To really perfect the blackened technique, you must be prepared for a lot smoke and sometimes a few flames. This is why I choose to prepare my blackened chicken on the grill outside where I don't set off smoke alarms, scare the dogs and have to open all the windows in the house!

To create an authentic blackened crust you need three pieces of equipment, a source of intense heat (such as an outdoor grill), a cast iron skillet or cast iron cooking plate and a very thick oven mitt (you do not want to touch this pan when it is hot!). Don't try to use a regular skillet - you will ruin it for sure.

It can be assumed that the blackening comes from charring the spices on the outside of the meat, and that is part of it, but the char really comes from blackening the butter that is used to adhere the spices to the meat. Burnt spices are not tasty at all.

Since we fired up the grill, we threw on some corn to accompany the chicken. Great way to prepare an entire meal outside when it is just too warm to heat up the kitchen.

Our Blackened Seasoning is hand blended with paprika, garlic, yellow mustard, onion, black pepper, oregano, cumin, cayenne, thyme, bay leaves and celery seed.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons Blackened Seasoning

Instructions:

1. Preheat grill to high heat and place cast iron on the grill to preheat. Pan needs to be very hot.
2. Pound each chicken breast down to about 1/2 inch thickness - they will cook a little faster if they are thinner.
3. In a microwave safe dish, melt butter and add spices.
4. Coat each chicken piece in the butter/spice mixture and place directly into the hot cast iron pan. There is no need to coat the pan with cooking oil. The quick cooking and high heat should prevent sticking if your cast iron is properly seasoned.
5. Cook about 2-3 minutes on each side until outer mixture is charred and chicken is cooked through. There should be a lot of smoke during the cooking process.
6. Be EXTREMELY careful handling the pan on the grill - use very thick oven mitts or hot pads when handling the pan. Allow pan to cool completely before moving it to another surface.