When I saw this recipe on the cover of the September issue of Bon Appetit, I knew it was something I had to try. It’s a great way to use up all the rosemary growing in my herb garden (well more like an herb box) and garlic I picked up at the farmer’s market last week.
Al mattone means “with a brick” and is an old Italian technique for grilling. I had also recently seen this blog post for Chicken Under a Brick. This method is typically done on the grill, but the Bon Appetit article gave instructions for baking the chicken in the oven. This is preferable to me, since I tend to burn things on the grill while somehow managing to not cook them through.
So, after work today I went to Menards and bought myself a brick, wrapped it in foil, and proceeded to butterfly my chicken. That was not a pleasant experience, especially since all my knives are in desperate need of sharpening. Nonetheless, everything turned out pretty well, although when we cut into the chicken we discovered it probably needed another five or so minutes in the oven. But, I’m resourceful so I just threw the pieces in a skillet over medium heat for a few minutes until cooked through. The meat was pretty flavorful and tender. I’d make it again. I served it with roasted veggies and corn on the cob.
I’ve linked to two recipes for Chicken al Mattone above, so I will refrain from typing it out for you.
The other day, I was attempting to make a batch of chocolate chip cookies from my Martha Stewart’s New Classics cookbook when the chocolate chip cookie EPIC FAIL happened. It was a hot day and this recipe calls for melting the butter, then adding the sugar. I think the temperature of the butter was just too high (even though I refrigerated the dough before baking the cookies off) and they spread out way too much. They tasted fine, but definitely resemble cow pies. How, you ask, do I know what cow pie looks like? Well, I grew up next to a farm! Now how’s that for appetizing?
