...and sip, and savor, and indulge, and devour and ...

A recent outdoor dining experience at a cafe nestled in a quaint inner city neighborhood led me to ponder the words in the above title. A small garden along the boulevard was outlined with brick pavers. Each brick had two words etched in it. The first word was and followed by a verb. The verbs related to what we might do when getting together with others at a cafe. Some other words included: and toast, and laugh, and discuss, and imagine, and drink, and gobble, and argue, and nibble. This unique landscaping idea caught my attention. It also led me to think how we should take more time out of our day to be unbusy and savor some alone time or plan to meet up with a friend, family member or colleague.

If you happen to be in the mood for a grilling experience consider the following recipes. Each one has a bit of kick to it!

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Grilled Mexican Citrus Chicken

Ingredients:

• 6 boneless chicken breasts
• option: cut meat up for kabobs

Mexican Citrus Marinade

Adjust seasoning amounts to your taste

• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 TB. fresh cilantro
• 2 TB. chopped onion
• 2 ts. chili powder
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Directions:

• Mix all ingredients and pour into a resealable plastic bag
• Add chicken and turn once to coat
• Place bag in a shallow glass pan and refrigerate
• Turn bag occasionally and marinate about three hours
• Drain marinade but save some of the mixture to baste with when grilling

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Mexican Marinade

Allow at least three hours for meat to be in marinade. The beer make the chicken quite tender

Marinade:

Mix all ingredients till smooth

Pour into a resealable bag, add meat and refrigerate in a shallow glass pan

• 3 cups Mexican beer or a dark beer
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup cilantro
• 2-4 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. salt