Greek Chicken & Orzo

This is the perfect dish that knock a powerhouse punch to your taste buds. Not only is it delicious, but it's one of those easy dishes that once served, your guests won't believe it didn't take hours. Well, it did take hours, but the slow cooker takes care of the time; most of the necessary preparation comes in the form of herbs, spices, the orzo, and browning the chicken.

Lightly coat the slow cooker with a non-stick spray; I don't really like to use a lot of this stuff, so I generally spray a paper towel and quickly wipe along the inside - just enough to ensure the food doesn't stick.

Cut 2 medium green bell peppers into thin strips, and along with 1 cup of a chopped onion (I like the sweet vidalia) toss these into the crock pot. Take 8 chicken thighs, and while a bit of olive oil is heating in a large saute pan, give them a good rinse, pat them dry and toss them in the pan, browning on both sides. Remove to a plate and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of oregano, 1/2 teaspoon of rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Transfer the chicken and the juices that collected on the plate into the crock pot and cook on High 3-4 hours or Low 5-6 hours.

When you have about a half hour left, transfer the chicken to a plate, cover, and crank the crock pot to high. Stir in 8 ounces of uncooked dry orzo, 1/2 cup of water, the juice and zest of one medium lemon (not a tiny one, folks, a big one!) and some salt and pepper.  Add the chicken and the collected juices back into the crock pot and cook for approximately 30 minutes, or until the orzo is tender.

Plate. Top with crumbled feta and fresh chopped parsley. Serve. Devour.

Nada to Gourmet Basil-Lemon Butter Chicken

Okay, so it wasn't actually gourmet, but it was pretty impressive given that I wanted to cook something tasty and flavorful but had neglected to grab anything. This happens a lot, I would imagine and what I can advise is to scrounge around in your cabinets and garden, maybe even your freezer, for easily paired components for your plate. In this case, I had hastily taken the chicken breasts out to thaw before leaving for work and confronted the question mark when I got home. I attacked our wilting basil plant and finely chopped what was left. We had two lemons sitting in the basket with a few potatoes. I squeezed the juice of both, added some zest to the basil, and two tablespoons of butter to a saute pan. Once the 'sauce' was viscous, I tossed in a handful of the end of some Parmesan cheese and a pinch of salt and pepper. A few leftover baby red potatoes diced also went into the pan.

While the main course was simmering under a lid, I pulled the rest of a bag of frozen green beans and cooked, drained, and tossed with a bit of butter, salt and pepper, serving alongside some leftover bread I warmed in the oven to soften, and Voila! The sauce was absolutely divine, just the perfect amount of tangy which was great on the potatoes and chicken as well as a dipping sauce for our bread.