Southern Comfort Food made healthy! Fried Chicken and Cheese Grits

Buffalo Fried Chicken w/ Ranch and Cheese Grits

So we all love comfort food, but everyone knows you gotta keep that tiny waistline. One of the most delicious and equally unhealthy southern dishes that has always been a favorite of mine is Fried Chicken and Cheese Grits. Here is my version of this hearty dish, it's Organic, Gluten Free, and Dairy free.

What you'll need

For the chicken:
Two Organic/Vegetarian Fed/Free Range Chicken Breasts
Organic Quinoa Flour
Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
Organic Buffalo Style Hot Sauce
Earth Balance Butter (Vegan Butter Substitute)

For the grits:
1 Cup Organic Buckwheat Groats
2 Cups Purified Water
1 Cup Daiya Cheese (Vegan Cheese Substitute)
1/4 Cup Organic Unsweetened Soy or Almond Milk
French Celtic Sea Salt to taste
Organic Black Pepper to taste

For the ranch:
Organic Ranch Packet
Veganaise
Soy Milk


1. Boil the two cups water in a saucepan
2. Clean chicken and pound it out with a meat tenderizer
3. Cut chicken into desired size pieces. I prefer small bite size pieces
4. Dredge the chicken in the quinoa flour
5. Heat 4 tbsp coconut oil in fry pan
6. Pour the cup of Buckwheat Groats into the boiling water and reduce heat to low. Simmer groats covered until all water is absorbed and groats are cooked thoroughly.
7. Add chicken to medium high pan and fry. Continuously stir until chicken is cooked all the way through and crispy.
8. Toss in 1/4 cup Buffalo sauce and 1/4 cup earth balance to chicken. Stir until earth balance is melted and everything is evenly distributed throughout the pan.
9. Stir in 1 cup Daiya cheese to cooked groats until cheese is melted.
10. Add a splash of soy or almond milk to groats, just enough to make sure its creamy.
11. Add salt and pepper to taste


Ranch
Mix Ranch Powder with Veganaise and soy milk until it is a good taste and consistency

Here are some fun facts about the nutritious ingredients in this recipe.

Quinoa
Quinoa is rich in protein content. In fact, it is a complete protein as it contains all the essential amino acids, especially lysine, which is required by the body to grow and repair tissues.


Buckwheat
Buckwheat contains linoleic acid, vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B5, E, P), essential amino acids, minerals - chromium, copper, manganese, folic acid - and is an excellent source of magnesium.


Coconut oil
In addition to a whole host of amino acids, coconut is also a great source of the minerals potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and manganese, as well as vitamin C and riboflavin (vitamin B2). Also contains Omega 3 fatty acids!