Grilled Chicken Cutlets with Zucchini, Corn, and Cherry Tomato Sauce

There isn’t much that’s better in the food world than in-season produce. Everything tastes so much better when it’s in season, and late summer is prime time for zucchini, corn, and tomatoes.

Adam and I went to Connecticut to spend Labor Day with my parents, and my mom and I whipped up this dish on Saturday night. It was easy peasy. The only labor intensive part was the chopping, but as I told my mother, I am a prep whiz.

This was delicious. The warm corn and zuchinni sauce wilted the arugula and the salty cheese on top. Sooo good.

I might try it next time with breaded chicken cutlets — kind of a play on a milanese. The grilled cutlets were good, but I could have used a little extra crunchy texture in there.

Hurry — go grab the last of the summer harvest and try this one. It’s a winner. And don’t be shy with the spice. It was a perfect addition to this dish.

Ingredients

• 1 lemon, zested; 1/2 a lemon, juiced
• 4 cloves garlic, grated
• 5 – 6 tablespoons EVOO
• 1 tablespoon thyme leaves, chopped
• 4 6-8 ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Salt and pepper
• 2 ears corn, kernels cut from the cob
• 2 small or 1 medium zucchini – halved lengthwise, seeded and diced
• 1 bunch scallions, whites sliced and greens reserved for another use
• 1 small red chile pepper, such as Fresno, seeded and finely chopped, or about 1 tsp. crushed red pepper
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup loosely packed fresh herbs, such as mint, parsley, tarragon or basil, chopped
• 4 cups baby arugula
• A chunk of parmigiano reggiano, shaved into curls with a vegetable peeler, for garnish

Directions

1. In a shallow dish, combine the lemon zest and juice with half of the garlic, 3-4 tbsp. of the EVOO and the thyme.
2. Preheat an outdoor grill or indoor grill pan to medium-high.
3. Butterfly the chicken pieces: Open them up like a book by cutting into them horizontally without going all the way through. Once butterflied, pound the meat into thin cutlets; season with salt and pepper. Turn them in the lemon-thyme marinade. Let stand.
4. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tbsp. of EVOO, 1 turn of the pan, over medium-high. Add the corn and lightly brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the zucchini, scallion whites, chile pepper and the remaining garlic to the corn; season. Cook to soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the butter and stir to melt, creating a creamy sauce. Remove the zucchini-corn sauce from the heat and toss with the tomatoes and herbs.
5. Grill the chicken 3 to 4 minutes on each side, then transfer to plates.
6. Top each chicken cutlet with a cup of the baby arugula and some of the warm zucchini-corn sauce. Top with the parmigiano reggiano curls.

New England Lobster Rolls

Now, don’t get me wrong. I love crab. Living in Baltimore there is no shortage of crabby goodness – crab cakes, crab dip, crab pretzels, crab pastas, crab eggs benedict. Pretty much anything you can think of to add crab to, we do it here.

But the focus on crab in Maryland steals the spotlight from one of my all-time favorite summer meals. Lobster rolls.

A traditional lobster roll is filled with lobster meat soaked in butter and served on a hot dog roll.

I’m a fan of the butter-only lobster rolls, and whenever I go to Connecticut and order one, that’s the kind you get.

But I also love the not-as-traditional (but equally New-England) version that contains diced celery, mayonnaise, and a little lemon juice. These are the kind I usually make at home.

Don’t even attempt to make your own lobster roll unless you can find New England-style hot dog buns. These rolls have straight-up, white sides and a soft texture. You need the straight white sides so you can slather them in butter and toast them grilled-cheese style to get the golden buttery goodness of a warm toasted hot dog roll filled with cool lobster.

Ok, my mouth is watering now.

New England Lobster Rolls

Ingredients

• New England-style hot dog rolls
• Butter
• Mayonnaise
• Chopped Celery
• Lemon
• Chilled lobster meat

Directions

I don’t have a recipe for these per se. First, you need to obtain your lobster meat. You can buy a lobster, steam it, and pick the meat off of it, you can buy it pre-steamed or pre-picked. It all depends on how lazy you want to be (and how much money you want to spend; convenience is expensive when it comes to lobster).

Cut the lobster into good-sized chunks (you don’t want it too small), add a little celery, a little (I use very little) mayonnaise, and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

Butter both sides of the hot dog roll and toast it in a pan on both sides, until the sides are golden brown.

Pile the lobster salad into the roll (I usually put a leaf of lettuce in my roll first) and dig in. I usually eat mine with Cape Cod potato chips; french fries work well too.

Bolognese

I’m really not posting many summery recipes, am I?

To be honest, I’m not that great of a summer cook. The majority of our summer cooking is done on the grill, and involves simple seasoning (olive oil, salt and pepper) or bottled sauces. Occasionally I stumble across a winning marinade.

But as I see it, summer cooking just doesn’t require that much culinary expertise, absent how to grill something effectively (and Adam’s got that part down).

In the summer we eat a lot of salads, sushi, burgers, and similar things that are quick and easy.

But last night I felt like cooking, and my husband requested hamburger helper.

…

Do you see what I’m dealing with? Hamburger helper? Really?

…

So I wasn’t making hamburger helper, but I could appreciate the fact that Adam wanted a) ground beef and b) pasta.

I threw together a quick bolognese sauce, bought some fresh tagliatelle, and had a really good winter dish … in the summer.

It’s ok. Our air conditioning was making in cold in our house.

This was easy to throw together (especially since the supermarkets these days cater to lazy people and sell pre-chopped mirepoix) and it really hit the spot. Oh, and I think ultimately Adam was happier with this than he would have been with hamburger helper.

Bolognese Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 onion, finely diced (1/2 cup)
• 1 carrot, finely diced
• 2 celery stalks, finely diced
• 4 ounces pancetta, finely diced (optional)
• 1 pound ground beef, or a combination of beef and pork (I used just beef)
• Coarse salt
• 1/2 cup red or white wine (I used beef stock; didn’t have any wine)
• One 28-ounce crushed tomatoes (San Marzano if you can get them)
• 1/2 cup cream or milk (I left this out)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 pound spaghetti or other pasta
• 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Heat a saucepan over low heat. Add the olive oil, onion, carrot, and celery and saute over low heat until lightly caramelized, about 12 minutes. Add the pancetta and beef and cook, separating the meat into small pieces, until browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain off most of the fat. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt.
2. Pour the wine into the beef mixture to deglaze the pan; stir to loosen the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes, until the wine is almost evaporated. Add the tomatoes and stir in the cream, black pepper, and red-pepper flakes. Gently simmer for about 40 minutes, until the sauce has reduced and thickened.
3. Start cooking the spaghetti when the sauce is within 10 minutes of being done. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the spaghetti and a generous pinch of salt to the boiling water and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain.
4. Stir the butter into the bolognese sauce and season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon the sauce over the pasta and serve with grated Parmesan cheese on top.