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Lemon Chicken and Spring Vegetable Salad

It’s hot here this week. Today it’s above 80, which is way warmer than usual for April. My allergies are out of control; the pollen count is something insane (like 4000 when it is usually about 150 here). The thought of eating a hot meal today is totally unappealing so it made me think of one of my favorite, super-simple warm-weather meals. Consider this a preview of things to come from me this summer!

I love that this makes a big batch so we can have it for dinner and then I can have it for lunch throughout the week. It keeps beautifully in the fridge because the vegetables in it hold up well. For those of you looking for easy make-ahead options, add this one to your files! You’ll be so glad you did.

When I make this, I often serve it with homemade hummus and some whole wheat pita to round out the meal. If you try this, I’d love to know what you think and what you decide to serve with it!

Lemon Chicken and Spring Vegetable Salad
adapted from the Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

Serves 8

2 lbs grilled lemon chicken (See below – must make ahead of salad)
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cups raw sugar snap peas, strings and ends removed
1 cup each red and yellow peppers, julienned
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbsp. fresh thyme, chopped

After the chicken has been grilled, chill in refrigerator. Slice chicken diagonally into 3/8 inch slices. Toss in a bowl with their juices plus the rest of the ingredients above. Taste for seasoning, adjust, and serve cold or at room temperature.

Grilled Lemon Chicken
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbsp. minced fresh thyme

Whisk together all ingredients except chicken in a small bowl. Pour over chicken breasts into a non-reactive container. Cover and marinate 6 hours in refrigerator (or overnight).

Remove chicken breasts from marinade and pat dry. Grill over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Cool slightly before cutting.

This entry was posted in All blog posts, Food, Recipes and tagged Barefoot Contessa, Lemon Chicken and Spring Vegetable, recipe, spring, summer on April 15, 2010 by Cherylanne Skolnicki.

Chicken and Black Bean Burritos

If the arrival of warmer weather makes you crave Mexican food eaten al fresco, but you normally shy away from it because you think it’s unhealthy…think again! Remaking less-than-ideal restaurant meals at home can shave tons of calories and fat while preserving the essence of the flavors and textures you love.

Take, for example, these chicken and black bean burritos. Staying in control of the preparation of the meat, the amount of cheese and sour cream and the fiber content of the burrito turns what could be an overstuffed restaurant meal into a healthful meal for under 350 calories! I serve these with a salad of greens, tomatoes and cucumbers…maybe a few chunks of Hass avocado…and a little vinaigrette. They’re delicious and go together quickly so they make a perfect weeknight dinner. Try them and see what you think!

Black Bean and Chicken Burritos

Serves 6

1 T. canola oil	2 c. black beans, drained & rinsed
1 c. chopped red onion	1 T. fresh lime juice
1 lb. chicken breast, cut in strips	4 oz diced canned green chiles
½ tsp kosher salt	1-2 T. chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp chili powder	6 lg whole wheat tortillas
Salsa	Sour cream

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet. Toss together the onions, chicken salt and chili powder and put in the skillet. Cook over high heat, stirring constantly, until the chicken is cooked through, about 6-8 minutes.
Stir in the beans, lime juice, chiles and cilantro and warm through. Remove from the stove, cover and keep warm.
Warm the tortillas. Fill each tortilla with ½ c. of the chicken mixture. Roll and place seam side down on a serving dish. Serve with small amounts of salsa and sour cream.

This entry was posted in All blog posts, Food, Recipes and tagged burritos, cooking at home, healthy Mexican, recipe on April 7, 2010 by Cherylanne Skolnicki.

Easter Treats – Make ‘Em Worth It

It’s Easter weekend and for many would-be healthy eaters it’s a test of endurance to survive the seemingly endless parade of Easter treats that arrive in stores at this time of year. Frankly, whether you celebrate Easter or not, I think the retailers make it hard to resist the onslaught of sugar-laden treats with which they fill the aisles. And that’s all BEFORE the family feast scheduled for Easter Sunday!

My philosophy around Easter Treats is pretty simple. Pick the ones that are unequivocally worth it to you and enjoy them without guilt this weekend.

Personally, I treasure the tradition of an Easter dinner eaten among family and friends and ours includes a host of Eastern European traditional foods: a rich egg bread called “paska”, baked ham, kielbasa (aka Polish sausage), pickled eggs and beets, freshly grated horseradish, and many other family treasures. I look forward to this annual meal and to the tradition its preparation upholds so I eat it without a trace of guilt!

And as for those sweet treats? My personal “worth it” list includes:

1) Cadbury Mini Eggs…not the kind with the yolk centers but those little pastel- candy-coated-solid-chocolate gems…

2) Starburst Jelly Beans….”original” flavors please – none of the tropical stuff

3) My newest obsession…Martha Stewart’s Chocolate Babka (oh my word)

I can’t wait until Easter morning when I “discover” my basket that holds those chocolate eggs and jelly beans. And truth be told, we’ve already cut the first loaf of babka since this was the first time I’ve ever made it and I wanted to make sure it was worthy of an Easter Day appearance…believe me…it is. That’s it pictured at the top of this post.

My advice to those of you trying to get through Easter without derailing your healthful intentions is to figure out which treats are worth it to you…then have them…and skip the rest. Peeps don’t do it for you? Then by all means, LEAVE THE PEEPS IN THE STORE! But hey, if Peeps are your thing, then enjoy their once-a-year appearance and be done with it till next year!

It’s a bit late to offer up this last idea, but I’d also suggest not opening any Easter treats until it’s actually…well…Easter! While retailers would have us believe we should be filling our carts with candy as soon as Valentine’s Day has passed, in truth it’s probably best to just wait to buy or make Easter treats until it’s time for Easter. This makes it much easier to resist the temptation to open and eat entire bags of the stuff before the holiday has even arrived. (And yes, the same advice goes for Halloween!)

Well, I’m off to color eggs with my little guys….Happy Easter one and all!

This entry was posted in All blog posts, Food, Recipes and tagged Chocolate Babka, Easter, Martha Stewart, recipe, treats on April 3, 2010 by Cherylanne Skolnicki.