Double-Duty Meals: Pan-Roasted Chicken/Chicken Calzone – Meal #1
Isn’t it great when something comes along that makes meal-time a little easier? That is exactly what Double-Duty meals can do for you. With a little planning you can prepare two healthy and delicious meals quickly and easily. This week’s Double-Duty meal uses the chicken from meal #1 to create a delicious chicken calzone. Both meals will feed 2-4 people and are surprisingly simple to prepare and delicious!
Here’s what you will need:
Edibles:
2-4 large chicken splits
olive oil
salt & pepper
garlic powder
1 lb. carrots – rainbow or orange
1 bullion cube
2C pasta
garlic salt
1 tsp lemon zest
fresh or dried parsley
Non-Edibles:
12”-14” oven safe skillet – preferably cast iron
And here’s how to do it:
First, pre-heat oven to 400°. Then prepare the chicken splits by lightly rinsing them in cool water then patting them dry with a paper towel. Drizzle the skin of the splits with a light coating of olive oil then season by sprinkling them with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in the cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Place chicken in heated pan, skin-side down. Cook until you have a nice golden brown color, about 5-7 minutes, then turn the pieces over in the pan and cook for another 5 minutes. (If you are cooking four chicken splits, you can sear two at a time if it is too tight in the skillet) After searing, and with all of chicken skin-side up, place the entire skillet in the oven and set the timer for 20 minutes. In the meantime, cut the tops off of the carrots and scrub them clean. Place carrots in a glass baking dish, drizzle with ½ tbsp olive oil and season with salt & pepper – toss to coat evenly. Once the timer goes off for the oven, put the carrots in next to the chicken and set the oven timer for an additional 25 minutes. While the carrots and chicken are cooking, bring a pot of water with one bouillon cube* and a bit of salt to a boil, cook pasta as directed on package. This recipe was prepared with mushroom bullion, however feel free to use whatever you prefer or have on hand. Once the pasta is cooked, rinse with warm water, drain and toss with a drizzle of olive oil, a pinch or two of garlic salt, lemon zest and teaspoon of dried or fresh minced parsley. Remove the chicken and carrots from the oven and making sure the chicken has cooked to an internal temperature of 165° and the carrots are able to be pierced with a fork. Plate it all up and you are ready for dinner – Bon Appétit!
Remember to reserve approximately 1 ½ – 2 cups of chicken for the Chicken Calzone to cook in a day or so.
STAY TUNED FOR MEAL #2!
* Using either some bullion or replacing the water with chicken or other flavored stock when cooking pasta or rice will add a great depth of flavor to your dishes.
