The end is near! I have a couple more days of school and then summer begins. A very hectic summer, indeed. In a few days, we will be on our way to Colorado and Utah for most of June and I am so ready. Well, ready in my head, but my bags are not packed, yet. I always assume I’ll have a ton of time once the last bus drives away but it’s not always so leisurely.
A couple of nights ago, I made a big batch of pan-seared chicken breasts and I needed another direction to take them than just plain chicken and sweet potatoes. I wanted something summery and creamy at the same time. I took an older recipe and added my own twist to make it more suitable for my paleo life. That basically means that I cut out the added sugar and switched dairy to grass-fed and full fat yogurt instead of cream cheese. I mixed some heat with the cranberries and oranges and the whole thing was just really good.
Pan-seared Chicken with Cranberry Salsa
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon dried basil+1 Tablespoon dried thyme
- 1 cup of cranberry sauce (from this recipe, frozen in November). In a pinch, use the whole berry canned cranberry sauce.
- 1 orange, sliced and cut into small pieces
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1/2 a jalapeño, chopped finely
- 1/2 cup full fat Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
In a skillet, heat the pan to medium-high. Add oil and let it heat to a shimmer. Sprinkle thyme and basil plus salt+pepper over both sides of chicken. Cook each side for 3 minutes until completely done. Turn pan off, remove from heat, cover until ready to serve. Covering keeps them from drying out.
Cranberry salsa
Combine cranberries, oranges, and jalapeño in a bowl.
Yogurt topping
In a small bowl, combine yogurt, parsley, and lime juice.
To serve, place some salsa on a plate. Top with one piece of chicken. Top with yogurt sauce.