Chicken Parmesan

I am not a real picky eater. I'll eat most things out there, or at least try it. There are a few things however that I am picky about the way it is cooked. Chicken Parmesan is one of them. I really like the flavor and the idea of chicken parm. However, I do not like ordering it at restaurants. Most restaurants pan fry their chicken, I'm just not a fan of that. I would rather have it baked.

Although baking has it's downfall...I do like my chicken to have a "crunch" coating...not "crispy." Yes, there is a difference. It has taken many attempts and many different recipes to finally find the chicken parmesan recipe that I really really like!

So here's what I do...

I don't know the exact measurements since I "eyeball" most everything and this recipe has basically come from experimentation!

~4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves pounded into equal thickness (I used to skip this step, but it actually makes a big difference)

~1/2 cup flour seasoned with garlic powder, basil, oregano, salt and pepper

~2 eggs w/ salt, pepper, and garlic powder (I like garlic and hate it when my chicken is not well seasoned!)

~3/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs w/ some help: garlic powder, oregano, basil, salt, pepper, and about 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (I've used fresh and the stuff in the green can...both are fine, although the fresh definitely has better flavor)

I pat dry my chicken breasts and lightly cover them in the flour. From the flour I dip the chicken in the egg. The flour before the egg is a very helpful trick I've learned to help the egg really stick to the slippery chicken. This will help your batter/coating/whatever to stick to the chicken MUCH better. Then I coat the chicken in the bread seasoning mixture and set aside.

Once all the chicken is coated I take a 9x13 pan and I put in it either a cookie cooling sheet or some type of broiling rack. On that rack, I place the chicken. This is how I get that "crunchy" chicken. This allows air to get to the bottom of the chicken. If you just put it in the pan the coating will end up soggy on the bottom. I bake that in the oven at 350 for 40 minutes.

While that's baking I have out another baking dish (9x13 or whatever you want to use) and I put just a little spaghetti sauce on the bottom (I use Ragu). After the chicken comes out of the oven I put it in the sauce and top it with a little more spaghetti sauce and put it back in the oven for about 12-15 minutes.

After the 12 minutes I pull it back out again and top each piece of chicken with provolone cheese. I love the flavor of Provolone with Chicken Parm...so good! I then put the chicken back in the oven for a few minutes to sit under the broiler...be careful...it will melt very quickly. Pay attention to that!

When it's all done you have wonderfully flavored, crunchy (not crispy), baked Chicken Parmesan. Pair it with some nice spaghetti noodles or veggies and a glass of wine...YUMMY!

Enjoy!

My Go-To Favorites!

I love to try new foods. One of my favorite things to do is go to a restaurant with a brand new type of cuisine that I've never had and "give it a whirl." As much fun as that is, I always seem to find myself craving those "go-to meals" that I love no matter how often I have it, or how long it's been since I made it.

These are some of my favorite "Go-to's"

Breakfast:

~ Peanut Butter Toast. Creamy, crunchy, and stays with me throughout the day. YUMMY!

~ Cheerios. Cool, refreshing, crunchy, and no extra sugar needed :)

~ Bagel and Cream Cheese. There's just something about the combination of cheese with the toasted bagel that I can't get enough of.

Lunch:

~ Albacore Tuna with Triscuts and a side of string cheese. Sounds yucky if you are not a tuna fan, but such a healthy meal that is very quick and easy. Although, I don't ever take this with me to lunch at school...I am mindful of the smell tuna leaves lingering around.

~ Old fashioned PB and J. Nothing brings me back to being a kid than grape jelly oozing out from the back end of a perfectly filled sandwich.

~ Hot dogs and mac and cheese. Another meal that brings me back to snow days home from school when I was a kid. Warm and satisfying!

Dinner:

~ Anything with mashed potatoes and gravy. As a kid I could not get enough of those...as an adult I am much more mindful of how many "taters" I pile on to my plate...even though I would LOVE to be able build a mountain!

~ Spaghetti. A definite go to meal. Easy to make and even tastes great as leftovers.

~ Pizza. I don't think we ever go a month without having some kind of pizza :)

Mmmm...I think I'll finish this off with a warm slice of peanut butter toast and a cup of coffee!

Applebees

Applebees has never been my favorite restaurant. I like it fine, but there weren't many choices of nicer eating establishments in Emporia, Kansas. So I believe I kinda got burnt out on it. Seeing the same choices on the menu time after time. Needless to say, now that I live in Wichita and have many options, Applebees is not usually one of my suggestions when my husband and I venture out for a meal.

However, Friday night, after realizing that we had no hamburger to cook the Mexican casserole I was planning I did suggest that we go to "Everyone's favorite neighborhood." Two reasons led me to choosing Applebees that night. 1.) I had seen some commercials about the 550 calorie menu that they have and knew that I would be able to find something to eat there that wouldn't completely ruining my figure. 2.) I had a coupon for buy one entrée and get a second half off. So we jumped into the car and headed out.

I was impressed.

We got there and were seated right away on a Friday night. We did decide to sit at the bar in order to get seated sooner. The bartender handed us our menus and after sifting through it I realized that my decision on what to have was going to be MUCH harder. Not only did every item on the "under 550 calorie" menu look great, but they had so many new and different choices than the last time I was there. Everything looked great.

My husband and I ordered and appetizer of potato twists and queso blanco. The seasoning was excellent and I really wish I knew how to make that queso! Ethan chose to have provolone stuffed meatballs with fettuccine alfredo and I chose a 550 calorie chicken teriyaki pasta. Both meals were fantastic. We both raved while we ate about how good it was, and were happy to take some home with us.

I left there thinking..."I could come back here real soon and try something else." Maybe I had stayed away from Applebees long enough for them to revamp their entire menu (except for a few classic items) and rekindle my liking for it. So if you haven't been there in a while, you might give it a try. You might just be as impressed as I was.

My New Cookbook!

I love cookbooks. I love looking at different recipes and if the book has pictures it's even better. I have many cookbooks...with many recipes I haven't tried. My husband makes fun of me, and rolls his eyes every time I bring home a new book.

This book is different.

This is a Taste of Home cookbook...they are the best. I think I have three and a magazine subscription that my mother-in-law gets me each year for my birthday. This Taste of Home is the Comfort Foods Diet book.

What makes this "diet" book different from all the others? First of all it uses real, everyday foods. I don't have to make everything with ground turkey rather than beef, and I don't have to use reduced fat cheese...two things that frankly I'm not willing to use in my cooking. Second it lists the calories/serving of each meal. So if I want to make Mexican Chicken and Rice I know that one serving of it is 300 calories...great tool! Third, it has all kinds of tools and helpful hints about losing weight. For someone like me, this book is ideal because it allows me to eat what I want and still have some basic tools to cut down on the intake of too much food.

I will be sharing some of the tools and recipes from time to time from my new cook book. To start off, I'll post the tip on portion size references...very useful!

3 oz. of beef, chicken of pork = deck of cards

1 serving of cold cereal = baseball

1 medium potato = tennis ball

3 oz. deli meet = 3 CDs

1 serving of cheese = Domino

1/4 cup grated cheese = golf ball

1 teaspoon butter or jam = finger tip

1 tablespoon peanut butter = your thumb

1 average bagel = hockey puck

1 serving of rice or pasta = cupcake wrapper

Enjoy!

Mission Slim-Possible!

At the start of every year there are thousands of people across the country who pledge to lose weight and be healthier. Gyms are over crowded, workout clothes are bought up like candy, and grocery stores push their diet/low fat and healthier items. People jump on weight-loss teams with the hope that they will find support in numbers.

This year, that person is me.

I already feel that I have a pretty well-balanced diet and I'm generally happy with my weight. I am classified as "mildly overweight" by the BMI calculators and fat charts, and for the most part I'm ok with that. I fit in my clothes fine, and I enjoy a bowl of ice cream for dessert at night.

But being a girl, the desire to lose another 10 lbs. will always be there. 10 lbs. seems to be that magic number. I would be back down to what I weighed in high school, and give me just a little more cushion when we decide we're ready to start a family. (The thought of pregnancy weight scares me...) So I joined a weight-loss team that began on January 17.

I'm hoping that my team "Mission Slim-possible" will be able to help me get off that plateau I've been on for the last year and a half. However, I am NOT willing to be miserable starving myself of my favorite foods and desserts. Everyone has their own way to diet. I don't like the word diet. That sounds restrictive, tiring, and just plan sucky! I know the minute I tell myself I shouldn't eat carbs...I'll want nothing other than a hot basket of bread sticks from Olive Garden.

So, here's how I plan to do it. Portion control and calories. I truly believe that a person can eat normal, everyday foods (including a scoop of ice cream) and still lose weight. I want something that I'm going to be able to maintain. I don't want a fast drop in weight because I stop eating carbs, and then the minute I go back to enjoying my rolls and noodles blow I up and gain more than I did to begin with.

I have started this first week by dropping my calorie intake to 1800 a day and exercising at least 30 minutes a day. Once I get used to that, I'll drop my calories to 1600. Again eating what I want as long as I stay in the calorie range. And if I start to struggle, I know my teammates will be there to help me.

So for all of you trying to lose a few this year good luck and God Speed!

Bigger Eyes Than Stomach...

When I was growing up and my mom would cook one of my favorite meals (which usually involved mashed potatoes) I would load up my plate with so much food, because I figured I would save myself the trouble of going back for seconds. After I ate about half of what I took my mother would look at me and say, "You had bigger eyes than stomach." I have learned over the years to match my eyes and stomach at my favorite meals, but there are still times when that old saying comes in handy while I'm working in the kitchen.

For example...

Baking Christmas candy, cookies, or any other holiday goodies. I always have grand plans of beautifully decorated and intricate candies that are elegantly displayed and proudly handed out to neighbors, colleagues, and family. However, by the end of the day I usually end up with "bigger eyes than stomach." Or in other words...I have better ideas than capabilities. This year I tried to plan a simpler holiday baking menu:

1. Pretzel Turtles: Wonderful combination of a square or round pretzel topped with a Rolo caramel candy and melted in the oven for about 3 minutes. The final touch is a pecan half pressed into the melted chocolate. The result...sweet, salty, caramelly, and crunchy addictive goodness! These turned out great. I think these were well within my capabilities and they taste great!

2. Oreo Truffles. My husband introduced these to me when we were first dating. A package of Oreos finely chopped, blended with a package of cream cheese and formed into a ball, and last but not least dipped in a chocolate candy coating. Can you say "YUMMY!" Here is where my eyes start to dream up these perfectly cute little round balls with decorated sprinkles and neatly drizzled peanut butter on the top. The reality...odd shaped blobs of chocolate with red sprinkles that fall off and make a mess, globs of melted peanut butter top the milk chocolate coating because my idea of lightly drizzling the PB literally busted out of the bag and I gave up trying to be pretty. And not to mention 5 dirty pans and red sprinkles all over the floor. At least they still taste good!

#3. Sugar Cookies. Sweet. Simple. Traditional. Well...they are sweet. My mind got carried away again with the idea of beautifully decorated Christmas trees and angels, forgetting that I am actually going to be the one creating these, and I'm not good at it. My basketball coach used to tell me, "I don't care if you make mistakes, that's part of life. I care that you went out and made a mistake while trying your best." I can honestly say that I tried my best...

I love cooking, and every year around Christmas time I try to convince myself that since I can cook pretty well, I should be able to bake well too, and every year I am reminded that cooking and baking are VERY different. I think possibly there is another saying that I should remember at this time of year. "Know your limitations..." =)

My 5 Fave Chicken Recipes

I hate it when someone asks me what my favorite food is. It just like asking me what my favorite movie is. I have MANY favorites and many different kinds! So I thought I would narrow it down a bit. These are my five favorite chicken recipes to make right now. (Of course this will change, I'm sure, with time).

5. Chicken Stir Fry with Ramen noodles. Steamed veggies, garlic and herb seasoned chicken and Ramen Noodles...YUM!

4. Chicken Parmesan. Savory. Classic. Italian. Enough said!

3. Chicken Chorizo and Black Bean Burritos. The combination of chicken and chorizo is a must try!

2. Grilled Chicken with rice and veggies. This one will never get old!

1. Chicken Dippin'. A recipe made for me by my husband while we were dating...and it is the meal I request on my birthday!