Republished from May 2010.

Mmm…funnel cakes. There’s nothing like them in the world. And when I found this funnel cake recipe (submitted by HeatherD) on Tasty Kitchen not long ago, I immediately printed it out and put it on the top of the stack of Tasty Kitchen recipes to try before I croak.

It’s becoming a rather large stack.

Funnel Cakes, for those of you who aren’t familiar, are a standard carnival treat. A thin batter is poured through—get ready—a FUNNEL directly into hot oil and fried until golden, then topped with plenty of powdered sugar…

And then the world becomes a sweeter place.

 

Here’s what you need: flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, eggs, vanilla, and milk. I use whole milk whenever I can in desserts and baked (and fried) goods, but any milk you have should be fine.

Start by throwing the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, salt) into a bowl.

Whisk them together to combine.

Add eggs, milk, and vanilla.

Whisk it together until everything’s all combined.

Check the consistency…

And splash in more milk if you need it. NOTE: The recipe called for 2 1/4 cups of milk, but I probably wound up adding an additional 1/2 cup of milk to get the thinness I thought it might need.

That’s better. And watch…

You can drizzle it around in the bowl a little…

And practice your funnel cake making skills.

When you’re ready (and the oil is hot), throw some of the batter into a…

Are you ready?…

FUNNEL.

Now, first I’m going to show you the wrong way to make a funnel cake.

If you hold the funnel to far away from the surface of the oil…

The batter can scatter in little pieces and not form into a cohesive, neat funnel cake.

But if you hold the funnel close to the oil (though obviously not IN the oil), you can make sure it stays together.

Just move the funnel around in a circle until it gets to the size you want. Let it brown on one side, then carefully flip it over to the other.

When it’s finished cooking, remove it and set it on a stack of paper towels.

Break out the powdered sugar and the sifter, and sprinkle it on thick.

I love funnel cakes!

Then just pull it apart and chow down! Eat it while it’s warm and crispy. Delicious.

These are really easy to make, and so delicious. The only thing that’s a little tricky is just getting the hang of drizzling the batter into the oil, and making sure the oil is hot enough to cook and crisp the funnel cakes, but not so hot that the cake will immediately burn.

Also, HOT OIL: Keep the pan on one of the back burners if you have little kids.

Enjoy! THANK YOU to HeatherD for sharing this great recipe. I loved it.

Note: By popular demand, we’re featuring this recipe again. Great reports across the board!

I originally loved the looks of this recipe, submitted by Tasty Kitchen member lillieknits, because I knew I had almost all the ingredients in my kitchen (important, since I don’t live around the corner from a grocery store)…and because the sauce contained both tomatoes and cream. Yum. My favorite.

 
But after I made it…oh, boy. Was I a believer. Definitely delicious and flavorful, but also extremely easy to throw together. It’s a great addition to any dinner rotation!

You need these spices…AND ground coriander, which I didn’t have in my pantry.

Chop up several cloves of garlic.

And throw everything in a mixing bowl! Chicken breasts, garlic, all the spices…and the juice of a whole lime. Cover the bowl and stick it in the fridge for several hours, just to let everything meet and fall in love.

After marinating the chicken, dice up a whole onion.

Heat 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter in a large skillet.

Let the onions cook for several minutes…

…Until they’re golden brown and translucent.

Next, Add the chicken breasts to the pan. I sort of scooted the onions over so the chicken would go right against the pan.

Cook the chicken for a couple of minutes, then flip it to the other side.

Pour in the tomato sauce…

And the diced tomatoes. Now cover the pan and cook it for 30 minutes.

Right before serving, pour in the cream. Of course.

Try to pour it all around the edges of the pan to make it easy to stir together.

Come on. This is absolutely too much for me. And you should smell it!

Just slowly stir around the chicken—you could even remove the chicken for a minute or two to make it easy to stir.

When it’s all combined, throw in a bunch of chopped cilantro.

Stir it to combine, and make sure the sauce heats back up.

And that’s it!

The recipe says to serve it over Basmati rice, but I didn’t have any…so I just used plain white rice.

The Verdict: It was splendid! The tomato/cream mixture combined with the spices…oh, man. I loved it. (FYI: According to Erika, Butter Chicken is also known as “Chicken Makhani”.)

Here’s the printable recipe:

Butter Chicken

Thank you for sharing, lilliekits!

I continue to love, adore, and revere panko.

Panko are Japanese breadcrumbs, and are lighter and flakier than regular breadcrumbs. They absorb less oil, too, so after baking or frying they still have an incredibly crunchy texture.

Here’s what I really love: topping casseroles with panko breadcrumbs. They’re the modern day crushed potato chips or corn flakes. I make a zucchini and tomato casserole that’s absolutely transformed by the crunch of panko. I once made an Eggplant Parmesan with panko that pretty much changed my entire life. Just check out this list of recipes on Tasty Kitchen that use panko break crumbs…its magic can’t be denied!

Panko Recipes on Tasty Kitchen

Baked pastas are probably my favorite things to top with Panko. As perfectly delicious as they are on their own, the little crunch (and subtle flavor) that panko crumbs bring is such a treat. Try it on your favorite baked pasta dish; you’ll see what I mean!

Here’s a good, basic Mac & Cheese dish that’s perfect for your Labor Day potluck. Topped with beautiful tomatoes and panko crumbs, it’s pretty, crunchy…and will make you swoon.

 

Start by grating a pound of cheese. I’m using cheddar and Fontina, but you can use any combination of cheese you’d like. (You can even throw in some Gorgonzola or goat cheese. Yum.)

In a skillet melt 1/2 stick of butter over medium-low heat.

Sprinkle 1/4 cup of flour over the melted butter.

Whisk the flour into the butter until it’s totally combined.

Next, pour in 2 1/2 cups of milk.

Measure a couple of teaspoons of mustard powder.

Dump it in, and whisk, cooking the mixture for 2 to 3 minutes or until it starts to deepen in color. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and plenty of black pepper.

The mixture will be thick enough to coat a spoon.

Throw in the cheese!

Stir it together until the cheese melts.

Throw in the cooked pasta and stir it together.

Now rub the bottom of a baking dish with butter.

Pour the pasta in the dish…

And smooth it out to even the surface.

Now grab the package of panko crumbs…

And coat the surface generously! I’m not talking a tablespoon here, folks. I’m talking a bunch. You want to taste that crunch!

Now, slice up some Roma tomatoes. Not too thin—you’ll need them to hold together during the baking process.

Arrange them neatly over the surface of the dish.

Pretty! Now sprinkle the tomatoes lightly with salt and pepper.

Now add another layer of panko crumbs. Trust me. You want the tomatoes to be crunchy, too!

Now bake it at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. At the end, turn on the broiler and let it brown the top a little more. Watch it the whole time, though! You don’t want to burn this beauty.

 

And it is a beauty.

Look at the gorgeous topping!

What I love about this, too, is that the tomatoes make it easy to divide portions. Every portion gets a tomato!

I love it when the world makes sense.

And I love this macaroni and cheese.

Throw some panko crumbs onto your next pasta or vegetable casserole. They really change things up.

Enjoy!

Here’s a link to the printable. Make it for Labor Day. Speaking from experience, it’s almost more delicious at room temperature!

Mac and Cheese…and Panko

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This is the last in a series of posts featuring Kikkoman panko crumbs (though it will hardly be the last time I use them!) Special thanks to Kikkoman for sponsoring this series.

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