Creamy Sundried Tomato & Artichoke Chicken

As another summer draws to a close, the days are becoming shorter, and yet our to-do list is getting longer. Our busy schedules, whether work is picking back up or we are heading off to school, means less time for cooking. It does not have to mean less nutrient rich meals! This one pot dish gets dinner on the table in 20 minutes, and only uses a handful of ingredients and very little chopping to do it.  Delicious and filling on it’s own or served over your favorite veggies, this is sure to make it into the food plan rotation. You can even modify it for a vegan option by subbing out the chicken for mushrooms and making the broth vegetable. 

Prep Time: 5 minutes.

Cooking Time: 15 minutes.

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon of olive oil

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast, chopped in chunks (use portobellos or choice of 

mushrooms for vegan option)

½ cup of bone broth (or one scoop of powder and ½ cup of water) or sub veg broth for vegan option 

1 Tablespoon of arrowroot starch 

2 cloves of garlic

½ cup of coconut cream

½ cup of sundried tomatoes, chopped

½ cup of artichoke hearts, chopped

1 large handful of basil leaves, chopped

Salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Instructions

This one pot dinner starts with a bit of chopping. Sun dried tomatoes have a bright, sweet flavour and pack a nutritional punch of vitamins C and K, iron, and lycopene. They can be found bagged and dry, or soaked in olive oil. Either are fine to use to this recipe, but if using dry, soak them in warm water for a few minutes to soften them up before chopping. As the anecdote goes, the first person to eat an artichoke (thistle bulb) was very brave, because he was very hungry. It takes patience to get at the heart of an artichoke, but once you do you are rewarded with antioxidant benefits, vitamins C, K, magnesium, potassium, and folate. Thankfully, the hearts alone are usually either found bagged in the frozen veggie section or in a tin. If you choose frozen, allow them to defrost and drain before chopping them up. If you get a tin, make sure to rinse the excess salt off them.  

Next chop the garlic and basil, also setting them aside. Chop chicken breasts into large chunks and season all sides with salt and pepper. The larger chunks will retain more moisture and be more tender than if you slice them thinly, but they will also take a few more minutes to cook through. 

In a small bowl, whisk together the broth, arrowroot starch and salt and pepper. I keep a jar of dried bone broth powder in my kitchen. I add it to my Alkagizers, and find it to be a good way to pack extra nutrition and flavour into recipes, rather than using bouillon cubes.  You can use either liquid broth if you keep it on hand or mix warm water and powder together well in the bowl before adding the starch. Add the starch little by little while whisking so that it doesn’t clump together. If you are making this recipe in WF Spring, you can substitute coconut flour for the arrowroot, or just omit it entirely. 

Heat your skillet to medium high and allow to heat through. Add the chopped chicken breasts, searing the pieces on each side for three minutes. Continue to stir the chicken until it is cooked through, another 6 minutes or so, depending on the size of the pieces. If unsure, take a bigger piece out and cut in half, making certain the meat is white and juice is clear. Reduce the heat to medium low, then pour the sauce over the chicken pieces, stirring for a minute until thickened. 

Add the minced garlic, chopped sundried tomatoes, and artichoke hearts to the skillet, stirring to mix in well. Continue to stir for a minute or two so the vegetables can flavor the sauce. Finally, turn off the heat and sprinkle on the basil, adding more salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately. 

This one pot meal can be enjoyed with a simple side of crudites or over a bed of greens. You can also serve it with cauliflower rice, cabbage noodles, zucchini noodles, or anything you like! I also quite like this dish cold with salad for lunch the following day. Enjoy!