Foodie Friday - Spiedies

Designs by Gollum is hosting Foodie Friday. Check out her site for other yummy recipes. This is my third is a series of regional favorites. I would like to share Spiedies.

My husband is a native of Binghamton, New York. Binghamton is in the southern tier of Upstate NY. Their food of fame is the Spedie. I must admit, I never heard of a spiedie until I met my husband. The first time we went back to his hometown, I had my first Spiedie. It is cubed marinated meat, using chicken, pork or lamb, traditionally eaten on a slice of white Italian bread.

For mine, I used 3 chicken breast halves. Cut the meat into 1 inch cubes.

If your local grocery store carries the bottled Spedie marinade, pour the marinade over the meat and let set in a covered bowl in your refrigerator overnight.

After it has marinated, place the meat on skewers and grill until your meat is done, approximately 12-15 minutes, turning once.

The meat is served on a slice of Italian bread folded over. The kind I buy is not very big, so I cut it thick and then slice down the middle, not quite clear through.

Lay your skewer of meat on the bread, pull out the skewer and you have your sandwich. They eat it dry and plain.

(Being a Pennsylvania girl, I don't think you can beat a cheese steak.)

The town has a festival, called The Spiedie Fest, the first weekend in August. There are hot air balloon launches, a carnival, craft booths, and of course spiedies. The spiedie marinate can be purchased online or in some supermarkets. If you can't find it in your area the recipe is as follows:

BINGHAMTON SPIEDIE MARINADE

1 c. oil

1/4 c. apple cider vinegar (not distilled)

1 tbsp. oregano

1/2 tsp. basil

2 tsp. pepper

2 tsp. salt

pinch rosemary, garlic & onion salt

1 tsp. paprika