Sunday, July 5, 2009

Back to a Sunday Night Routine

July 5, 2009

Getting back to a routine, Sunday night dinner. Our normal routine is to make a big dinner on Sunday nights and enjoy some wine. Tonight was a salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, sunflower seeds, feta and Trader Joe’s Tuscan Italian Dressing. The chicken turned out really well and it is something I would definitely do again. We are testing wines for our party at the end of July and we picked up a few Italian red and whites at Sam’s club. Tonight we tried a 2006 Familia Cara Pinot Grigio from the Venezie region. It was pretty good for a white, I am not a huge white fan but found myself really enjoying Italian whites.

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A Relaxing Day

July 5, 2009

After a month of non stop activity we are finally taking a day to relax and get stuff done around the house. We did some cleaning, organized the kitchen pantry and threw out old food, cut up my fruit and veggies for the first half of the week and organized vacation photos. It feels good to be more organized.

We did a run to Sam’s club on Friday and picked up strawberries, nectarines, bananas, grapes, broccoli, cucumbers, carrots and peppers. It is nice to have a full fridge of fruit and veggies! Tonight we are going to make Grilled Spice-Rubbed Whole Chicken from Cooking Light, and it will hopefully get us some leftovers for the week as well.

Yield

4 servings (serving size: 1 breast half or 1 thigh and 1 drumstick)

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 (4-pound) whole chicken
  • Cooking spray


Preparation

1. Prepare grill for indirect grilling. If using a gas grill, heat one side to medium-high and leave one side with no heat. If using a charcoal grill, arrange hot coals on either side of charcoal grate, leaving an empty space in middle.

2. Combine first 7 ingredients; set aside.

3. Remove and discard giblets and neck from chicken. Trim excess fat. Place chicken, breast side down, on a cutting surface. Cut chicken in half lengthwise along backbone, cutting to, but not through, other side. Turn chicken over. Starting at neck cavity, loosen skin from breast and drumsticks by inserting fingers, gently pushing between skin and meat. Rub spice mixture under skin. Gently press skin to secure.

4. Place chicken, breast side down, on grill rack coated with cooking spray over direct heat; cover and cook 7 minutes. Turn chicken over; cook 7 minutes. Move chicken over indirect heat; cover and cook 45 minutes or until a thermometer inserted in meaty part of thigh registers 165°. Transfer chicken to a cutting board; let rest 10 minutes. Discard skin.

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