Comfort Food - Fried Chicken and Mashed Potatoes

It's the weekend and with more snow in the forecast and a cold snap on the way next week, we could all use a little comfort.  Frankly, potatoes are calorie heavy as a rule, but you can make the mashed variety healthier and at least not pour on the fat.  (Read, no gravy.)  Fried chicken is pretty bad for you, no matter what.  But if you don't really fry it, use chicken breasts instead of dark meat and keep the breading lighter, you have a fighting chance.

This recipe is from Eating Better America and is called "Healthified Mashed Potatoes".  It's called such because it cuts out the butter and adds heart healthy olive oil in its place, which I had never tried before. Then they keep it simple with salt and pepper and fresh chives.  Nice job!

As for the "Fried Chicken", I LOVE the folks at "America's Test Kitchen"!  They try all the techniques, so you don't have to.  In fact, if you ever want a no-fail recipe, go here.  There is a membership fee, but if you are a serious cook or just starting to learn, this site is unbelievable.

As for a recipe, I will let you choose what fits your fancy.  However, these are the tips from America's Test Kitchen for getting it to come out as closed to tasting 'fried' as possible:

Oven-Fried Chicken

Crunchy-coated, tender, juicy fried chicken is utterly irresistible, but it can be a real pain to prepare. There’s the multi-step breading to contend with, and then there’s all that hot, spattering oil. We wanted to mimic the best of fried chicken with a minimum of fuss, and bake it, not fry it. Here’s what we discovered:

Test Kitchen Discoveries

• Marinate the chicken in highly seasoned buttermilk flavored with mustard, garlic powder, black pepper, and hot pepper sauce. Soak the chicken for at least one hour, or even better, overnight, so that the flavors have a chance to penetrate deep into the meat.
• Use a blend of corn flakes and breadcrumbs for the crispest coating. Seasoned heavily with spices and lightly coated with oil, the coating bakes up as crisp as a deep-fried crust.
• Bake the chicken in a hot (400-degree) oven on a wire rack set on a baking sheet. The rack allows hot air to circulate beneath the chicken so that all sides of the pieces become crisp.
• Traditional homemade fried chicken has 552 calories, 34 grams of fat, and 10 grams of saturated fat per serving. Cook’s Country Oven-Fried Chicken has 216 calories, 9 grams of fat, and 4 grams of saturated fat per serving.

Nice calorie savings, huh?  We have tried this at home, very tasty and crispy.  And that's coming from a girl that used to love the Colonel's extra crispy!

Yours in Health,
Kate

Comfort Food

It turned off sunny today, which is awesome.  In fact, the weather looks pretty good, right up until the weekend when it's going to get ugly cold.  Perfect, time for comfort food.

I know what you are thinking - comfort = unthinkable amount of calories.  True, though there are healthier ways to get that warmth in your stomach and smile on your face.  I dug around for a recipe that was healthier and still takes you to a 'happy place' for the ultimate comfort food - macaroni and cheese.

Honestly, mac n' cheese is a calorie bomb, but it can be better.  This recipe from a cooking blog, Gina's Skinny Recipes, that I had never been to before, does just that.  I plan to look deeper, I have a feeling I found a new favorite site.

So, enjoy your comfort cold when it gets below zero again this weekend.  And remember a side of broccoli or a big salad make great fillers.

Yours in Health,
Kate

Soup's On

It's cold.  It's Iowa in January, but still, we're going for a low of 1-below tonight and a wind chill around 10-below, awesome.  That has led my household to seek the warm solace of a great bowl of soup.

Lori, the roomie, is really into this book by Anna Thomas called "Love Soup".  I love soup too, so Anna and I would get along famously!  The greatest thing about soup is that it's one of the easiest dishes to make your own.  Admittedly if you skip something here or tweak something there, you won't get the chef's exact intentions in your pot, but who cares if you like it.

Earlier this week we had Cauliflower Bisque, the link to this recipe mentions "Buttered Breadcrumbs", I didn't get those, but then again, Lori is trying to support my healthier habits.  It really was tasty and surprisingly mild, cauliflower can sometimes have more bite than you would like.  One tip:  we made it with cream cheese, when we do it next time it's going to be goat cheese.  (And then it will be perfect.)

So, I challenge you to go out find a soup that suits you.  There are so many wonderful low-fat or low-calorie soups to be had.  From chili to chowder and everything in between, you can keep warm and be satisfied this winter.  The bonus:  Most recipes make a ton, so you have lunch or dinner for most of the week.

Yours in Health,
Kate

Friday Fun Food

Eating healthy can seem very stodgy and tasteless, but it doesn't have to be at all.  Today is Friday (thank goodness) and it's time to embrace the weekend and have some fun.  One little problem, 'fun food' makes people think, 'naughty'.  Well, it can be.  If I had a dollar for every time I gave into the idea that the weekend meant 'full fat' I would have a lot of dollars. However, since no one ever actually pays for these types of things, I have the pounds as proof.  

I have been craving a burger big time and we know how calorie laden those can be.  So, I went to the Iowa Turkey Federation site and pulled up the part of their cookbook that covers sandwiches, including eight ways to do burgers.  YUM!

Greek Burger

I was just reading that you can save an average of 100 calories per meal by replacing other meats with turkey!  If you eat meat at most meals, add that up.  Even substituting in just one meal a day, you could lose almost a pound in a month without changing your eating habits in any other way.  Wow.

I am a big turkey fan because when the breast is ground it's just as flexible as beef.  We've had it all - burgers, meatballs, sloppy toms - it all seems naughty, but make it with turkey and it gets better for you.

Enjoy your food and the weekend - you deserve it!

Yours in Health,
Kate

The Holidays Have Begun - Low Fat Oyster Stew

I know... you don't want to hear that.

You didn't want to hear it when Younkers put up their display in August or when the Christmas commercials started the morning after Halloween or possibly even two weeks from now.  But, it is inevitable, so why not be prepared.

That's why I will be posting recipes on a regular basis between now and the end of the year.  I plan to search out healthier versions of my favorites.  Today is oyster stew or in this recipe, bisque.  I beg my mother to make it every year for Christmas eve.  No one else in the family likes it.  But my mommy loves me and most years I get a small batch.  However, her recipe is all butter and cream - y-uh-ummmm!

Knowing that we should be a little better than that, I went digging at Cooking Light magazine and found this version.  Substantially less fat and it looks pretty good too.  In fact, it sounds good now, fall weather makes me constantly want soup.


Your in Health,
Kate