Hey and welcome back! I took a small break and I’m excited to be back. I have a really easy, but super tasty, recipe that is sure to be a weeknight hit! So pour a drink and pull up a chair because you won’t even need to write this one down- just cut it out!
As you all know, I am on a food journey that is little to no carbs, so it has forced me to think differently about food and what I can have. Recently things have been busy at our house and I needed a meal that wasn’t going to take a lot of time or oversight, so I came up with a bacon ranch chicken and quick green beans.
For this recipe you will need:
6 chicken thighs (boneless and skinless)
1 packet of dry ranch seasoning
10 slices of bacon
1 – 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 packet of chicken bouillon powder
1/2 stick of butter
2 cloves or garlic (whole but peeled)
3-4 cans green beans
First start by cooking 8 pieces of bacon on broil in the oven. I usually line a cookie sheet with foil so it’s less mess and broil for roughly 20 minutes, checking often to make sure they don’t burn.
While the bacon cooks you can start your green beans. In a pot dump in the green beans (I used fresh ones we bought during the summer but canned are fine), butter, chicken bouillon, remaining 2 pieces of raw bacon, and 2 cloves of garlic. Cover with water and put on medium- medium high heat. Cook until the water reduces by half then add water again to cover the beans and reduce heat to low until the rest of the meal is done.
Don’t forget to check the bacon under the broiler! While you wait for it to finish, sprinkle the dry ranch seasoning on both sides of the chicken thighs and put in a foil lined dish (makes for easier clean up). One thing I would change, is after I seasoned the thighs I kind of rolled them back up like they were in the package and next time I will lay them out flat which would decrease the cooking time.
After you pull the bacon out, heat the oven to 375 and place the cooked bacon on paper towels to drain off any excess grease. Cook the chicken for 40 minutes. Next pull the chicken out of the oven and top with slices of bacon and then top that with the shredded cheese. Put the chicken back in the oven for 5-10 minutes- just enough to get a nice melt on the cheese and let the bacon and cheese flavors marry with the chicken.
Remove the chicken from the oven, plate with the green beans and serve! Obviously you could add a side of rice, macaroni and cheese, roasted potatoes- whatever your heart desires, I just can’t do those fun, tasty carbs.
Since there isn’t a lot of oversight required for this meal, it allows you to help your kids with homework or straighten up your house or just simply relax while dinner cooks itself! I hope you and your family enjoy this simple, yet tasty weeknight meal and as always I’m sending love from my kitchen to yours!!
