I’m always on the hunt for an easy alternative to plain old grilled chicken for summer. Plus, I love to use any ingredients I can from my garden this time of year. This quick marinade and fresh ingredients totally hit the spot. Even my picky girls enjoyed the chicken (although as usual they covered it in ketchup).
Serves 4-5 (my kids split one chicken breast)
Ingredients:
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 4 slices provolone cheese
Marinade:
- 2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/3 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Topping:
- 2 avocado
- 3 roma tomatoes (any kind of tomato will do)
- salt
- pepper
- fresh chopped basil (3 tbsp.)
So here’s the deal… I don’t measure ingredients. Ever. So these are just rough estimates. I pour my oil from the bottle, sprinkle some seasonings in my hands, and chop my herbs directly over the bowl. That’s the great thing about cooking… no need to be exact. Which is precisely why I enjoy it so much more than baking.
Mix all the marinade ingredients and throw the chicken in the bag. I let it sit for about an hour, 30 minutes will do. While that is marinating you can prepare the toppings and start your grill. For the topping dice up your avocado and roma tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and your chopped basil. Give a good stir and let sit.
Throw the chicken on the grill and grab yourself a drink. Hopefully you can soak in a few minutes of sunshine and warmth while it cooks. Near the end of grilling, put a slice of cheese on each chicken breast.
Remove from grill and let sit for 5 minutes or so to cool. Transfer to your serving plate and add a big spoonful of that fresh topping.
Enjoy! So easy right?! That warm chicken is the perfect contrast to the cold tomato and avocado and is so light and refreshing. This is going to be one of my go to summer meals. Next time I’ll try to hide the ketchup from the kids.