Freezable "Chicken Nuggets"

Like most kids, mine like "chicken nuggets". I really do not like to fry food, but even less like buying fast food for my kids. So, I have come up compromise: spend a few hours cutting battering and frying lean chicken breast in pure vegetable oil, then cooling, freezing and packing in a resealable plastic bag. This makes for super quick and easy lunches or dinners for the kids during busy times. They call it "Chinese Chicken", but it is really just a simple seasoned batter with 2 tablespoons of corn starch to give it the special crisp. They reheat beautifully too!

I usually do 6 to 8lbs at a time and like to fry it in my dutch oven.

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!

• 8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1 inch cubes
• 2 1/4 cups self-rising flour (I use All Purpose and add about 1 tsp baking powder & 1 tsp baking soda)
  
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper (use about 5 turns of fresh ground black pepper)
• garlic salt or garlic powder - about 1 tsp
• ground cumin - about 1 tsp OR ground ginger is going Asian with them
• paprika - Spanish or smoked - whatever works - about 1 tps
  
• 1 egg
• 2 cups water
• Mix all of the batter ingredients together,
  
• i usually do 1 to 2 chicken breasts at a time, cubed & coated w/ batter.
• fry in veg oil until golden brown.
  
• drain & cool on a wire rack on a covered cookie sheet,
  
• then freeze on the rack on the sheet before moving to a zip top freezer bag for storage
• reheat in 400 degree over for about 10 minutes

Buffalo Hide in Progress

Thank goodness the weather has been cool - That's pretty much all I can say about it.

The hide has a home on the side of ours right now. JB scrapes it from time to time. It mostly only stinks when it rains now. The head is another story. . . . Although it's not driving the neighborhood dogs nuts.

Who am I? Casting Crowns - very cool!

Halloween 2008

We trick-or-treated with our friends, the Sollebergers, Friday night.

The weather was wonderful, so we had 2 hours of walking, visiting and gathering sweet treats!

Raven & Luke were a Pair-o-Dice, Carson was a ninja and Alex was Christine and Derek was the good sport of being the Phantom. More than once, when Derek & JB were on the street, people thought Alex was Little Red Ridding Hood, but she seemed happy to inform them that she was in fact Christine of Phantom of the Opera.

It was a very good Halloween.