After investigating how food is produced and raised in this country, one of the first commitments to my health I made was to completely stop eating “factory farmed” meat. Whether I’m eating at home, a friend’s house, or at a restaurant – I try my best not to eat meat unless I know that it didn’t come from a factory farm.
When you stop buying meat raised on factory farms you will feel SO MUCH better! You’ll no longer be eating meats with the accumulated toxins that come from living crammed together in inhumane living conditions, subsisting on a diet of chemical-laden GMOs and antibiotics, while being pumped full of hormones and drugs to make them grow bigger.
This is NOT how we should be raising animals for food, and I know you agree with me.
These animals are not healthy! And when we eat animals that are not healthy – we become unhealthy! If you want to change the food industry, your body, and get healthy you have to make the commitment to stop eating factory farmed meat.
It sure would be nice if factory farmed meat had a big giant WARNING LABEL on it, but unfortunately it doesn’t…
That’s why I prefer to obtain meat directly from local farms or sources I trust where they are transparent about their practices. Knowing the source of my meat, gives me peace of mind that the animals truly had a “free-range” life and weren’t kept in a crate and pumped with antibiotics in some Big Ag operation. Ideally, I want all the meat I buy to come from a healthy, contented animal that grazed on an open, green pasture its whole life.
From the mountains of emails I’ve received, I see that many of you desperately want to stop buying meat from factory farms too, and that’s why I have a new partner here at Food Babe that will help you (and everyone you know) do just that.
Butcher Box is a home delivery service that provides a convenient and affordable solution that will make it easy for you to kiss factory farmed meat goodbye FOR GOOD.
- Butcher Box’s meats are 100% grass-fed and grass finished, antibiotic and hormone free, and NEVER raised on a factory farm.
- They have done the work for you and found small family farms that hold quality and animal welfare as their core values. No more scrutinizing labels at the store and searching high and low for farms that you can trust!
- Each Butcher Box comes with your choice of dinner-ready 100% Grass-fed Beef, Organic/Pastured Chicken or Heritage Breed Pork, with enough for about 20 individual meals!
- You get to choose which type of meat you and your family prefer. For instance, if you don’t eat beef you can choose their new chicken and pork box + delicious add-ons like uncured sugar-free bacon and whole chickens.
- It’s a flexible subscription service, depending on how much meat you and your family eat on a regular basis. You can set it up so that you’ll automatically get a new Butcher Box sent to your house every month, or every 2 months, or every 3 months + you can change the schedule or cancel at anytime! No commitments.
- They ship everything to your house for FREE. All meat arrives frozen solid and in a reusable thermal tote. It doesn’t get easier than that!
- When we met the founders (Mike & Mike), we immediately saw that they share the same values in wanting to fix our broken food system. One of the best ways to make a difference is to vote with your dollars and support farmers who are doing the right thing and Butcher Box is a great way to do that.
Get Your Butcher Box Here.
Not only am I now using this service, but I’ve got my team and some family members on board too! We whipped up this incredible Lemon Rosemary Chicken with Root Vegetables in just one pan this week… and let me tell you… it’s an extremely satisfying meal and perfect for having friends over for dinner.
When entertaining, I love making meals that only use one pan as I don’t have to worry about multi-tasking. This is one of those recipes you can throw together while chatting with your friends without missing a beat! I’ll definitely be keeping this Lemon Rosemary Chicken recipe handy during the holiday season.
Here’s how I make it, step by step…
While preheating the oven to 400 degrees, prepare the rosemary spice mix. This flavorful dish is simply seasoned with a mix of fresh rosemary leaves, oregano, red pepper flakes, minced garlic, the juice of one lemon and olive oil. Just add all of this to a large bowl and stir it up!
Salt and pepper 4 chicken thighs, add them to the same bowl with the spice mix and rub it all in evenly. Set this aside and wash up to prepare the veggies.
Dice up half of an onion and three cups of root veggies into bite-size pieces. Here I used sweet potatoes, turnips and red and purple potatoes, but feel free to use any root vegetables you like such as yams, carrots, and parsnips. This recipe is flexible!
Get out a large oven-proof skillet (I like to use a heavy cast iron skillet) and heat up one tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat on the stove. Saute the diced vegetables for 5-7 minutes and remove from the pan to make room for the chicken.
Add your seasoned chicken thighs to the skillet and brown them on both sides for a couple minutes. Stir back in your veggie mix, along with 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary and half a cup of chicken stock (here’s how to make homemade stock!). Cut a lemon in half and toss it into the skillet. I added the already juiced lemon too!
Stick the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes (or until chicken is cooked through) and then you’ll have this beautiful skillet of deliciousness!!!……
This dish will easily impress friends and family! Doesn’t it look so beautiful all plated up? Squeeze some of that lemon juice over everything before you dig in, the flavors are fresh and amazing!
Food Babe's Lemon Rosemary Chicken & Root Vegetables
Prep Time:
10 mins
Cook Time:
35 mins
Total Time:
45 mins
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoons garlic cloves, minced
- 2 whole lemons, halved
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 3 cups root vegetables, diced
- 4 chicken thighs
- 1 pinch sea salt, to taste
- 1 pinch fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 2 stalks fresh rosemary
- ½ cup chicken broth
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- Place the rosemary leaves, oregano, red pepper flakes, garlic, juice of 1 lemon and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a bowl. Mix to combine.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the bowl with the spice mix and rub to coat evenly. Set aside.
- Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in an oven safe skillet or cast iron pan over medium heat. Add the onion and root vegetables. Cook for 5-7 minutes. Remove from the pan.
- Place the chicken thighs in the pan and brown on each side, 2-3 minutes. Add the root vegetable mix back into the pan with the chicken along with the rosemary sprigs, chicken stock and cut lemons. Place in the oven and cook for 20-25 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and vegetables are tender. Enjoy!
Notes:
- Please use all organic ingredients if possible.
Xo,
Vani
P.S. If you know anyone who would love access to grass-fed and pastured meats, share this post with them! We’re changing the way the industry produces our food together – and we need everyone on board!
That looks very delicious.
That looks amazing
Hello Food Babe,
Congratulations on being one of the most influential people on the internet! Can you please help me investigate more into the complete process of the meat industry or factory farming? I want to know if there is a difference between factory farmed animals and grass-fed animals when it comes to the slaughtering process. Do you know what grass-fed farms use to slaughter their animals or if it is any different from the way factory farmed animals are slaughtered? I’ve seen a lot of graphic videos about the slaughterhouse processes and they are horrific. Please help inform the public of this information that is hidden and mysterious. Thanks for your help!
I have read many times that olive oil should not be cooked with as it can cause free radicals.
Made this last night and it was fantastic. Good job on providing us with a healthy recipe that was very affordable. A rosemary plant is such a good investment. I probably spent $2 on it mine 10 years ago.