LEMONS -- AN INDISPENSABLE STAPLE

Whenever a dish needs a spark of flavor and I'm not quite sure what, I add a little lemon. It almost always does the trick. Lemons are an indispensable staple in my kitchen. I use them in everything from soup to dessert.

I love both the fresh flavor and the slightly acidic edge it adds to dishes. A favorite use is in salad dressings. A formula of 3 tablespoons of olive oil to 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice whisked together with a pinch of coarse salt makes a perfect dressing.

Although the juice is important, don't forget the zest. While the juice of the lemon adds acidity and sparkle to a dish, the zest adds a real pure lemony taste. The intense lemon flavor comes from the oils found in the yellow part of the skin. Avoid using the white pith because it is bitter. Instead of grating the zest (a job that I detest), remove it gently with a vegetable parer avoiding as much of the white pith as possible. Then finely chop or cut the zest into thin slivers, as I do in the following recipe for grilled marinated chicken breasts.

The chicken is marinated in lemon zest, olive oil, crushed garlic, salt and pepper. It can be marinated for as little as 10 minutes or as long as 30. Fresh herbs, especially rosemary or thyme, can also be added to the marinade. The oil from the marinade will keep the chicken from sticking to the grill as it cooks. After about 8 minutes, the chicken will be cooked through. Then add the asparagus to the grill, making sure to place them across the cooking grates. The asparagus (they should be fairly fat around) will be cooked crisp tender in about 5 minutes.

Serve the asparagus and chicken on the same platter. Surround with lemon wedges and squeeze the fresh juice over the chicken just before eating. The fresh lemon juice will help reinforce the more complex taste of the lemon zest in the marinade.

For a side dish, serve a salad of tomato and avocado wedges tossed with more lemon, olive oil and some chopped fresh basil. For dessert, serve juicy whole strawberries held by their stems and dipped into powdered sugar just before eating.

MENU

Grilled Lemon and Garlic Marinated Chicken With Grilled Asparagus

Tomatoes, Avocado and Basil Salad

Strawberries With Powdered Sugar

PREPARATION

Marinate chicken. Trim asparagus. Grill chicken and asparagus. Meanwhile, make salad. Prepare strawberries.

SHOPPING

4 boneless and skinless half chicken breasts

2 lemons

1 bunch large (circumference size of nickel) asparagus

3 ripe tomatoes

1 ripe avocado

1 bunch basil

1 pint large strawberries

PANTRY

Olive oil

Garlic

Powdered sugar

GRILLED LEMON AND GARLIC MARINATED CHICKEN WITH GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Larger asparagus (about the circumference of a nickel) are easier to grill than the thinner (about the circumference of a dime) asparagus.

4 boneless and skinless half chicken breasts, rinsed and patted dry

4 strips lemon zest (yellow part only), cut into thin slivers

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove, pressed or finely chopped

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 bunch large asparagus, trimmed and peeled

1 lemon, cut into wedges and seeded

Combine chicken, lemon zest, olive oil, garlic and salt and pepper to taste in large bowl. Toss to coat. Cover and marinate in refrigerator 10 to 30 minutes.

Preheat grill. Place chicken in center of cooking grate and grill until cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes, turning once. Transfer to serving platter and cover with foil.

Place asparagus on grill, arranging spears across cooking grate. Grill 5 minutes or until crisp tender. Transfer to platter with chicken. Serve with lemon wedges. Makes 4 servings.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 11 to 13 minutes

TOMATOES, AVOCADO AND BASIL SALAD

3 ripe tomatoes (about 1 pound), cored and cut into thin wedges

1 ripe avocado, halved, pitted, peeled and cut into thin wedges

2 tablespoons chopped basil

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Combine tomatoes, avocado, basil, olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste in large bowl. Stir gently to coat with dressing. Makes 4 servings.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

STRAWBERRIES WITH POWDERED SUGAR

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 pint large strawberries, rinsed and drained (do not hull)

Sift powdered sugar onto sheet of wax paper. Spoon mound of powdered sugar onto 4 dessert plates. Divide berries evenly and serve. Makes 4 servings.

Preparation time: 5 minutes

(Marie Simmons is the author of ``A to Z Puddings,'' Chapters/Houghton Mifflin.)

(c) 2000, Marie Simmons. Distributed by the Los Angeles Times Syndicate.

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Author: Marie Simmons