Blackened Chicken

The first time I had blackened chicken was in a Blackened Chicken Pasta at Razzoo's- a Cajun restaurant, one of which is close to my house.  On my first visit to Razzoo's, I didn't eat fish, but I couldn't fathom getting a cheeseburger or a salad at a Cajun food restaurant, so chicken was my next best option.  As it turned out, the first bite of my Blackened Chicken Pasta was when I fell in love with Cajun food.  I love the spices, the zip, and the way that it makes your mouth water just from looking at it.

Last November, my boyfriend, Andy, organized a trip to New Orleans for his 26th birthday.  I was excited about my first visit to The Big Easy- excited about Bourbon Street, Hurricanes, Hand Grenades, and most of all- authentic Cajun cooking.  And luck for me, by the time we went to New Orleans, I had become an avid fish eater- something neither my mom nor I ever thought would happen.

We flew out super early on Friday, November 12th- Andy's birthday.  We were on Bourbon Street with our first Hurricanes in hand by 10:00am.  With only two full days in town, we had to get started early.  The first restaurant where we at was Acme Oyster House.  Acme Oyster House was a fun little hole in the wall, famous for their oysters on the half-shell and red and white checked table cloths.  I feasted on Chargrilled Oysters on the half-shell, boo fries (French fries with roast beef gravy and cheese on top- aka heartattackonaplate), and a fried catfish po-boy.  Go big or go home, right?  That night was a whirl of hand-grenades, hurricanes, mechanical bull & whale riding, dancing, The Beach, and whistles.

At The Beach- Happy 26th Birthday, Andy!

The next day called for brunch, so we used Andy's Yelp app on his iPhone.  If you're ever in a new city, Yelp is awesome.  It lets you look for restaurants, bars, and local hot spots.  You can read reviews and see menus, all from your phone.  You can get it from the Apple iPhone app store here.  We went to a place simply called Eat, a cute little restaurant inside of an old flat that used to be a house, I think.  At least that's what it looked like.  Nawlins is very alcohol and drink friendly, and Eat is BYOB.  I went down to the closest bar and picked up some mimosas and bloody marys and brought them back to the boys at brunch.  This second day, Saturday, we adventured to Harrah's for a little gambling, watched some college football, and ate beignets at New Orleans' famous Cafe du Monde.  We were covered in powdered sugar by the time we were ready for yet another meal.  For dinner, we went to a highly recommended place called Red Fish Grill.  Again, since -New Orleans is crazy drink friendly, we took in our frozen drinks from down the street right on in the restaurant.  I had Hickory Grilled Redfish- served on the half-shell with tasso and wild mushroom potatoes, topped with sauteed Louisiana jumbo lump crabmeat and lemon butter sauce- it was uh-mazing.

Michael, Andy, me, Chuckles, and Adam: Eating our beignets at Cafe du Monde

Inspired by our trip to Nawlins, a few weeks ago I made blackened chicken.  I have bought blackening rubs from Central Market before, but I made my own this time, and it was delicious.  We had baked potatoes for a side, so I've included a link to that recipe, also.  Enjoy!

Adam, Chuckles, Michael, me, and Andy: Outside of Harrah's

Blackened Chicken 

Kate Strickland

Servings: 2, Weight Watchers PointsPlus Value: 3 (the only calories are in the chicken!)

• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1/8 tsp ground white pepper
• 1/8 tsp onion powder
• 2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Lightly grease a baking sheet
3. Mix together paprika, salt, cayenne pepper, cumin, thyme, white pepper, and onion powder
4. Oil the chicken breasts with cooking spray on both sides
5. Coat the chicken breasts evenly with the spice mixture
6. Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat for 5 minutes until it is smoking hot
7. Place the chicken in the hot pan, and cook for 1 min
8. Turn and cook 1 min on other side
9. Place the breast on the prepared baking sheet
10. Bake in the preheated oven until no longer pink in the center and juices run clear (at least 5 mins)

Blackened Chicken with Baked Potato