“Winner-Winner” Chicken Dinner Cakes

I invented this several months ago, but only just got around to testing it yesterday. (It was yummers. Going into regular rotation from now on.) It’s best described as an entire chicken dinner with stuffing, done up in a crab-cake style. Good as a sandwich or by itself, and the options listed below are all perfect for this entree. It’s so good that it’s probably very bad for you, and it’s definitely filling. Makes 8 cakes.

1 box (6 oz) stuffing mix
1 small cooked rotisserie chicken
½ cup Italian breadcrumbs
¼ cup Parmesan
2 eggs
2 cups vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 cup flour
¾ cup corn meal
1 tbsp No-Salt Herb Blend*
1 tsp ground black pepper

Prepare stuffing per package and let cool. Remove cooled chicken meat from bone and shred into 1-inch or smaller pieces; mix with stuffing in a large bowl. Add breadcrumbs, Parmesan and 2 lightly beaten eggs and blend well; form into eight patties ½-inch thick and refrigerate 30 minutes or until ready to cook.

Lightly beat 3 eggs in a large, shallow dish (a pie pan works good). Blend flour, corn meal, herbs and pepper in a second dish to make a dredge. Heat oil on stove top over medium to medium-high heat in a large cast iron skillet. When oil is ready, coat patty in eggs, fully dredge in flour mix, and slowly and carefully drop into skillet. Fry two at a time for three minutes; flip patties and fry another 3 minutes until dark golden brown. Shake off excess oil and keep warm while the other patties are cooked.

Options: chili dip (green chili pepper sauce mixed with chili sauce), turkey gravy, cheese slices, cranberry jelly, sesame seed hamburger buns. Serve with green beans or corn.

*We got the No-Salt Herb Blend from Prevention magazine. We keep it on hand for an easy, no-fuss, baked chicken seasoning.

Have you ever had the inspiration to invent a dish? Did it turn out the way you thought it would? Are you interested in trying this recipe? Let me hear from you in the comments section!