Broccoli with Garlic, Bacon, and Parmesan – Even the Picky Eaters Can’t Resist This Veggie!

Tags

Bacon, Broccoli, garlic, parmesan, side dish, taste of home, vegetable

I have to admit I am not the biggest fan of broccoli. My husband loves the stuff, so I try to cook it on a regular basis. My youngest daughter, who is a lover of all things bacon,found this recipe in one of my Taste of Home cookbooks. It is packed with flavor and is absolutely delicious! The title of the recipe says it all! Broccoli, garlic, BACON and Parmesan. It’s all good!!! This is a broccoli recipe that even I enjoy! We have made it a few times at our house. If you’re looking for a way to get your picky eaters to eat some broccoli, give this recipe a try!

Broccoli With Garlic, Bacon and Parmesan

1 teaspoon salt

2 bunches broccoli (about 3 pounds), stems removed, cut into florets

6 thick-sliced bacon strips, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

6 to 8 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions

Fill a 6-qt. stockpot two-thirds full with water; add salt and bring to a boil over high heat. In batches, add broccoli and cook 2-3 minutes or until broccoli turns bright green; remove with a slotted spoon.

In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove with a slotted spoon; drain on paper towels. Discard drippings, reserving 1 tablespoon in pan.

Add oil to drippings; heat over medium heat. Add garlic and pepper flakes; cook and stir 2-3 minutes or until garlic is fragrant (do not allow to brown). Add broccoli; cook until broccoli is tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in bacon; sprinkle with cheese. Yield: 8 servings.

Enjoy!

Tomato Pesto Gnocchi with Chicken and Olives – A Quick Dinner For One!

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basil, Chicken, gnocchi, kalamata olives, marinara, parmesan, pasta, pesto

 On nights when my husband and daughter go to our church’s youth group, we usually just grab leftovers to eat for dinner. The other night, I was in the mood for something other than the leftover risotto we had, so I decided to get a little creative! How about gnocchi with chicken, Kalamata olives, tomato pesto and fresh basil? Worked for me! It was delicious!
I had some dried gnocchi in the pantry, leftover marinara and pesto sauces and some pre-grilled Foster Farm chicken in the fridge. I almost always have fresh basil and a jar of Kalamata olives hanging around the house, so a tasty dish was coming together! Kalamata olives aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but I loved the additional acid that they added to the dish.

This dish could easily be adapted to be vegetarian or even vegan by eliminating the chicken and/or cheese. It was super quick to make (about 10 minutes) and was enough for me with 1 or 2 servings leftover.

So here’s what I did….

Tomato Pesto Gnocchi with Chicken and Olives

16 oz. package of Gnocchi

1 cup marinara

¼ cup pesto (I used jarred sundried tomato pesto)

¼ cup Kalamata olives, sliced

5 oz. grilled chicken strips

5 fresh basil leaves, cut in strips

Parmesan cheese

Cook gnocchi according to package, usually boiling it 3-5 minutes. In a small saucepan, warm marinara, pesto, olives, and chicken. When gnocchi is cooked, drain and toss with sauce and chicken. Serve topped with fresh basil and grated parmesan.

Lemon Basil Chicken – An Easy, Delicious and Low-fat Dinner!

Tags

basil, capers, Chicken, Cooking, deglaze, Food, healthy, lemon, low-fat, parmesan

  

I love meat with a good sauce that I can serve over rice or pasta. This chicken recipe has a clean, light and zesty sauce that was great served over some healthy brown rice. It made for a hearty, delicious meal that was still low-fat. I served it with the Creamed Kale and Mushroom dish that I blogged about a couple of days ago. These dishes taste and look wonderful together and you can share the lemon zest and grated parmesan between the two dishes.

Lesson learned: I was recently watching an episode of Bobby Deen’s “Not My Mama’s Meals” and he had a meat expert on. This person shared that it was good to be cautious about when you add pepper to your dishes as it burns easily and then the flavor gets very bitter. You’ll notice I add the pepper later in my recipe below.

Lemon Basil Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 tbsp olive oil

3 cups turkey stock or chicken broth

zest and juice of half a lemon

salt

pepper

2 tbsp fresh basil, finely diced

3 cloves garlic, pressed or dicedd

1/4 parmesan cheese, grated

1/8 cup capers

Heat oil in pan over medium-high heat. This is a good chance to use your cast iron or stainless steel pans as you’re going to deglaze the pan, so no need for a non-stick pan. Season chicken with salt on both sides and add to your pan. Sear on both sides about 3-4 minutes per side. Remove pan from heat, remove chicken and put on oven safe plate. Put chicken in the oven at 180 degrees. Don’t worry if your chicken is still pink. It’s not done cooking. Put pan back over medium heat and add turkey stock or chicken broth and lemon juice. Cook at a low boil scraping meat bits off bottom of pan for about 15 minuts until reduced to about 1/3 of original volume. Add lemon zest, pepper, basil, garlic, parmesan and capers. Return chicken to pan and cook for 5-7 minutes more while spooning sauce over chicken. Serve over rice. I used brown rice.