Lemon-Sauced Chicken with Broccoli and Peppers

Let me start by saying that no, not all of my recipes consist of rice and chicken. :)

Last weekend when we were in Boston visiting friends, my friend Kerry pulled out a recipe book that she never uses. Its from the American Heart Association and its called Quick & Easy Cookbook. She offered to give it to me, saying that she never uses it. Given that we are on a heart healthy diet for the most part, I took the gift. Tonight I gave one of the recipes a shot.

I tweaked the recipe a bit, (don't get too excited, this only happens once in a blue moon), and gave it a bit of an Asian twist. I ended up serving it over white rice, and with chopsticks, and we had a very yummy, very filling meal.



Don't let the numerous ingredients scare you off. I'm a big fan of recipes with very few ingredients. If you look closely, I bet you'll find that most of these are already in your cupboard.

Ingredients

• 1 cup white rice
  
• 1lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
• 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
• 1 tsp finely shredded lemon peel
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 10-oz package frozen broccoli florets
• 1 small red bell pepper, cut into bite-size pieces

Directions

1. Thaw frozen broccoli. I put it in a strainer and ran hot water over it for a few minutes. Make sure to pat it dry before cooking.
2. Cook rice.
   
3. In a small bowl, stir together broth, lemon peel, lemon juice, soy sauce, cornstarch, sugar, and black pepper. Set aside.
4. Preheat a large skillet over high heat and add 1 tbsp olive oil. Stir-fry broccoli and bell pepper in the hot oil for 1 minute. Remove vegetables from skillet.
5. Lower to medium heat. Add remaining oil and chicken. Stir-fry until chicken is no longer pink and almost completely cooked through, about 5 minutes.
6. Add lemon mixture to the skillet. Cook and stir until bubbly and thickened, about 3 minutes.
7. Cook 1 minute more, stirring constantly.
8. Add vegetables, and stir until coated with sauce.
9. Serve the chicken/vegetable mixture over rice.

Just so you don't all think I've up and abandoned this new blog already, I'm heading out of town for the next few nights for work, so I probably won't have another recipe to post until at least Tuesday. I hope everyone has a great weekend!