Whenever a meal is planned that requires a grill odds are that it is going to rain. This was of course the case on Sunday. Not only did it rain, but I ran out of propane spurring a soaking sprint to Steve's house to salvage a dinner that had not even started to cook.
Once the grill was up and running on went a whole chicken that had been marinating in a blend of citrus juices, rosemary, garlic and oregano. I know, pretty bad ass. And it was. The chicken was butterflied so it would cook faster and under the skin we slid in some orange slices. I'm not kidding. I threw it on the grill, placed some bricks on top to crisp up the skin and promote browning and went inside to dry off.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/GRILLED-CITRUS-CHICKEN-UNDER-A-BRICK-242115
Since the chicken had about 40 minutes to cook I decided to get the meal going with a soup I prepared earlier in the day. It was a watermelon based soup with oranges, beets and some other citrus juices added in. The beet flavor kind of caught me off guard and was a little too strong. However with the addition of some feta and the polishing off of the first couple bottles of wine for the night it began to improve. Jackie hated it but the rest of us were at least able to put down the bowl. I would do it again just with fewer beets.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_32590,00.html
With about 10 minutes to go in the chicken cooking Allison finally started to help out around the kitchen and cored some tomatoes for me. Into the hollowed out orbs I threw in an orzo, and goat cheese stuffing (Dzam). On top of that some fresh parmesan and onto the grill.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_167593,00.html
The chicken finished up along with the tomatoes and the meal was devoured. I attribute that to us being hungry and the food being "off the hook". For the first time in a Pat meal there were no leftovers (see reasoning above). It went over well and as we take the next week off for the holiday we are all excited to see what Jackie has in store next week!
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Sunday, May 4, 2008
4 May 2008 - Chicken, Thyme, Nuts... How Do You Like Them Apples?
This Sunday's dinner was a big adventure. So far these dinner nights have been a chance for me to expand my culinary craft far beyond the collegiate skills of fish sticks and tater tots, GOSH! This week I went for broke and made 4 things that I had never before prepared. So here's what I made:
Maiden Voyage Encrusting
Pistachio, Panko & Thyme Encrusted Chicken Breast with a Dijon Thyme Gravy
- Recipe from Je Mange la Ville
One Small Step for Biscuitkind
Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- Recipe from Rasa Malaysia
"Holy Vegetation, Batman! It's Green Beans!"
Sauteed Garlic Green Beans and Cherry Tomatoes
- Idea from Je Mange la Ville
"Put Down That Bow & Arrow, Isaac, You're Making Me Nervous" Apple Dumplings
Apple Dumplings with a Cinnamon Sugar & Vanilla Sauce
- Recipe from All Recipes
I really liked the way the chicken dish and the biscuits turned out. It took a good hour to shell and crush all of those pistachios, and dipping and battering those breasts ended with my hands coated in nutty mittens! The Dijon gravy worked out perfectly to the delight of Pat and Steve.
The cheddar biscuits were awesome! They were pretty much a rip off of the Red Lobster recipe, but they're just so good and the parsley butter dusting makes you want to reach for another.
The green beans worked out pretty well, despite me not actually sticking to a recipe. This resulted in the tomatoes being added a bit to early and pretty much turning to mush. Actually, if I didn't tell you they were in there, you wouldn't have known. So we'll just say I made sauteed garlic green beans and forget the whole "tomato thing", k?
The apple dumplings were insanely simple to make - skin, core & half apples, wrap them in biscuit dough, bake for 35 minutes and there you have it, ladies and gentlemen! The sauce, on the other hand, is a bit of a mystery. But I'll solve it quickly for you, when you're heating the buttery, sugary mixture, make sure not to keep it on too high heat for too long or your sauce will turn into a hard caramel coating :) While this made for an interesting candy shell for my 2 eager diners, it was certainly not as intended!
The good people at Coors provided us with smooth, cool beverages to accompany yet another fine meal. Sadly, our fourth member of the Weekly Dining Society had a big day of horse race spectatorship and sat [read: slept] this one out on the couch).
Maiden Voyage Encrusting
Pistachio, Panko & Thyme Encrusted Chicken Breast with a Dijon Thyme Gravy
- Recipe from Je Mange la Ville
One Small Step for Biscuitkind
Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- Recipe from Rasa Malaysia
"Holy Vegetation, Batman! It's Green Beans!"
Sauteed Garlic Green Beans and Cherry Tomatoes
- Idea from Je Mange la Ville
"Put Down That Bow & Arrow, Isaac, You're Making Me Nervous" Apple Dumplings
Apple Dumplings with a Cinnamon Sugar & Vanilla Sauce
- Recipe from All Recipes
I really liked the way the chicken dish and the biscuits turned out. It took a good hour to shell and crush all of those pistachios, and dipping and battering those breasts ended with my hands coated in nutty mittens! The Dijon gravy worked out perfectly to the delight of Pat and Steve.
The cheddar biscuits were awesome! They were pretty much a rip off of the Red Lobster recipe, but they're just so good and the parsley butter dusting makes you want to reach for another.
The green beans worked out pretty well, despite me not actually sticking to a recipe. This resulted in the tomatoes being added a bit to early and pretty much turning to mush. Actually, if I didn't tell you they were in there, you wouldn't have known. So we'll just say I made sauteed garlic green beans and forget the whole "tomato thing", k?
The apple dumplings were insanely simple to make - skin, core & half apples, wrap them in biscuit dough, bake for 35 minutes and there you have it, ladies and gentlemen! The sauce, on the other hand, is a bit of a mystery. But I'll solve it quickly for you, when you're heating the buttery, sugary mixture, make sure not to keep it on too high heat for too long or your sauce will turn into a hard caramel coating :) While this made for an interesting candy shell for my 2 eager diners, it was certainly not as intended!
The good people at Coors provided us with smooth, cool beverages to accompany yet another fine meal. Sadly, our fourth member of the Weekly Dining Society had a big day of horse race spectatorship and sat [read: slept] this one out on the couch).
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