Chicken with Spinach and Parmigiana

This recipe was added to the Fiance's favorite list. Oh by the way, if you didn't already hear...we got engaged earlier this month!







The first time I went to cook up this recipe, I realized that the chicken had gone bad. That night (luckily) we weren't hungry so it all worked out. Have no fear, we ran out and bought more chicken and the recipe has been saved!! I know, I know... pointless story. The moral of the story might be don't wait days before cooking with the chicken. If you do plan on waiting, put it in the freezer. To our defense we were just too busy and couldn't think straight.

Any-who...after a VERY long day in the office, I'm happy to say I was pleased at the how this dinner came out and enjoyed every bite.

Here it is:

What you'll need...

1-2 packages of Thinly Sliced Chicken Breasts
1/2 cup of Ricotta Cheese
Dash of Parmesan Cheese
Pasta Sauce (Enough for each piece of chicken)
Italian Breadcrumbs (Enough for each piece of chicken)
Spinach (yes, the green leafy stuff - just about the only "healthy" thing in this recipe)


Steps to feed the hungry family...

Sorry... I couldn't help myself.

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Boil a pot of water for the spinach. Cook the spinach for only 2-3 minutes (until wilted). Drain the water and put the wilted spinach on a cutting board. Chop up the spinach.

Step 2: Put the Ricotta Cheese in a bowl with the chopped up spinach and mix well. This will be the filling for your chicken.



Step 3: Wash the chicken and add to the casserole dish. Add the spinach and cheese mixture and spread on the tops of each chicken breast.

Step 4: Carefully roll up the chicken and cheese mixture and add a toothpick. I added the toothpick and then flipped the chicken "roll" so that the toothpick was now on the bottom. There's a reasonable explanation (in my head it was at least)...this is because we are going to cover the chicken with sauce and breadcrumbs and I didn't want the toothpick to get in the way. If you don't like it then please let me know your secret and I'll try it next time ;).

Step 5: If you read step 4 you are probably already adding your favorite sauce and breadcrumbs (with a little melted butter might I add)...



Step 6: Cook in the oven for about 35-40 minutes.

Enjoy!! The pictures don't do it justice because I was in a hurry to eat, but trust me it's good...

Energy Bites (No Bake)

Snacking is perfect when you have those cravings for something that can fill you up in between breakfast, lunch and dinner. It's too easy to snack on something unhealthy so I found something that can fill you up and taste good.

The best part about this recipe is that it's no bake (easy peasy) and you can be creative and add whatever you want!

I found this recipe on Pinterest from A Stylish Little Lady:

Ingredients:

1 cup dry oatmeal

2/3 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup flaxseed

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1/3 cup honey

1tsp. vanilla

Directions:

Step 1: Mix together well and add to the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Step 2: Take out, roll into balls and put in the fridge again. Store for up to 1 week in an air tight container.

Enjoy!

Skinny Chicken Broccoli & Cheese

Ingredients:

• 3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1-2 cups cooked chopped broccoli
• 3 wedges of The Laughing Cow Cheese (I used the original flavor)
• 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 egg whites (or mayo) 
• 6 toothpicks
• Spray Oil (optional)

Our side was a homemade mac and cheese. You can find the recipe here.

Preheat Oven to 350*

Boil Water for Broccoli. Boil for 10 minutes.

Wash and dry the chicken breasts

Spray Pam or put olive oil on a cookie sheet

Place the mayo or egg whites aside in a small bowl 

Mix bread crumbs with salt and pepper and set aside

Dip the chicken in the mayo (or egg whites) and then coat with the bread crumbs. Add to the cookie sheet

Then open the cheese wedges and spread along the chicken. I used a whole wedge for each breast but feel free to use a half

Add the cooked broccoli on top of the cheese

Roll up the chicken and put a tooth pick in it

Cook for 25-30 minutes 

Enjoy!

Ritz Cracker Chicken

We're Back!

 

Ben insisted on the same recipes that we did in the previous posts so I didn't have any thing to post. I'm glad we're back and I hope you like today's recipe!

 

Ritz Cracker Chicken. Easy, Affordable and YUMMY!

 

Ingredients:

 

Ritz Crackers - Any Flavor (2 sleeves - crushed)

Olive Oil

Salt/Pepper

Seasonings of choice (garlic powder, onion powder etc)

1 Stick of butter

1 Cup of sour cream

 

 

Drooling Yet?!

 

It's easy..

 

Step One: Cut up the chicken into cubes. Coat the pan with olive oil, add the chicken and season well.

 

 

Step Two: Only stir fry the chicken half way and add it to a casserole dish (it'll cook in the oven the rest of the way).

 

 

Step Three: Coat the chicken with the sour cream right in the casserole dish (save yourself from having to clean an additional dish).

 

 

Step Four: Melt the butter and add it to the crushed crackers, and stir. Add the mixture to the top of the chicken.

 

 

 

Step Five: Cook in the oven at 350* for 25-30 minutes.

 

 

Enjoy!

Shrimp Sharp Mac and Cheese

What a creative boyfriend! This one was all his idea. What's better with Mac and Cheese then some shrimp? Have you created recipes out of the remaining ingredients in your home? Please share.



As I was preparing for cooking blogs that are coming up, I thought to myself why do I do this?! Does anyone actually enjoy reading these or am I wasting my time? Maybe I do it to keep a record of recipes (modern cookbook) or enjoy reading them later (modern journal).

I came to the conclusion that it's a mix; however, I do know one thing...I'm building memories with my boyfriend. I truly enjoy every minute of cooking with him. We laugh, learn about each other, and enjoy the process of putting together a tasty meal and have a great time doing it. I've come to the conclusion that cooking in the kitchen can be kinda romantic. Give it a try!

Ingredients:

Bag of frozen shrimp

1 cup if sharp cheese

1 cup of milk

1 tbs of flour

Parmesan Cheese

1 Stick of Butter

Italian Breadcrumbs

Olive or Vegetable Oil

Recipe:

Step 1: Thaw Shrimp by placing a strainer with shrimp on top a bowl of cold tap water.

Step 2: Boil water for the pasta. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box.

Step 3: Once the shrimp has thawed placed in a frying pan with some olive oil or vegetable oil and saute till pink.


Step 4: Add pasta to a baking dish (casserole dish), and add the shrimp.

Step 5: Add the milk, cheese and flour to the sauce pan. Cook until it's thickened and all the cheese has melted. Add any additional seasonings you'd like (salt, pepper etc).

Step 6: Add the cheese sauce on top of the pasta and shrimp.

Step 7: Add the Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs and top with melted butter (this helps it brown).

Step 8: My favorite....Eat & Enjoy!

Dry Rub Steak

Dry Rub Steak

I'll start off by saying I'm sorry that it's been awhile since I last blogged. I found out that Ben enjoyed our existing recipes so much (especially the melt in your mouth chicken) that we ended up re-creating the recipes. I had nothing to blog about....we'll I did, but it didn't have anything to do with food. 

On a SUPER Happy Note: My amazing friend Ashley had her baby girl. Scarlett was born 12-02-12 at 7:05am at 5lbs 4 oz! All are healthy and happy and I don't think they could have asked for a better Christmas Present :) 

*Thanks to the Feeney's for inspiring this recipe with their Christmas Gift to Ben and I. 

Thanks to Meg for the quick microwavable sweet potato suggestion (see below).

Ingredients for Dry Rub: 

Kosher Salt

Dried Oregano

Minced Onion

Minced Garlic

Cumin

Smoked Paprika

Red Pepper Flakes

Directions: 

Add the dry rub on the steak on each side of a 1 1/2 pound steak. Grill or broil.

To Grill: Cook on each side for about 10 minutes

Click Here to Broil 

*Our gift from the Feeney's - Thanks Guys!

Steak 

Add dry rub:

Cook (yum, yum)

Thanks to Meg for letting me know about Organic Microwavable Sweet Potatoes! Saves time and they are so delicious!

Hope you enjoy! :)

Hurricane Lasagna

This Lasagna was made with lots of love. It's the first time I've ever made "real lasagna" and I think it turned out pretty good. I made the crock pot chicken lasagna but this one was a beef version and baked in the oven.



My thoughts go out to those who were affected by Sandy. The stories that came out of this storm were incredibly sad and I hope that they get the help they need asap.



During the storm we lost power (luckily it wasn't for more than one day). With 10 minutes to spare the lights flickered off and on and we crossed ours fingers that it would hold out until the dish was done. Hence the name, "Hurricane Lasagna".

Ben said, "If we don't cook the lasagna now and we lose power, we won't have dinner." Well played Ben, well played.

So here you have it:


Ingredients:

Thanks to Simple Recipes

1 lb lean ground beef

1/2 lb dry lasagna noodles (requires 9 lasagna noodles - unbroken)

1 28 oz can tomato sauce

1/2 6 oz can (3 oz) tomato paste

1 lb Ricotta cheese

1 1/2 lb Mozzarella cheese (large flat square slices)

3/4 lb freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Garlic/Onion Powder

Oregano

Italian Spice

Salt

Garlic Salt

Parsley diced (fresh flat leaf preferred)

1 Garlic Cloves, minced

 

 

I simplified this recipe in the interest of time (in fear the power would go out) but feel free to follow the link above:

 

Step One:

 

Brown the beef in a skillet with seasonings; salt, pepper, garlic salt, onion powder etc.

 

Step Two:

 

Boil the pasta according to the directions. As they boil they will wilt and you can stir them lightly.

 

Step Three:

 

Add the browned beef, sauce along with Parmesan Cheese in a sauce pan.

 

 

Step Four:

 

Take a baking dish and add sauce at the bottom. Once the pasta has boiled line the pan with the strips of pasta (I used three). Then add the beef, cheese and more cheese. Continue to layer. Finish with sauce on top. I ran out that's why it looks blotchy. :)

 

 

 

 

Bake at 375* for 45 minutes. Enjoy it in all it's Italian glory ;).