Protein Pita

This is a quick and easy on the go recipe to help those with a busy schedule like myself have a lil more time to relax in the day. It's also a yummy source of protein that will help keep you fueled and focused. I made the pasta sauce and chicken from scratch, but you can use store bought too. For those with kids (or friends), it's a great way to have them involved in the kitchen for a home brunch.

Great

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

First, let's start by making our marinade for the chicken breast. Add all of the ingredients listed below into a bowl and mix together.

Step 2

Next we are going to add our chicken into the marinade. Make sure to evenly coat the chicken evenly. Set aside and let it marinade for 15-20 minutes. While the chicken is taking on the flavor of the marinade heat up your air-fryer or oven to 450F.

Step 3

Once your chicken is thoroughly marinated and your oven, or air-fryer, is heated to 450F place your chicken on a aluminum foil lined tray. Top the chicken with 1/4 inch thin lemon slices before saying goodbye to our poultry pal and setting it ablaze in oven. Let it roast for 15-20 minutes depending on the thickness of your chicken breast. Not all chicken breast are equal in size; however, all of them are special because they are delicious. Also, the desired cook temp is 165F before pulling it out of the depths of the intense flames of the oven. Let chicken rest for 10 minutes and slice a 1/4in thin.

Step 4

To start off our sauce, we need to heat up the olive oil and a small pot over a medium heat. Add your rosemary into the olive oil and stir to make sure it doesn't burn . Once you smell the rosemary, pull it out of the pot. The whole idea is we are infusing the flavor into the oil.

Step 5

Next we add our onions and mushrooms into our pan. Stir occasionally until they are translucent. Make sure all of the liquid from your mushrooms has dissipated from the pot. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Now add your garlic and cook until fragrant.

Step 6

Now add your crushed tomatoes and herbs to the mix. I like to add a bit of water and rinse the crushed tomato can while I'm at it ( cans can't actually be recycled unless they are clean of food debris anyways). Let it come up to a simmer and then turn it down to a lazy bubble. Reduce your sauce by half and adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Step 7

The most important step is setting up our station now that we have our mise en place in order. Preheat your oven to 425F. I like to set everything out in a separate bowl and let everyone build there own pita. For my pitas, I added tomato sauce, dollops of hummus, goat cheese, chicken, peppers, and parmesan in that order. The trick to adding an egg is to take a spoon and make a lil crevasse/nest for the egg to sit in. I recommend building your pitas on the baking sheet as well. Place them in your oven once built for 8-10 minutes. If you added an egg, I would recommend 8 minutes at 425 and under the broiler for another 4 minutes depending on how you would like your egg cooked. I think it's beneficial to have your oven light on to be able to see your pitas progress.