Prolific cookbook author Jean Pare and her Company’s Coming publishing company just keep churning out cookbooks! Since her early years as a caterer and the 1981 publication of her first cookbook – 150 Delicious Squares – Jean has sold over 26 million cookbooks. There are now about 60 cookbooks in her series. I must have about half of them in my personal cookbook library!

These days, the Edmonton (Alberta) publishing giant uses a test kitchen (known as the Recipe Factory) to help with recipe development and testing.

Jean has also published her autobiography (Jean Pare: An appetite for Life), a fascinating account of her life and how she created the Company’s Coming brand.

The following recipe is featured in one of the newest books in the series – Low-Fat Express. The cookbook contains over 140 healthy, tasty recipes that can be made in 30 minutes or less.

You can find a list of all the cookbooks in the series, sample recipes from her books, and cooking tips on the Company’s Coming website – www.companyscoming.com. The cookbooks are widely available.

Thai Coconut Chicken
(Makes 4 servings)

1-1/4 cups (300 mL) prepared chicken broth
3 tablespoons (45 mL) lime juice
2 tablespoons (30 mL) soy sauce
1 tablespoon (15 mL) finely grated gingerroot
1 tablespoon (15 mL) grated lime zest
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon (1 mL) pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4 to 6 oz/113 to 170 g each)
1/4 cup (60 mL) packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons (30 mL) reduced-fat peanut butter
1 tablespoon (15 mL) sweet chili sauce
1/2 cup (125 mL) light coconut milk
2 teaspoons (10 mL) cornstarch

Combine broth, lime juice, soy sauce, gingerroot, lime zest, garlic and pepper in a medium frying pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. Add chicken. Cook, covered, about 12 to 15 minutes, turning halfway through cooking, until chicken is no longer pink inside. Transfer chicken to a plate. Cover to keep warm.

Whisk brown sugar, peanut butter and chili sauce into broth mixture until smooth. Bring to a boil. Stir coconut milk into cornstarch in a small cup. Slowly add to broth mixture, stirring constantly with whisk, until boiling and slightly thickened. Serve with chicken.

Per Serving: 304 Calories, 7.6 g Fat (2.7 g Saturated Fat), 22 g Carbohydrate, 35 g Protein, 1 g Fibre
Recipe Source: Low-Fat Express by Jean Pare, Company’s Coming Publishing Limited, 2008