Recipe #30 - Lemon Tuscan Chicken

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I think I'm kinda obsessed with lemony recipes.  I'm just subconsciously drawn towards them and end up adding more fresh squeezed lemon then the recipe calls for. I think it's secretly driving my father crazy.

My friend Monica was sweet enough to send me a few of her favorite recipes and this is one of them. When my girlfriends and I get together, Monica always spoils us with her exemplary culinary skills. It's def one of our favorite parts of getting together.

I bought the chicken at the Whole Foods Market. It was extremely frustrating trying to pick one out. There were three different types of "organic" chickens to choose from. The only real difference I could see was the price. I must have stared at the three of them for a good 30 minutes. I ended up picking the middle priced one, still organic and free range.

I asked the butcher, to prepare the chicken as the recipe listed as a suggestion: Stand the chicken upright and cut out the backbone with a large kitchen knife. Spread the chicken open on a board with the skin side down. Cut around and remove the breast-bone with a boning knife.

Sprinkle the chicken with 1 teaspoon of salt on each side. Combine the olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, rosemary, and 1 teaspoon pepper in a ceramic (or glass) dish just large enough to hold the flattened chicken. Add the chicken, and turn to coat each side of the chicken. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight, turning once or twice.

When ready to grill, turn a gas grill on low heat. Place chicken skin side up and weight it down with the dish you used for marinating. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until the underside is golden brown. Turn the chicken skin side down, weight again with the dish, and cook for another 15-20 minutes, until the skin is golden brown and the chicken is cooked through. Place the lemon halves on the cool side of the grill, cut side down, for the last 10 minutes of cooking. Remove the chicken to a plate or cutting board, cover with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with salt, and serve with the grilled lemon halves.

The chicken took longer to cook then the original recipe stated. I felt like it was because the grill wasn't hot enough. So I ended up having to turn up the heat to medium and leaving them on the grill a bit longer to finish cooking.

It turned out so well! Extremely lemony! I served it with garlic/sour cream mashed potatoes and a mixed green salad with carrots. The grilled lemon is supposed to be for show, but I ended up squeezing some on top about half way through the meal (can't get enough!).

Time: ~1 1/2 hours collectively
Rating: 6.5
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
1 (3 1/2-pound) chicken, flattened
Kosher salt
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
Freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, halved

Recipe #18 - French-Style Tuna Melt

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This recipe I got from the Rachel Ray website. I watched the video online before I went grocery shopping. I liked the way she grated the garlic into mush instead of mincing it with a knife. It was much easier and, like she said, it saves you from having to bite into chunks of garlic. I like the bursts of garlic in some recipes, but I could see where it could be distracting in this one in particular.

First, I pre-heated the oven to 375F. Then combined the onion and lemon juice in a mixing bowl. 

In the same bowl, I stirred together the tomato paste, garlic, Herbes de Provence, pepper, and EVOO. Then I added the tuna, olives, capers, parsley and mixed to combine and broke up the tuna slightly. 

Side note: Herbes de Provence is a new spice I just learned about. It contains a bunch of different spices including: savory, fennel, basil, thyme flowers and other herbs. Supremely yummy. 

Then I divided the tuna mixture between the two slices of bread, transferred to a baking sheet and topped with cheese. Then I toasted them in the oven for about 10 minutes (or until the cheese is melted and the tuna heated through).

I made this one on the first Friday of lent this year. I absolutely loved it. It was light and fresh, great for a midday meal. This was the first time I've use or even had brioche bread. Bread very rarely surprises me, but I was taken aback by the sweetness of this one. It reminded me a lot of the Hawaiian bread that I usually serve with spinach dip. I much prefer the taste of brioche now. 

Time: 45 mins
Rating: 7
Ingredients:
1/2 red small onion, finely chopped
Juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 garlic clove, finely grated or minced
1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence
Freshly ground pepper
1.4 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 can line-caught or Italian tuna (6 ounces)
1/2 cup Nicoise (oil-cured) or Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped 
2 tablespoons capers
1/4 cup parsley leaves, finely chopped, a small handful
2 slices thick-cut brioche bread
1/2 cup Gruyere cheeses, shredded

Recipe #17 - Red Snapper with Raw Puttanesca Salsa

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The original name of this recipe was Halibut with Raw Puttanesca Salsa, but halibut is not in season at the moment. I had to choose between red snapper and flounder. The red snapper was slightly more pricey ($22/pound) but I wanted to try it.

Preheat grill pan or outdoor grill to medium-high to high heat.

The recipe said to make the salsa while this fish cooks, but it took a little longer than I expected and the fish cooks pretty quickly. So my recommendation is to make the salsa first.

In the bottom of a medium bowl, combine anchovy paste, grated garlic, red pepper flakes, zest and lemon juice and whisk in 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil. Add capers, olives, parsley and tomatoes. Toss and season with black pepper, to taste.

Raw Puttanesca Salsa

Coat the fish in extra-virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook fish for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side until firm, cooked through and evenly marked. Char bread on the grill 1 minute on each side.

Red Snapper

Serve bread topped with lots of salsa and fish. I also paired it with a Knoxville wine from Blue Slip Winery called Pot Blanc. It was my favorite wine from the Silent Art Auction & Wine Tasting event I hosted for St. Jude back in September.

Sides: Pot Blanc Wine and Charred Rye Bread

The idea behind the wine was instead of throwing out all the extra different white grapes at the end of the season, the lady threw them all in to a pot and made this spectacular semi-dry wine with the perfect amount of sweetness that complemented the red snapper flawlessly.

Wa-la!

I also made the mashed red potatoes from Recipe #15 as a side.

Time: ~1 hour

Rating: 8

Ingredients:

4 (6-ounce) halibut fillets

Extra-virgin olive oil, for liberal drizzling plus 1/4 cup

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 (1-inch) thick slices crusty bread

1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste

2 to 3 cloves garlic, grated

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 lemon, zested and juiced

3 tablespoons capers, run your knife through them

1/2 cup pitted black olives, chopped

1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved or cherry tomatoes, quartered

Recipe #14 - Salmon Cakes with Lemon-Caper Yogurt Sauce

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Seattle is known for their fresh salmon. When I visited Seattle in October for a website design class (and to visit Forks), I went to Pike's Place Market, which is known for their fresh fish. I bought an entire Alaskan King Salmon, had it cut up into half pound filets, and had it FedExed here.  So, every month or so, we take some outa the freezer and throw it on the grill. Fortunately, we still had some left for this recipe. 

There are three parts to this recipe: the salmon, the patties, and the sauce. 

Salmon: I had to cut the skin off this salmon, as the recipe recommends. Put a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Drizzle the salmon with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Grill until the flesh is cooked through and flakes easily with a fork, about 6 to 8 minutes on each side. Set aside to cool for 20 minutes.

Patties: Using a fork, flake the salmon into 1/2-inch pieces and put into a medium bowl. Add the egg, chives, 1/2 of the crushed crackers, the corn, mustard, mayonnaise, capers, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Mix gently until just combined. Form the mixture into 2 1/2-inch diameter patties, about 3/4 inches thick. (If the mixture is too dry to form into patties, add extra mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon at a time,) Carefully coat the patties in the remaining crushed crackers and refrigerate for 1 hour. In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil and butter over medium heat. Add the patties and cook until golden and crispy, about 7 to 8 minutes each side. Drain on paper towels.

Sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt, capers, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Arrange the salmon cakes on a platter and serve alongside the sauce.

I served Recipe #13 - Mediterranean Salad and Pita as the side. They complimented each other well, with the citrusy base. The yogurt sauce was de-licious. I could have eaten it by itself. Actually, I did. I even dipped the pita bread in it after everything else was gone. It had a very bold, piquant flavor that took me by surprise. The lemon zest def made it's presence known.

It's weird putting together these recipes not knowing what to expect at the end. It's like a gamble every time. I could use the same ingredients in different proportions and have a completely different taste. I like it.

Time: Accumatively - 1 hour 30 mins.
Rating: 9
Ingredients:
Salmon:
1 pound skinless salmon fillet 
Olive oil, for drizzling
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Patties:
1 large egg, beaten
1/3 cup (1/2 counce) chopped fresh chives
26 saltine crackers, crushed, divided
1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed 
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 
3 tablespoons mayonnaise, plus more, as needed
1 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

Sauce:
1/2 cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
1 1/2 tablespoons capers, rinsed, drained and chopped
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Recipe #6 & #7 - Creamy Basil Parmesan Chicken & Steamed Broccoli

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This is a box recipe from Macaroni Grill found at any grocery market. It sold me on the simplicity of the recipe after the last few. I added organic, non-cage feed, steroid free chicken. I set aside the provided noodles and added my own organic ones. I also added fresh parsley and tomatoes. And, of course, a side of fresh steamed broccoli.

I began by boiling the water for the noodle (dash or two of salt and a little olive oil to prevent the sticking). While that was warming up, I melted the butter in the frying pan and added the chicken (cut into 1/4 in chunks). Cooked until all sides were white.

Next added the milk and seasoning. Brought to boil, then simmered on medium heat for 6 mins. Then began to chop the tomatoes and parsley.

About this time, start steaming the broccoli. It should be finished the same time you are ready to serve. I added lemon juice, salt and pepper while it was steaming.

After the 6 or so mins. I added the tomatoes, parsley, and creamy sauce provided. Let simmer for another 6 mins and drain the noodles.

Add noodles to chicken and shiz. Mix and top with grated parmesan cheese. Add the broccoli with light butter and addition salt and pepper to taste. 

This one is extremely simple. By substituting a couple of the boxed ingredients and adding your own, you can make it more healthy than the original Macaroni Grill recipe.

Rating: 7

Time: 35 mins

Serves: 4

Adjusted Ingredients:

1 lb uncooked boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup milk

3 cups linguini pasta (substituted)

1 package provided seasoning

1 package provided creamy sauce

1 package provided sun dried tomatoes (can be substituted for organic sun dried tomatoes)

2 fresh roman tomatoes 

1/3 cup fresh parsley 

Salt and pepper
Grated parmesan cheese

Broccoli recipe:
3 heads organic broccoli
Lemon juice
Salt and pepper
Butter