A Little Cuban

So I tried out this new recipe and it was so good I thought I would share it with everyone. I didn't think to take pictures. (Always a day late and a camera short it seems).



It is "Cuban Chicken with Mango-Avocado Salsa (4 servings)



Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts



Marinade:

1 tsp cumin seed

1 fresh red chili pepper chopped (I used a red poblano and only used 1/2 since it was so big)

2 Tbsp. Olive oil

5 tsp. lemon juice

3 cloves of garlic minced

1/4 tsp salt

5 tsp. orange juice



Salsa:

2 Tbsp Olive oil

1/2 cup orange juice

1 tsp lime zest

1 tsp honey

1 tsp soy sauce

1/4 cup cold butter cut into pieces.

1/2 cup diced mango

1/2 avocado cubed

chopped fresh cilantro to taste

chopped fresh parsley to taste



Toast cumin seeds in dry skillet over medium high heat until fragrant, about 2 minutes/ Place the cumin seeds, garlic, chili pepper, salt, olive oil, orange juice and lemon juice into blender and grind until coarse paste. Toss with chicken and place in fridge for about 2 1/2 hours.



Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Cook the chicken for 2-3 minutes on each side until browned. Place into the oven and cook until the juices run clear, about 8 minutes. When the chicken is done, remove, cover with foil and allow to rest for 3-5 minutes.



While the chicken is in the oven, whisk together the olive oil, orange juice, lime zest, honey, and soy sauce in a skillet over medium high heat. Simmer until the orange juice has reduced to 1/3 of its original volume and is beginning to get thick and syrupy.Once thick remove from heat, and whisk int eh butter pieces one at a time until melted; set aside. To serve, place chicken on plate and sprinkle with mango and avocado. Drizzle with the sauce and garnish with cilantro and parsley.



***NOTES****

My marinade wasn't what I would consider a coarse paste but more of a thick chowder consistency. I also didn't have the fresh herbs on hand to garnish with.



I served this with some Spanish rice, steamed broccoli and Homemade Lemonade.



The lemonade was from Emily's Sesame Street cookbook called C is for Cooking. It is Big Bird's recipe and was really good. Every week or so she picks something from her cookbook and helps shop for the ingredients and make the item for dinner. Here is that recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups water
3/4 to 1 cup sugar
Juice of 4 large lemons (1 cup)

Combine the water and sugar in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Roll the lemons on the counter with the palms of your hands pressing down hard with one hand on top of the other. Halve and juice the lemons. Remove the sugar syrup form the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Set aside to cool completely. You can store the lemonade syrup in a covered container in the fridge for up to one week. To make lemonade place 1/4 cup of syrup in a glass, add ice if you like and fill with water or seltzer.

To make the rice I just cooked rice in my rice cooker but instead of straight up water I mixed water and tomato sauce to cook it in and then seasoned it with a cut up green onion, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and red pepper flakes. I didn't measure the spices it was by look and taste.

So give it a try. I guarantee you will love it.