One Local Summer 2007, Week 9, Grilling Fool

Posted on | August 25, 2007 | 12 Comments

I’ve finally mastered the grilled boneless chicken breast. I know, you’re saying what’s the big deal? Everybody can grill a chicken breast. Well, no they can’t. I’m somebody and let me tell you I have wasted many a boneless chicken breast in my day. But this time I decided to butterfly the breast to make it thin, then watched it like a hawk tracking a dumb baby rabbit from a low branch of a tree.

Quick cooking over medium heat and many a flipâ€”all the while brushing with whatever kind of vinegar-y salad dressing I had in the fridge (not local)â€”made decidedly tender chicken. We were all happy with this one. I almost always cook chicken breasts too long and end up with rawhide that’s burnt to a crisp, all the while afraid that it’s still pink in the middle and going to give us all a hopping case of the runs. It’s happened.

one local summer week 9 meal

So this was some of the yummy, local Amish raised chicken with no hormones or antibiotics. Not pasture raised, but a big step up from Perdu, let me tell you. Do you remember that advertising campaign a few years back where they tried to convince us that the reason their chicken was so yellow was because they fed confined, debeeked, wing-clipped biddies marigold petals? Yeah. Had nothing whatsoever to do with antibiotic poisoning.

I also grilled a bunch of San Marzano, Bloody Butcher (not half bad grilled) and Juanne FlamÃ©e tomatoes along with a bunch of quartered Pattypan. I sprinkled a handful of chopped basil and parsley over the top of it all. Oh, how I love me some Pattypan. I’m going to do a whole separate post on the virtues of this under-represented, funky little summer squash.

I knew the boys would want some carbs, so I made a partially local dish to accompany the meal. It was 94 in the shade that day, so no way in hell was I attempting my first batch of egg noodles, even though they would have gone perfectly with the rest of the ingredients. So the pasta was an away ingredient.

But just look at these Chard stems and Cipollini Onions! I am so psyched that my Chard leaves have finally started to grow big like elephant earsâ€”the stems thick, radiant and Pantone-specific in their color tones. And the flavor is incredible. Sweet, tender, almost peppery.

chard stem sautÃ©

I added the leaves after the stems and onions cooked down a bit, then dumped in the cooked pasta, crumbled some local goat feta and some not-local canned black olives. Finished it off with some kosher salt and cracked pepper. I exercised a bit of self-discipline and only had a small serving of the pasta, mostly the greens, along with my chicken and veggies. It was a truly delicious meal, eaten in front of the boob tube while we watched the second half of Casino Royale after the bean fell asleep.

Before we know it, we’ll be eating root vegetables and stewed meats, early in the evening with the cold and dark night air pressing up against the house. Our late night summer suppers will be a brightly-flavored memory and something we’ll look forward to again come February when we’re so sick of baked beans and beef stew and mashed rutebega. Hard to believe we could ever get tired of anything so flavorful, but I think that’s the power of February. Just like August has the power to make me long for a good snowstorm, far away from fresh tomatoes.

a decent harvest

Summer is almost over, but the Earth, she keeps spinning us through time. Bringing us around to face the many seasons of ourselves again and again. I’m so glad you all are on this ride at the same time.

[tags] One Local Summer, eat local, garden, harvest, summer, August, gratitude [/tags]

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Category: Eat Local, OLS 2007

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12 Responses to “One Local Summer 2007, Week 9, Grilling Fool”

allan hunter
August 25th, 2007 @ 9:43 am

I’m so glad you took the time to tell the rest of us how to treat a chicken breast with proper reverence, because it truly makes a profound difference. I think most of us bought into those TV ads that show chicken being thrown on the grill with a sheet of erupting flames, quick cut to frame of grinning chef. Looks good, tastes dreadful. This advertizing misleads the likes of me.

Gotta go and eat. Your column makes me ravenous.

[Reply]
Francesca (Stuntmother)
August 25th, 2007 @ 9:31 pm

I’m bookmarking this to come back to because my interactions with chicken breasts are a little uneven, much as I love it.

Oh, and today? We ate a greek salad with local tomatoes and feta from that nice goat farmer called Bonnie. Food is very healing, very grounding.

Thanks for hanging around over my way and always having the right thing to say. It’s so comforting — more than you know.

[Reply]
sandra
August 26th, 2007 @ 9:05 am

I love how you say “I’m somebody.” You sure are.

You may have just convinced me to try grilling chicken. I am a grilling wuss. And you know, sometimes I just want to print out your veggie photos and hang them up in my kitchen.

[Reply]
Kelly
August 26th, 2007 @ 5:32 pm

Allan!! You sweetie, so nice to have you visit! Now we just have to get you and dear Cathy to make a real life visit one of these days so I can feed you in person!

I love your “quick cut to frame of grinning chef.” So true. Seriously, try butterflying the breasts, it makes a world of difference. I made them again last night with the BBQ sauce we get at the farm market from the maple syrup farmers. Sooo good.

[Reply]
Kelly
August 26th, 2007 @ 5:33 pm

Francesca! Thanks for stopping by. I’m jealous you have a goat cheese maker nearby. I found some local-ish goat feta, tho it’s pushing the limits of my 100 miles… pretty good. I’m dying to get my hands on some fresh goat cheese, though. The creamy kind. Mmmm.

I’m so glad to see you posting again. Your words are like magic. I hope things start to settle down for you soon. xo.

[Reply]
Kelly
August 26th, 2007 @ 5:35 pm

Sandra, seriously, do it! I swear, if you watch over it, flip it a lot and don’t cook it for more than 4 or 5 minutes on each side (but remember to butterfly the breasts) you’re gonna love it!

You’re way too kind about my photos. Sometimes I get a fit of giggles thinking about the fact that you had my foggy ice storm winter tree shot blown up and framed and matted. You’re an awesome friend!

[Reply]
The Dol
August 26th, 2007 @ 10:41 pm

What a beautiful post! One note about grilling chicken: brine it first. That makes a huge difference in both the juiciness and the flavor. And a meat thermometer is the way to get it just perfect and avoid the runs. For a pound of chicken breasts, here’s how I make a brine:
1 c. hot water
1/4 c. coarse salt
1/4 c. brown sugar
misc. peppercorns, garlic, lemon, etc.

After you mix everything into the hot water (dissolve the sugar and salt), add another 3 or so cups of cold water. Pour the water into a cake pan. Put the chicken into the water (it shouldn’t be warm) and let it sit in the fridge for 2 hours (I’ve done it for 45 minutes before and had it work ok). Turn the chicken over once in the fridge.

I’m not sure if this breaks any buying-local rules (salt and sugar?), or other food rules you might have. My husband and I are new to this, and we’re actually doing vegetarian, so I haven’t made chicken in a few months.

[Reply]
lucette
August 27th, 2007 @ 9:23 am

I love your last paragraph!

[Reply]
merseydotes
August 27th, 2007 @ 10:57 am

We love pattypan too. My daughter thinks it’s the coolest looking vegetable ever. We got some new squash at the farmers market this weekend, and I didn’t think to ask what it was. It came in green and yellow, as usual, but it was almost perfectly round and about the size of a tennis ball.

[Reply]
El
August 27th, 2007 @ 12:34 pm

Don’t you just love how pretty chard is?

I always go into deep denial when the end of summer comes around. Fall is my favorite season, but it’s less so now that I’m a crazy subsistence gardener! I don’t want my warm-season crops to end.

But then, I was looking at my kale today with lust: potato/kale soup is just behind potato/leek soup in my book. So it’s not all bad.

I’m glad you’re on this ride too! have a great week, Kelly.

[Reply]
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