I posted this recipe months ago (okay, more than a year ago), but I decided to update it and repost it. The recipe is a favorite because it's an easy way to make fajitas, doesn’t require a lot of cleanup, and will help you get a great dinner on the table faster and for far less money than ordering takeout food. After you put the chicken and vegetable mixture in to the oven, slice some zucchini in half lengthwise—like snakes—sprinkle on some lemon pepper and mist the zucchini with olive oil. Bake the zucchini on a baking sheet alongside the fajita mixture for about 20 minutes. While the chicken and vegetables bake, put some lettuce on plates and top it with slices of tomatoes, avocados, and, if you’d like, a drizzle of ranch or other dressing of your choice. You can serve the fajitas mixture with warm tortillas or on top of quick-cooking brown rice, which needs only about 15 minutes on the stove. Still hungry? Some vanilla ice cream with Mexican chocolate sauce (see below) would be nice and make your tummy quite full and happy.
Fajitas
1 medium onion, sliced
2 sweet bell peppers—whatever colors you like—cut into 1/2 -inch wide strips
1 -1 ¼ pounds of chicken breast, blotted dry with paper towels and cut into ½-inch
strips (or use chicken tenders)
2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 teaspoon of chili powder
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
½ - 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
½ teaspoon of dried oregano
1-2 teaspoons of sugar (this helps with browning)
½ teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of cornstarch
3-4 tablespoons of lime juice (or one lime, squeezed)
¼ - ½ cup of chopped cilantro
Tortillas or rice
Sour cream (optional)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Coat the foil with non-stick cooking spray. To a large plastic bag, add the onion, bell peppers, chicken, oil, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, sugar, salt, and cornstarch and shake the bake to coat the chicken and vegetables with the oil and spices. Dump the mixture out onto the prepared baking sheet and spread it out evenly. Bake the mixture for 30-40 minutes, turning the chicken and vegetables over with a spatula mid-way through. Remove the chicken and vegetables from the oven, drizzle them with the lime juice, and sprinkle on the cilantro. Serve the chicken and vegetables in warm tortillas or on top of rice with a dollop of sour cream, if you like.
Mexican Chocolate Sauce
½ cup of sugar or brown sugar
½ cup of cocoa powder
½ teaspoon of cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon of salt
1 ¼ cups of low-fat milk (or water or coffee—yes, decaf coffee is fine)
½ teaspoon of vanilla
1 teaspoon of butter (optional)
Put the sugar, cocoa powder, cinnamon, and salt into a saucepan and whisk them together. Whisk in the milk (or water or coffee), and heat the mixture over medium heat, whisking often, until the mixture comes to a simmer. Whisk in the butter, if you like, and add the vanilla. Let the sauce cool a little and serve it warm over ice cream. Refrigerate any remaining sauce.