Did Someone Say Fried Chicken?

Just a quick one today, to share a new recipe I am awfully proud of...

HINT:

My sister and brother-in-love had a very cool party this past weekend.  An indoor tailgate!  They used the excuse of a Saturday night college football game to invite over all their best pals for a tailgate themed potluck party.  Plenty of snacks, plenty of beer and cocktail fixin's, and everyone got to bring their best dish.

I was on deck for fried chicken drumsticks.  I love great fried chicken.  I actually don't mind mediocre fried chicken, to be honest, but I try not to eat fried chicken too often, so if I can avoid fair to middlin' and stick with great, that is always a good thing.

I especially love a big pile of fried chicken drumsticks on a buffet for a crowd.  They are a perfect one-hand food, so you can eat them while standing or milling about.  They are a small enough piece that you don't overly fill up on them, but still have enough meat on them that they are more than just a delivery service for fried skin and breading.  (I'm looking at you, wings.  Delicious though you are)
I also have a very specific idea of what make for great fried chicken.

1.  The meat has to be both juicy and well-flavored, the seasoning has to have penetrated.  Juicy and bland isn't going to cut it, and dried out is simply unacceptable.

2.  The outside has to be extra shatteringly crunchy, with enough seasoning in the coating to provide oomph.

3.  The breading cannot just all fall off when you bite into the chicken the first time.  Defeats the whole purpose.

Now, my Charming Suitor is from Kentucky, so he knows him some quality fried chicken.  The bar isn't just high, its off the charts.  No pressure for the Yankee wife at all.

Here is my official, don't need to change a thing, perfection on a stick, fried chicken.  The recipe is designed for 24 drumsticks or a combo of drumsticks and thighs.  That is because dark meat is just better.  Stays moister, perfect size, better flavor.  It isn't that you can't use this recipe for white meat, but you will need to adjust the cooking times, wings will cook much faster, breasts a little longer.  I know you think 24 pieces of chicken sounds like a lot, but this is fried chicken for a party.  If you are having a sit down dinner party, you can serve 8-12 amply with this, but for a potluck or holiday buffet, you can cover up to 24 people.  And frankly, there are worse things than leftover fried chicken.  And if you love it, I hope you will check out my other recipes in the new digital cookbook, Big Delicious Life!  Only $3.79 for over 150 recipes, 40 never before published, and the first chapter of my next novel!  BUY HERE.

I'm just saying.

Fried Chicken Drumsticks

Serves up to 24 as part of a buffet, or 8-12 as a main course

24 chicken drumsticks (or a mix of drumsticks and thighs)

Spice Rub

2 t dried thyme

2 t dried marjoram

4 t onion powder

4 t garlic powder

3 t espelette pepper (can substitute Aleppo or Cayenne)

6 T salt

2 T freshly ground black pepper

pinch of nutmeg

Buttermilk Brine

2 quarts buttermilk

3 tablespoons honey

3 tablespoons hotsauce (Tabasco, Sriracha, whatever you have on hand)

In a large bowl, mix all of the dry spices. Add chicken and toss until well coated.  Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours.  Mix the hotsauce and honey together until combined, and then blend into the buttermilk.  Pour the buttermilk brine over the chicken to cover completely. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours, up to 24 hours.

To prep the chicken for frying:

Pour chicken legs into colander and allow buttermilk to drain.  With paper towels, pat each of the legs completely dry, and arrange in a single layer on more paper towels on a large sheet pan.  Place in the fridge uncovered for 1-3 hours.  This step will dry the skin out and tighten it a bit, trust me, worth the extra step and time.  

4 ½  cups all-purpose flour

4 ½  tablespoons freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons paprika

3 tablespoons fine sea salt

3 teaspoons espelette pepper (can substitute Aleppo or Cayenne)

3 tablespoons baking powder

1 quart buttermilk

4 quarts peanut oil

Combine the flour, black pepper, paprika, sea salt, cayenne, and baking powder in a large rectangular pan (I often use deep disposable foil pans) or a wide bowl. Whisk to combine well, and make sure the flour is well seasoned.

Pour the buttermilk into a separate pan or bowl. Set a rack over a baking sheet. Dredge the dried chicken pieces in the flour, shake off the excess, and set them on the rack. Do all of the pieces to this stage.  Then dip each of the pieces in the buttermilk, hold briefly to drain excess, then toss them in the seasoned flour until well coated and return them to the rack.  They should look a little shaggy.

Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan for deep-frying to 350°F. Add as many chicken pieces as you can without crowding the pan, you may have to do this in 3-4 batches depending on the size of your pot. Cook the chicken, turning the pieces occasionally, until they are cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes depending on their size. After 9 minutes remove one piece and check for doneness with an instant read meat thermometer, they should be 165-175.  Remove to a sheet pan covered with paper towels that you have first crumpled up and then pulled back flat.  While they are resting, let the temp of the oil come back up to 350 and then add the next round of chicken pieces.  When the pieces on the paper towel have drained, place them on a clean rack over a baking tray and allow them to rest for 10 minutes before serving.   If not serving right away, hold in a 200-degree oven on the rack for up to 30 minutes.

These are delicious hot, warm, or at room temp.  And if you have leftovers, cold right from the fridge for breakfast.  If you have to transport them, slide the tray with the rack into a paper grocery bag, and cut a large opening on the top to let out steam, and then cut the bottom 6 inches off another paper grocery bag and slide it over the second end.  You do not want them to be covered, steam will make them soggy. 

So. Much. News.

Chickens-

Buckle up, this is going to be a doozy!

First off, I want to thank all of you who pre-ordered my new digital cookbook Big Delicious Life.  It should have been delivered to you wirelessly on the 21st.  For those of you who have not yet pulled the trigger, welcome to instant gratification!  You can get yours HERE.

It's only $3.79, kids, and has not only over 150 recipes, including over 40 that have never been printed, but it also has a chapter of my new novel Recipe for Disaster, to give you a sneak peek at what is coming your way in March.  Makes a great gift for a foodie pal or relative, and there are plenty of holiday centric recipes for the upcoming celebrations.  And if you've ever cooked one of my recipes, either from the novels or from here on the blog, it would mean the world if you would work your social media network on my behalf.

Now, are we ready for a house update?  I bet we are!

Much to report from here at the castle.  The Matts have left the building.  Yep, all eight of our strapping 25 year old tenants headed out last week for new digs.  They were a fun bunch, consumed their collective weight in pizza, beer and Mountan Dew on a weekly basis, and generally made it not horrible to play Mrs. Roper.  We have found a new group of tenants for the third floor, who will move in next week, and we are looking forward to getting to know them.

The concrete floor in the basement FINALLY cured, and so we polished and sealed it.

ISN'T IT YUMMY?  I wish you could feel it.  It is like one huge river rock.  The first chance we got, we ran around barefoot.  I have never been barefoot in my basement EVER.  Not since the day I moved in.  It was strangely gratifying. The floor looks a little shinier in the pics than it does in real life, the finish is more of a matte glow.

Now that the floor is done, we can start framing up walls and really pulling stuff together!

In the meantime, with the decampment of the second floor Matts, we were able to start the demolition where the new eat-in kitchen will be.

What used to be a dining room...

Butler's Pantry...

 
Pantry....

 Small bedroom....

 And kitchen....

Is now....

Now, I know you are probably looking at the "before" and thinking "Those are lovely spaces!  Why on earth would anyone turn them into something that looks like Beirut?"  And the answer is, because your Polymath needs a great kitchen that is bigger than a postage stamp, where she can cook with her Charming Suitor and not elbow each other in the eyeball.  A kitchen with actual counter space.

We salvaged all of the woodwork and built-ins for re-use elsewhere (stay tuned for those projects), and are now dealing with the information resulting from the demolition.  Because as anyone who has ever renovated a home over 100 years old knows, there are always surprises.  Sometimes good, sometimes bad.  We got very lucky in the basement, no bad surprises at all. But what we have discovered here does create some challenges.  We knew that the construction of the building was steel, so YAY!  Won't fall down!  We assumed that the floor joists would have been laid out on TOP of the steel beams.  Demolition revealed that not to be the case.  The floor joists are all laid out directly into the beams.  Which creates some serious issues in how we had thought to lay out our plumbing runs and HVAC ductwork.  Usually these things go between the joists.  On top of the beam.  Since the joists run INTO the beams, all of the runs we planned would run smack into the middle of steel beams.  Not functional.  So we are meeting Monday with our contractors and our architect to come up with some solutions.

We also demolished half of the closet in one of the future guest bedrooms:

Closets were a later addition to the building, in 1907 people used armoires and such to store clothes.  In this room, they added two side by side closets, one of which contained a small window.  Because nothing is better for your best duds than constant access to direct sunlight.  By removing half of the closet, our guests will still get some closet space, but what feels like a much bigger room!  We have a beautiful English Arts and Crafts tall dresser with a mirror that will fit beautifully in this nook.

We also demoed parts of the bathroom:

When we took out the horrid 1978 corner tub it revealed some of the original tile floor:

Buried under layers of ghastly linoleum, and partially demolished from previous plumbing work, we are very sad that we can't salvage it.  I love that the accent tiles are blue instead of the more common black, and would have loved to just restore a floor like this, but not enough of it survived, so we will be looking into other options.  But it was very cool to get to see it, and we are going to try and save some of the cove tiles that are along the baseboard just for our "treasures" box.

Things are going to start to move pretty quickly over here, so stay tuned for much more frequent updates!

Yours in Good Taste,
The Polymath

Let's Get Cooking!

Chickens-

I've been teasing you about my upcoming digital cookbook for ages, and I'm delighted to let you know that it is coming very soon.  This cover is so hot off the presses that it isn't even posted on Amazon yet!

SQUEE!!!!

Big Delicious Life is a digital collection of 150 recipes from my novels, including 40 recipes that had to be cut from the original books for space considerations.  Even better, because it is digital, it is a recipe resource you can keep in your pocket on your phone or tablet, perfect for those moments you are at the grocery store and don't know what to make for dinner!  I love having recipes on the go when I'm traveling or staying with pals, and there is something for everyone in here.

The absolute best part?  In a day and age when a new cookbook will run you anywhere from $25-$65?  Big Delicious Life is $3.79.  BOOM.  I've had such wonderful feedback from you all about cooking from the books, and I know what a pain it is to have to go searching through multiple books to find a recipe, so I really wanted to make all of them available in one super-convenient format, and at a price that makes it a real value, and an easy fun gift.  We're talking like 2 1/2 cents a recipe, people!

I spent a lot of time working on the indexing, so there are actually two ways to navigate, you can find recipes from a specific novel, but I've also indexed them based on ingredients, so if you are staring at a package of chicken in your fridge and don't know what to do with it, you can get all the chicken recipes in a flash.

It is currently available for pre-order and will be delivered to your E-Reader on October 21, in time for all of your holiday menu planning.  

I'm very proud of it, and can't wait to hear how you all like it.  Also?  It includes a chapter (and a recipe) from my upcoming new novel Recipe for Disaster just to whet your appetites.

Yours in Good Taste,

The Polymath

Stick a Fork in Me!

Chickens-

I'm finally getting my head above water!  I'm delighted to announce that I've finished the revisions on my new book, and I really really think you are going to like it.  Recipe for Disaster is the story of a contractor whose life blows up around her, forcing her to live in the half-finished ruin of her current renovation with a miniature schnauzer that hates her.  I'm very excited about it, and there are plenty of new recipes as well!

Luckily for us, our own renovations are moving along without disaster!  We officially have a completed concrete pour in the basement, so no more dirt floor.  We are waiting for it to cure for 28 days so that we can polish it.  Once that happens, it's time for fun things like, you know, WALLS!  I have a feeling that once we start to see some framing, things are going to move very quickly, so get ready for a Fall full of updates. In the meantime, I thought I would share some of the unexpected pitfalls of doing such a renovation.

When you know that more square footage is imminent?  It can become tricky not to purchase things for the "future house" as opposed to the "current house".  This is where what used to be a casual flirtation with Craigslist can turn into a dangerous full-fledged affair.  Case in point, the recent Hall Mirrorpalooza (which Charming Suitor might refer to as a Debacle).

I have wanted a built-in antique pier mirror for the foyer for the longest time.  It is appropriate to the time period of the building, and I have always thought it would make for a wonderful addition. Of course, salvaged genuine antiques of the right age have had three things working against me.  One?  They are very often terribly ornate, carved, gilded items, which certainly hits a Princess where she lives, but CS is viscerally opposed to things that are overly "decorative", being more of an Arts and Crafts/Prairie kind of guy, so the fancy ones are right out.  Two?  Even non-fancy ones are CRAZY expensive, ranging in my research from an almost-reasonable $1500 to a "are-you-effing-kidding-me?" $27,000.  And no, that is not a typo.  Three?  They are very often far far away, on the East Coast.  Or France.  And shipping costs for an item like this from NY to Chicago can be a thousand bucks or more and you don't even want to think about overseas shipping.  Um? No.

I've been looking around for one of these things for the better part of two years to no avail.

So you can imagine when I spotted this on Craiglist, it caught my attention.

Vintage Hall Mirror- $500 - Chicago

I looked at the picture.

Hard to see, I know, but not overly ornate, mirror in nice condition, and the style and finish of the woodwork is very much in line with the existing woodwork in our house.

I looked at the measurements.  I measured the wall in the foyer.  With very little adjustment, it will fit like a glove.  I show it to Charming Suitor who likes it.  I email the seller, yes it is still available, pretty close to our house, and yes, there is wiggle room on price.  

When we arrived at the house to see it, the owner mentioned that he is converting a two-flat into a single family home, so this is salvaged from that property.  "Oh,"  he says. "And there are two of them, so you can pick which one you like more."

My heart leapt.  Behind me I heard CS mutter. "F***."  Because he knows me, and he knows that unless one of the two of these is harboring a family of venomous spidersnakes, I'm gonna want them both.

Because, TWO! TWO! TWO MIRRORS IN ONE!

They were both perfect.  Solid as a rock.  Mirrors beveled, and just the tiniest bit speckled in a way that lets you know they are over 100 years old.  All the moldings intact, original finish with plenty of patina.  I batted my eyelashes.  I gave my most winning smile.  And CS said, "You negotiate it."

I offered the guy $600 for both.  And he came back with an offer of "Absolutely, get them out of my garage."

Oh, yeah!

We decided that the second one will eventually get installed in our master bedroom to serve as a cool full-length mirror.  Of course, we are still a long way of being able to install either of them ANYWHERE, so for the moment?  They live in the dining room.  Along with the eventual vanity for the basement bathroom, and the eventual basement bathroom sink.  And all of our dining room furniture.  

And...

All of the rest of the stuff I've found for the "future house" like a pair of repro Louis VIV chairs, and an Arts and Crafts desk, and four really cool art nouveau iron folding chairs...not to mention all of the stuff we took out of CS's bungalow now that we have sold it.  And THIS BAR CART!

you can kind of see the art nouveau folding chairs behind it...

How could I not?  It's Italian, 1920s, it's SILVERPLATE!  Look at the WHEELS!!!

I know.  Its a sickness.

Our formerly lovely dining room for dinner parties now looks like one of those storage units on Garage Gold, and when people come over, its all "how much fun to eat pizza on your lap in the living room!" party.  CS had to put me on a strict "No Craigslist till some new square footage is actually finished." moratorium.

Luckily, we only have to live like a Hoarders episode for another month or so, because when our second floor tenants vacate mid-October, we will move it all up there while we finish the renovations down here.

Stay tuned for more updates coming soon, there are a couple of exciting announcements to be revealed in the coming weeks!

Yours in Good Taste,

The Polymath

Winners Announced!

Congrats to Rebecca and Kelly Rollinson on winning the Naturals By Gina B Body Balm sets!  Email me at staceyballisinfo (at) gmail (dot) com with your shipping address and Gina will get you your products.

And thank you again to everyone who entered all of the giveaways these past couple of weeks.  So great to see all of your comments.

I'm back to rewrites, but stay tuned for some exciting updates on the house project!

Yours in Good Taste,
The Polymath

Winners announced and YET ANOTHER GIVEAWAY!

Chickens-

Thanks to all who entered to win Laura Caldwell's darling summer read, The Dog Park.

Congrats to Trish Ryan, Erica, and KW!  You have won signed copies.  Email me your shipping address at staceyballisinfo(at)gmail(dot)com and Laura will get them out to you.  For everyone who didn't win, you can pick up your copy HERE.

And since it is my summer of prizes, I have another guest post from a pal with another giveaway!

Gina B is one of my besties who has accidentally invented a couple of fabulous new  skincare products!  I'll let Gina tell her own story but I can vouch for the quality, I've been lucky enough to be one of her testers and I just love them.  They do exactly what they are supposed to do, and they smell delicious.  Gina is providing TWO sets of her body products to a lucky reader, just comment below with the skin or hair problem you wish you could fix forever!

Gina- take it away!

I'm excited to announced that I’ve released a line of body products - if two products can be called a line.  The company name is Naturals by Gina B, and the line is aptly titled Kiss My Ash.  The name is very appropriate because it kisses away the ashy appearance of dry skin.  

There’s a tale of how this came to be (because of COURSE there is).  Long story short, I was unhappy with my hair.  (If you knew me personally you would know that I’m ALWAYS unhappy with my hair, but I was especially distraught about it this time).  I was displeased because my naturally curly/wavy hair had been heat damaged from a terrible run-in with a smoking hot flat iron, and I was left with areas that are bone straight and others that have remained curly, somehow.  Not really high on the cuteness scale, and very distressing.  I loathed of the products on the market (and I have an entire closet full of them to prove it) and I willfully decided that I was going to make my own super-product that I would formulate specifically to address my issues and get my curls back.

Chemistry was one of my favorite subjects in high school, so I got busy blending natural ingredients and came up with a usable conditioner.  I used it enthusiastically, and learned a harrowing lesson.  The trouble is that, once damaged, curly hair can’t be restored (it’s still a hot mess and I will ultimately have to cut it in stages).  However, I did really enjoy the residual effects that my concoction had on my skin as it rinsed out of my lifeless hair in the shower.  So I retooled it, worked on creating a creamy texture, and lo and behold I had body butter.

I instantly fell in love with my own product because it was made with my issues in mind and addressed all of my needs for moisturized, glowing skin.  I hated sticky products and watery lotions.  I also detested lotions and oils that soiled my clothes, and my concoction dried quickly on the skin without staining my garments.  I wanted something that I could use on my face without it making me look like a walking oil slick.  I also enjoy a simple product with only a handful of ingredients that are easily pronounced.  

I was lounging poolside in LA with a girlfriend.  She needed moisturizer and I offered mine.  She wanted to know the brand, and I confessed that I had made it myself.  After asking several questions she enthusiastically told me that I should think about marketing and selling them.  I laughed and sipped my refreshing Chardonnay spritzer.  What a cute and funny idea.

Then, as I began letting others try my product, they agreed.  They say that it’s very emollient and works wonders on dry skin.  And when the boyfriend became addicted to another product that I made — the body scrub — I gave it serious thought.  Love him, but he’s one of the most particular people I know.

So here we sit, nearly a year later.  I’ve done endless market research.  I’ve gotten deeper into the science of it — which has been SO much fun and rewarding.  I’ve enjoyed picking out packaging and sourcing materials.  I’ve turned my friends into my own personal guinea pigs and foisted samples upon unsuspecting strangers.  I’ve created a list of future releases and I haven’t been this excited and anxious about anything in years.  If ever.  Who knew?

Because Stacey is a dear friend, amazing writer and most importantly she was kind enough to sample the second-to-last iteration of the formula, I wanted to make sure to provide a giveaway for her esteemed readers.  Two lucky readers will receive a full 4 oz jar of Kiss My Ash Body Balm, and an 8oz jar of Kiss My Ash Body Buff.  If you don't win, feel free to visit my website at www.naturalsbyginab.com.

Be sure to comment below by 11:59 PM on Sunday August 10, I'll announce winners on Monday.

Yours in Good Taste,

The Polymath

Winners Announced and A guest post with giveaway!

Chickens-

First of all, thanks for all of you who entered to win the amazing Get it Right Spatula sets! I wish I could send a set to each and every one of you, but sadly, I only have three sets to giveaway.  And the lucky winners are....

Angie...we are SAVING THE SAUCE!
Tracy McCarty...No more employee gift spatulas for you!
LeslieJane...you and your Suitor can each have your own spatula and still have one to spare!

So, now the important part...

You have to pick your size/color combos!  Each of you is getting one Ultimate, one Skinny, and one Mini.  Please send me an email at staceyballisinfo (at) gmail (dot) com with your shipping address and which colors you want for your sets.  Your options are white, black, gray, pink, magenta, yellow, orange, red, sky blue, lavender, teal or lime.  You can have all one color or mix and match, just be sure to put the details in your email and congrats!

For those of you who didn't win, I still cannot recommend them enough, they are worth the purchase, and you can buy yours HERE.

Since I adore you all, and want everyone to have a shot at something wonderful...I've got another giveaway!

My dear friend Laura Caldwell has written an adorable new book called The Dog Park.

And since it is summer, I know that many of you want to take your pooches with you for some al fresco dining.  As I do not myself have a dog, I thought this would be a great opportunity for Laura to share some of her tips, and as a bonus, she has THREE SIGNED COPIES to giveaway!  Just comment below by 11:59 pm CST on Monday August 4 to enter.

Take it away Laura...

When I was writing The Dog Park, my new book about a divorced couple who share joint custody of the suddenly-famous dog, I managed to take own puppy nearly everywhere. All in the name literature. But even if you're not penning a novel, it's summer, so take out the whole family 

5 Doggie Do's and Don't's for Dining Out

- Do ask any restaurant with outdoor seating if you can dine al fresco with el doggo. Unless the outdoor area is a partially enclosed patio, most establishments are happy to have you.

- Don't let your pup roam. The couple who smiled at him across the deck doesn't want him sniffing their newly-delivered burgers.

- Do ask your server for a bowl of water for your dog.

- Do bring treats or a tupperware of Fido's own food. (Everyone sees the strip of chicken that goes under your table and onto your pup's head before landing on the floor for him to eat).

- Do bring your dog everywhere while it's still seasonable out!

-Don't be afraid to dine just you and the pup...just bring your copy of The Dog Park to read while you both are enjoying a beautiful day!

Please feel free to find me on Twitter and Facebook. Good luck!  

Love,  Laura Caldwell

Thanks Laura for these tips!  Now everyone start sharing in the comments so you can be entered to win a signed copy of this terrific summer read.

Yours in Good Taste,

The Polymath