My only resolution for 2012 was simple: eat more delicious food than I did in 2011.
Reasonable, right? I like to be reasonable.
So reasonable that I even took pictures of broccoli. Yes, broccoli. Complete snafu, really.
Broccoli ranks near the bottom of my favorite vegetables (that is, aside from the handful I refuse to taste). These little green trees make me uneasy — almost as much as my inexplicable man crush on Alec Baldwin. If he wanted to hand-feed me broccoli, who knows? Maybe I’d reconsider. Or maybe not.
What I do know is this chicken filled the house with a mouthwatering cheesy-garlic aroma, like thousands of cloves of garlic and a mountain of Parmesan. I spooned it over whole wheat orzo and stared at the plate thinking it looked a little… bland. Too beige, too vanilla. It made me want ice cream immediately.
The weather’s been dark and dreary, and I’ve been craving color — something more than the sparkly pink nail polish I peeled off 34 minutes after painting, or the rainbow sprinkles that escaped onto the kitchen floor twice this weekend. I flung the fridge open in a panic; the holidays had trained my blood sugar to think I’m starving every twenty seconds. The catch: the fridge was basically empty.
I hadn’t grocery shopped in nearly two weeks unless I was on my knees yelling, “I’m out of butter AGAIN” or wondering how three pounds of cheese disappeared in three days. I hadn’t cooked a real meal in almost fourteen days unless you count cereal and the occasional cookie. Somehow we survived with pizza orders and borrowing meals from friends’ kitchens, and it was oddly liberating.
In the crisper drawer I found questionable leftovers: week-old beef stew, a sadly moldy red pepper, a bag of slimy carrots, and a half-used pouch of Trader Joe’s broccoli I’d meant to eat with good intentions but never did. I steamed the broccoli, which made the kitchen smell worse, and then I broiled it with olive oil and Parmesan because charred, salty broccoli is at least tolerable. I mashed some pieces so they wouldn’t look like tiny tree stalks and doused the smallest bits with more Parmesan to get them down. In the end I picked most of it out and decided: 2012 would not be the year of broccoli for me.
Mr. How Sweet declared the dish his “favorite meal of 2012,” and then asked why it didn’t taste like cookies.
Crockpot Parmesan Chicken
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Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 6 tablespoons dry white wine
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese + 2 tablespoons
- 1 cup uncooked whole wheat orzo
- 3/4 cup vegetables of your choice
Instructions
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The night before, season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Whisk together 3 tablespoons olive oil, 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, basil, parsley, garlic and 3 tablespoons of wine in a bowl. Place chicken in a large zip-top bag, pour the marinade over it, and refrigerate overnight.
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The next morning, place the chicken in the crockpot with the remaining 3 tablespoons of wine. Cook on low for 6–8 hours.
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Prepare whole wheat orzo according to package directions. Once cooked, toss the orzo with the remaining olive oil, the extra 2 tablespoons of Parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste. Cut the chicken into pieces and combine with the orzo. Stir in vegetables of your choice and top with additional Parmesan if desired.
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This makes a great make-ahead meal to store in the fridge for easy lunches and dinners.
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If you’re after healthy recipes this week, consider the following from the archives: a piled portobello gouda burger with roasted garlic, cashew chicken, BLT salmon tacos, and wholesome homemade fish sticks. And yes, include a small cookie bite now and then.