Saturday, January 7, 2012

Roasted Rosemary Chicken Breast with Wild Rice Pilaf

Here's another winner from Trader Joe's prepared fresh food section.

WHAT TO GET: Roasted Rosemary Chicken Breast with Wild Rice Pilaf
WHERE TO GET IT: Trader Joe's

WHY WE APPROVE: Very tasty, excellent nutritional stats, easy to dress up and make a full meal, low (310) calories, great for a lunch or dinner, very little bad stuff in it
PREPARATION: Puncture film with fork and microwave on medium for 5-7 minutes OR pierce film and bake in a 350 oven for 20-30 minutes. (why you puncture for microwave but pierce for oven, I do not know.  These are the TJ's instructions.)  This item serves two.

VARIATIONS: I took out one chicken breast and half of the rice, since I was eating alone, and microwaved for 4 minutes on medium.
You should add veggies on the side, I took some fresh spinach and put it over the top the last minute and it was great.  Any sort of salad or veg rounds this out perfectly.  Since the chicken skin is included on the breast, I peeled it off--not because I dislike chicken skin, per se, only flabby chicken skin.  Perhaps if I had baked it it would have gotten nice and crispy.


PROS: Very nice nutritional stats--26 grams of protein and 15 grams of fat to keep you full (removing the skin will subtract between 7-14 grams of fat), it tastes good so you don't feel deprived; rice fans will be happy with the pilaf and it isn't so much that it will blow your diet; easy to prepare

CONS: Not much in the way of veggies--the label states that there are onions, carrots, mushrooms, spinach, and red bell pepper, but they are miniscule amounts. Contains nutrient deficient white rice, but in the context of an overall healthy diet it's not a big deal.  Not much nasty stuff in it except a small amount of canola oil and sugar.  I'm very sugar sensitive and it didn't bother me, so it couldn't be much.

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