e cooks: buttermilk fried chicken & macaroni and cheese

05 April 2014

Another Sunday, another indulgent food fest.

This time, it was in the comfort of our own home. E wore his chef's hat again and got to work in the kitchen for quite the feast.

We had been especially healthy throughout the week, so he thought we should just go all out and do this the American way - fried chicken and mac n' cheese.

Of course, I did the reasonable wife thing - "No dear, we can't have both deep fried meat and cheese covered carbs in one meal."

I definitely did not say, "Ohhh and what would be for dessert?"

...anyway, he used his beloved Thomas Keller's books Ad Hoc (for the chicken) and Bouchon (for the macaroni gratin), but you can find the recipes here and here.

The fried chicken recipe isn't your standard, straight-forward option - you have to brine the chicken to season it perfectly, which has to be done at least 6 hours in advance. And the macaroni gratin is definitely not anything close to your Kraft box - it's a fancy pants one with flavourful Mornay sauce and a very rich and deep taste (and very addictive).

Overall, it was a big success - and it was far too dangerous to keep the leftovers at home, so we gave them to our friends for their dinner. Always a good trick if you want to be nice to your friends and to your waistline!

I was officially the sous-chef, but unless sous-chefs are supposed to abandon their jobs in order to shove the camera in the chef's face/hands/food, I'm probably fired by now.

I did make great virgin Mojitos though (lime juice, mint, a squirt of Agave nectar), so maybe that makes up for it?
























p.s. yes, I took a page out of Honest Burgers' book and picked up some colourful paper straws. They are pretty magical.


15 comments:

  1. That looks absolutely yummy! Can I pop round for dinner? :)

    Caroline x
    Cocktails and Caroline

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  2. That looks delicious!! I may definitely have to try that some night when we're missing food from home. :)

    Brittny
    www.awrittenjourney.com

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  3. That looks so good - but probably not a good idea to be reading this blog post so early in the morning before breakfast!!

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  4. That macaroni cheese looks incredible - I want a recipe! :) You're a lucky girl to have such a fab chef for a husband!

    Tamsin xx | A Certain Adventure

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  5. *drooools* even though I am a vegetarian, this
    must taste great c: What a chef your man is!
    And your virgin mojito sounds delish! Xx

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  6. So when are you going to make a cook book! Holy cow you put my photography to shame!!! You are so amazing! I didn't even bother to read the post I was so distracted by the wonderful imagery!

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  7. Since I'm on a wedding diet right now I'm going to have to ask you from refrain from posting anymore recipes like this. I nearly cried when I saw your instagram picture yesterday. ;)

    Really though - looks amazing! I really want to setup shop for awhile in your kitchen.

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  8. Great post and gorgeous photos!! Ha I'm also on my wedding diet and being careful too!!
    Lots of love,
    Angie

    SilverSpoon London

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  9. oh my gosh that looks so good. we do that too -- eat well during the week and give ourselves a treat over the weekend :)

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  10. Can I just say… this looks IMMENSE! Another great food plate from E. <3 x

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  11. Omg you guys are TOO MUCH I freaking LOVE when you post about the amazing things you cook at home! I loled at those things you definitely said/didn't say...I would DEFINITELY have done the same ;] Both of those dishes and the drinks look amazing, I'm hungry haha.

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  12. This looks sooo delicious! I haven't made a chicken crusted baked/fried dish in sooo long! I totally want some battered and spiced chicken right now! And that Mac and cheese bake is sooo mouth watering, I'd sit down and eat half of that by myself!

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  13. My mouth is watering, the combination of the food itself and your gorgeous photography is just too much haha! Why is it that the unhealthy meals have to be so delicious. Very jealous of you having such an awesome chef to hand :)

    http://thelittlehappys.blogspot.com xx

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  14. That looks absolutely delicious. Southern food is amazing and fried chicken, when done properly has to be one of the top comfort foods I have ever had.

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