Open Sesame

I've seen a lot of blogs featuring recipes from Every Day Foods, but I had never actually seen the magazine anywhere. Then last week while standing in line at the grocery store I spotted it on the rack. It's a smaller, book-sized magazine, which I guess is why I never noticed it before. It was the December issue and I snatched it up to give it a whirl. The Lighter Sesame Chicken the first recipe I made from it, and it was really, really good! I was nervous at first because my chicken stuck to the pan, even though I had put the vegetable oil in as required. But with a little scraping the chicken came up without burning and was fine. The egg white and cornstarch coating gives the chicken a great texture and flavor without the fat of deep frying. I thought it tasted a lot like the Chinese restaurant versions I've had. I doubled the sauce, since we always like extra sauce and served the chicken over brown rice. Never a fan of prep work or veggie chopping I cheated and bought a bag of Broccoli Wockily (if you've never seen this it's pretty much just pre-chopped broccoli florets that you can steam right in the bag in the microwave) and served that on the side. I also left out the scallions since I didn't have any and neither Joe nor I really like onions. This was a great dinner and I'll definitely make it again soon!

Lighter Sesame Chicken

3/4 cup brown rice
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 garlic clove, finely chopped or crushed with a garlic press
2 large egg whites
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 2-inch chunks
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, such as safflower
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1 1/2 pounds broccoli, cut into large florets, stems peeled and thinly sliced

Directions
Place a steamer basket in a large saucepan, and fill with 1 inch water; set aside for broccoli. Cook rice according to package instructions.
Meanwhile, make sauce: In a small bowl, combine honey, sesame seeds, soy sauce, and garlic; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together egg whites and cornstarch. Add chicken; season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat.
In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high. Add half the chicken; cook, turning occasionally, until golden and opaque throughout, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate; repeat with remaining tablespoon oil and chicken. Return all the chicken to skillet; add reserved sauce and scallions, and toss to coat.
Meanwhile, place saucepan with steamer basket over high heat; bring water to a boil. Add broccoli, and cook until crisp-tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Serve sesame chicken with broccoli and rice.