Breaded Chicken Patties

Growing up, we frequently had breaded chicken patties for supper.  They were so good!  You know what I’m talking about…those round Tyson patties.  Well, seeing as how Mr. Right and I don’t eat those, I was happy when I ran across a homemade alternative.

I found it in a Taste of Home cookbook.  Here’s the Natural Blog version of the recipe:

¼ cup finely chopped onion

¼ cup finely chopped celery

6 tablespoons butter, divided

3 tablespoons whole wheat flour

1-1/3 cups milk or water, divided

2 tablespoons parsley flakes

2 teaspoons Real Salt

2 cups finely chopped cooked chicken (be choosey about the chicken you use)

1 cup dry bread crumbs or whole wheat flour

Homemade whole wheat buns, split

Any toppings you might like

In a large saucepan, sauté onion and celery in 3 tablespoons butter until tender.   

Combine flour and 1 cup milk (or water). I tripled my recipe...

Gradually add to pan.   

Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.   Add parsley, seasonings and chicken.  Remove from the heat.  Chill until completely cooled.  ...My chicken was still boiling so I just added the parsley and seasonings then let it cool completely.  I added my chicken later.

Shape chicken mixture into six patties, using about 1/3 cup mixture for each patty.  Place crumbs (or flour) and remaining milk (or water) in separate shallow bowls.  Rolls patties in crumbs, then dip into milk; roll again in crumbs.

In a large skillet, cook patties in remaining butter for 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown.  Serve on rolls with desired toppings.

Cooking to perfection

All done!  These are just some of them...

 Uncooked patties may be frozen for up to 3 months.  To prepare frozen patties:  Cook in butter for 5-6 minutes on each side or until golden brown.  Yield: 6 servings

These are soooo yummy!  Mr. Right and I could eat them everyday!

*Note:  I tripled my recipe to have plenty to freeze.  This will give us chicken patties to eat when baby gets here.  Also, I used water instead of milk and whole wheat flour instead of bread crumbs.  I've done it both ways and they are equally delicious.

Frozen Burritos

I remember having frozen burritos in the freezer as a kid.  We'd pop one in the microwave for a quick snack.  Well, things are different now.  We don't buy frozen burritos and we don't own a microwave.  So, here's a better solution.  Make your own!

If you remember, a while back I posted about making homemade tortillas...here

Now I've discovered that instead of cooking the tortillas..
1.  roll them out into the usual circle
2. stuff them with some homemade spanish rice, cheese and beans
3. fold them up like a chimichanga
4. freeze!

When you get read to cook them, just pop them out of the freezer and into your oven.  Not cooking the tortillas first means you won't have dry, brittle burritos.

Note: To freeze, I lay them in a baking dish and put them in the deep freeze for a few hours.  Then, once they're good and cold, remove them, wrap individually in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer bag.  done.

Ready to go in the deep freeze for a while