warmth! finally!

So I think it is finally time to say that the warm weather is here to stay (I totally just rhymed). Minus a few blustery and rainy days/nights, the weather has been extremely pleasant. However, I am a bit shocked that there have been so many violent storms rolling through in the middle of the night (thank you, 35 mph gusts for causing a massive tree branch to fall in our yard, forcing us to partake in strenuous yard work...aka Dave chainsawing...and getting it stuck and having to use another chainsaw to release the other one...and me hauling the hot mess pile of branches and logs while getting inchworms, ticks, and scratches all over me... but it was good teamwork!) I'll leave that story for another time :)

Let's just hope that the temps do not plummet to a chilly 50 degrees again. I'm ready to quit obsessively checking my Weather Channel iPhone app's 10-day, 36-hour, and hourly forecast to see if I can comfortably wear a sundress or have to revert to jeans and a long-sleeve shirt. It's also nice to not have to keep up with a jacket or sweatshirt when out and about!

I thought I'd share this recipe that my dad and I made a few weeks ago. He and I love to cook together (and then eat the delicious finished product!) and try different types of ingredients, so here is what we made! I got this recipe from the Whole Foods iPhone app. I adapted it a little by adding more veggies than it called for. It took almost no time at all to prepare and tasted amazing. I highly recommend getting this app. It's free and has a ton of good recipes.

Peruvian-Style Roasted Chicken with Veggies

*Large roasting pan

*1 1/2 teaspoons oil (I used Olive Oil...can use any kind you want), plus more for oiling the pan

*1 1/2 tablespoons dried paprika

*1 tablespoon ground dried cumin

*1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt

*1 1/4 teaspoons ground black pepper

*5 cloves garlic, finely chopped (I used the pre-minced kind in a jar)

*2 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

*1 sweet onion, sliced

*1 orange bell pepper (you can use red, yellow, or green), cut into chunks

*1 cup leeks, chopped

*1 package of baby portabella mushrooms, sliced

*1 lemon, sliced

*Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks (We used 3 breasts, but it depends on how many people you're feeding or how much they eat)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Oil a large roasting pan and set it aside. Chop all veggies and set aside. In a small bowl, combine paprika, cumin, salt, pepper, garlic, white wine vinegar, and oil to make a paste (it will become paste-like once you stir this mixture for a few seconds). Your mouth will start to water because it smells so good. And that is just the spice mixture!

Place the raw chicken chunks, chopped veggies, and lemon slices into the oiled roasting pan. Then coat everything in the pan with the spice-paste mixture. The best tool to use is your clean hands! That way, you can make sure all the chicken and veggies are coated evenly.

Roast for about 45 minutes, uncovered, until the chicken is cooked through and the veggies are tender. Your whole house/apartment/wherever you live will smell delicious. Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving.

This dish is really yummy served on top of rice.

After dinner, I made my own Cinnamon-Vanilla Fruit Salad. It was a refreshing, light, and healthy dessert.

Cinnamon-Vanilla Fruit Salad

*Sliced banana

*Sliced red apple with skin

*Blueberries

*Orange segments

*Lemon juice

*Ground cinnamon

*Dash of nutmeg

*Vanilla extract

Mix together in a bowl before dinner and let it sit, covered with plastic wrap or foil, in the fridge to let the flavors merry. Serve, or just eat it out of the bowl :)

Until next time!