in the oven on the rack just below the chicken and roast both for 20 to 25 more minutes, until the grape skins begin to blister and the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F.
Juice the Concord Grapes While the seedless grapes and chicken roast, start the sauce. Place the Concord grapes in a blender and blend 1 to 2 minutes on high speed. Press the juice through a fine mesh strainer or food mill to strain the juice from the skins. Set the juice aside and discard the skins.
Prepare the Brown Butter Grape Sauce In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat, whisking often, until it foams and just begins to brown. Reduce the heat to a low simmer. Watch carefully. Add the Concord grape juice to the saucepan and whisk to combine. Add the thyme and vinegar and simmer on medium-low heat for 12 to 15 minutes, until the sauce begins to reduce.
In a small bowl, whisk together the cold water and cornstarch until smooth in order to make a slurry. Add the slurry to the pan and raise the heat to bring the sauce to a strong simmer, whisking constantly for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Whisk in salt and pepper to taste, then simmer for another 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Let’s Eat! To serve family style, tuck some of the roasted grapes around the chicken in the skillet. Place the remaining roasted grapes in a bowl and serve the grape sauce in a gravy boat.
For individual portions, pour cup of the grape sauce in the center of each plate. Place 1 to 2 chicken thighs on top of the sauce, skin side up. Surround the chicken with cup roasted grapes, sprinkle with fresh thyme, and drizzle about 2 tablespoons grape sauce on top of the chicken.
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Shrimp, Scallops, and Squid,
Oh My!
M
seafood pasta, and mine used to be his favorite until I
was shown up royally one summer evening in the coastal village of Levanto,
Italy. At dinner one night, he ordered homemade gluten-free seafood pasta. (Italy
offers incredible gluten-free foods.) It arrived baked in a steaming parchment paper
parcel and strewn with garlic, San Marzano tomatoes, plump prawns, tender baby
octopus, white rings of calamari, and buttery scallops. As he ate, his eyes glistened,
and it wasn’t because of the house Chianti. At that moment I knew this dish was
going to follow us home.
We celebrated our first wedding anniversary at Camp Navama in early June of 2017, and because food is my love language, I recreated the parchment paper–baked pasta that had won his heart.
★ Flagship Specialty Foods and Fish Market
14939 Red Arrow Hwy. | Lakeside, MI
Thanks to the fresh seafood locally available at Flagship Specialty Foods and Fish Market and a bottle of Chianti from our wedding weekend, I successfully unpacked the taste memory from Levanto right in my New Buffalo kitchen.
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16 IMPRESS YOUR GUESTS
Third Coast Seafood Pasta Baked in Parchment
6–8 sea-loving servings 1 hr start to finish
Special itemS Needed
Parchment paper or heavy-duty aluminum foil
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided, plus more as needed
10 ounces small to medium calamari, cleaned and cut into rings if whole
12 large dry sea scallops cut into quarters, or 30 fresh dry bay scallops (see Tips for Success)
pound fresh or thawed frozen shrimp, peeled, cleaned, and deveined
4 large cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 (28-ounce) can whole Italian plum tomatoes (I love San Marzano.)
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
cup stemmed and finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
teaspoon red pepper flakes, plus more to taste (optional)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
2 teaspoons honey or granulated sugar
1 pound gluten-free or regular spaghetti (I love Garofalo or Jovial gluten-free pasta, often available at Barney’s Market.)
cup stemmed and thinly sliced fresh basil
tipS for SucceSS
You’ll want quality fresh seafood for this recipe. In Harbor Country, the best spot to buy seafood is Flagship Specialty Foods and Fish Market, wonderfully curated by chef and owner Rachel Collins.
Wet versus Dry Packed Scallops: Scallops are often soaked in a phosphate solution that whitens them and makes them absorb more liquid, increasing their weight by as much as 30 percent. So you’re paying $15 to $20 (or more) per pound for water. Also, that phosphate solution is a common ingredient in soaps and detergents, and not surprisingly, has a distinctly soap-like flavor. When you cook these scallops, all that extra liquid drains out and into the pan, so instead of searing them, if that’s your goal, you end up steaming them in something closely resembling soapy water. To avoid that, look for scallops labeled “chemical-free” or “dry packed.”
If using fresh calamari, clean it by removing the skin and separating the tentacles from the long body. Remove the innards, cuttlebone, and beak at the center of the tentacles, then the eyes, and finally slice the squid thinly.
Most Italians typically don’t mix cheese and seafood, so avoid sprinkling with Parmesan to keep it real.
Make the Baking Pouch Roll out a sheet of parchment paper or heavy-duty aluminum foil, about 2 feet long. Set aside.
Prep Preheat the oven to 375°F. In a large, covered pasta pot, bring 6 to 8 quarts of water, 1 tablespoon of the salt, and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to a boil over high heat.
Prepare the Seafood While the water comes to a boil, pat the calamari, scallops, and shrimp dry with paper towels and set aside. Keep each seafood variety apart from the others, as you’ll cook them separately.
Make the Sauce In a large sauté pan, heat the remaining cup of olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté about 2 minutes, or until just golden. Crush the plum tomatoes into the pan with your hands and add the cherry tomatoes, parsley, red pepper flakes (if using), oregano, basil, honey, and remaining 2 teaspoons of salt. Stir to combine. Continue to cook the sauce over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, while you cook the pasta.
Recipe continues
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