Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Chicken for Jeff Montgomery

This morning slave read the passing of yet another LGBT hero, Jeff Montgomery. This recipe is dedicated to him and his legacy. Not only his beloved Detroit but all the world will miss his leadership. He cared deeply for those he served for so long, speaking out for human rights for almost three decades: Safe voyage hero!


The basis of this dish is a mash up of two well known delights: Duck Confit and 40 Cloves of Garlic Chicken. Yes it takes time but hardly any effort. The results are impressive as hell.


  • Ingredients:
  • 5 chicken thighs (skin on and bone in)
  • 3 lg heads of garlic (the famous 40 cloves!)
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tbs chopped parsley
  • salt & pepper
  • ground nutmeg
  • basil


Directions:
Plan ahead, make sure that the lower shelf of the oven (rack) will hold the 3 or 4 quart casserole with lid (big enough to hold the thighs- If you don't have one use a 9 x 13 baking dish) AND the upper shelf or rack will hold a rimed baking sheet.

If they all fit, then Pre heat the oven but just to 250 degrees!

Rinse the thighs and let them drain off on paper towels, don't worry about any residue.









 



Have a seat: break apart the garlic into individual cloves with your fingers and peel each one – (Hit with side of knife – the skins will almost fall off.) Trim off the very tip ends.
No one expects you to count out “38, 39, 40 cloves”. After doing three “heads” worth, you will know when enough is enough.

Spoon in 2 tbs of peanut oil into the casserole. Add all of those cloves of garlic and stir around to coat them well.


Add the thighs, turning each as you add to coat well with the oil and garlic. Sprinkle with the basil then shake just a touch of nutmeg over all of it. Cover. If the dish doesn’t have a lid, use foil to tightly seal it.

Put the casserole on the lower rack in the 250 degree oven. That will cook for 2.5 hours. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh should read 150 degrees F.
When that time is up:

Take out the chicken and transfer to a wire rack and turn the oven to broiler.


Make sure the chicken will be about 4 inches below the broiler.

Let cook until browned and starting to turn crispy, flip and continue. About 7 – 8 minutes per side.

Cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes before serving.

Remember chicken should end up at 180 degrees. This means that it can come out of the oven when thermometer reads 165 to 170 degrees
 
HOWEVER you MUST let it rest before serving.
 
The temperature will continue to rise and the juices will be drawn back into the meat. Do not skip this step!

Spoon out the garlic-fat into a skillet and stir in 2 tbs flour stir until cooked then add chicken stock to form gravy (or milk).



Slave served this with a side of whipped potatoes and sauteed green beans.
Cooking the chicken in oil low and slow (250 degrees and 2.5 hours) produces a poaching effect. That is the same found in Duck Confit. The garlic cooks down to a nutty flavor. Finishing under the broiler produces the rich golden brown crispy skin that finishes this feast.

What a meal, be prepared for the compliments!
For our music tonight, slave found this gem:



So happy to be serving my Master Indy!
Socialslave
To satisfy and restore.
To nourish, support and maintain.
To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,
to nurture, assist, and sustain
..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes 

by 

Dan White http://www.amazon.com

/dp/B00F315Y4I

/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via 

@amazon



Jeff Montgomery 
 

Jeff Montgomery died Monday from a heart attack at the age of 63.
Jeff used to describe himself as a “mind your own business” kind of gay guy, one who wrote a check to a “gay” organization once a year and lived his life of privilege unconcerned about others. That is until Jeff’s boyfriend, Michael, was fatally shot outside a gay bar in Detroit. The police told him they wouldn't investigate, considering it just another “gay homicide”.
That refusal and the lack of concern on the part of law enforcement led Jeff, in 1991 to co-found the Detroit-based Triangle Foundation. 
 
The foundation was initially to assist victims of anti-gay crimes and work with police and prosecutors to change the culture of how anti-LGBT crimes were treated. Soon it branched out taking on other forms of discrimination against LGBT people, including in housing and employment

Montgomery became a leading expert on anti-LGBT murders. He focused on debunking the so-called “gay-panic defense”. That was the tactic that blames murder of LGBT people on temporary insanity brought on by sexual or romantic advances by gays.

I think he’s going to be mostly remembered for his work on hate crimes," Jan Stevenson, co-publisher of Between the Lines said. 
"He was very vocal with the Scott Amedure murder, and he also took a prominent national role with the Matthew Shepard murder. He went out to Wyoming and attended the trial and was an adviser to the Shepard family when they were going through that. I think it was his greatest accomplishment: promoting hate-crime legislation and the need for it.”

His was an alternative to the coastal urban gay outlook. Montgomery reflected a mid-America, industrial heartland activism, sharpened by the challenges of being out-of-the-closet in Detroit, a conservative environment that encourages suppression of gay identity.

He was a frequent guest and commentator on television and radio programs, appearing in several newspapers, and as a presenter at national conferences.


He also was a founding member of the Woodhull Freedom Foundation, a Washington, D.C., group that advocates for sexual freedom as a fundamental human right. Woodhull's president and CEO, Ricci Levy stated "He cared deeply for those he served for so long, speaking out for human rights for almost three decades through his advocacy against violence, homelessness, HIV, and the recognition of the diversity of family, sex and sexuality."

Jeff once said: “Never repeat the words of your enemy. When you do, their words are heard twice and yours only once”.

Stephanie White, executive director of Equality Michigan stated:
It’s a little bit hard to overstate the legacy. At a time when a lot of us were afraid to come out of the closet, he was very public and very unapologetic. He inspired a generation of activists. He was a little rock with a big ripple.”
The family requests that donations be made in his memory to support "America You Kill Me," a documentary film being made about Montgomery's life.



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