Garlic Chicken Spiedies

It's funny, I spent the first 3 years in Binghamton wishing I was back downstate. I missed the city, the faster-paced life. I missed the downstate bagels and pizza. I missed the good Jewish challah bread, the babka and the black and white cookies that New York is so famous for.

I loved Manhattan, I was always a city girl but recently I find I'm overwhelmed by the crowds. I still love the exceptional ethnic foods available here but Binghamton had it's own perks too. There was a peacefulness to the open space, something calming in the knowledge that country and farmland were less than 20 minutes away. There was a stillness to the morning and a comfort in the stars at night. Most of all there was a sense of pride and community among the locals and a growing interest and effort to better the area. 

Although it has become an economically depressed area, Greater Binghamton (also known as The Triple Cities) was once a thriving area bustling with immigrants. It is home to numerous corporations, authors, screenwriters and even some local foods. 

The most notable of which, may be the Spiedie.

A Spiedie is a sandwich made of cubed meat in some combination of olive oil, vinegar and Italian spices known as Spiedie sauce. It's marinated for at least 2 days, grilled on skewers and served in a fluffy white submarine rolls. It's a dish local to the Binghamton area and the Southern Tier region of New York. The concept originated from Italian immigrants in the area in the 1920s but there is some debate over who served the first Spiedie. 

BBQ chicken and grilled sandwiches may not be unique to the area but, never the less, it is home my favorite pit that serves chicken so delicious - I count the days until it's seasonal opening every March. Next door is the best ice cream shop and 7 miles east, across the river is Lupo's Char Pit which serves chicken or pork Spiedies and some really great french fries.

I know what you are thinking, that sounds like a kebab, right? Wrong. The locals would skewer you if they heard you say that. The concept is similar but the spices are different and the sandwich has nothing but meat in it. The roll is used like an oven mitt to hold the chicken while the other hand pulls out the skewer. It's then served hot and sometimes drizzled with fresh marinade before serving. 

Garlic Chicken Spiedies

Instead of using the traditional white sub roll I decided to go with a multigrain baguette for something a little less refined and more flavorful. I used dried spices but if you have fresh on hand go ahead and use them. You could even mix it up and use some fresh some dried but don't leave out the onion and garlic powder in favor of more fresh garlic or onion. Even though I used hot paprika (I brought a jar back from Budapest!), it was not spicy at all so don't worry if you are sensitive to spicy food. If you are still concerned, replace it with sweet paprika. 

Serves 8-12 as sandwiches or over salad.

3-4 pounds chicken breast, cubed

2 multigrain baguettes

3 small shallots or 1 red onion

2-3 large cloves of garlic

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup white vinegar

1- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon hot paprika

1/2 teaspoon rosemary

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon basil

Peel the garlic and shallots or onion. Trim the ends and place in a blender. Add the oil, vinegar and all of the spices. Blend until smooth.

Toss the chicken with the marinade and refrigerate for 2-4 days.

When you are ready to grill the chicken, slice the baguette open length wise. 

Cut into two pieces horizontally and set aside.

Place the cubes on metal skewers and pack it tightly. Depending how long your skewers are, each will probably hold more than one serving of chicken. Mine each made enough for two sandwiches.

Grill the skewers over medium to medium high heat until the inside is white and juices run clear - about 8 minutes. The outside should be crisp but the parts where the chicken cubes touch will be soft and the marinade will collect there and stay moist.

Remove the skewer (with tongs, don't touch the metal!) and place in side one piece of the baguette and use the bread to hold the chicken while you remove the skewer. Repeat with the other chicken and baguette pieces. 

You should now have 4 baguette halves filled with chicken. 

Cut each in half to make 8 sandwiches. 

Enjoy!

With lemon and little else.

After spending time in Georgia, we went back to Yerevan for the day before heading out to the villages.

We went for lunch at a little cafe that's frequented by many of the expats in the area due to its english speaking staff, air conditioning, wifi, and somewhat american menu.

After a week and a half of khatchapuri, pastries, and bread I was happy to find a lentil salad on the menu. It was simple and absolutely perfect, dressed with lemon and little else.

I made a note to recreate those lentils in New York and they were one of the first things I made when I got home.

I planned on using regular organic green lentils but I came across a sprouted version that I used instead. I'm sure you've read about all these supposed health benefits of "sprouted" grains and things of the sort just as I have. I'm not exactly sure how a legume can be "sprouted" and I don't know if buy into all that macro, accessible, nutrient talk (we're getting into crazy-land here) but they look interesting and it couldn't hurt. You could easily use normal green lentils though.

When I first made the lentils they were a bit bland, obviously missing something but what it was, exactly, was not obvious. I put them in the fridge to let the flavors combine and the next day they had greedily soaked up all the juices. The next day I added another few generous grinds of sea salt and black pepper plus another fresh squeeze of lemon to wake them up.

For a little crunch, I cut up a head of belgian endive and piled the lentils on top.

Chopped tomatos (with or without fresh mozzarella) would also be a great summertime accompaniment.

5-Minute Lentil Salad

Serves 2-4

1 cup organic dried green lentils

Olive oil

2 lemons

Sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Fresh cilantro

2 medium heads of endive (optional)

Cook the lentils according to the instructions. Since mine were sprouted, they only required five minutes in boiling water and a two minute rest in the covered pot of hot water. Regular green lentils probably take longer.

Drain the lentils and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking. Pour them into a large bowl and add a slick of olive oil. Toss to coat, add salt and pepper to taste and the juice from one lemon. Mix in a handful of fresh cilantro and refrigerate until you're ready to eat.

Slice the endive and divide amongst the plates. Spoon lentils on top of the endive and add another squeeze of lemon. Sprinkle with a bit more cilantro and adjust the salt and pepper again. Serve immediately.

Alternatively, you could chop up the endive and mix it in but make sure to do that no more than an hour before eating otherwise it will turn soggy.

Enjoy!

To be a pie.

I ate about a kilogram of cherries on several occasions in both Armenia and Georgia and I really thought I was sick of them. That was before I came across tubs of sour cherries in the Union Square Greenmarket on friday. They were sleek, shiny red and mouth puckeringly tart. They just begged with every ounce of their little cherry souls to be taken home. They wanted desperately to be a pie so of course I bought several pounds and made one. 


After all, there's few things more perfect for a 4th of July beach party and bonfire. 

Sour Cherry Pie

You will have a little pie crust leftover but it freezes well and can be saved to make a small free-form pie or some mini turnovers. I replaced half of the flour with half whole-wheat pastry flour
Makes 1 10-inch pie

4 batches of Williams-Sonoma Basic Pie Dough, divided into 2 pieces for a bottom and top crust

5lbs pitted sour cherries

1-1/4 cups turbinado sugar

6 tablespoons cornstarch

a pinch of kosher salt

3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter cut into small pieces.

1 egg

Extra sugar for sprinkling on top

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Prepare the pie crust according to the instructions.

Beat the egg and set aside.

Toss the cherries with the sugar, cornstarch and salt.

Pour the cherries into the bottom crust and scatter the butter pieces over the top.

Brush the edge of the crust with the egg and top with the second crust.

Pinch the edges and crimp with a fork.

Brush the top with the egg and sprinkle with sugar.

With a sharp knife, cut four steam vents into the top of the pie.

Bake for 15 minutes at 425 then turn the oven down to 375 degrees. Bake for another 50-60 minutes.

If the top or the edges begin to get to dark, cover them with tin foil.

Be sure to place a baking sheet on the rack below the pie to catch any juices that spill out.

Let cool at least a few hours before serving.

Scenes from Georgia; The country not the state.

The reason I point out that I am referring to the country of Georgia, as opposed to The Peachtree State, is that a surprising amount of people don't even know that there is a country named Georgia.

In the weeks before I left I had several conversations that went something like this:

Educated individual: Oh you are going on vacation? That's so nice where are you going?

Me: Well, I'll be going to Armenia and Georgia.

Educated individual: Oh, so you're not leaving the country then?

Me: Georgia is a country. Sigh.

We walked through ancient streets, we got lost in Gonio (and wandered the beach till we found a "hotel"). We swam in the Black Sea, We took the midnight (Soviet) train, we ate a lot of pastries, we climbed around a few forts and we hiked through the ancient cave village in Gori.