Would you be honest enough to describe your desk to me as it is at this very moment? Without cleaning it off or straightening it up? I know I can't ask that of you if I'm not willing to do it myself.
I have one of those L shaped arrangements. I spend most of my time at the computer end. Right now, Molly the cat is lying on her folded blanket under the desk lamp. She has oozed over a bit and is partially covering an open Cooking Light magazine, which is lying on top of an open Southern Living annual recipes cookbook. I also have a stack of music CDs (all movie soundtracks), headphones, computer monitor, Bible, a cooking reference book, my glasses, camera, phone, paperclip holder, the stack of handwritten recipes from the visit with my mom, lip gloss, aspirin, various pens and highlighters, a renewal notice for Fine Cooking, hand lotion, a candle, printer and the remote for the ceiling fan sitting in front of me.
The main desk is in worse shape because it's the 'dumping ground' for Dudette. Other than my Pampered Chef paperwork, a stack of cookbooks and some food magazines, it's all her stuff. There's a Tae Kwon Do uniform, hair bands, her brush, various art projects she's made, a few toys she wants fixed, an empty box of Nilla wafers (the emptying was her doing, not mine), a shoe horn (what the heck?) and a few other sundry items I can't recognize.
At the moment, Dudette is in our bed watching television and playing my iPad. Her fingerprints, literally and figuratively, are in every room, nook and cranny of this house.
Is it any surprise then, that this dish was her choice? I was paging through the magazine, my tabs, markers of what I hope to make this month, already in place, when she spied the Southwest Crispy Chicken Sliders. 'I want that. Can you make it, please?' she queried, pointing at the photo.
With those kinds of requests I rarely say no.
The Process
This may seem like a good summer recipe, but be warned that it will use your oven and stove. The cornbread muffin buns are easy enough to pull together and cook up in the amount of time it takes to finish the chicken.
If you start the chicken after you put the muffins in the oven, things will finish up at just about the same time, which is nice. There is minced jalapeño in the muffins, but I poured half of batter into the tin before adding the hot stuff so Dudette would be able to eat one without complaint.
My chicken breasts took longer to 'fry' than 3 minutes per side (about 6 minutes per) and it would have been even longer if I hadn't pounded the breasts prior to cutting them up (a step I highly recommend since the muffins are so small).
It was a very sad moment when I cut into my avocado and found it black on the inside. This took out a key part of the sliders since the avocado, with lime juice and bacon in it, was supposed to be the dressing and would have provided some saltiness and creaminess. Bummer. (We did enjoy eating the crumbled bacon that was supposed to go in the mashed avocado.)
It all comes together quickly though, which is nice on busy days. You can have a whole thing done in about 30 minutes.
The Verdict
There are two types of cornbread. Sweet and savory. We are used to sweet and this is not that. The muffins turned out beautifully and are a fantastic idea to use as buns for sliders. It was just an unusual flavor for us sweet cornbread lovers. If you the unsweet cornbread, you'll love this.
The chicken was bland because of a lack of salt in the breading. I wish there had been a little salt as well as other seasonings in the panko breading. I think the avocado would have made a big difference, but I'd have been the only one to have it on my slider since neither Hubby or Dudette like them.
Because of the muffins and bland chicken, this didn't get high marks from us, but I consider it more because of our family's preference for sweet cornbread and the lack of avocado dressing (plus seasoning needed in the breading for the chicken) than because of the recipe itself.
What I'd Do Different Next Time
Personally, I'd like to make the recipe again with the avocado dressing and our sweeter cornbread enhanced with the Cheddar and jalapeño. I'd add a little salt, if not some taco seasoning, to the breading and I'd definitely make sure that my avocado is in good shape.
Southwest Crispy Chicken Sliders - print this recipe
from Cooking Light Magazine, July 2012
Muffins:
3 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2/3 cup)
2/3 cup yellow cornmeal
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup fat-free buttermilk
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (about 1/3 cup)
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
Cooking spray
Chicken:
2/3 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1/4 cup fat-free milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
Additional ingredients:
1 ripe, pitted, peeled avocado
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
2 slices applewood-smoked bacon, cooked and crumbled
12 (1/2-inch-thick) slices small, ripe tomato
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preheat oven to 350°.
To prepare muffins, weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking soda, baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Combine buttermilk, butter, and 1 egg, stirring well. Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until combined. Stir in cheese and jalapeño. Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 17 minutes or until a wooden pick comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes in pan on a wire rack. Remove muffins from pan; cool on a wire rack. Cut muffins in half crosswise.
To prepare chicken, place panko in a shallow dish. Combine fat-free milk and 1 egg in a shallow dish, stirring well. Split each chicken breast in half lengthwise to form 2 cutlets; cut each piece in half, crosswise, to form 12 pieces. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan; swirl to coat. Dip chicken in egg mixture; dredge in panko. Coat panko lightly with cooking spray. Add 6 chicken cutlets to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until golden and done. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 tablespoon oil, remaining 6 chicken cutlets, and cooking spray.
To prepare additional ingredients, combine avocado and lime juice; mash to desired consistency. Stir in bacon. Place 2 muffin bottom halves on each of 6 plates. Divide avocado mixture evenly among muffins; top each slider with 1 chicken cutlet and 1 tomato slice. Sprinkle tomato evenly with 1/4 teaspoon salt and black pepper; top with muffin tops.
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