Rice is nice (even with lime)

While leafing through a cookbook a couple of weeks ago I happened upon a recipe for lime rice. It sounded interesting and I wrote up a version of it for myself. I only got around to trying it a few days ago. I used to cook rice in stock or broth as often as I could. But with this plan you can give the rice some lovely flavors with or without the stock.

Lime rice (serves 4 generously)
1 cup long grain rice
1 3/4 cups water or broth
1 Tbs lime juice
2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 Tbs butter
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar or Splenda (my preference)
chopped scallion, cilantro and/or parsley (optional)

Cook the rice. Mix the other ingredients in a small bowl. When the rice is done, fluff it with a fork and toss it with the rest of the stuff. Serve right away.

Chicken roasted with lime and maple syrup

Yesterday I was planning to cook some chicken parts in the oven with garam masala and yogurt. Then, while having a look at some blogs referenced at http://jennsfoodjourney.blogspot.com/, I visited http://lifesambrosia.com/ and was metaphorically struck between the eyes by a recipe for chicken with lime and honey. I recalled how often Jenn would use lime and how I don’t so much.

So, with gratitude to these two, I incorporated their ideas into what turned out to be some of the tastiest chicken I have ever made. The amount of glaze (or sauce) was indicated for a whole cutup chicken. I used the whole batch for what I guess was about ½ a chicken: 2 big legs and 2 big thighs.

Instead of honey I used some top-quality maple syrup we had. The cooking time for me was 45 minutes, probably because I took the (previously) brined chicken pieces out of the fridge 45 minutes before cooking.

Our appetites are not as gargantuan as they once were, and we each ate one thigh. This morning Peter turned the leg meat into a chicken salad.

Chicken roasted with lime and maple syrup
2 chicken legs and 2 chicken thighs
kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
1 jalapeno, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 tablespoons olive oil
juice from 1 lime

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Rinse and pat dry the chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet skin side down.

Combine jalapeno, garlic, maple syrup, olive oil and lime juice in a food processor. Process for about 30 seconds or until jalapenos are chopped fine.

Brush jalapeno lime mixture over the top of the chicken about 5 minutes before putting it in the oven. This gets some of the flavor on what will be the bottom side. Turn the chicken skin side up and brush with more sauce, reserving just enough to add later.

Bake in preheated oven for 45 – 60 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. If the skin starts to brown too much tent some foil over the top. Heat the reserved sauce in the microwave and brush it onto the chicken while it does a 5 minutes rest before serving.