Lunch and Munch - BBQ Chicken

Craving foods, it’s something we all do.  So when the BBQ chicken craving took hold, I got busy in the kitchen.  Last night, we had BBQ Chicken “Du Jour”.  Here’s how I did it:

“BBQ Chicken Du Jour”

Sauce ingredients:  I added these ingredients to the BBQ sauce I had to stretch it

1 Cup your choice of BBQ Sauce (I used Kraft Honey Barbecue Sauce) 

1/4 Cup 7UP (or Sprite, or Sierra Mist... a lemon-lime soda)

2 TBLS Brown Sugar

2 TBLS Maple Syrup

1/2 Cup Tomato Ketchup 

you can change these ingredients to taste

Step 1

Clean and dry chicken thighs and/or legs and preheat oven to 375 degrees

Step 2

In a skillet, warm 1 table spoon of vegetable oil, then add chicken to the skillet to brown the skin

Step 3

While skin is browning, mix your BBQ sauce in the bottom of a 9 by 13 glass baking pan

Step 4

Once skin is lightly browned, remove from skillet and cover chicken in BBQ sauce, then place in oven and bake for about 30 minutes

Step 5

After 30 minutes, use a spoon or brush to cover your chicken in sauce, keeping it moist and flavorful, then bake for another 10 minutes

Step 6

Check your chicken - is it done? no more pink, and to temperature of at least 165 degrees?  If not, bake for another 5 minutes and check again.

Setting the Table -

While your chicken bakes, you can create some yummy side dishes for the meal.  I chose a fresh spinach and arugula salad, garnished with raspberries and blueberries fresh from a local fruit stand.  I chose brown rice as our carbohydrate which was a nice, light choice for this HOT day (Nearly 90 degrees today, the hottest we’ve had this summer).  

Here’s my Grandma Maxine’s mouth-watering BBQ chicken recipe: 

“Meem’s Oven BBQ Chicken”  

Sauce ingredients:  

2T butter

2T ketchup

2T brown sugar

1T lemon juice

¼ - ½ tsp liquid smoke

1 ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce

Cooking Directions:

Bring ingredients to a boil in a saucepan

Pour over skinned chicken in a glass baking pan

Bake 350  35-45 min or until done

Feed your cravings.  It’s my philosophy that our bodies crave foods for a reason, when pregnant, and we should follow what we want.  It can be so satisfying to fill those cravings.  Just keep in mind that the food you put into a pregnant body is giving nutrition to the baby, not just you.  It’s best to make healthy choices when following those cravings so that your body gets what it needs.