Barbecued Chicken with Peach Barbecue Sauce

I was posting earlier today about some cooking I've done recently and mentioned some barbecued chicken I made earlier this week. My roommate Brett and his girlfriend Emily were over and we collectively decided to do some BBQ chicken. Part of that included me making a homemade barbecue sauce (the base recipe I've already posted here) and I recalled last weekend when I was over at mom and dad's eating a fresh peach. I had mentioned to my mom at the time that the peach would be a great additive for a barbecue sauce. So, I set about experimenting with my standard sauce and I was pretty pleased with the result (as was my super-picky roommate!). (Sorry, no pictures with this one. Didn't even think to take any!)

Peach Barbecued Chicken

Ingredients:

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or 5-6 chicken legs)
• kosher salt
• fresh-cracked pepper
• smoked paprika
• paprika
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• cumin
  
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• Peach Barbecue Sauce (recipe follows)
  

Directions:

1. Preheat your grill to medium-high heat.
   
2. Mix together equal amounts of the smoked paprika, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and cumin (about a teaspoon each) with the cayenne pepper in a bowl. This is the dry rub that will cover each piece of chicken - if you don't think you'll have enough, double the recipe!
3. Season your chicken with salt and pepper on both sides, then rub the spice mixture onto both sides of the chicken.
4. Grill your chicken over medium-high heat, about three minutes per side. After your first flip, cover the just-grilled chicken with the peach barbecue sauce. Flip again and repeat.
5. Make sure you don't overcook your chicken; it'll dry out. One of the best things about barbecue chicken is the moist texture when it's cooked properly. When you can feel that the chicken in cooked through (and you can generally tell by how much give there is in the meat), take it off the grill. Also, make sure you let it rest awhile too; that'll keep the juices in the chicken, which also helps keep the meat moist.

Peach Barbecue Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves (or one large clove), chopped
  
• olive oil
• pinch of kosher salt
• 2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
  
• 1 fresh peach, sliced or chopped
  
• 3 tbsp. light brown sugar
• 1 c. ketchup
• 2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp. dark molasses
• 2 tbsp. grade A light amber maple syrup (grade B syrup would be awesome, too!)
  
• 2 tbsp. peach jam
• 5-6 splashes of hot sauce (I like Frank's Redhot)

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, sautee onions and garlic in olive oil, seasoning with a pinch of kosher salt. When the onions and garlic start to soften, add the red wine vinegar and reduce by about a third.
2. Once the vinegar has reduced, add the peach and brown sugar, stir, and cook, uncovered, allowing the peaches to caramelize and soften a bit.
3. When the sugar has dissolved and the peaches have softened, add the ketchup, mustard, molasses, maple syrup, peach jam, and hot sauce. Stir together until well-blended and bring to a simmer on low heat, allowing all the flavors to marry together. (This can take anywhere from five minutes to a half an hour.)
   
4. Strain the sauce into another bowl through a strainer getting out as much sauce as possible, while leaving the onions, peaches, and garlic in the strainer.
5. Make sure you reserve some sauce to pour over the top of the chicken (as you don't want to reuse sauce you've spread over semi-raw chicken). It really adds to the sweetness of the dish!

Serves: 3 or 4
Serving Suggestions: When we had this the other night, we had some fresh Indiana buttered sweet corn on the cob, which turned out to be a great accompaniment! However, ANY typical BBQ side would work with this chicken - potato salad, cole slaw, baked beans, cornbread, macaroni salad, or anything else you typically like to eat with BBQ! The sweetness of the sauce might be complimented by something sweet (like corn), tart (cucumber salad), or savory (baked beans). In terms of wine pairings (if you're into that stuff), nothing fits better with BBQ than a cold beer (summer ales would be best - Fat Tire, Oberon, etc.).

Herb-Crusted Grilled Chicken with Goat Cheese

My mom signed up for something called "Farm Fresh Delivery" in which local farmers deliver fresh and organic produce straight to your door. Again, being someone who likes food (and fresh food, I'm told tastes better), I decided to get in on that action! Among other things, I picked up the herbs and the cheese for this dish, which tasted absolutely fantastic!

I would recommend using fresh herbs here if possible, but dried herbs can work in a pinch. If you don't have these four, others can be substituted (like oregano, basil, or dill) so long as they're fragrant. They'll change the flavor of the chicken slightly, but I can't imagine it tasting too altogether bad!

Stephen's Herb-Crusted Grilled Chicken with Goat Cheese

Ingredients

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• salt & pepper (to taste)
• fresh thyme,* finely chopped
  
• fresh marjoram,* finely chopped
  
• fresh sage,* finely chopped
  
• fresh rosemary,* finely chopped
  
• 4 oz. (give or take) of fresh goat cheese

* Add the herbs to your taste, but make sure you have enough to cover all three chicken breasts once finely chopped.

Preparation:

1. Season your chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper.
2. Rub your chopped fresh herbs on both sides of the chicken breast until they are covered with the herbs.
3. Allow your chicken to sit out, covered, for about twenty minutes to allow the flavors time to meld into the bird.
4. Heat your grill to medium-high heat and, after the chicken has finished 'marinating' in its rub, throw it on the grill.
5. Slice your goat cheese into 1/2-1-inch rounds. After you have flipped your chicken (you should only have to do this once - about halfway through the cooking process), place one or two of the rounds on each chicken breast until the chicken has finished cooking. This will allow the goat cheese to get a soft and creamy texture (but not melt).
6. Remove from heat once finished and allow to rest for a minute or two before service. This allows the meat to stay juicy (since the juices won't come running out of it when you cut into it).

Serves: 3-4 (depending on how many chicken breasts you used)
Serving suggestions: This dish would go great with some grilled asparagus (in my mind, the perfect accoutrement to any meal) or a light mixed green salad. The flavors make it a perfect summer meal. Also, if you're into that sort of thing, this would be very well paired with a dry white wine like a Chardonnay or a Chablis (but only if you're into that sort of thing).