This is in no way like the traditional Italian meal. It's probably downright offensive that I'm even calling it that, but it is delicious and super simple. Also, a half a cup of pasta and 1 chicken breast in meal portion brings this to around 350-400 calories, with a good serving of veggies by way of some hidden kale and a lean serving of protein via chicken.
Skinny Chicken Parmesan (serves 5)
Ingredients:
5 chicken breasts
3 and 1/2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 cup of shredded low-fat parmesan
1 tablespoon of garlic salt
1/2 cup of lemon juice (freshly squeezed is preferable)
1 large can of tomato sauce
1-2 packages of gluten free pasta
1 package of kale (10-12 oz is all you need here)
1 tablespoon of minced garlic
Method:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Defrost and clean your chicken correctly. Mix 1 tablespoon of your extra virgin olive oil with the lemon juice and garlic salt to make a marinade and place the defrosted chicken in this marinade for at least a half hour.
In a pan, using another tablespoon of your oil, saute your kale until wilted (on a low-medium heat), adding the minced garlic when the stems begin to wilt (if you add it to the oil when you put the oil into the pan, the garlic will burn and the kale will be bitter because of it).
Cook your pasta according to the packaging (hint, add a pinch of salt to the pasta water before putting in the pasta, it will keep it from sticking- however, don't add the salt until the water is boiling, otherwise it will slow down the boil of the water). Mix it with the tomato sauce (cold sauce, trust me) and the cooked kale.
In the pan in which you cooked the kale, with the rest of your extra virgin olive oil, lightly cook the outsides of your chicken (around 2 minutes on each side) at a medium heat, until lightly browned. Remove them from the pan and place them on to a paper towel (gets rid of excess oil). If you feel the need (I always use non-stick pans, so this isn't an issue) put cooking spray on the bottom of the same pan, put the pasta-sauce-kale mixture on the bottom of the pan, place the chicken on top of it, top with the cup of Parmesan. Place the entire pan in the oven and bake for 25 minutes, broil at 550 degrees Fahrenheit for a minute after baking, giving the dish a crispy Parmesan top, and serve immediately.