Asian Sweet Chilli Wings

Today is my second favorite day of the year. With the first favorite being opening day of the football season. But today was Fantasy Football draft day. In my house, we do this day up right with wings and whatever other finger food we have in the freezer, but there's an emphasis on the wings. Today I made 3 types of wings, but we'll just focus on my favorite of the day--Asian Sweet Chilli Wings! These wings are easy and take about 35 minutes to make.

Ingredients:
This list might look a little intimidating, but you can find most of these items in the sections you probably walk past everyday in the store. The oils and chilli sauce can all be found in the Asian section of your market (along with some other seemingly strange but amazing things).

• 2lb Chicken Wing Sections, divided
• 1/8 Cup Sesame Oil
• 1/8 Cup Hot Chili Oil
• 1Tbsp Garlic Powder
• 1tsp Ground Cayenne Pepper
• 1tsp Kosher Salt
• 1tsp Ground Pepper
• 2Tbsp Ground Ginger
• 1-1/2 Cups Sweet Chilli Sauce (Get the good stuff. It usually comes in a larger bottle in the Asian food section of your supermarket. The shadier the bottle looks, the better it probably is. I use Cock Brand...stop snickering...perverts).

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375 Degrees
2. Place wings in a larger bowl than you think you'll need.
3. Add sesame oil and hot chili oil. Toss/stir to coat.
4. Add garlic powder, cayenne, salt, pepper and ginger. Stir again to coat.
5. Place wings on a foil wrapped sheet pan and insert into oven for 20 minutes.
6. Wash original bowl or use a new bowl of comparable size.
7. When the timer goes off, remove wings from oven. A good deal of juices will have separated from the wings. Use a spatula to place the wings into the bowl. Discard the juices.
8. Pour the Sweet Chilli Sauce onto your wings. Toss or stir  in bowl until fully coated with sauce. Place them back into the over for another 10 minutes or until chicken reaches a temperature of 165 Degrees.
9. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. This helps the sauce to get a bit tacky and will allow it to stick to the wing a little better.

These wings have a little heat to them but the sweetness really mellows it out to help the flavors come through. If you aren't one for the spicy stuff, lower the amount of cayenne pepper you use. These wings will go nicely with a cold beer and a Sunday full of football. Check out the tutorial video of me and my Sunday football buddies showing you the proper way to eat a wing! It pains me to see plates of wings with tons of delicious meat left on the bone. This method solves that problem. :) 

Greek Snack Spread

                                                                                It's been a crazy last couple months and there haven't been many posts and even fewer recipes. There has been a lot of travel, family time and massive amounts of work to do instead. Being so busy has made quick and easy recipes like this one seem much more relevant. Being in the kitchen takes time away from the people you should be with--your family and friends. Which is why I love it when my wife whips together something like this to get us all together, eating while watching a movie or sitting around talking. It seriously takes 5 minutes to make and equally as long to eat the whole bowl.


 Ingredients:

• 1 Jar of Artichoke Hearts, chopped
• 1 Can of Black Olives, chopped
• 4 Vine Tomatoes, chopped
• 1 Cup, Feta Cheese, crumbled
• 1/3 Cup, Greek Vinaigrette Salad Dressing

Mix all ingredients in a medium sized mixing bowl and spread onto flatbread crackers, toasted baguette or melba toast. It's a quick and easy! Now whip some together and get back to your family and friends. Enjoy!