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This Football Season, It'll Be Harder to Score Chicken Wings

YumSugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:50:34 -0800

St. Louis Rams fans: if you think a winning touchdown has been impossible this season, just wait until you try to score some buffalo chicken wings.

Wing demand is on the rise, but due to this year's waning need for chicken breast, poultry producers have cut chicken production for the first time in 36 years. Broiler chicken production is forecast to be down 3.5 percent this year - and, with only two wings per chicken, wholesale wing costs are poised to increase dramatically.

So, much like Super Bowl Sunday last year, on game day other spicy chicken dishes will just have to fly. Since what I really want to eat is buffalo chicken cheese dip, that's fine with me. Will you miss this year's wings? Or are you willing to pay a higher price for them?

Come Party With Me: Vampire Party - Menu

partysugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 07:50:29 -0700

Halloween happens to fall on a Saturday this year which makes it an ideal night for hosting a party. But don't just throw any party, select a theme, like vampires, and use this to inspire a ghoulish bash.

Start by sending our free vampire invitations specially designed for the online invitation service, Pingg. All you have to do is fill them out and send - how easy is that?

Once you've notified your friends, you can focus on more important things, like the menu. Select an assortment of finger-licking good foods that evoke the vampire culture.

Tomato soup filled test tubes resemble the addictive vampire blood popular in the HBO series, True Blood. Stefan Salvatore, the kind bloodsucker on the CW's Vampire Diaries who loves garlic, would devour a platter of garlic and cheese crostini. Guests will feel like Buffy the Vampire Slayer when they stake steak bites with skewers and dunk them into a bloody Mary dipping sauce. Finally, spicy sriracha doused chicken wings are so hearty they'd satiate even the toughest Cullen brother's hunger. Get these festive recipes when you read more.

Vampire Blood Tomato Soup
From Food Network

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 fennel bulb, chopped, about 2 1/2 cups
1/2 large onion, chopped, about 1 cup
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon fennel seed
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
1 (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, preferably San Marzano
2 cups homemade vegetable broth or low-sodium canned
2 cups tomato juice
6 basil leaves, torn
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Heat olive oil in a medium sauce pot over medium-high heat.
Add fennel, onion, garlic, salt, fennel seed and crushed pepper, if using, and cook until vegetables soften and brown slightly, about 5 minutes.
Drain and reserve juice from the tomatoes, then crush tomatoes gently with your hands. Add the tomatoes, increase heat to high, and cook until they begin to brown slightly, about 5 minutes.
Add the reserved tomato juice, vegetable broth, tomato juice, and basil leaves. Bring to a boil, stir, reduce heat to medium low, cover and cook until vegetables are cooked through and soup reduces and thickens, about 30 minutes.
Remove pot from stove and puree the soup in batches, with an immersion, regular blender, or food processor. Stir in lemon juice and season with pepper to taste. Serve.

Serves 8.

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Garlic and Cheese Crostini
From Gourmet

Ingredients

24 (1/3-inch-thick) baguette slices (from a baguette at least
1/4 cup olive oil, divided
3/4 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano (preferably imported)
5 large garlic cloves, minced
Kosher salt
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
Arrange bread slices in 1 layer on a large baking sheet and brush tops with 3 tablespoons oil.
Stir together remaining tablespoon oil, cheese, garlic, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a small bowl. Sprinkle each slice with about 1 teaspoon cheese mixture, mounding it slightly.
Bake until topping just starts to melt, 6 to 8 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and kosher salt to taste. Serve warm.

Makes 24 hors d'oeuvres.

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Steak Bites With Bloody Mary Dipping Sauce
From Rachael Ray

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup vodka
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce
1 cup tomato sauce
1 rounded tablespoon prepared horseradish
Salt and pepper
1 1/3 pounds beef sirloin cut into large bite-sized pieces, 1 by 2 inches
Steak seasoning blend or coarse salt and black pepper
6 to 8 inch bamboo skewers

Directions

Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add oil and onions and saute 5 minutes.
Add vodka and reduce by 1/2.
Add Worcestershire, hot sauce, tomato sauce and horseradish. Stir to combine the dipping sauce and return the sauce to a bubble. Add salt and pepper and adjust seasonings.
Heat nonstick skillet over high heat. Coat meat bites lightly in oil. Season with steak seasoning blend or salt and pepper, to taste.
Cook the meat until caramelized all over, about 2 minutes on each side.
Transfer dipping sauce to a small dish and place at the center of a serving platter. Surround the dip with meat bites and set several bamboo "stakes" or skewers along side meat.

Serves 6.

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Spicy Sriracha Chicken Wings
From Food & Wine

Ingredients

10 pounds chicken wings, split
1/4 cup coriander seeds, crushed
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, crushed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 cup Sriracha chile sauce
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Finely grated zest and juice of 3 limes
3 quarts vegetable oil, for frying

Directions

In a very large bowl, toss the wings with the coriander and cumin seeds, cinnamon, kosher salt and olive oil. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 375°. Spread the wings on 3 large rimmed baking sheets and roast for about 30 minutes, until firm but not cooked through. (At this point, if you don't want to fry the wings, you can roast them for 1 hour longer, until crispy and golden.)
Wash out the bowl. Add the Sriracha, butter, cilantro, lime zest and juice.
In a deep fryer or a very large saucepan, heat the vegetable oil to 375°.
Fry the wings in 4 or 5 batches until golden and crisp, about 5 minutes per batch; drain, shaking off the excess oil. As each batch is finished, add the wings to the sauce and toss well. Transfer the wings to a platter, leaving the sauce in the bowl for the remaining batches. Serve hot.

Serves 10.

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Up Next For Wendy's: Boneless Chicken Wings

YumSugar — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 05:50:20 -0700

Hoping to boost this year's sales - and prove that it's still "waaaay better than fast food" - fast food chain Wendy's has announced plans to unveil a new menu item, boneless chicken wings, later this month. The boneless wings - which will compete head to head with KFC's new Kentucky Grilled Chicken - come in three different flavors: Sweet & Spicy Asian, Honey BBQ, and Bold Buffalo. "Our new Boneless Wings are as far as it gets from fast food," Ken Calwell, Wendy's chief marketing officer, said. "Sweet & Spicy Asian wings are something you'd find at an upscale restaurant."

The new item will set you back $3.99 for seven to nine wings (depending on weight), and will be available in a combo meal for $5.69. Since I'm a buffalo wing fiend, I'll definitely check these out - although I'm skeptical about the idea of them being "upscale restaurant" fare. Still, with McDonald's doing froufrou coffee drinks and Burger King barbecuing ribs, the fast food climate seems to be changing. Do fast food's newest items interest you?

Source

How Do You Prefer Your Chicken Wings?

YumSugar — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 09:00:00 -0700

Come Party With Me: Election Night - Menu

partysugar — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 09:00:42 -0700

Since the election night party starts around dinnertime, I plan on providing guests with some substantial snacking. However, the party is at Elixir, a bar with no kitchen, so all of the food has to be made in advance, and it must taste delicious served at room temperature.

To keep up with the patriotic theme, LibertySugar and I have come up with clever names for each of the dishes. Spicy buffalo chicken left-wings (or right! depending on your party) are cooled off with a scrumptious blue cheese dip. A campaign trail mix is crunchy and filling.

Lipstick pigs in a blanket are sure to be a crowd-pleasing favorite. Seven-layer dip with red, white, and blue tortilla chips rounds out the menu. To get the recipes to these festive election night eats, read more.

Buffalo Chicken Left-Wings
From Food and Wine

Ingredients

4 pounds chicken wings
3 tablespoons cooking oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup sour cream
1/4 pound blue cheese, crumbled (about 1 cup)
2 scallions including green tops, chopped
5 teaspoons vinegar
1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
8 ribs celery, cut into sticks

Directions

Heat the oven to 425°.
In a large bowl, combine the wings, oil, garlic, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the salt, and the cayenne.
Arrange the wings in a single layer on two large baking sheets. Bake until just done, about 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium glass or stainless-steel bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, blue cheese, scallions, 1 teaspoon of the vinegar, the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and the black pepper.
In a large bowl, combine the ketchup, the remaining 4 teaspoons vinegar, and the Tabasco sauce. Add the wings and toss to coat. Serve the wings with the celery sticks and blue-cheese dressing alongside.

Serves 4.

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Campaign Trail Mix
From Gourmet

Ingredients

2 large egg whites
1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne
9 cups freshly popped unsalted popcorn
2 cups miniature pretzels
1 1/2 cups salted roasted peanuts
1 1/2 cups whole almonds, toasted
1 1/2 cups pecans, toasted
1 1/2 cups salted roasted cashews

Directions

Preheat oven to 325°F.
Whisk together egg whites, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, paprika, and cayenne in a large bowl. Add popcorn, pretzels, nuts, and salt to taste and toss until thoroughly coated.
Spread evenly in 2 buttered large shallow baking pans (1 inch deep) and bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of pans halfway through baking, until coating is crisp, about 20 minutes total.
Spread mixture on 2 large sheets of parchment paper or oiled foil and cool completely.

Makes 14 cups.

Make ahead: Spiced party mix can be made 3 days ahead and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.

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Lipstick Pigs in a Blanket
From Rachael Ray

Ingredients

1 10-ounce jar apricot all-fruit preserve
1/3 cup honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 box puff pastry, defrosted and refrigerated until ready for use (recommended brand: Pepperidge Farms)
1 12-ounce package pre-cooked apple chicken sausage, or any kind you like (about 4-5 links)

Directions

Preheat oven to 450° F.
In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine the apricot preserves and honey. Reserve 1/3 of the apricot mixture for another use. Add the mustard to the remaining apricot for the dipping sauce.
In a small bowl, combine the sesame seeds and the poppy seeds and reserve for sprinkling later.
Cut each sausage into 2 even pieces.
Spread some of the apricot-honey mixture over puff pastry, reserving some for dipping later.
Cut the puff pastry sheet in half and then cut 5 equal rectangles out of each half, making 10 equal rectangles.
Lay 1 sausage chunk an inch from the edge of the puff pastry. From there, roll the puff pastry and sausage to the opposite edge of the square. Give it a quick pinch to close.
Lay the rolls out on a baking sheet with enough room to allow the puff pastry to rise. Brush a little more of the apricot mixture on top of each blanket, then sprinkle each one with a little of the sesame and poppy seed mixture.
Bake according to the puff pastry package directions, or until golden brown all over, about 12-15 minutes. Serve with dipping sauce.

Serves 4.

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Seven-Layer Dip With Patriotic Chips
From Better Homes and Garden

Ingredients

1 9-ounce can bean dip
1/4 cup picante or taco sauce
1 8-ounce container refrigerated guacamole
1 8-ounce carton dairy sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar or taco cheese (4 ounces)
1/4 cup sliced green onion (2)
2 tablespoons sliced pitted ripe olives
2/3 cup chopped, seeded tomato (1 medium)
8 cups tortilla chips, a mixture of colors including white, blue, and red (regular corn, blue corn, and red corn tortilla chips)

Directions

Combine bean dip and picante sauce; spread into a rectangle about 9-by-5-inches on a serving platter making a layer about 1/4 inch thick.
Next carefully layer avocado dip and sour cream. Top with cheese, green onion, and olives. Cover and chill for 4 to 24 hours.
Before serving, sprinkle with chopped tomato. Serve with red, white, and blue tortilla chips.

Serves 16.

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Joey Chestnut Does It Again

YumSugar — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 16:10:31 -0800

This afternoon, over 20,000 fans packed the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Penn., to see the sixteenth annual Wing Bowl. Joey "Jaws" Chestnut, who was the reigning champion, held onto his title by chowing down on 241 chicken wings in 30 minutes. This was 14 more than his nearest competitor Patrick Bertoletti and 36 more than third place Bill "El Wingador" Simmons.

For his gastronomic feat, Chestnut - when did he obtain the nickname "Jaws"? I swear he didn't have it for the Fourth of July Hot Dog Contest - received a Toyota Tundra, a 2008 Black 883 Sportster motorcycle, a championship ring, and, of course, all the bragging rights.

So what do you folks think, could you eat that many wings in 30 minutes? Could you even eat half the amount? Also, can you believe the number of folks who attended? From the look of things, this place was packed!

View 7 Photos ›

Source

The United Snacks of America

YumSugar — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 16:23:31 -0800

The Super Bowl is quickly approaching, and I'm sure quite a few of you are planning parties and stocking up on football food. While just about every state chows down on the stuff, the folks at Wal-Mart wondered which states consume the most "football food." So they looked at the number of purchases and came up with the following discoveries. It's sort of interesting to see which states top the snackfood list. What do you think? Do you agree with these findings, or do you think your state should (or shouldn't) have been there?

Most Chicken Wings: Utah and Louisiana
Most Frozen Pizza: Nebraska and South Dakota
Most Potato Chips: New Mexico and Virginia
Most Dips: Kentucky and Louisiana
Most Snack Mixes: South Dakota and Indiana
Most Mixed Nuts: North and South Dakota

Source and Source

Sunday BBQ: Grilled Jerk Chicken Wings

YumSugar — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 01:38:11 -0700

Somehow, I always forget that I'm a huge fan of chicken wings. They're simple to fix up, and are small enough that you don't feel like you're eating a lot - even after you've chowed down an entire platter. They also make perfect party food, and go great with the fall sporting season. You can do them in the oven, but why not make the most out of the last few weeks of summer by throwing them on the barbecue. To check out a great recipe for grilled jerk chicken wings, read more

Grilled Jerk Chicken Wings
From Taste of Home's Simple and Delicious

1/2 cup Caribbean jerk seasoning
18 fresh chicken wingettes (2 to 3 pounds)
2 cups honey barbecue sauce
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons prepared mustard
1 teaspoon ground ginger

Yield: 6 servings.

Coat grill rack with nonstick cooking spray before starting the grill.
Place jerk seasoning in a large resealable plastic bag; add chicken wings, a few at a time, and shake to coat.
In a small bowl, combine the barbecue sauce, brown sugar, mustard and ginger; set aside.
Grill chicken wings, covered, over medium heat for 12-16 minutes, turning occasionally.
Brush with sauce.
Grill, uncovered, 8-10 minutes longer or until juices run clear, basting and turning several times.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (3 each) equals 548 calories, 24 g fat (6 g saturated fat), 113 mg cholesterol, 2,217 mg sodium, 47 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 28 g protein.

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Which BBQ Sauce Would You Choose?

YumSugar — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 10:13:18 -0700

A few weeks ago, my sister and I found ourselves at a Buffalo Wild Wings - how had I never heard of this chain before? - contemplating their multitude of bbq sauces. They have 14 different kinds to choose from and eventually we settled on Mango Habanero (which was absolutely delicious) and Spicy Garlic. Which flavor would you have chosen?

Note: They're listed from least spicy to most.

The Great Chicken Wing Hunt

partysugar — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 08:03:31 -0700

Think you love chicken wings? Well think again. Matt Reynolds, a journalist from New York, recently left his job at Reuters to search for the best Buffalo wings in the state of New York. He's joined forces with 8 other wing enthusiasts - including a semi-pro eater, a chef and an old hippie - to create a documentary about their search for the ultimate chicken wing. They began eating, traveling, and movie making on August 18 and will continue hunting until September 2.

They update the status of the trip regularly online, so anybody can follow along in the quest. Just yesterday the Hunters were seen making a surprise stop at a pizzeria in Rochester. Did they eat wings? We'll just have to wait and see when the documentary comes out. Until then, you can check out the trailer to get a taste of their hysterical journey. To watch the clip, read more

Source: The BA Blog