Ode to Chicken

I've been in the cooking spirit lately, and lately, chicken sparks my fancy. Happy, hormone-less free range chickens of course. This week I tried them grilled, two different ways. First, I added the chicken breast to a bed of lemon parsley orzo I've been obsessing about lately. It's orzo cooked in chicken stock, then drained, and stirred with the juice of 1/2 a lemon, ~4 Tbsp of fresh chopped parsley, and ~3 Tbsp of Earth Balance (or whatever butter you prefer). I also steamed up some local green beans for the finishing touch. My plating technique could have been better (I'm just now realizing how hard Top Chef must be for the contestants; my knives would have been packed long ago), but overall it looked at least appetizing.Tonight's chicken dish was another I've been obsessing about; Pollo Con Rojo. I figured it's not that hard to make at home, so I gave it a shot. It turned out to be just a tad more laborious than I had anticipated. First I boiled some black beans (drained and rinsed) and chopped white onions in some chicken stock and enchilada sauce, and added a few seasonings like garlic powder, adobo seasoning, cayenne pepper, and salt. Once this boiled for about 15 minutes, I pureed the whole mix in the food processor and spread it out on the plate with a ladle. Then I made a quick salsa of cooked corn, tomatoes, red onion, lime juice, and cilantro. I plated the chicken on a bed of shredded lettuce (on top of the beans), added the salsa, sprinkled some avocado around the plate, and topped the whole thing with some tortilla strips. It was pretty darn delicious, although not quite like the original from Royal Oak Brewery. It still makes me happy!