Chicken Breasts in Zesty Tomato Sauce

This is a one-skillet meal perfect for weeknight dinner and it only takes about 30 minutes to prepare.  I put this together with ingredients I had on hand one night.  The tomato sauce is slightly spicy with the delicious flavors of thyme, turkey bacon, onion and garlic.  

I love dishes that combine tomato sauce with delicious flavors of Cajun, Spanish and Mexican spices and this dish borrows a little from each of these.  This meal is filled with healthy ingredients so you won’t have to worry about that pesky food guilt lingering around after dinner.  Cheers!

Ingredients:

3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (depending on how many you are serving)

1 tbsp olive oil to saute chicken breasts

3 turkey bacon slices, cooked

1 tsp olive oil to saute veggies

1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes

2 ribs celery, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp dried thyme

½ cup yellow corn kernels

½ cup chicken broth

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp Cholula hot sauce (or hot sauce of your choice-adjust amount to your preference of spiciness)

Preparation:

Pound out the chicken breasts to thin them out a bit.  You don’t want them wafer thin, just thin them out so that they will cook faster in the sauce.  Set chicken aside.

Cook turkey bacon in a large skillet according to package directions (this is the same skillet that you are going to use for the chicken and sauce).  Let turkey bacon cool and then crumble it into bits.

In the same skillet used to cook the turkey bacon, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat.  Saute the chicken breasts in the hot oil - about 2-3 minutes per side or just until browned on the outside.  Set the seared chicken aside on a plate.  

Heat the remaining 1 tsp olive oil in the same pan over medium heat and add the onion and celery to the pan.  Cook the onion and celery until soft and translucent. Add the minced garlic and thyme to the pan with the onions and celery and cook for two minutes more.  

Add chicken and remaining ingredients to the pan (corn, chicken broth, crumbled turkey bacon, canned tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste).  Cover and simmer on low for 15 minutes. 

 Remove lid and increase heat to medium - simmer up to 15 minutes more or until the liquid reduces to your desired thickness.  I like mine to be a little thicker and not so soupy.  

Serve over garlic mashed potatoes, wild rice or couscous for a delicious and healthy weeknight supper!