Healthy Italian Dinner Recipe: A quick, easy, clean recipe for chicken and eggplant that EVERYONE will love!
Italian food is delicious, and traditionally, quite nutritious! However, the Italian we’ve come to know is a little different than the classic Mediterranean style food it originates from. Typically, we think of pasta and cheese with a red tomato sauce and meat when we think of Italian. While this may be true for some traditional dishes, Mediterranean food focuses heavily on fruits, vegetables, and lean meats. You will find cheese, but not in the ratios we’re thinking of. This Healthy Italian Dinner Recipe takes Italian food back to basics. It’s quick, easy, and crowd pleasing.
If you want to learn more about how you can make Italian food Nutrifitx Approved and support your health and weight loss goals, click the button below! We created an entire article dedicated to helping you improve your diet and health (and you still get the recipe – no need to come back here)!
NUTRIFITX MEMBERS’ SCALE
Healthy Italian Dinner Recipe
Complete Italian Chicken Dinner
This Italian dinner is delicious 100% Nutrifitx Approved, and takes just 30-45 minutes to complete. We love serving this at least once a week and making double for lunches.
Ingredients
- 2 6-8 oz Chicken Breasts (Thin Sliced or Pounded)
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 Eggplants, whole
- 2 c Nutrifitx Italian Dressing
- Dark Leafy Greens (Romaine, Kale, Spinach, Spring Mix, Arugula, etc.)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 (F). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. If not already prepped, prepare 2 cups (2 recipes) of the Nutrifitx Italian Dressing.
- Clean chicken breasts (removing all undesirable parts). Pour 1-1/4 cups of dressing into a large mixing bowl, and add each chicken breast into the bowl. Marinate chicken until ready to cook.
- Dice eggplant. Remove top and bottom of eggplant, then cut into medium square chunks. The purple skin is edible and highly nutritious; but many people do not prefer the skin. To remove, place standing on newly flattened bottom edge, and carefully slice the skin off the eggplant retaining as much of the flesh as possible.
- Heat approximately 2 Tbsp olive oil in a pan, and warm over medium heat.
- Meanwhile, place largely diced eggplant into another mixing bowl, and drizzle with 1/2 cup of dressing. Stir to evenly distribute dressing.
- Spread died eggplant evenly on parchment lined pan, and lightly salt (if desired).
- Once oil is heated, add marinated chicken breasts to pan. Cover, and set a timer for 4-5 minutes. Do not move the chicken breasts from their place, but check periodically to ensure there is no blackening. If they are blackening, turn down the heat slightly.
- Place eggplant in preheated oven. With convection: Roast for 7 minutes. Without convection: Roast for 10-12 minutes.
- At end of chicken timer, flip chicken breasts, and repeat. Set another timer for 4-5 minutes.
- At end of eggplant timer, remove from oven and stir eggplant around on the pan. Repeat; set another timer to finish roasting (7-12 minutes). Check periodically to prevent burning - all ovens are different.
- While eggplant and chicken are in their final cooking stages, prepare your salads. Add unlimited dark leafy greens to a salad bowl, and add other vegetables if desired (tomatoes, bell peppers, and cucumbers are good options!) Coat salads with remaining 1/4 cup of salad dressing (2 Tbsp per salad).
- When all dishes are complete, plate and serve. Enjoy!
Notes
If you want your chicken to be extra tender and flavorful, start marinading 30-45 minutes before cooking!
We also recommend having you salad dressing prepared prior to cooking. This is a great thing to prep during your weekly meal prep. While cooking, we also recommend making extra chicken and eggplant for lunches, as it only takes 3-5 more minutes to prepare addtional servings of this recipe.
