Fried Chicken Sandwiches with The Southerner's Cookbook

I purchased this cookbook back at the start of the summer, and when it finally arrived at my door, I waited no small time before turning to one recipe - Fried Chicken: Classic.  This deeply southern feat of poultry genius was the reason I was now holding this canvas-bound collection in my hands.  I wanted fried chicken - truly southern, truly good, fried chicken.  

It is with great regret that I admit that I have not found a single piece of truly good fried chicken in my vicinity.  This lack of crispy goodness was the driving force behind my quest for a solid recipe. 

So, one Saturday evening, in early summer, my fiancé and I set out to attempt the hallowed dish. Our expectations were high, our mess large, and our stomaches empty. 

In the end, all of our greatest, fondest, most fantastic fried chicken dreams were surpassed.  This recipe, more so than any I have ever tried before, delivers the fried chicken we all secretly dream of. 

Just as with nearly all great poultry recipes, this one begins with a brine. 

A brine is a highly salted water mixture that keeps poultry extra juicy and very tender.  It's the key to really flavorful fried chicken. 

After the chicken has sat in the brine for several hours, it is time to consider the coating. 

Now, if we were going to be eating this chicken on its own, I would definitely be using skin-on, bone-in pieces.  However, after preparing this recipe several times, I found that it is incredibly well-suited to sandwiches when made with boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  

And while it might seem sacrilegious to some to make fried chicken skinless, I can assure you that it is truly awe-inspiring, with or without skin. 

The brined chicken is soaked in hot sauce-spiked buttermilk before it is coated in the flour mixture.  Season your flour liberally, and then season it more.  This is the key to great fried chicken.  Get in there with that pepper grinder. 

After the chicken has fried (which I have no pictures of because I'm kind of attached to my hands and my camera lens), it is allowed to cool for a few minutes while we toast up some buns and make a quick honey mustard.  Oh, and you should probably slice a couple of tomatoes too. 

My mouth is watering.  I no longer remember what I was going to write here.  Something about how the honey mustard seeps into the crispy coating...ohmygoodness I just want to eat it! 

If you are a fan of the chicken sandwiches from a certain fast food chain, you might know how good pickles are with fried chicken.  

But, they do not have the very best, homemade, bread and butter pickles.  Thankfully, we do. I'll be sharing that recipe with you soon! 

So far, we have a toasty bun, perfectly crisp fried chicken, honey mustard, sweet pickles, fresh tomatoes... What's next?

Maybe some lettuce, to pretend like we are healthy or something.  Oh!  And sweet tea!

We are being southerners tonight, remember? 

My farewell to summer. 

Sincerely, 

Pedantic Foodie

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The Very Best Fried Chicken Sandwiches

makes 6 / recipe adapted from The Southerner's Cookbook

for the fried chicken

(brine)

- 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 

- 1 gallon water 

- 3/4 cup kosher salt 

(dip)

- 3 cups buttermilk  

- 1/2-1 tablespoon hot sauce (depending on your spice preference) 

(dredge) 

- 3 cups all-purpose flour 

- 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt 

- 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper

- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 

(frying)

- about 6 cups peanut oil

- frying thermometer 

Begin by making the brine.  Bring four cups of the water to a boil in a medium saucepan.  Stir in the salt until dissolved, then remove from heat.  Transfer to a large bowl and combine with the remaining cool water.  Refrigerate until thoroughly cooled.  

Add chicken breasts to the cooled brine and cover with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for four hours or overnight. 

Prepare a drying station by lining a sheet pan with several layers of paper towels and top with a cooling rack.

Prepare the dredge by combining flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne in a medium bowl or pie plate.

Cook’s Note: I like to season and mix the dredge in a pie plate because it is nice and wide for coating later on. 

Fill a large dutch oven with 1-inch of peanut oil.  Attach a frying thermometer to the side of the pot and place over medium-high heat; bring the oil to 350 degrees F.  While the oil is heating, prepare the chicken.  

Using tongs, dip each chicken breast into the prepared buttermilk dip, being sure to coat each piece thoroughly.  Then, transfer to the dredge and coat both sides, shaking off any excess flour. 

Carefully drop the chicken into the oil.  Depending on the size of your dutch oven, you should only fry about three pieces at a time.  The temperature of the oil will begin to decrease the moment you add the chicken, so turn up the heat as needed.  You want to maintain a temperature of roughly 325 degrees F.  Cook for 4-5 minutes on each side, until the chicken is deep golden and the internal temperature of the chicken is 165 degrees.  An instant-read thermometer is very helpful for this.

Place the chicken on the prepared cooling station while you prepare the sandwiches. 

sandwich assembly

- 1/4 cup honey

- 1 1/2 tablespoons yellow mustard 

- 6 fresh sandwich buns 

- 6 tablespoons butter, softened 

- bread and butter pickles 

- 1 tomato, sliced into 1/4-inch thick slices 

- butter lettuce

In a small bowl, combine honey and mustard.  

Place a nonstick frying pan over medium heat.  Butter each half of the sandwich buns and toast, cut-side down, for about three minutes, until the buns are warm and lightly toasted. 

Spread the upper half of the bun liberally with honey mustard and top with tomato slices and lettuce.  Place the fried chicken on the bottom half of the bun and top with sweet pickles.

Serve the sandwiches immediately, preferably with some equally southern sweet iced tea. Enjoy! 

Truffle & Brie Macaroni and Cheese with Lobster Tail

I know I am an incurably fickle lady, and that my stance on this subject will likely change a million times over, but right now, at this moment, if I had but one meal left to eat on this earth, it would be this gloriously-creamy macaroni and cheese.  With a side of seared scallops, of course. 

Several weeks ago I had the best sandwich of my life.  Carbs covered in cheese and stuffed inside more carbs.  We were star-crossed from the start. 

Though the idea of a pasta sandwich immediately enthralled me, there were so many ways to go wrong.  But that sandwich, that life-changing sandwich danced around every possible error and glided past the finish line of perfection.  If it is possible to fall in love with two slices of bread, that definitely happened to me. 

You may remember the time where my sweetheart and I set out to discover the very best macaroni and cheese, and I still LOVE the recipe that we declared to be our favorite.  However, when I tried that macaroni and cheese, at a tiny little bistro, I suddenly realized that our macaroni and cheese needed the "something extra" that was taking their version past wonderful and into the realm of culinary perfection. 

The secret was and is truffle oil.  

And...now I am obsessed. 

If you see me snapchatting truffle oil-enchanced cereal please call for help.  

I know I am getting so many eye rolls for this, and I know a huge percentage of chefs would throw that little bottle right into the trash.  But darn it, I love what truffle oil can bring to the table when it is used reservedly. 

That counts double when you are using it with cheese.  Truffle oil almost has the flavor of a very strong rind from an aged cheese.  It's earthy, potent, and slightly musty - but not in a grandmother's basement kind of way.  It just lifts the already wonderful flavors of your cheeses to the next level. 

The base of this recipe is identical to my original macaroni and cheese, except that this is the stovetop version, which translates to super creamy. 

Oh, how do I love brie?  Let me count the wheys.  HA!  Haha!  

My dad is laughing right now.  We might be the only ones, but that's okay. 

Like all things that are smooth and creamy, this cheese sauce begins with a roux.  

You remember how to make a roux, right?  Butter is melted, flour is whisked in, and then they cuddle together in the hot pan for a bit, until the raw flour flavor has cooked off.  Whole milk is slowly whisked in and then seasoned with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.  After the sauce has thickened, the shredded gruyere and cubed brie are stirred in.  

Because this macaroni and cheese did not already seem indulgent enough, I added lobster tails.  

I steamed my lobster tails, and then soaked them in a mixture of rich, French butter, and reduced Sauvignon Blanc. 

The lobster turned into buttery, wine-soaked pillows.

Oh if you only knew the torture of knowing how wonderful this dish is, and having to stare at these pictures, but not being able to eat it.

I used a large, ridged macaroni for this dish and I preferred it so much over the standard elbow variety for soaking up this glorious cheese sauce. 

Dear Santa, I'd like a hot tub full of this macaroni and cheese, please.  

Ahhhh, I died. 

I used two, good sized lobster tails for this recipe, and it was enough.  Of course, is there ever really enough lobster?  Um, no.  

Next time, I might opt for four tails.  Why not?

Did anything ever look more sumptuous?

I am already planning to make this for our first wedding anniversary.  What's better than celebrating one love affair with another?

Not a single thing.

I should probably just stop blogging now, there's no way it will get better than this.

Sincerely, 

Pedantic Foodie

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Truffle & Brie Macaroni and Cheese with Lobster Tail

serves 8

for the lobster

- 10 ounces lobster tail meat (2 medium-sized tails)

- 1/4 cup Sauvignon Blanc 

- 2 tablespoons salted european butter 

Prepare your lobster by cutting through the top part of its shell (the smooth, curved side) with a sturdy pair of kitchen shears.  Cut a slit down the center, starting at the top of the tail, and stopping when you get to the fanned part of the tail. 

Fill a sauté pan with about 1/4-inch water.  In my pan, that was three cups of water.  

Place the pan over medium-heat heat and bring to a simmer.  Add lobster tails and reduce heat to medium.  Cook, covered, for 8 minutes. 

Remove the tails from the water and allow to cool before removing the shells.

Cut the meat into 1/4-inch cubes.  

In a small frying pan, slightly reduce 1/4 cup of Sauvignon Blanc over medium-high heat.  After about 3-4 minutes of heavy simmering, reduce the heat to low and stir in butter.  Once the butter has melted, remove the pan from the heat and toss the chopped lobster in the sauce.  

for the macaroni & cheese

- 1 pound dry macaroni 

- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

- 1 teaspoon fine salt 

- 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

- freshly ground black pepper 

- 3 cups whole milk 

- 8 ounces double or triple cream brie, cut into cubes and rind removed 

- 1 1/2 cups gruyere, grated 

- 1/2 teaspoon quality black truffle oil

Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil and cook your macaroni for about 10 minutes, until it is just al dente.  While the pasta is cooking, prepare the cheese sauce.  

Heat whole milk until warm.  

In a large sauté pan, melt butter over medium-high heat.  Sprinkle in flour whisk to form a roux.  Cook, whisking constantly for 2-3 minutes.  When the roux has become slightly golden, add salt, pepper, and nutmeg.  While continuing to whisk constantly, slowly stream in warmed milk.  

Bring the sauce to a simmer and reduce heat to medium.  Cook for 5-7 minutes, until thickened.  Remove from heat and stir in brie and grated gruyere.  When all the cheese has melted, taste the sauce and adjust salt and pepper, if necessary.  Stir in truffle oil. 

Add your strained, cooked macaroni to the cheese sauce and stir to coat the pasta in the sauce.  Toss in the lobster, along with its cooking liquid and serve immediately.  Enjoy! 

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Grilled Garlic Pizza with Flank Steak and Bursts Cherry Tomatoes [ Me + Cost Plus World Market ]

Grilling fever took hold in the beginning on April and I knew exactly what I wanted to make - pizza. 

Pizza is such a fantastic Summer food because you can pile on whatever fresh vegetables and cheese you have on hand.  And, if you are doing it on the grill it only takes a couple minutes, so it's totally doable on a weeknight.  If you are in a huge hurry you can even buy pre-made pizza crust to speed up the process.  It's almost Summer, so shortcuts are okay here and there.

I have learned that the trick to great pizza at home is the pizza stone. I especially liked World Market's model because it comes with a very handy stand for serving. No more burnt fingers.

Who am I kidding? I'll still find a way to burn myself.

I love throwing a bunch of bright greens atop my pizzas, especially in the summertime. You can find the full recipe for the pizza, along with more pictures on World Market's blog!

I hope you're grilling all the corn and drinking all the pretty drinks this Memorial Day!  

Sincerely, 

Pedantic Foodie

This post was sponsored by Cost Plus World Market. Sponsorships not only bring exciting opportunities to work with brands I genuinely love, they help me keep this site going! But as always, all opinions are my own.