Baked Hummus Rosemary Chicken

The bird of happiness in our kitchen is the chicken. Honestly, we eat so much chicken that it’s impossible to say if we know any other meat. (It’s true we avoid red meat but won’t say ‘no’ to the odd steak or burger on a night out, my roots are from Alberta after-all.)  Needless to say, we’re always searching out new chicken dishes that are as tantalizing as they are healthy.  Oh, and it’s also important for the prep to not be too time consuming…as life moves fast these days.

This past January I decided to tackle Clean by Alejandro Junger M.D.  A friend did this program and had amazing results – without feeling deprived.  It was great (except the lack of wine part!) and honestly, something I’d do a few times a year. The Clean book is available for download on the iPad, recipes included, which makes it easy to grab when ready to make dinner!

Long after the cleanse was complete, this one recipe kept coming up at our dinner table and has become one of our all-time favorite dishes.  There is nothing like a moist, succulent chicken dinner to end the day off right.

The Hummus portion of this is slightly adapted from the original but honestly not much different than most recipes you’d find online.  One secret that isn’t necessarily mentioned too often is that authentic Hummus is usually accomplished by peeling the skins from the chickpeas.  (This can feel like a pain and unnecessary but honestly it makes such a difference for texture and flavor.)  Skins come off easily with a gentle rub with your fingers.

This recipe is also something you can prep ahead of time and cover in the fridge until ready to bake.

Baked Hummus Crusted Chicken w/ Rosemary & Lemon

2 Boneless skinless Chicken breasts

1/2 cup hummus (see recipe below)

1 lemon cut sliced and cut into rounds

4 fresh rosemary sprigs or 2 tbsp dried rosemary

Generous drizzle of Balsamic Vinegar

Preheat Oven to 450F

Place Chicken in roasting pan, covering all exposed meat with hummus (1/4″ thick).  Scrunch each lemon round in hand then loosely arrange over chicken w/ rosemary sprigs broken into smaller pieces so flavor comes out. Generously drizzle w/ balsamic vinegar and bake until hummus is golden brown & meat is juicy.  (approx. 25 – 30 min depending on thickness of chicken)

Hummus (slightly altered recipe):

1 can garbanzo beans rinsed and drained (remove skins for smoother hummus)

3 cloves garlic

1 ½ tbsp. of tahini

juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp paprika

2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil.

process in food processor or blender until smooth.

Recipe adapted from Jenny Nelson, Dr. Alejandro Junger’s Senior Wellness Coach.