Last night I made these for book club.
Pumpkin Chip. Yum.
By the time I finished there was little to no time for preparing dinner. I had taken out Wegman’s Organic Chicken Breasts but quite frankly I wasn’t sure what I was doing with them.
So I reverted back to the way my Mom cooked: One protein, one grain, one vegetable. The kids loved it and I’m sharing because I always get comments about what I share here looking delicious but being too hard for people to try. While I don’t agree with you (If I can cook so can you.) I’ll show you that there are nights where I am throwing it in the oven too but that doesn’t mean it can’t be healthy or delicious.
This took about 5 minutes to prepare because two parts included nothing but “back of box” instructions.
First, the chicken:
Rosemary, lemon juice, garlic and butter
All I had to do was roughly chop garlic. I used a trivet, that’s how quick! The butter is not pictured because it was in a small bowl on the stove top, using leftover heat from the muffins to melt. See how lazy?!?! That thing in the background is ground flax from the muffins. Please ignore.
I cut slits in the chicken breasts and stuffed garlic cloves in them. Then drizzled the buttter (about 1 T) and lemon juice (about 1T) that I had mixed in the bowl, on top of chicken. Then I sprinkled a few flakes of rosemary on top of each breast. This meant at the end I could scrape off both the rosemary and garlic from the one breast I split between my kids so there is no “evidence” of spice! Works like a charm-all the flavor-none of the green stuff.
See? From a box.
While chicken was cooking I made Quinoa with the box recipe which is as easy as instant rice but packed with way more for your health. I used chicken broth instead of water and sprinkled with a pinch (literally) of fresh parmesan.
If you tell me you can't handle this then I'm done with you!
Then I steamed this with a pinch of sea salt and wouldn’t you know the kids ate every bite. Broccoli is magic.
So there you have it; a perfectly balanced meal made in minutes and requiring absolutely no skill. I told you everyone could do it.
P.S. Looking for more parenting guidance and tips for self-care? Check out From Chaos to Calm a guided training to help you feel better in this tough season.
I am losing my mind totally forgot I posted earlier…I was on my way out the door and had to respond to your sis before I dashed out!
Love it! This is why you need quick dinners-too much running.;)
LOL…JRITZ “What the heck is Quinoa?” I totally said that out loud while reading this! So funny…you and I can stick together with the cooking!!
LOL….JRITZ…”what the heck is Quinoa?” I actually said that out loud when I was reading! I am going to start sending Mark over to you Cristie! Especially now that I am back at work every night! Any good crock pot recipes? I LOVE the crock pot…it’s a non cooks best friend…you really can’t screw up!
This looks great!
Not just you and Cathy, although you were definitely two of them.;) There is nothing fresh! The spices were in a jar and the garlic could be in a jar or powder, just use less. I just happened to have it fresh because it is the one thing that lasts forever but either way, no biggie. Quinoa is a grain (great for carb watchers) that cooks up as easily as rice. You can get it most anywhere now.
Why do I feel you are talking directly to me (ok and Cathy)? Yes very simple and I could even do it. My problem these days is not having the fresh ingredients in the house. Not a lot of stores sell herbs and spices in one serving sizes:) Also what the heck in Quinoa?