Sometimes pics don’t do the food justice. This is one of those times. Slightly pounded, then marinated chicken breasts … grilled them over hot coals to blacken them. Also grilled the green bean, tomato, and onion salad. And yes, I know I’m feta-heavy, but I REALLY REALLY love my feta, lol. A few pics y’all!!
Salad and chicken (a few olives too) platter
Blackened chicken – love the dark grill marks
LOVE this salad
My plate – w/ grilled pita, a dollop of tzatziki
… or monster-sized … it’s a pick’em, lol!! Made these huge-ass spicy flavoured chicken breast (from M&M) sandwiches again … Crustini Buns from D’Italiano, loaded with shredded iceberg lettuce, thinly sliced sweet onions, thick sliced heirloom tomatoes (sorry, hidden in all the goodness, lol), a splash of 1/2 the fat mayo, and the silky smooth meltingly shimmering aforementioned Muenster … I LOVE LOVE this … and the beauty, all in – it’s 800 cals for the twins … looks like they LOVE LOVE me back, lol!!
… sorta!! I did cheat a little by giving myself a bit of a boost, saving time AND achieving what I set out to accomplish – win win. My goal was to create an Asian, Hawaiian, Caribbean inspired sauce … something sweet and packing heat!! My two essential ingredients; pineapple and scotch bonnet peppers!! To start, I wanted a good, solid base, and I chose SWEET BABY RAY’S bbq sauce (award winning, lol) … I use it often when I bbq, I love its neutrality … not smoky, not too sweet … a perfect pleasant balance. Before I go any further, a reminder of my method (& madness) of cooking, building recipes. I don’t use exact measurements, I typically use the amount I feel right, AND I’ll vary ingredients depending on my pantry and my mood. Call me the whimsical chef, lol!! Go ahead Food Network … steal that one too, lol!! With a bottle of Ray’s in my saucier, I incorporated brown sugar, cinnamon, soy sauce, orange juice … along with the stars of this show, the pineapple and scotch bonnet …oh, a word about scotch bonnets. These tiny peppers are hot beyond hot – you take a bite and bonnie bites back … a 300,000 Scoville unit chomp!! I rough chopped (seeds and all) and whizzed it in my spice grinder (tip: added a bit of brown sugar making puréeing easier, facilitating homogenization). I grilled (indirect method) plump chicken breasts (skin on, bone in) slathering them with my sauce right before taking them off the Weber, letting them get all glisteningly glazed and caramelized. It was spot on, the citrus tang & sweet combined with the fire of the pepper married beautifully, neither one was overpowering, rather complimenting each another … it was sublime. A few pics, enjoy y’all!! 😉
The Sauce is the Boss!, lol …
Baby packs a wallop …
Puréed …
All the ingredients in the pot before slowly simmering …
An hour later – looks great eh? I know, lol!! …
Mopped with ma sauce … a few minutes more …
A close-up (LOVE LOVE that char) of my efforts …
danistrulytheman 