Carolina Style BBQ Pulled Chicken

Oh, hi.
Remember me?
Ya... I have a blog.

You may remember me from the past few posts about my daily juicing "habit," buttttt, well.... I caught a cold and now the last thing that I want to drink is juice, so we are going to take a short break from that whole idea. I'm certainly not the best at committing to these grande plans that I come up with, but I am really good at my marriage and that is a huge commitment, so that's gotta give me some points, right? It kind of evens out? Look, I juiced some really good juices... and now I am ready to move on. Maybe I will come back to it, maybe I won't. I am on the no plan juice plan and were gonna play that plan by ear.

On a more positive, solid food note.... I catered a party a couple of weekends ago and pretended that I was a southern belle again. You know, the whole she-bang. Biscuits, pimento cheese, slaw, mac n cheese.... I did it up real southern and real delicious.

I really just love southern food. SO much. It's comforting, it's satisfying, and it's gosh darn delicious. (Ya, I said "gosh darn." It was cute, right?) You should give it a try... Southern food that is. It will make you happy and it will make you full which are the very best things to be.

a little southern birthday catering by yours truly. 

Ingredients:
5 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs (they don't have to be boneless and skinless, but it makes everything easier because you don't have to pick out the skin and bones. That all sounds very barbaric, but it is true.)
2 onions, quartered
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons liquid smoke
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Special equipment:
Slow cooker

carolina style BBQ pulled chicken

Method:
Place onions in slow cooker.
Blend brown sugar, paprika, salt and pepper; rub over chicken things.
Place chicken in a slow cooker and drizzle the liquid smoke over it. If you haven't used liquid smoke before, you are in for a treat. It is awesome.
Combine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and garlic, stir to mix well and then pour into slow cooker.
Cook the chicken on low for about 8 hours until it is falling apart and your house smells like heaven.
Remove meat and onions, discard onions and shred meat. Add juices from slow cooker to the shredded chicken so that it is super moist. I know that word is gross to many of you, but it is the only appropriate word. I am sorry.
Now, here's the really great thing... this chicken is freaking delicious by itself, or you can pile it on a bun, top it with some slaw, and eat it as the most delicious pulled chicken sandwich ever.

Enjoy!

Fried Chicken Southern Feast

I talk about a lot of things that I love on this blog. It's safe to say that I'm a pretty lovey- dovey person. (You should see me after a glass of wine...) But there are few things that give me butterflies more than a dinner party. (Except Rich, a glass of wine... or even better, Rich handing me a glass of wine). As I've gotten older, I've even found ways to tie all of the things that I love into a dinner party.  And with Michael's sister, Elizabeth, in town, it was the perfect time to tie all the people I love into a meal that was, if I must say so, to die for. And, if you've read my blog, you know that if I'm cooking dinner, people are gonna get fed... a lot.

Since Elizabeth is from North Carolina (she goes to college in Boone, the same little town Rich grew up in), and since I am trying to look as unattractive as possible before heading to our Palm Springs vacation, I decided that it was the perfect night for some fried chicken! I mean, when is it not the perfect time for fried chicken? Now, since I don't break out the deep frier very often (I care about my health and I would like my husband to still have three or four abs), when I do bust it out, IT'S ON! Like Donkey Kong. Which is about how big I felt after eating my way through this epic dinner. Who wants to go bikini shopping!?

Dinner Menu:

Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Biscuits with Pimento Cheese

Fried Pickles

Marinated Heirloom Tomatoes

Cheddar Grits

Homemade Fresh Mint Ice Cream

Ingredients

3 pounds or so of chicken pieces. I used thighs and drumsticks. (If you buy happy, humanely raised, free range chickens, I will think you are a better person and so will the universe. Thanks.)

1 quart buttermilk 

4 cups unbleached flour
1 tbsp baking soda

3 tbsp garlic powder

2 tbsp onion powder

1 tbsp hungarian paprika

2 tsp black pepper

3 tsp kosher salt

Canola oil for frying (Or peanut, or another high heat oil)

Special Equipment:

Deep Fryer or heavy dutch oven pan (think Cast Iron Le Crueset.) We have the Breville deep fryer from Williams Sonoma and I love it.... I just wish it was 4 times bigger!

Method:

Place chicken pieces in a large bowl and pour the buttermilk over them. Let marinate for as long as possible. I marinated for about 12 hours, but overnight would be ideal!

Set deep fryer to 320 degrees. If you are using a dutch oven, use a thermometer to regulate temperature. Mix flour and spices together in a large bowl. Remove chicken from buttermilk and coat with flour mixture. Fry chicken for about 12 minutes until golden brown, crispy, and 160 degrees in the center. I am OCD and temperature check every piece of chicken! Transfer to a drying rack to drip and then keep warm in the oven until ready to serve.

 

cheddar grits.

i spy....

 

and then Tuna joined us for dinner. 

*Note: We don't usually let Lucy (Tuna) sit at the head of the table,

but she hurt her paw so we wanted to make her feel better

Pickles & Things

The Mr. and I recently joined a CSA. CSA stands for community supported agriculture.... And that is awesome. Once a week we wake up to a box on our doorstep filled with organic fruits and veggies of all kinds. Its pretty wonderful and forces us to learn how to cook using obscure new ingredients. plus, it's pretty much like getting mail in the morning...and we all know how much I love getting mail. Anywho, you will hear more about this in some upcoming posts (stay tuned) but for now we need to discuss something.

Food waste.

Look, I'm not proud, but sometimes this produce picker gets a little ahead of herself at the market and we end up with enough fruits and veggies to feed a family of six..... for a week. And then it happens. That awful day once a week where I clean out of refrigerator and find all of the things that are now past their "best by" date and moving into the trash can. So this week, with our first CSA delivery looking for room in the fridge, I decided it was a good idea to jump on that good old pickling bandwagon once again.

Now, I don't necessarily pickle the good old fashioned way. I am more a fan of refrigerator pickles.... You know, the kind that give you almost immediate satisfaction. No canning equipment, no waiting, no bullshit. And the best thing about pickling this was is that it is pretty much fool proof. You need some vinegar, some spices, some things to pickle (in my case.... all of the veggies that are about to expire) and voila. Pickles.

Basic ingredients:
1 cup of vinegar (white or cider work great, sometimes I do a combo of two..... usually I just use white)
1 cup of water
1 tablespoon of salt

And whatever of the following tickles your fancy:
Garlic
Sliced jalapeño
Sliced onions
Dill (mmmm dill.....lots and lots,  please)
Spices and herbs (mustard seeds, dill seed, coriander seed, fennel seed, peppercorns..... Go crazy!)


Method:
Slice, dice, and chop your veggies that you want to pickle to your hearts desire and arrange them in a glass mason jar with a few cloves of garlic, about 1/4 of an onion (sliced) and some sprigs of fresh dill. Have some respect for yourself and make it look nice!

In a saucepan combine the vinegar, water, salt, and spices. I usually do 1 tablespoon of yellow mustard seeds, 1 teaspoon dill seeds, 1 teaspoon celery seeds, and 1 teaspoon of coriander seeds. Bring the mixture to a boil and then remove it from the heat and pour it into the glass jar with your veggies. Cover the jar with the lid, let it cool, and put it in the fridge. That's it! Now, because these are refrigerator pickles, they must stay refrigerated! Unless you get into all of that fancy canning stuff, you cannot store these pickles at room temperature. They will, however, keep perfectly in your fridge for 2 weeks..... If they last that long!

Eating Out: The Hart & The Hunter.

I am not very good at remembering to write about my restaurant conquests. To be quite honest, the Mr. and I dine out so often and enjoy so many amazing meals that it's pretty rare that I feel the urge to come home and share the details of our evening. However, on occasion, my mind is blown.

We ate at The Hart & The Hunter last night. A wonderful recommendation from our friend Whitney. (she has an awesome blog: Brunellos Have More Fun.) It is a small restaurant inside the Palihotel on Melrose and it is what my dreams are made of. Amazing southern food that is foodie in the really good way because I HATE the word foodie.  It is no secret that I wake up in the morning craving southern cuisine. I am obsessed with it.... so when I walk into a restaurant (flawlessly decorated, might I add) and the menu consists of biscuits, collards, grits, and fried chicken livers (to name a FEW) you know I am on board.

Let's start at the beginning.... which for me is ALWAYS with a glass of wine. I ordered a glass of their 2011 Westward Expansion Pinot Noir from Potter Valley. It was to die for. Made by Hobo wines (I also had a glass of their cabernet which was wonderful) this is seriously one of my favorite pinots that I have ever had. Yes, I said it.... EVER. It was full bodied, not too sweet and just delicious. I am actually sitting here begging Rich to order a case for me as I type (I am so good at multi-tasking.)

For dinner we ordered four plates. First off, all of the food comes out on mismatched china plates that you would find in your grandmothers garage-- AMAZING. Our server told us that everything on the menu was "small plate" portions, but "small plates" is in quotations because that statement just isn't so. The portions were fairly large and perfect for sharing. I would suggest ordering and sharing, but 3 things per person, as suggested, is a TON of food.

So, we started with the brussels sprouts and peanut salad with aged cheddar and a bacon sherry vinaigrette. It was pretty perfect on all counts, like the best pile of leafy greens that I have put in my mouth in a real long time.... so so satisfying that I honestly could have stopped there and still left a very happy girl. But no.

Next, our server (who was also pretty spectacular) brought out the smoked trout, boiled egg, and pickled onion avocado toast (see top photo.) This too was absolutely wonderful.... and I don't even really like fish. The presentation was also perfect with the majority of dishes we ordered coming out in cast iron and on very cool wooden platters. Next we had the melted raclette, butterball potatoes, corichons, ham, and mustard. This was a mini cast iron skillet of melty, cheesy perfection. I, of course, had to order a side of the cheddar and chive grits and ohhhh were they fantastic. SO cheesy and so yummy. We may have ordered a side of bread to dip in the because they were pretty much like a fondue. I'm not embarrassed- you should try it.

For dessert we had the coffee ice cream sandwich topped with hot fudge and it did not disappoint. It also paired perfectly with the amazing port that we had. Remember how I mentioned how awesome our server was? Well, after dinner he brought us out a taste of Heitz Cellars Port. Yup- just my absolutely favorite port ever from Napa. Needless to say, we tipped him accordingly.

From the service, to the food, to the decor, to the wine list.... I seriously cannot say one bad thing about The Hart & The Hunter. It was truly one of my favorite places we have eaten in Los Angeles.

Go asap and invite me, please.

Napa, I love you.... and BBQ sauce, too.

I know, I know. It's been a while.
I will start with excuses...again.

The Mr. and I just got back from yet another lovely trip to Napa. We had a wonderful weekend filled with friends, wine, amazing food, and me lusting over farmhouses and the dream of owning a horse and chickens. I love Napa.

Cue photos.....

We stayed in an amazing B&B in downtown Napa (courtesy of my wonderful parents) called The Inn on First. The food was wonderful. Really, really wonderful. Not to mention it was as charming as one would ever hope an early 1900's mansion turned romantic inn could be. The owners were so kind and helpful and made our stay seriously flawless. If my farm fantasy doesn't pan out, I will just live there. 

We were also joined by our wonderful friends, Caroline and Ben, from D.C. which was the absolute most fun! And what's my favorite rule in Napa? The more people in your group.... the more wine tastings you must squeeze into each day. That's a rule right?

We stopped at many of our favorite wineries including Stags' Leap, Cliff Lede, Opus One, Heitz Cellars, Marimar Estate, Etude, and Saintsbury (to name a FEW.) We also were introduced to a new favorite......

Scribe Winery.

All in all, as usual, Napa was dreamy. And also as usual.... I probably gained 67 pounds. 

Let's get to the good stuff....

Quack and Cheese from Carpe Diem in Downtown Napa. 

Creamy mac & cheese (a personal fave.) But oh no, it didn't stop there. Top it with caramelized onions and duck confit and you have a dish that will haunt your tastebuds for weeks. So delicious. 

We also ate at Bounty Hunter, which I have to say is one of my new faves in Napa. Please, any restaurant that serves rare wines with a heaping side of pulled pork, ribs, and coleslaw has my vote. Seriously worth the wait (they don't take reservations) and the shame of walking back to your B&B with your jeans unbuttoned. Don't judge. While I loved the BBQ there, my snobby southern hubby turns up his nose to almost all BBQ that doesn't come from a hole in the wall joint off of the interstate in the middle of nowhere. This was no different. In his opinion, the sauce was not up to par.... so, I will leave you with two absolutely to die for barbecue sauce recipes from my sweetie.

South Carolina Mustard Barbecue Sauce

Ingredients:

2 cups yellow mustard
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon tabasco sauce

3/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons chicken bouillon

2/3 cup cider vinegar
2 teaspoons dried rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon celery seed
3 teaspoons mustard powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

Method:

Combine ingredients in a medium saucepan and simmer over low/medium heat. 

Tennessee Whiskey Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients:
2 cups Jack Daniel's Black Label or Bourbon
1 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons malt vinegar
4 tablespoons dark molasses
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)

Method:
Combine ingredients in a sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and reduce by 1/3.

Slather onto some smoked ribs and eat your heart out. 

Collard Greens to Make a Southern Boy Happy

I was never the child stuck at the dinner table with my elbows on the table and tears running down my cheeks in protest of the leafy greens left on my plate. I love my veggies. Always have. Always will. However, I love them a little bit extra when they are braised with smoked meats and garlic.

It is no secret that I have a small obsession with southern food. If you haven't picked up on this small little detail yet....well, then- SURPRISE..... learn how to read. I just love it. I sometimes think that I may have married my husband for the regular trips to North Carolina that somewhat revolve around which pulled pork sandwich I will stuff in my mouth next. And if any of you have tasted his smoked tri-tip (get your mind out of the gutter, I am not talking about man-meat here).... well, you know where the inspiration for my vows may have come from.

On our last trip to NC over Christmas I became a champ at absolutely devouring collard greens. Ok, ok..... so they aren't deep fried or cooked in their own fat for hours on end.... or even smothered in a tangy BBQ sauce, but holy hell- I am obsessed with this tender smokey dish. And.... wait for it..... it is actually packed with nutrients and health benefits. Ya, I said it.... collard greens are good for you! So give yourself 2 hours or so and get cooking- these are sure to win you some new friends or make your old ones actually like you more.... and these are southern hubby approved!

southern collard greens.

Ingredients:
2 pounds collard greens
2 meaty, smoked ham hocks
1 1/2 cups white wine
4 cups chicken broth
3 TBSP apple cider vinegar
1 tsp red pepper flakes
4 cloves garlic
2 cups chopped yellow onion
Coarse sea salt
Fresh cracked black pepper

Method:
In a large pot, add ham hocks, onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, and white wine. Bring to a boil and reduce for about 5 minutes. Add collard greens, vinegar, and chicken broth and bring back to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to low heat and simmer for about 2 hours until greens are very tender and ham hocks are starting to pull apart. Season with salt and pepper and try not to eat the whole pot.

Now... since I have lots of new family that are probably pro at making collard greens.... this was my first time, and while these turned out ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS- I am more than open to suggestions and tips on how you make yours :)