Chicken and Chimichurri, Delicioso! And a Cool Trick for using Knorr Cilantro Cubes

The New Year has arrived and with it my realization that I totally buy into the idea of a "fresh start."  I honestly believe that every January I can make major life changes from weight loss to financial re-birth to finding my true life calling.  I am an intelligent adult  however I continue to think there is some magic button that gets pushed on January 1 and all of my will power is restored.  I'm an idiot.

So to show you all how awesome I am at making resolutions and then totally breaking them by February, today I am posting an adapted recipe I fixed for the children and myself.  Mr. Handsome is traveling so I am forced to cook.  Actually, I love to cook but of the two of us, he is more creative, confident and skilled in the kitchen.

Breaded Chicken Breasts with Fresh Herb Chimichurri

and

Cilantro infused Jasmine Rice

Chimicurri

1 lime

3 cups loosely packed fresh cilantro

1 1/2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves

2 green onions(white and green parts) cut in thirds

3 T. water

1 garlic clove, peeled

1/2 t. fresh ginger (try it out of the tube, so much easier!)

1 t. crushed red pepper flakes (we like it spicy, use less if you don't)

1/4 t. salt

For the chimicurri, into a food processor, juice the lime and add cilantro, basil, green onions, water, garlic and ginger.  Cover and pulse until the ingredients are coarsely pureed.  Remove puree from processor bowl and place in smaller bowl.  Add red pepper flakes and salt to taste.  Set chimichurri aside.

Chicken and Rice

18 low-sodium Club Crackers, crushed (Use whole-grain crackers to sneak that into your diet)

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 t. light mayo

1 t. Dijon mustard

1/4 t. each salt and coarsely ground black pepper

1 T. canola oil

1 1/2 cups cooked jasmine rice (My trick here is use a rice cooker, substitute low sodium chicken broth for the water and add a Knorr cilantro mini cube seasoning, clever right?)

For the chicken, place cracker crumbs on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown (watch carefully or these bad boys will burn before you know it.)  then remove from the oven.  Using a kitchen mallet, flatten the chicken to 1/2 inch thickness. Season chicken with salt and pepper.  Mix mayo and mustard together in a small bowl, then with a basting brush cover chicken with mayo/mustard mixture.  Dredge chicken in cracker crumbs and press firmly to coat.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat about 1-3 minutes.  Cook chicken 5 minutes per side (this is so subjective because everyone's stovetop is slightly different, just make sure the juice run clear when cut and it's not pink in the middle.)  

Add 3 T. chimicurri to your cooked rice and mix well.  

To serve, I cut the chicken and placed it on top of an artistic shmear of dijon, then added chimicurri to the top of the chicken.  The rice was served on the side.

Okay, there you have it.  An excellent meal choice for my New Year, New Me, New You, Who Knew Celebration!   That's not really what I'm calling it but it's fun to think I could have a whole ad campaign going with a celebrity endorsement etc......

My children LOVED it.  I loved it.  We have chicken left over that I am having for lunch over a bed of arugula.  

I hope you make this, I hope you love it and I hope you let me know what you think.

Here's to an exciting January and then once February roles around we can all get back to normal.

disclosure:  This recipe is my adaptation from the Make it Fresh Make it Healthy cookbook from The Pampered Chef company.  I have made some changes to better suit my family's needs and the way we prepare food.  I do not claim to have invented this recipe or even dreamed up this recipe.  There.  Got that out of the way.