Grilled Lemon-Oregano Chicken

I have made this recipe a couple of times and I get rave reviews each time. These drumsticks are super easy and so tasty. I have no doubt you can substitute white meat if you prefer it over dark. I paired the chicken with an old standby recipe from Cooking Light (circa December 2003) which is also quick, easy and delicious.

Grilled Lemon-Oregano Chicken Drumsticks

Adapted from Bon Appetit

4-6 servings

2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

2 tbsp. coarsely chopped fresh oregano

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. coarse kosher salt

1 tsp. finely grated lemon peel

8 chicken drumsticks

Whisk the first 6 ingredients in small bowl. Season to taste with freshly ground black pepper. Pour marinade into a 1 gallon resealable plastic bag; add chicken and seal. Turn bag to coat chicken. Marinate at room temperature 30 minutes or in a refrigerator up to 2 days, turning occasionally.

Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Place chicken, with some marinade still clinging, on grill rack coated with cooking spray. Grill chicken until cooked through and golden brown on all sides, turning frequently, about 30 minutes.

Spicy Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus

Adapted from Cooking Light

2 servings

2 tsp. olive oil, divided

1/4 tsp. sea salt, divided

1/8 tsp. dried thyme

1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper

6 small red potatoes (about 3/4 lb), quartered

Cooking spray

2 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese

1 tbsp. minced garlic, divided

1/2 lb. asparagus spears, tough ends removed, chopped into 1-inch pieces

Preheat oven to 450. Combine oil, salt, thyme, peppers and potatoes in an 11x7 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450 for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cheese, garlic and asparagus. Bake for 10 minutes or until asparagus is crisp-tender.

TWD: All Spice Muffins

I made these muffins for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie. They are a good sweet and peppery combination and the streusel topping is a nice crunchy addition. A few other TWD bakers recommended substituting cinnamon for all spice (which makes for a Snikerdoodle tasting muffin), which I will definitely try the next time I make these to see which I prefer.

Lemon Bars

I have been in a lemon bar frenzy lately. I am typically a chocolate kind of girl, but as I get older I have started to progress into more fruit type desserts. I feel like my mother, who I always remember saying that she disliked desserts that were "too sweet." Growing up I thought that statement was absurd, but I am beginning to understand what she was talking about!

Needless to say, I can still stomach a whole lot of sweet. In the past few weeks, I have tried a few lemon bar recipes, but by far my favorite has been these Toasted Almond Lemon Bars I found on one of my favorite cooking blogs, She's Becoming DoughMessTic (http://doughmesstic.blogspot.com/search?q=toasted+almond+lemon+bar.) I thought they were even better frozen, which was the way I served them. They are definitely not to sweet and unfortunately, they are super addictive. So pass them on to friends if you decide to make them (which you most definitely should) or you might gain a few pounds... or ten. I received a million comlipents on them from both a large get together and a bunch of out of towners this past weekend.

One of my best friends...

Growing up, my Grandmother loved to bake and she did it often. She was always making cakes, cookies, cookie bars, brownies - you name it, she made it. When my family first moved to Virginia when I was in elementary school, I remember sitting in my Grandparent's kitchen and watching my Grandmother create masterpieces with her trusty Kitchen-Aid mixer. Many out there have sung the praises of Kitchen-Aid mixers and my Grandmother was one of them. Ever since I was in high school, I wanted one. I finally got my wish one Christmas from my now-husband. I am not joking when I tell you that one of my good girlfriends got engaged that same Christmas. When I told her I received the Kitchen-Aid as a gift, she told her fiance that she would have been just as excited to get the mixer! Needless to say, they have been happily married for 4 years and she eventually did get her Kitchen-Aid.

Now that I stay at home taking care of my 2 year old, the mixer is so wonderful in helping me to manage more than one recipe at a time while also making sure my house is not destroyed in the process. I also praise anything that allows me time to do other things rather than hold a hand held mixer for five minutes while stiff peaks form. I love you my little red Kitchen Aid, you are one of the best friend's any girl (or guy) could ever have.

Zucchini Muffins

I have loved zucchini bread for as long as I can remember. After I graduated from college, I took it upon myself to make a loaf one sunny Saturday afternoon. I was a bit of a novice baker back in those days and when the recipe I happened to be following called for cloves, I went ahead and added them in. Complete cloves. Not ground. Needless to say, only one of my girlfriends was brave enough to eat some of the bread, simply picking all of the whole cloves out of her piece. I have since tried many zucchini recipes, always searching for either the best overall or the best healthwise. My 2 year old son also happens to love zucchini bread and throughly gobbled up this most recent recipe. Although this recipe is super tasty, it definitely does not pass the "healthy" test. Next time I might try some healthier substitutions, but for now, this recipe is delicious as is. I made them into muffins instead of loaves of bread since I had to take some to an event last week.

Mom's Zucchini Bread

allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS:
3 cups all-purpose flour (I used 2 c. white flour, 1 c. whole wheat)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/4 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional - I went without)

DIRECTIONS:
Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans or muffin pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.

Tuesdays with Dorie: Espresso Cheesecake Brownies

This is my first Tuesday's with Dorie assignment and I was excited to make this recipe! Seeing as I love chocolate, cheesecake and espresso, I figured this would be a no brainer. I even managed to make these before my son's nap time, conveniently scheduling them around his favorite tv show, Yo Gabba Gabba. The recipe was easy to follow and they appear to have turned out correctly (at least they taste that way). I also decided that while I love brownies and I love cheesecake, I am not sure I am crazy about them together. Don't get me wrong, these are very tasty, they just wouldn't be my first dessert choice; however, someone who enjoys brownies, cheesecake and espresso would be pretty thrilled with this recipe.

Cooking and other adventures...

I am a stay-at-home Mom to a wonderful 2 year old boy. I love cooking, reading, exercising, being outdoors and hanging out with my silly kid and even sillier husband. I thought creating a cooking blog might give me something to do just for me, which hopefully I can achieve during nap times without a child wrapped around my leg...wish me luck!