You say "chicken do-ahead" and I respond "Chicken Marbella." Although I've never served it at room temperature, the recipe says you can.

I was supposed to have 14 for lunch today and I was going to serve cheese straws, crudites, Chicken Marbella, Lemon Rice, and roasted green beans, with cookies for dessert. Regretfully, DH is ill and we had to cancel our luncheon. He's getting better every day but company is out of the question right now.

CHICKEN MARBELLA (Silver Palate)

10 servings

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 cup pitted prunes

1/2 cup pitted Spanish green olives

1/2 cup capers with a bit of juice

6 bay leaves

1 head garlic , peeled and finely puréed

1/4 cup dried oregano

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

4 chickens (2 1/2 pounds each), quartered

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley or fresh cilantro , finely chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

Combine the olive oil, vinegar, prunes, olives, capers and juice, bay leaves, garlic, oregano and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add the chicken and stir to coat. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350°. Arrange the chicken in a single layer in one or two large, shallow baking pans and spoon the marinade over it evenly. Sprinkle the chicken pieces with the brown sugar and pour the white wine around them. Bake, basting frequently with the pan juices, until the thigh pieces yield clear yellow (rather than pink) juice when pricked with a fork, 50 minutes to 1 hour.

With a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken, prunes, olives, and capers to a serving platter. Moisten with a few spoonfuls of the pan juices and sprinkle generously with the parsley or cilantro. Pass the remaining pan juices in a sauceboat.

NOTES

To serve Chicken Marbella at room temperature, cool to room temperature in the cooking juices before transferring the pieces to a serving platter. If the chicken has been covered and refrigerated, reheat it in the juices, then allow it to come to room temperature before serving. Spoon some of the reserved juice over the chicken.

Sounds tasty and easy. Thx!

This is very weird. When I checked the thread yesterday, the only response I saw was from lpink and then and bbstx. Now this a.m. I see responses from sheesh and carolb that all predated lpinks. And plllog's predated my response. How is that!?!?!

There will be only 6 of us, so it's not a big deal, but I haven't seen one couple in about 10 yrs so I want to make it nice.

sheesh and plllog, I thought about poaching and certainly would do that for a chicken salad, but I'm concerned it won't have enough flavor to eat with a sauce on the side....

If I marinate the breasts before grilling and am careful not to over do them, do you think they'd be ok? I have a lemon bbq sauce with thyme that tastes delish.

plllog, I was wondering about a hot soup before a cold meal too. You may be right that it'll be weird on the palate...but part of me has the penchant for serving something hot for guests. I could do a chilled cuke soup... The tortellini is not that high in fat, but it is high in carbs. (which is my bugbear). I'd do a vinaigrette type dressing over a creamy one. I do have a nice tortellini and spinach soup that could work too, though it is hot.

Of course my big fear is that the day they get here will be cold and rainy and the last thing that'll work will be a cold lunch...I may have to make last minute changes anyway....I'll certainly keep an eye on that.

It is weird, Annie. I kept checking back until I went to bed last night, thinking it was wierd that I was the only responder all day long. I remember that I posted my first response about 45 minutes after your first post. Like you say …very weird!

When I responded late last night, the only response posted was from sheesh. Mine was immediately beneath sheesh's first response.

I am kinda weird with soups, I don't like them cold. I can't figure out why, since it is only the temperature of the soup that I don't like, so it really doesn't make any sense so don't mind me. The only kind of cold soup I like is gazpacho, and too early for that. Also, I am dead lazy, so I would just do a tortellini salad and add poached chicken to that! Then serve bread with both the soup and salads. Maybe add a spread like baba ganoush or hummous or olive tapenade, all of which I can get pre-made at the deli. I make an easy peasy eggplant spread by roasting an eggplant basted with EVOO, and mixing it with a jar of roasted red peppers. But that's just me.

When I wrote my response yesterday morning, Lpinkmountain's was the only other one. No Sheesh or Carolb. VERY weird.

If you choose to make a cold soup, I can highly recommend this one. I wish I could tell you where I got it, but I don't remember. It was years ago.

Cucumber Avocado Bisque

Serves 6

1 medium cucumber, peeled and seeded

1/2 medium avocado, peeled and pitted

3 green onions, chopped

1 cup chicken stock

1 cup sour cream

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp salt

Blend all ingredients in food processor for 10 to 15 seconds or until smooth. Cover and chill.

You know what else is weird? When I posted my reply, there weren't any others up (I thought) - but time signatures say otherwise...

Totally! When I posted about the weird it was after AD's post about the weird, then followed by Bbstx's with the recipe, and now all the rest are there. I'm thinking this is a very Hogwart's thread with all the bits shifting at will!

AD, the secret to serving poached chicken is seasoning it! You can also poach in stock, or a thinned out sauce.

Perhaps the trick is to have something you can heat without a lot of effort on hand, as well as your cold ideas. Like you could make a soup that can be served hot or cold, like a carrot soup, and make the chicken and lentil and green salads. If it's terribly cold, heat the soup and cook the tortellini and heat the chicken in it. Dress with the vinaigrette and the chutney (I promise it'll taste good) and call it warm chicken tortellini salad. Now you have a warm and hearty main. :)

Over the weekend I made rhubarb apple pie with some rhubarb a friend gave me. It was one of the best pies I have ever made. You could do it as a crisp too, without the bottom crust. Here's the recipe, from myrecipes.com. The original recipe I think is from Cooking Light, although as a pie, there is not much that is "light" about it. Would work fine as a crisp though. I often serve crisps with a dollop of vanilla yogurt or frozen yogurt as a slightly lighter dessert than pie.
It was easy peasy with a pre-bought crust. I made a couple of changes. #1, I didn't have enough rhubarb so I used apples for the rest. I didn't have granny smith but used a mix of gala and golden delicious. And to thicken, I used 1 TBLSP ground tapioca and 2 TBLSP flour instead of all flour. And I always par bake my crusts for about 5 min. before filling with a fruit mixture.

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/rhubarb-apple-pie

• 1/2 (14.1-ounce) package refrigerated pie dough (such as Pillsbury)
• Cooking spray
• 3 1/2 cups sliced fresh rhubarb (about 1 1/4 pounds)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/8 teaspoon salt, divided
• 4.22 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 cup), divided
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/3 cup chopped walnut halves

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425°.

2. Place pie
dough on a lightly floured work surface; roll into a 12-inch circle.
Fit dough into a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray. Turn edges
under; flute. Combine rhubarb, granulated sugar, juice, and apples;
toss. Sprinkle the rhubarb mixture with cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and
3 tablespoons flour; toss. Spoon rhubarb mixture into prepared crust.

3.
Weigh or lightly spoon remaining 3.38 ounces flour (about 3/4 cup) into
a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine 3.38 ounces flour,
remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt, and brown sugar in a medium bowl; cut
butter into flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives until
mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in walnuts. Sprinkle butter mixture
evenly over rhubarb mixture. Bake at 425° for 15 minutes.

4.
Reduce oven temperature to 375° (do not remove pie). Bake at 375° for 30
minutes or until golden and bubbly (shield edges of crust with foil if
it gets too brown). Let pie stand on a cooling rack for 15 minutes
before slicing.

I've poached/braised, then seasoned and under the broiler or hot oven, higher rack, for a 10 minute toasting crust. (without the skin). Chilled with some of the poaching liquid that is reduced and stick blendered if it has veg.

Keeps it moist. Slice before serving or prepped ahead. Would be nice over your lentils. I do like a cold fresh herb cream. Made with non-fat greek, a bit of mustard, lemon. Served on the side.

I do like your soup idea. This time of year i want a warm mushroom soup. But asparagus leek would also be great. A few drops of and herb blended oil?

I made this roast chicken recipe yesterday - it is always very moist because of the butter tucked under the skin, and it is also good cold the next day:

Algerian Roast
Chicken

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken

4 cloves of garlic

1 tbsp Kosher salt
1 teaspoon of sumac
1/2 teaspoon of sesame seeds
1/2 tsp coriander seeds

1/2 tsp fenugreek

3/4 tsp cumin

3 tablespoons of butter, room temperature
1 tbsp minced Thai basil (or 1/2 tsp fennel)

2 lemons, one before and one after
cooking

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Freshly ground black pepper

extra herbs, 1 tsp each minced
fresh oregano and basil, optional
4-5 sprigs of thyme or marjoram

Directions:

Start charcoal for outdoor
barbeque, using large chunks of mesquite wood and charcoal

Place the chicken in a roasting pan
with a rack. Slide your fingers under the breasts to separate the skin from the
meat, turn the chicken over and do the same with the thighs.

Mash the garlic with 1 tablespoon
of salt in a mortar and pestle or finely chop the garlic and incorporate the
salt into it with the side of your knife or back of a spoon. Add the sumac, sesame seeds, coriander seeds,
fenugreek seeds, and cumin and mix to pulverize the seeds. Add butter and basil
and combine to mix. Tuck pieces of the butter into the "pockets"
under the skin.

Squeeze the juice of one lemon all
over the chicken, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, and sprinkle freshly
ground black pepper. Season the cavity with pepper; tuck in the lemon halves
and more herbs into the cavity if desired.

Place the chicken on the barbeque
and cover, leaving vents fully open to maintain heat.

Baste the chicken every 15-20
minutes alternating water and pan drippings.

Midway through cooking, turn the
chicken 90 degrees. Continue frequent basting. The cooking time for a 3-1/2
pound bird is about 1-1/2 hours, depending on how hot your fire is. Cook to an internal temperature of 160°,
measured in the thigh.

Let rest covered about 30 minutes
before carving. Squeeze fresh lemon juice into the roasting juices, and pour
into a gravy boat.

Serve with roasted potatoes, green salad, and French or Italian bread.

You can roast this in the oven, but we always use Mesquite charcoal and wood. If you do not have any of the herbs/spices, you can leave them out, but it's better if you do have them. Sumac is an important ingredient, but you can substitute lemon zest.

Lars, that sounds amazing! I think I might try it flat. I wonder if tossing a few mesquite chips in the pan would add to the flavor in the oven? Fenugreek is one of my favorite spices.

That is so totally weird about the postings on this thread!

Wow, I so appreciate all the feedback and suggestions.

lpink, I've never made anything with rhubarb before...it's always in the back of my mind about the toxicity if you don't use the right parts....but your recipe sounds delish. I have a feeling that the fat-free guy wouldn't go for the pie crust though... I have a recipe for a tortellini and spinach soup that is delish, so maybe that's how I'll get the tortellini in the menu....

Lars, that chicken sounds incredible, esp with all that spicing.

sleevendog, that reminds me of how I typically cook chicken legs...though I cheat and MW first til almost done, then I grill them to finish cooking with a basting sauce. It adds all the grilling flavor without drying out the chicken. I hadn't thought about a yogurt based dressing on the side...sounds delish.

plllog, genius about the menu that can go hot or cold! Great suggestion!

bbstx, does cold soup get any easier? That sounds fab!

I can get rhubarb in the markets around here right now. But I wouldn't go for it if you're not used to using it. You may not even like it. There are other kinds of crisps though. Here's a link to one I make all the time, cherry cranberry. All with frozen and dried fruits. Actually, while doing a quickie search for the recipe, I found a link to "25 Fruit Crumbles" from Cooking Light. I really like Cooking Light magazine. I am TOTALLY bookmarking THAT page! http://www.cookinglight.com/food/recipe-finder/fruit-crumbles-crisps-cobblers/view-all.

Oh, and Lars, I am going to put that recipe in my "to try" file for this summer. BF and I love Mediterranean spiced foods!

Great spice ideas. Roasting 2 chickens tonight. On holiday now and traditionally roast/smoke day two so i will have stock for upcoming meals. I have a big rectangle cast iron roaster that also has a rack to double as a smoker.

That chicken recipe is Kevin's favorite, and so I make it fairly often. I got the recipe from a Parisian chef whose parents immigrated to France from Algeria, and he is now a professor at Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena. I have also met some of his students at a couple of potluck picnics in Griffin Park. I don't know if he still teaches there, however. I love Algerian food because it is a fusion of French and Arabic, which I think is a very good combination.

it is a fusion of French and Arabic -- yeah. Fenugreek, sumac and butter!

Just a little aside - not a criticism, and I know you peeps are interested in foody things - the cuke and avocado soup above sounds delicious but you can't call it a bisque. A bisque is a seafood soup with creme fraiche added.

Can you give me an idea what Fenugreek tastes like? Would the recipe be okay without it?

The recipe would be fine but not many replacements for fenugreek. The closest might be cast iron 5 minute roasted yellow mustard seed. Then spice ground a bit then soaked an hour before using, lol. I try everything...for fun, ; )

Oh heck, a tbsp of any mustard would be good. Rather than leave it out.

IC, your comment piqued my curiosity because I've encountered many non-seafood soups called "bisque." In all of my poking around online, the link below has got to be the most interesting post about bisque and several other cooking term evolutions. Thanks for the push to stretch my knowledge!

Bisque discussion on Chowhound

Chowhound can be hilarious. That is pretty funny having just gone down a quick page skim.

I just think we get used to translating what something might mean, and i do agree often wrong, like islay, but, and also wrong, a mushroom bisque better be soo much better than a thick floury diner canned soup, lol. (some things i never order out and that often contains mushrooms.) Just don't call it bisque, but i know what it is meant to be. Or what a chef is trying to pull off.

We have become very lenient to chef/recipe title errors.

I'm a bit of a traditionalist but i've lived so many places over the years, my taste-bud-loves collide.

We stopped at a highly recommended bakery for travel sandwiches. I bought something that looked like a French baquette but called focchia. (it was a white bread bakery mix rolled in a log and sprinkled with something red. Horrid.) Just call it a 'hotdoglongwhiteroll' w/ red stuff. Fine for a sandwich. Not worthy of ghost pepper salami, my olive salad, homemade humus spread, goat cheese.... : )

If a scan of a recipe looks good, no mater what it is titled, i can guess what the intention is. A bisque is prepared with detail and love, finished with a bit of creme fraiche. (but i use yogurt,) : )

me calls it soup, really good soup

Jasdip, the original recipe had fennel instead of fenugreek, but Farid told me I could use what I preferred, and so I used fenugreek because I was out of fennel at the time. However, I liked it, and so I kept making it that way, but you could use fennel instead. Sometimes I use marjoram instead of fenugreek/fennel - they all yield different results. I find sumac to be the essential ingredient, however, plus the lemons.

GFs and I went to the diner for lunch the other day, and I had a salad topped with sliced grilled chicken breast that was tasty and not at all dry...so it is possible. I'll have to give it a try...I think if I marinade it first would be best...and hammering it to an even thickness to it gets done at the same time...

Let me tell you, the hammering really helps a lot! That is why this mostly-vegetarian has a meat "hammer" in her gadget drawer. I got one for my folks too. I told my dad if he was going to eat boneless chicken breasts, he needed one. I manage to routinely turn out moist boneless chicken breasts, using all kinds of cooking methods. Bone-in grilled chicken remains a struggle for me . . . the "holy grail" of barbecue, if you will . . .

Sort of. Hammering gets the center and the pointy end equally done, but the way to get several different pieces to cook to the same doneness is to get them all at about the same size and weight, even if it means annoying the butcher to weigh each one, no hammering necessary. OTOH, it shouldn't make that much difference unless there's a huge one and a tiny one. Be careful with the hammering because it breaks down the tissue. Too much pounding and it'll go mushy.

Fenugreek tastes nothing like mustard (toasted or not) or fennel, but I agree that either would be a good alternative. Also, I agree with Lars that the sumac probably does the most for making this taste North African, but you could substitute something from your spice rack, like paprika for the color and some zing, since there's already lemon in it for the citrus note. That's a totally different flavor, but it would still taste good, and go with the method. Also, if you're having trouble finding sumac, try looking for a premade zaatar. Some zaatars are only green herbs, but there's a kind that also has sumac and sesame seeds that's pretty much what part of this recipe is making, and it's sometimes easier to find because it's also used straight.

OK, I hammered the chick breast and then marinated it in the lemon bbq sauce (lemon juice, EVOO, thyme, garlic, onion, salt & pepper) for about 6 hrs. I then grilled it making sure not to over do it and it came out delish....juicy, tender and tasty...very lemony. So I think that's a go for the lunch.

I'm now thinking about a sauce or a chutney to go with it....maybe sleevendog's yogurt sauce...maybe with some chives?

Good going on the chicken! So glad the test came out so well!

I hesitate to put dairy and citrus (i.e., lemon and yoghurt) together. It makes some people nauseous. How about a peach chutney with cardamom and ginger?

Smart to do a test. That nails the main event. I just roasted two chickens...most of one for supper with some roasted veg...stock tomorrow after picking, and setting aside enough for tomorrow night over mixed grain.

I'm sure you can get Fage non-fat. Much different than most yogurts. Does take dressing up very well. Unlike others.

For a small crowd, even a luncheon, i like to have a couple choices. Only because i can't decide what 'I' want, ; )

I do try and be complimentary. I just made pickled ginger earlier. That might be a good addition to a chutney.

The chutney idea is wonderful and the peach sounds fabulous!

I dunno about some people getting nauseous, but yogurt tahini sauce is pretty standard as a condiment with falafel. I make mine sometimes adding dried or fresh chives and other fresh herbs like oregano or parsley. I also add a pinch of honey since yogurt is too tart for me eaten plain. Can even add garlic if you are so inclined. My family does not go for garlic.

I know that lemon and cream in tea will curdle and I often add lemon juice to milk to make a buttermilk substitute for baking, but the flavors wouldn't bother me. I'm thinking that if I have a fruit dessert, I may want something different for the sauce on the chicken. Maybe a yogurt cucumber dressing like this chicken souvlaki recipe.

For me, it's the yogurt that is usually too tart, not the lemon, which is weird since they are both tart, not sure why one bothers me and the other doesn't. I love lemon flavor. BF, on the other hand, does not like anything with any lemon flavor. He will do orange, but not lemon. Not sure about lime, I'll have to ask him, lol! And he loves garlic, and I don't. So lemon garlic chicken is not one of our favorite dishes, lol! (Even though it is a fantastic combo!). When I do yogurt tahini sauce, I add lemon and some mayonaise, also may and a pinch of sugar to tame down the tartness for my taste. But that adds tons of fat! On the flip side, my mom used to make a cucumber sour cream salad with chives and lemon that was delicious. It is a variation on tsatsiki, (or tzatziki, however you want to spell it) which usually has mint in it, and can have garlic and cumin too. I make it with low fat sour cream. I love all of those exotic kinds of things--chutney, tzatziki, tahini sauce, etc. And there's also parsley sauces like chimichurri which I guess are less saturated fat laden.

It's not the tartness. Lemon and milk is an old way to induce vomiting. Orange and milk can do the same. And, yes, oranges with yoghurt has been known to do the trick. The lemoniness of the chicken with the yoghurt dressing wouldn't likely make anyone puke, but some sensitive people might feel queasy.

Interesting about felafel with yoghurt sauce. I've never seen that. No reason why one couldn't. I'm used to felafel being vegan, however, both here and in the Middle East.

Google it and you can find many variations of these combos. Yogurt sauce, yogurt cucumber sauce, yogurt tahini sauce, tahini sauce . I love them all. Here's a cool example, http://www.feastingathome.com/falafels-with-home-made-pita-and-creamy-tahini-sauce/

I usually eat all these sauces with falafel, but have had them with grilled chicken too. This is a food combo I actually make quite a bit for a summer party. It's not exactly diet fare, but baklava is a delicious dessert. I am lucky that I live in a state with one of the largest Arab populations so you can get baklava, hummous and pita bread (home made even) in many seemingly out of the way places. There's a middle eastern deli in the back of a gas station in my small home town that makes great pita sandwiches, for example.

It's too bad it's too early for melon, I often serve melon of some ilk for dessert with that meal. A favorite of mine is half a cantaloupe filled with vanilla frozen yogurt. It's even too early for berries. All we have here in MI is rhubarb! Great albeit expensive berries came in this week from CA. You could even do baked apples, I make those all the time, or fruit compote served with vanilla pudding as a topping. Or with vanilla yogurt if you don't serve it with the meal.

We have a terrific ice cream joint in the neighborhood, so if I do fruit for dessert, most likely I'll serve it with their ice cream...my low fat friend can skip the ice cream and just eat the fruit if he wishes.

I've decided to make it even easier on myself and just serve (shhhh---store bought) pesto on the grilled chicken. I'll have the lentil salad and I think I'm going to play with a haricot vert salad...I'm thinking with toasted walnuts and chopped roasted red peppers in a vinaigrette with some thyme....as the other side dish with crusty bread. This way I won't be over doing the fruit thing with a fruit salsa and a fruit-based dessert.

I tried out Martha Stewart's haricot vert and fennel salad with walnuts yesterday and it came out pretty good, though a little oily. I might make that or play around with other green bean salads as a side dish. My first time using fennel and I don't think I've eaten it raw before. Not bad.

So why not salade de haricots verts et fenouil aux noix? ;) I don't understand why half is in French the the rest in English? And, only one bean, to boot! I'm sorry, I really do not intend to offend, I'm trying to understand.

IC, in the US "haricot vert" is used to denote a particular type of long, thin green bean. It is often used in only the singular. If made plural, often they are erroneously dubbed "haricot verts," instead of "haricots vert." It is not an attempt by either AD or Martha Stewart to use French for half the title and English for the rest. It is just one of those quirks of language where a French term has taken on a special meaning in English.

Annie, your lunch choices are sounding so good! I hope you won't mind if I poach your menu ;)

Annie, I thought your own description of a bean salad (walnuts, red peppers, vinaigrette) sounded good! The rest of your menu sounds good too.

Thanks, plllog, I may still play with that version of salad too. I made a 3 bean salad with the rest of the hericot vert (thanks for the explanation bbstx) for a picnic tomorrow...I'll be bringing that along with the Harvey Wallbanger cake, which is always a big seller.

I'm thinking of a mixed berry buckle for dessert...blue, straw, rasp, black...and serving that up with the ice cream...they make a fabulous cinnamon ice cream...but then again, even straight vanilla is super. I have to confess that my fave is their raspberry swirl with the dark choc chunks. Swoon!

Steal away amck! We've all spent enough time hashing this out, I hope others make good use of the effort as well.

Just reporting back to let everyone know how the lunch went. Despite on and off showers, the temp was great so we were able to sit out on the deck, half of which is covered so we were dry and comfortable and enjoying the outdoors.

Friend brought a hot appetizer with melted cheese that was delish. I had a Latin salami slices with cucumber slices; roasted red pepper hummus with pita chips, smoke gouda and jarlsburg cheese with crackers, and a dish with celery and carrot sticks.

Lunch rec'd all kinds of compliments...grilled chicken breasts marinated in a lemon BBQ sauce and I served it with quinoa pesto (found it at TJs). Lentil salad with carrots and celery. Haricot vert with fennel and toasted pecans in a lemon dijon sauce (Martha Stewart). I sliced up a whole wheat ciabatta bread and had an herb package from which to make a dipping sauce with EVOO.

For dessert I made a mixed berry crumble (blue and rasp) with choc chip ice cream from a local creamery. Coffee and tea.

The beauty of it was that most of the cooking was done a day ahead so I was able to enjoy the company on the deck and not be a slave to the kitchen in prep.