Ad: Little Birds, Big Flavor - Spatchcocking Chicken for the Grill

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for #CollectiveBias and its advertiser. #Grill4Flavor

I hope your Memorial Day Weekend is off to a great start.

Maybe your weekend will include some grill time, a backyard bash or just hanging out with the family. My weekend wouldn't be complete without a BBQ. Growing up my Dad always made BBQ chicken or burgers on the Weber. This year though, I decided to change things up by using Tyson Cornish hens instead of chicken breasts or thighs. I was going for the juicy and tender meat you get with a whole bird, but by using the technique called spatchcocking, I would enjoy a faster cooking time.

Say what? ...Yeah, it is called spatchcocking.

Far from being a medieval torture throw-back, spatchcocking is a great way to cut down your cooking time on the grill. An easy method for partially deboning a bird and it helps to flatten out the meat against the cooking surface. 

So I headed into Walmart to grab my recipe supplies.

First, I needed the lucky bird, or in this case, birds. In the center freezer island of the meat department, I found 2-packs of Tyson Cornish Hens. These were perfect. I could serve my BBQ creation 2 ways and please a hungry crowd. Plus, two small hens would easily fit on my home grill.

Then I went in search of marinade and brine ingredients. Kikkoman Soy Sauce is a favorite of mine and always a staple in my fridge, lots of umami there. 2 years ago I used it to brine our Thanksgiving bird and loved how moist and flavorful it turned out. This time I wanted to brine one of the hens and create a marinade and glaze for the other.

If you have ever combined soy sauce and chicken, you know that some things were just meant for each other...

Okay, let's take a quick peek at spatchcocking. It may sound intimidating, but is actually quite simple. I also have a quick Instagram video that highlights the 'how to' of spatchcocking chicken.

1. Assemble your tools. You will need a Cornish hen, kitchen sheers and 2 pre-soaked bamboo skewers per bird.
2. With the shears, cut down each side of the back bone.
3. Remove the back bone and flatten out the bird.
4. Trim off the wing tips and stabilize with 2 skewers inserted through the wing and out the leg on the opposite side, in a criss-cross pattern.

Now my birds were ready to soak up my brine or marinade.

While my Dad would brush and baste our meat with a jarred BBQ sauce, I wanted to create a sweet and savory marinade with Asian flavor. For the first bird I went for an apricot glaze that would also work as a marinade. Whip this up and marinate the bird overnight, or at least for 4 hours.

 

Apricot Marinade

Your will need:

• 1/2 c. apricot preserves
• 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. Kikkoman Soy Sauce
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• 1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. freshly ground ginger root
• 2 tsp. dried chives

Whisk together all the ingredients and  pour over chicken in baking dish. Cover with kitchen wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours or more. Remove the chicken before cooking and pat dry before adding to the grill.

Create more of the marinade to baste the bird with as it grills for a tasty glaze.

For the second hen I went with an overnight brine. Truly a classic way to impart flavor for the grill. Just whisk together the soy sauce, salt and herbs and let the chicken sit overnight in the fridge, or at least 4 hours before patting dry and heading to the grill.

Savory Chicken Brine

You will need:
8 c. water
2 tsp. dried sage
2 tsp. celery seed
1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1/2 c. kosher salt
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. Kikkoman Soy Sauce

Whisk together all the ingredients in a medium stock pot. For this recipe, don't skewer the bird until after it has brined. Make sure the hen is completely coverd and let it brine for at least 4 hours, or overnight. To grill, remove from the brine, pat dry and add the soaked bamboo skewers to hold the bird flat against the grill.

So now that the Cornish hens are infused with great flavor they are ready to BBQ. I am not a grill expert, usually that is my husband's area of expertise. Even so, I was thrilled with how these turned out. My hens took less than 10 minutes per side. Keep your meat thermometer handy so you can get an exact internal temperature for perfectly cooked birds.

I served mine on a platter of greens with lemon wedges. Just a little acid was a great compliment to the flavors already in the meat.

Served up alongside wild rice and roasted brussel sprouts, this was our dinner. This is how we #Grill4Flavor around here.

Does this look good, or what? 

Now, if inspiration has hit, be sure to grab a $2 off coupon when you purchase both a Tyson Cornish Game Hen Twin pack and 10 oz. Kikkoman sauce together. You can find coupons on neck hangers around participating 10 oz. Kikkoman sauce bottles starting June 1st, or head over to coupons.com starting May 15th through September 30th or while supplies last.

Be sure to check out Tyson on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram for more great products and ideas as well as Kikkoman's Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and Instragram account for even more creative ways to use soy sauce in your kitchen.

Ready to get grilling? Have you ever grilled Cornish hens?

Connect in New Ways with Playtex Bottles and Nipples

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for Collective Bias and its advertiser. #CollectiveBias

I  spent the past 8 months bonding with my baby by nursing exclusively, but as he starts to explore the world around him and becomes mobile, I am comfortable spending a little more time outside the home and away from my little guy. You know the feeling of playing on the floor with you kids during the day and hearing the same toy sounds over and over - I deserve a little time off for good behavior, right?

Recently I have had more events come up that are not baby friendly. As much as I would love to baby wear my son to a recognition dinners or evening events, he is quickly outgrowing that. Yes, he has learned the power of the baby scream and wants to move on his own. Gone are the days of him being content with just being held.

In order to retain my Mommy sanity I need to keep up my own connections with friends and activities that I enjoy. I miss grabbing coffee or taking a local crafting class. I want a few more date nights with my husband outside the home, too, and more quality time with my older children. Whether Daddy takes the baby, or he stays with his Grandparents or a babysitter, I am ready for my nurser to take an occaisional bottle. Now I just needed to find a good bottle.

While grabbing a few of our week's essentials, I checked out the baby section at Walmart. There is a whole wall of bottle options and nipples of every size, shape and flow.

Have you seen all the current choices out there?

I selected Playtex, a brand I used for my first baby bottles over 6 years ago. The name is the same, but the products have changed. I went with the Playtex Nurser with Drop-Ins Liners. This seemed  the easiest choice for a babysitter or even my husband to use if I was out.

Bottle washing is not my favorite chore, and the disposable liners mean there isn't a big mess to clean up. The liner just slips right in, the top and nipple slide into place. There are arrows on the top and bottle that match up to show me when the top is secure. Then you can use the bottle as is, or the slide the bottle to an angled position to promote semi-upright feeding.

I also selected the Natural Latch Nipples to go with the bottle hoping they would be the most like nursing for my son.

Assembly was fast and easy. But, then came the ultimate test. Could my husband successfully feed Elliott with the new bottle?

Elliott had no idea what Daddy was up to at first, but he didn't refuse the bottle of milk. After a few minutes he settled down and enjoyed his special time with Dad.

This was a rare moment. It was a few minutes after the older children were in bed that my husband made a connection with his youngest son. He is usually busy farming all day and doesn't have many opportunities like this to stop and enjoy the baby. I enjoyed watching the two of them bond through the feeding.

Yeah, I think they will be just fine while I go out. Now the question is, what will I do first?

You can connect with Playtex on Facebook or on Twitter to hear all about upcoming products and promotions.

With the freedom of Playtex bottles and nipples, what new connections will you make?

The Perfect Breakfast Recipe: Hungry Jack Crepes, Jif Spreads and Folger's Coffee

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community. I used Hungry Jack® Complete Buttermilk Pancake & Waffle Mix to create this easy and delicious crepe recipe to enjoy with my morning Folger's Coffee This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and its client. 

My family looks forward to our Sunday morning breakfasts and I think breakfast sets the tone for my entire day. I would love to add more variety to our usual menu, but time and habit have me usually making the standard pancakes or waffles. I know my family always enjoys them, but I would like to mix things up. To feed a hungry crew of 5 though, I need to keep things simple.

This week instead of the usual breakfast, I grabbed the same mix and gave it a little twist. Crepes are something we usually reserve for ordering in restaurants, but I was surprised to find  they are easy to make at home using the same ingredients I would be using for those pancakes.

Of course, this Mom can't make anything before her morning cup of coffee. Crepe morning was special, so I grabbed a flavored coffee. Growing up my Dad always bought Folger's Coffee and when I was at Walmart I noticed the Cinnamon Swirl flavor. Yum!

I have been known to flavor my own coffee, but this was easier. It was the perfect blend of spice and coffee to get me ready to tackle crepe making.

Instead of making the mix with just water, I added in enough water for a thinner batter, a little sugar and eggs. Then I let the batter rest for a half an hour in the refrigerator. I heard the batter will not rise when cooked if it sits beforehand. Crepes should be as thin as possible and not puffy.

A good non-stick skillet and non-stick spray are essential for getting the crepe to flip during cooking. I tried butter, but the spray gave me a higher success rate. My first few crepes were a flop. What did I learn?

• Thin batter is key
• Don't add too much batter to the skillet. 2 Tbsp. really is enough!
• Gently loosen the crepe with your spatula
• Allow the crepe to cook enough on one side before attempting to flip it. I found if the surface looked wet at all, it would fall apart when I tried to move it.

Now that I had the hang of it, I was in full crepe making mode. I think I might even be better at crepe making now than making pancakes.

When I lived in Japan there was a little crepe stall in the next town over that I frequented on the weekend. It had a huge board with all the topping possibilities you could choose from. Really the sky is the limit to what you can enjoy inside your crepes!  I always ordered mine with chocolate and fresh fruit. So, this morning I wanted to recreate that with items from my pantry.

I filled mine with a smear of Jif® Chocolate Flavored Hazelnut Spread for the chocolate. If you are feeling really adventurous, I highly recommend adding in some Jif® Natural Creamy Peanut Butter Spread for an added treat.

Then I topped my crepes with blueberries, folded them up and dusted them with powdered sugar.

Now crepes aren't only reserved for restaurants. With a simple mix and delicious spreads, I can serve my family a restaurant-style treat at home anytime. Paired with my Cinnamon Swirl Coffee from Folger's this was my simple breakfast solution.

The recipe with printable PDF version are below.  You can find other great Hungry Jack recipes on their website.

Think outside the box. How would you enjoy your Hungry Jack pancake mix?