Ahhh…the salary of a graduate student does not favor a foodie lifestyle, to say the least. Semester after semester I have to pass on the truffles, the cheese section of the grocery store, skip the lamb and ahi tuna and so on. Someday maybe I will be able to afford all of my food dreams! But for last night I was stuck with what looked like an empty fridge. I did have some chicken but the thought of plain roasted chicken was not appetizing, and I only found one little zucchini in the way of vegetables. However, I did have onions, garlic, lemons and olive oil! I also just bought a lemon basil plant at the farmers market on Saturday, so I had a fresh herb to play with. So I still ended up with roasted chicken—but it was tasty and lemony and made me happy. Funny how a special meal was the result of a pity party about all the food I “didn’t” have.
Chicken breast, split
3 large cloves garlic
Lemon basil leaves
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
Lemon
Zucchini
Onion
Mash the garlic and lemon basil with some salt, oil, and lemon juice in a small bowl. Cut the skin of the chicken breast away from the meat, but don’t cut it off—just make a little pocket. Put the chicken breasts in a roasting pan (make sure they are snugly in there) and stuff the garlic/basil mix under the skin. Cut the zucchini however you want and the onion too. I always cut onions through the root end and then slice them because I think they look pretty that way but it really doesn’t matter. Toss the zucchini and onion with more olive oil and lemon juice, and arrange them around the chicken. I usually pour a little more oil and salt over everything before putting it in the oven. Bake at 375° for about 30 minutes? But you will have to check the cooking time for yourself. All done! I had the chicken alone but I think it would be good with brown rice too.
Moriah
