It's been a while since I posted a recipe and I guess I got some splainin to do. Weekends are a toss-up on what may or may not be cooked. It's family time and we often spend the weekend doing stuff which may equal a subway dinner...or something thrown together really quick......or even the ordering of pizza. So, I will rarely post a recipe or what I'm cooking on weekends.
On Monday, I did make dinner that I had EVERY intention of posting on here, but it was VERY disappointing. Really not good. I made chicken fajitas in the crockpot and I was pretty nervous of the outcome. It called for putting onions and bell pepper on the bottom and the chicken on top...pour on some chicken broth and top with seasoning. I thought....won't this make those yummy veggies mushy and lose flavor. Boy, did it ever. I prefer crisp-tender veggies as this is when they have the most flavor. I will stick with the oven baked fajitas I made a couple weeks ago that left my veggies crisp and was LOADED to the HILT with flavor. Here is the recipe, in case you forgot.
But, last night, I put together a meal that was just mouth watering good. I am having a hard time remembering to take pictures which is very frustrating especially with a dish as mouth-watering as this one..and it was pretty too. I will get better. I promise.
Now, I wasn't following a recipe with this dish, I honestly was trying to use things I already had. I had chicken breasts in the freezer and I had pesto and roasted red bell peppers in my fridge. I had already planned on making the Zucchini Chips, so I was trying to come up with something to make to go with them. And so...it came to me.
Ok....First I defrosted about 4 breasts. They were large, so I could have made 3 breasts, but then the kids and I would not have had leftovers today for lunch.
I mixed together the following ingredients in a small bowl (no measurements, I just eyeballed it to what I thought looked good...this is going to be a marinade): extra virgin olive oil, 2 minced garlic cloves, garlic salt, pepper, italian seasoning, and some lime juice (my lemons were bad and I had some bottled lime juice in the fridge and thought why not). I whisked this together and covered the breasts with the fragrant mixture and covered with plastic wrap to let the flavors mingle for a couple hours.
When it was time to cook, I broiled the breasts on each side for several minutes until the breasts looked pretty cooked on the outside, flipping them over when one side was done. I pulled them out of the broiler and topped each breast with a generous spreading of pesto, some diced up roasted red bell pepper, and some parmesan cheese. My broiler is below the stove and I needed it for the zucchini, but it makes the oven nice and hot and you can keep cooking things in there while broiling. SO, I put the breasts in the oven, so they could continue to cook and the toppings could melt together in perfect harmony.
So, then I prepared the zucchini chips. My kids LOVE these...I mean LOVE. My son could eat these by themselves at dinner. They are super easy and not bad for you (not the BEST, but not bad). I take two zucchini and I slice them into a little thinner than 1/4 inch slices. I spray a baking sheet with Smart Balance spray and arrange the slices into a single layer in the pan. Next I spray the slices with some "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" spray. I sprinkle them with greek seasoning (not too much), top them with parmesan cheese. When you broil them, keep an eye on them...you want the cheese to get golden, but do not want the zucchini to get mushy.
By now, the chicken is fully cooked and the zucchini is ready. All you have to do is serve. Let me tell you, this meal was incredible. The chicken was moist and flavorful. We all agree that pesto is from heaven. The zucchini chips are always loved...in fact my son always asks for more. Every plate was cleaned and the kids and I enjoyed more chicken today at lunch...I boiled some pasta and added the left-over pesto to it and some parmesan cheese. MmmmmMmmmmmm
On Monday, I did make dinner that I had EVERY intention of posting on here, but it was VERY disappointing. Really not good. I made chicken fajitas in the crockpot and I was pretty nervous of the outcome. It called for putting onions and bell pepper on the bottom and the chicken on top...pour on some chicken broth and top with seasoning. I thought....won't this make those yummy veggies mushy and lose flavor. Boy, did it ever. I prefer crisp-tender veggies as this is when they have the most flavor. I will stick with the oven baked fajitas I made a couple weeks ago that left my veggies crisp and was LOADED to the HILT with flavor. Here is the recipe, in case you forgot.
But, last night, I put together a meal that was just mouth watering good. I am having a hard time remembering to take pictures which is very frustrating especially with a dish as mouth-watering as this one..and it was pretty too. I will get better. I promise.
Now, I wasn't following a recipe with this dish, I honestly was trying to use things I already had. I had chicken breasts in the freezer and I had pesto and roasted red bell peppers in my fridge. I had already planned on making the Zucchini Chips, so I was trying to come up with something to make to go with them. And so...it came to me.
Ok....First I defrosted about 4 breasts. They were large, so I could have made 3 breasts, but then the kids and I would not have had leftovers today for lunch.
I mixed together the following ingredients in a small bowl (no measurements, I just eyeballed it to what I thought looked good...this is going to be a marinade): extra virgin olive oil, 2 minced garlic cloves, garlic salt, pepper, italian seasoning, and some lime juice (my lemons were bad and I had some bottled lime juice in the fridge and thought why not). I whisked this together and covered the breasts with the fragrant mixture and covered with plastic wrap to let the flavors mingle for a couple hours.
When it was time to cook, I broiled the breasts on each side for several minutes until the breasts looked pretty cooked on the outside, flipping them over when one side was done. I pulled them out of the broiler and topped each breast with a generous spreading of pesto, some diced up roasted red bell pepper, and some parmesan cheese. My broiler is below the stove and I needed it for the zucchini, but it makes the oven nice and hot and you can keep cooking things in there while broiling. SO, I put the breasts in the oven, so they could continue to cook and the toppings could melt together in perfect harmony.
So, then I prepared the zucchini chips. My kids LOVE these...I mean LOVE. My son could eat these by themselves at dinner. They are super easy and not bad for you (not the BEST, but not bad). I take two zucchini and I slice them into a little thinner than 1/4 inch slices. I spray a baking sheet with Smart Balance spray and arrange the slices into a single layer in the pan. Next I spray the slices with some "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" spray. I sprinkle them with greek seasoning (not too much), top them with parmesan cheese. When you broil them, keep an eye on them...you want the cheese to get golden, but do not want the zucchini to get mushy.
By now, the chicken is fully cooked and the zucchini is ready. All you have to do is serve. Let me tell you, this meal was incredible. The chicken was moist and flavorful. We all agree that pesto is from heaven. The zucchini chips are always loved...in fact my son always asks for more. Every plate was cleaned and the kids and I enjoyed more chicken today at lunch...I boiled some pasta and added the left-over pesto to it and some parmesan cheese. MmmmmMmmmmmm
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