One scumptious-looking dinner recipe has taken TikTok by storm recently thanks to its rich and creamy flavour and romantic connotations.
The “marry me” chicken recipe – so-called because it’s deliciousness is said to inspire a proposal – has been floating around social media in many differnet guises over the winter months.
Made using inexpensive and easily accessible ingredients, the recipe looked so straightforward that even a reluctant cook like me could master it.
Having pinned down the flavour, I wanted to change it up slightly to offer a meat-free, protein heavy alternative.
Here’s how I swapped out meat and pasta to make a moreish bean dish that would be equally as worthy of an “I do”.
The popular Italian-American dish is usually made with seared chicken in a creamy parmesan sauce. But, as I don’t eat meat, I added quorn pieces instead of chicken.
Trying to keep away from too many carbs, I left the pasta in the cupboard and added cannellini beans instead. In general, beans are considered “better” than pasta from a nutritional standpoint because they are higher in protein and fibre.
I particularly like cannellini beans as they have as subtle nutty flavour. Other than that, I kept everything pretty much the same.
Ingredients
- One tin cannellini beans
- Handful frozen Quorn chicken chunks
- One tsp garlic powder
- Two tbsp olive oil
- Three cloves garlic
- 250ml chicken stock
- 125ml double cream
- 50g grated parmesan
- 100g sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- Fresh basil, for garnish
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Method
First heat the oil in a pan with garlic. Then add in the Quorn and cook until it starts to brown. Next, add in the sun-dried tomatoes, oregano and chicken stock (in a little water).
Slowly stir in the cream before adding the rinsed and heated beans (I rinsed and preheated mine in the microwave for three minutes).
Mix together until the sauce starts to thicken and add salt and pepper to taste. Finally, tear a little fresh basil to garnish and serve with fresh bread and a side of fresh broccoli.
Serving up more than 35 grams of protein thanks to the quorn, beans and broccoli, I let myself enjoy the cheeky cream sauce without worrying too much about calories.
