There used to be a big old family restaurant on the Main Street where I lived a good part of my childhood called Eisner's Restaurant.  It was a family run place and "THE" place to go if you wanted a nice place to take the family for special dinners, or to meet up with your friends or social groups for nights out and celebrations.

 

They served great food!  Going there was a real treat.  One of the most popular items on their menu was the "Seafood Platter" which had lobster, shrimps, clams, scallops, fried fish, coleslaw and chips. It was a huge platter and meant only for the heartiest of appetites.  Luckily you could also buy a "Half Seafood Platter!

 

Every Tuesday night they had Banana Split nights. You could get a Banana Split for half price. My mom and her friend Marlene used to go and treat themselves to a Banana Split every Tuesday night.  It was a great night out for them!  My parents also used to go there regularly for coffee. 

 

They shut down the Town Cinema and turned that into a family type restaurant and pub with music and Karaoke, and then Tim Horton's got built just two doors down from Eisner's and so it was only a matter of time before they ended up closing the restaurant, which was kind of sad I thought.  It was like they were shutting down a town institution . . .

 

I was thinking about my mom and how much she enjoyed those Banana Splits the other day. I had seen a recipe on line for Mini Cinnamon Sugar Churro Bowls on Tablespoon.  They were created using the smaller tortilla boats and were filled with a variety of mousses.

 

I thought to myself that this simple idea would work also for creating Churro Banana Split Boats, except you would have to use the larger tortilla boats, because well . . .  banana splits are large!

 

They were a very simple make.  I simply brushed each tortilla boat with some melted butter and sprinkled them with cinnamon sugar, baking them in a moderately hot oven until crisp and golden.

 

Then I made my candied flakes almonds to sprinkle on top.  Oh boy but these are some good and they, too, are a very easy make.  I could just munch on them.  You could also sprinkle them with sugar to continue the churro theme if you wanted to.

 

Into each baked churro boat went one banana sliced in half lengthwise . . .

 

On top of the sliced banana went three small scoops of a good vanilla ice cream. I used Cornish Clotted Cream Ice cream . . .  yum!!

 

Each ball got their own drizzle of sauce  . . .  chocolate fudge . . .  strawberry and toffee  . . .

 

Then some softly whipped cream got dolloped on top of the ice cream . . .

 

Finally I sprinkled on the candied almonds, which I broke up and crumbled a bit, leaving a few whole . . .  toasty and crunchy and scrumptiously nutty.

  

Really they should have been topped with a maraschino cherry (with a stem) to finish them off perfectly, but I didn't have any on this particular day.  These were simple, delicious and very easy to make and then went down a real treat.  I remembered my mom and how much she enjoyed her banana splits with every mouthful

 

You could do a Churro Banana Split bar for children's parties if you wanted to, making up the churro tortilla boats ahead of time and then just providing the other makings for kids to make them up themselves.  In that case I would also add some dandy sprinkles, M&M's etc. Kids would really love this idea!

 

Yes, you read that right . . .  OVEN Fried Chicken.  The eagle has landed and my oven is now up to scratch!  It took them long enough, right?  

 

Not complaining, I am just happy its working again. I love my stove, and am not keen to start over with one I'm not familiar with.   

 

My Canon and I are familiar friends . . .  partners in crime . . . we know each other well and are happy to keep it that way!  

 

To celebrate it being up and running again, I thought I would make one of my husband's favourite dinners, Oven Fried Chicken  . . . . along with Chive & Buttermilk Mash!

 

 He loves his mash.  He is a real mashed potato fiend and will eat them any way, any how, any time!  They are his preferred form of potato, even over chips! 

 

Not me. I love chips/French fries! But again, having said that, the potato is my favourite vegetable and I enjoy them in any way, shape or form!

 

The chicken is a fairly simple and easy recipe, one which I have been making for years. No, it's probably not any healthier than oil fried chicken.

 

 It is rather tasty, and not quite as messy to cook, however.  Once in a blue moon, I cook it as a real treat! And trust me, it is a treat!

 

My ex BIL used to love it when I made this chicken.  He often requested it if they were coming over for supper. 

 

I used to make about 3 roasting trays full to feed all of us, with firsts and seconds . . .  it is that good.  Even the cold leftovers are good, which makes it great for picnics as well.

 

The mash is also a favourite, with plenty of buttermilk, butter and snipped chives.  The buttermilk gives it a lovely tang.

 

Buttermilk is great with potatoes!  The chives give a touch of onion flavour, but without the sharpness and strength of an actual onion. It is just right.

 

The skin and coating on the chicken get nice and crisp in the oven.  Its really not as hard to do as frying chicken on the top of the stove.  

 

This is a lot easier, and I think it is every bit as good. In fact I prefer it in many ways.

 

You melt some butter and oil together in a baking pan first . . .  in the oven, until they are lovely and hot. While that is happening you mix together some flour and seasonings.  

 

I use mixed herbs, which are a mix of different dried herbs.  Usually equal parts of basil, oregano and marjoram . . .  all of which work well with chicken.

 

If you can't find it in the shops, mix up your own.  Just equal parts as above.  

 

The chicken pieces get rolled in the hot melted butter and oil and then shaken/rolled in the flour mixture before you place them back into the pan to bake in the oven.

  

You bake it for a time and then flip it over and bake it for a while longer, until crisp, golden brown and finger-licking, lip-smacking good! 

Prepare yourself to fall in love.  Totally and completely in love.

 

The potatoes are just as tasty and just as easy to make.  

 

Its just mashed potatoes, mashed together with some butter, buttermilk and seasoning  . . .

   

with a nice smattering of snipped chives stirred in at the end for additional flavour.  

 

If you wanted to you could also stir in some grated cheddar cheese . . . but today, I thought we were in deep enough!

 

I simply served some mixed vegetables on the side.  Coleslaw would also be very good I think!  In any case, colour me one happy camper!  Let the baking begin once more! 

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I always seem to have leftover cooked chicken in the refrigerator.  Not a problem, because I have about a bazillion and a half ways to use it up. 

 I see myself as somewhat of an expert as using up leftovers.  I hate waste.

 

I read recently that about 1.9 million tonnes of food is wasted every year in the UK.  

That's pretty disgraceful when you consider that there are roughly 785 million people in the world suffering from malnourishment at any given time.  If you have three squares a day count yourself lucky! 

 

This is a recipe I adapted  to use up some leftover cooked chicken and some tortillas that I had leftover from the crispy tortilla eggs I cooked the other day. 

 The original recipe was for BBQ Chicken & Cheese Nachos which I found here.

 

Its basically pretty similar except that I used a bit of chipotle chili paste in the chicken mixture and I didn't use tortilla chips. 

 

Instead I toasted the leftover tortillas (brush with a tiny bit of oil) over the open gas flame of my stove.  If you have never done this, you really need to try it.  

Its a real game changer! 

 

They turn out lovely  . . . . crisp almost charred edges . . .  crisp bubbled bits covering the top.  They just taste magnificent! 

 

So anyways, I gas charred my tortillas and then I topped them with the chicken mixture  . . . 

 

Which is basically a mixture of leftover  shredded cooked/rotisserie chicken, BBQ sauce and the chipotle chili paste.  

Could not seriously be any easier. 

 

Just pile that mixture on top of your toasted tortillas and then scatter some grated cheese over the top.  You can use any kind of cheese you want.  

 

I used  a medium cheddar, but Jack would be good as well, or even a spicy Mexican cheese blend.  YUM!

 

I just used what I had, which was cheddar.  We always have that in the house.  When I first moved over here I used to go to the Market in town and buy cheese ends/crumbles. 

 The guy at the cheese stall used to sell them by the bag full.  They were really cheap and great for things like this, or mac and cheese.  You never really knew what kind of cheese they were, but they always tasted fab.

 

So anyways, you just bang these into a moderate oven and bake them until the cheese is all melted and they are heated through . . . 

 

Take them out of the oven and drizzle them with a bit more BBQ sauce.  (I used Jack Daniels because that is what I had, just use your favourite kind.)

  

Scatter on some spring onions and serve . . .  oh boy, these are really yummy nummy!  You could serve a salad, or coleslaw on the side.  Coleslaw is actually excellent with these.  You can find my recipe for Creamy Coleslaw here.

 

Oh boy, but these went down a real treat!  I think we have found a whole new favourite thing around here!  Nom Nom Nom! 

 

Simple Simon met a Pie Man going to the fair, said Simple Simon to the Pie Man, let me taste your ware.  Said the Pie Man to Simple Simon, show me first your penny.  Said Simple Simon to the Pie Man, Indeed I have not any." 

Such a sad verse I think!  I can remember reading this as a child and feeling very sorry for Simple Simon.  Pies have always been one of my favourite things!

  

Everyone in my family is the same.  If it is between two crusts, sitting beneath a crust, or sitting on top of a crust . . .  we are ALL over it! 

 

Largely due in fact to  my mother's ability to make really fabulous pies, sweet or savoury.  We loved the sweet of course . . .  but we were also very fond of her savoury pies.  I don't think we had a roast dinner when I was growing up that wasn't followed by a tasty pot pie later in the week. My mother had the God given ability to make leftovers taste brand new and just as yummy, if not more yummy than the original dinner! 

 

I like to think I have somewhat inherited that ability in that I, too, can create wonderful things from leftovers.  Take for instance this delicious beef stew I made the other night.  My Todd really loves a stew, and I do also.  Sometimes I put potatoes in the stew, but he really likes potatoes on the side as mash, so more often that not I will do that.

 

So anyways I made a pretty basic stew for us for tea one night last week, using only beef, carrots, parsnips, onions, celery and swede/turnips/rutabaga . .  . leaving out the potato because Todd wanted mash.  I had in mind to serve it on two nights as there are only two of us . . .  so once again a perfect opportunity for me to make something tasty from leftovers.

  

This stew is pretty fabulous, and you an double it to serve more people if you would like.  Stews are pretty simple dishes to do and they basically (after the initial browning of the meat) cook themselves.

 

I had in mind the night after to make a simple Pie for us to enjoy, using the leftover stew.  Pretty basic really.  It was not hard.

 

I made my own pastry for it, but you could use any store bought ready rolled short crust pastry you can get.  Even puff pastry is pretty special. 

 

For myself I prefer to use my Butter Lard Pastry.  It is a beautiful pastry that always comes out very flaky and delicious.  There is something very magical and flavourful about pastry that is made with both butter and lard.  In my opinion it can't be beat! 

 

Of course I had not put any potatoes in my stew, and I wanted some in my pie. I always have tinned new potatoes in my store cupboard, which are perfect for things like this, or even just for making fried potatoes. 

 

I warmed the stew gently and added a bit of boiling stock to loosen it a tiny bit. You don't need much.  You just don't it to be really thick.  You want it a bit juicy. 

 

Then I stirred in the sliced potatoes, gently folding them into the stew so as not to break them up too much.  After that I just poured the stew into a baking dish and topped it with my pastry.  I like to get really fancy when I do a meat pie crust.  I always make fancy cuts in it and in this instance I cut out some extra pieces and stuck them on top to decorate it a bit.

 

You can brush it with some beaten egg (1 small egg, 1 tsp water) which really glazes it up nicely. Or you can brush it with some milk.  Heck, you can even just leave it alone.  All are great.  It just depends on how fiddly you want to be.

 

Then you just pop it into a hot oven (200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6) and bake until the filling is bubbling away and the pastry is crisp and golden brown.  Easy peasy.  Everyone is happy.  Obviously for a pie for two people, you will only need half the pastry.  Just wrap and freeze the other disc for another time.  For a pie for more people you can use the whole recipe and just roll it out to cover your casserole dish.  I served this with some coleslaw.  I am not bragging, but . . .  okay maybe a little bit  . . .  it was some tasty!  And it was just leftovers.  I love it when that happens!  No waste here! Happy days!