It's snowing up a storm outside, the Facebook is lit up with friends complaining about their sloppy drives to work, the forecast says it's supposed to keep snowing until 5 a.m. tomorrow... but me? I don't care. I have the day off. It's Seward's Day, the day we celebrate the 1867 purchase of Alaska. And what better way to celebrate it than with a late-winter / early-spring snowstorm?
The photo above is of last night's dinner on the barbecue. Grilling in fresh snow requires many, many shoe changes -- from snowboots for outside to slippers for inside, back and forth, in and out the back door to check on the grill, trying not to trip on the shoelaces I'm too lazy to tie each time. I soldiered through though, managed not to trip down the back steps and do a face-plant in the fresh snow, and the kebabs were totally worth it.
My grilling sidekick Sadie on the back porch, surveying the backyard:
All this snow will be even more fun later this week when the temperatures are supposed to rise. The fluffy white stuff will be puddles, puddles everywhere. Better have my waterproof boots at the ready.
Here's a poem from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow regarding snow. I think it's beautiful. And I love the way he hyphenates the word 'snow-flakes.' And below the poem is the recipe for those kebabs.
Snow-flakes
Out of the bosom of the Air,
Out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken,
Over the woodlands brown and bare,
Over the harvest-fields forsaken,
Silent, and soft, and slow
Descends the snow.
Even as our cloudy fancies take
Suddenly shape in some divine expression,
Even as the troubled heart doth make
In the white countenance confession,
The troubled sky reveals
The grief it feels.
This is the poem of the air,
Slowly in silent syllables recorded;
This is the secret of despair,
Long in its cloudy bosom hoarded,
Now whispered and revealed
To wood and field.
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chicken and Veggie Kebabs
Serves four
Click the link above for the original recipe. It's open to lots of variations. I usually use a dried Italian herb mix for seasoning the marinade but have also used a fresh herb mix and both are good. Sometimes, instead of marinating the chicken and vegetables separately, I get lazy and just toss everything together in the same bag or bowl then marinate. This is good, easy, healthy cooking at its best.
1 pound chicken breast cut into one-inch cubes
1 cup Italian salad dressing, divided
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herb mix
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 yellow summer squash, cut into 1/2-inch slices
2 medium onions, quartered
1 medium sweet red pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups cherry tomatoes
In a small resealable plastic bag, combine chicken and 1/2 cup salad
dressing. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large resealable plastic bag, combine the oil, garlic salt and herbs; add vegetables. Seal bag toss to coat. Drain and discard marinades. On eight metal or soaked wooden skewers, alternately thread chicken and vegetables.
Grill kabobs, uncovered, over medium-hot heat for 12-15 minutes or until juices run clear, turning and basting occasionally with remaining salad dressing.
