Mediterranean Chicken and Farro

Great things never come from our comfort zone.  Do you agree?  

I'm the kind of girl who likes to live with familiar and comfortable routines.  Don't we all really?  I prefer a predictable and reliable lifestyle.  Why mess with a good thing?  But great things usually happen when I'm OUTSIDE my comfort zone and not living my comfortable and predictable life.  

Travel is one of the best ways that I've found for me to stretch my boundaries and get outside my comfort zone.  I get accustomed to viewing the world from my own front door.  My little circle of existence gets very small when I spend too much time without leaving it.  It doesn't take a long or expensive vacation to broaden my perspective and get me out of my comfort zone though.  A day trip to the mountains, a hike through the forest or an afternoon spent on the lake can really reset my navigational beacon.  It's not in my normal routine to do any of those things but they really are great ways to expand comfort zone.  

I also have a cooking comfort zone but today I'm going to challenge myself to get just a little bit out of my culinary comfort zone.  Adding a new grain or a new kind of olive into my diet can be just the thing that I need to break myself out of my comfort zone cooking.  Pulling out the slow cooker, picking up some farro and Castelvetrano olives and putting together this uber-tasty chicken dinner for tonight.  Great things happen when I break out of comfort zone cooking. 

Mediterranean Chicken and Farro
2 Tablespoons oil
4 split chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup uncooked farro 
1/2 cup chopped onion
10 pitted Castelvetrano olives, sliced
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 cup toasted almonds, chopped
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 glove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Season chicken with salt and pepper.  

Heat oil in skillet and brown chicken on each side. 

Stir together broth, farro, onion, 1/4 t. salt and 1/4 t. pepper.  

Spray slow cooker with cooking spray and add broth mixture. 

Top with chicken and olives.

Cover and cook on low 8 hours. 

Remove chicken from slow cooker. 

Add parsley, almonds, lemon juice and zest, garlic and red pepper to farro.  

Garnish with additional parsley.

The beige pictures of this chicken dish don't really do it justice.  The briney olives, the bright lemon zest, the crunchy almonds, the spicy red pepper and the fresh parsley all work together beautifully to create a dish that is absolutely bursting with flavor.  I love the way that the farro perfectly compliments the chicken and visa versa.  And the fact that you can toss it all in your slow cooker and walk away for 8 hours is just an added bonus.  

​Ciao!

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