Summer Produce + Butter = Good Times

When I was growing up, my mom always had a giant garden full of produce. Which meant we ate delicious vegetables and a LOT of frozen sweet corn throughout the fall and winter.  She still has a giant garden, but I can no longer walk outside, grab a tomato off of the vine, and eat it like an apple.

I do, however, have friends who have gardens, and they give me stuff, so tonight's dinner was an altered version of my mom's Fried Eggplant. I don't think she ever used an actual recipe, and neither did I. Measurements are not approximate because I didn't measure a darn thing.

 I feel like when she made this when we were kids, it was a side dish. But it is wicked hot in Iowa this weekend and I didn't feel like making anything else, so it is also filling enough to be your Saturday night dinner.

This is Bob's Red Mill 1 for 1 Flour Mix. I can't have his regular GF flour because it has
garbanzo bean flour in it, but this one is safe.

Ingredients:
Eggplant
GF flour (maybe a cup or so)
Paprika to taste
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Red pepper flakes
Coconut milk (in the refrigerated section-NOT from the can)
2 T (ish) Chili infused olive oil
1/4 c butter

Directions
1. Trim the rind/skin off of the eggplant and slice it into thin pieces
2. Mix the flour and spices (or a combination of your favorite spices) together in one bowl and pour about a cup of milk into the second bowl.
3. Heat the olive oil and the butter in a skillet
4. Dredge the eggplant slices first in the milk and then in the flour mix and place carefully in the skillet.
5. Pan fry the eggplant for about 4 minutes on each side or until brown and crisp on both sides.
6. Place slices on plate covered in paper towels until you're done and eat while still hot.

I didn't eat all of it, so placed the others in the freezer to reheat later-maybe tomorrow for breakfast... I would not recommend reheating in the microwave-reheat in the oven for ideal crispness.

This is where the magic happens.

This morning I was watching a cooking show that Valerie Bertinelli has (I guess?) and she suggested using one hand for dry dredging and one hand for wet dredging so both hands don't get disgusting, and I thought 'Genius!', so now I'm passing on that suggestion.

Halfway done

 It's so good when it hits your lips!

This would also be good as Eggplant Parmesan if you switch up the seasonings for Italian seasonings and crush up Rice Chex as your breading.  Just a suggestion :) Homemade tomato sauce, lactose free mozzarella and gluten free pasta and it's Italian Night. Just add red wine.

First batch done!

When In Doubt, Add More Wine

So, when a recipe says to pound the chicken to be thinner….you COULD follow the directions, or you could not, just add wine, and let things happen. Guess which option I took? The second!

Tonight’s dinner was Lemon Wine Chicken. The main ingredients were lemon, wine, and chicken. Crazy, right!?

Finished Product with GF Pasta. You're blown away, right?

When you bake, you follow the directions. When you cook…eh? Use the recipe as a guide. I substituted a few things and added more wine, because, when in doubt…Add More Wine.

I also couldn’t find parsley, so I substituted oregano. And then, I found some, so I added it. I actually couldn’t taste either spice. I also doubled the paprika because I like paprika. I couldn’t taste any of the spices because all I tasted was lemon. And that’s ok.

Artistic, no?

Also, if you haven’t found infused olive oils, you should leave your house right now and go to the store. I like to toss pasta with either lemon or chili infused garlic, throw some fake cheese in there and some red pepper flakes and call it dinner when I am either too tired to cook or have nothing else in the house. It’s usually the second…

This lactose-free butter is a new grocery store find. It's way less expensive than the other
stuff and it works for me, so I'll be using this from now on.

Skillet Lemon Chicken with White Wine

INGREDIENTS

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts [which at my grocery store meant two big boy breasts from the meat counter] (thin breasts, or pounded thin)

¼ cup lactose free butter [I found lactose free butter that does not cost $5+, so will now be using that until the end of time]

2 tbsp. lemon infused olive oil 

1 lemon (juice and zest)

1 lemon sliced

¼ cup white wine

½ cup coconut flour [any gf flour works, but this was what I first grabbed in the pantry so this is what I used!]

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground black pepper

½ tsp. paprika

½ tsp. dried parsley

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine flour, salt, pepper, paprika, and parsley in a shallow bowl. Set aside.

2. Heat oil and butter over medium-high heat.

3. Coat both sides of each chicken breast in the flour mixture and add to the hot skillet.

4. Add the lemon juice, white wine, and lemon zestto the skillet.

5. Cook chicken about 3 minutes on each side until no longer pink in the center.

6. Remove chicken from the skillet and set aside.

7. Allow the sauce in the skillet to reduce by half. Add the lemon slices after reduced until they’re softened/carmelized.

8. Add the chicken back into the skillet and you’re ready to serve! 

Serve over rice or pasta.

Original recipe link here.

So the whole chicken pounding thing. Meh. I cooked on each side about eight minutes and then threw the chicken in the oven to finish cooking. Guess what? It tasted great. I think you could also use chicken tenders and then you wouldn’t have to use the oven. Also, while the chicken was in the oven, I just kept pouring more wine into the skillet to cook with the lemons and the sauce. I chose wisely. It was excellent.

It smelled so good!

Also, what’s that awesome cup doing in the background of several pictures? That is my Purple Drank. It’s awesome, refreshing, and my go-to summer cocktail. It’s vodka mixed with Blueberry Lemonade and It. Is. Awesome.  

Pictures are not professional quality because I am not a professional photographer.  

Skillet Chicken Fajitas-Your new favorite Mexican fajitas. Probably.

For the dozen (probably less) of people who actually read this, I haven't died. :)

I have a plan to post new updated recipes of all the stuff I *get* to alter based on my FISP* life.

For example, tonight I made Kim Friendly Fajitas. They were awesome. I did not take pictures.  Imagine, if you will, delicious spicy orange and red peppers and chicken covered in spices and cilantro, with a hint of lime. Here is the recipe as I made it.  Link to original recipe (and pictures that are far fancier than anything I could take) here.

Skillet Chicken Fajitas

Ingredients
1 lb chicken breast
2 T fresh cilantro (I never measure, I just grab a chunk of cilantro and chop)
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp hot sauce (the only hot sauce I can use is Crystal's Hot Sauce and I put it on EVERYTHING)
1/2 tsp chili powder (I also have to buy special chili powder-ancho is my fav but warning: it is spicy)
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground cumin
juice from half of a lime
2 tsp olive oil
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 orange pepper, thinly sliced
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Directions:
1. In a bowl, combine ingredients from chicken through cumin. Toss the thinly sliced chicken in with the marinade and refrigerate for 30 minutes, covered
2. Preheat a skillet over high heat with 2 tsp of the oil
3. After the skillet is heated, add sliced peppers, chili powder and 1/2 tsp salt. This made the kitchen smoke right up, but it smelled AMAZING. Cook peppers about 4 minutes
4. Remove peppers from skillet onto a plate and set aside
5. Add another 2 tsp of oil to the skillet
6. Add the chicken fajita mixture and saute until the chicken is cooked through
7. Add the peppers back into skillet along with the lime and cook everything for another minute.

I served this over brown rice because I made tacos with leftovers for lunch, but you are all adults and can eat the fajita meat in any manner of ways. P.S. It's really good over brown rice.

*It's been a while, so as a refresher, FISP stands for Fuck It Stay Positive

This woman is my spirit animal. Valentina Tereshkova was a Russian Cosmonaut who went into space and is basically a BAMF. And her flair is spectacular.