Happy Halloween!

Some experiments go better than others...

On the left side of the page we have a simple fried chicken. Often coated with an egg wash or milk and coated with flour before being fried in oil or shortening, this recipe is most often not dairy free, egg free or wheat free.

The darker chicken on the right was an experiment. As any chef will tell you, sometimes the experiments work and sometimes they do not. This one worked...oh yes , did it work.

This particular experiment exceeded all expectations. This simple egg-free battered fried chicken recipe was absolutely delicious. Spectacular! And it was easy.

Lessons learned: Next time I will break the chicken up into smaller pieces. Smaller pieces fry faster and you don't get different temperature readings at different parts of the food.

It doesn't get any easier than this: make pancake mix according to directions on package. Coat chicken in batter. Fry at 325 degrees in Canola or similar for 3-5 minutes or until upwards of 170 degrees internal chicken temperature.

Nature's Path Organic Buttermilk Pancake Mix: Organic whole wheat flour, organic buttermilk powder, organic vital wheat gluten, granulated cane juice sugar, non-GMO baking soda, non-GMO baking powder, sea salt, tocopherols (natural vitamin E) added to enhance freshness. Made in a facility that uses wheat, soy and milk.

Tomorrow I am going to mix a batch of pancake mix, coat some chicken and perfect this recipe.

Cayenne might do the trick.

Torani Syrup

Torani Syrup caught our attention on an episode of Unwrapped on the Food Network. The segment showed people in lab coats and what looked like all sorts of elaborate research going into the development of perfect flavor combinations. The roasted marshmellow syrup is painstakingly designed and expertly engineered to taste exactly like roasted marshmellows.




We make our own ice cream, which is exactly why this segment of Unwrapped was of interest. Might we incorporate these flavors into our allergen-free ice creams? The list of Torani flavors is impressive indeed:






Almond Roca
Amaretto
Anisette
Apple
Apricot
Banana
Black Currant
Blackberry
Blueberry
Boysenberry
Brown Sugar Cinnamon
Butter Pecan
Butter Rum
Butterscotch
Creme de Cacao
Cane Sugar Sweetener
Caramel CLASSIC(The Original)
Caramel (New improved version!)
Chai Tea Spice
Cheesecake
Cherry
Cherry Lime
Chocolate Bianco(White Chocolate)
Chocolate Macadamia Nut
Chocolate Milano
Chocolate Mint
Cinnamon
Coconut
Coffee
Egg Nog
English Toffee
French Vanilla
Gingerbread
Ginger Spice
Grape
Guava
Hazelnut CLASSIC(The Original)
Hazelnut(New improved version!)
Hibiscus
Huckleberry
Irish Cream
Kiwi
Lemon
Lime
Mango
Maple
Melon
Mint (Creme de Menthe)
Blood Orange
Orange (Mandarin)
Orange (Dairy Friendly)
Orgeat (Almond)
Passion Fruit
Peach
White Peach Honeysuckle
Peanut Butter
Peppermint
Pineapple
Pink Grapefruit
Pomegranate
Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin Spice
Blue Raspberry
Raspberry
Red Raspberry (Dairy Friendly)
Root Beer
Ruby Red Grapefruit
Shortbread
Strawberry
Tiramisu
Toasted Marshmallow
Honey Vanilla
Vanilla
Vanilla Bean
Watermelon



A little experimentation in the ice cream lab might be in order...but first, let's make sure this product is allergen safe. There is a peanut flavor. We will have to look at the risks of cross-contamination.



What does it say on the Torani website?



From the website:



Peanut Butter syrup recreates the classic flavor of peanut butter in a drinkable form.

Serving Size 1 oz (30ml or 2 Tbsp.)
Amount per serving:
Calories 80
Calories from Fat 0
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0 g
0%
Sodium 0 mg
0%
Total Carbohydrate 20 g
7%
Sugar 19 g
Protein 0 g
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000-calorie diet.

No ingredients listed. We don't know if the peanut butter syrup contains peanuts from the information on the Torani website. The FAQ on the Torani website answers the usual allergens? question with the following:

To the best of our knowledge, no allergenic substances* are used in the manufacturer of our syrup base (regular or sugar-free). However, the individual natural flavorings which are added to this base may have been derived from or contain derivatives of allergenic substances. Whenever possible, we have asked our suppliers to remove unnecessary allergens but we are still left with nut flavors which have been extracted from tree nuts and contain an oil derived from peanuts, and a few flavors which have a creamy note that has been derived from a dairy source. It is a difficult balance to flavor with natural products but limit the natural compounds that may be included in the finished product. * We ask our suppliers to inform us if their products contain any of the ‘Big 8’ allergens: Peanuts, tree nuts, dairy, fish, shellfish, soy, eggs or wheat. These allergens were chosen because they are responsible for over 90% of all food allergies.

We still do not know if the Torani Peanut Butter Syrup contains peanuts, but we will contact Torani and let you know what we find out.

---

Torani products are available on Amazon and ingredients are listed for each product although not all products are listed.

The ingredients for each product are more or less the same:

Ingredients: Pure Cane Sugar, Water. Natural Flavors, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate and Potassium Sorbate (to Preserve Freshness), Caramel Color.

The colors change. Flavors...not so much. This product appears to be sugar and water and color with some preservatives and enough flavor extract to make some green sugar and water taste a little bit different from the red sugar and water .

We will be checking food allergy safety issues with Torani. Stay tuned.

Egg Free, Dairy Free, Gluten Free Chicken Tenders

(pictured as served with mashed potatoes and mushroom demi-glace.)

Baked Chicken Tenders (Gluten-Free)

Ingredients
· 1 lb chicken tenders, tendons removed.
· ¼ cup white wine
· 2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
· "breadcrumbs" (Gillian’s Foods Gluten Free)
· Italian herb mix (Penzey’s) to taste
· Shallot Salt(Penzey’s) to taste


Directions:

Mix white wine and mustard in a bowl. Add chicken and coat thoroughly.

In another bowl, mix breadcrumbs, Italian herbs and shallot salt.

Coat cookie sheet or baking dish with oil. Dredge chicken in seasoned breadcrumbs and add to baking dish. Cook in a 475 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until chicken reaches internal temperature of 170 degrees.

Serve with honey mustard dipping sauce.



M, E, W, P, S, N, Se, F, Sh

Key: M, E, W, P, S, N, Se, F, Sh

Milk-free, Egg-free, Wheat-free, Peanut-free, Soy-free, Nut-free, Sesame-free, Fish-free, Shellfish-free

Always Read Labels

This dish was crispy and delicious. No eggs, no gluten, no dairy...no common allergens at all. Make sure to cook the chicken to safe temperature but not higher.