Tag Archives: grilling

Grilled Chicken and Radish Picnic Baguette with Herbed Cream Cheese

by Rebecca Penovich | Leave a comment

chicken sandwich

This is a simple sandwich to share with a crowd.

One of the keys that makes it so tasty is taking the time to trim and marinate the chicken before grilling.  As you probably have found, boneless, skinless chicken breasts can be boring, and worse, dry.  On the grill, they can get tough as a deck of cards and cook unevenly.

Since I’m determined to try to get more chicken into our dinner rotation, I’ve been reading tutorials on how to get chicken breast right.  (Yes, chicken tutorials.  This is life-long learning at its pinnacle.)

The gauntlet thrown, it was time to tackle the chicken breast and find a way to keep it juicy and flavorful without drowning it in sauce.

What I learned:

1.  It’s important to trim the breasts.  Cut off the tenderloins and save for another use. These are the filet mignon of the chicken breast (if you will allow me that analogy) and really should be used in a stir fry or sauté where you can showcase their tenderness.  Sure you can just open the package and toss the uber-plump breasts on the grill, slather with some sauce and they will be edible (maybe), but you want something good, right?

Your goal here is to get a piece of breast that has a consistent thickness.  Since most commercially farmed breasts are so big, I often cut them in half after trimming.  That gives me smaller pieces to deal with and I can better monitor how they are cooking.  You are going to slice the breasts thinly for the sandwich so you don’t need to worry about serving a 1/2 portion of breast.

2.  Pound the heck out them.  I sandwich the breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap and use my trusty mallet.

chicken_mallet

You could use your rolling pin or the flat bottom of a heavy pan.  Really whack those babies to get them an even thickness, ideally 1/2 inch thick.  Kids love this task by the way, so go ahead and delegate it.  Have them pound both sides.

3.  Marinate the breasts for at least an hour (or longer.)  You want to use a combination of oil and acid (vinegar or citrus juice) along with salt, pepper, herbs, spices or other aromatics.  I find that fresh herbs in a marinade tend to char on the grill so I’ve used dry in this recipe. (Plus you will get fresh herby goodness in the cream cheese spread.)

Really Good Marinade

Ingredients

  • 1/4 C. extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 T. red wine vinegar
  • 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes (more if you like spicy)
  • 1/4 tsp. dried oregano or thyme
  • 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 tsp. fennel powder (optional, I had ground fennel seeds for another recipe)

Directions

  • Whisk all together and taste.  Correct the seasoning if you’d like more vinegar or less; more spice or less.
  • Pour over chicken breasts and marinate, covered, for one hour or more in the refrigerator.
Chicken off the grill.

Chicken resting off the grill.

4.  Grill over high heat for 2-3 minutes per side.  Watch them and feel them.  When the breasts feel firm and resist the tongs, they are done. Let the breasts rest on your cutting board so they can absorb their juices.  Do not overcook!

5. Slice thinly against the grain.

 

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For the sandwich

  • 1 good baguette (good toothsome bread is essential: it makes all the difference in a sandwich)
  • 3 radishes, sliced thinly
  • 2 shallots, sliced thinly (TIP:  I sprinkled a little red vinegar over the shallots to slightly pickle them while I assembled the sandwich,  this takes away some of that raw onion harshness)
  • 8 grape tomatoes, sliced in half
  • Herbed cream cheese spread (I made my own with 3 T. cream cheese, 1 T. of mayonnaise, 1 T. chopped fresh parsley, 1 T. chopped fresh basil, pinch of salt and pepper)
Assembling the picnic sandwich.

Assembling the picnic sandwich.

 

 

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Adding the shallot and tomato.

 

Assemble the sandwich:

  • Slice the baguette in half lengthwise and spread some of the cream cheese mixture on both halves.
  • Place the sliced chicken in a single layer on one half, topped with a single layer of pickled shallots.
  • On the other half of the baguette, assemble a layer of the radishes, topped by the grape tomatoes.
  • Sprinkle a little salt and fresh ground pepper over the chicken and shallot side (not too much)
  • Put both sides together and press down to adhere.

When ready to serve, cut your picnic sandwich into serving slices and hold them together with a short bamboo skewer.

Summer chicken on baguette

Pack them into your picnic basket or cooler and enjoy the concert or the game!
For some helpful grilled chicken breast tutorials, check out:

Grilled Salmon, Asparagus, Lime Butter, Quinoa, Parsley, Mint

by Rebecca Penovich | 3 Comments

Grilled Salmon with Lime-Butter Sauce

 

 

Oh salmon and asparagus lovers, make this for dinner TO-NIGHT.  It was insanely delicious and very easy.

As often as I crave salmon, I find that I don’t buy it or cook it enough.  It’s not a favorite meal of my husband or son (even though the husband will eat it).  It seems too finicky and expensive to do for group entertaining (although I love to serve it at smaller dinner parties.)  So I often find myself passing it by in the grocery store, until one day, I just must have it and cook it for myself.  My comfort food.

This recipe, adapted from Gourmet’s Ian Knauer is wonderful.  The key is the lime butter sauce (I know, not healthy.)  But oh so good.  And a little goes a long way (unless you eat it by the spoonful as you are ‘testing’ as I did.)

I always buy salmon filet with the skin on.  Go for wild-caught Pacific salmon if you can find it.  If your store only has Atlantic farm-raised salmon, look for  pink-fleshed, firm filets, and go ahead and be persnickety–go to the fish counter and ask the seafood guy or gal a few questions.  Take a sniff.  Fish should smell like the sea (a little bit briny) but not at all fishy.

 

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I cut these salmon filets myself from one large piece of salmon. (That is why one is smaller than the other three.) You can have your fish guy cut it for you or get all center-cut pieces for more expense.

Ingredients

For the salmon:

  • 4 (6-oz) pieces center-cut salmon fillet (about 1 inch thick) with skin
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • salt to taste
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 6 tablespoons lime butter sauce

For the asparagus:

  • 1 1/2 lb medium asparagus (24), trimmed
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • Kosher salt

For the Lime-Butter Sauce:

  • 1 large garlic clove, chopped
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted
For the quinoa with mint and parsley:
  • 1 C. uncooked quinoa
  • 2 C. water or stock (as package requires)
  • 1/4 C. chopped fresh mint
  • 1/4 C. chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/4 C. Lime-Butter Sauce
  • Pinch of kosher salt to taste

Directions

For the Salmon:

  • Preheat your grill (medium high heat for gas or about 350°).  Make sure grill grates are clean and brush them with oil so fish does not stick.
  • Brush fillets lightly on both sides with extra virgin olive oil, then season both flesh and skin sides with salt and pepper.
  • Put salmon filets on hot grill, SKIN side down; grill with the lid closed without moving them until skin crisps and you can lift with a spatula, about  6-7 minutes (depending on how thick your filets are.)
  • Hint:  once the albumen (the white stuff that is a protein in salmon) shows on the flesh surface that means it’s almost done.

Do NOT flip until you can easily loosen the salmon skin from the grill grate. (I usually don’t flip them at all because I find they fall apart.  I want tender salmon and I don’t want it all to fall in the grate.)

For the Grilled Asparagus:

 

I like the thin spears.

Lovely thin spears.

  • Prepare grill (to medium high heat, as for salmon above.)
  • Toss trimmed asparagus with olive oil and season with kosher salt.
  • Place asparagus perpendicular directly on the oiled grill rack (or alternatively place on a grill pan so they don’t go through the grate ) and grill until blistered and tender, 3 to 5 minutes, turning occasionally.

 

For the Lime-Butter Sauce:

This sauce, as simple as it is, was out of this world.  It elevates the entire dish and you will want it on everything.  It’s a bit like a citrusy hollandaise but without the egg yolks.  Thank you, Ian Knauer, for this killer sauce.
  • Purée garlic clove with lime juice, salt, and pepper in a blender until smooth.
  • With motor running, add melted butter and blend until emulsified, about 30 seconds.

Lime butter sauce can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Stir before using.

 

Lime Butter Sauce

For the Quinoa with Parsley and Mint:

I made the quinoa the night before, following the package directions.

  • Cook the quinoa in 2 and 1/4 to 2 and 1/2 cups fresh water, covered, until all of the water is absorbed.  Add pinch of kosher salt to taste. (You can also cook the quinoa in chicken or vegetable stock if you desire a more robust taste.)  At this point you can refrigerate the quinoa over night and reheat it before serving.
  • Scoop the cooked quinoa into a bowl and add the chopped mint and parsley.  Toss.
  • Before plating with the grilled salmon and asparagus, add 1/4 C. of the warm Lime-Butter Sauce to the quinoa.  Toss.

To serve:

Place a scoop of warm quinoa and herb mixture on plate.  Top with grilled salmon filet.  Serve with grilled asparagus on the side.  Spoon Lime-Butter Sauce over the salmon and enjoy!

(Rebecca’s Note:  Here’s a marriage hint.  If you love under-done fish (I would call it “just-right”) and your husband loves over-done fish (he would call it “not raw”), remember that you can always finish it in the oven or on stove-top.

Grilled Salmon with Lime-Butter Sauce

It can be hard to see things out there on the grill unless you have an outdoor kitchen with as much lighting as your regular kitchen.  Restaurants routinely finish grilled or seared steaks in the oven (after bathing them in herb butter.)  In this recipe you’ve got lime butter sauce going for you.  If you bring your grilled salmon in from outside and it looks just right to you but too pink for  your significant other, then put the filet in question in a heated, oiled cast iron pan (fish flesh down or up) and spoon some of the lime butter sauce on top. Get a sear on it, and let him decide when it’s done. In fact, if you want a good sear or char on your fish but want it tender on the inside, you might want to do this treatment on yours as well.)

 

Life Is What Happens While You’re Making Other [blog] Plans

by Rebecca Penovich | 2 Comments

Land ahoy! The Yachtsmen in the Palisades Parade.

Land ahoy! The Yachtsmen in the Palisades Parade.

 

We’ve had a busy two weeks with daily swim team practices, meets on Wednesday nights, parent volunteer jobs, dinner parties, potlucks, Fourth of July celebrations and basic life, hence no Corks & Cake posts for 17 days.  Unacceptable, I say!

I set a personal goal when we launched this blog to post at least 3 times/week (which is almost nothing in blog-land).  It is mind-blowing to me that all these talented, talented women and men in the blogosphere post original content with highly styled photographs sometimes 3 times/day, 7 days a week.

Seriously, how are they not chained to their computers with their cameras in one hand and a whisk in another?

My hat is off to them, even through my slacker chagrin.

Glorious Old Glory decor on the walk to the parade.

Glorious Old Glory decor on the walk to the parade.

 

So, my dear Corks & Cakers, I promise to catch up.  And just so you don’t think me too much of a slacker, here’s a roundup of what we’ve been cooking and serving in the kitchen on Lee Street.

Art student, Sam, creates our Relay Food Deliciously Local Foods party menu.

Art student, Sam, creates our Relay Food Deliciously Local Foods party menu.

 

We had a very fun, very tasty dinner party outside for 29 guests (including children.)  Whew.  Did I just say dinner for 29?  Yes!  Relay Foods (an online farm stand and specialty food delivery business based in Charlottesville, VA) teamed with House Party and selected several hosts and hostesses in the mid-Atlantic region to host a party featuring local products available through Relay Foods.  I ordered local cheeses, salami, sausages, produce, relishes, and rounded it out with ice cream, vegetarian side dishes and all-beef hot dogs for the kids.

 

Lovely local cheeses and black truffle salami.

Lovely local cheeses and black truffle salami.  Photo courtesy of Peter Krogh Photography.

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Photo courtesy of Peter Krogh Photography.

 

It was a great undertaking (deserving of an upcoming post all its own) made more complex by the off-and-on rainy weather.  The only way to pull something like that off is to have lots of good friends who know you well, have dined with you often, and who will jump in where needed and come early to help with all the last-minute prep.  Thank you to all!

On July 4th, my first ‘Vintage Kitchen’ column for OKRA magazine (the online magazine for the Southern Food & Beverage Institute) was published!  Read it here.

A taste test of Vintage Punch recipes for OKRA magazine.

A taste test of Vintage Punch recipes for OKRA magazine.

Titled “Drink Like the Revolutionaries:  Vintage Punch for the Fourth of July” it was much fun to research old recipes and more fun to drink the research!

After the July 4th parade (which my husband’s band, The Yachtsmen, were in), we reveled poolside for a live rock and roll set in the hot, hot sun.

 

The Yachtsmen in the drink after a set in the scorching sun.

The Yachtsmen in the drink after a set in the scorching sun.

 

In the pool:  The Yachtsmen.  On the grill:  jerk chicken.

 

Walkerswood Jerk Sauce is a fabulous (and easy) marinade for chicken.

Grace Jerk Seasoning is a fabulous (and easy) marinade for chicken.

 

We also took it easy this week by relying on some of our favorite prepared foods:  Costco’s lime-marinated flank steak (ready-to-grill) and Edwards’ Key Lime Pie.

 

So good and almost gone.

So good and almost gone.

 

We hope you had a great Fourth of July weekend too!

 

Happy Birthday, America!

Happy Birthday, America!

 

 

 

 

 

Lamb Kofta Kebab

by Rebecca Penovich | 3 Comments

Grill your kofta with or without vegetables. Photo courtesy of American Homestead.

Grilled kofta with vegetables.
Photo credit to American Homestead

 

We’ve been on a Middle Eastern food kick lately.  Something about the change in the seasons has us craving the exotic and layered spices associated with the food of this region and simple grilled meats served with a yogurt sauce, fresh herbs, and rice.

Kofta kebabs use ground meat (lamb, ground chuck, or ground sirloin) mixed with onion, garlic and spices and are easy and quick to cook.  Inexpensive and flavorful: can’t beat that for a good summer meal.

I based my kofta on this recipe from allrecipes.com but there is an almost identical one from The Food Network site.

Break open the spice cabinet, I used 10 different spices in these to imbue them with maximum flavor.

Break out the spices, this recipe calls for 10 different dry spices.

It is a very good practice to measure all your spices beforehand and place them in ramekins or on parchment paper.

Garlic paste, minced onion, and chopped parsley.

Garlic paste, minced onion, and chopped parsley.

Lamb Kofta Kebabs

Ingredients

  • 4 T. crushed garlic (I have been using the Gourmet Garden brand of garlic paste in the tube.  It’s just easier than chopping.)
  • 2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 2 lbs. ground lamb
  • 6 T. grated yellow onion
  • 6 T. chopped fresh parsley
  • 2 T. ground coriander
  • 2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 T. ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. ground allspice
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

Directions

  • Place the ground lamb in a large bowl. Add the spices along with the onion and garlic, and mix well.
  • Form the mixture into 22 balls (about 1.5 ounces each).  Mold each ball around the tip of a skewer, pushing the ball down the skewer and flattening into a 2 inch oval; each skewer should have a total of 3 koftas (if you are  not threading them with vegetables.) Repeat with the remaining skewers.
  • Place the kebabs onto a baking sheet, cover, and refrigerate at least 1 hour.  This is an important step because if the kofta are not chilled they may fall off the skewers when you grill them.
  • Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat and lightly oil grate.
  • Cook the skewers on the preheated grill, turning once or twice, until the lamb has cooked to your desired degree of doneness, about 6 minutes for medium.

 

Lamb ready for chilling. You can chill too.

Lamb ready for chilling. You can chill too.

 

Serve with tzatziki (recipe follows) and basmati rice.

Grilled kofta, ready to eat.

Grilled kofta, ready to eat.

 

Tzatziki

recipe adapted from “Ask the Barefoot Contessa,” House Beautiful magazine

2 cups plain Greek yogurt (such as Fage Total 2%)

1 medium cucumber, peeled, halved, and seeded

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 T. crushed garlic (Gourmet Garden brand is nice)

2 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 T. white vinegar

1 T.  minced fresh dill (optional)

Place the yogurt in a bowl.  Grate the cucumber on a box grater and squeeze the grated cucumber with your hand to remove most of the liquid.  Add to the yogurt.  Add the lemon juice, vinegar, garlic, salt, and dill.  Stir gently until blended and chill at least 30 minutes to allow flavors to develop.

 

Tzatziki = refreshing sauce of yogurt, cucumber, garlic, and dill

Tzatziki = refreshing sauce of yogurt, cucumber, garlic, and dill

 

Kofta are incredibly versatile.  If it is raining when you want to grill, you can broil these on high (preheat your broiler).  You can also skip the skewering step and make them into small lamb sliders and broil them.  Serve them over rice or tucked into flatbreads with some lightly dressed salad greens.

 

Kofta kebabs are versatile, eat them with rice or in flatbreads. Photo credit: Jamie Oliver, foodnetwork.com

Kofta kebabs are versatile, eat them with rice or in flatbreads.
Photo credit: Jamie Oliver, foodnetwork.com

 

Mixed Grill with Root Vegetables

by Lee Ojascastro | Leave a comment

Corks & Cake Contributor:  Lee Ojascastro

 

We are cooking the rainbow.

We are cooking the rainbow.

 

From time to time on Corks & Cake we will invite some of our favorite ladies and gents from around the country to tell us what they are buying, loving, eating, cooking, drinking, or growing.  Here is one such lady, Lee Hassett Ojascastro, my dearest friend from college, who hails from St. Louis, where she cooks, substitute teaches elementary school, and entertains in wildly stylish fashion with her husband and young son.

 

Last week we had a warm, breezy Wednesday night in St. Louis.  After some freaky weather here in the midwest, this night felt like early summer, drawing us out to grill even though it was only midway through the work week.

Ready for the grill. Believe me, grilled brussel sprouts are a relevation. Photo by Lee Ojascastro

Ready for the grill. Believe me, grilled Brussels sprouts are a relevation.
Photo by Lee Ojascastro

 

In addition to the usual zucchini, we threw root vegetables into the mix, using yellow beets, Brussels sprouts, and sliced Bermuda onion.We cut up the beets, green zucchini, Brussels sprouts, Bermuda onion, lightly brushed them with extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkled them with kosher salt, freshly ground Malabar black pepper, and a dash of sugar.   We threw some baby carrots into the mix and gave them a coating as well. The yellow beets don’t really need the sugar but the Brussels sprouts seriously benefit from it.

We have been grilling everything with our new “Cookina” grill cooking sheet from the online store TheGrommet.com (my favorite place to interweb shop besides Amazon.) The Cookina is a flexible, non-stick mat that can withstand temperatures up to 500°.  It’s great for the grill because you don’t have to worry about your vegetables falling through the grate and you don’t have to take the time to skewer them or worry about them sticking to your dirty grill (hey, husband, note to self:  brush off the grill.)  It’s food-safe, reusable and reversible!

We’ve also been chopping up and grilling kale (don’t bother removing the spines). The kale’s sharp green flavor combined with the sweetness of the beets and the lemony smoothness of hummus is a taste sensation you don’t want to miss!

 

Rebecca’s Note:  Here is a well-written recipe for Grilled Kale from Barton Seaver’s new book, Where There’s Smoke, posted on one of my favorite food blogs, Leite’s Culinaria. Check it out.

 

Grilling over high heat. Flip them once or often?

High heat, no skewers, no sticking to the grate with our new grill mat!

 

St. Louis-style barbecue pork steaks in the foil packets, upper right. Photo by Lee Ojascastro

St. Louis-style barbecue pork steaks in the foil packets, upper right.
Photo by Lee Ojascastro

 

We have pork steaks in the foil packets on the top grill shelf in the photo above. It is a St. Louis tradition to grill ‘pork steaks’ on Memorial Day weekend.  For those of you who may not have heard of pork steak, it is a cut of pork shoulder (also called pork shoulder blade) found in all of our grocery stores. Here is a great explanation of the cut and the method by fellow St. Louis cook Kitchen Riffs.  Grill them, then braise them in a liquid on the grill over indirect heat (or in the oven at low temperature) for 90-120 minutes to make them tender. (Note: this is a special cut that has a lot of necessary marbling; do not try to substitute pork loin, tenderloin, or chops because they will be dry as the Sahara.)

Here’s how my husband and I prepare them:

  • Sprinkle the pork with kosher salt, black pepper, sugar and garlic powder and drizzle with olive oil.
  • Sear the pork until you have grill marks on both sides the way you like them, then wrap each pork steak tightly in foil.
  • You can add whatever barbecue sauce you like (or a combination of barbecue sauce and beer) to the packets, but frankly I prefer them undressed.
  • Place over indirect heat on the grill (we use the top shelf) for 1 1/2 or 2 hours depending on their thickness.

They are fall-apart tender and are juicy and amazing. The grilled beets, Brussels sprouts and some quinoa are a perfect match.  My husband, who adores spice, likes to sprinkle ground cumin over his pork steak before digging in.

Also a good match:  cold Chardonnay of your choice.

A cold glass of chardonnay. Stemless, so you can also garden (pull random weeds) while you are grilling.

A cold glass of chardonnay. Stemless, so you can also garden (pull random weeds) while you are grilling.

 

Serve it forth with lemony hummus.

Serve it forth with lemony hummus.

 

We serve our mixed vegetable grill with lemony hummus.  I like the Sabra brand of hummus but doctor up the flavor with a drizzle of fresh lemon juice and a splash more of my favorite olive oil.

Easy, healthy and good!  Try root vegetables on your grill this summer.

Cheers!

Lee