Cheryl's Amazing Fried Chicken

A Note About Cooking with Cast Iron: Cast iron cookware has been around for centuries for a good reason; nothing heats more evenly or holds heat longer. People in the south use it a lot! I have cast iron skillets of every size. You can spend a lot of money on enamel covered cast iron cookware Le Creuset, or you can buy good old-fashioned pieces from Lodge at a much lower price (sold at Cracker Barrel as well if you are fortunate to have one close to you!) Both styles work extremely well but the enamel finish is much easier to maintain and clean. Never scrub cast iron. What makes it amazing is the "seasoning" that occurs over repeated use. If you take care of it nothing sticks and cleanup is a breeze! I have a 6" skillet that is only used for frying eggs and making cornbread. I clean it without water or soap by scrubbing with coconut oil and kosher salt and a paper towel.

How To Season Cast Iron:
You season a cast iron pan by rubbing it with a relatively thin coat of neutral food-grade oil (I stress a light coat of oil). Place the lightly-oiled cast iron pan, upside down, in the oven, with a sheet of aluminum foil on the bottom to catch any drips. For future use don't let water sit in it. It rusts. Dry completely. I dry mine on a burner just till water disappears, then lightly spray it with oil, or wipe with paper towel. That way it's ready for use next time.

Cheryl's Amazing Fried Chicken
Yield: about 4-6  servings

INGREDIENTS

Dry Rub
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp dry ground mustard
1 tbsp cayenne pepper (if you like heat - moderate by your own taste)

1 chicken, cut into 10 pieces (organic is good). You can also buy boneless, skinless whole breasts if you like white meat only.

To Fry
3 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup water
All Purpose Flour (for coating chicken pieces)
Salt
Pepper
Peanut oil (for frying at higher temps, peanut oil is superior but you can use canola as well, just don't burn the oil)
2 tbsp cornstarch

METHOD
Make Dry Rub: In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Stir to blend. Place the chicken pieces in a plastic resealable bag and sprinkle with the dry rub. Seal bag and toss to coat each piece evenly.
Refrigerate overnight.
Two hours before cooking, remove chicken from the plastic bag and let sit in the
refrigerator to dry out the skin slightly.
To Fry Chicken: Heat 1/2inch of peanut oil in a cast iron skillet to 360°F. Use a candy or instant read thermometer to monitor the temperature. Temp is important throughout cooking. If oil is not hot enough when you put chicken in, the coating will fall off. If it's too hot the outside will burn before the chicken is done.

Lightly beat the eggs and combine with the buttermilk and water in a shallow dish.
In another shallow dish, combine the flour and cornstarch and season with salt and pepper. Set the two dishes side by side next to the cast iron skillet with the flour mixture closest to the stove.
Dip each piece of chicken into the buttermilk mixture; let excess drip off. Transfer to the flour mixture,
turn to coat and then pat until the excess has fallen off. Gently place in the hot oil and fry until golden brown on all sides; use tongs to turn the chicken. Check the internal temperature of the chicken (insert probe into thickest portion of each piece being careful not to touch any bones), if it has not reached 160°F, lower the heat under the skillet to medium and continue to cook, turning occasionally with tongs until done.
Transfer cooked chicken to a wire rack set over a baking sheet. This helps keeps the chicken crispy.
You can also place the baking sheet in a slow oven to keep chicken warm if you have to hold dinner a bit before serving.

BE CAREFUL! OIL SHOULD NEVER SMOKE. 

TO PUT OUT A GREASE FIRE NEVER USE WATER. 

USE BAKING SODA OR FIRE EXTINGUISHER. 

(I keep a big box of soda right by my stovetop for emergencies.)

I dispose of old oil by cooling completely, pouring carefully into an old coffee can or jar (preferably with a lid - - like a mayo jar, or a coffee can.) and setting in the frig to harden. I only put in trash can the day the trash is being picked up.

1-2-3 SAUSAGE BALLS (appetizer)

A southern classic with just a few ingredients, these sausage cheese balls make a fast breakfast or perfect appetizer. Almost my entire childhood life these were reserved almost exclusively for Christmas. Mom would make them early and store them in a tin.

1 lb. hot sausage
2 c. grated sharp cheddar cheese
3 c. Bisquick

Allow cheese to come to room temperature. Combine all ingredients (easier done by hand). Shape into 1 inch balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. Serve immediately or may be frozen for future use. Makes 40-50 balls.

Sassy Cinnamon Muffins

Preheat oven to 400°

Combine:
1 1/2 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. cinnamon

Combine and add to dry ingredients:
1 beaten egg
1/2 c. oil
1/2 c. milk

Stir just enough to moisten and add nuts if desired.  Spoon into muffin tins to half full.  Bake 20-24 min.

Cheryl's Spicy Homemade Applesauce

We lived in Virginia for 14 years in apple country. In the autumn when there was a cold snap in the air, corn mazes in the fields, wine tasting at all the vineyards, Fall Festivals all over the county, and all the varieties of apples, grown in NW Virginia and just over the border in West Virginia, filled the roadside farmers markets, I'd buy bushel baskets of apples at a time and make homemade applesauce. My very favorite apple to eat is Honey Crisp. You can make this applesauce out of your favorite, but I recommend Honey Crisp, Golden Delicious, and Granny Smith (or a mixture of your choosing).

8 - apples, peeled, cored and cubed (best are granny smith, honey crisp, and golden delicious)

1/2 - cup packed brown sugar

1/2 - cup water

1 - teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker; stir to mix. Cover and cook on low setting for 8-10 hours, or on high setting for 3-4 hours. 

When done stir with a wooden spoon. Gently crush applesauce against the side of the slow cooker to desired consistency. 

I used my immersion blender with the blade attachment until I had the consistency of applesauce. 

Eaten warm with some homemade oatmeal cookies right after it's done is amazing.

 

Dwight and I at on the "Farm Tour" in Virginia riding in a hay wagon.

Bear's Den on the Appalachian Trail (close to our house)

The beautiful scenery in Loudoun County near Middleburg.

Mana's Southern Rice Pudding (my favorite way to eat rice!)

Ever wondered what to do with leftover cooked rice. I'll tell you what to do - make a rich and comforting baked rice pudding, the very essence of "comfort food." I've seen some recipes that are cooked on top of the stove, but mom's was baked in the oven where it develops into a wonderful custard. It's great just like that, but I saw a recipe in a Southern Living Magazine once that added two ingredients at the end and made a crunchy caramel brulee-like top and although I've never tried it, I'm putting it here because I think it would really be the pièces de résistance. Prep time on this is only 5 min. It cooks for 1 hr. 30 min. This recipe serves 4.

Ingredients
4 eggs, beaten
3 cups milk
1 cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups cooked leftover cooked rice ( If you don't have leftover rice cook 1/2 c. uncooked rice with one 1 c. water. Let rice fully cool before using. )
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup raisins

Instructions
Beat eggs. Stir in sugar. Add other ingredients. Stir.
Spray oven proof casserole dish with Pam. Pour mixture into dish.
Set dish in pan of hot water and bake at 300 degrees for 90 minutes.
After 30 minutes of cooking insert spoon at edge of pudding and stir from the bottom to distribute rice and raisins.

Place the baking dish in a larger pan and filled with hot water to within 1” of the top of the baking dish. To make this easier to handle, I place my filled baking dish in the empty larger pan. Then sit it on the oven rack and add the water. Much easier than trying to carry the pan filled with hot water and pudding all together! Bake uncovered for 1 to 1 ½ hours. Stir well after the first 30 minutes of baking, pulling the rice/custard up from the bottom.. Continue baking until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Start checking after the first full hour of cooking and remove immediately when done. Do not overcook. This is good at room temperature or chilled (I prefer it warm.)

Allow the pudding to cool for about 30 minutes.

Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the cooled pudding. Place under the broiler (or use a torch) until the topping is melted and bubbly.
Topping:
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon