Honey Glazed Chicken

Summer has arrived.  Did you say we had four warm days? Nevertheless, it's officially summer now and by now the barbecue season should be in full force. I'm going to share with you one of our family's favorite chicken recipes. I always find it interesting how my own kids say, "Mom, why don't you post that honey garlic chicken recipe?" And I'm thinking, 'that recipe is so old...' but we all know that some of those recipes simply take priority on a hot sizzling summer day.

Instructions.

• One whole roasting fresh chicken or
• 4 fresh chicken breasts with skin and bone-in, or back attached.

Honey Garlic Sauce

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup soya sauce
• 2 cloves garlic

1. Heat butter on low heat, till melted, adding sugar, honey, soya sauce, and garlic.
2. Bring to a slow boil. Don't overcook because it will caramelize.
3. Lay the chicken on the grill on low heat.
4. Baste chicken with sauce frequently, until the crust is a light charcoal color.
5. Cooking time: (45 minutes for bone-in breasts/ 11/2 hour for rotisserie whole chicken)
6. Serve with your favorite salad.

I'm sure by now your mouths are watering. Even if it's not a hot sizzling summer day, you can just pretend that it's hot and hold your umbrella in the rain while you enjoy your favorite chicken dish.

Tri-Tip Rub

When we lived in Southern California we experienced real good barbecued tri-tip roast. Tri-tip is a triangle-shaped piece of beef from the bottom sirloin. It’s also called a “Santa Maria steak” because Santa Maria, California is where it first became popular. You can barbecue it, smoke it, or roast it in the oven. What I'm sharing with you today is a good rub to prepare this cut of meat for whatever cooking method you choose. This rub recipe is enough for a two pound roast.

Tri-Tip Rub

• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1-1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano 
• 1/4 teaspoon sage
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4 teaspoon herbs de provence or fines herbs (optional)

Mix all ingredients well and rub onto roast lightly coated with olive oil. Wrap the rubbed roast with saran wrap and let marinate for at least 4 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

When ready to cook unwrap roast. We let it sit at room temperature for an hour before we cook it.
For the grill we place it in the middle of a 3 burner grill with only the outer burners on and cook it to an internal temperature of approx 145 degrees for a medium roast. We place it fat side down for a few minutes and then turned it over to cook it to completion.
If you cook it in the oven it's good to have the roast elevated slightly and not sitting directly on the bottom of the pan. If you don't have an appropriate accessory to elevate it off the pan you can use thick cut slices of onion. In the oven cook it fat side up at 350 degrees until it reaches the internal temp for the doneness your family prefers. We enjoy it at approx 140-145 for medium. Slice the meat across the grain and serve.

This is my favorite way to eat Santa Maria Tri-Tip.

Tuna Spread or Dip

This is great for an after school or evening snack or an appetizer at a party.
You can use it as a dip for your favourite tortilla  chips ... gluten-free or regular  (make sure you read labels if you need gluten free, some tortilla chips are now made with wheat)  OR you can use it as a spread for bun halves.

• 1 tin flaked tuna (I used tuna with sundried tomatoes and basil) 
• 3 hard boiled eggs 
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese 
• 2 tbsp finely chopped green pepper 
• 2 tbsp finely chopped onion 
• 2 tbsp sweet green relish 
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise 

1. Mix all ingredients together. 
2. For dip, heat in microwave until hot -- serve immediately with chips. 
3. For spread --  place bun halves on baking sheet, spread with tuna mixture and broil until bubbly and cheese is melted.  -- serve immediately. 

A Dip for Fruit

This dip has been around for years. I don't know where it originated. There are only 2 ingredients. It is a delicious dip for strawberries or other fresh fruit.
Ingredients:

• 1 - 8 ounce bar of cream cheese
• 1 - 7 ounce jar of marshmallow cream

Method:

1. Beat the cream cheese till fluffy. 
2. Add 1 jar of marshmallow cream and mix well. 
3. Serve with fresh fruit.

Homemade Taco Seasoning Mix

I find that I make more and more of my seasoning mixes from scratch, along with my salad dressings as well. There are so many allergies and intolerance to food and ingredients I would prefer to say that I know what goes into something. Plus have you ever checked and seen how much sodium is in a store bought Taco Mix? Yikes! This taste just like a store bought mix, with every day ingredients you likely have on hand but with out the sodium and ingredients you can't pronounce.


Low Sodium Taco Seasoning Mix

1/4 cup dry onion flakes
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup of chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoons beef bouillon (I should mention I use a low sodium version, Ep*cure is my choice or omit all together if you are very strict with your sodium)

Combine all the ingredients in a jar and keep covered and store in a dry cool place.

1. 2 Tablespoon of the mix are equal to 1 package of taco seasoning and enough for 1 pound of fried ground beef.
2. Add 3/4 cup water for every 2 tablespoons.
3. Simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Use the meat in tacos, or taco salad.