Italian Chicken with Roasted Vegetables
and lemon mustard sauce / quinoa
Dried herbs and a simple creamy sauce give this classic meal a refined feel.
Smarts: Feel free to use any type of tomatoes to roast with the zucchini. Cherry, plum, or Roma tomatoes would all be great.
Ingredients
- Chicken breasts, boneless and skinless - 1 lb
- Italian seasoning - 2 tsp
- Oil, cooking - 1 Tbsp
- Stock, any type - 1/4 cup (sub water)
- Foil - for roasting
- Sunflower seeds - 1/4 cup (sub pumpkin seeds / pepitas or any chopped nuts)
- Zucchini - 1 lb, cubed
- Tomatoes, grape or cherry - 1 1/2 cups, halved
- Vinegar, balsamic - 2 tsp
- Oil, olive - 2 tsp
- Italian seasoning - 1 tsp
- Quinoa, uncooked - 3/4 cup
- Stock, any type - 1 1/2 cups
- Sour cream - 1/2 cup (sub plain or Greek yogurt)
- Mustard, Dijon - 1 Tbsp (use large grain if you have it)
- Lemon juice - 2 tsp
Nutrition Facts
Prep
- Quinoa - (If prepping right before cooking, get oven heating while quinoa cooks; double if making Thursday’s meal.) Combine quinoa with stock (portion for quinoa) in a saucepan. Add some salt. Bring to a boil covered. Lower heat, keep covered, and cook until liquid is absorbed, 8 to 10 minutes. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Zucchini - Cube zucchini. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Make sauce - Whisk together sour cream, mustard, and lemon juice. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Chicken - Tenderize chicken and season with Italian seasoning (portion for chicken) and some salt and pepper. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Tomatoes - Halve tomatoes.
Unlock this meal along with hundreds of smart meal plans and never stress about "What's for dinner?" again
Try for freeLearn More
Make
- Heat oven to 400F / 204C.
- Spread zucchini and tomatoes out on a sheet pan. Toss with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Italian seasoning (portion for vegetables), and some salt and pepper. Transfer vegetables to the oven and roast until tender, shaking the pan halfway through cooking, ~25 minutes total.
- Once vegetables are roasting, heat an oven-safe skillet with cooking oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken and sear on both sides until golden brown but not cooked through, 6 to 7 minutes total. Add stock (portion for chicken) and cover skillet with foil. Transfer skillet to oven and continue roasting chicken for 8 to 12 minutes more (depending on thickness; chicken is done when it reaches 165F / 74C).
- When chicken is done, transfer to a cutting board, cover, and let rest for at least 5 minutes.
- If quinoa was made ahead, reheat in the microwave. (Reserve half if doubled.)
- Slice chicken and serve over quinoa with vegetables on the side. Enjoy sauce and sunflower seeds over everything.
Nutrition Facts
Reviews
Ratings
33 reviews
I am not a fan of the quinoa I purchased recently, which brought the meal down overall for me, but the recipe itself was solid, just nothing that stood out
I made this all in an oven safe skillet. I cut the veggies on the smaller side and added them to the pan when I flipped the chicken. Included lemon zest and a pinch of sugar to the sauce... Yummy and easy to make. Served with whole wheat egg noodles for the kids and a salad for me. Everyone gobbled up this up!
The chicken was juicy and flavorful — I usually have trouble with finding the sweet spot, chicken is usually dry and over cooked or (shudder) underdone. This came out beautifully because of the moisture in the pan under the foil in the oven. The sauce was great with the veggies and the chicken. I made farro because I had it on hand and no quinoa and it was great!