summer chicken stew

my dream was to sit down and write a post. i had so many things to say, so many recipes to share…

and then life happened again. work, bbq’s, company, water in the basement, a rock wall falling down in our yard, did i mention work? baseball games…my dogs. It’s been a busy weekend ending us in the vet er for our puppy.

he’s ok now. it’s going to be a long recovery and extra tlc. the silly pup managed to pop out his knee cap. now not only can I cook and extreme multitask but i’ve become an expert in popping knees back in.

so you see, when it rained yesterday, instead of posting, i laid down on the floor with my pup, closed my eyes and fell asleep. love can heal, i’m convinced, mostly because i only had to pop his knee in once after that.

when i woke up i was hungry. i craved pasta, i craved veggies, i craved a bit of time in the kitchen to detox from day.

cut up chicken breasts, fresh eggplant and herbs, a big yellow pepper. a bit like ratatouille with tons of garlic.

just what i needed. comfort, stress relief, a meal with my partner, his hand on mine telling me it will all be ok. and it will, because when i gave my pup chicken he smiled at me.

my new mantra, breathe, hug, hold someone’s hand, cook.

summer chicken stew

• 2 tbl canola oil + 1 tbl butter
• 2 chicken bone in breasts cut in half
• 1 onion sliced
• 6 garlic cloves roughly chopped
• 1 yellow pepper sliced
• 1 small eggplant cut into coins and halved
• 1 cup white wine (i used a muscato)
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• 1 14.5 oz can of stewed tomatoes
• handful of basil and oregano
• salt and pepper

1. melt butter and heat up canola oil. clean chicken, dry, and season with salt and pepper. brown in oil and butter remove from pot and set aside.
2. in same pot, add onions, garlic and pepper, cook for 3 minutes and then add eggplant. cook another 5 minutes adding more oil if need be.
3. add wine and bring to a boil, cook for about 1 minute. add chicken stock, tomatoes and herbs. mix together.
4. add chicken back to the pot and bake at 350 for an hour or until chicken is cooked through (uncovered).

serve over pasta and with a salad.