WIAW - Minnie's Mojo Chicken

Our kitten Minnie is quite the kitchen helper. She can be seen lurking in the background of quite a few of our recipe posts.

She wanted to help on the blog too as she often does, so I let her pick this week's What I Ate Wednesday topic.

I hope that's okay with Jen over at Peas & Crayons. And yes, I use cute cat pictures to lure readers to my blog.  Is that SO wrong?

Minnie is hard-pressed to find a food she doesn't like, therefore she is a fan of recipes on the blog.  Last week we had a Latin inspired meal featuring Mojo chicken.  Since Minnie also enjoys alliteration I present to you "Minnie's Mojo Chicken".

The chicken was marinated in Mojo marinade, seared, and then baked. The quick brown in the skillet allowed it to remain moist during baking. I baked it at 375 for about 20 minutes. Then as usual I checked the thickest piece with a electric meat thermometer to make sure it was above 165 degrees.

You can most likely find a mojo marinade in your market's Latin food section. It has a bright, citrus flavor.  I'm sure you could also make your own marinade, but the bottle cost about $1 and I can use it about 3 times.

On the side we had plantains.  Right! I feel pretty "outside the box" for making them.  Okay, maybe I'm not, but just let me have my moment.

Plantain vs. el banana

Want to talk about "money saving meals"? 1 plantain = 38 cents! Wow!

I cut mine into 1 inch rounds and placed them on a well greased baking sheet.  Then I added another spray of Pam on top and added salt.  They baked alongside the chicken for 15 minutes. Flip them halfway for even browning.

Plantains have a starchy flavor and a mild, sweet taste. It is a high carbohydrate food and contains a decent amount of vitamin C. Plantains are not meant to be eaten raw.

I rounded out our meal with brown rice cooked with spicy Rotel tomatoes (for Kyle), refried fat-free black beans, and a side salad of spinach, avocado, and tomato tossed with rice vinegar.

Minnie would also like you to know that she ate the chicken and tried to eat the avocado, but Mom said it wasn't good for cats.  She then resorted to her grain-free salmon crunchies.

Tell us about your pet and something silly they do!

Love and meows,
Carissa & Kyle & Minnie