There is nothing like the smell of fresh lemon, garlic and cilantro in the kitchen when the sun is shining and the ocean breeze is blowing through our condo. We celebrated a beautiful Boston Sunday with a morning walk along the ocean followed by a festive homemade lunch with our friends the Doughertys and their beautiful baby girl. 

Our menu? Homemade chicken Caesar salad and fresh mozzarella and tomato paninis! I was in charge of the salad, marinade and homemade dressing, while Kristian grilled the chicken and oversaw the panini prep and cooking. Along with a crisp bottle of Sauvignon Blanc (thank you Bethany and Joe), the lunch was definitely something to toast to.

I thought it would be fun to share with our Celebrate Everyday readers in hopes it will bring some fun to your table this summer too.

What you need:

Ingredients for Chicken Caesar Salad

• 6 thinly slice chicken breasts
• 4 cloves garlic – 3 minced/1 broken to rub into a wooden bowl
• extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
• 2 table spoons of spicy mustard
• coarse black pepper
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped
• dash of chili powder
• juice of 2 large ripe lemons
• 2-3 hearts of romaine lettuce, coarsely chopped
• 2 handfuls freshly grated Parmigianino
• 1 bag of caesar salad croutons

Ingredients for Paninis

• 2 fresh mozzarella balls sliced
• 3 fresh tomatoes sliced
• basil and/or pesto Spread
• 2 fresh Avocados
•  1 loaf of fresh sourdough bread 

Directions:

Chicken & Marinade

• Combine 1 minced garlic clove, a dash of pepper, cumin and chili powder, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and juice from 2 lemon wedges in a bowl.
• Rub chicken with the mixture and set aside for grilling.
• Grill or broil chicken until browned and no trace of pink remains in the center, 3 to 4 minutes per side.

Homemade (Lite) Caesar Dressing

• Rub the inside of your salad bowl with one clove of cracked garlic and with one of your lemon wedges.
• Mince the remaining two cloves and place them in a small bowl.
• Combine the minced garlic and 4 tablespoons of the EVOO in a small skillet.
• Heat the garlic and EVOO over medium heat for 2 mins. Let the mixture cool slightly, then add the spicy mustard.
• Drizzle the lemon juice onto the shredded lettuce, followed by the EVOO mixture. Toss and cover entire bowl with the dressing.
• Finally add the cilantro, freshly grated Parmigianino and the croutons

The Tomato Mozzarella Paninis

• Pre-heat your panini maker and spray with Pam. 
• Take your sourdough bread and spread butter lightly on the outside of 4 pieces of sourdough and place 2 of them (butter side down) on the panini maker.
• Add the pesto or basil spread to the topside of the sourdough slices, followed by a 2-3 sliced tomatoes and 2 slices of fresh mozzarella.
• If you so choose, try adding an avocado slice – yum!
• Top it off with another slice of sourdough and top with a thin layer of butter.
• Close the Panini maker and cook until the sandwich is golden brown.

And whoola! Enjoy and toast to good friends and sunny Sundays. 

With Celebration & Caesar Dressing, 

Rae