Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Lemony BBQ Chicken with Roasted Peaches and Greek Salad

 
Hurray! Peach season has come. We have this lonely peach tree in our backyard that is leaning on our back fence and looks like it is about to topple over, but for the last four years it has produced a great harvest. We actually have to fight over them with the squirrels.  Every morning, I've been going out to see which ones are ripe, and picking them right away, because I have this fear that the squirrels will get all the best, most succulent peaches and leave the scrawny, icky ones for us earthlings.
One early afternoon, the kids and I were having a picnic in our back yard, when we see this squirrel tight roping our fence and about to topple over because he has this HUMONGOUS peach hanging out of his mouth. That was one determined squirrel, let me tell you! We got quite a laugh out of that!
This lemon chicken is superb. You leave the seasoning paste on it for 1 hour prior to grilling, and then stick it on the BBQ and lickety split...it's done! Not a ton of ingredients to fuss over, just tons of flavor to enjoy!

*This recipe is from the latest Rachel Ray magazine in her meal planning guide. You can also find the recipe on her website here Grilled Lemon Chicken with Greek Salad

Chicken & Greek Salad Recipe
Serves: 4 Prep: 15 minutes Grill Time:  20 minutes 

 4 cloves of garlic (divided 3 whole in chicken, 1 in salad minced)
1 lemon, zested (grated peel) and juiced (juice divided)
2 TB olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
4 chicken breasts, skin on and bone-in (you will be taking the skin off)
1 TB balsamic vinegar
2 tomatoes, cored and chopped
1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled (I used goat chevre)
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
4 cups salad greens or spinach
 pitted kalamata olives (optional)

sliced cucumber (optional)

1. Using a food processor, puree 3 garlic cloves, lemon peel, 1 tsp juice, and salt to taste. Set aside. 
2. Remove chicken skin, baste lemon paste on to chicken, put in refrigerator for 1 hour.
3. Preheat grill to medium. Drizzle 1 TB of olive oil on to chicken. Season with salt and pepper. 
4. Arrange chicken on to grill, and cook for 15-20 minutes total, making sure to flip half way through. Transfer to work surface. Drizzle with the rest of the lemon juice, and let sit for 10 minutes, covered. 
5. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together 2 tsp olive oil, balsamic vinegar, 1 minced garlic clove and season with salt and pepper. Add tomatoes, cheese, onion and greens. Toss to coat. Serve with chicken and grilled peaches.


Roasted Peaches Recipe
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Plan and Prep Ahead 

Here are some helpful techniques to make life a little easier once dinner time hits. These tips will especially help those that work full-time and don't have a lot of time to prepare dinner. 

~Grate and juice lemon and keep in fridge.
~Skin chicken ahead of time.


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Who likes to CHANGE IT UP? 

~Try orange juice and orange peel instead of lemon.
~Instead of garlic try grated ginger, use 1 TB. 
~Use this lemon mixture on pork chops or salmon.

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