Grilled Chicken Hearts on Rosemary Skewers

FOOD AS MEDICINE:

We’ll be the first to admit that eating organs can be intimidating and come with a little bit of “yuck” factor, but it is a recommendation I come back to time and time again when talking about eating snout-to-tail, supporting optimal health and repleting nutrient deficiencies! Eating organs is one of the best ways to pack some serious nutritional punch into your diet, whether follow paleo, keto or keto carnivore. When purchasing organs, ensure quality of source is pasture-raised and ideally from a local farm where you can inquire on farming practices and be assured the animal was fed its natural diet, did not deal with prophylactic antibiotics, hormones or any of the other BS that comes with CAFO (concentrated animal feeding operation) farming practices! Chicken hearts are rich in folate, iron, zinc, selenium as well as B vitamins and don’t have the same metallic taste as liver that can sometimes be a bit off-putting, especially when first incorporating organs into the diet. The addition of the rosemary skewer helps to mask any organ-y taste while being a fun presentation as a nutrient-dense appetizer. Of course, if you want to keep it simple you can use regular bamboo skewers. I used a lemon-garlic aioli in this recipe but you are welcome to change up your sauce game–these would also be great with pesto or chimichurri!

INGREDIENTS:

For the skewers:

10-12 sprigs rosemary (need to be at least 6 inches long and pretty hearty!)

1 lb pasture-raised chicken hearts, trimmed

1 tsp sea salt & 1/2 tsp black pepper (or Redmond Real Salt Lemon Pepper Blend)

avocado oil, for grilling

For the aioli:

1/4 cup avocado oil mayo (like Primal kitchen)

Juice and zest of 1/2 lemon

1 clove garlic, minced

pinch sea salt

DIRECTIONS:

Carefully remove most of the needles from the rosemary, leaving a few every couple of inches and on the end (you can reserve for another dish if desired!) Submerge the rosemary sprigs in water for 10-15 minutes to prevent burning when on the grill. Pat the chicken hearts try and season generously on both sides with salt and pepper. If desired to ramp up the flavor, try Redmond Real Salt Lemon Pepper Blend. Thread the chicken hearts onto the skewers, about 3-4 each. Drizzle with about 1 Tbsp avocado oil. Light a grill or heat a cast iron skillet to medium high heat. Grill, rotating often to ensure even cooking, about 10 minutes until browned on all sides. Transfer to a plate and allow to rest while you whip up the aioli. For the aioli, mix together the mayo, lemon juice, lemon zest and garlic and add a pinch of sea salt to taste. Serve the skewers with the aioli.