Made With Love: Aromatic & Flavorful Moroccan Chicken with Vegetables!

I love hosting dinner parties, that said when I got invited to participate in a Holiday inspired virtual dinner party hosted by Made with Love: The Meals on Wheels Family Cookbook, how could I refuse? More over I am a firm believer that anything made with love always tastes fabulous too. This book has 100+ recipes making it rather tough trying to simply pick one. Since I am trying to get myself back in shape for the holidays, I chose a protein based one pot meal, Moroccan Chicken with vegetables, healthy, nutritious, and flavorful.

About Made with Love: Providing more than one million meals a day for seniors across America, Meals On Wheels Association of America is the oldest and largest national organization of its kind. Over 100 celebrities have come together in Made With Love: The Meals On Wheels Family Cookbook (BenBella Books, October 2012) to help the organization’s fight to end senior hunger in America. Made With Love includes recipes from the tables of well-known actors, chefs, athletes, writers, and other celebrities. Celebrating the importance of families coming together to help others in need, the cookbook also includes personal stories about the contributors’ favorite family meals. Contributors include Paula Deen, Helen Mirren, former First Lady Barbara Bush, Mario Batali, Martha Stewart, Kurt Warner, Dr. Maya Angelou, Joan Rivers, Patti LaBelle, Cokie Roberts, Al Roker, Judi Dench, and many more. With Made with Love, step inside the kitchens of your favorite celebrities, meet their families, and help to feed seniors in need.

 

Moroccan Chicken with Vegetables

Sweetness from fruits, spices like nutmeg and cinnamon: it has all the flavors of fall/winter that make you feel warm and fuzzy just like love does. This recipe was created by Linda Berns who is a personal chef and caterer specializing in home cooked kosher meals. I couldn’t resist tweaking the recipe to my family’s palate but here I am enclosing the original recipe.

 

Ingredients:

For the Marinade:

• 1/4 cup orange juice, 3 tbs lemon juice, 3 tbs EVOO, 2 heaping tsp ground garlic, 1/4 tsp ground ginger, 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
• 4 (6-8 oz) boneless, skinless chicken breasts or 4 (7 oz) pieces firm tofu

For the Sauce:

• 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 medium onions thinly sliced, 2 heaping tbs minced garlic, 1 (28-0z) can diced tomatoes, 1/2 cup raisins, 1/2 dried prunes, 1/2 dried apricots, 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup white wine, juice of 1 lemon, 3 tbsp brown sugar, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, salt and pepper to taste.

To Serve:

• 2 tbs olive oil, 1.5 cups diced yellow squash, 1.5 cups diced green zucchini

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large bowl, add marinade ingredients, and whisk together. Add chicken or tofu to marinade, and place in the refrigerator for 15 to 30 minutes.
2. While chicken is marinating, prepare sauce. Warm olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic, and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add remaining sauce ingredients and simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 to 15 minutes. Season to taste, adjusting spices to your taste.
3. In another large sauté pan, warm 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium-high heat. Remove chicken or tofu from marinade and add to pan, cooking until brown on all sides. Remove from pan and reserve.
4. In a large baking dish, pour in 1/2 cup sauce. Top with chicken or tofu, and then cover with remaining sauce. Cover pan tightly with foil, place in a preheated oven, and bake until chicken is cooked through and sauce is hot, about 20 minutes. Add squash and zucchini to pan. Cover and return to oven for another 10 minutes, until vegetables are brightly colored and crisp-tender. Remove from oven, and serve.

Made with Love cookbook is available on various websites including Amazon. You can follow them on Facebook and Twitter too. Join us tonight on Twitter for the virtual dinner party. Follow hashtag #MWLDinnerParty or simply tweet to @MadeWithLoveMOW.

January is all about fresh starts, even in the kitchen. Shine Supper Club is celebrating the clean slate by rounding up healthy recipes: lighter winter fare that’s fresh, delicious, and filled with fresh veggies, lean proteins and/or whole grains. Join Shine Supper Club with your favorite healthy recipes.

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