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August 19, 2016

Smoked Rosemary Chicken Skewers with Garlic Aïoli

There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance. Pray you, love, remember…

(William Shakespeare. Hamlet. IV.v.)

 

EJaïoli (19)So, the ingredients for August’s #ImprovCookingChallenge are GARLIC & ROSEMARY. Couldn’t get any better than that! We use a lot of garlic around here, and happen to have a large rosemary bush out in the garden.  (It’s one of the few plants to survive this summer…)rosemaryblossomBecause the bush needed a bit of pruning, I decided to use the trimmings as skewers for our recipe.EJaïoli (3)

I decided to try my hand at aïoli as it uses very little salt & the hubs is cutting back on his sodium usage.  (“Try my hand” = strain all my arm muscles!)

I used about two pounds of boneless/skinless chicken breasts and cut them into cubes. I marinated them overnight in the following:recipemarinadeEJaïoli (1)EJaïoli (2)

I sliced some potatoes and brushed them with oil. I put them in the smoker as I had a half-hour wait for it to get to 400°. While waiting for the smoker to heat, I “whipped up” this:recipeaioli(I apologize ahead of time for the pictures, but it’s a pain in the impossible to hold the bowl, whisk & drizzle oil while snapping photos!)EJaïoli

With the aïoli finished & resting in the frig, I continued dinner prep. A few zukes were sliced and brushed with oil. When the smoker was ready, I put in the rosemary chicken skewers. After about15 minutes I snuck in the zucchini wedges & a pan with spinach & onions drizzled with olive oil. Everything smoked for another 15-20 minutes.

Dinner was served with smoked spinach & onions, smoked potatoes, and smoked zucchini with a bit of Basmati rice. (The doctor will be glad to hear that absolutely no salt was used in this meal…) The dollop of aïoli (with that tiny pinch of Pink Himalayan Salt) added just the right amount of seasoning to each item on the plate.EJaïoli (18)

Would you like to see the dishes my friends cooked up with their garlic & rosemary?Improv

August 5, 2016

…some recent “makes”

Life whizzes by at lightning speed sometimes. I’ve been wanting to show some projects, but never really have time to sit down & write a blog post…

So, I’m just going to throw a bunch of pictures out here:

 

grandtwinsQuilts made for my friend’s grandtwins born the first of the year.

 

twistedflowerA headband andtutuladybug tutu for a newbornldybug(with hand-sewn yo-yo “spots”)

 

letterpresstrayA tray for vintage letterpress blocks (plus a few “faux” blocks)

 

whoooooSome magnetic owl Post-it® note holders for teacher appreciation week

 

itiswellAssisted in applying htv to a canvas for a Mother’s Day gift

 

keepcalmEtched a cookie jar

 

4breaHelped with a GCU grad cap

 

gradmonA few graduation money holders

And a windchime for my gardenDSCN4086