spray a large non-stick baking sheet with oil.
2. Combine the water, flour, and garlic powder in a bowl and stir until well combined.
3. Coat the cauliflower pieces with the flour mixture and place on the baking sheet; bake for 20 minutes.
4. While the cauliflower is baking, combine the hot sauce and butter in a small bowl.
5. Pour the hot sauce mixture over the baked cauliflower and continue baking for an additional 5 minutes. Serve with blue cheese or ranch dressing.

Magic Leftovers!

Last night I saw an episode of Chopped where all the mystery ingredients were leftovers. It inspired me to transform the leftover buffalo chicken from my party into something amazing! I can never fit all of the chicken onto the french bread so a handful of chicken in a cheap box of macaroni and cheese equals some surprising delicious buffalo chicken mac and cheese! Easy peasy!

Boy Approved.

I Heart Buffalo Anything

It's hard to go wrong with buffalo chicken: dip, mac & cheese, pizza, egg rolls, french bread...I've had amazing luck with all of them. This recipe was no exception. The original recipe was more intricate and called for fancy ingredients like fontina and gorgonzola but I went a more simple and traditional route. It was certainly a hit and very delicious for breakfast the next day. This is good hot or cold so it's the perfect party food. Obviously it's delicious right out of the oven when it's all cheesy and gooey but it was still fabulous at the end of the night. Plus it was very simple to make. Totally a keeper.

Buffalo Chicken French Bread

(Pinterest find! Adapted from howsweeteats.com)

Ingredients:
1 loaf of french bread, cut in half
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into half-inch pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
2/3 cup hot sauce, I like Franks
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 cup blue cheese dressing or dip
1 to 2 cups shredded mozzarella
4 green onions, thinly sliced
Directions:
1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil. Toss chicken with salt and pepper, then add to the skillet and cook until browned on all sides, about 10-12 minutes. Once cooked through, add garlic and stir for 30 seconds, then add in buffalo wing sauce and butter. Stir to toss and coat. If the sauce is too soupy: remove chicken with a slotted spoon and let the sauce simmer for a couple minutes to thicken up. Return the chicken and toss to coat. Let the chicken and sauce sit for a bit to absorb the flavors. I left mine in the fridge over night and it was even better with time!
2. Spread the blue cheese dressing onto each cut side of french bread, use as much or as little as you want. Sprinkle half of mozzarella on the bread. Add the chicken, spooning out all of the sauce in the skillet. Cover with remaining mozzarella. Broil on high for 5-6 minutes, until cheese is melted and browned.
3. Remove and top with green onions or additional buffalo sauce/blue cheese if desired. Cut into single serving pieces.

Buffalo Chicken Rolls

My contribution to last nights dinner party gathering was some scrumptious Buffalo Chicken Rolls. They were incredibly easy, the egg rolls wrappers are much easier to work with than the spring rolls wrappers (and much to Mr. Lawyer's delight they don't remind him of condoms.) They all disappeared so it was a hit. This picture sucks, you can't see any of the chicken or cheese oozing out! But this was my taste taster that was made with the little bit of chicken that was leftover at the end.

Buffalo Chicken Rolls

(Pinterest! Adapted from Can You Stay For Dinner Blog)

Ingredients:
12 egg roll wrappers
1 cup cooked and shredded chicken
1/2- 2/3 cup Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
1 cup crumbled blue cheese
Small bowl of water
Nonstick cooking spray
Blue cheese dressing, for serving
Directions:

1. Mix shredded chicken with hot sauce.

2. Layout the egg roll wrapper diagonally (so it looks like a diamond) and place the desired amount of chicken and blue cheese just below the middle (instructions are normally on the egg roll package). Fold up the bottom corner. Then fold in the two sides. Lightly moisten the top corner and start to roll it up.

3. Spray a wire rack and place on a cookie sheet. Add the rolls and lightly spray them as well.

4. Bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes. Serve with blue cheese dressing.

The set up.

Buffalo-Chicken Macaroni and Cheese!

Since we ate all of the mushrooms from last nights chicken dish all we had left was a bunch of lightly lemony chicken which was just not acceptable. I decided to chop it up and make some buffalo-chicken macaroni and cheese with a poor young couple living in the city twist (read: I eliminated a bunch of the ingredients). The original recipe is amazing and delicious. I highly recommend making it without changing a single thing. I made it last spring for my roommates and there wasn't a lot left. It makes a TON so you might want to cut it in half.

Buffalo-Chicken Macaroni and Cheese 

(Food Network Magazine) 

Ingredients
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for the dish
Kosher salt
1 pound elbow macaroni
1 small onion, finely chopped

2 stalks celery, finely chopped
3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup hot sauce (preferably Frank's)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons dry mustard
2 1/2 cups half-and-half
1 pound yellow sharp cheddar cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 3 1/2 cups)
8 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
2/3 cup sour cream
1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain.

2. Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken and garlic and cook 2 minutes, then add 1/2 cup hot sauce and simmer until slightly thickened, about 1 more minute.

3. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour and mustard with a wooden spoon until smooth. Whisk in the half-and-half, then add the remaining 1/4 cup hot sauce and stir until thick, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, then whisk in the sour cream until smooth.

4. Spread half of the macaroni in the prepared baking dish, then top with the chicken mixture and the remaining macaroni. Pour the cheese sauce evenly on top.

5. Put the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave until melted. Stir in the panko, blue cheese and parsley. Sprinkle over the macaroni and bake until bubbly, 30 to 40 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

For our poor young couple living in the city version I used left over green onions instead of a real onion and italian seasoned bread crumbs instead of the panko (and the panko is essential!). I omitted the celery, half-and-half (used 2% milk instead), pepper jack cheese, sour cream, and blue cheese (the travesty!). It still tasted good but it didn't come close to the original in taste or creaminess for obvious reasons. I just pretended I was being all healthy by cutting the cheese, half-and-half, and sour cream. Mr. Lawyer was inhaling it until I told him about the cuts to which I received an anguished "But you could have included ONE of them!!!" The best part is that even though I cut the recipe in half (another cheapo sacrifice influenced by ingredients on hand) there's enough to feed us for three nights!