A few days ago, right after Mother’s Day, Mia and I were really tired and headed off to the Olive Garden for lunch. We normally skip restaurant meals as they are usually high in sodium but lack of energy prevailed and the Olive Garden won!
I was surprised when Mia ordered Chicken Parmesan; she said “what’s not to like? fried chicken and pasta!” — typical Mia.
Chicken Parmigiana is an American revamp of a classic dish from southern Italy based on eggplant usually made by breading and frying chicken breast, covering with sauce and cheese and baking in the oven. While I have made Chicken Parmesan through the years, I never really liked it left-over, and needed a new approach! I needed to find a way to make this a part of a healthy, week-night dinner and give it legs. [...]
Souvlaki is a wonderful food that is made with cubes of meat. Depending upon the local it can be very small bits of meat up to 1″ cubes. The meat, traditionally lamb, it marinated in lemon and olive oil and Mediterranean herbs and spices and finely skewered on wooden sticks and cooked over coals.
Souvlaki can be a hand food or plated for dinner. As a sandwich it is usually served wrapped in a pita with a salad like a Gyro and served with sauces and fried potatoes. When plated as a dinner the Souvlaki are served with rice and a Greek Salad.
Today, as taste change pork, beef and chicken are commonly used to create the Souvlaki. The skewers of meat are served with tomatoes, cucumbers, onions and Tzatziki sauce and very often with fried potatoes and rice. The marinade will vary with the cook and can range from lemony to garlicky, heavy on the oregano and sometimes thyme. Once cooked the Souvlaki are seasoned to taste with salt and pepper.
The first time I enjoyed Souvlaki was at a Greek Festival in Southern California and the tender lemony chunks of chicken were served wrapped in bread with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber and hommos. It was delicious!
My Souvlaki are marinated in a combination of olive oil and freshly squeezed lemon juice to which I have added a mixture of ground garlic and fresh oregano. I like to use chicken and so I only marinate for a couple of hours, if using lamb I would marinate over night.
Souvlaki is a wonderfully easy and deeply satisfying meal to make. The high satiety value is achieved by the liberal use of garlic, black and red peppers and finally by using a finishing salt which clings to the tongue a bit. [...]
Succulent Shrimp, tender chicken and the enticing flavors of Indonesia – Nasi Goreng! The flavors of Indonesia are delightful and fresh with the flavors of the Spice Islands.
Indonesian Cuisine is influenced by Chinese, Indian and European Cuisines in the preparation of the natural bounty of fresh ingredients like coconuts, lemon grass and rice.
Nasi Goreng, literally means fried rice, and should be made with leftover rice or rice cooked the day before. There are probably a million ways to make Nasi Goreng and can easily be adjusted to suit your individual preference. Sometimes I used bits of broccoli or cauliflower and others shrimp and chicken. The taste are wonderfully satisfying and so easy to prepare. [...]
Roasted Tomato and Chicken Salad with Caramelized Onion Salad Dressing
I admit it, sometimes I can’t pass up a special. I have stumbled accross too many 10 pound for a dollar onions lately. I’ve given onions to mom, friends, my son and still have 20 pounds in the basket. What to do?
It’s too early in the [...]
One of my favorite comfort foods is Arroz con Pollo or Chicken with Rice. It is found in nearly every culture in the world. My recipe, as with most of the food I cook, is largely Latin in origin. Being from a predominately Hispanic area of California I have always been surrounded by Latinos and their [...]
Recently I made a Garlic Chicken Panino that Mia and Tracy really loved and in fact Mia asked for it a second time. I love it when easy things turn out well.
My approach to this chicken was a bit different because I was doing several things in the kitchen at once. This particular evening I was getting dinner ready and also had a thought about preparing ahead for lunch. To accommodate I decided to place the chicken on the stove and cook on low whilst I went about my other tasks. The results were truly delicious! [...]
