Exciting Culinary Adventures!

So, since the New Year began, the WCM has been feeling a scoche pudgy. He decided that he'd like to do the South Beach thing again, and as I am, of course, a nice and thoughtful wife, I decided that I wouldn't tempt him, and would go along with Phase One. Phase One is two weeks of complete carbohydrate deprivation.

They should just call it Phase Hell and dispense with the euphemisms altogether.

So, we started the South Beach Diet on Saturday, figuring that the misery that is the first couple of days of that diet were best accomplished at home, where one could whine and complain of headaches and fatigue without repercussions to one's employment. On Monday, I must admit to not yet being equal to the task of actually teaching and being nice to my students at the same time. One of my aides, a sweet and funny young man, asked me why I felt so crappy, so I told him about my pledge to help my hubby. He replied "So, then, he's on the 'South Beach' diet, and you're on the 'South Bitch' diet, huh?"

Yep. That's about right.

Now, granted, due to my unique digestive situation, I am not doing this diet strictly by the book. I have added lots of fat into it, by using full-fat dairy products and supplementing with the daily Slim Jim (heh heh heh). I also think that, given the sheer volume of sugar that I consumed over the period between Thanksgiving and New Years', the carb/sugar detox period is doing me a lot of good. It doesn't hurt that, since Saturday, I've already lost the 5 pounds that I put on in that extended holiday gorge-fest. It's also forced me to be a bit more creative in my culinary efforts, hence the title of this post.

Tonight, I made Pecan-Encrusted Chicken Bosoms. They were yum-o-licious! Here's the recipe:

4 chicken bosoms, pounded to 3/4 inch thick
1 egg, beaten, for wash
1 c. pecans
1 t. rosemary
1 pinch cayenne
1 clove garlic
salt
pepper
olive oil

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees, and get out a big ol' baking dish. No, bigger than that. Huge.

If you haven't pounded out your chicken yet, get to it. Season it on both sides with salt and pepper.

Haul out your food processor and dump in the pecans, rosemary, cayenne, and garlic. Pulse until it looks finely ground, but still a bit crumbly-looking. Dump it all out on a dinner plate.

Dip your chicken bosoms into the egg wash one by one, and then dredge in the nut mixture. Press firmly to adhere the nuts.

Place in the baking dish and bake for 30 minutes.

Get out the mop and a bucket, because you're gonna be mopping up drool puddles as the aroma wafts about your house!

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I had yet another culinary adventure tonight, as I tried Queso para Frier (cheese for frying, for the Spanish-impaired). This stuff is pretty tasty, if you like relatively rubbery tasteless cheese that manages to be just a bit salty. Being a huge fan of Mozzarella sticks, I am indeed fond of relatively rubbery tasty cheese that manages to be just a bit salty.

You slice this stuff, fry it in a pan with some olive oil - just to coat the bottom, we're not talking deep frying here - and it browns up nicely, but still holds its shape. If I had some Marinara sauce, I'd be ten kinds of happy! It's Mozzarella sticks without the carbs - gotta love that!

Now, if only I had the same kind of inspiration for a South Beach Phase Hell dessert.