I recently revisited and updated my sour mix recipe, which you can find as part of the Whiskey Sour Day post from 2016, but this year wanted to also post another take on it that uses honey (or agave nectar, for a vegan option) instead of white sugar. See the updated sour mix recipe or see how to make your drink below.
Posts published in “Recipes”
August 25th marks Whiskey Sour Day again this year. I posted about it four years ago but this year it dawned on me: how did a day in August become Whiskey Sour Day, anyway?
I searched the internet high and low and couldn't find a suitable answer. An article from Bourbonbanter.com published in 2013, though, suggests that the day was created basically for fun, but that the drink has origins circa the 1700s when British Navy sailors would add lime juice to their rum, both to preserve the juice and to keep the sailors free from scurvy (a disease caused by a deficiency of vitamin C.)
I love using yogurt as a marinade for chicken. It works because the lactose in the dairy helps tenderize the meat but more importantly is a great carrier for flavorful spices—like cumin, turmeric, and other Indian-inspired flavors. I used 0%, non-fat but you can use 2% or even whole milk yogurt for extra richness. Either way, the yogurt chars a little when cooking and develops little, crusty bits which I think are especially delicious.
I always make sure to set aside some of the marinade at the beginning to use as a sauce for serving at the end. As a reminder, it's never a good idea to reuse marinade after it has been in contact with raw meat.
To make the recipe extra easy and mess-free, you can go the tried-and-true route of combining all of the ingredients for the marinade and the chicken in a large, gallon sized plastic bag. Zip the bag and massage to combine. You still might want to place the bag in a bowl, glass or aluminum baking dish, or on a baking sheet pan to catch any drips—just in case the bag has tiny holes that you otherwise aren't able to see.
I like the plastic bag option if I am going to be grilling elsewhere—like at a friend or a family member's house or for a BBQ at the park or beach—because it travels better and takes up less space if I am putting it into a cooler. If I am staying at home, though, I typically like to use my largest Pyrex glass bowl that has a nice, matching lid—there's no sense in using then tossing a plastic bag if I can avoid it.
The chicken is great by itself with a side of rice, couscous, or a vegetable but I especially love it served as a sandwich or a flatbread made with naan.
Start with a batch of yogurt-marinated chicken and add delicious toppings. Serve cut into large slices on a wooden cutting board to enjoy as a lunch or dinner with a side salad.
Updated 11/23/20 to include a variation on this recipe for when corn is not in season—making it a perfect side-dish for any season! Click here to see recipe variation at the end of this post.
This is not a sponsored post or endorsement made in coordination with or paid by any of the brands mentioned here—only offering a few suggestions based on things my family and I have tried and enjoyed.
Elotes, otherwise known as Mexican street corn, is a hot food trend right now for good reason: it's really, really good.
The topping is a perfect, creamy addition to fresh, sweet, in-season corn that gets sprinkled generously with Mexican-style seasoning blend and and cotija cheese.
It's very easy to make your own spice blend but you can also use one that's pre-made, if you don't have the time, such as from McCormick or tajin, which is chili and lime flavored.
Cotija is a firm cheese that typically comes wrapped in a small wheel and can be easily crumbled, similar to feta but much milder in flavor. If you can't find this in a store near you, substituting a shredded Mexican-style cheese blend or cheddar cheese blend works. Definitely try the cotija, if you have that option!
The recipe makes enough topping for about 6-8 medium ears of corn. You can always cut the corn in half, too, to double the number of portions—this is a nice idea for a buffet when you have multiple side dishes that people can choose from.
This is not a sponsored post or endorsement made in coordination with or paid by any of the brands mentioned here—only offering a few suggestions based on things my family and I have tried and enjoyed.
This is an easy Mexican spice blend that uses just five spices from your pantry. You can use it as a topping for elotes as well as for tacos, fajitas, or grilled meats—I like it on chicken or steak.
Toast your spices for maximum flavor—it's an extra step that brings out their flavor. (Admittedly, I don't always bother doing this, but here it makes a huge difference.) You can buy spices pre-toasted and ground, such as McCormick's, or make your own.
One of my favorite places online to buy spices is My Spice Sage. They have a nice assortment of whole spices, spice blends, and other pantry ingredients available in different size containers—from 2 oz bags to small glass jars, larger 8 oz and 16 oz bags, and even larger wholesale sizes. I like their lemon pepper spice blend a lot.
To toast spices, you'll need a small skillet, whole spices, and a little bit of time and attention. Add the spices to a cold skillet and turn the heat to medium. You'll want to keep the pan moving so the spices don't stay in one place for too long and burn. It only takes a couple of minutes for them to toast and during the process, they may start to crackle and pop a little bit, but they shouldn't blacken or darken considerably—if that happens, they're burnt and will taste bitter, so it's best to start over.
Also known as stuffed dates, these are a great addition to your tapas board or as a quick and simple appetizer with cocktails before a meal. They're salty, sweet, and incredibly addictive... impossible to eat just one! This recipe makes a dozen but it's foolproof: scale it to make as many as you'd like.
If blue cheese typically isn't your jam, a creamy gorgonzola is a good choice that is a little milder. If you love blue cheese as much as I do, St. Agur is fantastic, probably one of my favorite blue cheeses to both use in recipes as well as just eat by itself with some crackers, since it's so damn delicious. It's also made with vegetarian-based rennet.
