Ancho Chili Chicken with Black Beans and Yellow Rice

Pin It Now! My favorite part of this recipe was the yellow rice.  I personally didn’t love the flavor of the ancho chili, but if you like a smoky pepper taste this recipe is for you. 

Recipe per Cuisine at Home:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts ( 5 oz. each)
1 tablespoon dried oregano leaves
½ tablespoon ground cumin
½ tablespoon black pepper
2 dried ancho chilis, stemmed, seeded, broken into pieces
1 ½ cups tomatoes, chopped
½ cup onion, cut into chunks
3 garlic cloves, smashed
1 corn tortilla, torn
1 cup chicken broth
Salt to taste
1) Season chicken with oregano, cumin and black pepper.  Saute in 1 tablespoon oil in large sauté pan over high heat until brown, about 2 minutes per side.  Transfer to a plate.

2) Toast chilis in 1 tablespoon oil in the same pan over medium heat, 2 minutes.  Add tomatoes, ½ cup onion, garlic cloves, and tortilla; simmer 3 minutes.  Stir in broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and return chicken to pan.  Cover and cook until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees, about 5 minutes.  Remove breasts; puree tomato mixture in a food processor or using an immersion blender. Then season with salt.  I used an immersion blender and would recommend transferring the sauce to a big pot or else it will splash everywhere!

For black beans
¼ cup onion
1 tablespoon garlic
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1) Saute ¼ cup onion and 1 tablespoon garlic in 2 tablespoons oil in a small saucepan over medium high heat.  Stir in beans to heat through, then season with salt to taste. 

For the rice
¼ cup onion, minced
½ tablespoon garlic, minced
½ tablespoon turmeric
½ cup dry brown rice
 1 ¼ cups chicken broth
Salt to taste

1)      Saute onion, garlic and turmeric in oil in a saucepan over medium heat 1-2 minutes.

2)      2)  Stir in rice; cook 1 minute, then add broth and bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer until rice is tender, 30 minutes.  Season with salt.

Serve beans with chicken, sauce and yellow rice.

Tip:  Read through the entire recipe before cooking.  There are a lot of steps, but it isn’t hard if you read through all the steps before cooking.  Prep all ingredients together before cooking.

Nutritional Info: Per breast with 1/4 cup sauce, 1/2 cup beans and 1/2 cup brown rice
Calories: 575 Fat: 26(saturated 4 grams) Carb: 45g Sodium: 373mg Fiber: 8g Protein: 42g Iron: 4mg

Poultry Pockets with Sauteed Whole Wheat Pasta

Pin It Now! After watching Food Inc. I have commited to making over the food I cook. (click here to read my rant after watching that movie)   I'm sure there will be times when I may cheat and used processed foods, but for the most part everything I make will come from organic, nonprocessed ingredients.  It's called clean eating and there are so many health benefits associated.   I have noticed a huge difference in the way food tastes when I use fresher, organic fruits,vegetables and meats.  According to Clean Eating magazine to eat clean means to:

Be label savvy
Clean foods contain very few ingredients.  Products with a long list of ingredients are processed and not considered clean.

Avoid processed and refined foods
White flour, white sugar white breads and most pasta.  Opt for whole grain instead.  It actually tastes better!

Shop with a conscience
Consume humanely raised and local meats.

Reduce your carbon footprint
Buy from local farmer's markets and use ingredients that are in season.  It's usually cheaper and also better for the environment.

With that being said I found this lovely recipe in a Cuisine at Home magazine a friend lent to me.  It's easy and delicious!

Ingredients:
2 cups fresh spinach (or frozen is fine too)
2 boneless, skinless breasts, pounded to 1/4" thick, seasoned with salt and pepper
2 large tomato slices, 1/2" thick
2 slices swiss cheese
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
4 oz. dry whole wheat pasta
2 garlic cloves, minced
handful chopped chives (save a few to garnish)
Olive oil

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees (F)
1) Saute spinach in 1 tablespoon olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium high until wilted; season with salt and pepper.  Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and blot dry to remove excess moisture.

2) Begin cooking pasta in boiled salted water according to package directions; drain and set aside.

3) While pasta is cooking arrange chicken.  Layer a tomato slice, cheese slice and 1/2 the spinach on 1 side each prepared chicken breast.  Fold other side of each breast over fillings to enclose, and secure with toothpicks.

4) Saute pockets in 1 tablespoon olive oil in the same skillet as spinach over medium high heat until browned, about 4 min.  Turn chicken over and saute on the other side 2 minutes, then transfer pan to oven.  Roast until chicken is cooked and cheese is melted, about 8 minutes.  Remove pan from oven and transfer pockets to a plate. 

5) While chicken is roasted, heat oil in a new skillet coated with nonstick spray over medium heat.  Add drained pasta and garlic, and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes, tossing to coat.  Season with salt and pepper.  Remove from heat and add chives.

6) Return pan to the burner over high heat.  Deglaze pan with vinegar, reduce by 1/2, then drizzle sauce over chicken.

Serve chicken on top of pasta and garnish with chives.

Tips:
Be sure to pound the chicken thin enough or else it will take longer to cook in the oven.

This recipe was intended for 2, but could easily be made for more.  Just use 1 breast, 1 cheese slice and 1 tomato per person and adjust spinach as you like.

Nutritional Info.
Per pocket and 1/2 cup pasta

Calories 556 (42% calories from fat); fat 26g (saturated 6g); Chol 102 mg; Carb 32g; sodium 304mg; fiber 10g, protein 49g; iron 7 mg, calcium 402 mg; omega 40g

Information and recipe obtained from Cuisine at Home.