Takeout Fake-out: Orange Chicken

When I posted our orange bourbon chicken recipe, I mentioned how we had purchased a frozen orange chicken meal from Trader Joe's a few times. Confession: I love Chinese takeout, and I'd gladly eat it several time a week if it were at all good for me. My orange chicken cravings have continued (to no one's surprise), and I knew we needed to come up with a simple, baked alternative that we could make ourselves. No fuss, no deep fryer, just great food.

Like our weeknight calzones, this recipe is designed to be faster and healthier than takeout - not to mention easier on the wallet. When the weather gets warmer, I tend to want to spend less time in the kitchen, so a quick meal becomes more appealing. Having recipes like this in my repertoire keeps me from picking up the phone to order takeout - because I can make the food - from scratch - faster than I can get it delivered!

This dish is actually quite easy to make, and takes about 20 minutes, start to finish. I broke the directions down into a lot of individual steps, but they're all quick and simple.

Curious about those green onions? Check out this post - they're super simple to grow yourself! 

Orange Chicken: Takeout Fake-out
This orange chicken tastes as good as take-out, but is baked instead of fried.
Yield: 2 generous servings

INGREDIENTS
For the chicken:
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp whole-wheat flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp panko bread crumbs
1 lb raw boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
pinch each salt and black pepper
1 egg, lightly beaten

For the sauce:
1/2 cup warm water
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 oranges, zest and juice
2 tbsp mirin
1/4 cup honey
2 tbsp lite soy sauce
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
Sliced green onions, sesame seeds, and hot rice to serve

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray or line with parchment.
2. Place flour and bread crumbs in a gallon sized baggie.
3. Place chicken in a large bowl with egg and season with salt and pepper. Stir to coat chicken pieces with egg.
4. Add the chicken to the baggie with the bread crumb mixture, one piece at a time, shaking off excess egg. Seal the baggie (with extra air inside), and toss to evenly coat chicken pieces.
5. Spread chicken in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet, and bake for 10 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
6. While the chicken cooks, in a medium bowl, whisk warm water with cornstarch until cornstarch has dissolved. Add orange zest and juice, mirin, honey, and soy sauce and whisk to combine.
7. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add sesame oil, garlic and ginger and cook until slightly softened and fragrant, about 1 minute. Add juice mixture. Cook, stirring, until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes.
8. Remove skillet from heat, add chicken, and toss to coat. Serve topped with green onions and sesame seeds over hot rice.

What takeout or restaurant meal do you wish you could create at home? Do you have any of your own takeout fake-outs? 

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How to Make Great Kale Chips

Kale chips are one of those foods that have blossomed from total obscurity to a fairly mainstream presence. It seems that there are as many posts on making kale chips as there are food bloggers. So why am I making my own? During the several years that I have been making kale chips, I've followed many different recipes. Each one seemed to prescribe a different time and temperature and even method for baking the chips. Through trial and error (and a lot of burnt kale) I figured out what works, what's important, and what is unnecessary.

If you haven't had kale chips before, give them a try! The leaves turn crispy in the oven, and have a taste akin to good broccoli. Some folks have touted these as a less-guilt potato chip swap - I don't agree with that assessment. If you really want potato chips, these don't taste like potatoes. But they are crunchy and salty and great to snack on.

Use whatever seasoning or spices you like, even just plain salt. I usually use a blend of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika.

How to Make Kale Chips
Yield: depends on amount of kale used, usually 3-4 cups per bunch

You will need: 
1 bunch kale leaves (any variety)
Spray oil (like 100% canola oil cooking spray)
Baking sheet
Seasoning

How to make kale chips:
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Wash and dry your kale. You can use a salad spinner to dry the leaves, or pat them dry with paper towels. Sometimes kale is quite muddy, so don't skip this step.
Step 3: Tear kale leaves into chip-sized pieces, and discard the tough stems. I like pieces 1-2 inches across.
Step 4: Spread kale leaves on a large baking sheet in a single layer. Spray with oil (100% canola oil cooking spray works well for this). Toss the leaves with your hands and spray again. Sprinkle on your seasonings, and toss one more time, so all the leaves have a thin coating of oil and seasoning. Arrange in a single layer.
Step 5: Bake at 300 degrees for 18-20 minutes. Wait until the leaves are crispy (no soggy bits), but still bright green. If your oven bakes unevenly, turn the pan once during baking. 

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Meatless Mondays: Roasted Eggplant and Tempeh

Roasted eggplant is one of those foods I never get tired of. I like oven-roasted veggies in general, like these potatoes, but eggplant probably tops the list. This recipe pairs a sweet and garlicy sauce with some simple roasted ingredients for a dinner that's big on flavor but not on fussy. 

Tempeh is a vegan protein source made from fermented grains, usually including soybeans. It has a nutty taste that mixes well with roasted veggies. I buy mine at Trader Joe's, and it's both organic and affordable - look for it near the tofu.

Unlike most of my other Meatless Mondays series posts, this one takes a bit longer, because the veggies have to roast. I'd allow an hour or so for preparing and cooking this dish.

This dish is vegan-possible, because the feta cheese I used on top is not vegan, but the rest of the dish is vegan.  Simply omit the cheese or use a vegan substitute.

Roasted Eggplant and Tempeh
I used butternut squash here, cubed and frozen when squash was in-season. You can substitute the squash of your choice, or sweet potatoes. Be sure to cut the vegetables and tempeh to similar sized chunks (about 1 inch cubes), so they cook evenly. Adapted from Super Natural Every Day, by Heidi Swanson.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings

INGREDIENTS
1 medium eggplant, cubed
2 cups cubed butternut squash
1 8-oz package tempeh, cubed
Zest of one orange
Juice of one orange
1 tsp salt
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup grade B maple syrup
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheit.
2. Combine eggplant, butternut squash, and tempeh in a large mixing bowl. Combine orange zest and juice, salt, garlic, paprika, olive oil, and maple syrup in a smaller bowl, and whisk to combine. Pour about 2/3 of this sauce over the vegetable mixture, and toss to combine.
3. On a large, rimmed baking sheet, arrange the vegetable mixture in an even layer. Bake about 30 minutes, stir, and bake 15 to 30 minutes longer, until it begins to turn golden brown.
4. Place the roasted mixture into a large serving dish, drizzle with the remaining sauce, and top with the cilantro and feta cheese. Serve family-style. Enjoy!