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I love cooking, but I hate doing dishes.  I don’t know about you, but in my house, there are always dishes piling up!  That’s one of the reasons I LOVE this Mediterranean SHEET PAN DINNER for easy cleanup!  It has hearty and satisfying chicken sausage, creamy and bright zucchini. and crispy nutty chickpeas.  Everything is infused with Mediterranean flavors from the garlic, oregano, and olive oil.  Serve over quinoa with a few dollops of seasoned Ricotta and you gotta one heck of a delicious dinner!

 

Loaded with Protein & Fiber!

Sometimes feeding kids leaves you wondering if they are getting enough protein, vitamins, nutrients, and fiber.  This Sheet Pan Dinner has you covered, with over 18g of Fiber and 52.5g Protein!   The average sedentary woman needs 46g of Protein per day and about 25g of Fiber per day so this meal definitely keeps you on track to meet your daily needs!

The reason this recipe packs such a punch in both Protein and Fiber is because you are getting high quality inputs from different sources here.  While many foods give protein, not all are the complete proteins that you can get from meat, meaning they contain all 9 Essential Amino Acids.  Chicken, Chickpeas, and Quinoa ALL provide complete proteins, so this is especially important here.  Chickpeas and Quinoa are also great sources of Fiber.

Other Sheet Pan or One Pot Dinners packing a punch:

• Chickpea Coconut Curry with Veggies
• Taco Casserole with Ground Chicken, Black Beans, Tomatoes
• Teriyaki Peanut Chicken & Broccoli Noodles
• Quinoa & Kale Salad with Roasted Chickpeas and Creamy Lemon Dressing

Quick note!  This post contains affiliate links, which means I earn a commission (at no extra cost to you) if you purchase from them.  This commission is what helps me keep this blog afloat :).  But, I also share these links because I have used the products, genuinely love them, and want you to know exactly what I used. 

EQUIPMENT NEEDED

Nothing special for this one! Just a large sheet pan (I use a 17×11) and a small-medium pot with lid for the quinoa.

PREP-AHEAD TO MAKE YOUR MEDITERRANEAN SHEET PAN DINNER

We are all extremely busy and making dinner during the week can be overwhelming. Here are the steps you prepare in the day(s) in advance and store in the fridge as your meal Kit… (See the recipe below for more details)

For this recipe, you can prepare all of the ingredients in advance and simply roast them in the oven the night you want to eat this!

1. Prep the Chickpeas
2. Slice the Zucchini
3. Slice the Sausage
4. Cook the Quinoa
5. Mix the Ricotta

Start by draining the chickpeas and rinsing them under cold water.  Store them in the fridge until ready to cook.

Slice the zucchini lengthwise in half and then cut 1/4 inch slices.

You can make the Quinoa up to 4 days in advance and store it in the fridge as well!  Start by measuring out 1 cup of uncooked quinoa and rinsing it in a strainer with cool water in the sink.  Then put the rinsed quinoa in a small-medium size pot with fitted lid.  Add 2 cups of water and 2 tsp of Chicken Base or a Bouillon cube.

Bring the water to a soft boil and stir to make sure the base or bouillon is dissolved.  Turn the heat down to the lowest setting, cover with fitted lid and cook for 20 minutes.  After 20 minutes, turn the heat off, but keep it covered for another 5 minutes or so as it starts to cool down.  Then fluff with a fork and transfer to storage container to store in the fridge until ready to reheat and eat.

Italian Chicken Sausage

Next slice the Chicken Sausage and store it in the fridge as well.  Italian Chicken Sausage is something that you can find these days at any standard or specialty grocery store and often there are even several different brands and varieties to choose from.  Therefore, use your favorite!  If you don’t have a go-to product in mind, I suggest checking out the delicious Italian Chicken Sausage from Hungryroot!  It’s actually a subscription box service that sends you pre-prepped fresh and healthy food products every week (you can skip any week at no cost).  The food products range from fresh produce that’s been peeled, chopped, diced.  To healthy proteins like chicken and lean beef.  To meat alternatives, such as Beyond Burger, and other vegetarian and vegan products.  If you want to try it out, just CLICK HERE for $25 off your first 2 boxes!  

Ok, the final prep-ahead step is to mix the Ricotta with garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper.

 

COOK YOUR MEDITERRANEAN SHEET PAN DINNER

Preheat your oven to 400 F degrees.  

Add the Chickpeas to a Large Sheet Pan. Drizzle with olive oil and then sprinkle with salt, pepper, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, and 1 tsp dried oregano. Toss the chickpeas in the seasoning until dispersed evenly and then spread them out into a single layer on the pan. Roast the Chickpeas in the oven for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, push the chickpeas to the side of the pan and add the zucchini slices in the center and the sausage slices on the other side. Drizzle olive oil on the zucchini and sprinkle with salt, pepper, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp Oregano. Flip the zucchini over and do the same to the other side. Bake in the oven for another 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, take the sheet pan out and add parmesan cheese on top of the zucchini. Place back in the oven for another 5 minutes either under the broiler or back on center rack to get golden brown.

While everything is roasting in the oven, warm up the Quinoa in the microwave for 1 minute. Or you can put it in a pot on the stove with a tbls of water. Cover and reheat on low heat for 5 minutes, stirring to ensure it doesn’t burn.

To serve, plate a large scoop of Quinoa and top with some sausage, zucchini, and chickpeas. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and add a dollop or two or three of the seasoned Ricotta. 

ENJOY!

😍 Carrie