Healthy Mozzarella Chicken Recipe Recipe

Photography © Kate Whitaker and Michelle Beatty

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The traditional three-square-meals-a-day method of eating has seen plenty of detractors lately. In his new book – The 2 Meal Day – personal trainer and health coach, Max Lowery, posits that eating just TWO meals a day is the way to go, helping you burn fat and get fit. Quickly.

His method of intermittent fasting involves selecting breakfast and lunch, or lunch and dinner from his range of healthy, delicious and satisfying meal options. Backed up by his own experience and plenty of research, he promises that you'll return your body to its natural fat burning state, increase energy and normalise your hunger hormones.

"Fasting has nothing to do with starvation," he writes. "It’s about giving your body what it needs when it needs it. Just by pushing your first meal a bit later into the day, you can optimise virtually every system in your body."

Sold? Now you can try one of his delicious recipes below.

"This is a delicious way of cooking chicken, keeping it nice and moist in the rich tomato sauce," Max says. "The creamy butter-bean mash complements the chicken perfectly, absorbing all the lovely tomato sauce. Butter beans are a good source of protein and fibre and therefore have a considerably lower glycaemic-index score than potatoes, which means they won’t affect your blood-sugar levels in the same way."

Edited extract from The 2 Meal Day by Max Lowery, published by Kyle Books, $32.99

Ingredients

2 chicken breasts, skin on

Extra virgin olive oil

½ medium onion, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

400g can chopped tomatoes

3 tablespoons tomato purée

1 tablespoon dried oregano

85g pitted green or black olives, roughly chopped

125g mozzarella ball, sliced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE BUTTER BEAN MASH

1 tablespoon grass-fed butter

½ medium onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

400g can butter beans, drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons double cream or crème fraiche

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6. Season the chicken.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Sear the chicken for 3 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Transfer to a plate. Reduce the heat, add a little more oil and cook the onion for 4–5 minutes, stirring until softened and lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for a few seconds. Pour in the tomatoes, then stir in the tomato purée, oregano, olives and a splash of cold water. Bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the chicken. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is tender and cooked through. Season to taste.
Transfer to an ovenproof dish. Top the chicken with the mozzarella and sprinkle with ground black pepper. Bake for 8–10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the mash. Heat the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute. Add the butter beans and cook for 5 minutes until soft. Mash using a potato masher, adding the cream as you do so. Serve alongside the chicken.