Pomegranate Persimmon Dinner Salad with Chicken for 2

Dressing:
¼ cup Pomegranate Juice (I squeezed the seeds through a garlic press)
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
Pinch of Brown Sugar
1 small clove of garlic

Salad:
1 head of red leaf lettuce
1 whole Fuyu Persimmon cut in slices
1 handful of Pomegranate Seeds
Sprinkling of Gorgonzola Cheese (about ¼ cup)
Dash of Salt
Sprinkling of Ground Black Pepper

Chicken:
2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts Pounded to even thickness (¼ to1/2 inch)
Dash of Salt
Sprinkling of Pepper

1. Prep your dressing - seeding the pomegranate and squeezing the juice takes a while so give yourself enough prep time (maybe 30 min).

2. Cook your chicken - grill or sauté - about 6 minutes or until done. Place cooked chicken on a separate plate and allow it to cool.

3. While the chicken cooks, prepare your lettuce and cut your persimmon.

4. Combine salad ingredients with most of the dressing (save a little to drizzle over the chicken if desired), and toss to coat evenly. Divide between 2 large plates.

5. Slice chicken and layer on salad. Drizzle with reserved dressing or serve as is.

Roast Chicken (inspired by The Art of Simple Food)

1 chicken weighing 3½ to 4 lbs.
Salt and fresh ground black pepper
Most of a bunch of fresh parsley
½ head of garlic, peeled and sliced
Extra-virgin olive oil

Remove chicken from fridge at least 1 hour prior to cooking.

To prep the chicken, remove the giblets and pull out any large pads of fat from inside the cavity. Sprinkle salt and pepper inside and out. This should be done 1-2 days in advance if possible.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Chop a few sprigs of parsley and slide it under the skin along with slices of garlic. Stuff the cavity of the bird with parsley and any remaining garlic.

Place the chicken breast side up in a pan that has been lightly coated with olive oil. Be sure to tuck the wing tips under to prevent burning. Roast for 20 minutes, then turn the bird breast side down and cook for another 20 minutes. Turn it breast side up again and roast until done (10-20 minutes). Remove from the oven, and let rest for 10-15 minutes before carving.

The pan drippings can be skimmed of fat and drizzled over the chicken as is, or combined with other ingredients to make a sauce or gravy.

Use up to half of the chicken at this meal, and reserve the rest for later in the week. Save the carcass for broth.

Serve with Glazed Carrots or Steamed Carrots with butter sauce, and Brown Rice (1 cup dry = 3 cups cooked). Use up to 2 cups of the rice and reserve the rest for Grandma’s Lentils.

Chicken Broth (inspired by The Art of Simple Food)

Carcass of 1 whole chicken
Cold water to cover by at least 2 inches
1 carrot, peeled
1 onion, peeled and halved
1 head of garlic cut in half
1 celery stalk
Salt
½ tsp black peppercorns
1 bouquet garni of parsley and/or small sachet with dried thyme, bay leaf and/or Herbes de Provence

In a large pot combine chicken and cold water, bring to a boil over high heat, then turn heat to low. Skim the broth. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer 2-5 hours tasting often. Strain. Skim the fat and season with salt to taste. If not using immediately, allow it to cool and then refrigerate or freeze.

Grandma’s Lentils (inspired by my Grandmother, Dorothy M. Barry)

1 onion peeled and diced
1 carrot peeled and diced
1 stalk celery diced
1 clove of garlic finely diced
1 tbsp olive oil
8 oz chicken broth
2 cups water
1 cup lentils, washed and drained (carefully remove any stones or shriveled lentils before rinsing)
Fresh ground pepper
1-1½ cups cooked rice or ½ cup dry white rice
Salt to taste

In a medium saucepan, sauté onion, carrot, celery and garlic in oil. Add chicken broth and water and bring to a boil. Stir in lentils and pepper. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Stir in rice and warm over low heat until heated though. If using dry rice, cook lentils for 25 minutes then add the dry rice and continue cooking for 20 minutes or until rice and lentils are tender and liquid is absorbed. Add more broth or water if needed. Salt to taste at the end of cooking.

Serving suggestions:
Stir in fresh tomato, or if not in season, canned diced tomato or salsa
Add extra spice for additional flavor. I favor curry, cumin, turmeric, cayenne etc…

Chicken and Green Veggie Pasta with Garlic Herb Sauce (inspired by The Art of Simple Food)

1 box of your favorite pasta
1/3 cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves, chopped fine
3 parsley branches, stems removed, leaves chopped
A pinch of fresh ground pepper or red pepper flakes
Salt
8-12 oz. cooked chicken cut into bite-sized pieces
Green vegetable of choice, steamed or sautéed

Cook Pasta in salted water according to the package directions. Don’t overcook. Reserve 1 cup of cooking water before draining.

For the sauce, heat oil in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium-low heat. When the oil is warm, add garlic, parsley, pepper, and salt. Cook until garlic is soft, but not browned.

Combine Pasta, Sauce, Chicken, and Vegetable, adding some of the reserved cooking water if needed to avoid sticking. Taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.

Serving Suggestions:
Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese
Add dried Italian Herbs to the sauce while it cooks
Stir in diced tomatoes or halved cherry tomatoes

Basic Almond Milk

1 cup sprouted raw almonds
3 cups fresh cold water

Blender
Cheesecloth or Nut Bag

Place almonds and water in blender and blend well. Strain milk through cheesecloth or nut bag, reserving the pulp for another use. For a thinner consistency add more water. Serve cold. Yields three servings.

How I serve it:
In a cold glass with 8 ice cubes

Sugar Free Chocolate Almond Milk

3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tbsp water
8 drops stevia
1 cup almond milk

Mix cocoa powder, water, and stevia stirring until it forms a smooth paste. Stir in cold almond milk. Yields one serving.

Suggested alternative:
Add a few crushed mint leaves
Try it blended with ice for a creamy chocolate smoothie

Sugar Free Almond Milk Horchata

¼ tsp lemon juice
Small splash of vanilla extract
8 drops of stevia
Sprinkle of cinnamon powder
12 oz almond milk

Combine all ingredients and stir well. Yields one serving.

Suggested alternative:
Use freshly grated cinnamon for a stronger flavor

Limy Guacamole

2 ripe Avocado
½ of a large Tomato, deseeded and diced
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves of Garlic, minced
Zest of 1 lime
Juice of 1 lime
Sea salt to taste
Pepper to taste (optional)

Peel, dice, and mash avocados into a medium sized glass bowl until they reach desired smoothness (I like to use a wooden spoon/metal fork combo). Add tomato, onion and garlic and stir well. Taste for garlic and adjust as needed. Add lime zest and juice and stir well. Taste for balance of lime, and add more zest or juice as needed. Add salt slowly a pinch at a time, stirring and tasting after each addition. Add pepper to taste. Stir well and serve at room temperature, or chill if desired.

Possible additions:
Finely chopped Cilantro
Finely diced Jalapeño

How I serve it:
As a dip for corn chips, vegetables or chilled cooked chicken.
As an accompaniment to tacos, quesedillas, and other Mexican inspired dishes.

Most recently I served it with a new find, El Rancho Black Bean and Jalapeño Chips. They are not organic, but they are made in Los Angeles, and have no genetically modified ingredients or hidden sugars. YUM!