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Farmers Market Finds: Beets and Greens.

~ savorthesimple ~ Leave a comment

This weekend my mom, and my daughter and I all took a trip to the farmers market. We had coffee, cinnamon buns, and picked up some delicious vegetables. The day was cool and it was a perfect morning to be in good ole Floyd County, VA.

I scored some beets, swiss chard, sweet peppers, and heirloom tomatoes. So my next focus was how exactly I was going to prepare my delicious treasures. And I settled on roasting. It was a cooler day, and I guess I am looking forward to fall so I thought a good herb chicken and roasted vegetables sounded splendid.

I began by peeling and chopping my beets and all their friends : white potatoes, carrots, onions sweet peppers, and herbs. I chose a poultry blend for the chicken and vegetables: Thyme, Rosemary and Sage. I arranged them all on a baking sheet, coated with olive oil salt and pepper. I roasted these with the chicken at 375°F for about an hour.

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I took thawed chicken breasts on a baking sheet as well,  coated with salt, pepper, olive oil, the herbs, and garlic powder. And baked them at the same time and temp as the vegetables.

While they were roasting their way to “flavor town”- thanks Guy. I cooled my heels until about 8 mins was left to go on my timer. I rough chopped the beet greens and Swiss chard down to the stems and placed the heaping pile of leaves in a deep saucepan with a half cup of water in the bottom over low to med heat. I added salt, pepper, pinch of cayenne pepper, drizzle of olive oil and white vinegar (if you like them tangy). I babysat these greens until they had wilted town to a very dark green.

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This meal was not only healthy and easily made vegan with the omission of the chicken, BUT my 8 year old loved it. The vegetables were tender, and all complemented each other so well.  Roasting the beets made them tender and let their subtle sweetness shine. The greens were also tender and mild and with a tangy kick from the vinegar. The chicken was juicy and savory with the herbs piled right on top. It was truly a excellent Sunday dinner.

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Ingredients:

Roasted Beets and Vegetables

  • 4-5 small beets peeled and chopped
  • 4-5 carrots peeled and chopped
  • 3-4 white potatoes chopped
  • 1 small yellow onion chopped
  • 1 large sweet pepper chopped
  • 2-3 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • 2-3 Tbsp finely chopped fresh thyme, sage and rosemary
  • 1 tsp salt 1 tsp pepper

Tangy Greens

  • 4-5 cups of chopped greens (I used swiss chard and the tops of the beets) rough chopped
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 2-3 tbsp white vinegar
  • salt and pepper to taste

Herb Roasted Chicken

  • 4-5 thawed chicken breasts
  • 4-5 tsp finely chopped fresh herbs (thyme, sage, and rosemary)
  • 4-5 tsps olive oil
  • salt and pepper sprinkled on all of them
  • garlic powder sprinkled on all of them

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I was so pleased with our farmers market finds this week. What are some of your fresh recipes? I would love to try them!

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Fried Chicken and Spaghetti

~ savorthesimple ~ Leave a comment

So its Monday, and I had a long weekend, and needed comfort food. Mondays are one of the few nights I don’t have to go anywhere, and don’t have to rush to slam dinner on the table. At least until Girl Scouts starts again.. oy vey.

Tonight I really wanted Chicken Parmesan. But I didn’t have any Parmesan and I had already put on my sweat pants. So I made it without! And it was delicious.

I started out by defrosting 3 large chicken breasts in the microwave. Once thawed, I laid them on a plastic cutting board, and butterflied them down the middle. Making two thin breasts out of each. I then covered the thin breasts with plastic wrap, placed a sandwich bag over the end of my hammer, and gently pounded them until tender and extremely flat. I do this because when frying chicken, I am always worried the outside will burn before the inside is cooked all the way. And I happen to like thin crispy chicken, with anything, and especially spaghetti.

I dredged the chicken in a seasoned flour mix , I was out of bread crumbs too – #thestruggle. For this I just mixed the flour and seasonings listed below in a bowl, and dipped the wet chicken into the mix. I did not use any egg or milk, just the natural wetness of the chicken allowed the flour mix to stick well and make a light crispy coating.

I then fried them in bubbling vegetable shortening in a large skillet. I did 1 tbsp shortening to each breast. TIP: When you flick tiny drops of water off your fingers into hot oil and it sizzles but does not pop – the oil is perfect. I cooked them about 5-7 minutes per side, until golden and dark brown. Then I removed them from the pan and put them on a paper towel bed until the spaghetti was ready.

Then I  simply cooked whole wheat noodles al dente, topped them with my spaghetti sauce and placed the chicken on the side with some spinach for texture. It hit the spot, and I even had a few thin breasts left over, which will make an amazing sandwich tomorrow! Stay tuned 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 3 thawed chicken breasts, butterflied and pounded thin
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tbsp paprika
  • 2 tbsp salt
  • 1 tbsp pepper
  • 2 tsp powered garlic
  • 1 tsp dried basil
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 3-4 tbsp vegetable shortening in a med heated pan

What are your favorite comfort foods?? I would love to try them!!

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