Boneless Buffalo Bites

One of my favorite treats at a restaurant is Boneless Buffalo wings. Here is my attempt to kill a craving in a way that is a little less bad for me since they are baked, not fried.

Boneless Buffalo Bites

Ingredients:
2 Large chicken breasts (remove skin and de-bone)
1 Cup Buttermilk
1 box (2 packets) of Original flavor Shake n' Bake
1/2 Cup Franks buffalo sauce
3 tbsp honey

Process:

1. Cut chicken breast into bite sized chunks.
2. Put buttermilk into Ziploc bag, add chicken. Place in fridge for 30-60 min.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
   
4. After marinating, remove from fridge and dredge in Shake n' Bake.
5. Place chicken pieces on a baking sheet coated lightly with Olive Oil cooking spray.
6. Bake for 10 minutes on each side.
7. In a bowl, mix buffalo sauce and honey.
8. Remove chicken from over and dredge in sauce.
9. Serve with Zesty, chunky lite blue cheese and fat free ranch dressings.

NOTES:

• I used the bag that came with the Shake n' Bake to marinate the chicken in, since I did not have any large Ziploc bags left.
• Shake n' Bake breadcrumbs are a little too coarse for my liking. Next time I will use regular breadcrumbs.
• Buffalo sauce was a little too spicy for our liking. Will research options to make sauce more mild.
  

Crab Cakes with Avocado Sauce

No introduction necessary......

Crab cake ingredients:
1 lb chunk real crab

3 Tbsp Fat Free Mayo

1 Tsp Dijon Mustard
1/2 bread crumbs
1 Tbsp butter
2 Garlic cloves smashed
1/4 tsp Thyme
1/4 Tsp salt

Avocado Sauce Ingrediants:
1/2 Avocado (halved, pitted and removed from skin)
1 Tbsp fat Free Mayo
1 Tbsp Lime Juice
1/4 Tsp salt
1/4 Tsp sugar
1/4 Cup Reduced Fat Sour Cream

Process: Crab cakes
(Since I prefer my crab cakes with a finer texture I put the chunk crab into a food processor and pulsed a couple time to chop it. But if you prefer it chunky you can skip this step.)
1. In a large bowl mix the crab, mayo, mustard, a sprinkle or salt, and 3-4 Tbsp of bread crumbs, until evenly combined.
2. Cover and place in fridge.
3. Preheat over to 400.
4. Melt the butter in a small skillet and add smashed garlic.
5. Stir for about 2 min. until garlic is browned.
6. Add thyme and salt and stir for another minute until fragrant.
7. Add remaining bread crumbs to pain and stir to coat evenly with butter.
8. Cook until bread crumbs are lightly browned.
9. Pour breadcrumbs out onto flat plate.
10. Retrieve crab mixture from fridge, separate into 4 even patties and place on wax paper.
11. One at a time place crab patties on top of bread crumb mixture and flip to coat both sides.
12. Place breaded patties on baking sheet sprayed with olive oil.
13. Put into preheated over for about 12 min., or until browned.

Process: Sauce
1. Place cut, pitted and skinned avocado into food processor, and pulse to chop.
2. Add all other ingredients and blend until smooth.
(I found it helpful to add a little more liquid to get the texture I prefer.)

NOTES:

• Next time I would use milk to make the sauce. The sour cream taste was a little too strong for me and took over the taste of the cakes.
• Though baking probably saved alot of fat in the process, I think I still prefer the nice crust you get from pan frying them.
• I found this to have too much garlic.
• I would skip the mustard as I really didn't taste it.
• I would use more bread crumbs in the crab mix, for texture and "stickiness".

BTW...

BTW, the bruschetta is still good as leftovers 2 days later. Mmmmm....

Also, today is DBF's birthday and I plan on making a good dinner for him. What that will be, I am still not sure, I am waiting for him to tell me what he would like. A few options... roasted chicken, fillet Mignon, lobster.... hmmmm... still thinking.

I am craving sauteed shrimp though, too bad he doesn't like seafood. Maybe I will make some up for lunch this week. I am also craving lasagna, but I wanted to try something new with it. Maybe lasagna rolls, so that portion sized are easy.

Italian Grilled Cheese

I am apparently on an Italian/Mediterranean kick! Or it's just what I have in the house...

Italian Grilled Cheese

Ingredients:
2 Slices Lite Sourdough Bread
Extra Light Tasting Olive Oil (ELTOO)
Fresh Mozzarella Cheese
1 Roma Tomato

Process:
1. Heat a small skillet on med/high heat.
2. Spray one side of each slice of bread with ELTOO
3. Place one slice in pan, oil side down.
4. Cover the bread with thin slices of fresh mozzarella.
5. Cover pan and let the cheese melt.
6. When cheese has started to melt place slices of roma tomato on top of the cheese.
7. Cover and let cook until bread is browned.
8. Place a couple more slices of cheese on top of the tomato.
9. Layer last slice on bread on top of the pile (oil side up).
10. Carefully flip the sandwich.
11. Use a plate or spatula to smoosh the whole thing together tightly. (I find this helps the cheese melt more evenly, and helps the sandwich stick together when done.)
12. Cover the pan and cook for a minutes, until bread is brown.
13. Remove from pan, cut diagonally, SERVE and ENJOY!

Snack by the pool

Continuing with the Mediterranean theme for the day I made up some pita triangles and Baba Ghannouj for a mid afternoon snack, enjoyed while sitting poolside.

I purchased the Baba Ghannouj ready-made from my local grocer. It is Cedar's Roasted Baba Ghannouj.

To make the pita triangles:
1. Slice 2 flats of pita bread into triangles. (I found this easily done using a pizza cutter.)
2. Coat or spray with olive oil on both sides.
3. Lay in a single layer on a baking pan.
4. Cook at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.
5. Flip and cook for another 4 minutes.
6. Don't worry if they still seem oily, just take them out and dump them off the pan onto a paper towel for a few minutes.
7. Serve in a bowl (like chips), with the Baba Ghannouj.

YUMMY!

Gives me the idea of making pita chips. I just need to decide on the best flavors to try, here are a few ideas.
1. Simply Sea Salt
2. Garlic Salt
3. Parmesan
4. BBQ
5. Lemonpepper

Any other ideas out there??

Weekend Bruschetta

I woke up craving something fresh, light and flavorful for lunch. I immediately thought of bruschetta. Here is my interpretation for Weekend Bruschetta. I skipped the traditional garlic because my local grocery didn't have fresh garlic in stock, and that saves me from having garlic breath the rest of the day. Truthfully, for lunch, I didn't miss the garlic; but for dinner or hors d'

oeuvres I would certainly include it by rubbing it on the oiled bread before toasting.

Ingredients:
4 Roma Tomatoes
1 Tbsp Fresh Basil, chopped
1 Tbsp Fresh Oregano, chopped
1 Ball Fresh Mozzarella, chopped into pieces
2-3 Tbsp Balsamic Vinaigrette
Salt
Extra Light Tasting Olive Oil (ELTOO)
6 slices Lite Sourdough Bread

Process:
1. Wash and chop the fresh herbs and put into bowl.
2. Cut and remove the seeds from the tomatoes, then dice and add to bowl.
3. Dice the mozzarella and add to bowl. (I bought a large loaf that is pre-sliced, and used half.)
4. Sprinkle salt over everything (to taste)
5. Sprinkle 2-3 tbsp of Balsamic Vinaigrette over everything.
6. Toss evenly with spoon, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator.
7. Lay slices of bread on a baking sheet and coat generously with ELTOO.
8. Place under broiler, with over door cracked, for approx. 5 min until edges are brown. Keep a close eye on it so as to not over brown.
9. Remove from oven, and move to a platter.
10. Top each slice with a generous amount of the tomato and mozzarella mixture.
11. SERVE and ENJOY!

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