Braised Chicken Drumsticks with Vegetables

Tonight I had the idea to braise my chicken drumsticks like I did with my short ribs a while back. I wanted to keep it healthy so I omitted some ingredients and added some. I loved this meal, and don't worry if you haven't had your share of vegetables for the day, you will double that requirement with this meal.

I added wine to give this dish some depth and it really made a difference. You can choose whatever veggies you like, or just use up what you have on hand. The thing I liked about this meal is that you don't have to wait as long as if you were braising beef. It took about 10 minutes to prep, 15 on the stove top, and about an hour in the oven. This came out to 6 WW points, but when I used Spark Recipe's calculator I plugged the info in to WW and it came out to 3. Go figure. I'll go ahead and put up the estimated nutritional info, but I don't always think the Spark calculator is accurate.

Braised Chicken Drumsticks with Vegetables

(serves 4)

8 drumsticks skin removed seasoned with salt and pepper

1 cup carrots chopped

1 cup celery chopped

1/2 cup onion diced

2 cups diced potatoes

1 1/2 cup cubed eggplant

1 cup zucchini

1 cup fresh mushrooms chopped

2 cups canned diced tomatoes

3 cloves garlic chopped

2 Tbs. fresh basil chopped

2 Tbs. fresh oregano chopped

1 Tbs. parsley chopped

1 large or 2 small bay leaves

red pepper flakes for spice

2 oz. red wine

2 tsp. olive oil

butter spray

1 cup fat free, less sodium chicken stock

Preheat oven to 350

Add 1 tsp. and butter spray to a large dutch oven or large, heavy, oven proof skillet. Heat over medium heat and add chicken. When browned on all sides remove to a plate. Add the last tsp. of oil and more butter spray. Add all veggies except garlic. Saute for about 10 minutes. Add garlic, parsley, oregano, basil and bay leaf. Saute about 3 minutes longer. Add wine and deglaze the pan, let cook a minute longer. Add the stock and tomatoes and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Add chicken on top of veggies and submerge as much as possible. Cover and cook one hour. Serve 2 drumstick with about a cup and a half of veggies. 6 Total WW points.

Calories 182.2
Total Fat 3.6 g
Saturated Fat 0.7 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.7 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.7 g
Cholesterol 38.0 mg
Sodium 1,246.2 mg
Potassium 779.4 mg
Total Carbohydrate 23.7 g

Dietary Fiber 5.5 g
Sugars 7.1 g
Protein 13.9 g