Eating My Way to Holiness

For Lent, one of my avenues to holiness (or the modern term for "giving up something for Lent) is to cook healthier dinners for my family. Note that the key words are "cook" and "healthier". Usually once the cooking happens the healthiness follows. Frozen dinners are not allowed in our house, so that makes it easy.

Partially out of a need for accountability and partially because I haven't posted in a while, I would like to share what we are having for dinner tonight. Last night was ravioli (the dried kind that you boil to reconsitute out of the bulk bin at Winco - I give them a C- grade), homemade marinara with mushrooms, and corn with snap peas (frozen)

Tonight we are having:
from Taste Great - Low Fat: Chicken (Time Life Books)

Chili "Fried" Chicken
4 skinless boneless chicken breasts (I am only using 2 breasts, so half the recipe)
1 c butter milk (or 1 t lemon juice and fill to 1 c milk - let sit for 5-10 minutes)
Breading: 1/2 c flour, 2 T cornmeal, 2 t chili powder, 1/2 t oregano, 1/8 t cayenne pepper

Soak chicken in buttermilk for 5 minutes.
Mix breading ingredients on plate or plastic bag.
Having baking sheet ready.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Bread chicken and shake off excess; place on baking sheet.
Drizzle chicken with 2 t olive oil.
Bake 12 minutes.

Rice & Spinach
from Taste Great - Low Fat: Chicken (Time Life Books)

2 cloves garlic, minced
10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1/4 t oregano
1/4 t salt
1/4 t sugar
1/8 t ground nutmeg
1 cup of cooked rice (or orzo)
3 T dried currants or raisins
2 t pine nuts or walnuts or other nuts
2 t lemon juice

Heat 2 t olive oil in skillet until hot (not smoking) over med heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring frequently for 30 seconds. Stir in spinach through nutmeg until spinach is heated through (5 min). Add rice through lemon juice and heat (2 min).

Acorn Squash
Half an acorn squash. Remove seeds. Cook in slow cooker until soft (couple of hours on low) or cook in oven at 350 for 1/2 hr or so. (Maybe I'll put the rice/spinach in the squash...hmm...)