I have a rather long ‘to do’ list for the year. I want to get a new computer and become waaaaaaay more tech savvy than I am now. I want to resume French lessons after a decade long hiatus. I want to learn how to use my camera properly. I want to go on an overseas trip to exotic locations such as Turkey and Greece, amongst other places. I could go on, my ‘to do’ list is neverending. But better to have too much to do than not enough I suppose…

And then I have a whole separate category of my ‘to do’ list for cooking. Now let me be clear, I love to cook and learn about food but I have no desire to take it to the extreme sort of super home chef level. I have no urge to create mushroom soup cappuccinos with truffle shavings, or green tea smoked carpaccio of pigeon, or a chocolate coated, macaroon studded, multi-level cherry mousse layer cake a la Adrian Zumbo. Not that these foods or chefs don’t have their place. Don’t get me wrong, I do appreciate fine food and dining. I just prefer to have it in a restaurant as a special experience rather than attempt to recreate it at home. I like to keep my cooking simple, dare I say rustic with a good measure of wholesome. Nonetheless I do have a few areas I wish to focus on improving:

Baking – Goodness. I get a little overwhelmed just thinking about it. I would love to be able to bake a cake from scratch and know it will be brilliant. I would like to be a cupcake queen, or I would even settle for cupcake princess. I want to be able to bake a variety of loaves and rolls to suit my mood and menu.

Salad dressings – I don’t think mastering this is impossible. I believe good quality base ingredients and frequent tasting is critical. I must admit I have been lazy on this front, often turning to the bottle (salad dressing bottle that is) when with a bit of pizazz and creativity I could be making a good salad truly special. I am determined to improve in this department.

Marinades – Upon reflection this isn’t really that different to salad dressings. Again I tend to get lazy with marinades and rarely use them. But when I do, I’m all like wow there’s a party in my mouth and everyone’s invited. With a bit more effort here I think I can take some meals to greater heights.

To that end, I decided to tackle the marinade issue first. I whipped up this simple herb slather for chicken and partnered it with a crunchy Greek salad. I’m sure you all have your own way of doing Greek salad. This recipe is a stalwart in our household and we have it practically every week. It’s a great way to get a fresh vegetable hit and is high in the healthy stakes. The chicken marinade not only tasted delicious but also did an excellent job of keeping the meat moist and succulent. I’m definitely inspired to play around with more marinades and experiment more. Are there any culinary areas you would like to improve upon?

Herb Marinated Chicken With Greek Salad

Serves 2-3

Marinated Chicken

2 x 250 gram chicken breasts, cut in half lengthways

1 clove garlic, minced

Handful of mixed fresh herbs, finely chopped (I used mint, rosemary & basil)

1 tablespoon of olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Combine herbs, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a large bowl and mix well.

Add the chicken and coat well in the marinade. Refrigerate for half an hour.

Cook the chicken over a chargrill on medium/high heat for 2-3 minutes on each side.

Slice chicken and serve with Greek salad.

Greek Salad

1 clove garlic, minced

1 Lebanese cucumber, diced

1 red or green capsicum, diced

3-4 tomatoes, diced

1 Spanish onion, diced

100g of fetta, cubed

100g of kalamata olives, pitted and halved

2 teaspoons of dried oregano

Juice of 1 lemon

Combine garlic, cucumber, capsicum, tomatoes, Spanish onion, fetta and olives with oregano and lemon juice. Toss well and serve immediately.