Thursday, June 26, 2008

Macadamia Nut Grilled Chicken Breasts with Apricot Mustard Cream, Sounds Like a Mus'Go Night To Me!

Let's get something straight. I hate leftovers. I can't stand them. The very word tells you everything you need to know about the upcoming meal. "Leftovers". Obviously I either made too much the first time or people didn't like it, so I was stuck with a plate of shame.

Some of you are saying, but Crabby there are so many things that are even tastier the next day. No, you're wrong. Nothing tastes better the next day. It gets cold. It dries out on the edges. It congeals. Not a one of these things is good for food.

Over the years I've gotten better at estimating the amount I need to prepare. I also have the fall back of teenage sons. Anyone with teenage boys will tell you that there isn't enough food in the world to satisfy their hunger. They'll eat anything - leftovers, cookies, fruit, ice cream, small woodland creatures, anything that makes the mistake of slowing down near their all consuming jowls.

About the only exception I make to my leftover regime is in sauces and marinades. I make a large batch of any new sauce just so I can try it on different things, meats, fish, vegetables, etc. The problem is that eventually my refrigerator fills up with all sorts of small jars and containers. So I've adopted a dining tradition from SSSal's family. The Mus'Go Night.

Mus'Go night is when you stand in front of a full refrigerator and realize there's nothing to eat. It's so full you can't reasonably put any more food in without risking structural damage to the kitchen floor. Mus'Go night is when you reach around and start pulling out things saying, "This must go, that must go", until you finally have enough for a meal.

For this meal to work you have to be utterly fearless in combining ingredients. The meal isn't always the greatest, but at least the fridge is emptier. Once in a while though, I stumble onto a pleasant surprise. So, for the first time ever on this blog, a Crabby Mus'Go recipe.


Macadamia Nut Grilled Chicken Breasts with Apricot Mustard Cream Glaze
a Crabby Mus'Go Production.

4 Boneless Chicken Breasts (skin-on if you can find them)
3/4 cup Mustard Cream (recipe to follow)
1/2 cup apricot nectar
3/4 cup macadamia nuts, finely chopped.

Combine the mustard cream and apricot nectar in a medium bowl.

Place the chicken breasts along with the mustard cream mixture into a large resealable plastic bag. Seal the bag, refrigerate and allow to marinate as long as possible, (up to 24 hours).

Pre-heat your grill over medium-high heat.

When heated, turn the grill down to medium. Remove the chicken from the marinade and grill, turning once, approximately 10 minutes per side. Note: if you are using boneless, skinless breasts the cooking time will be shorter. If you are using bone-in chicken breasts the cooking time will be longer.

Remove the chicken from the grill and allow to rest, covered, for 10 minutes.

After resting roll the breasts in the macadamia nuts and serve.

Mustard Cream
by Eve Aronoff, Eve Restaurant, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

1 Cup Creme Fraiche (or 1/2 cup sour cream + 1/2 cup whipping cream, well blended)
2 1/2 TBSP Honeycup mustard
2 TBSP Whole Grain Mustard
1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
1/4 cup heavy cream

Combine all ingredients


See, simple as can be. I realize that this has the potential for chicken leftovers and only succeeds in getting rid of mustard cream, apricot nectar and some macadamia nuts, but it does make for a very flavorful meal with an amazingly small amount of work.

Enjoy. Next time, the lastest chapter in the Tomato Tree saga. You won't want to miss that one. Until then, remember, you can do it, you can cook.

6 comments:

Michelle said...

OH MY...does this sound fabulous or what!!!! Definitely on my "TODO" list!

Anonymous said...

this sounds delicious..run off my feet at the moment with a houseful of kids & a tray of chicken....think I know what's on tomorrow's menu!!

Anonymous said...

This dish screams to be served with a slightly sweet Riesling.

The Late Harvest(make sure you see the words Late Harvest on the label)Riesling from Hogue in Washington state should be about $10 a bottle across the nation.

If you want to search out one from Germany survey the label for the following words; Riesling, Spatlese, Rheingau and any vintage 2000 to 2007. Expect to spend $20-30 a bottle.

Riesling is the name of the variety of grape.
Spatlese tells you the grapes were picked a bit overripe to add a some natural sweetness and some apricot-apple flavor to the wine.
Rheigau is the best region in Germany for dinner wines.

This is a great wine-food pairing, enjoy.

Anonymous said...

Now if you could only come up with some recipes for all the "Mus'Go" jars of apple butter in my refrigerator ...

hungryandfrozen said...

This sounds delicious...like something I'd want to make first time round even :)

Anonymous said...

This does look really tasty, and I can certainly sympathize with the idea of the "Mus'Go Night." (She says thinking of the tub-o-cake taking up the whole bottom shelf in her own refrigerator)...