Marinade For Grilling Chicken

Well, it’s a good thing I wrote down this recipe.  I went searching for it on the internet this morning (Ya know, so I can cite it properly.) and I couldn’t find it.  If anyone recognizes it, please, let me know where it came from so I can put the link in my post.

What I am going to post is exactly what I used.  The actual recipe doesn’t specify which oils or vinegars or spices to use, which is really nice for an experimenter like me.  It just gives you amounts, and then you fill in the blanks.

What I really liked about this recipe was that I only marinated the chicken for 30 minutes, and it came out flavorful.  That’s my main complaint with most marinades:  You end up having to marinate overnight to get full flavor.

So here’s exactly what I used.

2 tablespoons Verde Valley Olive Oil Traders tangerine balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons rosemary
2 tablespoons Trader Joe’s Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons McCormick coarse grind garlic powder with parsley (Got this at Costco.)
1/4 cup Verde Valley Olive Oil Traders garlic olive oil

My personal additions:

1/4 cup grated parmesan
3 turns of the grinder Olde Thompson Himalayan pink salt (Got this at Costco.)
Pepper according to taste

Mix everything in a container.  Marinate chicken for 30 minutes, then grill.

My mom brought me back the Verde Valley stuff from a trip to Cottonwood.  It’s really good.  You can take a look at their products here: http://www.vvoliveoil.com/

What’s nice about this recipe is you can use whatever you have on hand.  For the vinegar, you can use apple cider, balsamic, red wine, etc.  The same goes for the oil, the herb, and the mustard.  Just use the same measurements.  So get creative!  Even add some red pepper flakes if you want something spicy.

Enjoy!

Spiced Chicken and Butternut Squash

Original recipe found here.

I made this last night and, of course, altered the recipe.  I rarely follow a recipe completely.  This turned out good, but I can’t vouch for the original recipe.

My family doesn’t care for pork, so I used chicken.  I had chicken tenders on hand.  And I didn’t have any ground ginger.

Here’s what I made:

First, preheat oven to 400F.

½ teaspoon allspice
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ tsp pepper

1.  Mix together in a small bowl.

1.5 pounds chicken tenders, chopped into bite sized pieces

2.  Place chicken in a large bowl and sprinkle mixture onto chicken.  Rub mixture all over chicken, then set aside.

1 butternut squash

I have to say, this part was a pain in the ass.  The whole time I kept thinking, “This had better be ef-ing worth it.”  I felt like my peeler was going to break, and I felt like the squash was going to slip while I was cutting it.  I thought I’d chop a finger off or a chunk of flesh from my hand at any moment.

In the end, I felt it was worth it:  1) For nutritional value, 2) something new for the kids to try, and 3) it tasted surprisingly really good.

3.  So, here we go.  Carefully cut the ends off of the squash.  Then with a sturdy peeler, carefully peel the outer skin.  Carefully cut the squash in half lengthwise.  Scoop out seeds.  Cut into approximately 1 inch cubes.

4.  Scatter cubed squash in a roasting pan.

3 tablespoons olive oil
Cumin
Sea salt

5.  Coat squash with olive oil, and sprinkle a generous amount of cumin and little bit of sea salt.

6.  Roast squash for about 45 minutes to an hour, stirring once or twice, until browned and soft.  Put into a dish when done.

3 tablespoons coconut oil

7.  While the squash is roasting, heat the coconut oil on medium-high heat in a pot or large pan.

8.  Add the chicken pieces and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, browning evenly.

2 cups homemade chicken broth

9.  Add broth and bring to a boil.  Cover and turn heat to low.  Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes.

½ cup unsweetened coconut milk

10.  Add coconut milk and turn up heat to medium-high.  Bring to a boil and reduce the liquid.  This won’t make a cream sauce, but it does make a nice sauce to pour on rice and the rest of the dish.

11.  Transfer chicken and sauce to a serving dish.  I’m not that fancy.  Who am I trying to impress?  My kids?  My food goes straight into a glass container for the fridge.  Less dishes that way.

3 tablespoons butter
1.5 teaspoons dried sage

12.  Melt butter in the pan or pot you used to cook the chicken.

13.  Add sage and stir until butter and sage start to brown.

14.  I added some coconut milk at this point and scraped the bottom of the pan.  Then I poured it all over the chicken.

Great with brown rice or by itself!

MJ