Grilled Lime Mustard Chicken

Ready to fire up the grill?

It think it's time...it's grillin' time!  The weather is warming up and the nights are long.  Time to enjoy the outdoors and eat dinner alfresco.  A perfect way to enjoy the evening by grilling your favorite foods. Did anyone say 4th of July grilling?? 

All sorts of food can be made on the grill.  From your typical burgers, to vegetables, to desserts!  Endless possibilities and outstanding unmistakable flavor!

Tonight we decided to make a favorite of ours.  Grilled Lime Mustard Chicken is a Latin take on sweet and spicy.  The lime and cumin add tang while the honey mustard lends the sweetness.  Oh, and don't forget the cayenne pepper for a little spice!

This dish is easy to put together.  You just mix the marinade and then allow the chicken to sit in it for a couple of hours.  I used chicken breasts (boneless and skinless are my fav) but you can use your favorite cut of meat.  I would suggest that you use a boneless cut though.  The sugar in the honey mustard will cause the chicken to burn on the outside is cooked too long.  
 

These would be perfect with some potato salad, a little coleslaw and some berry pie!  We served them with some wild rice mix and some crusty bread.  An excellent summer meal if I do say so myself.  Enjoy!

Grilled Lime Mustard Chicken

Serves 2

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

¼ cup fresh lime juice

2 T honey mustard

2 t olive oil

¼ t cumin

1/8 t cayenne pepper

1/8 t garlic powder

Rinse chicken breasts and pat dry with a paper towel.  Place in a plastic bag.  In a small bowl add lime juice, honey mustard, olive oil, cumin, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder.  Whisk to combine.  Place in a Ziploc bag, pour marinade over the chicken and refrigerate for 2 hours. 

Heat grill to medium high.  Remove chicken from marinade.  Throw away excess marinade.  Place chicken on grill.  Cook 6-7 minutes per side until chicken is done and no longer pink in the middle.  Serve immediately.

Tour of Italy: Quick Tomato Sauce with Black Olives and Cream

To wrap up our fresh pasta sauces we will end with a wonderful red sauce.

This fresh and delicate sauce can't be beat during the summer!  Using wonderful plump tomatoes, a little onion, and adding some black olives and cream for flavor makes this a stand out sauce.  

Again, this is simple to make.  Serve it over store bought or my homemade pasta.  The ingredients should be the best you can find as the seasonings are minimal and you wants all the brightness of the ones you have to stand out.  

There's more to come from Italy.  Florence is up next!

Enjoy!

Quick Tomato Sauce with Black Olives and Cream

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 1 sweet white onion such as Vidalia, finely diced
• 1 leek, white portion only, rinsed well and finely diced
• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• Tiny splash of brandy or cognac
• 1 can (35 oz.) plum tomatoes, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• Leaves from 2 or 3 large fresh thyme sprigs, minced
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup pitted Mediterranean-style black olives, halved
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• Leaves from 3 or 4 large fresh flat-leaf parsley sprigs, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup grated Parmigiano- Reggiano cheese

Directions:

In a large fry pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and leek and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant and very lightly golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the brandy and let it boil away. Add the tomatoes, bay leaf and thyme. Increase the heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Add the olives and cream to the sauce. Simmer gently over low heat for a few minutes to blend the flavors.

Add the parsley and toss gently.  Serve over pasta.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Collection Series, Pasta, by Erica De Mane (Simon & Schuster, 2001).

Basil Lemon Pesto

Time to dress that homemade pasta!

As part of the "Tour of Italy" classes I took we explored homemade pasta and fresh sauces.  You can find the recipe for the pasta here.  We made a wonderful egg pasta and cut it into fettuccine.  So fresh and tender it was amazing!
Today we are talking about pasta sauces.  These are sauces that are fresh, light, and flavorful.  One thing I've noticed is that you don't need to pile on the sauce over your pasta.  A dredging or a small amount goes along way.  You want to be able to taste the pasta, as well as the flavors of the sauce without drowning it.

This first sauce is a killer!  Bring on the flavors of summer with a light and lemony variation of a traditional pesto. (We are referring to the green sauce in the picture above) This version combines parsley and basil, along with lemon.  It is just excellent!  My favorite new sauce.  It's perfect over pasta, but you could also use it over chicken or fish. 

Remember it's all about freshness.  Simple fresh ingredients that take no time to put together.  I'll be bringing you another sauce shortly so stay tuned.   

Basil Lemon Pesto

Ingredients:

• 2 garlic cloves
• 3 Tbs. toasted pine nuts
• 1 1/2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• 1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions:

In a food processor, combine the garlic, pine nuts, basil, parsley, cheese, lemon zest and lemon juice. Pulse until ground to a fine paste, about 1 minute. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until the desired consistency is reached. Season with salt and pepper. Makes 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 cups.

Adapted from a recipe by Sandra Cook, Chef and Food Stylist.