Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Easy Dinner Night - Chicken, Broccoli, Bell Peppers

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My life has been calling for some easy dinner nights.



 For the past three years during spring, summer and fall I've been a member of the Great Basin Basket CSA. Every week my husband or I pick up a box full of local produce. It's a great way to get the freshest, organic vegies and fruit. It's convenient in the way that you don't have to think about what you're going to get at the store in terms of fruit and vegies, but you do have to figure out how you're going to prepare it. And preparing it, well.... I have to admit, sometimes this can be a part time job. Through the years I've had to learn a lot about bulk preparation and freezing. I make pesto in huge batches, freezing it in ice-cube trays. Soups are made in triple batches, and pretty much any recipe I can convert into a slow cooker recipe is doubled or tripled and then food saved. Besides recipes, I'll cook a huge batch of chicken in the slow cooker with just some chicken bouilian, shred it with forks, and food save it in one meal increments. Then I can use it as a base in a new recipe... (cue Trader Joes simmer sauces).


Anyhoo, short story long, in the winter I buy a lot of my produce in the freezer section from places like Trader Joes, pre-cut, pre-seasoned
(sometimes), and all ready to go. I'm always amazed by how fast dinners can be when you use prepared items.

Tonight's Easy Dinner:

I put a couple handfuls of broccoli (I get the huge bag from Costco) into the pot with a bit of water and olive oil. Let it sit on low with the lid for a few minutes.


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Add half a bag of frozen roasted bell peppers.

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Add the pre-cooked chicken till warm.

Enjoy!

There's a lot you could do to bump up this meal to the next level. Add a bunch of grated romano cheese, pine nuts, sesame seeds, or sun dried tomatoes. Throw it over pasta, rice, quinoa or serve as is with some sourdough bread.

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