Tuesday at the Table

Our garden consists mainly of herbs, which are especially bountiful in the summer. So when impromptu plans last weekend called for the family coming for dinner in just a few hours, I got my clippers and went snipping.

First I wanted to get some chicken marinating. I grabbed one of my herb cookbooks, Fresh Herb Cooking, and luckily found the inspiration I needed.

Adapted from Rosemary-Thyme Grilled Chicken Breasts with Herb Butter
For the Herb Butter:
1 shallot, minced
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
4 Tb. minced herbs - I used thyme, chives, oregano, and basil
2 Tb. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

For the Chicken:
2 Tb. minced rosemary
2 Tb. minced thyme
1 tsp coarse sea salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
4 Tb. olive oil
2 1/2 - 3# boneless chicken breasts

Make the herb butter by creaming all ingredients together. Cover and refrigerate at least half an hour to firm up and to let the herbs flavor the butter. Remove from the refrigerator a few minutes before serving.

Make the chicken: Place chicken breasts in a large ziploc bag. In a small bowl, combine the herbs, salt and pepper, and olive oil. then pour into the bag with the chicken, massaging it all a bit, making sure herb mixture is fairly evenly dispersed. Leave to marinate for at least an hour, longer if you have the time. Grill chicken, turning once, until cooked through. Remove to serving platter and place about 1 Tb. herb butter on top of each chicken piece, and serve immediately. (If you'd like more photos, I also shared about herb butter here.)

A caprese salad was next, one of my go-to salads when I have fresh basil. I never tire of this fresh combo.

And that herb butter brightened up some steamed haricot vert, as well as being a welcome addition to the bread basket. So in no time at all, we had an easy summer meal, and could just enjoy being together. Yes.