Momma Told Me: Chicken and Waffles Chips

Momma Told Me: They go together like peanut butter and jelly!

When I was a child I was strictly a peanut butter girl. Momma would make me a PB+J Sammy (as they're affectionately known by those who haven't yet developed the linguistics skills to pronounce mufti-syllable words), and ship me off to kindergarten. Every lunch, which as I recall was really a semi-cricle of kids swapping food; I would gingerly scrape the purple jelly off the top half of my sandwich then smush it back together. I loved fruit, but I didn't feel it had any right to be on my peanut butter. Perhaps it was texture, perhaps it was simply that I knew peanut butter was far less nutritious to begin with (if only someone had told me preserves were loaded with sugar!) I simply never cared for this classic foodie combination until I was too old to enjoy Momma's love and lunches anymore.

So, I digress; peanut butter and jelly is a food profile that most associate with childhood, whether they loved the sandwiches or not. Personally, I still think a peanut butter banana sandwich (Elvis style) is tops- but that's for another recipe post. Today we are amidst Post #2 of 5 in our Potato Chip Cooking series, and this recipe is yet another sweet one. You may recall our Double Chocolate Potato Chip Brownies from last week; well, this recipe is a much more mellow; nostalgic one. After all, what else usually came in my elementary sack lunches, but a Ziploc baggies of Dad's leftover potato chip crumbs. Okay, they weren't literally his crumbs, but it did seem like I got the bottom of the bag, smashed chips more often than not. (Something I suspect I will be discussing with a counselor as I get on in age.) It's these greasy baggies of broken Lay's that inspired me to smash my last bag of Chicken and Waffles potato chips and integrate them into the following recipe for soft and chewy Peanut Butter + Jelly Thumbprint Cookies.

Sure, you can smash up potato chips and throw them into any old recipe; that process is precisely how some of the most popular flavor combinations have been created, pure luck. But I didn't set out on this potato chip coking mission with the intent to throw a bunch of bizarre (arguably wildly unhealthy) recipe ideas your way. I sat down and drafted 5 unique recipes that could stand alone without the chips, but are otherwise enhanced (in texture or taste) by the addition of them. Just keep in mind, I'm not endorsing cooking with chips day-to-day, merely presenting a creative solution for those 1/4 bags of 'crumbs' floating around the cupboard. Just, please, if you're going to give chips to your daughter, don't use those- (Mom) I mean, spring for a fresh bag, they even make fun sized, just for kids.....that's all I'm saying....

So, I made this recipe for soft and chewy peanut butter thumbprint cookies, and enlisted the other half for assistance (dish washing). I heard several times, during the process how he 'didn't care for peanut butter cookies' and how the Chicken and Waffles chips seemed like an odd combination. Again, I differ you to my Chicken and Waffles potato chips review; the flavor is very subtle and one of a lingering syrup aromatic. If you could bottle the aroma just after pouring syrup on a fresh stack of waffles, that's the flavor you're gaining from the addition of these chips. Naturally, you can get the same texture effect by crushing regular potato chips, as well, but I especially like the extra note of maple here.

These cookies are great for beginning bakers, as they are no fuss, and do not brown quickly once fully cooked. You can give the oven a few extra minutes on either side and still find them delicious. If you wish to turn them into PB+J Thumbprint cookies simply re-indent your thumbprints upon remove from the oven and drop a dollop of your favorite preserves in the little nook atop. As a side note, we did learn the difference between jelly (made from fruit juice), jam (made from fruit pulp), and preserves (less processed fruit chunks), during this little project. It's my home chef opinion one should avoid jelly, especially if not being consumed immediately, as it will have a higher liquid content and tend to soften the cookie over time. Additionally, when cooking with potato chips, keep in mind the chips will go stale when exposed to the air; so store all recipes as air tight as possible and in the fridge when not being served.

So how did these curious cookies turn out? In all honesty, I think they are now one of my favorites! I could eat a bag of the cookies without the preserves, or a plate of them with. We used Oregon Strawberry Preserves, and it was just the right balance of tang and sweetness. The cookies almost melt in one's mouth, even now, days later. The peanut butter texture is a lot more mellow than a traditional, crumbly, cookie, and the chip flakes add a fun crunch to each bite. These Peanut Butter and Jelly Potato Chip Cookies go great with a glass of milk, and will have you ready to snuggle on the couch with a blankie and coloring book in no time!

What Daughter Says: With or without the chips, these cookies are sure to be a hit!

Continue reading for the full, printable, recipe.....

Momma Told Me: Finger licking good!

It will come as no surprise that the woman who covered Candy Corn Oreos, and Carrot Cake M&M's is dredging up the recent Lay's 'Do Us a Flavor' collection. In fact, I've heard some of my readers have actually been wondering when these fan submitted potato chip flavors would show up here on Momma Told Me. The truth is, I've had all 3 of these whimsical salty snacks (Sriracha, Chicken and Waffles, and Cheesy Garlic Bread) on hand for months. I had made it a personal mission to hunt them down when they first hit shelves back in April, but supplies were so scarce locally I held onto my bags for months, waiting for the right social occasions to pull out these culinary talking points. For those unaware, the chips that have taken over social media the past several months were fan suggested flavors; the result of a Lay's nationwide quest for the next big chip flavor. As it turns out, Cheesy Garlic Bread received the most consumer votes, and will make it's way into permanent production. Personally, this was the dullest of the 3 flavors for me- but I also noticed the flavor expression was lacking in all 3.

I'll admit, I've only eaten 'Chicken and Waffles,' together, twice before. However, I love the thought of syrup smothered waffles, with their playful little pockets of mounding syrup, and I don't turn down a properly battered piece of fried chicken; so reasoning stands I would love them together. Unfortunately for Lay's, it seems they downplayed the flavor notes in all 3 of their Do Us A Flavor creations. My initial Chicken and Waffles Lay's experience was a bit of a let down. The chips had the classic, light, crisp of a Lay's Original chip, but the flavor was not as intense as I would have liked. I expected more flavor (chicken grease?) , more sweet and spice. Perhaps a stronger maple flavor with a hint of cinnamon and pepper to create the classic pairing on my palette. The bag, itself, smelled delectable, but the little potato wafers failed to live up to the mouth-watering graphics on the bag.

So what is to become of Chicken and Waffles potato chips? Well, was we've discussed before, curious flavor combinations such as this are quite popular overseas, and brands such as Dortitos have been producing snack time oddities such as this for sale in Asia for years. As shocking as it may sound, the average American consumer palette is actually quite tame; even with the snack cakes and gallons of fizzy soda. While Chicken and Waffles chips did not make the cut here in the US, you can rest assured they will ride the wave overseas where curious foreigners will have a laugh at our country's expense. Because, after all, these three flavors are what America chose, and surely must represent our country's delicacy preferences, right? Oh, Lay's, this was a bit of a disappointment- don't promise golden, syrupy, chicken goodness and put out a bland piece of crisped potato. If you're going to be bold, be bold!

So, for those keeping count, on the Chicken and Waffles product battles that's Torani Chicken and Waffles Syrup: 1, Lays Chicken and Waffles Potato Chips: 0. If you're a fan of this Southern dish, do yourself a flavor, pun intended, and pick of a bottle of the Torani syrup instead. Then, stay tuned for a special Chicken and Waffles inspired recipe on our site. Perhaps all hope for these chips is not lost after all.

Did you try any of the Lay's Do Us A Flavor chips? What did you think?

What Daughter Says: It's foodie faux-pas like this that inspire me to get into the kitchen and whip up something truly exciting.