Chicken Power Bowls with Crispy Baked Garbanzo Beans

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Chicken Power Bowls with Crispy Baked Garbanzo Beans are based off the Power Bowls on Panera’s hidden menu. Packed with protein, these power bowls will keep you full for hours!

Hi. I’m here (just wrote “hear”…how embarrassing) to break you out of your dinner rut! As a food blogger, many people think I have elaborate meals prepared for Ben and myself every night of the week but, hahaha. Haha. Ha. No! No, I do not. I’m just like any busy person/mom. After a long day of work, the last thing I want to do is cook dinner!

That being said, I’ve started a new “Weekly Menus” section on the blog to show you exactly what we’re eating for dinner each week, Monday-Friday. Check it out if you ever need ideas!

Anyway, as I said, I’m here to break you out of a rut. Maybe you’re stuck in a ho-hum routine of chicken on Monday, tacos on Tuesday, salad on Wednesday, leftovers on Thursday, and pizza on Friday. Well don’t change your Friday routine for Heaven’s sake, but give Chicken Power Bowls with Crispy Baked Garbanzo Beans a try any other night of the week!

Chicken Power Bowls with Crispy Baked Garbanzo Beans is a recipe based on Panera’s hidden menu, which offers “power bowls” that are rich in protein and contain only limited amounts of processed carbs. I SO love the idea, that I created my own!

Tender baby spinach is topped with sauteed chicken, crispy baked garbanzo beans, hard-boiled eggs, shelled pistachios, dried cranberries, and creamy chevre. This protein-packed bowl of deliciousness will fuel you ALL the way through the day or night, and is so stinking healthy, it’s borderline ridiculous.

I love it because the ingredients aren’t crazy – I bet you have 80% of the ingredients, if not more, in your kitchen right now – the cooked components can all be made ahead of time and, most importantly, the combination of flavors and textures is incredible. You’re going to especially flip over those crispy baked garbanzo beans. They’re like homemade corn nuts!

Take my advice and add these delicious, protein-filled power bowls to your menu any night of the week!

By the way, it’s my Grandma’s 95th birthday today and she is undoubtedly reading this post from her iPad, perhaps at this very moment. She is, as they say, a true baller and one of the people that I admire the most. Please join me in wishing her the very happiest of birthdays. I love you, Grandma!

Start by making the Crispy Baked Garbanzo Beans, aka healthy Corn Nuts. Yeah. Get excited! Drain then rinse a 15oz can of garbanzo beans (you might also find them labeled as chickpeas at the store.)

Drain the beans real good then dry ‘em off even better in a kitchen towel. Pour the beans onto a baking sheet then toss with 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes, shaking the pan halfway through, and then season with salt. The beans will be crisp right out of the oven, but will get even crunchier as they cool. YUM!

By the way, you can bake these ahead of time. Just make sure they’re completely cool before storing in an airtight container.

Next make the hard-boiled eggs. I’m going to show you EXACTLY how to make perfect hard-boiled eggs with no green ring, and that peel easily to boot!

Place 4 eggs (I put a fifth one in because I was hungry) in a saucepan then add cold water until it covers the tops by one inch.

Bring the water to a boil then place a lid on top and remove the pan from the heat. Let the eggs sit for EXACTLY 12 minutes then plunge them into ice water, or run under cold water for a few minutes.

When they’re cool enough to handle, lightly smash the egg against a cutting board then roll with a little pressure until the egg is cracked all the way across the middle. Then, peel! The key to getting eggs to peel easily is to peel them fresh vs refrigerating them with the shell on and trying later.

Slice then devour or stash ‘em in the fridge. Just like the garbanzo beans, these babies can be made and peeled ahead of time. Just slice when you’re ready to serve the Chicken Power Bowls.

You can’t have Chicken Power Bowls without the chicken, so saute 2 chicken breasts that have been brushed with extra virgin olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper, then let cool for 10 minutes before thinly slicing. You can also do this ahead of time. Just cool then refrigerate and slice before serving.

Almost done! Make the Lemon-Honey Vinaigrette to drizzle on top of the bowls next. You could use any salad dressing you have in your fridge for these bowls, but this homemade dressing is simply divine.

Combine the juice of 2 lemons with 6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 2 Tablespoons honey, 1 microplaned or minced garlic clove, salt, and pepper in a jar or bowl then shake or whisk to combine. That’s it!

Finally, divide 9oz baby spinach between 4 bowls then top each with 1 sliced hard-boiled egg, 1/4 cup of the crispy baked garbanzo beans, 2 Tablespoons each shelled pistachios and dried cranberries, 1/4 of the cooked chicken, and 1oz crumbled chevre (goat cheese.) Drizzle with the Lemon-Honey Vinaigrette, then dig in!

Chicken Power Bowls with Crispy Baked Garbanzo Beans

Print this recipe!

Serves 4

Ingredients:
15oz can garbanzo beans (also called chickpeas)
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
2 chicken breasts (12-14oz,) pounded to an even thickness
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
4 eggs
9oz baby spinach
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
1/2 cup dried cranberries
4oz chevre (goat cheese)

For the Lemon-Honey Vinaigrette:
Juice of 2 lemons
6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons honey
1 garlic clove, microplaned or minced
salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drain garbanzo beans then rinse and pat dry with a towel (the dryer the better!) Pour onto a baking sheet then add extra virgin olive oil and toss with your hands to coat. Bake for 35-40 minutes, stirring halfway through, or until caramel in color (beans will continue crisping as they cool.) Sprinkle with salt then set aside to cool completely. (Can be done ahead of time. Bake then cool completely before storing in an airtight container.)
2. Place eggs in a saucepan then cover with cold water 1″ above the tops. Bring to a boil, place a lid on top, then remove pan from heat and let sit for 12 minutes. Drain then plunge eggs into ice water or run under cold water for a few minutes. Peel eggs when cool enough to handle then slice. (Can be done ahead of time. Cook then peel eggs and store in the refrigerator, and then slice before serving.)
3. Brush chicken breasts on both sides with extra virgin olive oil then season with salt and pepper. Saute in a skillet over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes a side, or until no longer pink in the center. Cool for 10 minutes, then thinly slice. (Can be done ahead of time. Cook then cool and refrigerate, and then slice before serving.)
4. Divide spinach between four bowls then top each bowl with 1/4 cup crispy baked garbanzo beans, 1/4 of the cooked chicken, 1 sliced hard-boiled egg, 2 Tablespoons each pistachios and dried cranberries, and 1oz crumbled goat cheese.
5. For the Lemon-Honey Vinaigrette: combine all ingredients in a jar or bowl then shake or whisk to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary then pour over salads and serve.

I am capital O-bsessed with adding goat cheese to salads. It provides a tang that certainly elevated this bowl to next level status, but it also has a way of mixing with the salad dressing to make it thick and creamy. To. Die. You must try this Chicken Power Bowl sometime soon. Enjoy!