Honey Ginger Grilled Chicken

Posted on June 7, 2019 by Our Growing Paynes

I start grilling as soon as the grill can hold its own in the cold weather, usually when the temperatures are hovering round freezing. When the heat and humidity kicks in, the grill goes into overtime. Since it will be a few months before I get tired of salads I made a Honey Ginger Grilled Chicken for dinner and my food bowls.

To be honest, when I do get tired of salads, this would be great with rice noodles and the like. Plus you can make this with pork or fish.

For the dressing, there are many different Asian inspired ones you can choose from but I confess my guilty pleasure is salad cream. We tried to explain it to our stateside friends and they were like is it mayo? No! There were many guesses so I think we’re going to have to share our stash. Luckily, it isn’t hugely price prohibitive to get it delivered. Not like Marmite, where you have to mortgage your house to get it here. Fortunately, my in-laws are coming next week and they are bringing that with them.

Technique for the Honey Ginger Grilled Chicken

I’m not sponsored by any of these but choose the brands you prefer.

The chicken should be marinated for at least a couple of hours. Mix the ingredients together in a bowl. Before adding the chicken check the flavour of the marinade to make sure the balance of the flavours are as you like them. With the honey, you want to make sure the sweetness comes through but doesn’t overpower the rest of the ingredients. As the marinade sits, the volume of the sweetness increases. So at the start have the honey just making the marinade a bit sweet.

Slice the chicken breasts lengthwise. Aside from lessening the cooking time for the chicken it makes it easier when cooking with honey. When using honey, you need to keep the temperature at medium on the grill. I always find that food photography that shows dishes with honey glazes still honey colored deceptive. Honey will brown when cooked. You do have to be careful as it will catch and burn very easily.

After marinating for at least a couple hours, grill the chicken making sure to keep an eye on it so it doesn’t catch and burn.

I have new cooking grids coming this weekend, can’t wait!

Prep the salad and top with the chicken.

Who says healthy eating has to be boring?

Honey Ginger Grilled Chicken

A honey ginger marinade for a healthy meal.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian

Keyword Honey Ginger Grilled Chicken

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

1 lb chicken breast, sliced lengthwise
1/3 cup honey
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 tbsp lime juice

Instructions

Mix all the ingredients together. Add the chicken. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours. Grill the chicken on medium heat. Cube and top on salad. Serve.

Mushroom and Feta over Salad

Posted on May 30, 2019 by Our Growing Paynes

I do seem to be on a mushroom kick, not just the vegetarian kick. Growing up, the only mushroom I was really exposed to was the button mushroom. Not to knock it, because that type is fine, but there really is such a variety to choose from. Different “meatiness” and flavours which can make dishes exciting. We were at the library a few weeks ago and my husband found a cookery book by Yotam Ottolenghi called Ottolenghi Simple. I love his approach to food. His recipe featuring mushroom and feta caught my eye so here is my version. It’s not too different from his though I adjusted the amounts of the ingredients a little here and there. I also added garlic because I love it paired with mushrooms and thyme.

When making this dish, try to find as many different varieties of mushrooms as you can. It should celebrate them. I was unlucky as when I went there wasn’t any variety! So strange as I can usually find about 5 types.

Technique for Mushroom and Feta

I think I found the smallest shiitake in the world!

Prep the ingredients prior to starting to cook, including the bulger wheat, as it does not take long to cook. The original recipe calls for adding salt and pepper to the bulger before soaking but I decided not to do that. I’m a huge lover of salt but I knew there would be plenty of that flavour from the feta and I seasoned the mushrooms as they cooked.

In a skillet, heat up 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and cook the onions for several minutes until they soften and begin to caramelise. Add 1/2 teaspoon of the cumin seeds. Stir and keep an eye on the seeds. You don’t want them to burn but you do want them to brown. Remove the onion and seeds, set aside.

If need be, add a bit more olive oil and then sauté the mushrooms. Once they begin to brown add the garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes then add another 1/2 teaspoon of cumin seed and the thyme. Again cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the balsamic vinegar and stir. This will reduce and absorb quite quickly. Add the rest of the ingredients, including the onions, and let warm through, about a minute. Spoon over mixed lettuce and garnish with more fresh dill. Serve immediately.

We really enjoyed this dish and I’m going to add this as a choice for the food bowls we do for lunch. Hopefully I’ll have better choice with the mushrooms.

Mushroom and Feta

Mushrooms flavoured with thyme and dill, accompanied by feta over lettuce.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mediterranean

Keyword Mushroom and Feta

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Servings 2

Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

1/3 cup bulger wheat
boiling water, enough to cover the bulger wheat
3-4 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup finely sliced red onion
1 tsp cumin seed
1-1 1/2 cups sliced mixed mushrooms
3 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup fresh chopped dill
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1-2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 cups mixed lettuce

Instructions

Place the bulger wheat into a bowl and cover with boiling water until the water is an inch over the wheat. The bulger wheat will expand by quite a bit. Keep covered by a tea towel until all the water is absorbed.
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium-high heat in a skillet and add the onion. Cook until it starts to soften and caramelise. Should take about 7 minutes. Add 1/2 teaspoon of cumin seed. Cook, careful not to burn, until they are nicely browned. This will only take a couple of minutes. Remove the mixture from the skillet and set aside.
If needed, add a bit more olive oil. Heat on high and add the mushrooms. Because the olive oil has a low smoke point, keep an eye on it and lower to medium-high if it starts to catch. When the mushrooms start to brown, add the garlic. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook for a few minutes.
Add the thyme and the rest of the cumin seeds. Stir well and again cook for a few minutes.
Add the balsamic vinegar while stirring. This will reduce and absorb quickly. Add all the other ingredients including the onion mixture. Allow it to warm through.
To serve, divide the lettuce between 2 plates, top with the mushroom mixture and garnish with fresh dill.

Tabouli Salad and Resolutions

Posted on May 3, 2019 by Our Growing Paynes

We’ve forgotten what the sun looks like in our area. Mother Nature has taken the April Showers bit very seriously, enough to continue into May. Really hope there will be a plethora of flowers soon! Even though the weather calls for a lot of comfort food, sometimes bright light food lets me pretend it’s a lovely spring. Tabouli Salad fits the bill with the fresh ingredients and flavour.

I’m not one for resolutions. We all know how long they can last, we’re lucky if it’s the end of January. But after several years of working on my mental health, injuries, etc, it was time to work on the physical stuff and lose the weight I gained from meds I was on. A big key was doing food bowls with various healthy choices to mix and match so I wouldn’t get bored. Tabouli salad is a great addition to this.

For this version I went heavy on the bulger wheat as some of the ingredients are quite strong and if I was going to be in a small cubicle with clients I couldn’t have dragon breath. I mean, dragons are cool if you are in Games of Thrones but not when you want clients to come back. The recipe will reflect the usual balance rather than what is shown in the photos.

Technique for Tabouli Salad

The bulger wheat needs to be prepped first. You can either boil the wheat for 12-15 minutes or add boiling water to the wheat, cover and let steam for 45 minutes. I tried both ways and they work but the steaming gives it a better texture.

Add the wheat to a bowl and add boiling water until it’s about 1/2in/1.5cm above the wheat. Cover with a tea towel and let steam for about 45 minutes or until all the water is absorbed.

While the wheat is steaming prep the fresh ingredients. I used parsley, tomatoes, cucumber, mint and scallions. You can add other ingredients such as celery or garlic. For the tomatoes discard the seed pulp. Chop all the ingredients into small bits. Mix the dressing and toss the ingredients and set aside until the wheat is ready.

Rinse the bulger wheat with cold water and drain. Toss with the other ingredients. It’s ready to serve but when not serving keep it covered and chilled in the fridge.

I enjoyed it with a soft boiled egg and smoked salad. Brain food!

Tabouli Salad

A fresh flavourful salad is a great choice for dinner or food bowls.

Course Salad

Cuisine Mediterranean

Keyword Tabouli Salad

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Servings 8

Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

Bulger Wheat

1 cup bulger wheat, coarse
Boiling water, enough to cover wheat

Salad Ingredients

1 cup chopped parsley
3 roma tomatoes
1 cup chopped cucumber
2 scallions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

Dressing

1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil
sea salt
fresh ground pepper

Instructions

Bulger Wheat

Boil water. Pour over the wheat until it’s covered by about 1/2in/1.5cm. Cover with a tea towel and let stand for 45 minutes or until the water has been absorbed. Rinse with cold water and drain.

Fresh Ingredients and Dressing

Mix the fresh ingredients and dressing together. Set aside until the wheat is cooked and drained. Toss everything together. It is ready to serve. Store in the fridge covered.

Basil Wine Sauce Over Grilled Salmon

Posted on September 6, 2018 by Our Growing Paynes

It’s been a very interesting week getting the new business off the ground. Aside from opening up the Etsy shop I also did a local art show called Art in the Park. It was a great experience as I was able to get advice from fellow artists and everyone was so positive. In addition to getting a few sales I also got great positive feedback which lets me know I’m not tilting at windmills.

I also upgraded this site to the business level and spent quality time with the “happiness engineers” to get a shop set up on my blog. It took several hours as I seem to have a knack to ask for stuff that require special coding. I still have a few more things to do but it’s all a go now!

Earlier this summer, when we were in Swanage, we took my in-laws out to dinner to thank them for putting us up and putting up with us. We tried an Italian restaurant in town which wasn’t too bad. The highlight of the meal was for my daughter and I as we ordered poached salmon with an amazing basil sauce. She and I raved about it. Once all the summer adventures were over I knew I needed to make this again as a treat.

I will admit, using fresh basil in it’s prime is best. Our basil in the garden is a bit past it’s prime but the flavour was still there.

Making the Basil Wine Sauce

Prep the salmon first. Season with sea salt and pepper. Slice a lemon to grill the salmon on.

Grilling over lemons gives it a great flavour.

Pick a bunch, about three handfuls. Wash and blend with a third a cup of dry white wine.

In a saucepan melt 3-4 tablespoons of butter. Add 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped, along with the basil and wine. Sauté on low to medium heat. The goal is to have a hint of the white wine come through with the basil being the highlight. If need be, add more butter to get the right balance. Sometimes the wine can be a bit harsh.

While this is cooking, grill up the salmon. I also grilled chicken for my husband and son. Do up a fresh salad and top with the salmon and the basil wine sauce.

I was hoping this meal was the swan song of the summer but the summer just won’t quit! My daughter enjoyed this and was happy I can recreate the dish for us. I think the best trips down memory lane are food related.

Grilled Salmon with Basil Wine Sauce

A delicious sauce of basil and wine drizzled over grilled salmon.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 2 people

Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

Salmon

1/2 lb wild sockeye salmon
1 lemon
pinch sea salt
pinch freshly ground pepper

Sauce

1 1/2 cup fresh basil
1/3 cup dry white wine
3-4 tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Instructions

Season the salmon with the sea salt and pepper. Slice the lemon about 1/4"/.6cm thick. Heat up the grill and grill the salmon on the lemon slices.
Blend the basil and wine together. Melt the butter in a skillet. Add the basil and garlic and sautè. Add more butter if needed to keep a balance of flavour with the wine.
Make a salad, top with the salmon and basil wine sauce.

Italian Potato Salad

Posted on August 31, 2018 by Our Growing Paynes

Before I get to the Italian Potato Salad I have to say I am very excited that I’ve opened up my Etsy shop! I’ve been working for months on researching what to do and getting my photos together. I’m starting off with greeting cards but I’ll be adding enlargements and such as I go along. It is call CreationsByOGP, for some reason Etsy doesn’t like spaces!

If you have a chance, please check it out at CreationsByOGP.

As we’re still battling a fierce heatwave with crazy humidity, dinners need to be easy to put together because standing over a hot stove isn’t my idea of fun in the summer. The farmer’s market had new potatoes so I decided to make an Italian Potato salad.

Technique for Italian Potato Salad:

I prepped the dressing first so it was ready.

Mix 2 parts olive oil with one part lemon juice. Add a healthy handful of fresh thyme and season with sea salt and pepper. Whisk the ingredients well and set aside. Next wash the potatoes and roast them at 425F/220C until they are cooked through and the skins are a bit crispy. Take 4-6 rashers of streaky bacon and cook in a skillet until they are done to the way you like them. We like them slightly crispy but not cooked too hard.

Dice the bacon and set aside. Once the potatoes are cooked, slice the larger ones in half as you want them bite size.

Toss in a large bowl with the dressing and bacon. Add fresh basil, tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. Grate fresh parmesan to finish.

For a bit of variation you can also add grilled chicken or grilled fish. I have to say though, I’m ready for cooler weather so I can do some baking and such. Hopefully it’s right round the corner.

Italian Potato Salad

A delicious twist on potato salad with fresh basil and tomatoes.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Italian Potato Salad

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Servings 6 people

Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

Dressing

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh thyme
pinch sea salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

Salad

1 lb new potatoes 400g
4-6 rashers streaky bacon
1/2 cup fresh basil, torn to small pieces
1-2 fresh tomatoes, diced
1 cup small mozzarella balls
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

Whisk the olive oil and lemon juice together. Add the thyme, sea salt and pepper. Mix well. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 425F/220C. Roast the potatoes until the skins are crispy. Cook the bacon until they are slightly crispy. Cut up the bacon and slice any new potatoes that are more than bite sized. Toss all the ingredients together and serve.

Orange Thyme Grilled Chicken

Posted on May 17, 2018 by Our Growing Paynes

On Sunday, the day I made this meal, we were faced with how surreal life is. It was a gorgeous day and we were tackling the hops (seriously never plant those!). We were struck by how busy the fire and police departments were. While we were planting some veg in the back we realised the current set of sirens didn’t go past our house.

Out of curiosity we wandered out front to see 5 cop cars, 2 ambulances, and various other vehicles. Something was definitely up. A few minutes later an ambulance went tearing up the road. The initial report was someone shot himself by accident and he was belligerent which caused the cops to be called to hospital. Unfortunately the real story was worse. The man died and the guy who shot him is in jail for felony manslaughter.

It’s a bit shocking in our small town. What made it all surreal for me was as they were putting up the crime tape I noticed how life continues on. The next door neighbour to the crime scene was mowing the lawn, people were walking their dog and we’re were putting about in the garden. I know it’s how life works but I found it jarring.

After all the work in the garden we wanted a light dinner. I had seen a few recipes involving orange juice and mustard, orange juice and thyme or orange juice and garlic. I thought I could come up with a recipe involving all of it. Lots of flavour and still keeping it light.

In a bowl add equal parts orange juice and olive oil. Finely chop a few cloves of garlic and add it to the bowl with a handful of fresh thyme. Add a dash of lemon juice and a good heaping spoonful of stoneground mustard.

Season with sea salt and pepper. Add the chicken breast to marinate for a couple of hours.

When it’s time for dinner fire up the grill.

I did up a fresh salad with avocado, tomato, cucumber and carrot. I do love salad season!

Here’s hoping the upcoming weekend is a lot quieter for all.

Bacon Wrapped Steak Salad and They Really Should Teach Body Mechanics in PE

Posted on April 12, 2018 by Our Growing Paynes

I was able to touch my toes today. So what you say? Well, I can’t remember the last time I’ve been able to do that! I had to bend my knees a little but I got there. Part of what helped was reading an article from NPR about the proper way to bend to pick up things. Seems so basic but it really changed things for me.

I was speaking with my massage therapist today and casually mentioned I was discussing with my husband how they should teach body mechanics in Physical Education. Perhaps if they did less of us wouldn’t find us feeling old as we hit our 30’s and 40’s. She completely agreed as she definitely sees all sorts of body issues. Just add it to the long list of things that kids should learn before heading out into the world!

Only five more shifts of tax season, not that I’m counting! But the last few weeks mean I need to come up with simple dishes to cook on the days I’m home in the evening because my brain is fried! I came across a dish with steak wrapped in streaky bacon with the usual Worcestershire sauce, which is tasty but I wanted to mix it up a bit with a fresh salad and Italian flavours.

At least an hour ahead of cooking marinate the steak. In a bowl add two parts olive oil and one part balsamic vinegar. Finely chop 3-5 cloves of garlic, depending on size, and finely chop a small handful of fresh oregano and thyme. Add a bit of sea salt and pepper. Mix well.

Cube the steak. I used steak tips as the co-op has a great local source, so good! Add the steak to the marinade.

When it’s time to cook, wrap each cube in half a rasher of streaky bacon and place on a skewer.

If you remembered to get propane for the grill, use the grill but as I hadn’t done that I used the griddle on the cooktop. Get it to medium high. You don’t want it too hot because you don’t want to burn the bacon before the steak get’s cooked.

Use the marinade to baste the bacon and turn frequently so, again, the bacon doesn’t burn. While this is cooking put together a fresh salad with mozzarella cheese and fresh made balsamic vinaigrette. Use 2 parts olive oil and 1 part balsamic vinegar.

I’m definitely ready for salad season. Love the lightness and all the flavours.

Caprese Stuffed Chicken

Posted on May 1, 2017 by Our Growing Paynes

Battle with the garden has commenced. We may be winning but I’m not sure yet. I find it ironic that the stuff we don’t want growing in the garden are the toughest to get rid of. They are tenacious. Our grass never grows as well on the lawn as it does in the flower beds.

Some of it is our own doing and not understanding how invasive something can be. A few years ago, because we like to brew beer, we planted hops. One was very lackluster while the other is determined to take over the world. The first season or so wasn’t too bad, the hop plant just grew like gangbusters. Hops can grow a foot a day, which is crazy. But last year the hops broke the lattice that sort of held them and crawled across the rest of the flower bed. It wasn’t pretty.

This year we’re rethinking the hops. Not to get rid of them but we definitely need to put them elsewhere. In the meantime we are being brutal with them. The root system snakes everywhere under the soil. We were taken aback by the length and thickness of those suckers. They were like tree roots. I have a feeling there will be more battles with the hops.

Along with the work in the garden that comes with the warmer weather, the lighter dinners start up again. Which I am very ready for!

Recently I thought it would be fun to do a pan seared caprese stuffed chicken over salad. In a skillet heat up a tablespoon or so of olive oil. Add about a cup of sliced sun dried tomatoes and cook on low to medium heat for a few minutes. Finely chop 3-5 cloves of garlic, depending on size, and add to the skillet.

Saute for several minutes until the garlic is nearly cooked and then toss in a handful of shredded fresh basil and a few splashes of balsamic vinegar.

Slice 4 chicken breasts 3/4 the way through lengthwise. Evenly distribute the caprese mix between the chicken breasts. Season with sea salt and pepper and brown on both sides.

Preheat the oven to 350F/175C. Remove the chicken from the skillet and add fresh mozzarella cheese inside the chicken and bake until the chicken is cooked through.

Serve on top of a salad. A dish light enough for the warm weather but gives you enough energy to conquer the garden. Which we definitely need!

Tomatillo Steak Salad

Posted on September 16, 2016 by Our Growing Paynes

Autumn may be flowing in, thank goodness, but I’m not above having a nice salad. Even though it wasn’t intended. How would a salad happen accidentally? It’s easy when you are having a flighty moment.

I definitely knew I wanted to do grilled skirt steak with a tomatillo sauce. I was thinking a rustic type of sauce to act as the veg portion of the dinner. That didn’t work out as you will see.

We didn’t have much luck with growing tomatillos the past few years so we didn’t attempt it this year but luckily the farmer’s market had some. Our garden has produced a bumper crop of hot peppers. I just wish tomatillos weren’t so sticky once you peel the papery covering off. Cut the tomatillos in half and keep the pepper whole. Fire up the grill and roast the tomatillos and pepper until they start to char. You don’t want charcoal veg as a result so keep an eye on this as it will cook quickly.

As I said my plan was to have a rustic meal but I realised a grilled potato and a bit of steak wouldn’t cut it. When I did up the sauce it became more of a dressing rather than a veg side. So salad it was! Using a food processor add the tomatillos and pepper. I kept the seeds to give it a kick. Throw in a couple of cloves of garlic, a teaspoon or so of cilantro, and a few splashes of lime juice and olive oil. Blend.

I kept the steak simple seasoned with sea salt, pepper, and worcestershire sauce. Because it is grass fed be careful on how hot you cook it. Sear then lower the heat. Keeps it tender. Slice the steak and top with the tomatillo sauce. Any leftover sauce can be frozen for later.

Italian Salad and Being Exercised by the House

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Our Growing Paynes

Negative space. Great when it comes to artwork. Not so much when it comes to a house. Our house was built in 1895 and I have to say it was solidly built. It’s still relatively square. But man, when we redo rooms or do projects we find some serious negative space. While our kids are off on their summer adventures we redid my son’s floor. Because the wood had been damaged we had to pull up the old flooring. Which gave us a chance to put in new insulation. And that is where we saw the latest example of negative space. So we stuffed a lot of insulation in. Our son will be quite toasty this winter.

Thankfully that is a few months off. On Father’s Day we joined our friends in the traditional Father’s Day BBQ and I had made a twist on the caprese salad with bacon and lettuce. I didn’t have the time to get stuff together for a blog post then but I thought I’d remake it for my husband and I but added chicken. Because why not?

In a skillet start cooking 4-5 rashers of streaky bacon, chopped up. Once the bacon is half cooked add about a third of a cup of chopped onion and a couple of cloves of garlic, chopped. Add a teaspoon or so of fresh thyme.

While this is cooking make up the dressing and grill the chicken. I just seasoned the chicken with sea salt and pepper as it will be dressed before adding to the salad. In a bowl add olive oil and white balsamic vinegar. The ration was about 1:3/4 oil to vinegar. Whisk to emulsify. Season with sea salt and pepper.

Cut up the chicken into small pieces. Add the chicken and the bacon mixture to the bowl and toss in the dressing.

Add to lettuce and top with chopped tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil.

A super easy, flavourful salad for summer nights. Without leaving you feeling stuffed.