Lemon (or Lime) Chicken

I made this back in the beginning of our marriage and we loved it.  The recipe originally calls for lemon, but the second time I made it I used lime and we loved it even more.

Ingredients:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup butter/margarine
1/3 cup lemon or lime juice
1/2 cup flour
1 Tbsp. minced garlic (I use the kind that comes in a jar. So much easier)
1 Tbsp. minced onion
1 tsp. salt & pepper
Rosemary
Thyme


Pound the chicken breasts to make them thinner (less cooking time!) and dredge with flour.


Melt butter in baking pan, coat chicken on all sides.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes. Brush with pan drippings once or twice if you'd like.

Meanwhile, make lemon baste - mix lemon juice, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, thyme and rosemary. Brush chicken with part of baste and continue baking for about 10-15 more minutes then brush the rest on and bake for 10-15 minutes longer or until done.


*I usually put the lemon/lime baste on before the first 20 minutes are up, and it never takes as long to cook as this recipe says.

Jerk Chicken

This was really good.  The jerk seasoning gave it just the right kick without being too spicy, and the chicken broth kept the chicken nice and tender.

Ingredients:

3 T jerk seasoning
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs (I used legs because I had them)
1 large green or red bell pepper, chopped (I used half red, half green)
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup ketchup
Cooked rice

Rub jerk seasoning generously over chicken.  Place bell pepper and onion in the bottom of crock pot and put chicken on top.  In a small bowl, combine chicken broth and ketchup and pour over chicken.  Cover and cook on low 4-6 hours.  Serve over rice.

Island Chicken

We had a little BYOM bbq with the fam tonight and this is what Derek and I had.  It was really good.  Just the right kick from the jerk seasoning and just the right sweetness from the pineapple.

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts (obviously Derek and I can't eat 2 lbs on our own, so we scaled this down a bit)
2-4 T olive oil
2 tsp Jamaican or Caribbean jerk seasoning
1 20 oz can pineapple slices, juices reserved
1 T brown sugar

Preheat grill.  Rinse chicken under cold water, pat dry with paper towels.  Use a pastry brush to brush with olive oil and sprinkle with jerk seasoning (don't put too much on, it's spicy).  Set aside.

Drain pineapple slices and reserve the juice.  In a small saucepan, bring juice and brown sugar to a boil over high heat.  Reduce liquid by 1/2, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Place chicken on grill and cook 4-5 minutes per side or until cooked through.  Remove to platter and tent with foil to keep warm and let rest.

Place pineapple slices on grill and cook 1-2 minutes per side or until grill marks appear and pineapple is heated through.  Serve chicken with pineapple slices and warm sauce.

*Chicken and pineapple can be broiled instead of grilled.

Naan

I made chicken tikka masala again the other day and this time remembered to give myself enough time to make the naan to go with it.  It's not quite as thin as you'll find in Indian restaurants, but it was my first time and I thought it was still pretty good.  I halved the recipe and it made 4 big pieces.

By the way, the garam masala spice that you need for the chicken is at Wal-mart and I think it was about $3.50 for a jar.  Not as bad as I was thinking.

Ingredients:

4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
4 T warm milk
2/3 cup plain yogurt
2/3 cup milk
1 beaten egg (I tried to pour half of the egg in sinced I halved the recipe and it worked ok)
2 T butter or margarine (plus 6 T for brushing on top)
2 T yeast
2 T sugar

Mix together yeast, warm milk and sugar.  Leave in a warm place until mixture becomes frothy.

In a medium bowl (I used my KitchenAid) mix together flour, baking powder and salt.  Make a depression in the center and pour in yeast mixture.  Add milk, yogurt, egg and butter/margarine.  Mix until you get a smooth ball of dough.

Knead the dough for 10-15 minutes.  Oil a medium bowl and place dough inside, turning once to coat.  Cover the bowl with a towel and let rise in warm place until double (about 2 hours).

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Flour your surface, rolling pin, and hands.  Divide the dough into eight pieces.  Take one piece at a time and shape into a 6-8" oval.  Pull ends to shape dough into oval and stretch thin.  Place onto greased cookie sheet.

Brush dough with melted margarine and sprinkle lightly with salt (I used garlic pepper).  Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Chicken Tikka Masala

If you like Indian food, you will love this!  Derek requested that we have it once a week, it was so good.  The recipe is from my mother-in-law; she also gave me some of the spices that I didn't have.  Like garam masala.  I can't remember where she said she found it, but I guess it was kind of pricey.  When I find out, I'll let you know. I was also going to make naan, but I didn't give myself enough time, so I guess when I make this again next week I'll do the naan too.

This recipe also makes a lot, so I halved it for the 2 of us and we have leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless skinless chicken, cut in 1" pieces

Marinade:
1 cup plain yogurt
2 T lemon juice
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp ground chili powder
2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 piece minced ginger - 1" long (I used ginger in a spice jar and just estimated how much)

Sauce:
2 T butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeño, minced and seeded (I used diced jalapeños in a jar, just estimated how much)
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp salt
8 oz tomato sauce
16 oz coconut milk
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Mix marinade ingredients in a large ziplock bag and squish to mix well.  Add in chicken pieces, mix well and put in the fridge several hours or overnight.

When ready to cook, heat a large saucepan or frying pan and melt butter over medium heat.  Add the chicken and marinade mixture.  Cook until almost done and add in the garlic and jalapeño; cook one minute.

Stir in coriander, cumin, paprika, garam masala and salt.  Stir in tomato sauce and simmer 15 minutes.

Stir in coconut milk, simmer to thicken about 5 minutes.  Stir in cilantro.  Serve with basmati rice and naan. (We just have jasmine rice and it was good.)

Spicy Black Bean Salad

A couple Saturdays ago at the Gardener's Market here in Logan, one of the booths was giving out samples of this along with the recipe.  I really liked it, so I grabbed a recipe card.  I've been collecting the ingredients that I didn't have since then and we had it for dinner tonight.  It's great for a vegetarian meal, but might be better as a side.  I think Derek was wondering where the meat was tonight.  It makes a lot though, so you might want to halve it!

Ingredients:

Salad:
2 (15 oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups frozen corn, thawed (I used 1 can of corn and it was just fine)
1 cup celery, chopped
3/4 cup green onion, chopped
2 cups tomatoes, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Brown rice or wheat berries cooked and cooled (about 6 cups)

Dressing:
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tsp Tabasco sauce
1/2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Combine black beans, corn, celery, green onion, tomatoes, green pepper and cilantro in a large bowl.  Whisk together ingredients for the dressing and pour over bean mixture.  Add pre-cooked and cooled rice.  Serve well chilled.  Salad can be eaten plain or piled on a piece of lettuce to create a delicious wrap.  (Derek and I also thought it would be good on a tortilla or with tortilla chips.)

Spinach Skillet Bake

I was trying to think of something to make with spinach and ground beef, so I typed those two ingredients into allrecipes.com and this is one that came up.  I put a ton of basil in it, and it was really good!

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1 10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach
1 4 oz can mushroom stems & pieces, drained
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups milk
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack or mozzarella cheese

In an ovenproof skillet, cook ground beef and onion over medium heat until no longer pink; drain.  Add the spinach, mushrooms, garlic salt and basil.  Cover and cook for 5 minutes.  In a saucepan, melt butter.  Stir in the flour and salt until smooth.  Gradually add milk.  Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.  Pour over meat mixture; mix well.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until heated through.