Monday's Meal

Last week was so crazy around here that I didn't blog at all. But never fear, I have 2 recipes for you this week to make up for that. I hope you enjoy them. The first is my adaptation of Nigella Lawson's Fried Chicken recipe. She suggest boiling the chicken in the milk. I don't do that step. I use a an old fashioned cast iron skillet and cook the chicken slowly uncovered over medium heat. I do however love her two dip method for coating the chicken, it yields a deliciously crisp crust. The second recipe is from a coworker. It's deliciously decadent and I've dreamed about it ever since she bought it to a potluck we had a work. Yummo!

Fried Chicken, Me and Nigella
1 whole fryer chicken, cut up
3 to 4 cups buttermilk
2 1/4 cups solid vegetable shortening, for frying
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp onion powder
2 egg, beaten

In a large bowl, place chicken and cover with buttermilk. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours (or overnight if you can). In a large skillet over a medium heat melt the shortening, heating to about 325 degrees. In a large zip-lock bag, add all the seasonings, breadcrumbs and flour, shake to combine. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. Place each piece of chicken, 1 at a time, in the bag and shake to coat the chicken. Place each piece of chicken on parchment paper to rest for about 5 mins. for the coating to settle on the chicken. Then dip chicken into the eggs to coat. Place the chicken back into the flour to coat for a second time. Repeat this method on remaining chicken pieces. Place each piece of chicken into hot oil, allow the pieces to have enough room as to not overlap. Cook slowly uncovered until the skin crisp and golden brown in color and no pink juices remain when pierced with a fork. Remove from the oil and transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Serve hot with all the fixings.


Turtlecake

1 German chocolate cake mix with pudding in the mix
2 sticks of butter, softened
1 can of condensed milk
1 package of light caramels
1 bag of chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix the cake according the the directions on the box. Divide the batter in half. Add 1 stick of butter and 1/2 cup of condensed milk to the first half of the batter. Pour into a well greased 9 X 13" pan. Bake for 30 mins. In a medium saucepan melt the caramels, 1 stick of butter and the rest of the condensed milk. Pour over the cake. Sprinkle with the chocolate chips. Pour the remaining cake batter over the chocolate chips and bake for an additional 30 mins.