Pesto Chicken

I made a really yummy pesto chicken last week. I took pictures and had planned on putting them up later in the week and then I dropped my laptop. Bye bye all unpublished pictures. Oh well. You'll have to use your imagination for this one.

1 recipe of Dairy Free Nut Free Pesto
Chicken for grilling(I used some pounded boneless skinless chicken breasts and some legs and thighs)

Madinade the chicken in the pesto for several hours or overnight. Perheat grill to medium high heat. Grill to your liking. I grilled the boneless skinless breasts for about 3 minutes per side. The chicken with a bone was about 20 minutes per side.
Really good served with rice.

Spicy Grilled Chicken

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I just began working full time out of the house and haven't had much time to cook or post. I made this grilled chicken recipe last week and we loved it. I didn't use the lime zest as we didn't have one. It had a slight kick to it but not overwhelming that the kids couldn't eat it.

1/3 C. vegetable oil
2 Tbls. lime juice
2 cloves crushed garlic
1 1/2 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves cut into cubes

Mix the oil, lime juice, garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper. Add chicken, and turn to coat. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour, turning occasionally.
Preheat grill for medium-high heat.
Lightly oil the grill grate. Drain and discard marinade. Grill chicken for 6 to 8 minutes each side, or until juices run clear.

Crazy Chicken Marinade

I came across this chicken marinade and it sounded good so I figured I'd give it a try. It was really good. This one would go well in a pita with some homemade hummus. I found that there was not a lot of marinade left to boil so I skipped that step. Otherwise aside from cutting the chicken into cubes I stuck to the original recipe.

4 limes, juiced or 6 Tbls. lime juice
2 Tbls. Olive oil
2 Tbls. Chili powder
1 tsp. Sage, dried
1 tsp. Oregano, dried
1 tsp. Ground Cumin
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into chunks

Whisk the lime juice, olive oil, chili powder, sage, oregano, and cumin together in a small bowl. Marinade the chicken, coating evenly and tossing every 30 minutes for a total of an hour and a half. Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat and lightly oil the grate. Remove the chicken to a platter and allow to come to room temperature. Grill the chicken on medium-high heat basting with the marinade remaining marinade until no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, 8 to 10 minutes per side.

Honey Garlic Grilled Eggplant

I have mentioned before that I am not a huge eggplant fan. However my husband loves it-I'd even go as far as saying that prepared correctly it is his favorite food. I am happy to make it and will from time to time try it. On occasion I even like it. This was one of those times. I made honey garlic grilled eggplant with an eggplant I had sitting in the fridge. The only change I made was I didn't include the chili as I didn't have any.

1 eggplant (2 if using small Italian eggplants)
1 Tbls. Honey
2 Tbls. Olive oil
2 Garlic Cloves, mashed
2 tsp. Balsamic Vinegar
Salt and pepper

Peel stripes of skin off the eggplant to create a zebra like pattern of skin and no-skin. This is not only decorative, but makes the skin easier to bite. Slice eggplant into ½ inch thick circles. Lay out a large sheet of paper towels. Sprinkle eggplant generously with salt on both sides and lay out on paper towels. The eggplant will release a lot of liquid. This will help get rid of bitterness (if any) and make the eggplant more succulent and less watery after it’s cooked. Let sit for 15 minutes, then dry both sides well with paper towels.
In a large bowl, mix honey, olive oil, garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to taste. Dunk both sides of each eggplant slice into this marinade.
Preheat the grill to high. Grab a wad of paper towel with tongs, dip it in oil, and brush it on the grill.
Place the eggplant slices on the grill, cover, and turn down the heat to medium. Grill until marked, about 3 minutes. Turn 90 degrees to make cross-hatch grill marks. Grill until marked, about 3 more minutes.
Brush the slices with remaining marinade, flip and repeat the grilling procedure on the other side. Regulate heat so that the eggplant is browning, but not burning. Remove to a plate, and drizzle with olive oil.

Baked Chicken Cutlets with Lemon and Mustard

I found this recipe for Baked Chicken Cutlets with Lemon and Mustard in the Amit Women Efrat cookbook.

The recipe called for 12 medium chicken breasts however I used 6 breasts and 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs.

12 pieces of boneless, skinless chicken
1 Onion, quartered
3/4 C. Lemon Juice
2 Cloves Garlic
2 Tbls. Dry Mustard
1 1/2 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. White Pepper
1/4 C. Olive Oil

Combine all except chicken in food processor and blend until smooth. Pour sauce over chicken and marinade in the refrigerator for 8 hours or overnight turning once. Preheat over to 400. Place chicken and marinade in pan and bake for 10 minutes uncovered. Turn chicken and baste. Bake an additional 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked. Do not overcook.

If using the thighs I would recommend cooking the chicken a little longer. I cooked the dark meat for 30 minutes total and the white meat for 20 minutes total. We really liked this one and I think it would also taste good on the grill.

Steak Chicken

I found this recipe for chicken marinade a while back. It quickly became a staple and one of our favorite chicken recipes. We thought that the Worcestershire sauce gave the chicken a steak like taste so we have dubbed this recipe Steak Chicken. When making this recipe I use boneless skinless chicken breast that come already pounded from the butcher. I have made a few changes-when don't I? I have used canola in place of the olive oil on occasion. When making this recipe I use red wine vinegar as it was all I had the first time I went to make it. I have also made it both with and without the thyme and it is delicious either way.

I give you Steak Chicken:

1/2 cup Olive Oil
1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
3 Tbls. Full Fat Mayonnaise
1 Tbls. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbls. Lemon Juice
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Fresh Ground Black Pepper
1 Tbls. Poultry Seasoning
1 Tbls. Garlic Powder
1 Tbls. Sweet Paprika
1/2 Tbls. Onion Powder
1 tsp. Thyme (optional)

Put all ingredients in container with tight-fitting lid and shake well until all ingredients are combined not worrying if there are some beads of mayo that don't combine; they will dissolve when you're marinating.

Put the chicken in a container with a tight-fitting lid. Pour over just enough marinade to cover the chicken, then let it marinate in the fridge for 6-8 hours or longer.

Grill over medium to high heat making sure the chicken is fully cooked. When using the pounded chicken breasts it takes just a couple minutes on each side.

Enjoy!!!