New Jersey is known for its fresh summer tomatoes! Now that the season is winding down, we love to highlight recipes that can use up the end of the crop in delicious ways before we have to say goodbye until next year. Tomatoes and balsamic vinegar dress up a pan seared chicken for a heart healthy weeknight meal the whole family will enjoy. Try pan searing your chicken in place of deep fat frying for a juicy yet low fat way to prepare this popular protein.
Ingredients
- 2 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, minced and divided
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons packed fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped and divided
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 4 medium tomatoes, diced
Directions
- Trim chicken breasts of excess fat. Press your palm firmly on top of one of the chicken breasts and run your knife parallel to the cutting board, slicing the chicken in half, depth wise, giving you 2 equally thick pieces of chicken. Repeat with the other chicken breast.
- Combine 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 cloves minced garlic and 2 tablespoons basil leaves in a small mixing bowl. Place mixture in a zip top plastic bag along with halved chicken breasts and toss the chicken in the marinade. Set aside to marinate for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine balsamic vinegar and honey in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 12-15 minutes until sauce is thickened.
- Combine diced tomatoes with remaining 2 cloves of garlic and ¼ cup basil leaves in a small mixing bowl and set aside.
- Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts, 2 at a time, to the pan and cook for 3 minutes on each side until chicken is a light golden brown color. Repeat with remaining chicken breasts.
- Plate chicken breast halves topped with ¼ cup tomato mixture and drizzled with balsamic glaze. Serve alongside a green salad for a tasty summer meal!
Yield: 4 servings (1/2 chicken breast with tomato and balsamic glaze topping per serving)
Nutrition Facts
295 Calories; 11 g Fat (2 g Saturated Fat; 0 g Trans Fat); 84 mg Cholesterol; 88 mg Sodium; 16 g Carbohydrate (2 g Fiber, 12 g Sugar, 4 g Added Sugar); 32 g Protein; 10% Daily Value (DV) Vitamin A; 25% DV Vitamin C; 1% DV Vitamin D; 5% DV Calcium; 10% DV Iron; 13% DV Potassium