As someone who loves to cook, (and that's not a casual kind of love, it's like the all consuming, passionate, ridiculous and inconvenient sort of love Carrie was looking for in her hotel room, in Paris) I am not ashamed of my cookbook hoarding habit. I live by the philosophy that any day is made better by secretly stealing an hour (or two) to escape into the pages of a cookbook brimming with exotic ingredients, descriptions of unvisited places and photographs worthy of a thousand words. Needless to say, when I discovered that there existed an opportunity to, theoretically, escape to Greece, in the middle of summer, and prepare a flavorful and healthy meal whilst perusing a hard bound copy of a culinary tour through this glorious Mediterranean paradise, I catapulted myself at the chance.
"It's All Greek To Me ~ Transform Your Health the Mediterranean Way with My Family's Century-Old Recipes" is Debbie Matenopoulos' cookbook that I was fortunate to have the opportunity to escape into and from which I prepared an utterly sublime meal.
The book begins by providing a limbering warm-up to gently integrate the reader into the Greek lifestyle and philosophy before jumping right into the hardcore recipe section complete with proper Greek translation and phonetic pronunciations. Debbie introduces you to "Philotimo and the Greek Art of Living, Loving, Laughing, and Eating Well", elegantly introduces Greece, describes the best way to utilize the book and the information contained therein in order to get the most from it and expertly outlines pantry necessities as well as providing several, most helpful, cooking tips. Particularly endearing are the personal appearing photographs, which perfectly capture the Greek culture, images of handwritten notes and recipes as well as the magnificent photographs of the food which appears delicious, healthy and approachable.
Living in northern Indiana, we suffer through some serious winters and the resulting cabin fever is ferocious. Therefore, when the weather is designed for grilling, such as it is now, I take every opportunity to leisurely linger next to the grill far longer than it actually takes to prepare the meal. Coincidentally, that is usually just long enough to enjoy a perfectly chilled glass of Chardonnay. Hence, I considered myself fortunate to savor a mini vacation while preparing Debbie's "Lemony Grilled Chicken.
In my opinion, this really is the quintessential summer recipe. The ingredients are seasonal, healthy, flavorful and easily a part of your pantry and essential summer time ingredients. The recipe was very easy to follow. Options were available for different marinating times based on your availability and instructions were provided for outdoor and indoor grilling. I can already picture myself reliving this experience while preparing this recipe on my stove top grill pan, in my kitchen, when snowed in. Recommendations were provided with regard to serving suggestions and additional condiments or garnishes. The chicken was insanely moist and flavorful. I took the liberty of grilling some of the lemons and drizzled the final dish with the sweet, tart and smokey juice.
If you are like me and crave the opportunity to page through the pages of a cookbook that are just as beautiful as they are informative, I highly recommend this virtual culinary trip through Greece courtesy of Debbie Mantenopoulos and her book "It's All Greek To Me".
For more information about Debbie, follow her on her social media sites!
www.iamdebbiem.com
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Lemonati Kota sta Karvouna (leh-moh-NAH-tee KOH-tah stah KAR-voo-nah)
Lemony Grilled Chicken
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
5 scallions, soft green parts reserved, thinly sliced
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 cups loosely packed mixed greens or baby spinach
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, oregano, and the white parts of the scallions. Set aside.
Rinse the chicken under cold water, pat dry with paper towels, and season on both sides with the salt and pepper. Put the chicken into a large Ziploc bag and pour in the lemon juice mixture. Squeeze out as much air as possible, seal the bag, and shake to coat chicken in the marinade. Refrigerate on a large plate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight. Flip the bag over at least once so that the chicken marinates evenly.
Prepare a very hot grill or set a grill pan over medium-high heat. Brush the grill or grill pan with a little olive oil to prevent sticking. Remove the chicken from the marinade and grill for 4 to 6 minutes per side or until cooked through. Remove from the grill and let the chicken rest for about 10 minutes before serving.
To serve, evenly distribute the greens among 4 plates. Slice the chicken breasts into 1-inch diagonal slices and fan the slices over the greens.
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