Keeping up with the Freitas': July 2010

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Chicken

It's healthy. It's inexpensive. It's easy to cook with. It can be thrown in hundreds of different recipes. It's the topic of many late night discussions - "which came first: the chicken or the egg..."

We used to eat chicken, usually grilled, about 2-3 times a week. Then I got pregnant with Abby and I couldn't stand to eat it. It's been a long road back to trying to eat it again. I am to the point where I can enjoy it, particularly if it is roasted, or mixed in with other ingredients, but I still struggle with the plain, grilled chicken breast.

So I was excited when I caught this on the Today Show one day. (I NEVER have time to watch the Today Show so I don't know how I caught this but it piqued my interest.) It was a recipe for chicken with roasted tomatoes and goat cheese.

I even bought the cookbook, "I Can't Believe it's not Fattening" which includes "Over 150 Ridiculously Easy Recipes for the Super Busy" - that's me!

We tried the chicken with roasted tomatoes and goat cheese last night. It was fantastic - the best chicken dish I have had in ages. And it was, as the cookbook claims, ridiculously easy. I have bookmarked several other recipes in the book so hopefully they are just as yummy and easy as this one.

So, just wanted to pass along a delicious recipe that is very easy to throw together after a busy day. Happy cooking!

Here is the recipe:

Recipe: Chicken breast with goat cheese and fire-roasted tomatoes

Chef: Chef Devin Alexander

Ingredients

4 (4-ounce) trimmed boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup canned, drained, diced pre-roasted tomatoes or pre-roasted tomatoes with garlic
2 ounces (about 1/2 cup) goat cheese crumbles
2 tablespoons finely slivered fresh basil leaves, or more to taste (optional)
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
Olive oil spray

Baking Directions

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Place a medium ovenproof nonstick skillet over high heat. When it's hot, lightly mist the skillet with spray and immediately add the chicken side by side to the pan so it does not touch. Cook the chicken just until it is golden brown on the outsides, 1 to 2 minutes per side.

Remove the pan from the heat and top each piece of chicken evenly with about 2 tablespoons of the tomatoes, followed by about 1/2 ounce of the cheese. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake the chicken until it is no longer pink inside and the cheese is melted, 5 to 9 minutes. Top evenly with the basil, if desired. Serve immediately.

Calories: 171
Protein: 29 g
Fat: 4 g

Tips

When cooking the chicken make sure not to overcrowd the pan. Depending on the pan size, only one or two chicken breasts should be made at a time.

Serving Size
4 servings

Friday, July 23, 2010

Summer Camp

This is Grace's first year at summer day camp. We heard about the camp through another parent at school and registered her in February (yes, 4 months ahead of time).

It will not surprise those of you who know me so well to learn that I was a little worried about many things. Would she would know anyone there and how would she fit in (she knows several kids and has fit in great). I was worried about the camper to counselor ratio (which I learned was really quite low). I was worried about whether she would be bored (she's not). I was worried about whether the counselors would put enough sunscreen on her (for the most part, pretty good on that one). I will say I was excited about the full size pool where she would take lessons every day - but of course that worried me too (she loves being in the pool and swims three times a day).

But, in usual Grace fashion, she has loved camp from day 1 and has met new friends and enjoyed seening some old friends from her preschool days. She particularly loves the fact that she gets to buy a junk food snack every day (see my previous post on the Hostess Cupcake). And she has a killer tan (despite the multiple applications throughout the day of SPF 70+).

Bruno and I never went to summer camp every day like Grace does. My mom would sign me up for all kinds of activities - you name it, I tried it. But our summer days were much different than being at a camp all day. Sometimes it's hard for us to reconcile that Grace's sense of "normal" is very different than what our sense of "normal" was. My mom didn't work when I was little (well, she worked raising us but didn't have a job outside of the home) and so she was home when I got off the school bus and she was home in the summer. I didn't know any kids who went to camp all day long. Bruno's parents worked different shifts so that one parent would be home at all times. Bruno and I enjoyed our childhoods and we want the same happiness for Grace.

I'm glad we found a summer camp where she can be happy and be a kid for the summer!

Monday, July 12, 2010

4th of July in MA

Almost every year we go to MA for the 4th of July. It is always such a great trip but this time was one of the best. I had not been to MA since Christmas and it was just much too long to go without seeing my sister-in-law, brother-in-law and my adorable niece. (Bruno's parents had been to visit us so I had seen them in between.)

The weather was absolutely perfect and we spent hours outside in Bruno's parents gorgeous backyard. The kids just run free, kick soccer balls, play in the sand box or the pool and get nice and tired so that they sleep great. We had so many wonderful meals and relaxing days - it was a great vacation! I feel so fortunate that my in-laws are such amazingly wonderful, generous, thoughtful and caring people. We get along wonderfully and I cherish the time we spend together.