Date Night Dinners - Parmesan and Garlic
It's official. I'm in a rut, and have been for the last several days. This lingering, nonsensical cold weather we have been experiencing has given me a giant case of the winter blues. I typically have mild symptoms each winter, a lack of desire to do anything but, well, bundle up on my couch with marshmallow filled hot chocolates, eating mounds of comfort food between sips. Okay, maybe nor so mild. But lately, it has gone to the extreme: day dreaming about a vacation to Florida or the Bahamas or the Maldives even; sleeping till noon on weekends, fantasying, and even doing a little snow dance, for snow days so I can do the same during the week; and eating all the chocolate I can get my hands on.
To try and perk us up a bit, we decided to detour from our usual (as of late) rich, creamy and totally not healthy for us dinners, to make ourselves a little spring-is-coming...-slowly pick-me-up. We found a recipe that incorporated light flavors and a bit of color. The base of the dish is a pasta, specifically orzo. Although there are plenty of winter dishes we could fill up on using pasta, pasta and more pasta - have you checked out our Valentines' Day Pasta Bake or One Pot Fettuccine - to us, orzo screams spring and summer unlike those long (winter) noodles covered in heavy sauces and cream. These short noodles make us thing of the outdoor events we attend where pasta salad always appears on the menu.
We chose broccoli for our veggie, a frequent pasta salad accompaniment. Plus, I couldn't resist the vibrant green color popping off the plate mixed in with the light brown of the wheat pasta. Then came the chicken, covered in a marinade that was bursting with flavor, but light and elegant at the same time. It was the perfect trio.
Recipe adapted from howsweeteats.com, Crockpot Parmesan Garlic Chicken With Orzo
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, pounded thin
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- 4 Tbsp dry wine
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp dried parsley
- 1/4 parmesan cheese, finely shredded
- 1 cup whole wheat orzo, uncooked
- 3/4 fresh broccoli, uncooked
- The night before: season chicken with salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 3 Tbsp olive oil, cheese, basil, parsley, garlic, and 3 Tbsp of wine.
- Place the chicken in a large ziplock bag and then pour the whisked marinade in with the chicken.
- Close the ziplock bag and mix with your hands from the outside of the bag to coat.
- Keep in the fridge until you are ready to cook the next evening.
- The next day:
- Place the chicken on a baking tray and drizzle remaining wine overtop of the chicken.
- Place in the oven on broil for about 7-9 minutes on each side or until cooked through.
- While the chicken cooks, prepare the whole wheat orzo according to the package directions, cooking the broccoli in the water with the orzo.
- Once the orzo and broccoli are cooked as desired, drain the water and place in a large bowl.
- Mix the remaining olive oil and cheese with the orzo broccoli mixture.
- When the chicken has finished cooking, dice it and add to the orzo and broccoli mixture.
- Serve, top with more cheese, salt and pepper as desired, and enjoy.
- Bon appétit!
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