real simple

i have to give credit where credit is due on this post. andy's been really busy with school lately so i've been taking over in the kitchen. i actually enjoy it because though he is a far superior cook, i love being in the kitchen and cooking meals for my family. however, i cannot just whip up a recipe off the top of my head the way that andy can. he can look in the fridge, combine ingredients that i would never think to put together, and make an entire meal fit for a fancy restaurant. my skills are much more limited and most often require a (simple) recipe. recipes with long lists of ingredients and multiple steps don't interest me. i like easy and quick, especially on a week-night. so, for the second night in a row, i've turned to www.realsimple.com for dinner. this evening it was rosemary chicken and arugula salad. i tweaked it a little bit (my recipe is below), however the majority of the credit goes to the fun chefs at RS. everything was yummy and quick, and i know it had to be good because the chef in the house ate seconds.

chicken ingredients:

4 bone in chicken thighs (if you don't like dark meat you can use chicken breast, which is what the RS recipe calls for. i've been using thighs in lieu of breasts lately because i find them to be much jucier)
2 tbs red wine vinegar
5 tbs olive oil
2 tbs chopped rosemary
2 cloves chopped garlic
s&p

to prepare:
1. whisk together vinegar, oil, rosemary, garlic, and salt and pepper (to taste) in a casserole dish.
2. add chicken to the dish and coat in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
*preheat oven to 400
3. wipe the marinade off the chicken. heat oil in a pan on med-high heat. Sear both
sides of the chicken (about 4 min. per side or until a golden brown)
4. cook the chicken in the preheated oven for 30 min or until chicken is heated to 165 F

salad ingredients:
*note, prepare the salad while the chicken is marinading so that it has plenty of time to soak up the dressing

2 tbs dijon mustard
2 tbs olive oil
1 tbs red wine vinegar
1 15.5 oz can cannellini beans, drained (but not rinsed!)
1/4 red onion, chopped
3 oz baby arugula

to prepare:
1. whisk together mustard, oil, vinegar and salt and pepper (to taste)
2. add cannellini beans, onion and arugula
3. toss to coat and let sit (in the fridge or at room temp) while the chicken cooks, tossing occasionally.

serve chicken and salad together and enjoy!