Chicken Tenders With Basil and Bacon

Day 92: “Indoor Grilling”

April 2, 2011

Finally a cookbook that embraces the art of indoor grilling! Some of us in the upper midwest crave grilling all year-long but can’t go outside because of this thing called wind chill. My hubby and son took the grill out of storage last week, despite the cold and snow. I am so waiting for the day when all of our food can be cooked outside! 

The outdoor grilling guru of fire, Steven Raichlen took pity on us of the north and realized that we are a great group of people to market to. We have found ways around the outside grill and Raichlen so kindly helps us on the journey. Each recipe give you instructions if you have a contact grill, grill pan, built-in pan, freestanding grill or fireplace grill. There are over 250 recipes from the exotic Filipino-Style London Broil to the funky Lobster Reubens. Winter have you down? This cookbook will help you pass those gloomy cold days until we are all back outside enjoying the live fire grilling!

The Ruling: We opted to use proscuitto instead of bacon. I find it hard to wrap things in bacon and grill it. I talked with a chef friend last night about this as well. We both thought that you need to precook the bacon a bit before you grill it. I even thought maybe boil the bacon to get the fat off without having it cook too much. Some of the tenders were made with proscuitto and some without. Hands down the ones with the proscuitto were good. I think my hubby was excited to get out there and grill, because he opted to go outside in 40 degree weather instead of grilling on our George Foreman! You could easily add a dipping sauce to this or serve it as an appetizer….I hear summer grilling party in my future!

Chicken Tender with Basil and Bacon, 198

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
• 1 bunch fresh basil, rinsed, shaken dry, and stemmed
• 12 to 16 slices bacon
• Wooden toothpicks or butchers string

Directions:

1. Place 1 large or 2 small basil leaves on top of each chicken tender. Wrap each tender and basil in a slice of bacon, then secure the bacon with a toothpick or tie it in place with butcher’s string (if you are cooking on a contact grill, you won’t need to do this.)
2. Cook the bacon-wrapped chicken tenders until done. Use the poke test to check for doneness; the chicken should feel firm when pressed. You may need to cook the chicken in more that one batch; cover the grilled tenders with aluminum foil to keep warm until ready to serve.
3. Transfer the chicken tenders to a platter or plates and remove and discard the toothpicks or pieces of string, if using. Serve the chicken tenders at once.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger  operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity.  She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com .  Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com.  For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page  here.

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