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Sage-Grilled Chicken Souvlakia & Olives

by Rosemary Barron from Meze



Ingredients:

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 16 or 24 pieces
1/2 cup packed fresh sage leaves
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/2 tablespoon Hymettus or other strongly flavored honey
1 teaspoon Meaux mustard or other good-quality mild whole-grain mustard
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground bay leaf
9 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
16 kalamata olives, pitted
4 shallots, minced
1/2 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
2 cups coarse fresh whole-wheat bread crumbs, lightly toasted
1/4 cup snipped fresh chives
Coarse sea salt to taste

Sage sprigs and lemon wedges for garnish



Preparing:
Before cooking, the chicken pieces are marinated in a mustard, sage, honey, and olive oil paste, reaulting in tender chicken packed with intriguing flavor. The chicken is served on a cushion of bread crumbs gently satèed with shallots, pine nuts, sage, and chives.

In a medium bowl, combine the chicken and 6 of the sage leaves. Sprinkle with half the lemon juice. Combine the honey, mustard, pepper, bay leaf, remaining lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Pour over the chicken and stir to coat each piece. Cover and set aside for 1 hour. Flatten each olive with the side of a heavy knife and put in a bowl. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and set aside for 1 hour.

Prepare a charcoal grill. Soak 16 small wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes. Prepare the bread crumbs: Stack 4 or 5 of the sage leaves and cut into thin ribbons; repeat with the remaining leaves. In a heavy skillet over low heat, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and cook the shallots for about 4 minutes, or until soft. Add another 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the pine nuts, bread crumbs, and sage leaf ribbons. Sautè, stirring occasionally, for about 4 minutes, or until the bread crumbs are golden and the sage is fragrant. Stir in the chives and season with salt and pepper; set aside and keep warm.

Drain the skewers. Thread 2 to 3 chicken pieces on each of 8 skewers and brush with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and any remaining marinade; discard the sage leaves. Thread 2 olives lengthwise onto each of the remaining 8 skewers. Brush the grill or a grill basket with olive oil and grill the chicken for 2 minutes. Place the olives on the grill or in the grill basket. Grill, turning both chicken and olives once, for 4 or 5 minutes, or until the chicken is golden brown and the olives are crinkled. Sprinkle the chicken with salt to taste and remove from the grill.

Spread the bread crumb mixture over a warmed platter and arrange the souvlakia on top. Garnish with sage sprigs and lemon wedges. Serve immediately.

This and many other wonderful recipes may be found in
Rosemary Barron's Meze from Chronicle Books

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