Deep-Skillet Pizza with Roasted Pepper Sauce, Fresh Mozzarella, and Garlic Parmesan Crust

I must give high credit to my inspirer in the instance of skillet pizza.. this recipe is adapted from one originally posted by Nick over at Macheesmo.com, and a link to his version can be found here. I was very happy to find a simplistic pizza recipe, as pizza has been my reigning favorite since like, first grade. (Perhaps it is the nostalgia of Pizza Fridays, or my grandmother’s history as a pizza store owner [Pizza Villa, Meadeville, PA] … but more likely just my obsession with cheese continuing into adult life.) Either way! This recipe is AWESOME, and I learned a little something about baking flour as well.   ahem:

Pizza dough calls for Bread Flour– perhaps I am still new at this, but I wasn’t terribly sure what the difference was from All-Purpose White. Checking into it– Bread Flour has a higher gluten content, which makes for the extra elasticity that is oh-so-important for pizza! I’ve certainly handled frozen pizza doughs in the past, so that made a lot of sense to me. I ended up having a bit of difficulty rolling the dough into a pretty little round shape, since it does tend to fight you a little to stay in place. I ended up essentially just smushing it into a pizza crust shape– and wouldn’t have known the difference! Although I will say that in the post I was eying over while making this, Nick makes one hell of a pretty shape with his crust– well done sir. I also impulsively decided to coat my crust with a dusting of garlic powder, and fairly generous sprinkling of grated Parmesan cheese. This final step, friends, was purely fast-food-driven at heart–  my favorite part of a Domino’s pizza!

Sidenote #1: In my world, there exists such a thing as McDinner. This is where I make McDonald’s dinner from scratch: burgers (ketchup, orange cheese, + pickle slices– no lettuce or mustard! ew to onions, generally speaking), chicken nuggets, salted shoestring fries, a chilled Coca Cola, + often a milkshake. But so much less guilt! Sort of!  … And yes, I am a breed of 26-year-old 8-year-old,  if you had to know.

Deep Skillet Pizza with Roasted Pepper Sauce, Fresh Mozzarella, and Garlic-Parmesan Crust

For Pizza Dough

• 2 1/2 c. bread flour
• 1 Tb. white sugar
• 2 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. active dry yeast
• 1 c. warm water
• olive oil to coat

For Sauce

• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 7 oz. jar, roasted red peppers, chopped
• 1 15 oz. can plain tomato sauce
• 2 tsp. ground oregano
• 2 lg. pinches, crushed red pepper
• 2 tsp. dried basil + sprinkle on top
• salt, pepper, olive oil

To Finish Pie

• 12″ Iron Skillet (of course)
• 8 oz ball of fresh mozzarella cheese (or 8-10 oz of your choice)
• garlic powder
• parmesan cheese

Making The Dough takes no less than 4 hours– and that is when you can start assembling the pizza. You can definitely feel free to make the dough ahead of time, and if you make extra– you can freeze it and keep it on hand for easy pizza making! Mix yeast, sugar, salt, + warm water in a large bowl. Allow to sit for approximately 5 minutes, until the yeast looks a little fizzy, and the water has become cloudy. Add in the flour. Using clean hands, blend the flour into the liquid until it begins forming into a ball of dough. Continue kneading for 5-10 minutes, and add tiny (tiny!) increments of warm water if the dough is not reaching the stretchy, soft consistency that it should within a couple of minutes. You should be left with a nice ball of dough.

Coat the ball with generous layer of olive oil and place in a large ziplock bag. Seal + let it sit at room temperature for about an hour. Supposedly, you need to take it out of the ziplock at this point to “degas” it.. but my dough wasn’t all that gassy. Rebag the dough and move to refrigerator, where it should be allowed to chill for at least 2 hours (can be left for longer, if you make it before work, etc!). Remove the dough at least one hour prior to making the ‘za, so it has an additional hour to rise at room temperature.

Making The Sauce is something I began around this time– the final hour of waiting for the dough to be ready. This is where we should all get a little creative! While the following ingredients are what I chose (cabinet hunting), you are welcome to improvise the sauce obviously. I would not recommend buying pizza sauce though, because that’s like.   No fun.

For The Sauce I Made: Begin with a capful of olive oil in the bottom of a medium saucepan, and heat. Add the minced garlic, and allow to brown but keep it moving. Drain the jar of roasted peppers most of the way, and add them in (I ended up chopping them with the end of a plastic spatula, because they’re super soft, so I found no need to prepare them ahead of time. I also added in a bit of the juice, to help flavor the sauce!) Cook peppers until they’re sizzling hot, 7 minutes or so.

Add in the can of sauce + seasonings, and bring to a simmer. I would highly recommend keeping a splatter guard/cover on hand, for in between stirs. Tomato sauce has a tendency to really want to jump out of the pot, as I’m sure many of you know! I also used this waiting time to slice up the ball of cheese into the thinnest pieces I could manage, and to finish up an intense game of scrabble (and only lost by 27 points).

get in dere

Assembling The Pizza:  Preheat the oven to 450°. Once the dough is ready, roll it with a pin (as much as possible) into a shape that will be a bit larger than your iron skillet. Most skillets will be “conditioned” and in no need of extra stick resistance, but since mine is brand new– I sprayed it with a bit of Olive Oil cooking spray, and rubbed that in with a bit of paper towel. I ended up sort of… plopping the rolled out dough somewhere in the middle, and stretching it by hand, rolling over the edges upon themselves into the shape of pizza crust. The importance lies in creating an even layer of dough throughout the bottom surface. Then, I added an introductory layer of parmesan cheese + garlic powder.. not too much though.. with a focus especially on the edges/crust.

If I could go back and redo this again, I’d likely add a little less sauce than I ended up using. It was totally delicious, but did get a little messy(ier than even I have an appreciation for). I am also a fan of the cheese > sauce ratio.  So yes. Continuing on..  Sauce it, spread on the layer of cheese. I added a bit more sauce on top, as well, and a sprinkling of basil.

Cooking The Pizza:  Now that the pizza is ready to be cooked, begin by heating the skillet over a high range, for approximately 3 minutes. The bottom of the pie may begin to golden, but more importantly — the pan will become very hot, an important part of proper pizza making (so I’ve learned from this recipe!). Then, move to the oven, allow to bake for approximately 15 minutes before checking. Leave it in for longer for a crunchier crust!

I finished my pie off with another layer of parmesan around the edge, of course. Move from the skillet to a wooden cutting board or other location for the pizza to cool off for a while. While the final stretch of waiting will be torturous, my friends in food– it is also a great time to take almost 50 photos of your finished pizza. That’s totally normal… right?

Pasta Fagioli + Cheesesteak Hot Pockets

Perhaps it’s the chill of November permeating the air, or the rapid approach of the holidays– whatever the reason, I woke up today missing home. I grew up just outside of Philadelphia, where I later spent a number of years during and after for college. The pull of any sort of nostalgia generally results in one thing for me: comfort food. It seemed all too appropriate to make myself some genuine, Philadelphian-fare this eve… and what could possibly be more Philly than South Philly-famous Pasta Fagioli soup and cheesesteaks?

Many of those raised in or near the city of Brother Love that has transplanted elsewhere shares a belief… the type of roll necessary to create a true Philadelphia Cheesesteak only comes from the Amoroso bakery, so this particular situation called for a bit of improv. Some of the most fulfilling dishes I’ve created as of late are drawn from the fantastic publication Food Network Magazine, and I’ve been scheming on making the Hot Pockets from the  October issue for a while now. Although my creation ended up venturing quite a stretch from the magazine’s suggestions, I had a total Eureka moment this morning when I realized just how far I could take this cheesesteak thing… is it weird that most of my Eureka moments as an adult revolve around food?

The stock + soup tend to take a little while (boiling stuff), but you can totally just buy Veggie Stock if you’d like..  If you’re a wuss.

Pasta Fagioli

• 4 c Vegetable Stock (homemade optional ingredients below):
  - 1 lg. onion, cut into 1 inch chunks
  - 2 carrots, cut into 1 inch chunks
  - 2 stalks of celery, cut into 1 inch chunks
  - 8 lg. garlic cloves, minced
  - 6 sprigs fresh thyme
  - 2 sprigs rosemary
  - dried bay leaves
  - 1 tsp. salt
  - 4 c water

• 1 m. onion, finely chopped
•  2 carrots, finely chopped
•  1 stalk of celery, finely chopped
•  4 lg. garlic cloves, minced
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• a few dried bayleaves
• a pinch of red pepper flakes
• salt + pepper
• 2 Tb. olive oil
• 2 15.5 oz cans white canellini beans
• 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
• 2 c water
• 1 1/2 c teeny pasta (I used Ring pasta.. ditalini is traditional though. Note to Brooklyn-ites: ditalini is sorta hard to find around here?)

If you decide to make the Vegetable Stock from scratch, good for you. Bring 4 c water to a boil, and add in vegetables, herbs, + one tsp. salt. The point here is definitely not to make something that tastes “good”.. this liquid is often an important staple for other, more finalized dishes + sauces. (Don’t expect it to taste like a “soup” by any means!) Leave at a medium-strength boil until the carrot chunks are cooked all the way through, and float up to the top of the water. Turn off the burner, but leave soaking for 5-10 minutes before straining into a container (making sure you save AS MUCH of the liquid as possible). I generally use a wide, heavy spoon to squish the mixture even more, and drain out as much of the most flavorful liquids from the solids as possible. You can toss them afterwards.

Begin the rest of the soup by heating 2 Tb. olive oil over medium heat, at the bottom of a deep pot. Add 4 cloves minced garlic, and allow to brown. Add chopped carrots, celery, + onion, as well as seasonings (thyme, rosemary, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, salt + pepper to taste). Soften, tossing with the oil and garlic for about 2 minutes. Add beans and crushed tomato.

Slowly, introduce the 4 c stock and 2 c water and stir. Turn burner to high, and allow to reach a rolling boil, stirring periodically.

Once the liquid is boiling, stir in the uncooked pasta. Taste, adding additional salt + pepper if necessary. Cook for 7 or 8 minutes, until the pasta reaches an al dente texture. Turn off the burner, and allow the soup to settle for at least 5 minutes before serving. I’d suggest a strong-handed sprinkle of parmesan cheese on top, with some crusty Italian bread of course.

Cheesesteak Hot Pockets

• 1 m. green pepper
• 1 m. red onion
• 1 pack Steak-umms frozen steak, slightly defrosted (or 1 lb. fresh sliced steak, if you’re lucky enough to be able to get it!)
• 1/3 lb. sliced American cheese
• 2 Tb. butter
• 4 lg. cloves garlic, minced
• 1 13.8 oz tube Pillsbury refrigerated Pizza crust, or compatible substitute
• 1 lg. egg

I would’ve loved to make the dough from scratch here, by the way, but it just takes a really freakin’ long time. Also, I find that most refrigerated doughs are usually pretty good! : ) Begin by slicing the onion, and then the pepper, into very thin strips. Peppers are really awkward to cut, as I’m sure you know… I’ve devised a trick, in case it may help you too:

Cutting a Pepper: Cut a ring around the top stem of the pepper, with the intention of lifting out the entire stem + attached seed-filled core. Quarter the shell of the pepper, rinsing off any remaining seeds, and trimming off ugly parts (I hate that fleshy white stuff, personally). Then, I make pepper “filets”, if you will, by squashing each quadrant of pepper under my palm very gently. Once the pieces of the pepper are flattened, they become way easier to cut into symmetrical and controlled sizes (like the thin strips you’ll need for the Hot Pockets).

I use a baby knife to trim anything unwanted from the inside.

Heat 2 Tb. butter over medium heat in a small frying pan, then add the minced garlic, and brown.  Add the onion strips, sautéing gently until the pieces are reaching translucence and probably browning a bit. Add the peppers, tossing with the onions until they begin to dull in color, and cover with a lid. Cook covered for 5 minutes, and remove from heat. (I ended up chopping the peppers + onions up a little more once they were soft, and I think it turned out well that way– it is recommended, if you still have a cutting board handy).

In a large frying pan, heat 1 Tb. olive oil. Cook the steak meat in rounds, shredding each piece with a sturdy spatula as much as possible. Do not overcook! The meat may still be slightly pink in some places, but will cook further in the baking process. Set each round aside, and when the last batch of steak meat is finished cooking– add in the entire pile of cooked meat, as well as the pepper + onion mixture. Chop in 2 or 3 slices of American cheese, and cook briefly with just enough time for a thorough mixing + cheese melting before removing from heat. Preheat the oven to 425°, and coat a baking pan with cooking spray.

On a clean, floured counter– roll out the pizza (or other) dough, and cut gently with a butter knife to create four rectangles (approx. 6″x8″).  Lay down a blanket of sliced cheese just in the middle (I wish all of my blankets were… blankets of cheese!). Spoon the meat + pepper mixture into the middle of the dough, adding another layer of sliced cheese on top before folding into a pocket. (Fold one short end over to the middle, the other short end over to the middle, and then stretching the remaining two flaps to overlap before pinching shut).

Carefully place the pockets onto the baking pan, seam down, and brush with a coating of beaten egg. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until lightly golden brown.

Obviously, there is a pretty large mess in your kitchen now. Regardless–  grab a mug and fill it with your glorious Pasta Fagioli. Don’t forget the ketchup, and retreat to your bedroom with victorious, tasty remembrances of home. Imagine the sprawl of the Schuylkill that winds between the primary-colored houses of Boathouse Row and then around the beige, pillared Art Museum; the awe of entering the shadow of Independence Hall, in its cool and dignified magnificence; the annoyance of dodging shoulder-first through crowds of Liberty Bell tourists; the throes of arguing with an out-of-towner about where to get the best steak.

And leave that mess in the kitchen for tomorrow. Because for now, my friends in food– It’s right here. – HKW

Pork Tender Pot Pie with Cheddar Biscuit Crust

There are five main steps to making Pork Tender Pot Pie: roasting the pork, boiling the vegetables, mixing the sauce, creating the dough, and combining the dish into a casserole. It seems many people are nervous about making sauce + dough in particular, and understandably so. Don’t let yourself be fooled, friend — nearly all ‘easy’ pot pie recipes will include canned sauce, frozen vegetables, and worse. If you would prefer to make pot pie that way…. please exit my blog immediately.
Here’s the door. 

No matter how you decide to go about it—there will be times when there is simply no substitution for this particular combination of ingredients. For instance, I was inspired on the first slush-filled autumn evening of the year, immediately after toasting the first spicy hot toddy of the year down the street at Harefield Road. (Likely not a coincidence). This is also a great choice when cooking for somebody(ies) that compel an effortless-seeming good impression. I decided to try using pork instead of its usual white-meat counterpart, chicken.. it turned out deliciously. No kidding—24 hours down, and it’s already nearly gone! Nom Nom Nom

Pork Tender Pot Pie with Cheddar Biscuit Crust

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs pork tenderloin
• 2 lbs potatoes
• 4 celery stalks, sliced
• 6 medium carrots, sliced at an angle
• 1 medium white onion, diced
• 2 green onion tops, chopped
• 1/2 T. rosemary (dried or chopped)
• cayenne
• cinnamon
• salt + pepper

• 1 lb salted butter, softened
• 1/3 c + 2 ½ c white flour
• 1 1/3 c heavy cream
• ¼  c milk
• 1 c shredded cheddar cheese

How To Make it:

Roasting The Pork: Pork cooks relatively quickly, so be sure to keep a close eye on the oven once it’s in. It should also be roasted at a very high temperature (500-550°). Preheat the oven, and lay the pork tenderloins (there are probably two) on a cutting board or other clean, flat surface. Feel free to trim excess fat or weirdness from the meat at this time. Rub the meat with salt + pepper, and dust lightly with cayenne + cinnamon. I’ve found that these flavors are highly complimentary to pork, especially on a chilly + icy eve!

Sidenote #1: I should also mention at this time that warm cider with whiskey + cinnamon sticks helps to round things out. Although being in the same room as a 550° oven is pretty brilliantly cozy in and of itself. Tips for those of us who have shoddy heat!

I decided while making this recipe that pork tender has the basic consistency and flavor of the love child of chicken + steak… but it seems to cook more like steak. You’ll want it to be slightly pink in the middle, and approaching a brown color on the edges—don’t overcook the meat, as it will definitely cook a little more in the baking process, and because overcooked meat is a downright travesty. Roasting the pork will probably take around 20 minutes. Turn the oven off, let the pork cool, and pull into large chunks with your fingers.

Sidenote #2: “The USDA is lowering the recommended safe-cooking temperature for whole cuts of pork from 160° to 145° and adding a three-minute rest time, meaning pork chops can be safely served on the pink side. It may still be pink, but it is safe to eat, the USDA says.” – Food Network Magazine, October 2011 (yay!)

Boiling The Vegetables: I’d suggest a head start on chopping the vegetables prior to cooking this meal. [Potatoes- peel and cut into quarter sized cubes, use the ‘flat side’ trick from Autumn Curry Chicken Salad // Celery- cut off stalk and paler part of base, 1/3 inch slices // Carrots- peel and chop on an angle, ¼ inch slices // Onion- peel outside layer and cut into quarter sized pieces, ‘flat side’].

Sidenote #3: I will publicly admit here that I very strongly dislike raw onion, and especially how when I cut them they make me cry. :’(  An effective trick: Place a large glass of water close to the onion as you cut, and crying + unwanted onion-mouth will be minimized greatly! The onion’s fumes are seeking moisture (hence attraction to the eyes and mouth). A big thanks to my co-editor for this life-altering tip : P

Boil potatoes in salted water for 8 minutes, add celery and boil for 2 additional minutes. Drain + set aside. You can rinse + refill the same pot with water, if you’d like. Boil carrots in salted water for 5 minutes, add onion and boil for 3 additional minutes. Save at least 2 c of this broth! Drain, making sure to dump at least 2 cups of the broth into a container that you can set aside—you’ll need it for the delicious cream sauce. My favorite part! Grease a large glass casserole dish.

Making The Sauce: Cut a stick (1/2 lb) of butter into rough quarters, and drop into a medium sized pot. Melt over low-medium heat. As soon as the butter is mostly liquid and edges begin to bubble, add 1/3 c of flour. Whisk quickly, and keep the mixture moving so that it doesn’t begin to burn (oh, and it will if you don’t play your cards right— the sauce devil!). Once it reaches a beige paste-like consistency, gently mix in the cream, and then 2 c of the vegetable stock that was set aside. Add rosemary and green onion tops, and salt + pepper to taste. Whisk occasionally until the sauce thickens, making sure to especially keep the sauce in contact with the sides of the pot moving. Weigh on the salty side just a tiny bit, because this will also be the seasoning for the filling, which will absorb it—try tasting the sauce with a small spoonful of the cooked vegetables to test. Turn the burner off as soon as you’re happy with the consistency.

Place the cooked vegetables + pork into the greased casserole pan, and toss to mix. Cover the vegetables with the sauce, carefully folding with a spatula so that the pieces are evenly coated.  Preheat the oven to 350° at this time.

Making The Dough: Start with 2 ½ c of flour in a mixing bowl, and “cut in” a stick (1/2 lb) of butter until pea-sized crumbs begin to form. Add the cheddar cheese. Add milk or ice water in tablespoons as you knead with your hands. There are two ways to top off the casserole filling with dough- the stretch method, or the “drop biscuit” method. I prefer drop biscuit personally, because usually at this point I am feeling too lazy to clean off the counter to roll out the dough. Drop biscuit also creates an interesting texture, especially when also using shredded cheese—crunchy, cheesy peaks vs. crisp, shell-like layers. Really though, it’s like unicorns vs. rainbows—you just can’t lose.

To use the stretch method, knead dough until it becomes a soft, elastic ball. Clean, dry + flour a flat surface, and use a flour-covered rolling pin to roll out the dough into the size and shape of the casserole dish. When it’s ready, lift as a whole + cover the filling, tucking in the edges of the dough. Press a large fork around the diameter to create a scalloped edge in the dough, if you’d like. Cut a few small slits in the surface to vent steam.

To use the drop biscuit method, don’t knead quite as thoroughly (no dough ball is needed), and add a little extra milk to the mixture so that it becomes a bit sticky. Use your hands to gently stretch blobs of the dough over the entire surface of the casserole mixture, or use a spoon to drop bits of dough evenly and spread with your fingers. Minimize holes as much as possible, and aim to cover the dish from side to side.

Bake for approximately 30-40 minutes until the biscuit topping turns to a light golden brown. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

If one night of pot pie just isn’t enough for you… (and this is why I love you)… try it for breakfast the next morning by warming for 15 minutes in a 350° oven, and serving with scrambled eggs, fruit, juice, and coffee. It has a total Eggs Benedict vibe! This whole process most definitely made me want to make an Eggs Benedict Pot Pie of sorts too… hmmmm. But how to avoid quiche-ing?

The pot pie options are truly endless, with a little creativity + whiskey cider. If I had thought of it beforehand, I would’ve figured out a way to incorporate green peas, for sure. And just think of all of the meat options! Sigh… Just think about ‘em….

And with that juicy thought, my friends in food, I’m going to help myself to what will likely be this Pie’s very last serving. In bed + hot chocolate, duh. – HKW

Autumn Curry Chicken Salad-er

An exotic-yet-familiar, stupidly simple, and low mess dish– Autumn Curry Chicken Salad-er can be easily molded into a number of other creations that can then be brought to a party to impress your friends, or plain old shoveled into one’s own mouth. Most likely in bed, during a seemingly inhuman span of 30 Rock-viewing (but you’d need survival ice cream for this as well).

No no.. that was not at the party.     What kinds of parties are you going to?

Autum Curry Chicken Salad-er

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 chicken breasts w. bones (or 2 large halves w. bones)
•  3/4 c mayo
• 1 tsp yellow curry powder
• large, heaping handful of grapes (about 20 red, or 16 green– I prefer red, but only had green : (
• 1 medium-sized carrot
• 1/4 cup of toasted + salted pumpkin seeds (see To Toast Pumpkin Seeds below)
• Salt + Pepper to taste

MAKE IT:

Put a large-ish pot of water to boil [and preheat the oven to 375° if you're planning on toasting seeds]. Sometimes this part of the process becomes way more fun later on in my blog, when I begin writing my Double Header recipe features (where you can do the “hard part” for 2 different recipes at once!)… but for now. Boil the chicken breasts for 40-50 minutes, depending on their size (the meat should start to fall from the bone). This is what I call the “hard part” of this particular recipe for two reasons: first, because I have to use a candle-lighter every time I want to light my broken stove (otherwise known as. “the scary thing”). And secondly, because boiling things for this long can be really boring esp. without a little great wine, and easy to forget that you’re doing (esp. with too much great wine).

Sidenote #1: A key element of Here Karen Wine recipes will be to maximize your time in the kitchen, which I know you’ll appreciate because if I am typing this up and you’re just sitting there reading it, you’re lazier than even I am. And that is tough to do.

You can go ahead and prepare the rest of the ingredients, but you’ll also need to let the chicken cool before you can peel it without getting burnt (10-15 mins are suggested), and it is totally possible to cook the chicken and make the salad the next day. If you’re feeling feisty now.. you’ll need to toast the pumpkin seeds, and chop the grapes and carrots.

To Toast Pumpkin Seeds: Line a baking sheet with foil (this part is just because we are lazy and hate doing dishes.. see what I mean?). Give that baby a really nice layer of cooking spray.. any kind will do. Spread the Pumpkin Seeds evenly across the pan, not exceeding more than about 2 seeds in depth). Spray the seeds with an additional blast or two of cooking spray (seriously, it works better than oil or butter), and sprinkle with an intro layer of salt. You can always add more later. Toast in oven for approx. 7 mins.. if you can smell them cooking, it’s likely time to take them out. They should begin to brown on the edges, but no further. Burnt seeds have a strong (usually undesired) flavor.. be careful with this part.

While you’re waiting for the seeds to toast… get to cutting.

Sidenote #2: Here Karen Wine will involve much discussion about how I’ve learned to best cut things. Because I am a strong believer that the ways ingredients are cut have a strong effect on the outcome of a dish, and also because watching untrained people try to slice things with big knives often makes me want to faint.

The grapes should be cut into roughly dime-sized pieces (if dimes were slimy and awkward). You will generally half smaller grapes, and cut larger ones into quarters. (Tip.. if you are cutting something rounded that has a flat side once it is cut into, use the new flat side to your advantage!) Chop the carrot into pieces as small as you are able to (Suggestion: slice once down the middle.. and then again down the length of each half. This is where the above tip will come in especially handy. Then, chop all the way down the length of the carrot at an angle, creating small, thin pieces about an 8th of an inch thick.)

Once the chicken is cool, remove the white meat (only) from the bone+gross parts and separate. Shred into small lengths by going “with the grain” of the chicken.

In a large mixing bowl,  combine the chicken, grapes, carrots, and mayonnaise thoroughly. Once the main ingredients are coated evenly with mayo, sprinkle in the curry + pumpkin seeds. The mixture should take on a gentle (delicious) yellow appearance. Salt + Pepper to taste.

To Serve: A sandwich is the ultimate way to eat Autumn Curry Chicken Salad-er [yes, Salad-er is absolutely a Nick Thune reference.. 3:35], but if you have some Town House or Triscuit crackers. Dude do it. Rectangles made of bread are the basis for some amazing drunk food (more coming on that soon). Or just eat it by itself.

My friend in food, there is noooo shame in that.