Chimichurri Sauce

Have you ever made a chimichurri sauce?  It's a condiment that is used in Argentina and South Africa.  And, it is so delicious on grilled meat.  So here's the basic recipe at the end of this post. (Thanks, Simply Recipes!)

Tonight we served it along side a grilled venison fillet (backstrap) which was wrapped in bacon and grilled to medium rare.  Oh my!

Finely chopped parsley, fresh (or dried) oregano, and garlic.  Place in a bowl and combine.

Add olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.  Stir and taste and adjust seasonings.

Here's the whole recipe for you to try:

Chimichurri Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup firmly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley, trimmed of thick stems
• 3-4 garlic cloves
• 2 Tbsps fresh oregano leaves (can sub 2 teaspoons dried oregano)
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 Tbsp red or white wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Method

1 Finely chop the parsley, fresh oregano, and garlic (or process in a food processor several pulses). Place in a small bowl.
2 Stir in the olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Adjust seasonings.
Serve immediately or refrigerate. If chilled, return to room temperature before serving. Can keep for a day or two.

Yield: Serves 4.

Scallop Gratin

Oh my gosh!  These are just fabulous.  You gotta try 'em, we had these for an appetizer tonight and wow!!  Scallops don't have a lot of flavor -- so they need some help.  This is the recipe. 

Get 6 gratin dishes ready.  Pour 1 Tbl. dry white wine in the bottom of each dish.  Use a wine you would actually drink, not a "cooking wine".

2 pounds of sea scallops.  Pat them dry--very dry.  Cut the scallops in half if they are large.

6 Tbl. butter, softened
2 shallots minced
4 tsp. parsley
2 Tbl. lemon juice--fresh
2 Tbl. bacon bits
2 tsp.salt
1 tsp. pepper
6 Tbl. olive oil
1/2 Cup panko bread crumbs

Mix in the bacon bits and panko right before you are ready to assemble the dishes.

Here is the final mixture.

Arrange the scallops in each dish on top of the tablespoon of white wine.

Smear (or spoon) the topping over the scallops.  At this point you can put them in the fridge until time to bake and serve.  That is the cool part of this dish--it can be made a few hours ahead of time.

Bake at 425 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes.  The panko will make the topping really crispy.

Tonight I served this as an appetizer with some crusty bread-- oh my gooooodnessss!

Thanks Food Network for the recipe!  Enjoy Friends!

Chicken Marsala

Chicken, chicken, chicken!  How many ways?  

Thanks, Maximized Living for this recipe.  

Easy and very tasty!

I made a half of this recipe tonight, but here's the whole meal deal for you.

4 chicken breast halves, boned and skinned, 2 T. butter, 1 T. grapeseed oil, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. pepper, 1/4 Cup water, 1/2 pound mushrooms, 1/4 Cup Marsala Red Wine.

Pound the chicken parts into 1/4 inch thickness.  

I placed them in a gallon ziplock bag to pound them into submission!

Melt the butter and grapeseed oil in a saute pan over medium heat.  

BTW, grapeseed oil has a high smoking point!  

Add the chicken, and cook and turn for about 5 minutes.

My chicken pieces look kinda scary, not too uniform!

Sprinkle the chicken pieces with sea salt and fresh ground pepper.

Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.

To the drippings remaining in the pan, add the mushrooms and saute them until lovely and tender, 

add some more oil to the mushrooms if they are getting dry.

Return the chicken to the pan, add the wine, water..  Bring the mixture to a boil for about 2 minutes.  Take the chicken out when it is cooked and continue to reduce the liquid to a nice saucey consistency.

Arrange the chicken on a plate. 

 Spoon the sauce over and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Enjoy Friends!!

Lemon Chicken -- American Style

This is a classic American lemon chicken recipe without being too lemony, I think it has just the right amount of lemon flavor to it.  Thanks, SIMPLY RECIPES food blog, for this wonderful dish!

p.s. This is nothing like the lemon chicken dish one would order at the Chinese restaurant.  Although that is also delicious!

Gather up the ingredients and let’s get cooking!

2 large chicken breasts (skin on, bone in), or use thighs and legs if you prefer dark meat. With the tip of your knife, cut into each chicken piece one or two times by about 1/2 inch.  This will allow the marinate to penetrate.

Place 2 Tbl. lemon zest, 1/3 Cup lemon juice, 2 cloves garlic (grated or crushed), 2 tsp. dried thyme, 1 tsp. dried chopped rosemary, 1 tsp. sea salt, and 1 tsp. black pepper in a small bowl, whisk to combine.

Ok, confession!  I thought I had some dried thyme---not!  So I started thinking of the song by Simon and Garfunkel.  "Parsley, sage, rosemary and Thyme".  Good, I have parsley!  And it worked out great.

Place the chicken breasts and the marinade in a gallon-sized freezer bag. Mush the chicken around in the marinade. Seal the bag and place in a bowl in the refrigerator (in case of leakage). Let marinate for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Remove the chicken from the marinate and place in a single layer on a baking dish skin side up.  Reserve the marinate.  Brush the chicken with some melted butter and olive oil.  Then into the oven.  Bake for a total of 50 to 55 minutes.  Half way though the baking, baste the chicken with the reserved marinate, then back into the oven.

Chicken is done when juices run clear and internal temp of breasts is 165 degrees, thighs 175 degrees.  The skin is crispy and brown!  Let rest for 5 - 10 minutes before carving.

Carve the chicken breasts on the diagonal.  And get ready to eat....

Tonight we had the chicken with steamed broccoli and cauliflower.  Oh, lemon chicken you are my friend!

This chicken was juicy and tender and very delicious!  Enjoy friends!