SKAGGS

If, like us, you’re addicted to Hell’s Kitchen, Iron Chef, Top Chef, and you watch the Food Network religiously (we understand), then we’ve got a treat in store: a grilled chicken recipe by SKAGGS’ very own Joe Guzman. We’ve had so many requests for this during cookout season that we decided it deserves its very own one-off feature. Enjoy!

Serves a bunch of fairly hungry folks, and just a few VERY hungry folks.

For Brine:
3 Cups Water
2 Cups Salt
1/4 Cup Sugar or Spenda
2 Tablespoons Whole Black Peppercorns
4 Lemons halved
1 Head of Garlic Cut in Half
2 Standard Refrigerator Trays of Ice

For Marinade/Sauce:
1 Can Chipotle Chiles in Adobo
1 Bunch of Cilantro or Culantro Roughly Chopped
4 Cloves Garlic
1 Medium Onion Roughly Chopped
2 Tablespoons Ground Cumin
1 Tablespoon Chipotle Chili Powder
1 Packet of Goya Sazón con Achiote
Juice of 2 Limes
Salt + Pepper to taste

3 pounds skinless chicken breasts or thighs.

For Brine:
Combine all ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil until salt and sugar are melted. Add Ice then cool in refrigerator.

For Marinade/Sauce:
Combine Chipotles, Onion, Cumin, Chili Powder, and Sazón in a Food Processor or Blender and process until smooth.
Then add the remaining ingredients until a paste forms. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside roughly 1/4 of the mixture to use for dipping/basting.

For Chicken:
Once Brine is cooled add chicken and allow to soak for at least a half hour and at most an hour and a half. Remove the chicken from the brine and rinse with cool water. Add the chicken to a Zip-top bag and cover with the Marinade. Place the chicken in the fridge and allow to marinate overnight.

Set up your grill for medium high heat and indirect cooking (for a charcoal grill, place all of the coals on one side of the grill, for a gas grill, light the flame on the side of the grill opposite the chicken). Cover the grill and grill the chicken until cooked through (internal temperature of 180). Then remove from grill and baste with reserved sauce, or set aside for dipping.

Serve with a cold Brooklyn Lager and enjoy.

Okay, confession time! We’re proud of our workplace, and we’re not shy about showing off. The SKAGGS New York H.Q. has joined the venerable ranks of the world’s grooviest agencies on This Ain’t No Disco, a collection of the world’s smartest, brightest and sexiest agency interiors. From Brazil to London, Disco provides a glimpse into an amazingly diverse array of environments on the creative cutting edge.

We’re eager to hear your comments and suggestions, though we’re hard-pressed to imagine anything that could improve on what we’ve got goin’ on already. (Jacuzzi? Pool table? Perpetually-stocked cocktail bar?)

Satisfy your curiosity and cast your vote at the Disco!

To celebrate springtime (and a certain someone’s birthday) the SKAGGS HQ in New York was host to an evening of celebrating, socializing and… painting!

That’s right: among all the gifts, dancing and champagne (oh, the champagne…) we couldn’t help but get creative with the windows again, and this time it was a collaboration. Check out photos of the evening and the new look for the building!

Hailing all the way from Edinburgh, Scotland (they’re taking over!) and bringing the rainy fantastic weather with her, we’re pleased to introduce Jeni Rodger — our new SKAGGS intern. Welcome Jeni! We’re looking forward to having Jeni’s creative input as well as somebody new to slave rule over the comping desk. Keep an eye out for Jeni’s blog posts over the next few weeks, this is her first time in NYC so we’re pretty sure she’ll have a lot to blog about.

Dear Friends
Stevie passed away on Friday April 4th at approximately 4pm from cardiomyopathy, (heart muscle disease). For the last few days of his life he was uncharacteristically quiet and lethargic.We took him to the vets, where his condition went undetected.At that point there’s not really anything anyone could have done for him, as it’s something that when fatal occurs quite quickly. Lots of people loved Stevie and his musings so we thought this was the best way to let you know. We miss him like mad and we’ll continue to miss him, from his Mexican bean jumping and freaky walking on 2 legs, to his crocodile death rolls.
Here’s to Stevie, the little man dog character, full of love, life (and poop).