August 10: Oven-Baked Corn Dogs with O & V Slaw

1 package corn dogs
1 package salad
Toppings and dressing of your choice

Cook corn dogs according to package directions.

Toss your salad in a bowl.

Serve.

4 SERVINGS

As you probably guessed, this is not Rachael Ray's Oven-Baked Corn Dog recipe. I just wanted some plain old corn dogs, and some salad made with the leftovers in my fridge. I have made her recipe before, and they are probably healthier (not by much) but they don't work very well. The batter doesn't stick to the hot dogs. Here is the recipe:

2 8-ounce boxes corn muffin mix, such as Jiffy brand
2 eggs
1 1/4 to 1 1/3 cups milk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons hot sauce, such as Tabasco or Frank's Red Hot
2 scallions, finely chopped
8 regular pork or beef franks
1/2 cup hamburger pickle relish
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 sack (16 ounces) shredded cabbage mix for slaw salads
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bag reduced-fat potato chips, such as Cape Cod brand or Terra brand garlic-and-onion-flavor Yukon chips

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a shallow dish, combine the muffin mix with the eggs, milk, and melted butter. Season the mix with chili powder, cumin, hot sauce, and scallions. The batter will be thick like a wet dough. Place a hot dog into the bowlful of batter, swish it around to coat it, remove the coated dog to a nonstick cookie sheet, and use your fingers to spread batter on any exposed dog spots. Don't coat it too thickly, just shy of a half-inch should do the trick. If it is too thick, the batter will slide off the dog while it's baking, leaving the dog exposed. If that happens don't sweat it, they still taste great. Repeat until all 8 dogs are coated. Bake for 12 minutes or until evenly deep brown all over.

Mix the relish with the oil and vinegar. Add the shredded cabbage to the bowl, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat the salad.

Serve the oven-baked corn dogs with your favorite hot dog condiments. Serve the slaw and chips alongside the dogs.

4 SERVINGS

Her tidbits are: "To serve these corn dogs on a stick, insert bamboo skewers into the bottom of the dogs. For parties, use mini dogs. You can coat up to 24 with one batch of batter. Serve them on 3-inch bamboo party skewers - TOO CUTE!"