For the Love of...: ...Baked Lemon Herb Chicken

I have not met a person who likes his pho (Vietnamese beef soup noodles) more than my brother. He once almost missed his train out of Paris while travelling through Europe for a month, for a bowl of pho.  In Paris, the city of cheese, wine, pastries, steak frites, foie gras, escargot etc.....   Anyway, the point is, this man loves his pho.  Besides the pho, he is an avid mixed martial arts enthusiast and I'm pretty certain he is in way better shape than 99% of us. Friends usually don't believe me when I tell them that he used to work out for 6 hours straight in between graduating university and his current job.  (Six hours of personal gym time and MMA classes combined)  He also has a blog, Spartan Training, based on fitness, training and diet.  Check it out!

Here I'm featuring his "Baked Lemon Herb Chicken" post, which I hear is a great post-workout meal and delicious as that!   

(Re-posted from Spartan Training)

Chicken breasts offer a great source of protein, and they can be cooked so many different ways and compliment a variety of dishes.  For example, for dinner I would have a chicken breast with sides of rice, potatoes and asparagus/broccoli.  A chicken breast contains approximately the same amount of protein as a scoop of protein powder, so next time you get out of the gym try this recipe instead of guzzling down that sandy mixture.

Protein: 30-40 grams
Servings: 4 breasts
Prep time: 15 minutes
Inactive prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic (9 cloves)
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon lemon zest (2 lemons)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 whole lemon (3 lemons in total should do the trick)
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
salt and black pepper
4 boneless chicken breasts

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Warm olive oil over medium-low heat, add garlic, and cook just for a minute, not letting the garlic brown.  Remove from heat, and add the white wine, lemon zest, lemon juice, oregano, thyme, and 1 teaspoon of salt.  Pour mixture into a baking dish.

 3. Pat chicken breasts dry and place them in the sauce.  Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper.  Cut the lemon in 8 wedges and stick them in between the chicken breasts.

4. Bake for about 30-40 minutes.

Enjoy! (sides: tomato salad and soy sauce eggplant w/ rice)

Recipe Source: Television Food Network