Grilled Tuscan Lemon Chicken with Garlic and Rosemary • Grilled Chicken at its Best!

Hi Readers. I'm sorry I just basically disappeared for two weeks, but you know, it was August. And August is hot. And when it's hot, I lay on the couch and eat popsicles all day, and then after that I go somewhere air-conditioned like the mall, because it's so hot. I do not sit around in my hot hot house and blog for you, because I am selfish like that. Sorry.

But now it's September! The month of pumpkin spice lattes, crisp autumn leaves, snuggly sweaters and scarves, and fresh notebooks full of crisp white paper ready for a school years worth of notes! I love September. (And true to form, we had a chilly overcast marine layer all summer and them today was THE hottest day of the entire year. Thanks California! Love how you never go with the seasons like everywhere else does! Stay classy!) And with September comes more recipes. That's right - I'm blogging even though it's the hottest day of the year. That's how committed I am to September people!

And here is a recipe for you. This recipe is seriously the best grilled chicken I have ever had. Pardon me if I tread on your toes, but generally I really don't like grilled chicken. It's just always so dry and so bland, and the only thing that gives it any interest at all is barbecue sauce, and that generally only makes it edible - hardly delicious. And yet for whatever reason, this recipe is so moist and tender, and busting with flavor. It's so delicious! And the lemon garlic sauce is seriously to die for. We served this with roasted potatoes and grilled veggies and it was an absolutely delicious meal.

Tuscan Lemon Chicken with Garlic Rosemary Sauce
adapted from Barefoot Contessa at Home, By Garten

Ok, don't freak out because this recipe calls for a whole stick of butter. When you divide that up amongst all the people eating (not to mention that part that is most regrettably left in the pan) it really comes out to very little. and it's SO delicious. And honestly, in the grand scheme of things? A little butter in not so bad. It much, much less bad than a fast food hamburger, or a candy bar, or a soda, and I bet you have that every now and then, don't you?

Ingredients
1 3.5ish pound chicken (fyi, I am sure you could make this with any other cut of chicken from the grocer - I just happen to love that it works with whole chicken so well, because it's the cheapest by far! I also love to save the bones from whole chickens for stock!)

1/3 cup good olive oil
zest of two lemons
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3-4 large cloves fresh garlic, minced or passed through a garlic press
2 tbs finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 stick unsalted butterfreshly ground pepper
kosher salt
1 lemon, halved

1. (This is the grossest step, fyi, but it really makes it easy to grill!) Rinse chicken and pat dry. With a pair of cooking shears (or a VERY clean pair of scissors - wash them with dish-soap or run them through the dishwasher - Or of all else fails, a large cooking knife), cut out the backbone of the chicken (I always throw it in a ziplock bag in the freezer for stock). I just cut right up each side of the chicken. Trim any large chucks of excess fat. Spread the chicken open, cavity side down, and press down firmly with the hell of your palm, until the chicken is flat. Sprinkle both sides generously with salt and pepper

2. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, rosemary, and 1 tsp pepper. Place chicken in a large 1 gallon ziplock bag, and pour marinade over chicken. Seal bag, removing as much air as possible, and turn to coat. Refridgerate chicken a minimum of 4 hours, but up to overnight, turning once or twice.

3. When ready to grill, heat grill to medium high. Remove chicken from bag, saving whatever juices are left over in the bag, and place chicken on the grill skin side up. Cook 15 - 25 minutes, until golden brown (adjust heat if necessary if chicken browns too quickly or begins to burn. Grills can be so different from one another!). Turn the chicken skin side down, and cook for another 15 - 20 minutes, until skin is brown and crisp, and meat is cooked through. Grill the lemon halves, cut side down, for the last 10 minutes of cooking.

4. Remove chicken from heat, and let rest on a cutting board (tented with foil or something like that, so it doesn't get cold) 5 minutes. Remember that left over marinade? I hope you saved it! In a small saucepan, combine leftover marinade, butter, and any juices from chicken resting place. Heat, and bring to a boil, whisking to combine. Chop the chicken into 4 pieces, and top with garlic rosemary sauce. Enjoy!

Best Ever Turkey Burger with Spicy Chipotle Mayo

Gentle reader,

(can I call you that? Are we good enough friends that I can call you that? Because I really want to. Pretty please?)

I have a terrible confession to make. I have been sitting on a big stack of my most favorite recipes, and most of them are not on this blog. I KNOW, RIGHT?? What kind of food blogger doesn't post their best material? Lame ones, that's who. (Bad, bad blogger. Minus one gold star for me).

In my defense, I really, really care about these recipes, because I LOVE them. I want you to love them as much as I do. So if I feel like it's not perfect (and is it ever perfect? like, ever?), I don't want to post it. If the pictures are mediocre, I won't post it. If it didn't come out exactly right this time, NO POST. Are you sensing a theme here?

It's just that I love these recipes so much, and I want you to love them too. I want to make you fall in love with chipotle turkey burgers, black bean chili, and pumpkin roulade cake the way my family has. I want you to be able to make them for your family and friends over and over again. I want them to be your favorite family recipes too.

However.

That's not really going to happen if I never post the recipes, is it? So here you go: This is my family's favorite turkey burger recipe! It's not perfect. The pictures could be better. There could be a lot more of them. I could have written a better and more convincing arguments for just how good it is. But honestly? I'd rather just get it out there, imperfections and all.

So this is for you, gentle reader. I hope you try it, and I hope you like it as much as we do.

Best Ever Turkey Burger with Spicy Chipotle Mayo
adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2009
serves 4

If you are going to make this recipe, you have to make it with the mayo at least once. Even if you don't really like mayo, please try it! It really takes what is a good burger to a whole new level. You can find chipotle chilis in the hispanic section if your grocery store, or at ethnic or specialty markets.

Ingredients
1.5 lbs ground turkey
1 small red onion, minced
1/4 cup minced cilantro
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
kosher salt
black pepper
----------------------------
8 thin slices Swiss cheese
4 sesame seed buns
4 lettuce leaves
8 slices bacon
4 dill pickles slices
---------------------------
1/2 cup good quality mayo, like hellman's or best (NOT miracle whip)
1/4 cup sour cream
1 canned chipotle chili
1 teaspoon adobo sauce

1. In a medium bowl, mix together ground turkey, minced onion, minced cilantro, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper, and shape into 4 patties. Grill over medium heat until cooked through, or bake in the oven 15 - 20 minutes until cooked through. Add slices of Swiss cheese at the end of the cooking time, and let melt over the burgers (YUM).

2. Meanwhile, puree mayo, sour cream, chipotle chili and adobo sauce until smooth. If you like, you can adjust how much chili to put in based on your tastes, but I think this amount is just right.

3. Toast buns. Build your burger: I recommend trying it with all the ingredients before you mess with it - all the flavors really do work together beautifully. Spread mayo on one of the buns. Layer together lettuce, patty, dill pickles, and bacon. Enjoy!

Juicy Tender Oven Roasted Barbecue Baby Back Ribs

(I am so excited that everyone LOVES this recipe so much! If you are looking for more great dinner recipes, make sure to check out my oven roasted chicken, grilled salmon with cucumber mango salsa, or these amazing pulled pork sandwiches!)


When Nate and I first got married, we lived in what was, quite possibly, the smallest apartment ever. Oh sure, the complex was well maintained and the management was nice, but the apartment itself was the size of a wallet, and the kitchen was so small that if Nate tried to wash a dish while I was stirring a pot we'd be rubbing our buns together in a backwards tango the whole time. There was so little space that I had to put a cutting board over the sink to have any prep space, and my crock pot lived permanently on the stove over a back burner. Which is how I accidentally set it on fire, by the way. Useful tip: Don't store anything flammable on top of a gas stove. You will set it on fire eventually. Really. I promise.

Anyway.




Of course there was nowhere in that teeny tiny apartment to put a grill. And although the apartment complex technically had a one, it took a fair stretch of the imagination to call the rusted lump of metal by the pool a "grill." I turned it on once and a sad little lick of flame flickered at the bottom of the grate, like a lone little candle. Hardly enough heat to melt some butter, let alone sear a steak.

All that is to say, some people, people like me, just don't have access to a grill. And the good news is, if you want to make some finger lickin', lip smackin' good ribs, you don't need one! In fact, when I make ribs, I still make them this way, even though I now live in a place with it's own backyard and a grill to boot. And honestly, it's mostly just because I am lazy. This way is SO easy. When I don't feel like fussing with charcoal and lighters and all the hoopla that goes with grilling, I'm glad I can throw this together in about 1.5 minutes, stick it in the oven, and forget about it. It makes for a great weekday barbecue and requires only a fraction of the work necessary to make ribs on a grill. I mean, it doesn't even get any dishes dirty. Also? Pork ribs are so cheap in the summer! Even thought I bought the *most* expensive type of ribs at my ghetto grocery store, this meal still only cost... $5.

So make 'em already!

Juicy Tender Oven Roasted Barbecue Baby Back Ribs
(try saying that 10 times fast!)

This recipe feeds two people, but is easily doubled or tripled or quadrupled or whatever. I always estimate 1 rack of ribs for 2 people - of course, that is because we always serve this with sides like potato salad or slaw. It's easy to double by just adding more racks of ribs to the foil packets.



Ingredients
1 rack baby back pork ribs (or other kinds, but baby back ribs are the most tender)
kosher salt
cracked black pepper
Classic Homemade Barbecue Sauce, or similar





Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place 1 rack of baby back pork ribs on a large piece of foil.




Sprinkle liberally with kosher salt and cracked black pepper. Place fat side up on the foil.




Cover ribs with a second piece of foil and fold each edge tightly so moisture is sealed in. Bake in preheated over for 1 hour.




Remove ribs from oven and unwrap foil.




Brush with Classic Homemade Barbecue Sauce, or similar and place fat side down. Return ribs to oven, foil still open. Cook 20 minutes.




Brush with barbecue sauce again, cut, and serve.

Enjoy!    

Summer Pulled Pork Sandwiches - A Recipe for Yum

Today was a No Good, Horrible, Rotten, Very Bad Day. For baby James, that is. If you are new here, baby James has Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), which is fancy-pants for very-bad-heartburn-that-makes-Baby-James-cry-all-day-long. He's on medication for it... but it doesn't work. I know, I know. We're going to get a different medication, but that doesn't mean that today was full of rainbows and ponies and fun. In fact, by 10am, I knew I was going to spend the rest of the day sitting on the couch, jiggling an unhappy baby who insisted in poking out his lower lip and looking irresistibly cute and sad (and periodically screaming) all day long.





I've learned that when it's one of THOSE days, the no-good, horrible, rotten, very bad days, it's best to just roll with it. It's no use trying to resist, and thinking about all the things I should get done is just frustrating. If I've got plans for a big fancy dinner recipe, they're canceled. Which is why pulled pork sandwiches are SO awesome.

Wait... pulled pork sandwiches? Aren't those difficult and time consuming? Not even! I've always been intimidated of making pulled pork because it looked hard... and like a lot of work. All day kind of work. Now I know they are easy-peasy. Slather a pork butt (hehe.... Oh, I'm sorry, was that childish?) with a spice rub, bake, and shred. That's it! The slathering and the shredding are honestly so easy my 3 month old kid could do it.

I like this recipe because I can throw this together in a pinch, I don't have to bother with it all day long, and when it's done we have something fantastic to eat. So if you're having a no-good, horrible, rotten, very bad day, or even if you are just having a busy day where you need to get stuff done, this recipe is fantastic. It packs a lot of punch in the taste department, it has a big "wow" factor, and... am I forgetting anything? Oh yeah! It tastes amazing.







Summer Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living, June 2009

The only downside to this recipe (if that's even possible) is that the pork butt has to cook all day, and is places where it's hot... you might not want to turn your oven on in the middle of the day. No fear! This is a spectacular do ahead recipe. Do the baking the evening before when it's cool out. Then all you need to do on barbecue day is serve. Easy peasy.

Obviously, the buns in the pictures are onion wheat buns (gluten!) that Nate has been enjoying. I've been eating my pulled pork sandwiches on gluten-free bread, which, while tasty, is rather less photogenic.

By the way, a pork "butt" isn't what it sounds like (::snicker:: Oh, I'm so immature). It's actually a shoulder cut. It's quite flavorful and it is mega-cheap. I bought mine for $1 a lb, though I am sure prices vary by location. It's quite a fatty cut, but the fat renders out in the long cooking (yet another reason to bake this in the oven instead of stew it in the crock pot).


ingredients
5lb pork butt roast
1/2 cup dijon mustard
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup coarse salt
2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 garlic cloves
2 cups water
2 - 3 cups Classic Homemade Barbecue Sauce (Or some storebought sauce... pansy. Just kidding. Kinda.)
8 sandwich buns
2 cups thinly sliced green cabbage (for serving)


method


Finely mince 3 garlic cloves, and place in a medium bowl.



Add 1/2 cup dijon mustard to the bowl.



Add 1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar...



... and 1/4 cup coarse salt...



...add in 2 teaspoons smoked paprika (wow! gorgeous!)...



... 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, my personal favorite...



... and finally, 2 tablespoons coarsely ground pepper.



Mix it all together...



... place your 5 lb pork butt on a roasting rack...



... and slather with the spice paste.



Add 2 cups water to the bottom of the roasting pan. Cover securely with tinfoil. Let sit for at least 1 hour to absorb spice paste, or up to over night (or longer!).



Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Cook, basting hourly, for about 6 hours, until pork is tender and pulls apart easily. Remove from oven and let cool.



Shred pork (with your fingers or with two forks), and toss with 2-3 cups barbecue sauce.



Serve atop a toasted onion bun with sliced cabbage.

Enjoy!

Classic Homemade Barbecue Sauce

I went to pick up some barbecue sauce at the grocery store the other evening, and I was absolutely appalled by the selection. When you have dietary restrictions, it's important to read the back of the bottle carefully, just to make sure, you know, there's nothing in it that will kill you. I spent almost an hour in the barbecue sauce isle reading the backs of bottles, trying to find something I could eat. My criteria was simple: no gluten (so no soy sauce, mysterious "modified food starch," or barley malt syrup) and no corn syrup. I don't know about you, but slathering my barbecued ribs with corn syrup doesn't exactly sound appetizing to me.

There were only about a million different brands and flavors, but I could only find one sauce, that was gluten-free and corn syrup free. Only one! And almost every sauce had corn syrup as the first ingredient, meaning there was more corn syrup in the sauce than tomatoes, vinegar, or any other flavoring.

Ew.

And that ONE sauce that was gluten-free and not made out of corn syrup? I kid you not, it cost $7 for 1.5 cups of sauce. Even the mom and pop brands contained gluten, corn syrup, and a host of other preservatives. I bought that $7 sauce because it was the night before our father's day barbecue, and I didn't have any other options at that point, but I knew there had to be a better way.

And oh, there is a better way.

A much, much better way.




In retrospect, making your own barbecue sauce is a no-brainer. It's simple, it's delicious, it goes together with minimal effort, and it costs a fraction of price of those inferior, corn-syrupy sauces. And did I mention just how powerfully tasty it is? This sauce is so good, it had me licking the spoon... and the bowl.

This recipe is a fantastic starting point for different flavors - mix a little honey into it and BBQ over hickory chips, and you honey hickory sauce. Mince some chipotle peppers, and you have spicy smoky chipotle BBQ sauce. The possibilities are endless.

Classic Homemade Barbecue Sauce

This recipe makes about 6 cups of sauce - more than enough for one barbecue. You can can or freeze the leftovers, or mix in new flavorings and save it in your fridge for your next grilling session. That is, if you aren't caught standing in front of the fridge, slurping it out of the jar. Not that I've done that. Since yesterday. I promise.


Ingredients
4 cans (14 oz) fire roasted, diced tomatoes (you can use regular canned diced tomatoes, but I think the fire roasted kind just add a whole other dimension of flavor)
3 medium yellow onions (about 3 cups chopped)
6 garlic cloves
1/3 cup vegetable or safflower oil
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/3 cup unsulfered molasses
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons Worcester sauce
4 teaspoons salt



Chop 3 yellow onions.



Mince 6 garlic cloves.



Heat 1/3 cup vegetable or safflower oil in a large cast iron pot, and add the onions and garlic. Saute until softened and beginning to brown.



Add 1 teaspoon kosher salt,



and 1 teaspoon chili powder,



and 1/4 teaspoon cumin, and another 1/4 teaspoon coriander.



Finally, add 1/3 cup molasses...



... and 1/3 cup dark brown sugar.



Mix them all up together, and boil for 3 minutes.



Open up your 4 cans of tomatoes...



...and get 3/4 cup of apple cider vinegar.



Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer on medium low for 2-3 hours...



... until sauce has thickened and darkened.




Add 1/4 cup white vinegar...




... and 2 tablespoons Worcester sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper (about 1 tablespoon of each).




Place sauce in blender, add 2 cups of water (more if needed) and puree until smooth.




Store in a few jar... slather all over some BBQ... slurp it out of a jar... enjoy!