#MEwx Clear, sunny, less humid and Ranch Chicken Sandwiches

Good morning Augusta

This morning we have Partly sunny. Highs in the lower 70s. Light and variable winds, becoming south around 10 mph this afternoon.

Tonight we'll have partly cloudy skies during evening hours, becoming mostly cloudy. Lows in the mid 50s. South winds around 10 mph in the evening, becoming light and variable.

The readings from my weather instruments are:

Our outdoor temperature is 59.9°F, the humidity is 99% and the dew point is 59.4°F.

The wind direction is Northwest between 1.2 MPH and 2.5 MPH.

The Relative pressure is 30.33, the Absolute pressure is 30.12 and rising with a weather graphic indicating sun/clouds.

Visibility is 10.0 miles / 16.1 kilometers with bright and sunny skies again.

The UV rating is  2 out of 16, The moon is 18.8% illuminated, the moon phase is Waning Crescent, Sunrise is 5:10 am↑ 59° Northeast, Sunset is 8:19 pm↑ 301° Northwest, Moonrise is 1:43 am↑ 65° Northeast, Moonset is 4:46 pm↑ 298° Northwest and we'll have 15 hours 9 minutes of daylight today.  

We didn't receive any rain here  over the past 24 hours.

How about a sandwich that's just a bit more than a "Sandwich?"

Ranch Chicken Sandwiches

Original recipe by Ree Drummond on "Pioneer Woman" TV show

Ingredients:

4 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or chicken thighs)

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup Dijon mustard (or country/grainy mustard) (or whatever kind of mustard you like)

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Juice of 1 lemon

Crushed red pepper, for sprinkling, optional

1 pound thick-cut bacon, sliced in half

2 cups grated sharp Cheddar or slices of your favorite cheese

8 soft whole grain buns, or whatever you have

Directions:

With a very sharp knife, cut the chicken breasts in half down the middle. This will result in 8 chicken breast pieces that are thinner and uniform in size. Trim chicken thighs, if necessary.

Next, make the marinade. In a large bowl mix together the honey, mustard, paprika, salt, pepper to taste, lemon juice and crushed red pepper flakes if using. Stir to combine.

Add the chicken to the marinade and toss to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and marinate in the fridge, 2 to 4 hours or longer depending on your time.

While the chicken marinates, fry the bacon until chewy. When finished cooking, reserve 1/4 cup of the bacon grease and pour off the rest of the grease (but do not clean the skillet).

When you are ready to cook the chicken, remove it from the marinade and cook it in the skillet over medium-high heat, 3 to 4 minutes each side. Brush a little reserved bacon grease on the chicken as you cook it (skip this step if you're watching your fat intake). (Or you can grill the chicken breasts on an indoor or outdoor grill; a skillet should work, too!)

When a couple of minutes grilling time are left, lay 2 pieces of bacon onto each chicken breast. Top with some cheese and allow it to melt on the grill (if you need to remove the chicken you can finish melting the cheese under the broiler).

Halve the rolls and immediately load with the bacon-and-cheese covered chicken.

You can skip the rolls and serve along with a salad, pilaf, whatever.

PS: This is great the next day too!