“How’s my breath?” from Marta’s Cuban American Kitchen

My dad used to swear by the medicinal properties of garlic.
“Garlic,” he would always say, “is a natural antibiotic.” He usually made this pronouncement as he was pouring olive oil over toasted Cuban bread and spreading garlic over it to make himself a sandwich. Yes, a sandwich. (This is way before it was hip to go to trendy places and dip your focaccia bread in olive oil and balsamic vinegar, but that’s not important right now.)
Just like the Greek father’s obsession with Windex in the film, from which I handily stole the name for my own blog =D, my dad was all about garlic.
Toothache?
High Blood Pressure?
Acne?
Cholesterol problems?
Need to repel some mosquitos?
Trouble with vampires?
Nothing good on TV?
Garlic is the answer to all that ails you …especially if you’re Cuban. ????

Marta’s Garlicky Chicken
Marinade:
1 large white onion (cut in quarters)
10 (fat!) cloves garlic, mashed with 1 tsp. Salt
½ cup white wine
¼ cup olive oil
2 tsp. Balsamic vinegar
2 ½ lbs. Chicken pieces
Juice of one lime
Black pepper
Ground cumin
Flour (for dusting)
Olive oil

1) In a food processor (or blender) place the onion pieces, about half of the garlicky paste, wine, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar in a blender and grind it up to a coarse mixture.
2) Place chicken pieces in a large freezer ziplock bag and pour in the marinade. Refrigerate for a couple of hours.
3) Preheat your oven to 375° F.
4) Drain the marinade from the chicken and pat dry.
5) Rub the chicken on all sides with the rest of the mashed garlic/salt mixture.
6) Sprinkle the chicken with lime juice, black pepper, and cumin on both sides.
7) Dust the chicken lightly with flour.

8) In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil (twice around the pan) and brown the chicken pieces quickly on both sides.
9) Place chicken pieces in a roasting pan, skin side up.
10) Cook about 45 minutes, or until juices run clear.