Here’s a wonderful recipe you can enjoy guilt-free!  I’m simmering chicken thighs in a rich tomatoey sauce loaded with mushrooms, onions and sweet peppers.  Boneless, skinless, chicken thighs are very popular to use in healthy recipes these days.  Just by removing the skin and sauteing the veggies is a small amount of oil, this delish dish now has 270 calories, 10 grams of fat and 6 Weight Watchers POINTS PLUS.  A regular recipe has 417 calories and 27 grams of fat. This hearty dish is one of my family’s favorites.  Maximum flavor and minimum effort…Definitely impressive enough to serve for company too.  Buon Appetito!

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

6 chicken thighs, boneless, skinless, (about 1½ lbs), see shopping tip

⅛  teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon fresh ground pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon garlic, minced

8-10 ounce package mushrooms, sliced

1 large onion. chopped, about 2 cups

1 large red bell pepper, sliced thin

1 yellow bell pepper, sliced thin

½ cup white wine

1 (24 oz) jar Classico Tomato and Basil Tomato Sauce or your favorite

½ teaspoon Italian seasonings

Fresh ground pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Sprinkle chicken thighs with a little salt and pepper.  In a large nonstick pan, add chicken and cook about 5 minutes or until brown, turning once.  Remove chicken from pan to a plate.  While the chicken is browning, place the mushrooms, onions and both peppers in a large microwave-safe bowl.  Cook in microwave for about 2-3 minutes until the vegetables are softened.

2. In the same large pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Add garlic, softened mushrooms, onions and peppers.   Saute on high heat until lightly browned and soft, about 3-4 minutes.

3. Stir in wine and cook for about 1-2 minutes until wine is almost evaporated.

4. Return chicken to pan and add the tomato sauce, Italian seasonings and fresh ground pepper.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook uncovered for about 15 minutes until chicken is tender and no longer pink.

Serves 6  (each serving contains 1 thigh and about ¾ -1 cup sauce)

Food Fact
Cacciatore in Italian means “hunter.” In cuisine it means the meal is prepared “Hunter-style” with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, peppers and herbs.  Chicken Cacciatore is the most popular dish prepared in this style.

Healthy Benefits
Many studies have linked higher consumption of cooked tomato products with reduced risk of prostate and other cancers.  Tomato products contains some B vitamins along with vitamin C.

One small red, yellow or orange pepper provides three times the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C—way ahead of citrus.  Red peppers stand out as one of the few foods that contain lycopene. They’re also packed with beta-carotene.

Shopping Tip
You’ll find boneless, skinless, chicken thighs in most markets.  I bought mine at Trader Joe’s.

Serving Tip
This dish is typically served over spaghetti or penne pasta. Use a whole wheat or whole grain pasta.  My favorite is to serve this dish with a baked potato or Skinny Mash Potatoes and Garlic Sauteed Spinach.

Weight Watchers (old points) 6
Weight Watchers POINTS PLUS 6