Friends and family tell me they love my cooking. But how they can recreate that at home is the hard part. For a non-scientific type like me, it’s “a little of this, a little of that”. To me, it’s common sense, but to others, it’s not at all. Others need exact quantities and instructions on when to do what. And there’s nothing wrong with that type of person, they’re just different than me. Their brain works differently! So this is my attempt at giving approximate quantities of ingredients for my Greek Chicken with Lentil Puree and tomato, yellow pepper, and red onion salad to my friend Lesley Lambert!

Chicken/Marinade

4 chicken thighs, skin on (can be skinless)

the juice from 1 lemon

1 large shallot, finely chopped

2 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped

8 ounces plain Greek yogurt

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Mix all ingredients in a plastic baggie, add chicken, let sit in fridge as little as 2 and as many as 6 hours ahead.

Heat grill and cook chicken thighs until done (20-30 minutes). While chicken is cooking, prepare the lentil puree.

Tomato, Pepper and Onion “Salad”

1/2 of a red onion, thinly sliced

1/2 of a yellow pepper, thinly sliced

a handful of orange cherry tomatoes (or red if you can’t find orange) halved

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon dried parsley (if you have fresh, go for it!)

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

olive oil, about 4 tablespoons

1 tablespoon Sicilian Lemon Balsamic vinegar from Fiore (red wine vinegar if you can’t get your hands on Fiore quickly enough!)

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Mix all ingredients and let sit for at least an hour or up to 6 hours

Lentil Puree

1 cup red (which look orange) or yellow (which look pale brown) lentils

1 cup water

1 cup chicken broth

2 large cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika

a squeeze or two from a lemon half

a couple tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (I use both the garlic and the Leccino, which is just a medium intensity EVOO)

Some really good quality extra virgin olive oil – photo below is my arsenal of Fiore olive oils that I use ALL the time – from left to right: garlic, chipotle, Leccino, Tuscan and Picual.

Put lentils and water in a small saucepan and cook over low heat until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Add the garlic, lemon, olive oils and seasonings and cook another couple minutes. Then using an immersion blender (if you don’t have one, you should buy one, less than $30 and you’ll be very pleased you did) but if you don’t have one you could put the lentil mixture into a blender and puree until smooth. Then keep on very low heat until ready to serve.

To serve, I’d suggest placing a large spoonful of the lentil puree on the plate, followed by a chicken thigh and top with a generous scoop of the salad. If you have feta, crumble some over the top and enjoy!

The bright acidity of the salad and the creaminess of the puree are the perfect compliment to the garlicky grilled chicken!