Friday, December 4, 2009

bon appetit... or not so much


I love me some Julia Child. I also love her butter laden dishes and pastries. I need to change that. So, yesterday evening I attempted cooking a healthy makeover version of chicken and rice. Looks pretty good right? Chicken, rice, and some veggies? Wrong. I must say, this is a chicken and rice fail. First of all, I have never been the biggest fan of this dish, so I'm not sure why I thought it would be even better with 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup, and brown rice. It took almost an hour and a half to bake to get the rice really tender, which is valuable time that I don't have. Try if you dare, and here's to hoping yours tastes better than mine:


1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (98% Fat Free)
1 cup water *
3/4 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice (we used brown)
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 1 pound)

Stir the soup, water, rice, paprika and black pepper in a 2-quart shallow baking dish. Top with the chicken. Season with additional paprika and black pepper. Cover the baking dish.
Bake at 375°F. for 45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the rice is tender.

*For creamier rice, increase the water to 1 1/3 cups.

Fortunately not all was lost with dinner. We also had a cute little vegetable medley. See those green things that kind of look like peas? They're not peas, they're infamous edamame! Up until yesterday, it was something I had only seen and heard on episodes of Chopped on the Food Network! They're little baby soy beans that don't taste too shabby, and also are a good source of protein! (Matt might disagree with the whole tasty part, to quote, "Boo little edamame, boo.")


For dessert I had a skinny cow dessert sandwich. Ice cream that's not bad for you, need I say more?

6 comments:

  1. I love edamame! Just had some at lunch with my sushi ;-)

    Not a big fan of cassarole type dishes or brown rice so based on your review I won't be trying that recipie any time soon lol.

    Have a great weekend Jessie!

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  2. Maybe the brown rice could be precooked to cut down on baking time. Or, better yet, just skip the rice all together.
    Hey, nice to meet you. Karen sent me over.

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  3. I've never had edamame. Keep meaning to ... just haven't gotten around to it. Now I think I'll have to, though! Oh ... and in case you hadn't noticed, I've spread the word about your existence :)

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  4. Thanks for the hints on the rice Ida! Nice to meet you! And Karen, thanks for sending people my way! I'm so excited that I have some more readers!!!! :D

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  5. Skinny Cow eh? Do tell, how is it not bad for you? Is it low in cals and where can I aquire this dreamy invention in person? Lovin' your blog and Matt's too! Good job guys!!!!

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  6. Check it out sister! http://www.skinnycow.com/ - they only have like, 1.5 grams of fat and about a hundred cals, something like that! but they taste amazing. they're in the freezer section with the ice cream! a tad bit pricy- $4 i believe for 6 ice cream sandwiches...

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