I have a love/hate relationship with chicken. I am generally a fan – until I go to bake it. Then I tend to overcook it and it just tastes like dry, bland ickiness. Even though I enjoy the kitchen (some days more than others), I’m not the world’s best cook. When I find a recipe that works, it gets added to the rotation. Usually that means 3 out of 4 of us approve. I’ve mentioned before that I don’t take the oldest son’s opinions to heart because he has a remarkably limited palate. When we get 4 out of 4 two-thumbs up, I’m ecstatic for days.

While browsing Pinterest a few weeks ago, I saw a chicken fajita casserole with cream of soup and cheesy rice. It looked delicious, but I was wanting something a little lighter tonight. This was a use-what’s-on-hand dinner using the basic fajita ingredients. (Authentic? Absolutely not. Maybe calling it fajita-inspired is a better way of phrasing it.) It’s not anything new, I’m sure – we’ve made basic variations of this and it closely resembles my bruschetta chicken (that I haven’t had in much too long!) The chicken was moist and flavourful, the veggies weren’t soggy or gross. I’m listing the recipe as I made it – which fed three of us a good-portioned dinner, left Kevin with leftovers for lunch, and an extra breast & a half to use in quesadillas.

Chicken Fajita BakE
Ingredients:

• 1 package boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs (I used a 5 pack of breasts)
• 2 bell peppers (we had green on hand, but I think red would be even more delicious!)
• 1 large onion (I used a red onion, but white would be fine)
• 2 tomatoes – optional
• fajita seasoning (to taste)
• 1 cup shredded cheese, monterey jack or cheddar

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a casserole dish.
2. Cut your veggies into thin strips and mix. (Your tomatoes can be cut into wedges or large diced)
3. Place chicken breasts in the pan and sprinkle with fajita seasoning. (I honestly don’t use “fajita seasoning” but just come up with a concoction that at least contains oregano, cumin, chili powder, and cumin. Sorry – that’s not helpful – “season to taste.”)
4. Add your veggie mix.
5. Top with cheese.
6. Bake for 30-40 minutes until a safe internal temperature is reached and chicken is cooked through.
7. Serve on tortillas, rice, or a bed of spinach, if desired. (We used a spanish pilaf I found in the back of the cupboard and it was delicious!)

This meal smelled so delicious and we were so hungry when it came out of the oven that it was devoured before I took pictures! A stock photo it is and I’ll update the next time we prepare it. It’s my favourite kind of recipe – little prep time, and no thought once I popped it into the oven so I could concentrate on folding socks (or playing Homescapes.)