6A COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL April 29, 2015
Cook's Corner
Chick-chick-chicken—it’s what’s for dinner!
BY BETTY KAISER
For the Sentinel
A
t our house, many last-
minute meals begin in
the freezer. If I’ve been gone all
day, individually frozen chicken
parts can be quickly thawed,
prepped, cooked and put on the
table. It’s what I call a “biologi-
cal function” meal. Chicken is a
low-fat protein that is relatively
inexpensive and tasty when
paired with a vegetable and rice.
Still, chicken entrées can get
boring.
So I started a quest to spice
up the bird. Cut-up whole
chickens are seldom available
anymore, although you can ask
your butcher to do it for you.
(At our house, Chuck does it.
I’m not allowed to handle sharp
knives!). However, most of the
time when I am only cooking
for two, I don’t need an entire
chicken. We just need a couple
of pieces. Once a rarity, indi-
vidual portions are now readily
available.
Most packages of fresh or
frozen chicken are breasts, and
that’s what resides in our freez-
er. But when it comes to fl a-
vor—the thighs rule. They have
a slightly higher fat content than
breasts, but with the skin re-
moved, the fat is also decreased.
So sometimes I get wild and
crazy and buy thighs for the fol-
lowing recipes.
I’m real good at oven-frying
chicken, baking a whole chicken
in the Crockpot or handing it to
Chuck to grill. Boring! So I’ve
been trying some simple mari-
nades and “rubs” to perk up our
taste buds and make our meals
cluck!
Marinades not only add fl avor
but also help to keep the chicken
moist. Prepare the marinade in
a non-metallic bowl or plastic
bag. Add the chicken and re-
frigerate. When ready to cook,
dispose of the marinade. Never
use marinade from raw meat. . If
you want to use some marinade
as a basting sauce, set some
aside at the beginning and bring
to a boil before applying to the
cooked chicken.
Rubs are sort of a dry mari-
nade that is rubbed directly on
the chicken and allowed to set
20 minutes or overnight. Any
combination of spices can be
used. The following recipes are
for four servings. But if you like
them, be sure and quadruple the
recipe and store it in an airtight
container for future use.
BTW: If you don’t like the
combinations below, be brave
and experiment with your own.
Lawry’s makes a great lemon
marinade that I change up with
soy sauce and whatever suits my
fancy. Enjoy!
Citrus Herb
Marinade
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon rosemary
1/2 teaspoon thyme
Asian Ginger
Marinade
1/4 cup light soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon minced parsley
leaves
Honey Mustard
Marinade
2 tablespoons mustard
1/4 cup soy sauce
4 teaspoons honey
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Hot and Spicy
Rub
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Spicy
Mediterranean
Rub
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Indian Ginger
Rub
chicken thighs
RUB
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon whole grain
mustard
Kosher salt and freshly ground
black pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon cardamom
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
SAUCE
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons whole grain
mustard
3 tablespoons honey, or more,
to taste
2 tablespoons chicken stock, or
more, to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 sprigs rosemary
SPICY
HONEY
BRUSHED
CHICKEN
THIGHS
8 skinless, boneless, chicken
thighs
Spice Rub
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
Basting sauce
1/3 cup honey
3 teaspoons cider vinegar
Turn on the oven broiler. Com-
bine six spices in a large bowl.
Add chicken to bowl; toss to
coat. Place chicken on a broiler
pan coated with cooking spray.
Broil chicken 5 minutes on
each side
Combine honey and vinegar
in a small bowl, stirring well.
Remove chicken from oven;
brush half of honey mixture on
chicken. Broil 1 minute. Re-
move pan from oven and turn
pieces over. Brush chicken with
remaining honey mixture. Broil
until chicken is done.
Serves 4 (2 thighs per serving).
NOTE: Serve with garlic-roast-
ed potatoes and a green salad.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
To make the mustard rub, com-
bine olive oil and whole grain
mustard in a small bowl; season
with salt and pepper, to taste.
Using your fi ngers or a brush,
work the mixture onto both
sides of the chicken.
Make the sauce: In a large
bowl, whisk together Dijon
mustard, whole grain mustard,
honey and chicken stock. Add
more chicken stock as needed
until desired consistency is
reached. Set aside.
Heat olive oil in a large oven-
proof skillet over medium high
heat. Add chicken, skin-side
down, and sear both sides
until golden brown, about 2-3
minutes per side. Add mus-
tard sauce and sprinkle with
rosemary.
Place into oven and roast until
completely cooked through,
reaching an internal tempera-
ture of 175 degrees F, about
25-30 minutes.
Serve immediately with rice
and veggies.
Keep it simple and keep it
seasonal! Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s
Corner is dedicated to sharing a
variety of recipes that are deli-
cious, family oriented and easy
to prepare. Contact her at 942-
1317 or email
bchatty@bettykaiser.com
BAKED
HONEY
MUSTARD
CHICKEN
THIGHS
paramedic Rick Settelmeyer
and others including Howard
Schesser and began to volunteer
with the fi re department, later
studying to become a paramedic
to be even more helpful. In the
late 80s, he signed on full-time
and has answered the call ever
since.
“We focus on fi xing a prob-
lem, on doing our job,” he said,
“and there’s plenty to do. This
town is pretty busy, and there
are thousands of calls — it’s a
way of life.”
The only aspect of the job
Eckstine said he didn’t relish is
having anger directed his way,
an occasional by-product of the
life of a fi re marshal. But he’s al-
ways gotten by with a little help
from his friends and family.
“You can be great at some-
thing if you love what you do,
and my success is directly re-
lated to my friends,” he said.
“They’ve made the job so fun
for me. And I have a good fam-
ily; my wife’s an angel, and I
wouldn’t be able to do anything
without her.”
Eckstine said it’ll be a plea-
sure to schedule many of the
outings that went by the way-
side in his younger years, in
addition to making time for his
wife, Denise, and his kids, most
of whom still live nearby.
“There’s traveling to do; it’s
going to be fun,” he said. “But
we love this town and have no
intention of leaving.”
On Monday, Fire Chief John
Wooten called Eckstine “an in-
tegral part of building our fi re
prevention program.” He said
the department will have to fi ll
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912 meeting
mation call 541-206-9756 or
541-607-1156.
Lane County Commissioner
Faye Stewart will speak at the
next meeting of the Cottage
Grove 912 Project on Monday,
May 4 at 6:30 p.m. at the Cov-
ered Bridge Restaurant, 401 E.
Main St. Stewart will discuss
his involvement with the Asso-
ciation of Oregon Counties and
the feasibility of transferring
federal land in Oregon to the
state.
Silk Creek
Cemetery Assn.
The annual meeting of the
Silk Creek Community Cem-
etery will be held Tuesday, May
12 at 6:30 p.m. at the Silk Creek
Chapel by the cemetery. All are
welcome.
Taylor-Lane Cem-
etery clean-up
A work party to clean up Tay-
lor-Lane Cemetery will meet
Saturday, May 16 at 9 a.m. at
the cemetery. For more infor-
Learn PastPerfect
Workshop 2 of the Collec-
tions Care Series is being held
Tuesday, May 12 from 6:30 to
8:30 p.m. at Lane Community
College in Cottage Grove. This
class teaches the use of PastPer-
fect, a widely used collection
management software program.
The $10 fee is payable at the
door, cash or check only. For
more information, call 541-463-
4202.
Garden work
party
There will be a garden work
party in honor of Marlece and
Kim on Sunday, May 3 from
noon to 4 p.m. at the Arthurs’
home, 31212 Veatch Rd. Volun-
teers are asked to bring gloves,
a snack to share, and be ready
to work and are asked to contact
Pat Daniels if they plan to attend
at 541-942-2824 or email pat@
cgfarmhouse.com.
Join us May 5 th
SPECIALS ALL DAY!
DINNER SPECIALS!
COCKTAIL SPECIALS!
Open 7 Days A Week
(79 . s
NEW: Digital X-Rays (use less radiation)
Implants •Teeth Whitening • Extractions
Lumineers (no prep veneers as seen on TV)
Cottage Grove Dental
Dr. Brent Bitner, DDS
350 Washington, Cottage Grove (behind Better Bodies)
541.942.7934
CHICKEN: 8 bone-in, skin-on
E CKSTINE
Continued from page 3A
COMMUNITY BRIEFS
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a void with its building inspec-
tion program until Danny Soles-
bee can be trained as the new
fi re marshal, and SLFR hopes
to promote a new division chief
from among its current cap-
tains.
“His knowledge and abilities
will be missed,” Wooten said.
“He’s had a great career, and
the board and everybody here
thanks him for his service.”
“There are great people com-
ing up, so I feel good about
stepping out,” Eckstine said.
“If they miss you when you’re
gone, you know you didn’t re-
ally do your job.”
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'ATEWAY "LVD #OTTAGE 'ROVE
.EXT TO "I-ART /PEN DAYSWEEK
Shady Oaks Plants & Produce
Girls Just Want to Have Fun!
Giggles – Grins – Fine Wine – Food – Friends
CHICK’S NIGHT OUT
Friday May, 10th 5:30-Dark
Get out of your coop and come “Free Range”
Dinner served from 6:00-7 with shopping and live music By the Fret Boys
We have a fun filled evening lined up just for the girls. Husbands are more than welcome.
Enjoy some pampering, relax to music, have dinner in the garden and indulge in a bottle
of wine from Saginaw Vineyards while lounging among the lovely flowers and plants.
Then shop for Mother’s Day with a wide array of vendors to top off the evening
We have many vendors who have arranged to stop by.
We will offer Door Prizes. (Must be present to win)
Dinner will be served in the garden under the Shady Oaks.
Dinner - pasta with a variety of sauces, salad and a dinner roll.
Beverages: Tea, lemonade and coffee. Cost will be $12.00 including your beverage.
Scruptious desserts will also be available to purchase separately.
Hope to See You here.
(WY 3OUTH s #' s