Saturday, July 25, 2009 - A Chicken Dinner

There were only 3 of us for dinner tonight, and I wanted to christen my new gas grill (a Weber Spirit E-310), so I made Apple/Jalapeno Glazed Chicken Breasts and Corn Pudding.
The corn pudding takes about 40 minutes to cook and 15 minutes to prepare, so start it at the same time you start marinating the chicken.

Corn Pudding

1 cup corn (I used some previously grilled corn -I'll give you an easy way to cook it in another blog)
2 cups 1% milk
1/2 cup light cream
3 eggs, separated
3/4 cups cornmeal
1 small can chopped green chilies
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
Salt and pepper to taste

In medium saucepan, over medium heat, heat milk and cream. Whisk in cornmeal, salt and pepper. Continue whisking until mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat, stir in corn, chilies, and chives. Allow to cool slightly.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a small (8x8) baking pan or a shallow ceramic dish.
Using hand mixer, beat egg yolks until thick and pale yellow. Add beaten yolks to corn mixture. Set aside.
Using clean beaters, whip egg whites to stiff peaks. Fold half into corn/egg yolk mixture, blending thoroughly. Fold in second half, allowing some small pockets of egg white to remain.
Once blended, spoon into prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes, until center only jiggles slightly when pan is shaken. Serve immediately.

Apple/Jalapeno Glazed Chicken Breasts

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Apple/Jalapeno Glaze:
1 cup apple jelly
1 jalapeno (with ribs but not seeds) very finely minced
1 Tbsp coarse-ground Dijon mustard
1/2 cup apple juice (you could use chicken broth, white wine, orange juice, or water)
1/4 cup olive oil

Whisk all glaze ingredients together. Place chicken breasts in a 1-quart food storage bag, pour glaze marinade over, seal bag and store out of refrigerator for up to 30 minutes or in refrigerator up to 4 hours.

When ready to cook, remove chicken from bag, reserving marinade. Put marinade in a small saucepan, add 2 Tbsp white wine or sherry vinegar and bring to boil. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

Grill chicken breasts, turning at least once (or up to 3 times, if you want those great cross-hatched grill marks). Use the "touch test" to be sure you don't overcook them. They should be springy, not hard, when pressed with your finger.

Once done, remove from heat and dip into glaze. Serve with corn pudding and freshly sliced tomatoes.