TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Chicken Recipe Takes Second Bow

ADVERTISEMENT

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 4, 2008

Time flies when you're having fun writing a food column - even a year later.

During May, I celebrated my first year of writing "Table Scraps," which means I've had 52 opportunities to try some of your favorite recipes and to peddle a few of mine. All 52 were personally tested, tasted, photographed and, nine times out of 10, called dinner. Hey, there's more to a food column than just putting words to paper.

In what other job can you learn, write like a fool and have an excuse to eat everything that you normally swear off, such as sweets and fried foods?

As the months have rolled by, I've discovered that the more I learn about food, the more I realize how little I know. Thanks for reading and learning with me.

Last week's musings, "Take My Plastic Wrap, Please," clearly struck a chord with readers.

Christine Scalici of Brandon wrote to tell me, in bold letters, "You are not alone." She has experienced the same problems with clingy plastic wrap and a rebellious mandolin slicer that mangled veggies. Scalici said she feels better knowing she's not the only one wrestling with dreadful kitchen doodads.

Apollo Beach resident Andrea Freebody wrote to share this idea: If you store your plastic wrap in the freezer, it will unwrap easier.

Angela Mercer, who also lives in Brandon, informed me that her work-at-home friend Abby makes what she calls "foilers" - an alternative coverall in fabric prints for replacing aluminum foil or plastic wrap. Here is the link, if you'd like to check it out: www.abbycadabras.com/store.

I also heard from my sister, Janet, in response to the wrap column.

She recently received one of those forwarded-, forwarded-, forwarded e-mails. The subject line read, "Bet you didn't know this." The secret was there's an instruction at the end of aluminum foil and cling-wrap boxes that says, in fine print, "Push in tab to lock." And that's exactly what it does - locks the roll in place. How convenient!

How long has that been there?

After sprinting to the kitchen, I discovered a miracle. All my wraps had locking tabs, even the generic brands. It was a real "aha!" moment.

To celebrate my Table Scraps anniversary, I thought I'd share one of my favorite recipes from the past year: maple and black pepper chicken. For some reason, the photo did not run with the recipe, so it may have escaped your notice.

Folks, this is one delicious dish. In case you weren't seduced the first time by just the recipe, perhaps a visual will tempt you.

The aroma that fills the room from this dish is amazing. The sweetness of maple balances nicely with the cider vinegar and the light heat of black pepper in the sauce. Enjoy it for a weeknight supper or with company. It's also delicious served cold the next day.

MAPLE AND BLACK PEPPER CHICKEN

11/2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns

2 bone-in chicken breast halves (modified from a whole chicken in the original recipe)

2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large shallot, finely chopped

2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped

1/3 cup cider vinegar

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees with rack set in the second-highest position. With a mortar and pestle or spice grinder, coarsely grind the peppercorns and set them aside.

Pat the chicken breast dry and season well with 11/2 teaspoons salt. In a large, heavy-bottomed saute pan or skillet set over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil for 3 to 4 minutes until shimmering. Put the chicken breasts into the pan - skin side down - and cook for 7 to 9 minutes, without moving, until the skin is golden brown. Remove the chicken to a baking dish or roasting pan. Reserve the frying pan.

Roast for 30 to 35 minutes until the chicken flesh closest to the bone is opaque. An instant-read thermometer should register about 165 degrees.

While the chicken is roasting, make the sauce in the frying pan. Discard all but 2 tablespoons of the fat and set the pan over medium-high heat. Add the shallot, thyme and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and cook, stirring for 1 to 2 minutes or until the shallot starts to color. Add the vinegar and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, using a spatula to scrape any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the maple syrup and ground peppercorns and simmer for about 8 to 10 minutes, until the sauce is reduced by about half. Adjust seasoning to taste. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and serve immediately.

Serves 4.

Source: "Cooking with Shelburne Farms: Food and Stories from Vermont" by Melissa Pasanen and Rick Gencarelli

Lynn Kessel can be reached at lkessel@mac.com or P.O. Box 913, Ruskin, FL 33575-0286. Readers are encouraged to send in their favorite recipes, comments and suggestions.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT