Chicken, Kale Chips, and Roasted Beets

Last night I fixed a really good dinner. Cooking for only myself these days is rather dull. I never want to fix large servings because I know I won't eat it by the time it goes bad. I have gotten better at freezing things- like half of cooked soup, bread to keep it from going stale, meat, etc. I think the cooler weather has made me want more fall foods, so when I was at the commissary on Sunday, I saw they had beets and I decided to give them a try. I always LOVE beets-- I figured I could at least try to cook them! I also had some leftover kale from a soup recipe over the weekend. I am leaving for a few days this weekend and knew that it might go bad while I was gone. I've always wondered about kale chips but had never tried to make them.

All in all, dinner was a success story, so I thought I would tell how I made it!

1. Wash the beets thoroughly and cut stem off (if any) to about an inch above the root. Place in a dutch oven (I covered mine with foil on the bottom to make clean up easy) with olive oil drizzled over the beets. Rub in with hands to coat thoroughly. Place in a 375 degree oven 45-60 minutes, or until knife is inserted easily. Once done, let beets cool and peel off outer skin. NOTE: beets will stain, so be careful when peeling. Cut in 1/2 inch pieces.

2. Wash kale bunches and rip off the "leaves" from the stem. Let dry and place in a large bowl. Drizzle with enough olive oil to coat all of kale. Toss with hands to ensure oil coats kale well. Place on a rimmed cookie sheet and sprinkle with sea salt, or other seasoning. Place in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes. The last 2-4 minutes I turned the broiler on low to crisp up the kale. The kale is done when light and crispy.

3. Grill or cook chicken depending on how you would like it done. I grilled mine for easy cleanup and it's easy cooking!

Voila, Bon Appetit!