What's Kickin' Chicken?

Recipes are fun to share. Here's what we made for dinner yesterday. The chicken was very tasty...this may become a Sunday regular at our house!

Smoked Chicken:
1 whole chicken (about 4 lbs.)
3 Tbs. butter
olive oil
salt
pepper
garlic salt
paprika
poultry seasoning

I prepared the chicken by rinsing and patting it dry. Then I separated the skin from the breasts and put pats of butter all underneath. I rubbed a layer of olive oil on the chicken. Then, I made a rub out of the remaining ingredients (to taste)...I went very light on the salt since smoked foods often have a salty taste.

Chad used hickory chips and smoked the bird for about 4 hours. I'm sure you could use a billion combinations of seasonings or marinades, but this did turn out GREAT. I might experiment with some lemon pepper next time. It was really tender and juicy and the skin was crisp.

To go with the chicken, I tried this recipe from http://allrecipes.com/:

Corn and Zucchini Melody (I'm thinking that should have been "medley")
4 slices bacon
2 c. chopped zucchini
1 1/2 c. fresh corn kernels (I just sliced kernels right off the cob)
1 small onion, chopped
pinch pepper
1/4 c. shredded Jack cheese (I used mozzarella and cheddar)

Place bacon in a large deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Reserve 1 Tbsp. of drippings. Drain bacon, crumble, and set aside.

Heat the bacon drippings in the skillet over medium heat. Saute the zucchini, corn, and onion until tender, but still crisp --about 10 min. Season with pepper. Spoon vegetables into a bowl, and sprinkle with chopped bacon and cheese.

We decided this one was a "keeper" as well. Enjoy!