Category: dinner

Quick and Easy Turkey Tenderloin

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Are you burnt out on the same old boneless skinless chicken breast? How about trying out some turkey?

Hold up! Before you leave, I’m not talking about the tasteless, bland ground turkey or the dried out bird from the holidays. I’m talking about turkey tenderloins.

Roasted Turkey Tenderloin

Quick and Easy Turkey Tenderloin

Wait, what? The turkey has a tenderloin?!

The tenderloin is the thick cut of meat from between the breasts. Since that muscle doesn’t get much use, it is more tender than the rest of the bird.  I find it is similar to chicken in texture, but with more flavor.  And just like chicken, it is highly versatile! Pretty much any recipe that you would use chicken in you can sub with turkey tenderloin. Grill, roast, stir fry, breaded, pan fried, stuffed, you get the idea.

The tenderloin is a quick cooking very lean cut of meat.  It has 8% more protein than chicken breast and depending on how you prep it, it can be ready to eat in just a few minutes.  3 ounces of cooked turkey tenderloin has only 120 calories, 1 gram of fat and 26 grams of protein.

The biggest (only?) knock on turkey tenderloin is, just like the whole bird, it does dry out if overcooked. So make sure you use a thermometer.  You’ll want to cook it till it reads 160, then let it rest for 10 minutes (to finish cooking).

Below is my favorite super quick and easy way to make it. Be prepared to see more recipes incorporating turkey tenderloin in the coming months.  I’m envisioning maybe an Asian inspired stir fry and a fall-ish dish with roasted squash, Brussel sprouts, and pomegranates?

Quick and easy Turkey Tenderloin

2 Lbs. Turkey tenderloin

3 Tb Soy sauce (use Tamari if gluten Free)

1 Tb Dijon Mustard

2 tsp Poultry seasoning (or rosemary, sage and thyme)

1/2 tsp Garlic powder

1 tsp Salt

  1. Preheat broiler to high, and move rack to 4 inches below heat.
  2. Remove turkey from packaging and blot dry with paper towels. Place on a cooking sheet lined with foil.
  3. Season meat liberally with salt and garlic powder.
  4. In a small bowl mix soy sauce, Dijon mustard and herbs.
  5. Pour half sauce over the turkey. Flip turkey and pour on the rest.
  6. Insert thermometer in middle of the tenderloin.
  7. Place in oven and broil for approximately 20 minutes, flipping half way through cooking
  8. Remove turkey from oven when it reaches 160 and move to cutting board and let rest for 10 mins.

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Deconstructed Taco Salad Bowl with an Avocado Lime Dressing (Dairy Free, Wheat Free, Egg Free, Paleo Friendly)

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Let’s get straight to the point; tacos are delicious. The problem with tacos is not only can they can be calorically dense but they also tend to be lacking in the vegetable department.  One way to combat this: turn your tacos into a deconstructed taco salad bowl.

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Taco salad bowl with a dairy free and egg free avocado lime dressing.

Even with the bowls, however, you have to watch those toppings. Sour cream, cheddar cheese, avocado and the deep fried shell all add up fast.

Here are a few ways you can lighten up your taco bowl:

  • Replace deep fried high fat shell with homemade chips (if paleo, replace with plantain chips.)
  • Replace multiple high fat toppings with an avocado-lime dressing.
  • Replace high sodium taco seasoning with homemade.
  • And add in lots of veggies.
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Homemade tortilla chips have less fat and carbs then store bought chips.

To assemble your bowls, just fill with whatever veggies you have in your fridge.  I like a mix of romaine and spinach. Then I throw in some tomatoes, cucumber, sugar snap peas (for that crunch!), bell peppers, green onions.  Add meat of your choice. I used ground beef for this one, but flank steak or chicken breast with some tex mex seasoning goes great (Check out my tex mex seasoning on Instagram here). Drizzle some avocado lime dressing over it, maybe a little pico de gallo or salsa and grab a handful of homemade chips. And there you have it, a healthier more satisfying version of your standard taco.

Recipes

For the chips:

Corn tortillas

Spray coconut oil

Salt

  1. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. Cut tortillas into triangles or strips
  3. Spritz with oil and sprinkle with salt.
  4. Cook for 8-10 mins.  Keep an eye on them, they can burn quickly.

 

Taco Meat:

2 pounds extra lean ground beef or turkey.

½ onion finely diced.

3 garlic cloves

1 Tb cumin

2 tsp chili powder

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp oregano

2 tb tomato paste

1 cup tomato sauce

  1. In a large, deep sided skillet brown the meat. Breaking it up into small pieces. Add onion garlic and seasonings. Cook till onion is soft and translucent.
  2. Cover and cook on med low for 1/2 hour. Taste and add salt and spices as needed. (This recipe is kid friendly so it is very mild.)

 

For the Avocado lime dressing:

1/3 cup nondairy plain unsweetened creamer (I used the Nutpod brand, but you can replace with a mixture of coconut milk and nut milk.)

1 avocado

1 bunch of cilantro

1/2 tsp salt

2 cloves garlic

2 scallions

1 tb olive oil

juice from 1 lime.

  1. Throw everything into the blender and blend till nice and creamy.  You may need to add a few tablespoons water to thin it out to desired consistency.

 

 

 

 

THE NEW YOU

Simple Extra Crispy Oven Roasted Chicken Quarters

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Poor, poor chicken. It gets so hated on.  Too dry. Too plain. Too boring. Well yeah, I suppose it could be all those things if you don’t do anything to it and just threw it in the oven.  With a little creativity chicken can be great again.

One of the problems with chicken, is we tend to always reach for the same cut of meat.  It is a good idea, not only for the taste buds, but also for our bodies to mix that up once in a while.

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The extra crispy skin on these chicken leg quarters make it extra tasty. 

Dark meat gets a bad rap as being less healthy then white meat. While dark meat does have more fat, it also has more iron, zinc, niacin and riboflavin.  Plus, it does not have a huge amount more fat.   100 grams of chicken leg, roasted without the skin has 8 grams.  While 100 grams of cooked chicken breast without the skin has 4 grams.  The trick here is not to serve chicken legs with a fatty side dish.  If you are serving chicken legs, you need to consider the meat your protein and fat source for the meal.

Now about that chicken skin.  It is crispy and delicious. It’s super fatty and unhealthy, or is it?

One chicken leg roasted with the skin on has 9 grams of fat (3 grams coming from saturated fat) and that same chicken leg cooked without the skin has 5 grams of fat (1 gram saturated).  So, yes it does have more fat, but not tons more.  In the end, it really is ok to eat the chicken skin occasionally!

If you are still uncomfortable with that amount of fat you can do skinless. Just do not by the overpriced skinless meat.  Remove the skin yourself and you can save quite a bit of money.  I find it easiest to grip the skin with a paper towel and pull. However, when roasting or grilling the meat I advise you do not remove the skin off before cooking. Cooking with the skin intact helps keep the meat tender and flavorful. You can remove it prior to eating.

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Below is my simple chicken quarters recipe, but it would also work for chicken breast.  You might balk at the use of dill here, but it goes really well with the soy sauce. I promise.  The soy sauce helps to make the chicken skin extra flavorful and crispy.  If you are planning  to remove the skin before eating then, make sure you put the seasoning UNDER the skin.

 

Simple Roasted Chicken Quarters

  • 4 skin on, bone in chicken leg quarters
  • soy sauce, about 1/3 cup
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • ¼ teaspoon dried dill weed

 

  1. Preheat oven to 375.
  2. Using paper towels pat dry the chicken.  Gently slip one finger between the skin and the meat and loosen the skin from the meat.  Making sure skin still stays attached.
  3. Place chicken pieces on large glass baking dish.
  4. Using a marinade brush, brush under the skin with soy sauce.
  5. Brush entire legs with remaining soy sauce. (You don’t need to use all the soy sauce. Just until the chicken has been completely painted)
  6. Sprinkle with seasonings. (If you plan to not eat the skin, put the seasoning under the skin)
  7. Place on middle rack and bake for 45 mins to 1 hour.
  8. If the skin did not crisp up, increase oven temp to 400 and continue to cook for about 5 to 10 mins.  Keep a close eye on it so the skin doesn’t burn.
  9. Chicken is done when it reaches an internal temp of 165.

 

Crispy Oven RoastedChicken Leg quarters

 

Low Carb High Protein Make Ahead Lasagna Jars

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These little lasagna jars are not only healthy and tasty but also incredibly easy to prepare. They make a great meal prep option.  They can be stored for months in the freezer or kept in the fridge for 3 days.  I personally like to keep a few in my freezer as an option for those days where things do not go as planned and I need a quick meal. Just knowing they are in there keeps me from ordering take out or going to a drive through.

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Instead of noodles, this recipe uses zucchini.  I found slicing the zucchini thinly gave it the best texture. You can use a mandoline slicer or a shop knife.

Zucchini

While I used a jarred marinara (Amy’s brand) you could easily use homemade it you want.  Either way, make sure to pick a lower sodium and lower sugar option.

The most important aspect of this recipe is what you choose to store the lasagna in. If you plan to freeze these, make sure you use a freezable container. Also, it is helpful to use containers that are oven safe, that way they can go straight in the oven without dirtying another dish.   Wide mouth mason jars, Pyrex glass storage containers or Glasslock containers all work.  Just make sure you don’t put a frozen dish right in the hot oven, the abrupt temperature change can make the glass crack or shatter.

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Makes 6 pint sized mason jar servings.

  • 1 lb extra lean (99% lean) ground turkey
  • ½ onion, finely diced
  • 2 cloves, minced
  • 1 jar Marinara Pasta Sauce (look for a lower sodium and lower sugar variety, I like Amy’s brand)
  • 3 Tb egg white
  • 1 cup low fat cottage cheese
  • 1 medium zucchini
  • ¾ cup part skim shredded mozzarella
  • chopped fresh basil

 

  1. Using a mandoline, thinly slice the zucchini. You can slice by hand, but the thinner the better.
  2. Spritz large skillet with cooking oil and sauté onion till translucent.
  3. Add ground turkey and brown.
  4. Add minced garlic, and cook for 1 min.
  5. Pour in marina sauce
  6. Meanwhile in a small bowl, combine cottage cheese and egg white.

Assembling jars

  1. Line up 6 containers. And layer half the zucchini slices in the bottom of the jars.
  2. Next add cottage cheese mixture to each jar.
  3. Then add meat and sauce.
  4. Repeat with remaining cottage cheese and then sauce mixture.
  5. Top with half the zucchini slices.
  6. If you plan to cook them immediately, top with cheese, about 2 Tb per jar, and bake at 350 for 15 mins. Or until the mixture is bubbly and the cheese is melted.Otherwise store in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for 3 months.Top with cheese before cooking. (And I recommend defrosting before cooking if frozen.) You can bake for 20 minutes at 350. Or use the microwave (keep in mind the cheese won’t get all crispy and brown in microwave)
  7. Sprinkle with fresh basil and enjoy!

Nutrition for 1/6 the recipe:

Calories: 238 Fat: 8 grams Carbohydrates: 12 grams Protien:31 grams

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Chicken, Bacon and Potato Soup

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This is a perfectly warm and comforting soup, without all the carb and fat you usually get in a potato bacon soup. It’s is so light you probably will still be able to have some crusty bread with it (if you are into that sort of thing).   However, I felt the soup was plenty filling without the bread. The high protein content (35 grams per serving) helps keep you feeling full and satisfied while still being low in fat and carbs.

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Comforting chicken, potato and bacon soup.

Make sure to use bone in chicken thighs.  The bone helps keep the meat tender and not dried out.  If you can’t find any bone in thighs with the skin already removed, just remove it yourself.  Slip you finger between the skin and the meat, and tear off.  It can be slippery; I find grabbing the skin with a paper towel helps.  Using kitchen shears, cut off any remaining hunks of skin or fat.  Before serving, you will gently remove the thighs with a slotted spoon.  They will start to fall apart so you have to be gently.  Remove the bones and any cartilages and return to the slow cooker.

The whole recipe only takes 4 hours in the slow cooker on low.   Unfortunately, you do need to tend to it after 2 hours (to throw the potatoes in). But it is a great meal to make when you are going to be busy in the house doing other things.

 

Chicken, Bacon and Potato Soup

4  bacon slices, chopped

2 pounds bone-in chicken thighs, remove the skin.

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp onion powder

½ tsp oregano

½ kosher salt

2 large leeks, thinly sliced

4 carrots sliced

4 celery stalks, sliced

4 cups unsalted chicken stock

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

5 thyme sprigs

12 ounces baby potatoes

2 huge handfuls baby spinach

 

  1. Cook bacon in a large skillet, till nice and crispy.  Remove bacon and set aside.  Leave the bacon fat in the pan
  2. Season chicken thighs with seasonings (garlic powder, onion powder, oregano and salt) Place in skillet and brown.  Approximately 4 minutes per side. Remove and place in slow cooker.
  3. Add carrot, leek and celery to pan and sauté for 5 mins.  Then move to slow cooker.
  4. Add chicken stock and bacon to slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low for 2 hours.
  5. After 2 hours add potatoes and cook on low for another 2 hours.
  6. Remove chicken and pull meat from the bone.  Shred and put back in slow cooker.  Add spinach and salt and pepper to taste.

 

Enjoy!

 

Nutrition Info for 1/6 the recipe: 256 calories 7 grams fat, 15 grams carbs, 35 grams protein

 

Inspired by a recipe in Cooking Light Magazine.

Quick and Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup

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I don’t know about where you are, but it is FINALLY cold here in North Texas. Like cold enough it is snowing!  Ok they are just flurries. (I will always be a Midwesterner at heart).  Cold weather means soup time. This Chicken Tortilla soup one of my all-time favorite soup recipes.  Mainly for the fact it only takes 20 minutes while still being healthy and satisfying.

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There are two time saving short cuts in this recipe. The first is, instead of baking up chicken to use, just grab a rotisserie from your local grocery store.  I liked to drain off all the extra fat when I get home and remove the skin.  If it’s cool enough, I remove all the meat.  For this recipe all you need is the breast meat (skin removed) so save the extra meat from the thigh, legs and wings for adding into salads.

The second time saver is using the blender instead of having it simmer all day long. Throwing it in the blender or using an immersion blender will give a a great texture without having to cook it for a long period of time.  Please note, if using a blender do not place the clear plastic filler cup on the lid.  Leave the middle hole open.  When you blend it, place a tea towel over the hole to let the steam escape.

Instead of using tortilla chips for the topping,  we are baking our own using fresh tortillas. Don’t worry it only takes 10 minutes and they are lower in fat and tastier too! I am big fan of baking up my own tortilla chips, that way I don’t have a big open bag laying around tempting me.  I just bake as many as needed.

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Quick and Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup

  • 2 Carrots, chopped
  • 1 Green Bell Pepper, chopped
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 1 Tb olive oil
  • 1 15 oz can diced tomatoes, NOT drained
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • ¼ cup Corn Meal
  • 3/4 tsp Salt
  • 1/2 tsp, chili powder.
  • 1 tsp, Ground Cumin
  • ½ tsp oregano
  • ½ tsp paprika
  • ½ garlic powder
  • 1 avocado
  • green onions
  • cilantro
  • 8 tortillas, Tortillas
  • Chicken breast from rotisserie chicken, skin removed. (approx. 12 oz)
  • 1/2 cup frozen corn

 

  1. Preheat oven to 350. Cut corn tortillas into ½ inch strips.  Light spritz with cooking spray and salt. Cook for 10 minutes till crispy but not burnt.
  2. In a large pot heat oil. Cook onion, green bell and carrots till starting to soften.  About 8 minutes.
  3. Dump in diced tomatoes and chicken broth. Bring to a bowl.
  4. Add in the corn meal and approx. ¼ of the crunchy corn tortillas.
  5. Add in salt, chili powder, cumin, oregano and garlic powder.
  6. Carefully pour entire soup pot into a blender or use an immersion blender. Blend till smooth. **If using a blender, when placing the top in the blender do not insert the plastic fill cup. Leave the hole open in the lid and hold a tea towel over the lid.  This is very important; it allows the steam to escape. Otherwise it will blow up on you and you will have a steamy hot mess! **
  7. Shred chicken breasts.
  8. Return to soup pot and add in chicken and frozen corn. Reheat till warm. And top individual bowls with diced avocado, crunchy tortilla strips, green onion and cilantro.
  9. Enjoy!

 

Makes approximately 6 servings.  Each serving is about 1 ½ cups and has:  278 calories, 9 grams of fat, 29 grams of carbohydrates and 22 grams protein.

chicken-tortilla-soup

Stress free Beef Gyro Bowl

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This is another quick and easy recipe when you don’t feel like cooking.  I like to keep this one on my menu during chaotic weeks when I don’t want to stress myself out any more. Like, I don’t know, the holiday season? It is basically just seasoned ground beef, topped with veggies and some tzatziki. Not only is this recipe stress free it is also high in protein and relatively low in carbs!

Tzatziki

Tzatziki made with greek yogurt

If you are not familiar with tzatziki, it’s a cold sauce or dip made from yogurt. The recipe will make more tzatziki then you need for these gryo bowls. Save it, don’t toss it! There are so many ways to eat it.  As a dip for crackers or veggies.  Or it goes great with just about any meat.

These gyro bowls are able to be customized to meet your needs.  Need some carbs? Serve over rice.  Need more protein? Serve over quinoa.  Neither?  Serve over cauliflower rice or spinach.  I personally prefer a mixture of quinoa and spinach.

The tzatziki does take some time since it needs to be prepared ahead of time. Everything else,however, comes together in 20 minutes! You can make the tzatziki ahead of time. (I’ve kept mine if the fridge for a couple days.  I have no idea if will last longer than that since I usually eat it all my then!)

Beef gyro bowl

Beef Gyro Bowl over quinoa and spinach.

Top these bowls with whatever veggies you are feeling like.  I  use whatever I have hiding out in my fridge.  I imagine some beets and radishes would go pretty well on this!  If making this for little ones (or picky adults), just exclude things their palates might not like (in my house I leave the olives and red onions off the kids bowls)

 

 

Tzatziki

Makes 4 huge servings or more, smaller ones if you are not as obsessed as me.

 

16 oz 2% or whole fat plain greek yogurt. (Don’t use nonfat it will be too runny)

1 large cucumber, peeled seeded and diced

1 tb lemon juice

1 tb red wine vinegar

1 tb olive oil

4 cloves garlic minced or pressed

1 tsp dried dill

 

  1. Seed the cucumber by cutting it in half and using a spoon to scrap the seeds out of the middle. Dice it as small as you have the patience for.
  2. Toss the cucumber with kosher salt and place in a strainer. Fill a large gallon sized bag fil with ice and place on top and let it sit for at least an hour.
  3. In the meantime, mix all remaining ingredients.
  4. Remove cucumber and using cheese cloth or thick paper towel squeeze out any excess liquid.
  5. Mix with yogurt mixture and adjust salt and pepper to taste
  6. Set in fridge for at least on hour.

 

Gyro Bowls

Makes 4 servings

 

1 lb 95% lean ground beef

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried rosemary

1 tsp kosher salt

½ tsp garlic granules (or minced fresh garlic if you wish)

2 cups spinach

½ cup quinoa (omit if using rice or cauliflower rice)

1 cucumber, peeled and sliced

½ cup red bell pepper, sliced

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

¼ cup red onion, diced

¼  cup Kalamata olives

¼ cup chopped walnuts.

 

1.Cook quinoa (or rice) according to package.

2.Season beef with oregano, rosemary and salt and pepper. Brown over medium heat and drain off any fat.

3.Place ¼ cup quinoa in each bowl.  Top with ¼ of the ground beef.  Add spinach, cucumber, red bell, tomatoes, red onion.  Top each bowl with ½ cup tzatziki (less if you are not a freak about it like I am), 1 tb Kalamata olives and 1 tb walnuts.

 

Enjoy!

 

Nutrition for ¼ the amount plus ½ cup tzatziki

Calories: 379 Carbs: 24 Fat: 14 Protein: 38

 

Inspired by a recipe from Clean Eating Magazine.

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Stuffed Peppers with Quinoa and Turkey

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The standard rice in this dish is replaced with the superfood quinoa.  While we eat quinoa like a grain it really is a seed. It is closely related to beets and spinach. Keep in mind it is covered in a bitter substance called saponins, so when you prep it make sure when you give a good rinse it first. Quinoa is naturally gluten free and decent source of protein, calcium, potassium, zinc, iron and vitamin E, hence why it gets to be called a superfood.

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Superfood Quinoa

By dicing the veggies small they are less likely to be picked out or noticed by the pickier eaters.  Keep in mind, though, bell peppers are a strong flavor and young palates may not eat them.  But that is ok, there are still 2 servings of vegetables hiding on the inside.  If you or any of your eater do not like feta you can leave it out completely, or just sprinkle it on top of some of the peppers.

You can make this dish any time of year, but it is fun to turn them into pepper-o-lanterns around Halloween! If you do carve them, do it before you stuff them and keep the oepenings small.  You may want to plan some extra time to make this; it takes about 30 minutes to prep and then another 30 in the oven.  (You can prep it ahead of time, and throw it in the oven at later point.  Just note it may need a little extra cook time if the peppers are cold from the refrigerator.)

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Stuffed Pepper-O-Lantern!

Stuffed peppers with Turkey and Quinoa

½ cup quinoa

1 cup chicken broth

6 bell peppers (any color you prefer)

1 Tb olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small onion, chopped

1 small zucchini, diced

1 lb ground turkey.

2 tb Worcestershire sauce

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

1 can fire roasted crushed tomatoes

1 Tb fresh oregano chopped

3 oz feta crumbled

Heat oven to 350. Combine quinoa and chicken broth in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce and simmer for 15 minutes.  Quinoa is cooked once all the liquid is absorbed and they looked unwound.

Cut the tops of the peppers and set them aside. Remove the seeds and any white ribbing inside (If you are carving them, do that now.  Keep the openings small, you don’t want all the insides to fall out when cooking). Place peppers in a baking dish.  Discard the stems from the peppers tops and dice.

Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. When hot, add garlic, onion chopped pepper tops, and zucchini. Cook till soft about 10 minutes.

Add turkey, Worcestershire, salt and pepper. Cook until meat is browned, about 8 minutes.  Add tomatoes and oregano.  Stir in quinoa and half the feta (if mixing inside the peppers.  If you have picky eaters, skip this and just top some of the peppers with it)

Fill peppers with meat mixture, and top with feta.  Cook for 30 minutes. Makes 6 servings.

 

Nutrition for one pepper: 291 calories, 12 grams fat, 24 carbs, 21 protein

 

 

 

 

 

Margherita Egg White Frittata

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Recently I was gifted a very large bunch of basil and this recipe was born out of me desperately trying to come up with ways to use it before it went bad.  And I must say, it was a success.  I love basil, and there so many ways to use it other than pesto.  Basil isn’t just big on flavor; it also packs an amazingly healthy punch.  It is full of vitamin K, magnesium and potassium.  Also, research is showing the phytochemicals in basil can fight viruses, bacteria and inflammation.

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Now, to be honest, I did not test this recipe out on my children (I was hungry and not in the mood to share. Hey now, it happens.) But, I imagine most kids would like it.  I used all egg whites in the recipe, but feel free to sub in whole eggs (just note that will change the nutritional breakdown).

Due to the high protein content it is very filling while still being low in carbs (if you would like more carbs, some fresh fruit would go really well with it.) This frittata makes a great brunch or dinner.  Since does take a little attention and time, however, it is not the best choice for a rushed morning.

 

Margherita Egg White Frittata.

Serves 1

5 Oz Egg whites

3.5 Oz Grape tomatoes, sliced (any tomato will probably work here, this was just what I had on hand)

1 Oz Fresh mozzarella cheese

1 Tb Parmesan Cheese

2 Tb Basil, shredded

 

Place small skillet over medium heat and spritz with cooking oil.  Once hot, place tomato slices on skillet.  After a few minutes, pour egg whites over the tomatoes.  Once the sides begin to set, use a spatula to gently left the edges allowing the still liquid whites to run under.   As you lift the edge of the set egg, gently tip the pan so the uncooked egg can run underneath. Continue to do this till almost cooked through. It will still be a little raw in the middle.   Add mozzarella slices and over with a lid (keep an eye on it though, you don’t want it to burn).  Once the eggs are fully set turn over on to a plate and sprinkle with basil and parmesan cheese.  Enjoy!

 

Nutrition:

Calories: 192 Fat:6 Carbs:5 protein: 25

Chicken with strawberries, basil and goat cheese.

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This protein packed recipe is  great when you are short on time. It is also family friendly.  My littles (age 5 and 2 love it).  The whole recipe takes only 30 minutes to throw together.  The combination of the strawberries, goat cheese and basil go really well together.  It’s easily adaptable to different family member’s tastes. For example, I leave the balsamic off my 2-year old’s plate, and I don’t add the goat cheese to the 5-year old’s.

Strawberries are a good source of vitamin C, A and K.  Make sure you choose berries that are dry and firm.  Smaller berries tend to have more flavor then the larger ones. Typically, the larger berries contain more water so, their flavor is diluted.

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While boneless skinless chicken breasts are a great lean protein source they can be tough to cook.  They easily become chewy or dry.  This is a quick cooking method, so there is less time for them to dry out. Make sure you do not use more than 1 tablespoon of oil when cooking them though.  It just needs to be enough to lightly cover the bottom of the pan. We are pan frying these guys, not deep frying! The easiest and cleanest way to pound the chicken is to place it in a gallon zip lock, and smack the crap out of it with a heavy skillet or pan.  Great way to get your aggressions out and the ziplock keeps all the chicken germs from flying around your kitchen.

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The Ingredients

4 Chicken breast, boneless skinless.

1 Tb cooking oil. (I like coconut oil)

Salt and pepper

2 Lbs green beans, washed and trimmed

1 Tb oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

kosher salt

black pepper

16 strawberries, washed hulled and chopped

2 Tb basil, chopped

2 oz goat cheese crumbles (feta would be great here too)

Balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400. Trim the green beans.  Toss with oil and salt. Place on a cookie sheet/pan. (Make sure they are dry 1st).  Roast for 20-25 mins, shaking the pan every 10-15 mins.  They are done when wrinkly and brown in spots.

Meanwhile, pound the chicken thin.  You’ll want them to be uniform in thickness.  Heat oil in skillet to medium high.  Season chicken with salt and pepper. Once oil is hot, place chicken in skillet and cooked undisturbed for 3- 5 mins per side.  Let sit for 5 minutes.  (If you are making all 4 breasts, you may need to cook 2 at a time.  Do not crowd them in the pan)

To serve: Place chicken breast on top of 1.5 cups green beans and top with ½ cup chopped strawberries, ½ oz crumbled goat cheese, a sprinkle of basil and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

 

Nutrition (with 1.5 cups green beans, 4 oz chicken and ½ oz goat cheese):

Calories:377 carbs:16  fat:14  protien:41