Sticky Fingers

Sauce:
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
3 Tbs corn syrup
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup Frank's red hot sauce (NOT tabasco sauce. If you want generic look for "Louisiana" hot sauce - that's what we use.) - p.s. I use more...like 1/2 cup or so.
1 Tbs apple cider vinegar

Combine sugar, syrup, and water in a heavy bottom sauce pan. Heat on medium heat until boiling. Reduce heat and add hot sauce and vinegar. That's all.

Sticky Fingers:
chicken breast cut into strips (or you can use chicken tenders)
1 cup flour
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp paprika
1/3 cup Frank's red hot sauce
1/4 cup water

In a large ziploc bag combine everything BUT hot sauce and water. In a shallow bowl, combine hot sauce and water. Coat your chicken in flour mixture (ps I never measure my spices, I just dump...) then dip it in the hot sauce mixture. Coat the chicken one more time in flour mixture and then fry in a fryer for roughly 5 minutes (or until they are done) We set our fryer at 355*

Once chicken and sauce are prepared, coat chicken in sauce and eat. Once they are "dipped" you can cook them in the oven at 350* for a couple minutes to sort of thicken up the sauce. My husband likes them best after they have sat for a few minutes (like ten) because the sauce gets stickier.

We don't really do bones with our chicken...but this recipe can be easily adapted for chicken wings. I think with wings you just fry them, no breading, and then sauce them. If anyone is a chicken wing expert feel free to comment if I am misinformed.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes

6 tablespoons flour seasoned with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

1/8 cup cornstarch

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup vinegar

1 20 oz. can pineapple tidbits (reserve juice)

1/2 cup pineapple juice (use reserved juice)

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1/4 cup onion, sliced

Coat chicken in flour and fry in olive oil until browned. Drain and set aside. In same skillet, combine cornstarch, salt, pepper, brown sugar, vinegar, pineapple juice, chicken broth and soy sauce. Cook and stir until boiling. Reduce heat and cook for 2 minutes. Add chicken, peppers, onions, and pineapple. Cook until heated through. Serve over rice. Enjoy!

Striped Delight

Oreos, chocolate pudding, and cream cheese. I haven't tried this recipe yet but I don't see how I could possibly go wrong. Its full of my favorite things.

• Prep Time: 20 min
• Total Time: 4 hr 40 min
• Makes: 24 servings, one square each

35 OREO Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

6 Tbsp. (3/4 stick) butter, melted

1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp. cold milk

1 tub (12 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed, divided

3-1/4 cups cold milk

2 pkg. (4-serving size each) JELL-O Chocolate Flavor Instant Pudding & Pie Filling

PLACE cookies in food processor; cover. Process to form fine crumbs. Transfer to medium bowl. Add butter; mix well. Press firmly onto bottom of 13x9-inch dish. Refrigerate 10 min. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese, sugar and 2 Tbsp. milk in separate bowl with wire whisk until well blended. Stir in 1-1/4 cups of the whipped topping. Spread over crust.

POUR 3-1/4 cups milk into large bowl. Add dry pudding mixes. Beat with wire whisk 2 min. or until well blended. Spoon evenly over cream cheese layer. Let stand 5 min. or until thickened. Spread remaining whipped topping over pudding layer.

REFRIGERATE at least 4 hours. Store leftover dessert in refrigerator.

Poppy Seed Chicken

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk
1-2 cups diced cooked chicken
1 sleeve ritz crackers
1 Tbs poppy seeds
1/4 cup melted butter

Mix the soup, sour cream, and milk together in a bowl. Add chicken and spread mixture in the bottom of a casserole dish. In a separate bowl combine lightly crushed ritzcrackers, poppy seeds, and melted butter. Pour on top of chicken mixture and place in 350* oven for 30 minutes (You may want to put foil over the top so your crackers don't burn)
Now, this part may sound weird, but believe me, it is so yummy! Serve over mashed potatoes. (just do it, don't ask questions, you'll be happy you didn't)

Creamy Broccoli-Stuffed Chicken Breasts

1 pkg. (6 oz.) Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1 cup water
6 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1-1/2 lb.)
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped broccoli, thawed, drained
1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup fat free milk
1 tsp. paprika
2 Tbsp. Grated Parmesan Cheese

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Combine stuffing mix and water in large bowl. Let stand 5 min. Meanwhile, pound chicken to 1/4-inch thickness using meat mallet. Add broccoli to stuffing; mix lightly. Spread evenly onto chicken breasts to within 1/2 inch of outer edges. Roll up each chicken breast from one of the short ends, enclosing the stuffing mixture.
PLACE chicken, seam-sides down, in 13x9-inch baking dish. Mix soup and milk; pour over chicken. Sprinkle with paprika and Parmesan cheese.
BAKE 30 min. or until chicken is cooked through (170ºF).

*As a HUGE cheese fan, I think this would be yummy (and gooey) with a little cheese mixed into the broccoli/stuffing mixture. (I would probably use either Swiss or shredded - not grated- Parmesan.) I have also toyed with actually adding the butter to the stuffing as you would if you were actually making the stuffing. (Obviously, I'm not big on cutting out the fat.)

Homemade Oreo cookies

::Quick and Easy way::
1 package devil's food cake mix - Chocolate or German Chocolate (If you are going to use the German chocolate mix be sure to press cookies to slightly flatten then immediately after removing them from the oven - this will insure a perfectly round cookie)
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil (or butter flavored shortening)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough into balls (a little larger than a quarter). Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on sheet (until warm). Remove cookies from sheet and place on cooling rack.To assemble the cookies, in a pastry bag with a 1/2 inch, round tip (you can always use a zip lock bag with a round tip or just use a butter knife)add about a tablesppon of filling into the center of one cookie. Place another cookie similiar in size on top of the filling. Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie. Continue this process until all the cookies have been sandwiched with cream.

::Oreo cookie filling::
1 stick butter
1 block of cream cheese (8 ounces)
3-4 cups confectioner's sugar (depending on desired consistency)
1 tsp vanilla extract
*cream butter (about 2 mins). Add cream cheese and mix well. Add confectioner's sugar slowly until you reach your desired consistency.

Or you can do this elaborate method if you are one of those over-achievers (you know who you are!

::REAL homemade oreos (via Retro Desserts, Wayne Brachman)
For the chocolate cookies:
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 to 1½ cups sugar
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (1¼ sticks) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1 large egg

*Set two racks in the middle of the oven. Preheat to 375 degrees.In a food processor, or bowl of an electric mixer, thoroughly mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt, and sugar. While pulsing, or on low speed, add the butter, and then the egg. Continue processing or mixing until dough comes together in a mass.Take rounded teaspoons of batter and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, or greased sheet, about 2 inches apart. Slightly flatten the dough. Bake for 9 minutes, rotating once for even baking. Set baking sheets on a rack to cool. Use filling recipe and directions above.
Makes 25 to 30 sandwich cookies
**Store cookies in fridge**

Nutter Butters

FOR THE COOKIE DOUGH:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
4 teaspoons baking soda
1 pound (4 sticks) butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter, preferably Skippy
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup coarsely chopped peanuts
2½ cups quick-cooking oats

For the filling:
¼ pound (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
½ cup creamy peanut butter, preferably Skippy
1 2/3 cups confectioners’ sugar.

1. For cookie dough: preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and baking soda; set aside. Using a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and peanut butter. Add sugars and beat at medium speed for 4 minutes, scraping down bowl twice.

2. At low speed, add eggs and vanilla. Add flour mixture and beat at low speed until well mixed, frequently scraping down bowl. Add peanuts and oats, and mix well. Using an ice cream scoop 2 inches in diameter, place balls of dough on parchment-lined baking sheets at least three inches apart. Bake until cookies have spread and turned very light golden brown, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool and firm up, 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely before filling.

3. For filling: using an electric mixer, cream together the butter, peanut butter and confectioners’ sugar until very smooth.

4. To assemble cookies, spread a thin layer (about 1/8 inch) on underside of a cookie. Sandwich with another cookie. Repeat.

Yield: 24 large cookies.