No wood-fired stove here, as we were so fond of seeing during our time in Mexico, where we had some of the tastiest chicken we have ever eaten; however, this is still quite good in the oven. The chillier days that kept us indoors gave me a good excuse to cook, so as promised, here are a couple of our favorite recipes to whet your appetite.
Peruvian Roast Chicken with Garlic and Lime
Many of my favorite recipes come from Cook’s Illustrated, which is where this recipe can be found. And because I cannot leave well enough alone, I did modify this just a wee bit, using Serrano chilies with seeds included and chicken thighs only.
Ingredients
- 1/4 c. fresh mint leaves
- 6 garlic cloves, chopped coarse
- 3 T. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 T. salt
- 1 T. pepper
- 1 T. ground cumin
- 1 T. sugar
- 2 t. smoked paprika
- 2 t. dried oregano
- 2 t. finely grated lime zest + 1/4 c. lime juice
- 1 t. minced Habanero chile ( I used Serrano with seeds included)
- 1 – 3.5-4 pound chicken (I used thighs with skin on)
Directions
- Process all ingredients except chicken in blender.
- Rub paste over and under skin of cleaned chicken.
- Marinate chicken in fridge for at least 2 hours (more is better).
- Roast chicken in 325º oven for ~ 45 minutes, until thigh meat registers 150º.
- Turn oven temp to 500º and roast until thigh meat registers 175º, another 10-15 minutes. Skin should be nice and crispy and golden.
- Enjoy!
A great side dish with this meal is roasted butternut squash. This is one of our favorites, for its ease and delicious flavors.
Roasted Butternut Squash with Herbes de Provence
If you like butternut squash, and really who doesn’t , I think you are gonna love this!
Ingredients
- 6 c. (1 1/2″) cubed peeled butternut squash (~ 2 1/2 lbs.)
- 1 T. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 t. dried herbes de provence
- 3/4 t. sea salt
- 1/2 t. ground black pepper
- 2 medium onions, cut into wedges
Directions
- Preheat oven to 425º.
- Place above ingredients in shallow roasting pan coated with cooking spray and toss well.
- Bake at 425º for 30 min or until tender and lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Yields 4 servings of ~ 1 cup each.
- Prepare for your taste buds to do the happy dance!
Top this off with some sautéed garlicky greens and your favorite cocktail and life is definitely good! 🙂
Paint Your Landscape 
Oh YUMMY!!! This looks fantastic and I can’t wait to make both dishes! Funny, I’ve been meaning to getting around to posting a few recipes, too, so you’re inspiring me to get ‘er done. Hope you’re having a wonderful time in Cedar Key! 😉
Everyone I have made these dishes for have really enjoyed them. I am always in the market for good recipes so bring ’em on! 🙂 We are enjoying Cedar Key although it has been very cool. It is to warm up in the next couple of days so we are planning to kayak Crystal River and hopefully see some manatees. 🙂
It is dinner time and it could just be my dinner, it looks delicious!
It is yummy Ute! 🙂
you always get me when i’m hungry, LuAnn!! the chicken dish looks fab but i really think the butternut squash could work wonders…i’ll have to look up herbes de provence. that is a new term for me. 🙂
The butternut squash is divine! 🙂
That looks nice. I think I need to go and make dinner in a minute 😉
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Looks YUMMY!
It is yummy! 🙂
Now you have done it. I am going to have to hit the refrig and see how many of these ingredients I have. I am sure I am going to have to hit the Kroger store before I try these out. Thanks.
It is always the mint that I seem to be without when I am hungry for this dish. If you give them a try, let me know what you think Marsha.
I am going to try the chicken this week for sure.
Let me know what you think Marsha. 🙂
Recipes copied, LuAnn. thanks o much. I love butternut, and chicken is my favourite meat. My mouth is watering, just looking at your pics. 🙂
Thanks Sylvia! Let me know what you think if you decide to make them. 🙂
Just what I needed…..a new chicken recipe. I was getting tired of the same old. And this was has some heat, love it. Thanks…it’s what’s for dinner soon 🙂
If it were up to me, I would opt for the habaneros but I have probably pushed the spiciness as far as I can with Terry. 🙂 Hope you enjoy it!
I hope I can get to the store this next week. My shopping list just got longer. Thanks for the recipes. Hope you two are out having fun and exploring the area.
I think you will like these recipes Joan. Hope you are feeling better. 🙂
Thanks for the recipes, they look yummy. I have done sweet potatoes almost the same way and we love them. Love the new look to the blog.
Thanks Janie. I have found that sweet potatoes and butternut squash are very interchangeable.
Delicious post! The Peruvian Roast Chicken look tasty. Love butternut squash, I made a big pot of mixed butternut squash with other vegetables last weekend 🙂 Thank you, LuAnn!
My pleasure Amy! 🙂
I love the header. Stunning!
Finally a Florida sunset…yay! 🙂
🙂 🙂
We will give this a shot, as we have all the ingredients. Will let you know how it turns out.
Great! 🙂
Success! and we had a delicious dinner tonight.
I am so pleased to hear it! 🙂
LuAnn this did not help my hunger, having just risen and awaiting breakfast I have been demanding of Linda a lunch for breakfast… which she is unwilling to prepare, I even offered her the recipes… still no taking… looks so good, maybe I’ll be lucky at lunch time…
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So Yummy!!!
Very yummy! 🙂
Oh, yum!! I love new recipes. Thanks so much for sharing:)
My pleasure Pam. 🙂
Oh how I wish I had an oven!
You know, I never thought I would use mine but find I use it quite often.
it looks and sounds fantastic…I’m salivating a little (for a little read a lot). I could do with learning to cook properly and you always inspire me to do so.
I thought perhaps your WA friend taught you a thing or two about cooking or are you more like my hubby, drink in hand, watching me from afar, offering assistance when I am ready to place the food on the table? 😉
I was rarely allowed to help, even though I did offer and I did get busy on alternative things so I could feel like I was contributing. I did learn a thing or two though from our WA friend though…..
I am certain there are many wonderful things you learned from our WA friend. 🙂
Hehehehe…
The squash looks yummy though I haven’t used my oven since I moved in here in June ’10. Saves a whole bunch on oven cleaning. 😀 Your header is simply gorgeous!
Wish I could freeze dry some and ship it out to you!
Thanks so much for the comment on my header Gunta. Given your photography skills, I am touched you think so. 🙂
Like the sound of this LuAnn .. looks lovely and spicy. .and marinading … wonderful .. leaves extra time for other stuff 😉 like clicking shutters
Absolutely! 🙂
Outdoor cooking….nothing beats this!!! You have me SO hungry now my friend.
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I’ll be over for dinner around 6:30…… (grins)
I’ll be ready for you! 🙂
LOVE, your header photo! Beautiful!!
Thanks Sheila! It was nice to finally get a decent sunset here in FL. 🙂
Roasting anything in the oven at a high heat, a little drizzle of EVOO, kosher salt and pepper, turns almost any root vegetable into a nirvana of yumminess for sure! Have you experimented with parsnips yet? I just discovered them last year, and became an instant fan.
Your travels in Florida are giving me an itch to get there in our RV at some point, rather than our usual method of flying there. Enjoy!
I have never experimented with parsnips but I am going to give it a try! I love just about every kind of vegetable so am guessing I will like them as well. We are headed south, down to the Everglades and eventually to the Keys, then back around the eastern coast. Stay tuned! 🙂
Delightful. YUM!!
Looks and sounds fantastic Luann! Can’t wait to try out both.
They are pretty tasty! 🙂