Fresh and Bright Flavors:A Menu Plan from My Kitchen to Your TableByKevin GrantIf you are anything like me, menu planning can be a daunting task especially if you want to have more than one course and a meal that is cohesive from start to finish. Well, you are in luck because I am sharing some of my favorite tips and a full menu plan good enough for you, your family and guests a menu for beginners and pros alike. From salad to dessert, this menu will be filled with fresh herbs and bright, lemony notes. The suggested menu is for four, but can easily be expanded to feed a larger group.Lets start with dessert, which can be made the night before. I am not a baker, as I prefer the less rigid rules in basic cooking, but I would love to share my favorite go-to recipe from Bon Apptit recipe and tell you what I do differently. Around Easter I used their Raspberry-Ricotta Cake recipe, but tweaked it with a few simple changes. By whisking in about two small or medium lemons worth of lemon zest to the eggs (room temp), ricotta and vanilla mixture and then using frozen blueberries instead of raspberries, I made this easy to follow recipe my own. The only word of caution I have is be exact with your measurements. While the cake is fairly forgiving, too much ricotta can make the cake too wet like say if you dump the entire container in even if it seems like theres only a little left in the tub. And dont overthink the parchment paper you can press a piece in to the pan prior to spraying and cut around the inner circle of the pan to get the correctly sized piece of parchment you need.Once your cake is done on to the rest of the meal! For an appetizer or salad course, I would recommend a simple arugula and spinach salad with cucumbers, red onions and feta cheese. It can be dressed simply with a little salt and pepper and some quality olive oil and vinegar, of your choice, though I am fond of using lemon-infused olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar. This can be made during the resting period for the chicken that I will discuss in detail further down the line. At this point it is up to you if you would like to have vegetables or not, as you have the salad course to introduce some greens and vegetables in to the menu. If you do want a vegetable consider frozen sweet peas, microwavable is fine, or a simple steamed broccoli or green bean option.Speaking of sides, I am a big fan of potatoes and I would recommend keeping it simple here as well. I like to use about a pound to a pound and a half of baby potatoes, especially reds and Yukon golds, dressed in an olive oil and herb mixture with some salt and pepper. These get made a lot like pasta in that you want to use a good amount of salt using a good sized pan, add in the potatoes, the salt and just enough cold water to cover the potatoes, bring to boil and then - the difference between pasta and potatoes is that you will want to turn the heat down to medium once they are up to a boil again and put the lid on at an angle to allow some steam to escape. Check them after 8-10 minutes, if a sharp paring knife slides in easily drain them and put them back in the hot, dry pot with a towel over the top. After the potatoes have been under the towel for about 5-10 minutes you can prep them for the dressing. This step is simple - halve the potatoes with that same paring knife and dress with a good quality extra virgin olive oil and your choice of freshly chopped delicate herbs. I like to use dill, chives or scallions and some parsley always strip the herbs from their stems as especially in regards to parsley and thyme, which can be too rough. I like to use up to two or three teaspoons of each, roughly chopped, but its really up to you what combination you use and how much of each herb. Start with a tablespoon and a half of olive oil and then add more if the potatoes seem too dry. Add in the chopped herbs and finish the dish with some salt and pepper to taste and plate!To round out this already flavorful and summery menu, I suggest roasting four to six breasts of chicken with a compound butter. I recommend using skin-on and bone-in chicken breasts for this recipe, also known as split chicken breasts. Most come three or four to a package, but you could purchase and roast up to six if you wanted leftover chicken breast for soup, salad or casseroles later in the week. To prep preheat the oven to 350 degrees and clean the chicken breasts. I recommend rinsing them in cold water and patted dry with paper towels. Season the undersides liberally with coarse salt and black pepper. For the compound butter you will need one stick of room-temperature unsalted butter not margarine - and a mixture of freshly ground black pepper and coarse salt, herbs and lemon zest, roughly one large or two small lemons worth. I would recommend using thyme and parsley as your herbs in this mixture, as they both pair well with the lemon zest. Once you have your ingredients prepped, in this case herbs finely chopped and lemons zested, mix in to the butter until well incorporated I like using a regular dinner fork. Add in about a teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of pepper, mix that in and set aside.If you are only roasting four breasts, a high-sided 9x13 pan should work if you want to roast six at a time, I would recommend investing in a larger roasting pan. I usually cover the bottom and sides of the pan with non-stick aluminum foil for easier clean-up and then either rub with olive oil or use a good quality olive oil non-stick spray like Pam. I like to layer slices of lemons and white onions on the bottom, alternating them as I go, for added flavor and moisture you would have about four lemons to use up thanks to the cake and compound butter. You can also add in some of the thyme Now, here comes the messy part so make sure you have the water ready or a good wad of paper towels next you for clean-up!At this point you will want to take your four to six chicken breasts and loosen the skin without breaking it heres a handy how-to off of YouTube: Loosening poultry skin! I suggest dividing up the compound butter in to four or six portions, to correspond with the number of breasts you are roasting. I like to take 2/3 of each portion of compound butter and gently place it under the loosened skin of each breast and using the remainder of the compound butter on the top of the skin. This allows you to massage the butter in to the breast while seasoning the top and keeping it moist. Do not be afraid of this step it will make your chicken flavorful and juicy so get messy!Place the four to six breasts in your prepped pan do not worry if it is a little tight, but make sure they are not directly on top of or under each other. Cover the pan with foil, crimping the foil on to the pans edges and place in to the preheated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. After 45 minutes have passed, remove the foil covering the chicken and continue roasting for another 30 minutes. Once those 30 minutes have passed, check the temperature of the thickest breast it should read at least 165 or 170 degrees. If it is not done yet, place the chicken back in for another 15 minutes this allows the oven to come back to temperature as well as continue to cook the chicken. Once your largest breast reads 165 or 170 degrees, turn off the oven and remove the chicken. Place the roasting pan on some trivets and gently tent some aluminum foil over the breasts for a minimum of 15 minutes. This will allow the chicken breasts to finish cooking without becoming dry. The second half of the cooking time for the chicken is when I would recommend you begin prepping and cooking your sides the salad can be ready to go and eaten while everything rests, especially if you prep the onions and cucumber in advance! Those 15 minutes also give you a chance to do any final clean-up you may want to get to before enjoying your meal.In regards to serving your food, I like family buffet style let everyone choose their own portions. I agree with the professionals that table settings should be simple, so think white plates and simple flatware and glasses. If you are inclined to use a tablecloth or placemats, think white tablecloth and alternating spring green and yellow placemats to mimic the menus flavor profiles. Centerpieces, if desired, should also be minimal and elegant think again of white, yellow and green with maybe a pop of blue, for the berries in the cake. Thank you for taking the time to read through my menu plan and I hope you and your family and friends enjoy it as much as I have!

Suggested List of Equipment:One 9-inch round metal baking pan (cake)One 9x13 high-sided metal baking pan, or larger (chicken)One citrus zester or microplaneOne steamer pot or steamer insert (sides)One 4-qt or larger pot (potatoes)One 4-qt or large glass bowl (potatoes)One plastic cutting board (chicken)One wooden cutting board (herbs, vegetables and lemons)Two mixing bowls, medium or large (cake)One sharp paring knifeOne sharp chefs knifeOne whiskOne spatulaOne set of tongs (for handling the chicken)Measuring spoons and cups, dry measurements onlyNon-stick aluminum foil and parchment paperMandolin, optional, for thinly slicing the lemons and onionsPlating options are up to you, I do recommend having plating and serving pieces like nicer bowls and nicer quality slotted spoons, large serving forks and spoons, etc. Shopping List:Refer to Bon Apptits list for the cake except for the raspberriesA 10-oz or larger bag of frozen blueberries4-6 split chicken breasts, bone-in and skin-on4 lemons, small-medium, for zesting AND the chickenFresh dill, parsley and chives/scallions for the potatoes*Fresh parsley and thyme for the compound butter* *Supermarkets often sell fresh herbs in smaller packets if you do not want a large amount1 stick unsalted butter1 lbs of baby potatoesYour choice of vegetableA mixture of salad greens, preferably arugula and spinachA small container of feta, crumbledOne small red onionOne English or seedless cucumberTwo medium-large white onions (chicken)Extra virgin olive oil, balsamic and/or red wine vinegar, and salt and pepper are considered pantry items, something you should always have in your kitchen.