Baked Lemon Chicken

The house smells ah-mazing right now! The lemon and garlic aromas swirling through the air- mmmm! Next time I will sauté the onion a little before hand, because I like the onion more broken down and melty. Serve this with rice, or mashed potatoes, so you can sop up those lovely lemony juices that will be on your plate. Crusty bread is a must! Spoon the baked lemons onto the serving plate too, because the baked lemon is good scraped out and put onto your bread. This a very quick dish to put into the oven. 

Serves 4

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts ( can use boneless thighs if you wish)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil plus more for pan
juice of 1 large lemon, plus 5-6 slices of lemon to nestle next to the chicken ( zest the large lemon before juicing) 
1 medium onion, chopped , sautéed in a skillet in a little olive oil for about 3-5 minutes 
3 cloves garlic, chopped 
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
zest of 1 lemon
kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper
chopped Italian parsley for garnish

Preheat oven to 375F.  Lightly drizzle a little olive oil in a glass, or enamel baking pan. Add chicken and set aside.

In a small bowl mix together olive oil, lemon juice, sautéed onion, garlic, thyme and oregano until well combined. Pour onion mixture over chicken and toss to coat. Nestle lemon slices around the chicken and season with salt and freshly cracked pepper. Sprinkle with the lemon zest.

Place chicken into the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes (depending on the thickness of the chicken), until chicken is thoroughly cooked and the juice is bubbling. Cover the pan and let chicken sit for 5 minutes and sprinkle with fresh parsley. 

Serve on top of rice, or mashed potatoes - making sure to spoon the juices on top.

Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Mushrooms

okay mushroom haters..yes I'm talking to you... look away now! For us mushroom lovers everything in this dish just works! ..the slight sweetness of the roasted spaghetti squash, the sauteed mushrooms and garlic and the golden raisins, with a bit of heat from the crushed red peppers. Serve with some toasted garlic bread ...after all you need some carbs don't you?! .. I saw this recipe at shutterbean.com and just had to try it, and very glad that I did. It's a keeper.

Serves 4

1 medium spaghetti squash, halved
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
8 oz. button mushrooms, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
red pepper flakes
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, roughly chopped
1/4 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped (about 8-10 leaves)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
kosher salt & fresh cracked pepper


Preheat oven to 400F. Rub spaghetti squash halves with 1 tablespoon olive oil, sprinkle with salt & pepper and place on a baking sheet cut side up. Roast for 30 minutes, turn squash to the other side, and roast for another 30 minutes, or until tender.

Meanwhile:
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally til brown, 5-6 minutes. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes and the minced garlic, cooking for about a minute. Turn the heat off, add the golden raisins to the pan and cover with a lid.
When the spaghetti squash is done, let cool for 5 minutes. With a fork, shred the meat of the squash and place it directly into the pan of mushrooms. Add the Parmesan, parsley, basil, and remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Stir well to combine. Season with salt & pepper and serve.

Quinoa Salad w/ Black Bean, Orange & Cilantro Dressing

This is a very refreshing quick salad - very good too! Sometimes the simplest of ingredients is all it takes to make a great dish. I cut up some left over grilled chicken breasts I had and stirred it in...and it was delish! reminded me a bit of a chinese chicken salad- kinda sorta. Probably because of the oranges and chicken. I found this recipe from a blog called staceysnacks. (not to be confused with the pita chips) you need zest from an orange, so zest the orange first before peeling and segmenting.

serves 4-6 as a side dish

for the salad:

1 cup uncooked quinoa (any color), rinsed and drained before cooking
2 cups water
2 large oranges, peeled and "supremed", cut into segments
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced


Place quinoa and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over low heat. Simmer for about 15 minutes, or until all liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. 

Place quinoa, black beans, onion, and orange segments in a large bowl and stir gently to combine. Pour dressing over salad and toss gently to coat.

for the dressing:

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 Tablespoons orange juice

zest from an orange

2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 Tablespoons honey

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

freshly cracked black pepper

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

In a small bowl add all dressing ingredients and whisk to mix.

Herbed Halibut

This is a picture before the fish went into the oven. Such a quick recipe and very good too! I paired it with left over zucchini gratin (recipe on the side bar) - delish! I used halibut, but you can use cod, or sea bass, or any firm white fish. I only had fresh basil on hand, but you can use any fresh herbs you have on hand. I've also used this same recipe for fresh salmon with excellent results as well. 


Oil a baking dish. Season the fish with sea salt and pepper and cover with Dijon mustard.

Make a fresh herb mixture with chopped basil, parsley and chives. Add some lemon zest and sprinkle the herb mixture on top of the mustard coated fish. Drizzle with some olive oil. Pop into the oven and
bake for 12-18 minutes (depending on the size of the filets) at 425F. ( until flaky and opaque)