Scrumdiddiliumptious Dinner

Some dear friends have decided they need to move, far, far away from us. We are so sad that they are leaving us. We had them over for one last dinner, and along with our neighbors we combined forces and make a scrumdiddiliumptious dinner.

I made a pasta dish, a variation of Giada De Laurentiis's Fusilli alla Caprese. I browned some chicken tenderloins and sprinkled them with a garlic and herb blend and diced the cooked pieces. I boiled spaghetti noodles. I made the tomato sauce from Giada's recipe and I sauteed up a bunch of fresh vegetables (summer squash, zucchini, mushrooms, onions, and red peppers) in olive oil. I mixed all the cooked ingredients in a bowl and added the chopped up basil. I served it with a bowl of diced fresh mozzerella and let each person spoon in their own desired amount of cheese. We served it with foccacia bread.

The dessert was to die for. We made Strawberry Romanoff, using a recipe of a good friend and made Ghiradelli dark chocolate brownies. We topped the brownies with the strawberry romanoff. Oh. My. Goodness. It was to die for.

Finger-Lickin' Chicken Marinade

From Recipezaar

Makes 2 cups
Prep Time: 3 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup oil

1/2 cup vinegar

2 tablespoons Miracle Whip or Miracle Whip light

3 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon salt (to taste)

1 tablespoon pepper

2 tablespoons thyme

1 tablespoon garlic salt

Directions

Whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl. Use to marinate chicken pieces at least 30 minutes and then to baste the meat as it cooks in the oven or over hot coals.

Menu Ideas:
Pureed Cauliflower
Green Salad

Pepper-Honey Cedar Plank Salmon

From My Happy Little Life

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Serves 6

Ingredients

2 (12 inch) untreated cedar planks
¼ cup pineapple juice
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
¾ cup honey
¼ cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp ground black pepper
½ tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp paprika
¼ tsp garlic powder
5 (6 ounce) skinless, boneless salmon fillets
1 pinch of salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Soak the cedar planks in warm water for 1 to 2 hours. Bring the pineapple juice, soy sauce, vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, and honey to a simmer in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and stir in the sugar, 1 tsp black pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, and garlic powder. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reduced to a syrupy consistency, about 15 minutes. (It took me MUCH longer) Set the sauce aside. Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat. Place the planks on the grate. They are ready to cook on when they start to smoke and crackle just a little. Season the salmon with a light sprinkling of salt and pepper. Place the fillets onto the smoking cedar planks, close the lid of the grill, and cook for 10 minutes. Spoon a small amount of the sauce over the salmon fillets, and continue cooking until the fish turns opaque in the center, about 5 minutes more. Serve with the remaining sauce.

****If you don’t want to grill you can opt out of the cedar planks and broil your salmon and add the sauce half way through the cooking.****

Menu Ideas:
sauteed vegetables in balsamic vinegar and olive oil, topped with Parmesan cheese.
green salad