Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Ok, this recipe is hands down, one of the best things I make. It is so simple, so quick...and SO good! I have said many times that I love, love, love buffalo chicken anything. And pizza's alright too. I don't love pizza, but every once in a while, I do crave it. But, one way to make something go from alright to amazing is to buffalo chicken-ize it!

I've been making this pizza since Mr. Z and I got married, and it's on our regular rotation. We have this pizza about once every few weeks. For some reason, I've never thought to blog about it because it's so simple, but when I made it a few days ago, I decided to go ahead and blog it. My buffalo chicken pizza is all buffalo chicken-y. No tomato sauce, onions, or celery...not my style. This recipe is great! If you are a huge buffalo chicken fan like I am, you have to try this recipe!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza
Original Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. olive oil
8 oz. chicken breast, chopped into small pieces
2 tbsp. butter or margarine
1/2 c. Frank's Buffalo Wing sauce
1 lb. ball of pizza dough
1/4 c. bleu cheese dressing
8 oz. Italian blend shredded cheese

Heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Cook chicken until just done. Add butter and buffalo wing sauce and mix well to fully coat all of the chicken. Let cool slightly.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll dough ball into a circle. Spread with bleu cheese dressing, leaving about 1/2" around the edges. Top with chicken. Sprinkle cheese evenly over the pizza. Bake on pizza stone for about 30 minutes, or until cheese starts to brown and get bubbly.

Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

Here I go again with the buffalo chicken kick. I have actually decided that I love buffalo chicken anything so much, it deserves its own category!

I have been seeing quite a few versions of this recipe floating around the internet and I have always thought it looked amazing. But most of the recipes looked pretty involved. And I was right about that- it took about an hour and a half from start to finish and dirtied a bowl, a Pyrex dish, a pot, and 2 pans, not even counting the plates and silverware we ate with (...and the bowls we had dessert in). While this recipe was excellent, it's something I will probably only make again when I have a lot of time to prepare it. Last night, we didn't end up eating dinner until 9pm by the time it was done!

Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

from Noble Pig, written as I made it

Ingredients:
5 tbsp. butter
1 lb. elbow macaroni
1 lb. chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1 tbsp. minced garlic
3/4 c. Frank's Buffalo Wing sauce
2 tbsp. flour
2 tsp. dry mustard
2 1/2 c. half and half (I used fat free)
8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
6 oz. shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
2/3 c. sour cream (I used fat free)
1 c. panko
1/2 c. bleu cheese crumbles
cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously spray a 9x13 Pyrex pan with cooking spray. Cook pasta in salted water, until al dente. Drain and set aside. Meanwhile, melt 1 tbsp. of butter over medium heat. Add chicken and garlic, cook for about 3 minutes, or until brown. Add 1/2 c. wing sauce, stir, and cook until it starts to thicken.

In another pan, melt 2 tbsp. of butter over medium heat. Add flour and mustard and stir until smooth. Whisk in the half and half and remaining 1/4 c. of wing sauce. Cook until it starts to thicken. Mix in cheddar cheese, Monterrey Jack cheese, and sour cream and cook until smooth. Pour chicken mixture and cheese mixture over the pasta and stir until well mixed. Pour the macaroni into the Pyrex dish.

In a small bowl, melt the remaining 2 tbsp. of butter. Stir in panko and bleu cheese crumbles. Sprinkle mixture over macaroni. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until top starts to brown and bubble.

Boneless Buffalo Wings

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...I love, love, love anything and everything buffalo flavored! I love buffalo wings, but boneless buffalo wings are so much less messy and easier to make (in my opinion, anyway).

I buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts for $1.97/lb. at Sam's Club on a regular basis, but I usually only cook for the two of us, and as we all know, Sam's Club only sells things in huge quantities. So I freeze most of them in Ziploc bag, with two chicken breasts in each, so I can easily defrost just enough for dinner. And usually, when I thaw out chicken breasts for dinner, the first thing that pops in my head is some kind of buffalo chicken. This recipe is great, and not so bad for you because it is baked. I have combined several different recipes to make something that sounded just right to me, so I'm calling this an original recipe.

Boneless Buffalo Wings
Original Recipe

Ingredients:
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
1 c. flour
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
1/4 c. breadcrumbs
1/4 c. BBQ Pringles, finely crushed
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c. buffalo wing sauce, or more to taste
2 tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
Cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Mix flour, parmesan cheese, Pringles, and bread crumbs in a gallon-sized Ziploc bag. Dip chicken pieces into beaten egg, then drop in Ziploc bag, about 1/4 of the chicken at a time. Shake bag until all pieces are fully coated.

Place coated chicken on a greased cookie sheet. Spray tops with cooking spray. Bake for 7-8 minutes, turn over, spray tops with cooking spray, and bake 7-8 on the other side. Put chicken in a large bowl, cover with wing sauce and butter, and mix well until all pieces are coated. Put back in the oven and bake for 3-4 minutes.

Bleu Cheese Stuffed Buffalo Chicken Burgers

If you give me buffalo chicken anything, I'll be your friend. That has quickly become one of my favorite foods...or, rather, food groups. If I'm at a restaurant and something buffalo flavored is on the menu, 9 times out of 10, I'm getting it. I love all kinds of chicken wings, but the best is just plain ol' hot. As far as wings go, the spicier the better. And let's face it, bleu cheese makes anything better!

I took a package of ground chicken out of the freezer for dinner last night, and knowing that we wouldn't be home until pretty late, I decided we would have some type of chicken burger. Well, it didn't take long to decide what kind of chicken burger it would be. These were so good, but for my taste, I had to add extra sauce to the patty after it was done. Mr. Z thought it was perfect the way it was.

Bleu Cheese Stuffed Buffalo Chicken Burgers
Original Recipe

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground chicken
2 oz. bleu cheese crumbles, plus extra for serving
1 egg
1/2 c. bread crumbs
1/4 c. Frank's Buffalo Wing Sauce, plus extra for serving
pepper, to taste
Weber Gourmet Burger Seasoning, to taste
4 hamburger buns

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix ground chicken, egg, bread crumbs, Wing Sauce, pepper, and seasoning in bowl with hands, until well mixed. If it is too wet, add extra bread crumbs. Divide mixture into four even pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, then flatten into a disk. Add 1/4 of bleu cheese crumbles to the middle of the disk, then wrap meat around to cover. Roll into a ball again, and flatten into a patty. Place burgers on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for ~18 minutes, flipping halfway through. Top with extra bleu cheese, and serve on a bun.

Tip: I also like to toast the buns for a few minutes. Slice buns in half, spread a little butter on each side, and bake for about 5 minutes, or until buns start to brown.