Beer Can Chicken Tim and Victor's Totally Joyous Recipes www.tjrecipes.com

 

It is 73° outside. It’s August 19th. In the Philadelphia suburbs. The average temperature is usually around 85° for this time of year. Hot and humid. It’s very strange… But 73° is better than 85° – no matter what the reason. I have never liked the heat and humidity and I doubt I ever will.

I’m enjoying the cooler weather respite – it’s supposed to head back to 90° by Wednesday – and it put me in the mood to do another beer can chicken! This may just be no-brainer simplicity at its finest. A chicken sitting on a beer on a grill. Done. It really does come out good. Moist, succulent chicken with a crispy skin that Victor loves. In most instances I’m not a skin-eater, so Victor and Cybil get to fight over it.

Non-GMO corn-on-the-cob boiled with salt, rolled in butter. Nothing fancy. The corn has been pretty good, so far. And Phoebe’s Baked Beans. The only baked beans I make. I went a bit overboard with the chipotles. Nonna didn’t eat hers – too hot. But I thought they were perfect.

The potatoes are another go-to-no-brainer. I thin-slice a potato on my mandoline, add a pat of butter to a small skillet, and then layer the slices around the pan. I drizzle a bit more butter over the top, sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover with a lid, and fry on low for about 30 minutes. The bottom gets nice and crunchy and the rest of the potatoes get buttery and creamy.

Yummers.

Tomorrow I am making pizza. I found a recipe in La Cucina Italiana magazine for a slow-rise pizza dough that looks pretty good. It uses Italian “00” flour – which I just happened to have. The dough is made and in the ‘fridge for it’s first overnight rise.

Yummers, again.