An Inspired Weeknight Dinner

When it comes to easy weeknight meals that require no planning, I usually fall back on the American staples of pasta, pizza, stir-fry, and of course, taco night. But last night I was feeling inspired by a recent class I worked at Culinaria Cooking School (where I work as an occasional class Assistant as well as help out with their marketing). The class was a Wine Bites-Piedmonte class where each delicious dish was paired with a wine from the famed region in Italy.

Chicken with Olives and Rosemary served with Quinoa

Though the original recipe made by Chef Stephen Sands used lamb shanks, and was braised for hours, my pared down version cooked up much quicker with chicken and used many ingredients I already had hanging out in the cabinet - tomato sauce, black olives, crushed red pepper, chicken broth, and a box of quinoa that I can't remember buying. Toss in some rosemary from the overgrown bush out front, and it was really something special to warm up a chilly November night. 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. chicken breasts

2 tbsp. olive oil

salt/pepper

1 tsp. crushed red pepper

1 carrot, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

1 cup tomato sauce

1/2 cup white wine

3 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup black olives (like kalamata)

1 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary, plus more for decoration

1 cup quinoa

Directions:

1. Cut chicken breasts into 3 rough pieces. Salt and pepper. Saute over medium high heat until browned on both sides. Remove to plate and set aside.

2. In same pan used to brown chicken, saute carrots, onion, and celery until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for one more minute.

3. Add wine to pan and stir with whisk, getting browned bits off bottom. Add 1 cup chicken broth, tomato sauce, crushed red pepper, olives and rosemary to pan and stir. Bring to a boil and then down to a simmer for 10 minutes. 

4. Add chicken back to pan and simmer over low heat, covered, for 30-40 minutes until chicken is tender.

5. Meanwhile, mix quinoa and 2 cups of chicken broth in sauce pan. Bring to a boil and simmer covered for 15 minutes. Fluff with fork and serve with chicken and sauce. Enjoy!