Baked Sweet Hawaiian Chicken

from Life in the Lofthouse

Notes: Was fairly easy and yummy. The chicken was good with the cornstarch instead of usual flour. The kids were pleasantly surprised and liked it.

Baked Sweet Hawaiian Chicken

Prep Time:25 Min Cook Time:1 Hr

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

Sauce Ingredients

• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 Tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped (seeds removed)
• 1 (20 oz.) can pineapple tidbits, drained

Instructions

• 1
  Preheat oven to 325° F. Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
• 2
  Cut chicken breasts in bite-size pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Place cornstarch in a large bowl, and eggs in a separate medium bowl. Dip chicken pieces in cornstarch to coat, then coat in eggs.
• 3
  Heat vegetable oil in a large, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook coated chicken, in batches so you don't over-crowd pan, until golden-brown on all sides. (You're not cooking it all the way through. It will finish in the oven.) Place chicken in the prepared dish.
• 4
  In a medium bowl whisk together the sauce ingredients; pineapple juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, garlic and cornstarch. Pour evenly over chicken. Sprinkle the tops of chicken with the chopped bell pepper and pineapple.
• 5
  Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour. (I stir the chicken every 15 minutes so it gets evenly coated in sauce.) Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

life in the lofthouse http://life-in-the-lofthouse.com/

Santa Maria Trip Tip & Spice Rub

from Jessica Gavin

Notes: This tasted great! She has some good tips on the blog with the recipe for cooking tri-tip. I think resting the meat is especially important. Put rub on about 8 am and cooked about 5pm and seemed enough time for it to marinate. Mom said some people like to cook first and sear at the end.

SANTA MARIA STYLE TRI-TIP

Santa Maria style tri-tip recipe perfect for grilling during barbecue season! A smoky, sweet and spicy rub adds instant flavor to this tender cut of beef.

Course Entree  Cuisine American  Prep Time 30 minutes  Cook Time 60 minutes  Servings  servings US ImperialMetric

INGREDIENTS

• 3 pounds tri tip silver skin, and fat removed

Dry Rub- (1/2 cup)

• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 2 teasoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon cumin , McCormick
• 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 teaspoons black pepper ground

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine all dry rub ingredients in a small container and set aside.
2. Trim the silver skin and fat layer from the trip tip. Place the tri-tip on a sheet of plastic wrap.
3. Generously coat the tri-tip with about 4 tablespoons of dry rub, 2 tablespoons on each side. Store extra dry rub in an airtight container for later use.
4. Tightly wrap the seasoned tri-tip and refrigerate until ready to use. Allow the rub to settle into the meat for at least 3 hours up to 3 days.
5. When ready to grill, remove the seasoned tri-tip from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature, about 1 hour.
6. Clean grill and lightly oil using a paper towel dipped in vegetable oil.
7. Heat the grill to medium-high if using a gas grill. Once grill is very hot, place the meat on the grill, searing one side for 10 minutes with the lid open.
8. Turn tri-tip over and sear for another 10 minutes. Turn heat down to medium and close the lid.
9. Allow the meat to cook for about 15-25 minutes, checking temperature until the thickest part of the meat reaches 120-125°F (medium rare), 130-135°F (medium doneness).
10. The meat will continue to cook after being removed from the heat, so stop cooking at a temperature a few degrees lower than the desired doneness.
11. Remove the tri-tip from the grill and allow to rest wrapped loosely in foil for at least 15 minutes before slicing. The foil will catch any juices from the meat, which can be added back to the meat after slicing for more flavor.
12. Thinly slice the tri-tip against the grain. Serve with your favorite BBQ sauce or on a French roll.