Tuesday, October 7, 2008

carbless chapter day 2

Everyone be proud of me for drinking lots of water and giving up my sweet tea. *waits patiently for applause* thank you.

Now that that's out of the way...
Today's Menu
Skewer Chicken Spirals
and Corn on the Cob
* * * * (out of 5)

Ingredients:
Skinless, boneless chicken breast (one per person)
Bacon (we use turkey bacon)
1 small can tomato paste
Basil leaves (I used minced)
Garlic Powder
EVOO for brushing

Lay chicken breasts out on saran wrap and cover. Beat lightly with rolling pin to flatten. (I use wax paper because it's less messy)
Once all chicken is flatten, lay out and form a layer over rough side of chicken with tomato paste. I use a spoon to spread it on like cream cheese. Sprinkle with garlic then lay bacon on top of chicken. I use 1-2 slices per piece of chicken. You want the bacon to totally cover the chicken with no overlapping and no excess, so you may need to cut some.
Sprinkle basil leaves on top of bacon.
<--This is what it should look like right before you start to roll it.


Rolling is not easy. You want it to be firm so you get as much chicken "in" the spiral as possible but the tomato paste doesn't squish out form the sides.

Use a sharp knife (as sharp as you can find) to slice each breast into 4 slices. Again, try not to saw the chicken or the paste will come out of the sides. A sharp knife should cut right into the flesh of the chicken. Don't be afraid to make a mess... you will.

Place each spiral on a kabob skewer, one skewer per breast, so 4 pieces per skewer. Brush with olive oil and place under high heat of a broiler or grill for 5-7 minutes on each side, brushing with olive oil again at each turn.

As a side note, I like mine a little blackened. The picture here (which is not mine) also shows the edges of the bacon burnt which just adds a really good flavor. If you can grill these, that is the best way to do it because the smokey flavor is great. We serve them with corn on the cob because the sweetness of the corn offsets the sour in the tomato paste.

All in all we gave this a 4 out of 5 because it is just delicious but it is a pain in the butt! You make an absolute mess when slicing them. I used a sheet of wax paper for each skewer because the tomato gets everywhere and I didn't want to have to clean it every time.

2 comments:

Jeff Corkran said...

OK, I have caught up on all your blogs but will comment only once to save time. Thanks for the input on the movies. Love your chicken skewer recipe and will try it. Vigilance and perseverance are necessary during potty training, especially for boys.

By the way, your writing style is very nice. Your blogs are easy reads and always entertaining. And your attention to detail (e.g., spelling and grammar) are much better than they used to be. In short, reading your blogs is fun and gives me a little window into what is going on.

Love you dearly.

stella g. said...

wow, these look so fancy, and also a pain in the butt. and yet i'm so going to try it. someday. when i have my own kitchen again... :)