Chicken with Wild Rice and Grapes

Tonight we had Chicken with Dijon Vin Blanc Sauce, which I have blogged about twice now. It is just so good! So since I made a repeat tonight, I decided to blog about a recipe that I did last week that I hadn't gotten around to posting yet. This Chicken with Wild Rice and Grapes recipe came out of the latest issue of Real Simple (fantastic magazine!). As I mentioned last week, I'm going to still do some Pampered Chef recipes but also check out recipes from other sources as well! This one was definitely worth it!

This recipe was so tasty! All of the flavors paired together perfectly. I didn't check the nutritional information for this recipe until after I had bought all of the ingredients, and I was a little surprised at how may calories was in one serving. Definitely more that what we normally have at dinner. BUT, one serving size was so much food!! A serving size included two chicken thighs (plus the rice, grapes and green beans), but we were both full after only one chicken thigh each. The fact that it used thighs probably made the calories add up also. You could cut some calories out by taking the skin off the chicken thigh, or even by substituting the thighs with some boneless, skinless chicken breasts. It would still be just as delicious! The wild rice also had a lot of sodium in it, but you could definitely get by without adding the whole packet of seasoning that came with the box of wild rice. Or just use brown rice instead!

Everything was really easy to put together! I didn't run into any major disasters and as I said already, there was a lot of flavor in the dish! I thought that the grapes added a nice touch. So, not the most healthy dish, but a yummy treat when you want to splurge a little!

Chicken with Wild Rice and Grapes

Real Simple 

Published by Real Simple, Oct 2011 issue

Hands-on time: 20 minutes  Total time: 40 minutes  Yield: 4 servings

1 cup wild rice blend

2 tsp olive oil

8 chicken thighs (about 3 lbs)

Kosher salt and black pepper

2 cups red seedless grapes

1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

1 lb green beans, trimmed

2 tbsp unsalted butter

1. Heat oven to 425°F. Cook the rice according to the package directions.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper. In 2 batches, cook the chicken, skin-side down, until golden, 5 to 6 minutes, then transfer to a rimmed baking sheet. Place skin-side up and roast until cooked through, 12 to 15 minutes.

3. Add the grapes and thyme to the drippings in the skillet and cook, tossing occasionally, until the grapes begin to burst, 5 to 7 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, fill a large pot with 1 inch of water and fit with a steamer basket; bring the water to a boil. Place the green beans in the basket, cover, and steam until tender, 5 to 7 minutes; toss with the butter. Serve with the chicken, rice, and grapes.