Garden

It’s been a glorious day.  I feel like I’ve been traveling in the high-speed lane for a few days, so today was dedicated to unwinding, resting, and relaxing.  I watched TV, lounged in the pool, and took a short trip to the local farmer’s market.  I picked up zucchini and summer squash – for the recipe in this post – but the best loot of the day came from my very own garden!

Perfectly plump cherry tomatoes – like candy!  As I sat out on the deck, I noticed the vibrant colors spotting my garden.  I took a closer look and realized these little guys were ripe for the pickin’!  Of course, I had to enjoy the fruits of my labor.

Lunch was a yummy salad with plenty of cherry tomatoes!  I love the way they pop in your mouth.  The rest of my big bowl included:

• mixed greens
• shredded carrots
• green and yellow bell pepper
• cucumbers
• blueberries
• 1 T. chopped walnuts
• grilled chicken
• TJ’s Sweet Poppyseed Dressing

This giant salad tasted amazing!  The body works in mysterious ways.  Yesterday, I was craving pizza and today I was feeling the veggie love!  A square of dark chocolate accompanied the salad…can’t ignore the sweet tooth!

The rest of the afternoon involved some reading for research – a friend is in the market for a Garmin – and some reading for pleasure.  I also broke for a late afternoon snack.

Toasty yoga bread spread with real butter…perfect to quiet a grumbly tummy.  My snack held me over for quite awhile, which was lovely since I spent some extra time on dinner tonight.  My afternoon pleasure-reading led me to some old issues of Cooking Light.  As I scanned the pages, one particular recipe caught my eye.

Chicken and Rice Casserole adapted from Cooking Light – The recipe looked great, but I opted to make some nutritious substitutions to my version.

Ingredients (*denote adaptions from original recipe):

• 2 c. cooked brown rice*
• 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
• 1 zucchini – halved lengthwise and sliced thinly
• 1 yellow squash – halved lengthwise and sliced thinly
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast  – cubed*
• 1 T. olive oil*
• 1 T. butter
• 1.5 c. low sodium, organic chicken stock*
• 1 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1.5 T. whole wheat flour*
• 1.5 c. 1% milk
• 1/2 c. freshly grated parmesan cheese, divided
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. salt

The ingredients came together so nicely – ready for baking!

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Saute onions until softened.
3. Add chicken and brown.  Once chicken is slightly golden, but still pink, add chicken stock to the pan.
4. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer chicken in stock until cooked through.
5. Using a slotted spoon, remove chicken from the pan and set aside in a large bowl.
6. Reserve chicken stock.  Bring stock to a boil, uncovered.  Boil the stock until it reduces to about 1/2 c. liquid and pour into the bowl with the chicken.
7. Heat butter in saucepan and saute zucchini and yellow squash until lightly browned and softened.
8. Add vegetables, rosemary, saltand rice to the chicken mixture.
9. In a separate saucepan, heat flour over medium heat.
10. Gradually add the milk, whisking constantly to prevent clumping.  Bring to a boil, continuing to stir until mixture thickens.
11. Remove milk from heat and let stand for ~30 seconds.  Add 1/4 c. cheese and whisk until smooth.
12. Pour milk/cheese blend into the bowl of ingredients and mix thoroughly.
13. Fill a 9×13 dish with mixture and top with remaining 1/4 c. of parmesan cheese.
14. Bake @ 350* for 20 minutes, then broil for 5 minutes to create a nice crust.
15. Dinner is served!

This dish came out bubbling with casserole goodness!  My parents crowded around, waiting for it to cool enough to eat.  It was still steaming hot when we dug in.

The verdict: delicious, nutritious, cheesy, creamy, casserole heaven!  I savored every bite.  My parents went back for seconds.  So flavorful!  The rosemary was the perfect addition to this recipe.  It could be modified in many ways, but do not skip the rosemary! It made the dish.  I’m telling you.  My only wish is that the recipe made more – serves four – because I want the leftovers!  Guess I’ll just have to make it again.  Maybe next time I’ll experiment with different veggies…we’ll see!

Happy Sunday!

Where do you turn for kitchen inspiration? I get most of my ideas from my favorite bloggers, but I also love recipes from Cooking Light, Whole Foods and plenty of other sources.