Grilled Mexican Citrus Chicken and Taos Tumble Salad

I am a huge fan of marinade recipes - they're fast, they're easy and they're delicious. I can throw everything together in the morning and forget about it until dinnertime rolls around. I'm pretty sure I found this recipe in one of those little magazines you can find by the checkout, although I can't remember which one exactly.

I love grilling - not that I'm a master at the BBQ, I just love cooking outside. Maybe it's because it brings back all those memories of childhood summers, although it may be due to the fact that it doesn't heat up my kitchen; I can't decide. This recipe takes a little more time to put together than most of my marinades, but believe me, it's well worth it.

Ingredients: (for the chicken)

1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup lime juice
1/2 cup olive or vegetable oil
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup chopped onion
4 tsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce
8 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Directions:

In a large shallow dish or gallon Ziploc bag, mix first 8 ingredients, then add chicken; turn to coat. Refrigerate, turning chicken occasionally, at least 3 hours but no longer than 24 hours.


Taos Tumble Salad

This salad is super fast to put together while the chicken is grilling - you'll love it!

Ingredients:

2/3 cup Caesar salad dressing
1 tsp ground cumin
I head of romaine lettuce
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 cups coarsely broken lime-flavored tortilla chips


Directions:

In a small bowl, mix dressing and cumin. In a large bowl, toss remaining ingredients with dressing mixture. Sprinkle with additional cheese and chips if desired. Serve immediately.


*The picture above doesn't show the tomatoes in the salad because my hubby doesn't like them. Crazy, I know! I think he's missing out, but I add tomatoes to mine separately and then it's not an issue. Unless I'm serving this salad to several people, I only add the dressing to our portions of salad. That way I can save any leftover dressing and lettuce for the next day's leftovers ;)