Chicken & Rice

The Mr. had a belly ache for a few days (that he then shared with me) so I was trying to think of comfort food that I could also make clean for him.  What's more comforting than chicken & rice?

Ingredients

• Boneless skinless chicken breast (4-6)
• 3 cups brown rice prepared
• 2 carrots
• Celery ends (see tips below)
• Fresh parsley
• Chicken broth (low sodium, organic preferably)
• Season to taste:  I used garlic salt, pepper, poultry seasoning

Method

• Clean and dry chicken breasts, place into pot (I used a cast iron dutch oven)
• Add chopped carrots, celery, parsley & seasoning
• Cover with broth
• Bring to boil, reduce to simmer and cook until chicken is cooked through
• Remove chicken to a plate, cut or shred as desired and set aside
• Using a slotted spoon, remove vegetables and put into blender, set aside to cool for a few minutes.
• When veggies are cool, puree & return to broth
• Thicken broth with corn starch
• Add prepared rice & heat through
• Add chicken, stir to combine
• Enjoy!

Tips

• Celery tips that is!  So, as I cleaned and prepped veggies for the week, I chopped the tips from the celery and used those in the broth.  They aren't pretty but they are going to end up pureed anyway.  And  yes, they were cleaned first :)  Those leafy ends on the celery are soooo flavorful, don't waste them!
• Same with carrots.  I used two whole but as I cleaned the rest of them, I used the non-stem ends that I cut away in the broth. 
• The longer the chicken simmers, the more flavorful it will be.  This is one of those dishes that can simmer all day and make your house smell wonderful while you're waiting for dinner. 
• I served with green beans and a green salad made with lettuce,fresh parsley,  cucumbers and a light lemon vinaigrette. 
• I had leftover mashed potatoes a few weeks ago, not enough for another meal.  I froze them and used them to thicken the gravy for this dish.