Here’s to celebrating the beginning of my hope to inspire you and encourage you.  Not just in your kitchen, but in your daily life.  What does that look like?

I hope to inspire you to have fun in the kitchen and create dishes that nourish your body.  And I hope to encourage you to find the only true contentment I know, a life pursuing faith, hope and love in Jesus.

For all Southern women, when it comes to celebrating the beginning of something, whether it be a marriage or a baby, food is of the utmost importance.  So how about a Southern classic? Or a Southern classic with a little twist may be a better way to put it.

Paleo Fried Chicken and Waffles:

Serves 4

Ingredients for the Fried Chicken

• 1/4 cup coconut oil, palm shortening, tallow, lard, or any combination of the listed fats
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs (depending on size, 4-6)
• 2 eggs with a splash of almond, coconut milk, or water
• 1/4 cup blanched almond flour
• 1/3 cup arrowroot powder
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• a dash of cayenne for a kick (optional)
• Honey or Maple Syrup (optional)

Directions

1. In an iron skillet (or any other skillet ranging from 9-12in.)  heat your chosen fat over medium heat. It’s really important to let the oil come to temperature. You want the chicken to sizzle as soon as you put in there.
2. As the skillet is heating, in a shallow bowl whisk together the eggs and the splash of milk or water.  Grab another shallow dish and mix together all of the dry ingredients.
3. Grab your chicken thighs and dip them in the egg mixture.  Make sure to really cover them well.  As you dip each one into the egg mixture immediately follow by dredging them through the dry mixture (full coverage is the goal).  After you dredge each one, lay them aside (on another dish).
4. Once you have fully covered chicken thighs, your fat should definitely have heated up (avoid letting it smoke, if it begins to remove it from the heat for a moment or turn the heat down a notch or two).  Place the chicken thighs in the skillet, making sure not to crowd the skillet.  Most likely you will have to do this in two batches. The chicken should be sizzling! (There will probably be some oil flying. I laid paper towels around my skillet- be careful not to let them get too close to the burner though!)
5. Leave the chicken thighs to fry on each side 5-6 minutes, or until brown, puffed, and crisped. Do not worry about overcooking the thighs, they will most definitely be moist! Between your batches, make sure there is a good layer of fat covering the bottom of the skillet. 1/4 inch is a good height to shoot for. 
6. While your chicken is frying, make your waffles-  I used my favorite pancake batter recipe by Lea from Paleo Spirit as my waffle batter.  Make sure you know your waffle maker well, our waffle maker required just 3-4 minutes to cook each round of waffles. You can keep the waffles warm by placing them in a baking dish in your oven on the lowest setting. Feel free to use your favorite Paleo waffle recipe or you can find the batter recipe I used here: http://paleospirit.com/2011/coconut-flour-paleo-pancakes/
7. Once your waffles are made and your chicken is fried it’s time to assemble! Use one to two waffles for your base,  place the fried chicken on top, and then drizzle with honey or maple syrup! Devour.

Thank you again for coming to join me! Enjoy 🙂