Don’t Disregard the Dizzy Chicken – Day 7

Barbequed Chicken Pizza (Printable Recipe)

Don’t Disregard the Dizzy Chicken – Day 6

Chicken Corn Chowder (Printable Recipe)

Don’t Disregard the Dizzy Chicken – Day 5

Enchilada Pie (Printable Recipe)

Makes 4-6 dinners

Don’t Disregard the Dizzy Chicken – Day 4

Because it is not authentic at all, but uses the original as inspiration, the name of my offering tonight is…

Don’t Disregard the Dizzy Chicken – Day 3

The last two days were really traditional home-style comfort food.  But today I’m feeling a little spicier and want a Mexican flavored meal. I offer…

Don’t Disregard the Dizzy Chicken – Day 2

Let’s face it, I’m beat and I’ll bet you are too.  These long days at work coupled with the sun setting sooner begs for a quick and easy, but satisfying hot dinner. Let’s assume you had some of that tasty rotisserie chicken left over yesterday, if not then you’ll need another today. Pull all the meat off the bones, discarding the bones and skin.

Don’t Disregard the Dizzy Chicken – Day 1

Convenience is the most prized asset of a harried housewife.  Marketing companies know this and they will make things very, very convenient. But to what detriment?  Your wallet? Absolutely. The earth?  You bet ‘cha. Taste? Yep. So when is convenience really convenient?

I am a spice and herb addict.  I buy chopped fresh garlic in food service quantities.  Why? Because I really love the taste of garlic, but I hate the smell of it on my fingers and it’s dirt cheap and best of all, convenient.  I also like the convenience of having fresh herbs in my freezer.  I will pop basil, parsley and cilantro in the freezer if I’ve used all I’m going to use at the moment because the remainder would spoil.  The freezer stops the spoilage but creates another problem. 

Do you remember in science when you were looking at onion skin under the microscope? It looks similar to an orange segment but flat. Well, imagine that the leaves of all these fresh herbs are orange segments and when we freeze the segment, all the little follicles (which are actually just single cells filled with juice) burst because of the water expanding as it freezes. So when the orange segment defrosts it is just a mushy, unappealing globule.  The same thing happens to the herbs. 

Why do I mention this? Well for convenience, of course! Because all the properties of the fresh herb are still there, except the crisp, fresh appearance, you can have fresh herbs anytime you need them. For any recipe that you need a fresh herb that will become incorporated into the dish you can use frozen herbs. This just opened up a whole new world of availability.  You can have summer herbs in the winter! And you’re not spending your money on little things like fresh herbs every week, which can cost up to $3.00 per pack.

The second most convenient thing available to the home cooks…rotisserie chickens. These little golden, juicy, beauties are such a timesaver. They are piping hot and at $5.99 a pop ($4.99 at Costco), they are a steal too.  You can’t buy a whole chicken for that.  Chances are, you like chicken.  Americans on average eat over 84 pounds of chicken per person each year. It is so versatile.

A prepared home cook is a successful home cook

I have set aside Sunday afternoon as my shopping day. I will often make brunch for the family in order to get them all to the table, I will then print out my Shopping list (which I have attached for you) and then we will decide as a family what is for dinner each day for the next week.  It makes shopping very easy.  We do quick runs to the freezer to see what meals are already prepped, I check off on the list what is needed to complete the meals we have chosen, check off the staple items that we are low on or out of, and then I go to three places.  Costco is first, Central Market is second and the neighborhood grocery store is third. This method cuts out entirely the habit of purchasing items you don’t need. 

A Beginning

I am starting a new blogging series for my friends have asked for cooking assistance. I know from the experience that is as equally as hard to work all day as it is to chase around your little ones as a stay at home mom - then comes dinner time.  Both working moms and stay at home moms (and dads too) want to provide their growing families with a nutritious meal that isn't going to take a lot of time or energy - as if by this time you have either.  The meals that you find in the supermarket that are designed for this purpose are usually filled with mediocre ingredients and only compensates with additives and preservatives. That isn’t what you want to give your little ones or yourself for that matter. 

There are a few rules you want to remember for feeding your families. The first thing to remember is that you need your meals to be rounded.  Too much protein in your meal makes you feel bloated and sleepy and it’s usually higher in fat.  Too much carbohydrates and you get an initial rush and then you crash, this hold especially true for complex carbohydrates.  A balance of the two and you feel satisfied for much longer and you don’t have to ride the protein/ carbohydrate rollercoaster. Grandma had it right, go figure, without all the input from modern science (although she did try to fry everything!). A small piece of protein, two or so veggies and a starch usually is a good rule of thumb.

The second thing you need to remember is all things in moderation.  You may like Italian style food, but that does not mean pasta every day.  You may like Mexican style food but that does not mean tortilla chips and salsa at every meal.  You will get bored and your body will feel the effects of not having a variety of foods.

The third thing is it really does take a few tries to gain a taste for something out of the ordinary, and that is OK.  The trick is to keep trying and stop being so darned hardheaded.  If you frown when you eat, you are less likely to have an open mind because you are telling yourself right off the bat that you don’t like it and that you are not going to like it. Tell your children and your spouses if you must, “You’re frowning. You’re not even giving it a chance.” This works really well for kids. Adults however, well, to put it delicately, sometimes act like spoiled kids, and they dig their heels in harder than your children will.  But just like children, if they are hungry, they will eat.

I will post recipes with ingredients that you may not be familiar with.  That’s OK.  We are expanding our horizons here just email me and ask me about it and I will let you know if there are substitutions that I can offer up. If the spice level is too high in something, reduce it. If you need more salt, add it. Food is about what you like to eat along beside what is good for you.  Just because it’s good doesn’t mean that it’s bad for you and vice versa. You feedback is welcomed.