Friday, June 11, 2010

Yum Yum Yum - Tequilla Lime Chicken

I follow a blog/site called "The Pioneer Woman", that a girlfriend of mine turned me on to.  Love Ree!  She has some great recipes.  Last weekend I made Tequila Lime Chicken, with all the fixins!  It was amazing!!!!!  One word  of caution, I did mess up the rice :).  I overcooked it, I kept adding water, too much water... don't do that.  Just cook it very slowly, and add water slowly as needed.  It still tasted delicious, but wasn't quite right.

Tequilla Lime Chicken!!!  (A keeper)
Ingredients
  • 3 whole Limes, Juiced
  • 5 cloves Garlic, Peeled
  • 1 whole Jalapeno, Sliced
  • 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
  • ½ cups Cilantro
  • ½ cups Tequila
  • 5 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 4 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
  • 1 cup Monterey Jack Cheese, Grated
  • Pico De Gallo (OMG - perfect food)
  • Refried Pinto Or Black Beans
  • Mexican Rice
  • Sour Cream
  • Avocado Slices
  • Homemade Flour Tortillas (recipe is available thru link below)
Preparation Instructions
Combine lime juice, garlic cloves, sliced jalapeno, salt, cilantro, and tequila in a food processor or blender. Pulse until combined. Turn on the blender/food processor and drizzle in the olive oil until it’s all combined.


Slightly flatten chicken breasts with a mallet or the bottom of a heavy skillet. Place in a plastic bag and pour in marinade. Seal bag and marinate for several hours or (preferably) overnight.

When ready to cook, remove chicken from bag and place on the grill. Cook until completely done. Toward the end of cooking, top chicken breasts with grated Monterey Jack and allow to melt. (You can also top chicken with cheese and melt under the broiler.)

Serve topped with pico de gallo or salsa, alongside refried black beans, Mexican rice, sour cream, avocado slices, fresh flour tortillas…and whatever other garnishes make you smile!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/06/tequila-lime-chicken-with-all-the-fixins/

Check out the link for the full meal, it is so worth the effort!  The re-fried beans with the Pico De Gallo stirred in was pure heaven.  I made guacamole (and I am making it again this weekend) with a generous amount of Pico De Gallo, and it was amazing!   Had this meal with some Coronas... Grandpa Tarcy stopped over and joined us for dinner... it was a great evening. 

I need to learn to take pictures of my food, whenever I do it, my girls tease me :).    Leigh also advises that everything looks better on plain white plates, need to get me some of those!

Danette

Scary week... Lots of reflection

7am.   Friday, June 4th.  I get a call from my Mom.  Dad has had a heart attack.   Horrific, scary, emotional, have to get to the hospital.  My Dad doesn't get sick.  Besides being riddled with arthritis for most of his adult life, we are not used to him being in the hospital, not used to him "down".  Last year he scared us for the first time by ending up in the emergency room with ruptures on his intestine, they couldn't get the bleeding to stop, but then figured it out, clamped that all up and sent him home.  One year later, he is in emergency again, and then CCU, two stints in, blood thinners and closely monitored for days (great staff at the University Hospital, thanks guys).  He is at home now, with nine prescriptions (87-years old and my Dad has never had to take anything before this) and my Mom at his beck and call.  I'm going to make him some banana-raisin loaf this weekend.  He hated the hospital food.  Lost some weight and a lot of energy, but still cracked jokes and made me smile.  :)

I'm not ready for my parents to get old, seriously.  I've never viewed them like that before.  No thanks, don't want it.  Realistically?  I've watched my Dad age a LOT over the last two years, a lot.  Realistically?  this is a wake up call for his mortality as well as all of ours.  Anything can happen.   I am going to be 40 years old in October.  I am already feeling my body start to rebel.  Time to get that under control, for as long as I can.  Aging is such an invasive process.  We need to do everything we can to keep it at bay.  Even that doesn't guarantee anything, but it sure can't hurt to try. 

Love you Dad.  Love you Mom. 

Danette