Keara Farnan: Keeping It Fresh & Healthy

April 10, 2020

Keara is a CAN participant, volunteer & regular contributor on our blog! Last month, she shared her initial experience coping with change during COVID-19. Today, she shares one of her favourite recipes to whip up at home!

I’ve been cooking and baking for most of my life. It’s a really good way to relax and de-stress. I’m able to utilize certain ingredients and create delicious dishes that my family and friends love. A couple of my favourites are ginger snap cookies and sausage and chicken with fire roasted tomatoes, onion, and garlic seasoning.

I grew up cooking and baking with my parents and love helping out in the kitchen at home. I’ve always been fascinated with how certain foods are made. I’ve tried to make bread in the past, but it didn’t work out for me. One of my goals is to make pasta from scratch, because I love Italian food and a friend told me that she once enjoyed making it.

Keara (seventh from the left) assisting with meal prep at Rogers Arena as part of the CAN Explore Volunteering program.

I want to share some recipes with the CAN community as I would like to inspire other people to cook. Food is a big passion of mine. Making up my own recipes with the ingredients in my home is fun and educational. I become a better chef with each dish I make.

The CAN program and office staff have enjoyed my baking in the past, so I’m sure others involved with CAN would enjoy learning this home cooked dish – fit for three to four people.

Easy Tomato Dish with Sausage and Chicken

Serves 3 to 4

Fast and simple dish with tomato, sausage, chicken, vegetables, and herbs ideal for a family dinner.

Ingredients:

2 mild Italian sausages cut into 1 inch pieces
2-3 chicken breasts (trim off fat before placing in dish)
½ onion (I use purple onion because it’s milder)
2 tbsp olive oil (enough to cover the bottom of the dish)
1 can of fire roasted tomatoes
1 can of crushed tomatoes with herbs
½ tsp of salt
½ ground pepper
2 garlic cloves / or garlic plus seasoning (available at Costco)
1 bell pepper (any colour)
Optional: small package of potatoes

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 F before you start prepping your dish.
Carefully cut up onions followed by garlic and the bell pepper, then place them in a deep dish (preferably a casserole dish) with 2 tbsp olive oil.
Add chicken and sausage.
Gently add the spices and salt & pepper followed by the 2 cans of tomatoes (add a small amount cut once in half if desired).
Cook dish up to 1 hour or more depending on the type of oven you have. Keep lip on or cover with aluminum foil.
Take the dish out after one hour to check the meat. If it’s not cooked through, give it another 10-15 minutes.

Once completed, Keara served her tomato, chicken and sausage with a scoop of rice!

CAN and Keara would love to hear what recipes you’re enjoying making at home while self-isolating! Visit our Facebook or Instagram post and share your favourite dishes in the comments.