Cheesy Chicken & Rice

We got back from vacation this morning!!

I was excited for vacation and the opportunity to be a good example of how to eat healthy and exercise while traveling...

Ha!

Ya, that didn't happen.

I didn't workout even one time and my diet was awful.

But, we had fun!!

And now, I am SO ready to get back on the healthy living train.  I have a fitness group starting today and I couldn't be more excited!!  I think I'm going to start PiYo on Wednesday.

But I digress...

One thing that we always look forward to after getting back from vacation is having a healthy, home cooked meal for dinner!

It just feels and tastes SO good.

Tonight, I modified a recipe from one of my upline coaches.  I'm calling it Cheesy Chicken & Rice.

My toddler hasn't had a chance to try it yet, but my hubby was a fan! 

Cheesy Chicken & Rice

Makes: ~5-6 cups
Serving Size: ~1 1/2 cups

Approx. Container Equivalents: 1 Yellow, 1 Red, 1/2 Green, 1 Blue

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 1 cup organic baby carrots, chopped
• 1 can (14.5-oz) low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 pouches Seeds of Change Organic Rice and Quinoa
• 2 cups pre-cooked chicken, diced
• Cheddar cheese, finely shredded

Directions:

1. Saute onion and carrots in butter until carrots are "semi-soft."
2. Add in broth, rice/quinoa, and chicken.
3. Simmer 5-7 minutes on medium heat.
4. Serve immediately.  Top individual servings with finely shredded cheddar cheese.

This recipe is not quite clean, as I don't think the Seeds of Change Organic Rice and Quinoa is perfectly clean...but it is a much better option for a quick dinner than most other packaged rice options you will find in the store!  If you already have the chicken cooked and diced, this is a SUPER fast recipe to make.

If you'd like an even cleaner version of this recipe, you could cook brown rice and/or Quinoa yourself from scratch and use that instead of the Seeds of Change Organic Rice and Quinoa.  You'd need about 4 cups total cooked.

Enjoy!!

 Deise

Balsamic Chicken

I like to try a new dinner recipe out at least weekly if possible.  I have various go-to clean eating websites that I like to browse, and if all else fails, I do a Google search to see if anything appetizing comes up.  Google never lets me down!  ;)

The winning recipe for tonight's dinner was Balsamic Chicken.  This recipe was so easy to prepare and absolutely delicious - even my toddler loved it!  Of course, that might not be saying much since he likes most clean foods I make....but it was delicious all the same!  We like to eat this over brown rice with a side of veggies.  Enjoy!

Balsamic Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp 100% extra virgin olive oil
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts 
• 1/2 tsp sea salt 
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 3 tsp minced garlic (about 6 cloves)
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 
• 3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth 
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme 
• 1 bay leaf 

Directions:

1. Coat bottom of non-stick skillet with oil and heat to medium high. 
2. Add the chicken, season with salt and pepper, and saute until brown on one side.
3. Flip chicken breasts over.  Add garlic.  
4. Continue cooking for about 3 minutes while stirring.  Then, add vinegar, chicken broth, thyme, and bay leaf. 
5. Cover and simmer over medium low heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
6. Remove chicken; set aside and keep warm. 
7. Continue simmering sauce, uncovered for about 7 minutes. 
8. Discard bay leaf.  Pour mixture over chicken and serve.

Tips and Other Notes:

Be sure to make extra chicken so you can use some for lunch the next day - either as is for leftovers or on a salad.  This is one of those foods that tastes better the next day, especially after it has been soaking in those juices all night!