Almost time!

Less than 30 minutes until my sister arrives in Africa.  Less than 3 hours until this little one:

is finally with her forever family!  We're all loving this little sweetie and can hardly stand waiting the 8 days until she gets to come home to the US.

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What's For Dinner: Grilled Chicken Thighs with Orange And Rosemary

This was a fantastic meal.

The Mr grilled the chicken after it was marinated, and I served it with rosemary focaccia bread and roasted vegetables.

I love love love this bread!  It's an easy to make Rosemary Focaccia bread.

I added Parmesan cheese to the top - yum!

While the bread was baking, I marinated the chicken.  Oranges from the Farmer's Market and lemons and rosemary from our garden.

Roasted vegetables - don't you love summer produce?

And the final product - delicious!

Grilled Chicken Thighs with Orange and Rosemary

Ingredients

2 navel oranges

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Kosher salt and pepper

3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

1/4 cup olive oil, plus 1 teaspoon

1 1/2 pounds small chicken thighs and drumsticks

1 large red onion, sliced into 1/4-inch rings

1 head green leaf lettuce, torn into pieces

Preparation

Grate 1/2 teaspoon of zest from 1 orange into a large mixing bowl. Squeeze in 1/3 cup of orange juice. Stir in the lemon juice, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, the garlic, rosemary, and 1/4 cup of the oil. Reserve 1/4 cup of the dressing. Add the chicken to the bowl, cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Heat grill to medium. Place the chicken, skin-side up, over indirect heat and cook, covered, for 35 minutes. Turn the chicken and cook, uncovered, over direct heat, until cooked through, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, brush the onion with the remaining oil and season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Grill until tender, 8 minutes.

Peel the remaining orange and slice into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Combine them with the onion, lettuce, and reserved dressing in a bowl. Transfer to individual plates. Serve with the chicken.

This was really tasty - we'll be having it again.  What are you having for dinner tonight?


I'm linked up here:

• EKats Kitchen
• Grocery Cart Challenge

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Menu Planning

We'll be super-busy this week at work, so I'm glad to have planned easy meals.

Here's what we'll be eating:


Wednesday:  Pork Chops with Carolina Rub
Thursday:  Chicken Lo Mein
Friday:  Greek Turkey Tenderloins
Saturday:  BBQ Grilled Chicken Thighs
Sunday:  Father's Day "Thai" Dinner
Monday:  Lemonade Chicken
Tuesday:  Someone else cooks!

Linked here:  Organizing Junkie

What's on your table this week?

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Harvest Monday: June 13, 2011

This is becoming kind of boring.  This week... radishes and strawberries!

Strawberries:  2.1 ounces

Radishes:  7.5 ounces!

Total Harvest for the Week:  9.6 ounces
Total Harvest for the Year:  23.6 ounces - and that is over a pound of produce form the garden!!  Yea!

This week, I expect (go figure) more radishes and strawberries, and also some lemons.  We'll see what else is out there!


Linked up with Daphne's Dandelion's Harvest Monday... hop on over and see what else is being picked this week.

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Tuesday Garden Party

The garden is growing! What a lovely change from last year - we had little sun, so things just did not grow terribly well.

This year, however, we're having a banner year, garden-wise!


Beautiful roses...

... and baskets of brightly colored flowers.

And strawberries!

The hot pepper plants are all blooming like crazy.

I think one day we may even have sweet peppers (though we are struggling to get them to flourish...)

Our first peas of the season are just beginning.  See the blossoms?

The corn is now as tall as I am !

And... it has corn!!

And the rats? Still enjoying the garden. In fact, The Mr was emptying a trap while I was taking these pictures. Hoping we can stem the tide before the plants really start to produce... well, produce!  We'll see next week how it goes! In the meantime, check out An Oregon Cottage for her weekly Garden Party.

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Menu Planning

We've really been sticking to our meal planning, and enjoying trying new recipes.  In fact, we loved everything on last week's menu!  The Peach and Gorgonzola Chicken Pizza and Grilled Chicken Thighs with Orange and Rosemary were excellent, as were the Grilled Southwestern Pork Chops.

This week's menu:

Wednesday:  Leftover Frittata Dinner
Thursday:  Slow Cooker Mandarin Orange Chicken
Friday:  Grilled Peaches and Pork
Saturday:  Pasta with Lentil Sauce and Grilled Chicken Thighs
Sunday:  Mexican Shells
Monday:  Scandinavian Meatballs over Egg Noodles
Tuesday:  Someone else cooks!

Linked here:  Organizing Junkie

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Tuesday Garden Party

While we may not be harvesting much, we are growing the potential for harvesting!

Tomatoes.  And in fact, tomatoes everywhere in the yard.  I haven't really pulled any of them, in the hope that at least one of them produces at least one tomato.  The plants are all looking good at least!

Corn.  Oh wow.  It grows so darned fast!  Just a few weeks ago, it was as big as my hand.  Now?

Up to my waist!

And if the pumpkins produce?  We'll be up to our ears in pumpkins!  Either they will be good to eat, or Halloween will be very impressive at our house this year!

We hope to have the same problem with watermelon.  Looks good so far!

The one problem we have right now?  Rats.  We live next to a large protected park, with all kinds of plants and wildlife.  Rats are a fact of life.  I just don't want them in my garden.  Nevertheless, they are there, and eating my strawberries!  Ugh!

That?  Is a partially eaten strawberry...eaten by a rat.  The Mr has put up some rat guards, so we will hopefully keep them out of the strawberries at least.

If we've got a handle on the rats, we should have more strawberries this week - come on back to see. In the meantime, check out An Oregon Cottage for her weekly Garden Party.




Mhnaty!

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Harvest Monday: June 6, 2011

Oh gosh, I bet you are going to be surprised today - this week we harvested... wait for it... radishes and strawberries!

Strawberries:  1.2 ounces

Radishes:  5.8 ounces!

Total Harvest for the Week:  7.0 ounces
Total Harvest for the Year:  14.0 ounces

I bet we pass one pound this week!  ;-)


Linked up with Daphne's Dandelion's Harvest Monday... hop on over and see what else is being picked this week.

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What's For Dinner: Peach and Gorgonzola Chicken Pizza

This recipe appeared in my inbox a few weeks ago.  I get a lot of recipes in my email, but generally they go straight to either archive or trash.

This one intrigued me,  I'm not sure why, but I kept it in my inbox.  And put it on my menu plan for last week.

And?  Totally worth saving!

Peach and Gorgonzola Chicken Pizza
Makes 4 servings

1 (10-ounce) prebaked thin pizza crust (such as Boboli)
Cooking spray
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
1 cup shredded cooked chicken breast
1/3 cup (about 1 1/2 ounces) crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
1 medium unpeeled peach, thinly sliced
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar


1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Place pizza crust on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Brush 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil evenly over crust. Top evenly with 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, chicken, Gorgonzola cheese, and peach slices. Top with remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella. Bake at 400° for 11 minutes or until crust browns.
3. Place vinegar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat; cook until reduced to 2 tablespoons (about 5 minutes). Drizzle balsamic reduction evenly over pizza. Cut pizza into 8 wedges.

Is this something you would try?  What changes would you make?

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Tasty Appetizer - Maple-Apple Party Riblets

We had these for dinner the other night.  Huge hit.  Both of The Children love ribs, and even though these are not your traditional bbq-saucy type ribs, they loved them.


Maple-Apple Party Riblets

2 pounds pork baby back ribs, cut across bones to form riblets
1/2 cup real maple syrup
1/4 cup apple jelly
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 cup chopped chives
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

Heat oven to 450F.  Line 15x10x1-inch baking pan with foil.  Cut ribs into individual riblets.  Place, meaty side down, in foil line pan;  cover with foil.  Bake at 450F for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, small saucepan, combine remaining ingredients;  mix well.  Cover over low heat for 8 to 10 minutes or until hot and well blended, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat.

Reduce over temperature to 350F.  Remove ribs from oven.  Uncover;  drain liquid from ribs.  Turn ribs meaty side up;  brush with syrup mixture.

Bake uncovered, at 350F for 30 minutes.  Brush with syrup mixture;  bake and additional 10 - 15 minutes or until ribs are tender and glazed.

I thought these were a little on the sweet side and would add some spice, if, that is, The Children were not going to be eating them.  Either way, we had nothing left at the end of the meal, which is always a good thing.

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Menu Planning

A couple of last week's recipes were fantastic.  We really liked the Crockpot Layered Chicken Cordon Bleu and the Savory Pepper Steak.

We're trying some new things this week:

Wednesday:  Peach and Gorgonzola Chicken Pizza
Thursday:  Turkey Burgers
Friday:  Pork and Asparagus with Mustard Vinaigrette
Saturday:  Grilled Chicken Thighs with Orange and Rosemary
Sunday:  Grilled Southwestern Pork Chops
Monday:  Spaghetti with Meat Sauce
Tuesday:  Someone else cooks!

Linked here:  Organizing Junkie

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What's For Dinner: Savory Pepper Steak

This was tasty, and we've got lots of leftovers for lunch!

Savory Pepper Steak

Makes 6 Servings

1 1/2 lb. beef round steak
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 large green bell peppers, sliced in 1/2 inch strips
29 ounce can whole tomatoes
1 tablespoon beef flavor base or 1 beef bouillon cube
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons water

1. Cut beef into strips.
2. Combine 1/4 cup flour, salt and pepper.  Toss with beef until well coated.  Place in slow cooker.
3. Add onions, garlic and half the green pepper slices.  Mix well.
4. Combine tomatoes, beef base, soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce.  Pour into slow cooker.
5. Cover.  Cook on low for 8-10 hours.
6. One hour before serving, turn to high and stir in remaining green pepper.
7. Combine 3 tablespoons flour and water to make a smooth paste.  Stir into slow cooker.  Cover and cook until thickened.
8. Serve over rice.

What will be on your dinner table today?

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Harvest Monday: May 30, 2011

Radishes seem to be a good crop for me and The Mr!  We harvested a few of them over the weekend.

And things are growing.  Growing well, mostly.  We'll have lots of lemons and a few strawberries ready to pick this week.

Total Harvest for the Week:  4.2 ounces
Total Harvest for the Year:  7.0 ounces

I bet the lemons will bring up that yearly harvest total!  ;-)

Linked up with Daphne's Dandelion's Harvest Monday... hop on over and see what else is being picked this week.

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Tuesday Garden Party - Good and Bad

Corn? Great! Looking at our couple of rows of corn makes me feel like an actual farmer!

Bush peas growing at the base of the corn?  Good!

Chilean Sweet Peppers?  Good!

Strawberries?  Well, pretty good anyway.

Bell Peppers?  Good...

... except the ones that we planted from seeds and even one of the new plants that we got from the nursery.  We think slugs, and have taken action.  Hopefully this is the case and our plants will flourish.

Lemons?  Great!  We've got them in all stages of development, from just about ready to pick, to just-forming blossoms.  Love our lemon tree.

Watermelon?  Good!

Pumpkins?  Good!

And the little lettuces I would have photographed for you?  Not so good.  Well, good for the critter that keeps eating it I guess.  ;-)


Hopefully we've got a handle on the pepper-slayers - come on back to see. In the meantime, check out An Oregon Cottage for her weekly Garden Party.

Mhnaty!

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