In the kitchen

I'm not a creative cook, and I really don't have any desire to become one. I like the predictability of following a recipe and getting the desired results. I'm the only non-picky eater in my family of three, and a great deal of experimenting on my behalf means a great deal of wasted food. Waste make me crazy, so my cooking tends to be predictable.

However, there are times when we ate a crucial ingredient for planned meal, or someone's tummy won't handle the spicy meal on the night's menu, and sometimes I get a wild hair. Tonight was one of those nights, and I'm really pleased with myself. I actually just looked at what I had in the fridge and pantry and came up with a palatable dish! For me, this is a real accomplishment.

I broiled two four ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts that had marinated about 30 minutes in soy sauce, then roasted a yellow pepper. While they were cooking, I chopped a tomato. Earlier today, I had fixed a large bowl of brown rice. After they had cooled, I diced the chicken breasts, peeled and diced the pepper and added them to two cups of brown rice. I mixed four tablespoons of sunflower oil with with four tablespoons of rice vinegar, added a generous amount of McCormick's Spice Blends Key West style (lemon, basil and thyme) and whisked until emulsified. I immediately added the dressing, popped it in the microwave for a little over a minute, then added the tomatoes for a nice salad with a good juxtaposition of hot and cold. It made four (6 WW point servings) and fits into the Core plan.

The best part is -- I had fun.

recipe