how to cook the best baked chicken ever

nothing is worse than dry chicken. that being said, the best way to cook chicken (in my humble opinion) is to start with brining the chicken, and then baking it in an enclosed packet of parchment or foil. it is so easy, y'all. plus, you can add veggies in the packet and get a full meal out of it.
 

baked chicken with asparagus

    

ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless, organic chicken breasts, thawed

4 cups water

4 tbsp sea salt

1 bunch asparagus, woody stems removed

2 lemons

4 bay leaves

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp thyme

dash of salt and pepper, to taste

 

directions:

1. to make the brine, mix together 4 cups of water with 4 tbsp of sea salt until dissolved. place chicken breasts in brine, cover, and let sit in fridge for no less than one hour, but 2-3 hours is best.

2. pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.

3. spread parchment paper or foil on a cookie sheet or in bakeware and arrange chicken on them in a single layer.

4. top with lemon slices, bay leaves, rosemary, and thyme.

5. arrange asparagus around, on top of, or beside chicken.

6. fold the parchment or foil edges together, crimping to enclose the chicken in a packet, making sure the chicken stays in a single layer.

7. bake for around 25-30 minutes, until internal temp of chicken has reached 160 degrees (or until pink is cooked out).

8. remove lemon slices and bay leaves.

9. add salt or pepper if necessary (but most likely will not be because of brining), or serve with lemon wedges for seasoning.

 

tips:

- lessen cooking time if cooking less than four chicken breasts. start at 15 minutes for two chicken breasts.

- the longer you brine, the saltier it will get. do not brine chicken for too long. there is such a thing as too moist and def too salty.

with much foodlove,

happy father's day

a little late, but that's okay.

i love my daddy. he's amazing. today mark and i started moving into our new apartment, and so we spent father's day painting walls, cleaning, grilling by the pool, and swimming. that's how much my dad loves me.

isn't he cute??

p.s. i'm very sorry about not updating my blog lately. it has been a crazy couple of weeks. camp has started (so i'm out on the challenge course all day), we are in the process of moving, and i still have a job outside of being at camp. pray for me this summer! i pray that i will not be stretched too thin.

travel archives: oahu, hawaii

i was blessed to be able to live in hawaii for five months while completing an internship for school back in 2008. i love hawaii. if it weren't for my family, i would live there again in an instant.

contrary to what some people believe, hawaii is not a super expensive place to live. of course, there are ways to blow money, but you have that anywhere. rule of thumb for hawaii is: if it is a tourist-ridden area, don't shop there. shop at the local places. there are just so many free places to have fun in hawaii. like the beaches. the hikes. the waterfalls. the mountains. the parks.

the beaches near waikiki:

there were always small luaus going on near beaches.

 in hawaii, they call it 'shave ice' instead 'shaved ice'. and in hawaii, there's only one size: huge.

 best sunsets ever:

 koko crater botanical gardens:

 best snorkeling ever at hanauma bay:

 fun rocks and waves off the southern oahu coast:

 fun hike at diamond head crater:

 and this was my 'hood:

 one of my favorite hikes, manoa falls:

 the arizona memorial:

 best luau ever, germaine's luau:

safe travels!