Grilled Herb-Coated Chicken Breasts

Another excellent grilling recipe. The lemon buttermilk herb marinade tasted as good as it sounds. Also, I was able to put together the marinade a day ahead of time so all we had to do when I got home from work was throw it on the grill. I love those nights! We will definitely make this again.

Grilled Herb-Coated Chicken Breasts


Serve these juicy chicken breasts sliced over mixed greens, fanned out next to a grilled vegetable salad, or cold for lunch.


3/4 cup Herbed Lemon-Buttermilk Dressing
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives
1 teaspoon canola oil
1 teaspoon honey
Cooking spray

Combine Herbed Lemon-Buttermilk Dressing and chicken in a large zip-top plastic bag. Seal and marinate in refrigerator 1 hour or up to 8 hours, turning bag occasionally.

Prepare grill to medium-high heat.

Remove chicken from marinade, and discard marinade. Sprinkle the chicken evenly with salt and black pepper. Combine fresh parsley, chives, canola oil, and honey, stirring well. Spoon herb mixture evenly over tops of chicken breast halves. Place chicken, herb side down, on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 8 minutes each side or until done.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 chicken breast half)

CALORIES 222 (15% from fat); FAT 3.8g (sat 0.7g,mono 1.4g,poly 1.2g); IRON 1.5mg; CHOLESTEROL 99mg; CALCIUM 44mg; CARBOHYDRATE 4.6g; SODIUM 540mg; PROTEIN 40g; FIBER 0.3g

Cooking Light, AUGUST 2005

Herbed Lemon-Buttermilk Dressing


This all-purpose dressing is similar to ranch dressing. It's great as a marinade on chicken, dressing on salad, and dip with cut-up vegetables.

This recipe goes with Grilled Herb-Coated Chicken Breasts

3/4 cup fat-free buttermilk
1/3 cup low-fat mayonnaise
1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh chives
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 garlic clove, minced

Combine all ingredients, stirring with a whisk until dressing is well blended.

Note: Refrigerate dressing in an airtight container for up to five days; stir well before using.

Yield: 1 1/4 cups (serving size: 1 tablespoon)

CALORIES 12 (23% from fat); FAT 0.3g (sat 0.0g,mono 0.1g,poly 0.2g); IRON 0.0mg; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 13mg; CARBOHYDRATE 1.9g; SODIUM 89mg; PROTEIN 0.4g; FIBER 0.1g

Cooking Light, AUGUST 2005

Plan #3 - You Can Flank Me Later

Plan #3 is dedicated to Costco's Flank Steak. If you know how to prepare it, this underrecognized cut can be a great source of red meat for those on a budget. It's not the tenderest cut out there and so can usually get an excellent price per pound. The trick with Flank Steak is to cook with strong, bold flavours, and to slice thinly against the grain into small pieces when serving, otherwise it can seem a little tough. And try as we might not to be food wasters, Don and I have found that we just do not enjoy reheated steaks of any kind. So pay attention to how many people you are serving, portion off the meat and only prepare what you plan to eat that night. I've found from experience, that Costco's Flank Steak packages usually come with two very large cuts per package. One large costco cut can typically feed up to six people. For just Don and I, I cut each steak in half and freeze the four sections separately. Each half a steak contains more than enough meat for a dinner for two in our household.

Below are a couple of recipes for flank steak. As I mentioned above, start by dividing the meat into the right proportions for your family size. The Soy-Balsamic Marinade can be prepared ahead of time and frozen with the meat in an airtight ziploc bag, then grilled or broiled for an easy weaknight meal. Serve the marinated grilled steak as is with some roasted potatoes and veggies, or try it with the Chimichurri Sauce shown below for some additional flavor. The Curried Beef and Onions is an easy weeknight meal which makes use of lots of typical pantry items and spices. If you decide to make ahead and freeze, only complete the directions up through the tomatoes. Then on the night you are ready to serve, cook up some fresh rice and stir in the yogurt right before serving. Be warned though that this recipe is not one for those who cannot handle the heat. It's a spicy one but very tasty!

Soy-Balsamic Marinade


Notes: This marinade imparts a rich mahogany sheen and spicy bite to red meats and salmon. The recipe can be multiplied for larger batches; cover and chill up to 2 weeks.

This recipe goes with Grilled Marinated Meat

1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon Asian (toasted) sesame oil
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon hot chili flakes
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced

In a small container, mix soy sauce, vinegar, honey, sesame oil, chili flakes, and garlic.

Yield: Makes about 1/2 cup, enough for 1 to 1 1/2 pounds meat, poultry, or fish

Sunset, JULY 2002

Garlic-Rubbed Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce


Chimichurri is a traditional tangy herb sauce from Argentina that's usually paired with grilled meat. Set aside half of the flank steak for Steak Panzanella another night.


1/2 cup packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 large garlic clove
2 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil
1 tablespoon water
4 servings Garlic-Rubbed Flank Steak

1. Place first 7 ingredients in a food processor; process until finely minced. With processor on, slowly pour oil and 1 tablespoon water through food chute; process until well blended. Serve sauce with Garlic-Rubbed Flank Steak.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 3 ounces steak and 1 tablespoon sauce)

CALORIES 221 (50% from fat); FAT 12.4g (sat 3.2g,mono 7.1g,poly 1g); IRON 2.1mg; CHOLESTEROL 37mg; CALCIUM 33mg; CARBOHYDRATE 2.2g; SODIUM 349mg; PROTEIN 24.2g; FIBER 0.5g

Cooking Light, AUGUST 2008


Curried Beef and Onions




1 (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
2 cups vertically sliced onion
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt
2 cups hot cooked basmati rice
Cilantro sprigs (optional)

Cut steak diagonally across grain into thin slices.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add steak, and sauté 3 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add ginger, garlic, and jalapeño; sauté 1 minute. Add onion, curry, and coriander; sauté 4 minutes. Add tomatoes, and simmer 1 minute or until liquid almost evaporates.

Remove from heat, and cool slightly. Stir in yogurt. Serve over rice. Garnish with cilantro, if desired.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup steak mixture and 1/2 cup rice)

CALORIES 408 (30% from fat); FAT 13.6g (sat 5.2g,mono 5.1g,poly 1.7g); IRON 5.1mg; CHOLESTEROL 56mg; CALCIUM 116mg; CARBOHYDRATE 43.2g; SODIUM 418mg; PROTEIN 27.5g; FIBER 3g

Cooking Light, JANUARY 2003

I present: Awesome Sauce

I made this BBQ sauce the other night, and yes, it is awesome. This is my variation of a sauce recipe found on recipezaar.com, as I can best remember it (I adjusted while cooking to get the flavor just right):

4 cups tomato sauce
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
1/4c onions (finely chopped)
1/4c + 1T soy sauce
1/4c + 1T brown sugar
1/2t mustard powder
1t cayenne
2t morrocan spice mix (Ras al Hanout listed below. You could also do 1/2t each cinnamon, corriander, cumin and black pepper and it would probably come close)
1T oregano
2 Bay leaves

Bring all to a boil and then simmer for 30 min. Done.


Ras al Hanout from Gourmet, 1998

* 1 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
* 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
* 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
* 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Wisk together and keep in an airtight jar. Great for a spice rub, or for pumping any dish that requires cumin flavor.

Amazing Easy Turkey Breast (for any time of year)

At Christmas Eve dinner, while discussing the next day and meal plans, we all realize that we are serving ham, and several of our guest are Jewish and possibly Kosher as well. !!! So I volunteered to make a couple of turkey breasts (not a full turkey as it would take too long to cook.) I bought the breast that night, and in the morning found this recipe and whipped it up. All I can say is AMAZING!

This turkey was so good and easy. I left it to marinate on the kitchen counter for an hour and that was enough to get all the flavors into the middle of the turkey breast. (For those who like to marinate in the fridge, I'd say let it marinate longer, and definitely let your breast come to room temp before cooking. This should be law with all roasting, but especially poultry....no one wants a dry bird.)

Also, I made the sauce, but found the bird so flavorful that it didn't really need it. Maybe a touch on the side, but if you slather in sauce, you lose all the wonderful turkey flavor. :) Enjoy!

Vera's Roast Turkey Breast With Garlic and Thyme

Recipe #258098 (from recipezaar.com)

I received this recipe from my co-worker and we really enjoyed it this Thanksgiving. Her copy looks like it may have come from Quick Cuisine - Winter 2001.

by karen in tbay

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4

servings

1¼ hours 15 min prep

Change to: servings US Metric

2	lbs boneless turkey breast
3	tablespoons olive oil
3	garlic cloves, finely chopped
2	tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1	tablespoon Dijon mustard
1	teaspoon grated lemon peel
1	teaspoon salt
1/2	teaspoon pepper
2	tablespoons lemon juice
1	tablespoon butter

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• Turkey Breasts Main Dish
  
  
  

1. Trim turkey breast of any fat.
2. In a small bowl combine olive oil with garlic, thyme, mustard, lemon peel, salt and pepper. Rub into turkey breast.
3. Marinate in the refrigerator from 1 hour to 12 hours.
4. Arrange turkey breast, skin side up, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or tinfoil.
5. Roast at 350F for 50 to 60 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest portion of the breast reaches 165F and the juices run clear.
6. Remove turkey from oven to a carving board and tent with tinfoil. Place juices in a medium skillet (could drain off some of the fat) add lemon juice (perhaps use less if some of the fat drained off) and boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter.
7. Carve turkey into thin slices across the breast. Drizzle with sauce and garnish with fresh thyme.
   

Overdue Recipes

I know I haven't posted in a while. In fact, I keep collecting recipes that I say I'm going to post and the list gets longer and longer....and now I can't even remember a bunch of the ones I was going to post. So here's two of them, and if there are any more recipes you want posted, let me know, and I'll get them up.

This first recipe is from Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello. I tried it with Chicken instead of fish, and though it was good, I would recommend either marinating the chicken before hand in the sauce, or, at the very least, make sure its well seasoned before assembling the bags. Honestly, I think this goes best with fish, maybe scallops would be good. :) Also, very quick recipe. The longest prep time you'll have is making the sauce.

"Lunchbag" Swordfish with Mediterranean Tomato Sauce and Linguini Recipe courtesy Michael Chiarello See this recipe on air Tuesday Dec. 18 at 11:30 AM ET/PT. Show: Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello Episode: My First Dinner Party

The recipe makes more tomato sauce than you will need for the fish. It is delicious as a pasta sauce, a topping for bruschetta, or a sauce or side dish for grilled poultry or meat. For the best flavor, use garden fresh tomatoes. 3 cups vine-ripened plum (Roma) tomatoes, cored and cut into thin wedges Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano leaves, or 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 1 tablespoon minced garlic 1/4 cup (1 small) minced red onion 2 tablespoons rinsed, drained, and roughly chopped capers 1/2 cup roasted red or yellow bell peppers, coarsely chopped 12 pitted and sliced Greek olives (such as kalamata or Gaeta olives) 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 2 tablespoons pepper olive oil or 1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 pound dried linguini 4 brown paper lunch bags or 4 large sheets parchment paper or waxed paper (see note) 4 (6-ounce) swordfish steaks Put tomatoes in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add oregano, parsley, garlic, onion, capers, peppers, olives, lemon juice, pepper oil, and 4 tablespoons of the extra-virgin olive oil. Stir gently just to mix and set aside at least 1 hour. Adjust seasonings, if desired. Mixture will become more liquid and sauce-like over time. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook linguini until al dente. Drain and toss with remaining 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil. Reserve. To cook the fish: (See Chef's Note below if using waxed paper.) Place a small square of parchment or waxed paper at the bottom of each paper bag. Place small pile of linguini in each of the bags. Top with a spoonful of tomato sauce, making sure to moisten the linguini with the juices. Lay a piece of fish on top and arrange with another spoonful of sauce. Moisten again with juices from the sauce and season with salt and pepper. Fold over the tops of the bags, place them on a baking sheet, and bake for 15 minutes. To serve, transfer the bags to 4 dinner plates and let each diner cut open the package to enjoy the aromas. *Chef's Note: To make waxed or parchment paper "bags": Fold 4 large sheets of paper in half. With the fold as the spine, cut a large semicircle (about an 8-inch radius) with one end more pointed than the other (opened out, the shape resembles a heart). Open the circles. Layers the ingredients in the center of the paper as instructed above. Leave a 1-inch border of paper clear. Close the parchment over the fish. Starting at the flatter end of the semicircle, firmly fold the edge inwards. Fold entire edge into a series of tight, flat, overlapping pleats to enclose the fish. Fold the last pleat several times and tuck it under the bag. Put the bags on a baking sheet and bake in the oven 12 to 15 minutes. The bags will puff up and brown. Waxed paper is a nice touch to make the cooking bags because you can see the colors of the sauce through it.

Little fry Stir Fry

I have known for awhile that Matt does not like Stir Frys. At all. Generally the vegetables are too crunchy, the rice is too mushy, and the meat is over cooked (don't even mention tofu). So, with some trepidation, I added a stir-fry to this week's meal plan and he wasn't exactly thrilled. Excecpt that garlic was in the title, and that was pretty cool.

I almost made soup tonight as he had a bad day, but NO! I stuck to my guns and made an amazing dinner, I must say. With a glass of Claiborne and Churchill wine at my side, this was incredibly satisfying. What was even more thrilling was that Matt loved the dish! He said to add it to the "regular" menu, and I can definitely do that. We have discovered a new family favorite!

Sorry for the lack of pictures! None on their site and I can't find my camera.

Garlic Chicken Stir-Fry

Ingredients

12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 cup water
3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons dry white wine
1 tablespoon cornstartch
2 tablespoons cooking oil (I used Canola)
10 green onions, bias-sliced into 1-inch pieces
1 cup thinly sliced fresh mushrooms
12 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped, or 2 tablespoons bottled minced garlic
1/2 cup sliced water chestnuts
hot cooked white rice (optional)

Directions

1. Cut chicken into 1/2-inch pieces. Place chicken in a resealable plastic bag set in a shallow dish. For marinade, stir together water, soy sauce, and vinegar. Pour over chicken; seal bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Drain chicken, reserving the marinade. Stir cornstarch into reserved marinade; set aside.

2. Pour oil into a wok or large skillet. (If necessary, add more oil during cooking.) Heat over medium-high heat. Add green onion, mushrooms, and garlic to wok; cook and stir for 1 to 2 minutes or until tender. Remove vegetables from wok.

3. Add chicken to wok; cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes or until no longer pink. Push chicken from center of wok. Stir marinade mixture; add to center of wok. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Return cooked vegetables to wok. Add water chestnuts. Cook and stir about 1 minute more or until heated through. Serve with rice. Makes 4 servings.

Garlic Chicken Stir-Fry with Cashews: Prepare as above, except stir 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper into marinade. Stir in 1 cup cashews with water chestnuts.

Nutrition Facts per 1 cup: 511 cal., 25 g total fat (5 g sat. fat), 49 mg chol., 495 mg sodium, 44 g carbo., 3 g fiber, 30 g pro.Daily Values: 10% vit. A, 18% vit. C, 9% calcium, 25% ironExchanges: 2 1/2 Starch, 3 Very Lean Meat, 1/2 Vegetable, 4 Fat