Monday, August 3, 2009

Honey-Lime-Garlic-Chicken

Since my sister Mandy called and asked for this recipe today I thought I'd make it my first contribution to this awesome blog! I learned this recipe from a girl I went to Nicaragua with in 2000. I've tweaked it a bit to bump up the lime flavor and have (of course!) added garlic! :) This is a super easy dish that can be made any night of the week and the bonus is, if you prep the night before, it marinates all day infusing the chicken with all that honey lime and garlic goodness!

What you need:

4 chicken breasts (for feeding 4-5 people)
1 lime per chicken breast (so in this case 4 limes)
1 bottle of honey (or maybe plain agave nectar would work?!?!)
2 garlic cloves
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. zest limes and set zest aside
2. juice limes and pour juice into whatever dish you'll be cooking the chicken in
3. add about 1/2 cup honey to lime juice and whisk until ALL honey is combined with lime juice
4. taste the lime juice - is it too tart (probably!) so add more honey until you get the sweetness you desire. My family likes it a teeny bit on the sweet side. :)
5. press your garlic cloves into the lime juice and whisk to combine
6. add zest, then salt and pepper the lime juice to taste
7. marinate your chicken for 30 minutes to 24 hours before cooking
8. Bake chicken at 350 for about 35 minutes (depending on the thickness of your chicken - you can always pound the chicken breasts to flatten and thin them out if you're in a hurry!)

I always serve this chicken over a bed of couscous or rice. That way I can drizzle a little bit of the cooked juices over the chicken and bed of grains. As a side my hubby usually prefers broccoli.

Mandy, I hope your dinner turns out great! This one is always a hit for me!

Ciao for now! <>< Bree

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

So easy and very delicious! I had to cook my for about an hour because my chicken breasts were so thick, I think next time I will cut them in half. As a side I cooked up some "Pennies from Heaven" (zuchinni), it was the perfect balance of sweet and salty.

jules said...

Bree, thanks for this yummy recipe. During Mandy's and Ben's recent visit Mandy helped me prepare this dish for a big family party to celebrate four Sept. birthdays, including Ben's. Prepping the night before was sure a bonus, and after marinating overnight and most of the day, the flavor was great! Served it with Mandy's Broccoli-Tomato Salad, corn, and crusty rolls. Everyone loved it.