French Dijon Chicken and Green Beans

Since learning of the paleo lifestyle, I have been a fan of Melissa Joulwan at www.theclothesmakethegirl.com. I am an even bigger fan since getting my hands on her cookbook, Well Fed. She presents two ideas in her book that have been just as valuable to me as the recipes themselves. First, she talks about a weekly cookup: spending time every weekend preparing food for the week. This has become a Sunday morning ritual in my house. Each of us picks out a dinner recipe to make through the week, set a timer, and spend the next hour laughing and having fun in the kitchen. The girls are responsible for cutting veggies for packed lunches and the dinner recipes we selected while I roast and fry up meats and prep some of the more complicated items. Her second concept is then using these prepped meats and vegetables to create super quick meals by simply heating and adding seasoning or a sauce.

I'd love to take credit for this creamy delicious dish, but Melissa's "Hot Plate" ideas inspired my 10-year old Sunshine to create this recipe all on her own.

Serves 3

Ingredients:

• 1 T coconut oil
• 3 chicken breasts, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 4 cups fresh green beans, chopped
• 1 cup carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 cup baby tomatoes
• 1/4 cup spicy dijon mustard (check ingredients to ensure it's paleo-friendly)
• 1/3 cup chicken stock, preferably homemade
• 2 T lemon juice
• 1 tsp tarragon
• 1 tsp freshly ground pepper

Directions:

1. Heat oil over medium-high heat.
2. Stir chicken into the hot oil. If chicken is pre-cooked, continue to the next step. Otherwise, stir fry chicken until cooked through.
3. Add green beans, carrots, and tomatoes. Fry 3-5 minutes. 
4. While veggies are cooking, mix remaining ingredients together to make a sauce.
5. Pour sauce over chicken and veggies. Mix well.
6. Cook until vegetables reach a desired softness. (We prefer them still crunchy!)
7. Serve immediately.