I’ve never fried chicken before, as I found it a bit intimidating, but over the long weekend I figured I would give it a shot! This sandwich was inspired by one I saw on Bon Appetit. I used a mixture of arugula and red cabbage for the slaw on my version, and left out the onions and jalapenos. For the actual frying, I used a canola and coconut oil mixture that I recently picked up at Whole Foods. I thought it would be a nice alternative to use, rather than ALL canola oil. Overall, pretty happy with my first fried chicken sandwich! Could get dangerous that I know how to make these now though. My beach bod might be it’s own special shape this summer….aka the shape of a fried chicken. Worth it!

Ingredients: (makes 2 sandwiches)
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, sliced in half crosswise
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
1/2 buttermilk (neat trick, if you don’t have buttermilk you can use 3/4 cup whole milk and 1 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar – let it sit for 5-10 mins and you have yourself buttermilk!)
High heat oil for frying (I used Canola/Coconut oil mix)
2 brioche or hamburger buns
Butter, for toasting buns
1 cup shredded red cabbage
1 cup arugula
1/4 cup bread & butter pickled, chopped into large chunks, as well as some of the juice.
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 teaspoon hot sauce (I used Cholula)

Start by making the slaw. Mix together the cabbage, arugula, and bread & butter pickles and juice. Place in fridge until needed. Next make the spicy mayo by simply mixing the mayo and hot sauce together. Also place in fridge.

In a shallow bowl mix together the flour, salt, pepper, and paprika. Place the buttermilk in separate shallow bowl. Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel.

In a large heavy bottomed pot, heat 1/2 inch of oil to 350 degrees using a deep fry thermometer. Carefully add both pieces of chicken to the oil and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side until golden brown. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to absorb the remaining oil. Or alternatively you can place on a wire rack with a plate underneath.

In the meantime, butter both sides of the bun and toast in a pan for a minute or so.

To assemble, spread some of the spicy mayo on the bottom of the bun and top with the fried chicken, followed by the slaw. Enjoy!

WELL, yesterday I got lion’s mane mushrooms in my CSA bag and had never seen them before. At first I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to eat the mushroom, or throw some googly eyes it and keep it as a pet. But after looking them up, I learned they had the same texture of crab or lobster and decided to try making a “crab” cake with them! It turns out these mushrooms are absolutely delicious. I read on several sites that they are very good for your brain as well. So who knows, maybe after a few of these mushrooms my math skills will finally be further than that of a 5 year old… we’ll see!

Mushroom cakes:
2 cups lion’s mane mushroom, loosely pulled into chunks to resemble lump crab
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons Greek yogurt
1 egg
1/3 cup chopped spring onion
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup bread crumbs
Salt and pepper, to taste
High eat oil (such as vegetable or coconut oil) for frying
2 eggs, for poaching
Fresh spinach

Hollandaise:
2 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted
Salt and pepper, to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the mushrooms in a baking dish with the garlic and a drizzle of olive oil. Bake for 20 minutes, mixing about half way through, until the mushrooms shrink and brown a bit, and the garlic is soft.

In the meantime, in a small bowl mix together the Greek yogurt, egg, lemon, spring onions, paprika, salt and pepper. When the mushrooms and garlic are done cooking, pulse in a food processor about 3-5 times, until you have smaller chunks. Don’t over-pulse though, you still want to have nice chunks of mushroom in there. Add the mushrooms to the bowl with the other ingredients, and add the breadcrumbs. Toss well until full incorporated. Using your hands, make small patties. You should have about 3-4 total. Heat the oil in a large frying pan, and fry the cakes until golden brown – about 3 minutes each side.

Now to make the hollandaise! Add about two cups of water to a pot and bring to a simmer. Melt the butter in the microwave and set aside. In a metal mixing bowl, add the egg yolks and lemon juice, whisking vigorously until it thickens and almost doubles in size. Next, place the metal bowl on top of the pot and turn off the heat. Immediately start whisking very fast, adding small drizzles of the melted butter a little at a time. Don’t stop whisking! Set aside and whisk in a little black pepper, cayenne, and a light squeeze of lemon juice. I like to take a piece of saran wrap and cover the hollandaise (by having the plastic wrap actually touch the sauce) so that a film doesn’t form and stays warm. When you’re ready to use, just remove the plastic wrap and give it a quick whisk.

To poach the eggs, boil some water in a medium sized pot. Add about a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar (helps make them fluffy) swirl the water with a spoon, then gently pour the eggs in one at a time. Cook for about :30-:60 seconds before removing them with a slotted spoon. I usually lift them slightly out of the pot and gently poke the centers until it feels a little firm but runny in the center.

Lastly, sauté the spinach quickly for about 1 minute until wilted.

To assemble, plate one of the mushroom cakes, then top with some sautéed spinach and a poached egg. Pour over some hollandaise and a crack of fresh pepper!

The BLT has always been one of my favorite sandwiches. It has everything you need… bacon, lettuce, tomato, and bread! AKA the secret ingredients to living a happy life. This week I got a HUGE tomato in my CSA as well as some beautiful frisée. All I needed to do was buy the “B” for the most epic BLT sandwich to ever grace my kitchen. I decided to get a little crazy and jazz it up even more by adding some spicy Sriracha mayo, smashed avocado, and a fried egg on top. BECAUSE WHY NOT, RIGHT?!

Ingredients:
4 pieces bacon
Handful frisée
2 tomato slices, 1/4 inch thick
1/2 small ripe avocado
Lemon juice
Olive Oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon Sriracha
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 egg
2 pieces bread (I used whole wheat)

Start by cooking the bacon until crisp, then set aside. Next, smash the avocado with some olive oil, a light squeeze of lemon, and salt and pepper to taste. In a small bowl mix together the mayo and sriracha and also set that aside. Wipe out most of the grease from the bacon pan, then fry your egg until over easy or medium – depending on how runny you like it! Lastly, toast the bread.

To assemble, spread the smashed avocado on one side of the bread, then top with some tomato slices, bacon, frisée, and lastly the fried egg. Spread the spicy mayo on the other slice of bread and top. Slice in half and inhale entire sandwich as fast as possible!