This weekend was simply beautiful and it reminds me why I love California. After a day at the beach, we decided to grill. But this is grilling turned up a notch. Grilling really does many things for me. It let's me know summer is on its way. It is quick and healthy. And it just is plain ol' fun. Not only did we grill dinner, but tonight I wanted to make extra chicken that could provide lunches for the week. I have always thought that making extra food on Sunday was such a smart idea, but I never have done it before. I simply thought I didn't have enough time. If you want to do it, you will make time. I feel this is true for cooking your own meals during the busy work week as well. Many people simply don't want to carve out a half hour at the end of the day because, well, we are tired! But if you have any interest in saving some money, being more healthful, and providing a nice experience for yourself, your spouse, or your friends, then taking a few easy steps to cooking at home is all it takes.
This was my Sunday plan of action:
11a.m. - marinate chicken!
Noon - spend the day at the beach
6p.m. - heat up the grill
6:45p.m. - enjoy the fruits of our labor
Quick and Delicious Marinated Grilled Chicken with Flavorful Grilled Asparagus and Sweet Potato Spears
Marinated Chicken
Ingredients
1 package of chicken breasts (cut each breast in half)
1 tbs. of minced garlic
1-2 tbs. of chopped rosemary
zest of one lemon
juice of one lemon
1 tbs. of white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar (adding vinegar to your marinades makes such a difference in the end result)
salt and pepper
Instructions
Add all ingredients to a casserole dish - making sure to season the chicken with salt and pepper before you dunk in the marinate. Cover and refrigerate as long as you can (few hours, all day, or overnight!) Then grill!
Grilled Asparagus and Sweet Potato
Ingredients (obviously bump up the amount if you are feeding more than 2 people)
1 bunch of asparagus
1 large sweet potato
2 tbs. of olive oil
1 tbs. of minced garlic
1 tsp. of red pepper flakes
1-2 tbs. of chopped parsley
salt and pepper
Instructions
To prepare asparagus simply snap the bottoms of and toss in olive oil, salt and pepper.
To prepare sweet potato, cut one sweet potato in half and boil for 15 minutes or until when pierced with a knife it goes through easily. Then cut the sweet potato into spears, thick enough to hold up on the grill. Season with salt and pepper and a little olive oil. Grill until cooked and you can see some nice grill/char marks on both the asparagus and the sweet potato spears - about 5-6 minutes.
The vegetables are just fine this way. But I like to heat about 1-2 tbs of olive oil in a small pan and add some chopped garlic and crushed red pepper flakes. Heat for about 30 seconds and then take off of the heat, making sure not to burn the garlic. If your garlic turns brown quickly, simply discard and try again. There is no going back if the garlic cooks too long! If you are in the clear add 1-2 tbs. of chopped parsley and toss the veggies to coat. This turns the flavor up on basic grilled vegetables. You can do this with any vegetable (zucchini, portobello mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, etc.) , but these are the two I used tonight.
This turned out to be such an easy, flavorful meal that really only called for a few ingredients and a few basic steps.
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