Grilled Chicken and Berry Pie Ready for Dad's Day

Nothing says summer like grilling and fresh berry pie. This week, we have combined the two, to make a refreshing dinner without turning on the stove.

 on Mexico Road still has fresh , ready for picking. But each year, what I really wait for are the fresh raspberries. Currently, they are sweet, juicy and ready for picking.

If the weather cooperates, the berries should be at their peak during the coming week. That is just in time to make a special Father’s Day dessert, easy enough for the kids to do with minimal help from mom. The raspberry pie recipe is based on many recipes found online, but created with proportions reflecting the sweetness and pectin content of Lakeview’s raspberries.

For an added twist to the typical grilled chicken sandwich, grilled pineapple lends a sweet surprise to the sandwich. Pick up a pineapple at  in O’Fallon. Grilled pineapple is great with chicken, but also nice eaten on its own.

Grilled Teriyaki Chicken Sandwich

Serves 4

• ½ cup pineapple juice
• 4 tablespoons soy sauce
• 4 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 tablespoon honey, divided
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger root
• 3 green onions, minced
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to an even thickness
• 4 rings fresh pineapple
• 4 sandwich buns
• Arugula leaves
• Sesame seeds

Place chicken breasts into a re-sealable zipper bag. In a small bowl, combine the first seven ingredients, reserving one tablespoon of honey. Reserve 1/4 cup of the marinade and place into a small saucepan. Pour the remaining 3/4 cup over chicken breasts. Seal the bag and refrigerate for about one hour, turning a few times to coat the breasts.

Bring the ¼ cup reserved marinade plus remaining tablespoon honey to a boil. Simmer five minutes then let stand at room temperature. The mixture will thicken slightly.

Meanwhile, preheat the grill to medium high. Grill pineapple rings until soft and slightly charred, about 3 minutes on each side.

Grill chicken breasts to desired doneness. Remove from grill and let them rest while slightly toasting the sandwich rolls on the hot grill.

To assemble the sandwiches, place chicken breast on toasted roll. Top with arugula, grilled pineapple, and sesame seeds then drizzle with one tablespoon each of the reserved marinade.

Fresh Raspberry Pie

Serves 8

• 1 pie crust, baked and cooled
• 5 cups fresh raspberries
• ½ to ¾ cup sugar, depending on the sweetness of the berries
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3 heaping tablespoons cornstarch
• ½ cup water

Crush two cups raspberries and combine with sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil.

Meanwhile, combine the cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Slowly add the cornstarch mixture to the boiling raspberry sugar mixture, whisking constantly.

Continue to cook the mixture until it boils and thickens, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

Brush a thin coat of the mixture on the baked pie shell. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.

 Arrange remaining raspberries in the pie shell and pour the crushed berry mixture over the berries in the pie shell. Stir gently to coat all raspberries with the crushed berry glaze. Refrigerate several hours before serving.