If your Neighbor Gives You Lemons...

You get to develop lemon recipes! My neighbor lady was sent a box of fresh lemons strait off the tree from a friend of hers in California and she gave some to us. They smell so amazing and are HUGE! So I thought I would take the opportunity to develop a few recipes using these lemons. Kind of an Iron Chef type of moment but with 3 little ones a time limit of an hour just ain't gonna work!

Ok so I am having a blast with this one. I am doing Grilled Lemon Chicken and Lemon Orzo Pilaf. Sounds good huh?

Grilled Lemon Chicken with Orzo Pilaf

4 Chicken Breasts

Marinade-

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup olive oil

the zest of 1 lemon

the juice of 1 lemon

1/2 tablespoon sugar

 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

1/4 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 tsp dried marjoram
1 tsp soy sauce
2 garlic cloves crushed
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

Combine ingredients and Marinate Chicken for 30 to 40 minutes flipping chicken over halfway. Cook chicken on grill or pan fry or broil, 20 minutes, or until it reaches an internal temp of 165 degrees.  Meanwhile, take used marinade and boil it in a small sauce pan for 5 minutes (this will ensure that all the chicken "stuff" is cooked all the way, also it will reduce down and thicken a bit. pour the sauce over the chicken when it's done.







Lemon Orzo Pilaf

1 cup orzo pasta

1/2 onion diced fine

1 stalk celery diced fine
2 cloves garlic crushed

2 carrots diced fine

1/2 cup diced bell peppers (any color you like)

1/4 tsp cracked black pepper

2 tsp olive oil

1/4 tsp. oregano

1/8 tsp turmeric

3 cups chicken stock or 3 cups water and 2 bouillon cubes

1 Tbs. Fresh parsley chopped for garnish

In a large skillet saute the garlic, onions, peppers and celery in the olive oil until almost done. Add the Orzo pasta and saute until the pasta is a light golden brown color. Add spices and chicken broth. Cover and let simmer on low for 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and pasta is tender stirring every few minutes so it won't stick to the pan. If you run out of liquid before the pasta is done, add more chicken broth, 1/4 cup at a time. Garnish with Parsley.

We had this for dinner and it was super yummy! Not tart at all. I hope you enjoy these lemon recipes.