Winger's Sticky Chicken Salad

A while back Steve and I ate at Winger's. Steve ordered the Sticky Chicken Salad. It was good. In true Steve fashion Steve said, "I bet I could make this." He did. Since then it has become a favorite. It's ridiculously easy if you buy the chicken already breaded. However, you can always bread and fry the chicken yourself. I like to skip the mess. This isn't really a recipe as much as a "how to" since we never measure. (Sorry!) Ingredients: Chopped Romaine Lettuce - Craisins - Shredded cheddar cheese- Cherry tomatoes (optional)- 1 bottle of Lousiana Style Hot Sauce (like Frank's Hot Sauce) - Brown Sugar - Breaded Chicken strips - Ranch or Bleu Cheese dressing - In a saucepan combine equal parts hot sauce and brown sugar in order to make the amount of sauce you want. I always add the whole bottle, make the sauce, and then put the leftover sauce back in the hot sauce bottle. Then next time I can even skip this step! Heat it through and let it thicken a little. Toss the sauce over the breaded chicken. We like to assemble the salads individually, since some like more craisins, some don't like tomatoes, etc. So in each bowl, add chopped romaine lettuce, craisins, cheese, tomatoes, and top with chicken strips. Serve with ranch or bleu cheese dressing.

This One's for Mom

Here you go Mom. Serving it with the cole slaw is a southern style bbq sandwich, if its not your thing just leave it off. I used a pork loin roast (from Costco), not a shoulder pork roast. And thank you Paula Deen

BBQ Pork Sandwiches

Ingredients Dry rub: 2 tablespoons salt 2 tablespoons black pepper 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar 2 tablespoons paprika 1/2 tablespoon cayenne 4 pound shoulder pork roast 2 cup apple juice 1 cup apple cider vinegar 2 tablespoons Worcestershire 1/2 tablespoon liquid smoke 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder 6 soft hamburger buns with seeds Bbq sauce Cole slaw

Directions Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Mix the dry rub ingredients in small bowl. Sprinkle dry rub all over the pork roast, pressing into the pork. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Combine liquid ingredients and the garlic powder in a medium bowl and pour into a large Dutch oven. Place pork in the oven and tightly cover with aluminum foil then lid. Roast for 4 hours or until fork tender and shreds easily. Brush the roast with cooking liquid every hour. Remove from oven and let stand until cool enough to handle. Shred the pork with a fork or tongs into bite size pieces. Serve on hamburger buns topped with bbq sauce and cole slaw.

Salad Anyone?

I really don't mean for this to be a recipe blog, but since I spend a great amount of time each day cooking food and cleaning up food, its only natural to blog about it. Right? Plus if you are an Estes you talk about food. And I am not kidding. So, let me talk to you about a salad that Lydia and I came up with. There is a pizza place in town that serves a Greek Salad. We (Lydia and I ) thought it was delicious - we like salads. I thought it was so yummy that I would actually find myself craving the salad dressing. Really. And if you are an Estes (a Steve Estes that is) you think that anything delicious at a restaurant, you can cook it better. And I admit he usually does. So, Lydia and I attemtped to create our verision of a Greek Salad and we think it turned out pretty good. So good, that we fix it a lot and even serve it to company. So here it is: (Please keep in mind that we don't really measure, but for duplicating purposes I will attempt to.) Greek Salad Hearts of Romaine lettuce, chopped (However much you need) Cherry tomatoes (Again, however much you want) 1 peeled and sliced cucumber 1 can black olives 1/2 C Feta cheese thinly sliced purple onion (However much you want) Dressing: 1 C mayo 1/2 C white vinegar 1 T chopped oregano (you can use dried oregano, just reduce the amount to 1 tsp) 2 cloves of garlic minced 1/4 C sugar 1/2 -1 C Feta cheese (amount depending upon how thick you like your dressing) Mix together in a blender and chill until ready to serve. And just in case you might need something to go with the Greek Salad I will try to post a BBQ Chicken Pizza recipe later, if you want. But right now, Ruthie needs me.

Chili Queen

It's good to be Queen even if it is only the "Chili Queen". Tonight was our annual ward Chili Cook-off held at Big Springs Park in Provo Canyon. Chili was tasted and chili was judged. It so happened that I won the "Chili Queen Award" for Best Tasting Chili. So, thank you Cathy for the great recipe - it made me look good tonight.

White Chili

1-2 Tbs. olive oil

2 medium onions, chopped

1 - 4 oz can chopped green chilies

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp. cumin

1 1/2 tsp. oregano

4 chicken breats, cooked and shredded (I like to season the chicken with salt & pepper before I add it)

5 cups chicken broth

3 - 16 oz cans of white beans, undrained

3 cups Monterey Jack Cheese, shredded (I like to use Peppered Monterey Jack Cheese for a little extra kick)

Directions:

Saute onions, green chilies and garlic in olive oil and add spices. Combine beans, broth, and chicken with onion mixture. Stir over medium heat and gradually add the grated jack cheese. Stir until all cheese is melted and combined well with other ingredients. Heat to desired temperature.

P.S . The leaves are starting to change color, the air is getting cooler, and BYU football has begun. You gotta love Fall.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins

I made these for an after school snack. They were yummy. I didn't say they were good for you.

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup milk

1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa, sugar, and chocolate chips into a large bowl. Pour all the liquid ingredients into a measuring jug. Mix the dry and wet ingredients together. Bake for 20 minutes.