Grilled Paprika Chicken

Last year Martha Stewart's Living Magazine did an entire section in its June issue on grilling chicken.

Martha's recipes can be a bit hit or miss. A number of her culinary creations can be rather labor intensive and on the expensive side with spotty results.

Just recently I made Martha's Chocolate-Caramel Cream Pie from the recipe published in Living's June 2008 issue. Thankfully I was doing a test run because in addtion to the ingredients being costly and its preparation taking most of a Sunday afternoon, the final product was tasty but visually a disaster, unservable.

But what Stewart sometimes lacks in understanding the home cook, especially the home baker, is made up for with recipes like the Smoky Grilled Butterflied Chicken or what I like to call Grilled Paprika Chicken.

The recipe is simple and inexpensive. And in my experience, a crowd pleaser.

Serves 4

Total cost - $5.80 (appox. $1.45/person)

1/4 cup red wine or sherry vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon coarse salt
3-4lbs. skin-on, bone-in chicken, rinsed (I use chicken breasts, but use any combo you like)

Combine vinegar, oil, garlic, paprika, and salt in a nonreactive baking dish or large resealable plastic bag.

Add rinsed chicken to the marinade. Cover dish or seal bag, and refrigerate at least 1 - 4 hours (or overnight), turning occasionally.

Preheat grill to medium. (If you are using a charcoal grill, coals are ready when you can hold your hand 5 inches above grill for just 5 or 6 seconds.)

Remove chicken from marinade; discard marinade. Place chicken, skin side down, on grill. Close cover, and grill 15 minutes.

Flip chicken, and close cover. Grill until an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of the breast registers 165 degrees, about 20 minutes more.

* You can use either sweet or hot paprika. I use the hot variety and it gives the dish quite a kick. Stores most often carry the sweet version, which contrary to the name is not sweet at all, but merely milder in heat compared to its hot counterpart.

I like to serve this chicken with Red Pepper Rice (recipe follows).

The New No-No...The Jalapeno

According to a new story in USA Today, jalapenos are the latest culprits in the recent salmonella outbreak.

The USDA and the CDC have been closely monitoring our Southern borders all this week for any contaminated produce entering the United States. Their recent surveillance and testing has brought the jalapeno pepper under suspicion with the tomato as the cause of the recent saintpaul salmonella outbreak.

This particular strain of the bacteria has now infected a confirmed 1000 people.

The CDC won't go so far as to say that peppers and tomatoes are the only and definite causes of the infection, but that the are more often than not a present factor to those infected.

Booze on a Budget

One of the major expenses when entertaining, alcohol.

It has a way of becoming a forgotten and sometimes hefty expense when planning a meal.

Recently I bought $111.95 worth of alcohol and wine at Jewel-Osco, but paid only $68.45.

How did I save $43.50?

By doing three things.

1. Watching Sales - Unless you absolutely have to have a certain type of wine or liquor, buy the sale item. In this case I had a very specific type of gin I need to buy, Hendrick's, which is usually rather expensive, but I waited for it to go on sale to buy it.
2. Use Coupons - Many times alcohol distributors offer in store coupons for their products. Keep an eye out for the specially marked bottles, sometimes the coupons are offered in addition to the store. For example the Hendrick's gin I purchased was not only on sale, but the manufacturer was offering a $5 off coupon with the purchase of ice and limes, which I needed for my dinner party anyway.
3. Buy in Bulk - At Jewel-Osco if you purchase 6 or more bottles of 750ml wine or liquor you receive 10% off your purchase. That is 10 percent off the TOTAL wine and liquor purchase. So not only did I get the Hendrick's gin on sale and get to use the $5 off coupon I also got 10% taken off the price.

I learned about the bulk savings from Susan, a Consumer Educator with Southern Wine and Spirits. Susan does tastings on weekends in the wine section of my local Jewel. Her company usually has people out educating shoppers like me at Jewels all around the Chicago area.

Susan is the lady that informed me that not only does Jewel offer a 10% savings on 6 or more bottles of 750ml wine, but that discount would also include any purchase of 750ml bottles of liquor.

Good to know for stocking up for parties or just an empty liquor cabinet.

Here's the breakdown for the gin:

$33.79 (original price)

- $4.80 (sale discount)

- $5.00 (coupon)

- $2.90 (bulk discount)

= $21.09 Total

Dining Out in Chicago on a Budget

Between the risings costs of gas and food and the uncertain housing market a lot of Americans are cutting back on their spending.

Expenses deemed as extras or treats are being replaced by items like necessities and savings. Just this week Starbuck’s announced that they will be closing 600 of their stores and cutting 17% of their work force.

Instead of picking it up on the road people are bringing it from home. And instead of going out people are staying in.

According to a recent study done by the research consulting firm Mintel,

“Seventy percent of those trying to cut back are saving money by going out to eat less”

Mintel goes on to report that people are opting not to go out to eat all together rather than order cheaper entrees or eat at more affordable restaurants.

“Over half (54%) of people who dine out regularly are
cutting back on restaurant spending”

Maybe this is an acceptable change in dining for other cities, but this is Chicago. A city rich with culinary options that are finally now getting the national attention they deserve.

We are home to some of the best culinary minds in the United States, some even say the world. Charlie Trotter, Rick Bayless, Gail Gand and Rick Tramonto.

And there are bright new stars coming up behind them. In its latest issue, Food and Wine magazine named two of our own as part of their “Best New Chefs” class.

Bravo’s critically acclaimed reality competition show “Top Chef” was based here and the woman that won the title of Top Chef, a Chicago girl.

So, even though the consultants and trend specialists are telling you to stay in, if smartly done you can still go out. And what meal doesn’t taste just that much better than one gotten for a deal.

Go on off nights – A lot of restaurants offer specials on nights earlier in the week. Half price wine night or specially priced entrees. Keep an eye out for restaurants that offer these off night values and take them up on it.

Eat in the bar – Sometimes a smaller more inexpensive menu is offered in a restaurant’s bar. It could be during their Happy Hour.

Prie Fixe – Chef’s will choose a specific menu and the price is set. It usually includes 3 courses, an appetizer, entrée and dessert and is priced about $25/person. It’s a great way to try out a restaurant that ordinarily could be out of your price range.

BYOB – No sweeter words were written than Bring Your Own Booze. There are a number of Chicago restaurants that don’t have liquor licenses, but are happy to serve you the wine or beer you brought in. Many establishments will open your bottles for free; some charge a nominal fee either per person, bottle or table. Great for weekend dining on a budget.

Summer Lemon Cheesecake Bars

Serves 8-10
Total cost - $7.50 (approx. $.75-$.95/person)

Crust:
1 cup ginger snaps, ground
3 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. sugar

Batter:
2 pkgs. (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1 Tbsp lemon zest
1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice, strained

Blueberry Sauce - recipe follows

Preheat oven to 325

Line a 8 inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, with the ends of the foil hanging over the sides of the pan.

Mix crust ingredients and press into the bottom of the foil lined pan.

Bake 10 minutes.

Beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla together in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Once well blended mix in the lemon zest, lemon juice and sour cream. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each egg just until blended.

Pour the batter over the crust.

Bake 40 minutes or until the center is almost set.

Cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate the cheesecake in the pan for 4 hours.

Use the overhanging foil to lift the cheesecake out of the pan before cutting to serve.

Any leftovers should be stored in the refrigerator.


Blueberry Sauce:
1 cup blueberries, divided
1 Tbsp. vanilla sugar
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
juice of one lemon, strained
2-3 Tbsp. water

Combine 1/2 the blueberries and the rest of the ingredients in a small sauce pan. Heat over medium flame. The blueberries will begin releasing some of their juice and once the sauce begins to thicken remove the pan from the heat.

Stir the remaining blueberries into the pan.

The sauce can either be used immediately or stored in the refrigerator for later use.

It's Wednesday!

Just a reminder to everyone that it is Wednesday, or in the bargain world...Grocery Circular Day.

Wednesday is the day that grocery stores publish their sales for the week. These deals usually start on Thursday, so it give you a day's head start on your list and menu ideas.

Friday is the Fourth of July and there will be a lot of entertaining going on this weekend.

For those of us on a budget, today is the day to get a jump start what deals we can get for feeding our crowd.

Sauteed Potatoes with Carmelized Onions

Serves 4
Total Cost of Dish - $2 (appox. $.50/person)

* 1 lb small white potatoes, cut crosswise into 1/4" slices
* 1 yellow onion, halved cut pole to pole into 1/4" slices
* 2 Tbsp. olive oil
* Salt and Pepper
* Splash of white wine
* 1-2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
* Parsley

Bring a medium sized pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add sliced potatoes to water and cook for 8-10 minutes until the potatoes can be easily pierced with the tip of a knife. When the potatoes are cooked through, strain them from the water and set them aside in a bowl for later use.

Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and add 1 Tbsp. of olive oil. Once the olive oil is hot, but not smoking, add the onions to the pan, salt and pepper to taste.
Saute the onions for about 15 minutes until they get a nice golden color. Deglaze the pan with a splash of white wine to get up all the stuck on brown bits. Remove the onions from the frying pan and set aside.

Add the remaining Tbsp of olive oil to the frying pan and then the reserved potatoes. Cook the potatoes until golden brown, adding more olive oil as needed.

Once the potatoes are browned add the reserved carmelized onions back into the frying pan along with the butter. Stir to combine the potato/onion mixture.

Cover the pan and drop the heat down to low and cook for an addtional 5 minutes.

Garnish with chopped parsley before serving.