Normally I cook for two, so cooking for eight adults and one child made me nervous that I wouldn't have enough food. So, I planned to make a lot and made two grocery runs. (Side note: my two favorite stores in this world would have to be grocery stores and book stores!)
On my dinner menu:
-chicken
-sirloin steak
-scallops (the only seafood I ever make)
-sweet potatoes
-broccoli
-salad
I also bought fresh ciabatta bread. I didn't eat any, and I feel a bit of a hypocrite for purchasing it, although it made my brother happy.
On Thursday, I purchased and marinated a five pound, "all natural" chicken. (By all natural, antibiotic free).
For the marinade:
-Juice from five lemons
-zest from two lemons (note: peel the zest first, then squeeze the juice from the lemon. A lemon press is a huge help and a great investment as well)
-six garlic gloves, minced (I always use my garlic press)
-1/2 cup olive oil
-2 tablespoons fresh, chopped rosemary
Mix all these ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
Rub down chicken with a teaspoon of sea salt
Place said chicken in the bowl, and marinade overnight (make sure you flip the chicken once, and cover the bowl with plastic wrap before putting in the fridge)
To cook, I put the chicken in a roasting pan, pre-heated the oven at 375 degrees, and popped that bad baby in for two hours.
To the bottom of the roaster, I added 5 sliced sweet potatoes. I coated the sweet potatoes lightly in olive oil and added about a tablespoon and a half of fresh, chopped rosemary.
NOTE: the lemon juice from the chicken was definitely infused in the sweet potatoes. I liked it and would do it again, but it was an interesting taste. If you're not up for lemony sweet potatoes, put them in a separate pan in the oven.
For the scallops:
-1 pound of fresh scallops
-Juice from 1/2 lemon (just a quick squeeze by hand)
-1 tablespoon fresh, chopped cilantro
-3 large garlic cloves, minced
-1 tablespoon olive oil
Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat
add garlic for about two to three minutes
add scallops to mix and pan sear for about five or six minutes, cooking them on both sides
add lemon juice
cook for two to three minutes; turn up heat to medium high to burn off excess juices
add cilantro; remove from heat when juices are nearly gone and scallops are cooked!
Steak: dry rub (Montreal seasoning (don't add too much): grilled on stove top over medium heat). I had somewhere between 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of meat.
Salad:
-arugula (4 ounces)
-red lettuce (1/2 head)
-green lettuce (1/2 head)
-green onions, chopped (approximately 1/4 cup)
-one orange pepper, chopped
-one yellow pepper, chopped
-one small cucumber, thinly sliced
-one pint grape tomatoes, sliced in half
-feta cheese (1/3 cup and it can always be omitted)
salad dressing was simply olive oil and balsamic vinegar, at the discretion of the consumer:
I also made:
Four heads broccoli, steamed
And a sauce to go along with the broccoli (my family loves it), which consisted of:
-1/4 cup olive oil
-1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
-1 teaspoon organic dijon mustard (I like Annie's Naturals)
-1 large garlic clove, minced
-a squeeze of lemon juice
Final product:
And a very happy family was fed and satiated.
Clearly, I love rosemary, garlic, olive oil, and lemon, and consider them to be some of my staple ingredients in my kitchen. It is a sad day when I run out of garlic, and I always buy heads (never used it from a jar).
What's the best thing you've cooked (or eaten) lately?
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