Hey fellas!  Thanks for dropping by over.  Are you hungry?  I am not sharing anything fancy here today just a simple dish that you can whip up at home in no time on a week night and maybe impress that special someone – or even your own stomach.

For this little number, I took boneless skinless chicken thighs gave them a little crack with the mallet to flatten them, seasoned them, breaded them with panko and baked them in the oven.  After the bake, I hit them with some homemade basil tomato sauce, and topped them with a hint of feta.

My spin on chicken parmesan without the parmesan…

Ingredients

• 8 Chicken thighs, boneless skinless
• Salt and pepper
• 1 Cup Panko bread crumbs
• 1 Tsp. Oregano
• 1 Clove garlic
• 6-8 ripe tomatoes, chopped or from a can
• 2 Tbsp. fresh basil chopped
• 1/4 Cup goat cheese

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or tin foil.
3. Place the bread crumbs in a large bag and season it with th1 tsp. of the oregano and salt and pepper.
4. Using wax paper and a meat mallet, gently smack the chicken thighs so they flatten out slight to a more even thickness
5. Drop the flatten chicken thighs in the bag of bread crumbs, tossing to ensure they are coated well.
6. Distribute the chicken on the baking sheet and cook for 350 for 45 mins until crispy and tender.
7. In a large pot, add the tomatoes, garlic and remaining oregano.  Begin to cook the tomatoes over medium heat allowing them to break down.  after about 10 minutes you can puree the sauce with a hand blender and let simmer.
8. Add the basil at the final moment to the sauce.
9. Remove the chicken, pat dry with a paper towel the underside as there may be some excess fat.  Plate, top with the sauce and feta cheese.
10. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip:  When using fresh herbs versus dry herbs you want to add the fresh in at the very last minute versus early on as you would with dry.  The aromatics and freshness will come through in a short time with fresh herbs brightening your dish with both color and flavor.

I hope you enjoyed this spin on a classic.  Let me know if you try it at home.  It was well received here and will make the February calendar as well.  Have a good Wednesday and I will see you on Friday.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Hey!  Happy Friday.  Crazy day here today so I will not take too long.  However, I do have a lot to tell you.  First of all, it is a Friday, the last Friday of Movember.  So if you have not done so already, which I pretty much no you didn’t you should sponsor me for growing this crazy cat on my lip to raise money for prostate cancer.

In addition to that, I am preparing for a party for little Zesty tomorrow.  Ella turns 4 on Tuesday and we are having a family party tomorrow at noon.  Menu is set and I will provide a full update and recap on Monday.  For the most part, all new recipes for me so it could be a huge flop.  If so, we have the cake to fall back on as it is store bought.

Thirdly, I have to talk to you about this one pot chicken dish that Zesty junior and I put together on Tuesday.  Took all of 6 minutes to prepare and a couple of hours in the oven.  I used a store bought peach chutney and a store bought curry paste…. Too easy.  Results were very good.  Somethings in life are simple – yet we always try to make them seem more complex.

Ingredients

• 4 large Chicken Breasts, bone-in
• 1 Tbsp. Curry paste
• 2 Tbsp. Peach chutney
• 1 Tbsp. Mustard
• 1 Tbsp. Coriander
• 3/4 Cup water
• 1 Large Cabbage, sliced
• 1 Cup cranberries
• 2 Handfuls Cherry tomatoes
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large roasting pan, line the bottom with the cabbage and season with salt and pepper
3. Place chicken on top; add cranberries and tomatoes.
4. In a bowl, combine remaining ingredients and mix together.
5. Pour over chicken, cover with lid and roast for about 90-120 minutes.
6. Enjoy!

Zesty Tip: Make sure you place the cabbage on the bottom of the pan as you want it to cook in the liquids as opposed to getting crispy on top.  Feel free to add any other root vegetable to the dish for additional flavor.

As the November Friday tradition, here is a shot of the stash with 5 days to go.

I hope you have a great weekend.  Come back on Monday for a full birthday party update.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Good morning and I thank you.  For all the nice emails regarding the thanksgiving feast and your request for certain recipes.  I will work on getting those for you and post them either Friday of this week or early next week.  Today I wanted to share with you a simple salad that can be put together in minutes and meet all the nutritional needs of your body.  Salads for lunch can get pretty boring, at least for me so every now and I again I switch them up and keep the flavors unique.

This combination of balsamic, mango with roasted chicken was a great combination.  Maybe because there is feta cheese on there as well with some crunch from slivered almonds and firm cucumber.  Whatever the flavors may be, try to match texture with sexiness and your salads will make your tummy happy both inside and out.  Wow, I just re read that line and it sounds like I am promoting healthy eating.  What I was really going for is that if you make foods that look good you are more apt to enjoy them and feel good after you eat them.

OK enough with the sensitive chatter let’s get going and build this salad.  I will not put the measurements as it totally doesn’t matter.

Ingredients

• Baby spinach
• Iceberg lettuce
• Cucumber
• Slivered almonds
• Fresh mango
• Roasted chicken
• Feta cheese
• Tomatoes, grape
• Balsamic vinegar

Method

1. Assemble all ingredients on a plate or bowl starting with the largest vegetables and continuing to chicken and cheese.
2. Drizzle with balsamic.
3. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: For a new twist on salads, heat up the balsamic vinegar or whichever dressing you like and pour it over your salad.  The warmth of the dressing will start to wilt the spinach ever so slightly and give you a whole different texture and perspective on your salad.

I am just about ready to head into the office.  Middle of the week is upon us and the middle of October is approaching.  Before I sign off I have a BIG question for you.

What is your favorite SALAD DRESSING?

I am just curious because normally I am balsamic vinegar or a homemade version of olive oil, mustard, honey and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Spill the beans and tell me yours via email or comments.  Have a great Wednesday and keep smiling.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty