Game Day Baked Wings & Blue Cheese Dressing

 

My husband is a sports guy, through and through.  He lives, eats and breathes sports.  Baseball, Hockey, Basketball...and (ugh) Football.  There are a lot of women out there who like sports. Unfortunately, I am not one of them.  I kind of like Baseball.  I can get through a quarter or two of Basketball.  I can tolerate Hockey (from the other room).  But I hate, hate, hate football.  HATE IT.  Every Sunday is a waste of a day.  I couldn't get my husband off the couch if I set it on fire.  There's the pre-pre-game, where they discuss what they're going to talk about the during the pre-game.  Then the pre-game, where they discuss who they think is going to win, and stats and a bunch of other crap I don't care about.  Then FOURTEEN games. (FOURTEEN OF THEM!!)  Then the post-game, where they discuss every single highlight of every single game.  Then the post-post-game where they discuss the highlights of the post-game coverage.  I just can't.  I dread football season like you couldn't imagine.
 
Anyway, during football season, I busy myself in the kitchen.  I'm making food for my husband and his friends so he won't force me to watch the games with him.  It's a win/win for everyone.  So this Sunday, I begrudgingly kicked off football season with one of my favorite game-day recipes.  This recipe is for my baked version, which is healthier than the fried version - well, as healthy as chicken wings can be.  If my husband is going to eat junk food all Sunday, every Sunday, I'm going to try to give him the healthiest things I can.  And did I mention they're super easy?
 

(I realized after I took this pic that I grabbed Frank's Red Hot Wing Sauce at the store. 

I had some Frank's Regular on hand and switched to that but forgot to snap a new pic)

Game Day Baked Wings
 
2 lbs. Chicken Wings (cut at the joint, with weird little wing-tip removed)
2/3 c. of Hot Sauce (I like Frank's, but you could use another)
8 Tbsp. Margarine
2 (heaping) Tsp. Crushed or Pureed Garlic
Salt & Pepper to taste

• Preheat oven to 435°.  Arrange wings, skin side up, on a rack that fits within a sheet pan.  The wings need to drain some of their fat so they get crispy.  You don't want them sitting in a puddle of oil.

• Salt and pepper the wings liberally.
• Bake them for 20-30 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 160° and the outside is crispy and golden brown.  Turn them over after about 20 minutes to crisp up the other side.  You can certainly leave them in longer if you want a crispier skin.  It's very hard to over cook or dry out wings because of their high fat content.
• While the wings are baking, start preparing your wing sauce.  In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, melt margarine oven medium heat.  (Just a side note: I prefer margarine because it blends better with the hot sauce and doesn't separate like butter can.  You can absolutely use butter or even a butter substitute if you prefer).  You can also dial back the margarine a little for a spicier sauce.

 

• When the butter has just melted add the garlic.  Allow it to cook in the hot butter for 1-2 minutes.
• Add the hot sauce and salt, and whisk until completely blended.  Allow to cool slightly.

• When wings are ready, remove from the oven and let them cool for 3-5 minutes.  Pour a little sauce in the bottom of a mixing bowl and add a portion of wings.  Toss to coat.  Serve immediately. 

• When I'm cooking for a crowd, I'll serve with celery & carrot sticks and Blue Cheese Dressing.  (Recipe below).  This weekend it was just me and my husband and my grocery store didn't have buttermilk in stock, so I skipped the dressing. But it is a delicious accompaniment to the wings.

Blue Cheese Dressing

4 oz. Blue Cheese or Gorgonzola
1/3 c. Sour Cream
1/3 c. Buttermilk
1/4 c. Mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. White or White Wine Vinegar
1 Pinch of Sugar
Freshly Ground Black Pepper and Salt to taste

Mash the Blue Cheese or Gorgonzola with a fork, inside a mixing bowl.  Add the Sour Cream, Buttermilk, Mayo, Vinegar, Sugar, Salt and Pepper.  Combine well.  Serve or store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.


Here is what was left after my husband's third helping...

Enjoy!

xoxo Kristen

P.S.  The wings and sauce are gluten free!  The dressing is not.

Celiac Disease Can Suck It

So, I'm sure you're all wondering about the title of this post.  I'll get to that.  First, I'd like to apologize for my unintentional hiatus.  I know you've all been waiting with bated breath for my next blog post, but sometimes life, and all its nonsense, has a habit of getting in the way.  I was recently diagnosed with Celiac Disease and it turned my entire world upside down.  My diagnosis consumed every waking moment of my life.  I get it.  It's not the worst diagnosis someone can receive.  I certainly know there are people out there with much more serious illnesses.  But it was pretty rough for me.  

 

To put it in perspective, as I've mentioned in previous posts, I am a die hard foodie.  I love to cook.  I love to eat.  My life pretty much revolves around food.  Family time, holidays, celebrations, almost any occasion I can think of involves food, and usually, me preparing said food.  When I found out I had Celiac it was almost like a small part of me died.  I felt like I would never enjoy food again.  I was incredibly depressed and the finality of knowing I can NEVER eat gluten again made me angry and scared. I know, that sounds so dramatic, but it's true.  I first went through the denial stage.  I flat-out refused to go gluten free.  REFUSED.  I didn't want give up the foods I loved so much - bread, pasta, pizza...  I also didn't want to impose this burden on my family.  They didn't deserve to be deprived because of my illness.  It was all too much to bear.  At the urging of my doctor and my husband, I finally decided to suck it up and just do it.  The health complications associated with long-term Celiac Disease are scary enough that I thought it at least deserved a chance.  I did it and I'm still doing it. I wish I could be all Polly Positive and say "Oh, being gluten free is great!  I feel awesome and it's so easy!  Gluten free choices are delicious and I don't miss regular bread at all!"  Truth is, this sucks.  It really sucks. But...it is what it is.  I don't want to die because I couldn't give up bread.

I've been quietly mourning the loss of gluten from my diet but the biggest problem for me is, before I started on this blogging endeavor, I had compiled recipes, food tips, and all kinds wonderful food related things.  I had a whole holiday menu planned for the fall and winter that I couldn't wait to prepare and photograph - and of course eat.  Now, 90% of those planned recipes are out the window.  I had to make a decision as to what to do about this blog.  I was literally at a loss for words.  Do I carry on and pretend like I don't have Celiac?  Prepare all those delicious things I can't eat?  Or do I take everyone on this journey with me?  Essentially, I have to learn how to cook all over again.  That's no easy task. So I've decided on a compromise.  When possible, I'm going to give you my original recipes with the gluten-free equivalent.  Or give you some of my regular ol' recipes (which just so happen to be gluten free) that were already part of my repertoire.  Let's face it, I'm not an authority on Gluten Free cooking so I have to do some research before including ingredients in recipes.  Bear with me during this process.  I've been educating myself as much as possible over the last few weeks and I'm feeling more confident, but I still have a long way to go.  I still want to eat delicious food.  I still want to serve my family food they can enjoy.  And I certainly want to provide you, my readers, with the best information possible.  I'm not trying to be the Gluten-Free Guru, I fully intend to still be me - witty and charming as always.  And I mean that in the most humble way possible.

I'll be honest, since going gluten free, I do feel better.  I can get through a meal, enjoy it and feel satisfied instead of sick.  It's a feeling I haven't experienced in years.  Many of my symptoms have subsided. And for all of Celiac Disease's down sides, feeling better and making changes for my health are definitely a few of the ups. I'm getting through it and making the best of it.  It's still summer, so I'm still grilling and eating fresh, seasonal produce, and that has eased the transition for me. However, I fear the fall and winter.  My cookie-baking, stew-making, pasta-preparing, gravy-laden winter menu is going to be the true test for me.  

So please, stick around.  Even if you're not gluten free.  There will be plenty of crafts, cleaning tips, parenting stuff and recipes of the regular and gluten free variety.  It's back to business as usual here at Stumbling Through Suburbia.  Thanks for your patience.

xoxo Kristen

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