Lemon Greek Chicken

Lately, I've been wanting to try new recipes. A friend of mine lent me her Pampered Chef Stoneware Inspirations cookbook, so I tried the recipe for Lemon Greek Chicken. I made a few adjustments from the beginning according to our family's likes and dislikes. The changes are noted at the bottom.



Lemon Greek Chicken

Prep time: 20 minutes Bake time: 1 hour

2 lemons, divided
1/4 c olive oil
4 large garlic cloves, minced
2-3 tsp dried oregano leaves
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
4 split (bone-in) chicken breast halves (2 1/2-3 pounds)
8 petite red potatoes (about 12 ounces)
1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch strips
1 medium red onion, cut into 1-inch wedges
8 ounces whole mushrooms

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Zest one lemon to measure 1 1/2 tbsp zest. Juice lemon to measure 2 tbsp juice. In a mixing bowl, combine lemon zest, juice, oil, minced garlic, oregano, salt and black pepper; mix well.

2. Place chicken on center of pan. Using a pastry brush, brush chicken with a portion of the lemon juice mixture.

3. Cut potatoes in half. Cut bell pepper into 1-inch strips; cut in half. Cut onion into 1-inch wedges. Thinly slice remaining lemon. Combine potatoes, bell pepper, onion, lemon slices and mushrooms with remaining lemon juice mixture in mixing bowl; toss to coat.


4. Arrange vegetables around chicken on pan. Bake 1 hour or until chicken is no longer pink in center, brushing chicken and vegetables with pan juices after 30 minutes.

Yield: 4 servings


Notes: I know my family doesn't like too much lemon on their food especially fresh lemon zest (from a experiment gone bad a few weeks ago), so I added the lemon juice but substituted orange slices with the veggies. None of us like mushrooms, but I was sure they would add a good flavor. So I added them and put them in the leftovers for my MIL to try -- she loves them! Rick is the only one that likes onion, but again, I thought I needed them for the flavor. Guessing I could have used the ones he didn't eat in a soup or something . . . anyone have any ideas?? I also sprayed everything with spray butter that I had in the frig. There didn't seem to be enough lemon juice mixture for everything. Wish there was more liquid for basting, but not sure what to do about that since I didn't want to add more oil??


This was a hit with our family. I'll definitely be making this again. Next time I won't buy a whole chicken just because it was $.89/lb!! I almost became a vegetarian cutting up a raw chicken -- yeck! I'll try legs and thighs since my kids love drumsticks or split chicken breasts if they go one sale.

Omelet Biscuit Cups

When I was thinking of what recipe to post today, these little guys came to mind. I like to make a batch or two of these and stick some in the freezer. They keep well and reheat nicely for a nice, warm breakfast with minimal effort.

Omelet Biscuit Cups

1 tube (12 ounces) large refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
4 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 cup diced fully cooked ham, crumbled sausage or bacon peices
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/3 cup chopped canned mushrooms or onions
1 tablespoon butter

1. Press biscuits onto the bottom and up the sides of greased muffin cups; set aside.

2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Stir in the ham, 1/4 cup cheese and mushrooms.
3. In a skillet, melt butter; add the egg mixture. Cook and stir until eggs are nearly set. Spoon into biscuit cups.
4. Bake at 375° for 10-15 minutes or until biscuits are golden brown. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 2 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Reheat best if set in refrigerator overnight to thaw. Reheat in microwave at lower power (50-60%) about 20-25 seconds depending on microwave. Overheating will make biscuits tough.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Taste of Home. For printable recipe, click here.

April 23 Meeting

Just a reminder that we added a Special Edition meeting, Friday, April 23. We are going to continue our discussion on kids. Bring your papers if you remember. If not, I'll have more copies. Don't worry you can come even if you didn't make it to last month's discussion. I'm certain you will glean a lot of information from this discussion alone.

We will meet at my (Janelle Lott's) house at 6:30 pm. Hopefully I'll have directions posted this Sunday on the bulleting board. Please come even if you are late. We eat first, so you can just grab a plate of food and listen in while you eat. We usually go until 9:00 pm, but it's not a problem in you need to leave early.

Refreshments are welcome, but not required. Beverages will be provided. I'm going to try a couple new Pampered Chef recipes and Ms. Red is going to make a veggie pizza. Mmmm!

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions -- lottewl@juno.com.

PS: The Lord laid something on my heart for May's meeting this morning. I'm excited about it and will make that information available after this month's meeting. Please note we have moved the date to May 21 because of our revival services the previous week. As always, pray for these meetings. God is working through them, and we need to pray that He continues to do so.

Ham & Cheese Loaf

We've used this recipe for lunch or for group gatherings. Different meats and cheese can be used. My kids like to help make this too!

Ham & Cheese Loaf

1 loaf of refrigerated pizza crust

9 oz fresh-shaved ham

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 egg, beaten

1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Roll out dough on to flat surface into a 12x8-inch rectangle with rolling pin. Layer ham to within 1/2 inch of edge. Spread mayo over the ham evenly. Sprinkle cheese on top.

3. Moisten edges of dough with water. Fold lengthwise into thirds; pinch seams together to seal. Place seam-side down on a lightly greased baking sheet.

4. Lightly cut several slits in top. Brush with egg; sprinkle with parmesan.

5. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. Cook 10 minutes before slicing.

Variations:

Ham & Swiss

Roast Beef & Swiss

Tex Mex: Turkey & salsa (in place of mayo)

Pizza: Pepperoni (16 slices), 1/3 c pizza sauce & mozzarella cheese

Recipe courtesy of kraftfoods.com.

Strawberry Tiffle

This is a nice, easy, light recipe that is really quite versatile. You can even use sugar-free angel food cake, pudding and whipped topping, and it tastes great!

The original recipe is my grandma's Peach Dessert. Same concept but using canned peaches instead of the strawberries. Canned peaches are good when strawberries are out of season. She made her dessert in a 9x13 pan and laid the peach slices in three long rows on the top. (You will need 1 large can of sliced peaches. Drain then slice peaches length-wise once or twice depending on the thickness. You can also dice the peaches if you prefer.) I make my dessert in a triffle dish or a smaller version in a glass bowl. It has a beautiful presentation.



Strawberry Triffle

Large angel food cake
Large box vanilla pudding (plus ingredients on box: milk)
Tub of frozen whipped topping, thawed
Quart of fresh strawberries

1. Mix pudding according to box directions. Wash, hull and slice/chop strawberries.
2. Break up 1/2 the angel food cake and layer it in serving dish.
3. Spoon 1/2 of the pudding over the cake and spread to edges.
4. Spoon 1/2 of the whipped topping over the pudding and spread to edges.
5. Repeat layers. Chill before serving.

Two other varieties that I think might be good to try are:

~ Substituting chocolate pudding for the vanilla with the strawberries, and

~ Using a blend of strawberries, kiwi and blueberries.