Macadamia chicken with green pea and broccoli mint smash
Nutritionist Joanna McMillian shares her recipe for macadamia chicken with green pea and broccoli mint smash.
This one is sure to become a family favourite. The crunchy nut and seed topping is divine with the chicken, but the real winner is the smash. Even the kids ask for extra veggies when I serve them this way! Bigger eaters can simply take two pieces of chicken. You could further boost the plant content by adding steamed leafy greens or a simple green leaf salad.
Serves: Four
Ingredients:
- 2 rosemary sprigs, leaves picked
- 1 garlic clove
- Grated zest of 1/2 lemon
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon tarragon, finely chopped
- 200g broccoli, chopped
- 140g frozen peas
- 2 handfuls mint, leaves roughly chopped
- 6 basil leaves, finely shredded
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
- 2 x 200 g skinless chicken breast fillets
- 40g goat’s cheese
- 400g small potatoes in their skins (chat or kipfler are ideal)
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (see note)
- 40g raw macadamia nuts
- 30g raw almonds
- 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon chia seeds
- Pinch of salt flakes
Method:
- Preheat the oven to fan-forced 180°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Cut the potatoes in half, toss them in a bowl with the extra virgin olive oil and spread out on the prepared baking tray. Roast for 30–40 minutes until a lovely golden colour.
- Using a food processor or Vitamix, use the pulse setting to gently grind the nuts, seeds, garlic, lemon zest, spices, tarragon and parmesan until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs—don’t over-blend or you’ll end up with a paste.
- Cut the chicken breasts horizontally to give you four chicken fillets.
- Place the chicken fillets in a casserole dish or on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Spoon the crumb mixture over the chicken, pressing softly to form a crust topping, then scatter over the rosemary. Pop the dish into the oven alongside the potatoes to roast for 15 minutes or until golden on top and cooked through.
- Meanwhile, to make the pea smash, bring a saucepan of water to the boil over high heat. Put the broccoli and peas into a steamer, cover with the lid and place on top of the pan.
- Cook for two to three minutes, or until soft enough to mash.
- Strain any water from the vegetables, then mash roughly with a fork.
- Mix through the mint and basil, crumble over the goat’s cheese and stir to just combine.
- Season with a pinch of salt and plenty of black pepper and serve warm with the crusted chicken and roast potatoes.
Note – Don’t worry about the fat content in this dish as it is almost all coming from those fabulously healthy nuts and seeds, along with a little extra virgin olive oil. This makes the overall recipe low in saturated fats, while you get the benefits of those good unsaturated fats. The fibre content is also boosted by the topping and the veggies, giving you a healthy 10g per serve.
How delicious! Do you think you’ll try this recipe?
Images and recipes from Get Lean Stay Lean by Joanna McMillan (Murdoch Books RRP $35). Available from Dymocks.
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