Shredded Chicken in 30 seconds

You've probably seen it on Pinterest and wondered "Really?"  Multiple sites have it posted and I'm really not sure which one discovered it first but you can shred chicken in your mixer.    All the posts I have see have used kitchen aids but I have a bosch and I wouldn't trade it for a kitchen aid.  So I tried it it my bosh and it works!

Just put fully cooked boneless chicken (mine was still hot) in your mixer fitted with cookie paddles.  Turn on medium for about 30 seconds and viola!  Shredded chicken.  I am curious to see if other meats work as well.

TWD Pecan Sticky Buns and Brioche

Butter, Butter!
He's our man!
If he can't do it,
no one can!

If in doubt just look at the recipe for Pecan Sticky Buns from Baking with Julia.  The entire recipe uses 6 sticks of butter and it makes only 14 buns.  That is 3 1/2 tablespoons of butter per bun.  You know if a recipe has that much butter it has to be good.  Well, that is my assumption anyway.  My son has had and upset belly for almost a week now and I think it would definately put me in the worst mother category to make pecan sticky buns and not let him have any.  So I made a log of sticky buns and stuck it in the freezer to be cooked and enjoyed once everyone in our family will be healthy enough to eat it.

I did however make a brioche loaf with the other half of the dough.  I love brioche!  Oh so yummy.  If this is the base of the sticky buns I am sure that it will taste great.


A few notes about the brioche dough.  The only other tie I have made brioche it was Dori Greenspans recipe in Baking: From My Home to Yours.  The BWJ recipe says to pound the butter until it is soft before you add it to the dough, whereas Dori's recipes just has you add softened butter.  I was lazy and didn't want to pound it so I just added it as Dori recommends.  Would it have tasted better if I pounded it?  I will probably never know because I will probably always be too lazy to pound my butter.  It's been a while since I have made Dori's brioche so I can't really say which one tastes better. I think I liked Dori's better but it could be just my memory.  In the future I might do a combination of recipes just to make it easier and more to my taste.

As soon as I bake the sticky buns I will review them, and post it here.  In the mean time if you just can't wait go to Eat Drink Man Woman Dogs Cat or Cookies on Friday, to get the recipe.

Update:  It took more than a week to get everyone healthy enough to eat these.  You know how it is.  When one person gets sick it never stays with only one person.  I pulled the log of dough out of the freezer in the morning and let it defrost in the refrigerator all day.  That night I sliced it up to put it in the pan.  The first thing I noticed when I took the plastic wrap off was that some of the egg (I presume) had leaked out and made a bit of a gooey mess.  I was worried but I just wiped it off and kept going.  It ended up not making a difference in the end.  I let the buns rise in the refrigerator overnight and baked them in the morning.

After reading may other posts about the sticky buns I used a little less butter in the pan.  I am glad I did because when I turned out my sticky buns there was still melted butter (as opposed to caramel sauce) that dripped from the pan.

Final conclusions:  I loved the layers in the brioche dough.  I loved picking it apart eating it one layer at a time.  I think I will try using brioche dough in my future rolled confections.  I was underwhelmed by the rest of the recipe however.  The cinnamon sugar filling was only about a fourth of the amount I would normally use and you couldn’t even really notice that it was there (except for the pecans that my son so dutifully picked out).  The topping ended up more of melted butter and melted brown sugar as opposed a cohesive sauce.  I still ate three of them mind you, but this recipe won’t make it into my list of recipes to make again.

Chipotle Black Bean Burritos

I was  pregnant with number two when I found this recipe.  I was at the stage of pregnancy where all I wanted was super flavorful foods.  After being sick for so long I was sick of bland foods.  It took me years to eat bananas again because they reminded me too much of being sick.


Nutty avocado and smokey chipotle fit the bill for flavorful food.  I savored every bite.  Whenever avocados are on sale this is the first recipe that comes to mind.  If you want to make it easier to eat, just put the avocado salsa inside the burrito instead of on top.  Use whatever chipotle salsa you like.  I have always been satisfied with the store brand.  If you have a favorite, go for it.


To make it extra yummy quality tortillas make all the difference.  I like the tortilla land ones that you cook yourself in the pan.  Fresh tortillas are always the best.

• Chipotle Black Bean Burritos

• 
  

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium-size red onion, chopped

• 1 tablespoon chili powder

• 1 15-ounce can black beans, drained

• 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed

• 1/3 cup plus 3/4 cup purchased chipotle salsa

• 1 avocado, halved, peeled, pitted, diced

• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro divided

• 4 10- or 12-inch-diameter flour tortillas

• 1 cup crumbled queso fresco or monterey jack cheese

Recipe adapted from epicurious

Heat oil in a large skillet.  Add the onion and chili powder and saute 4 or 5 minutes until the onion is softened.  Add the black beans corn and 1/3 cup salsa.  Turn heat to medium low and cook stirring occasionally for 10 minutes so the flavors have time to blend.

Meanwhile, combine the 3/4 cup salsa, diced avocado, and 1/4 cup of the chopped cilantro in a bowl.

To assemble:  Use warm tortillas (heat on the stove to soften).  Divide the bean filling among the tortillas.  Add about a tablespoon of cilantro and and some cheese to each of the burritos.  If desired you can add the avocado salsa now.  Roll up your burritos and if you haven't already used it, top with avocado salsa and remaining cheese.

Enjoy!

TWD Hungarian Shortbread

It's confession time.  I've made different shortbreads multiple times but I have never been a big fan.  Which is a little ironic because I'm not a big fan of store bought cookies, but I love store bought shortbread.  So when it was announced that our next recipe was going to be Hungarian Shortbread I wasn't exactly thrilled.  I should have been.

Maybe I messed up on the recipe but this was unlike any other shortbread I have had.

And it was fantastic.

My experience with shortbread has been very dry.  It typically turns to dust in my mouth and leaves me reaching for water as I choke.  I cooked this for an extra five minutes because it had not yet turned golden, but yet it is slightly undercooked.  The texture I would compare more to a cobbler than shortbread.  It was so moist that in a few places the powdered sugar I sprinkled on top after cooking turned into almost a glaze.  I also deviated from the recipe in that I used a homemade sugar free strawberry jam because I didn't want to search for rhubarb to make the jam that the recipe called for.

I found the method for making the shortbread very intriguing.  After the dough was made the recipe had you place the dough in the freezer for 30 minutes and then grate the frozen dough into the pan.  I left in in the freezer for close to an hour.  It was almost frozen all the way through but it was a little soft in the middle.  The soft part was hard to grate of course but otherwise I think this method works great.

So was it the ingredients, or the method that made such yummy shortbread.  Or more likely a combination of the two.  I will try grating frozen dough in other recipes and see how it works out.  You can fine the recipe here or here or of course in Baking with Julia.

I posted this recipe the day I made it.  Now a few days later I am adding an addendum.  Though the recipe is still good it is moving down on my list of recipes to remake.  It is so rich and it made so much we are not going to be able to finish off the pan.  Be warned!