Tossed Salads and Scrambled Eggs

For the past week,  I've been a blur of coughing, mucus, and chest pains with a touch of feverish delirium. After finally forcing my aching bones to MedExpress last Thursday, I was diagnosed with severe bronchitis bordering on pneumonia. Needless to say, I was away from the office for days and became rather attached to Lifetime's morning Frasier marathon. I also grew accustomed to having a warm kitten on my lap at all times.

As I adopted a diet of jello and hot toddies, poor Boyfriend had been on his own with cooking dinner since last Tuesday, but now that I've returned to work and have started using normal hygiene habits again, it was time for me to regain control of the kitchen for tonight's meal. 

I opted to make one of Boyfriend's favorite chicken dishes, with a side of Parmesan rice and brown sugar glazed carrots.  To start the rice, I browned two cloves of minced garlic in oil then added two cups of chicken broth, one tablespoon of lemon juice and 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Once this came to boiling, I added one cup of brown rice, reduced heat and let cook for about 35 minutes, until the liquid was absorbed.

While the rice was cooking, I browned two chicken breasts, seasoned in poultry spices, in olive oil.  

Once the chicken was cooked, I transferred it to a plate and draped each piece in provolone cheese until melted.  Then, I added sliced baby portobello mushrooms and fresh baby spinach to the pan, until the mushrooms softened and the spinach wilted.  Once the vegetables are ready, I covered the chicken breast with the spinach-mushroom mixture.

During this time, I also cut two medium carrots into strips and covered them in a pot with water, then brought the water to a boil. After ten minutes of boiling, I drained the carrots and added one tablespoon of butter and one tablespoon of brown sugar into the pot, plus a dash each of salt and pepper. Once blended, I returned the carrots to the pot and stirred until fully coated.

At that point, the rice was finally done, so I fluffed it up with a fork, added a handful of grated Parmesan and plated the first dinner that I had prepared in a week.  Boyfriend was a happy camper with his cheesy chicken and we dined together while watching our new obsession, Breaking Bad.

It's a simple and healthy meal representing a few food groups and is a good way to begin the work week. Not quite as fun as jello and hot toddies, but it was time to stop eating like a 90-year-old great aunt in a nursing home anyway.