Chicken Parmesan Bake and Garlic & Parmesan Croutons

A friend of mine "pinned" this recipe on Pinterest and I saw it and had to make it immediately.  The only thing I didn't have was croutons so I made some and I think that's what put the recipe over the top.  This is so good.  My husband decided he wanted to have this for his birthday. 

I think this recipe is healthier/lower in calories than actual breaded and fried chicken parmesan so that's a plus too AND it's a full-meal all in one.  If you wanted to pack in more vegetables you could layer in some fresh or frozen spinach.

Chicken Parmesan Bake
Adapted from About.com
*recipe updated 9-29-12

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed (I love mine)
• 1/4-1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 1/2 lbs skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
• salt & pepper
• 2 1/2 cups marinara sauce, I used homemade but a jar would work great
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (If you don't have easy access to basil sub a couple tsp. of dried basil)
• 1 1/2 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/2-3/4 c. Parmesan cheese, grated
• 3 c. homemade croutons, recipe follows

Pre-heat oven to 350.  In a 9x13 pan layer the olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes.  Add the chicken chunks on top of that and season well with salt and pepper.  Pour the marinara over the chicken and sprinkle the basil on top of that.  Layer half of the mozzarella and parmesan cheeses on top.  Bake 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and then lay the croutons over the top and sprinkle on the rest of the cheese.  Bake another 10-15 minutes until chicken is cooked and cheeses are melted. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Garlic & Parmesan Croutons

1 baguette or 3/4 loaf of french bread (about 4-5 c. bread cubes)
5 Tb butter
3-4 garlic cloves
sea salt
1 Tb grated parmesan cheese

Slice the baguette and then chop it into 1'' cubes.  Preheat the oven to 350 and cover a cookie sheet with foil. Melt the butter in a sauce pan, add in the garlic and cook until fragrant.  Pour the butter over the bread cubes and toss to coat.  The bread should be just coated not completely soaked with butter. Spread the cubes out in one layer on the cookie sheet and sprinkle with sea salt and parmesan cheese.  Bake 10-12 minutes, making sure not to overcook.  Let cool and store in an airtight container or ziploc bag for up to a week.  OR use them on the casserole above! 

Just Like Grammy's Potato Salad

I made another potato salad recently that I love and my sister and I started reminiscing about our Grammy's potato salad. It was simple, yet we all loved it. I can't even imagine how many pounds of potatoes she must've boiled and chopped to fill up that gigantic yellow Tupperware for the family Fourth of July bbq every year, but I took a stab at re-creating it the other day on a smaller scale and it worked out well. I brought this to a potluck and it was gone very fast.

I like to "bake" my potatoes in the microwave for potato salad but baking them in the oven or boiling them works perfectly too so do whatever works for you.



Just Like Grammy's Potato Salad

3 lbs yellow, yukon gold, or russet potatoes, cooked & chopped
4 eggs, boiled & chopped
1/2 onion, diced
2-3 stalks celery, diced
4 dill pickle spears OR 2-3 large dill pickles, diced
2 Tb sweet pickle relish
3/4 tsp seasoned salt
fresh cracked pepper
1 Tb spicy mustard
1 c. mayo (maybe more)
paprika for sprinkling

Add potatoes, eggs, onion, celery, pickles and relish into a bowl and toss together. Stir in mustard and mayo. Taste and add more seasoning or mayo if needed. Pour completed salad into a serving bowl and sprinkle with paprika. Chill at least one hour before serving with just about anything!

Texas Burger with Chipotle Lime Spread

This burger wasn't a plan. It just...happened. And it was good. The burger, cheese, grilled jalapenos, caramelized onions, bacon, bbq sauce, chipotle lime spread combo just works. And apparently I spilled a dollop of the Chipotle Lime Spread on the plate but a little extra never hurt, right?

We had some frozen burger patties from Omaha Steaks in the freezer so I just grilled up those. You can certainly make your own pattys as I usually do.


Texas Burger with Chipotle Lime Spread

6 burger patties of your choice
seasoned salt, pepper, granulated garlic for sprinkling
6 slices sharp cheddar cheese
4 jalapenos
2 tsp olive oil
1 large onion
2 Tb butter
6 slices bacon, crisply cooked
Bbq Sauce
Chipotle Lime Spread
6 fresh bakery rolls

Start two small skillets heating over medium heat on the stove. (Or you could just cook the jalapenos and onions together.) Slice the jalapenos thinly (remove ribs and seeds if you don't do spicy), slice the onion thinly. In one pan add the olive oil and jalapenos. In the other pan melt the butter and toss inthe onions. Cook both slowly until the jalapenos are soft and the onions are caramelized. The onions will take longer.

Season and grill burgers to your desired done-ness and top with cheese. Toast the buns in the oven, being careful not to burn. Put a dollop of chipotle lime spread on the bottom bun, then the bacon, then the burger, onions, jalapenos and some bbq sauce. This burger would be great with Fresh Corn with Chipotle Lime Spread, Sweet Potato Fries, or Classic Coleslaw.

Fresh Corn with Lime Chipotle Spread

We had something like this corn at a graduation party for my sister in-law's sister...which I guess it would be easier to just say our friend's graduation party...  So anyway, it was so awesome.  They served it with fajitas and mini-chimis

Then the other day I was making corn so I threw some things together and...it worked out.We loved it.  Then we repurposed the spread on a burger and I'll post that later. 

I think that the original corn had cotija cheese but I didn't have any of that so either one works.


Fresh Corn with Lime Chipotle Spread

6 ears corn, shucked and rinsed
2 Tb mayo
2 Tb sour cream
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder (regular chili powder would work too)
1/2 lime, juiced
3 Tb feta or cotija cheese

Boil or grill the corn.  Or par boil it and then grill it the rest of the way.  While the corn is cooking mix together the mayo, sour cream chili powder, lime juice and cheese in a bowl.  While the corn is piping hot smear the spread over the corn and serve warm.  This would go great with enchiladas, burgers, or just about anything!

Photo update: Kung Pao Chicken

I made this again recently and once again it was a hit.  New photo, same recipe. (I did sub yellow bell pepper for the red.) It's a Cooking Light recipe and I love that I can easily calculate my calories for the meal.

Try Kung Pao Chicken

S'mores Bars Revised

The next revision....S'mores Bars.  I didn't really think S'mores Bars could get better.  Then I decided to put the marshmallows under the broiler for a minute.  Then they were amazing!  The marshmallows taste like campfire marshmallows.

And I have to say that the browned marshmallows photo looks more appetizing, hence the update!  Make these, yumm!

Seven Layer Greek Dip

I've pretty much been cyber-stalking Our Best Bites.  I'm obsessed with that blog because everything is so good and most of the recipes are very "homemade" but simple which is my "style".  I was quite skeptical about this dip when I first read the recipe because I wasn't so sure about the cream cheese/hummus combo.  But-- it was a Monday and we have small group Monday night and I had everything to make the dip on hand, so I did.  I did not regret that decision.  It is SO good.  The pie plate was scraped clean afterwards. The dip itself is much more colorful than it looks in this picture.



Seven Layer Greek Dip

8 oz block cream cheese, softened
1 tsp dill or Greek seasoning ( I used Pampered Chef dill mix)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp lemon juice
1 1/2 c. hummus
1 c. seeded, chopped cucumber
1 c. seeded, diced tomatoes
1/2 c. chopped olives ( I used green, kalamata or black would be great)
1/3 c. green onions, chopped (or red onion)
1/2 c. crumbled Feta
1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley

Combine soft cream cheese, seasoning, garlic and lemon juice.  Spread that mixture in the bottom of a pie plate.  Spread hummus over the top of the cream cheese.  Sprinkle on cucumber, tomatoes, olives, onions, feta and parsley.  Chill for at least two hours.  Serve with pita chips or tortilla chips or even veggies.

Jello Cake

My grandma used to make this cake all the time when we were kids.  I loved it.  I haven't made this cake in years, but the other day when we were having company for dessert in a few hours and it was 110 degrees outside and my kids were sleeping so I really really didn't want to go to the store, I glanced in the pantry to find a box of white cake mix--and it came to mind.  Then I missed Grammy.

This cake comes together really quickly with only a few ingredients and it really is a crowd-pleaser, even though it's not exactly gourmet!

Any flavor of Jello will work, I think I used raspberry because that's what I had.  It also calls for Cool Whip for the topping and you could certainly whip up some cream, but something about this cake just  needs Cool Whip.

Jello Cake
recipe from Grammy

1 box white cake mix
eggs, water, and oil called for on cake mix box
1 c. boiling water
1 3-oz box Jello
1/2 c. cold water
1 tub Cool Whip, defrosted

Prepare cake mix as directed and bake in a 9x13'' pan.  Once it comes out of the oven, prepare the Jello mixture.  Combine the boiling water and Jello in a bowl and stir until the Jello is dissolved.  Stir in the cold water, set aside.  Poke holes in the cake using a fork and pour the Jello mixture over the cake.  Refrigerate at least 3 hours before topping with Cool Whip and serving.  Store in the fridge.

Caprese Burger

We're kind of obsessed with burgers these days.  Rob is always obsessed with burgers, but I'm joining in.  In the winter, if you could call Phoenix "winter" ever, we usually make pizza once a week and it seems like in the summer I've been making burgers once a week.  I'm having fun trying out different types.  This is one of our new favorites.

I LOVE caprese salad so when we got a bottle of 20 year-aged balsamic on our vacation I immediately thought of making caprese salad, which turned into a caprese meal. 

I used homemade pesto I had in the freezer, but use whatever you have.  A jar works fine.  I think that a ciabatta roll would be great but Rob isn't a big fan of those so we used some wheat bakery buns.

Caprese Burgers

For the burgers:
2 lbs ground beef, I use 93% lean
1 tsp. granulated garlic or 2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. garlic pepper (or just sub 1/2 tsp pepper)
1/2 tsp. sea salt

For the pesto mayo:
3 Tb. prepared pesto
1/2 c. mayo

Balsamic syrup for drizzling
fresh mozzarella
tomato slices
red onion slices
lettuce
8 fresh bakery buns or ciabatta buns

To prepare the balsamic syrup, bring 1 c. balsamic vinegar to a simmer in a small saucepan.  Let simmer, but not boil, for about 5 minutes or until it has thickened a bit.  It will continue to thicken as it cools so remove from heat and let cool before it's comepetely syrup-y. Pour into a small jar and keep in the pantry for up to 3 months.

Mix together the pesto and mayonnaise and refrigerate until needed.  In a mixing bowl combine beef, garlic pepper, garlic and salt.  Form into 8 patties.  Grill a couple minutes on each side or to your desired done-ness.  Top with fresh mozzarella cheese and close the grill lid for just a minute to let the cheese melt.  Top toasted buns with 1 Tb. pesto mayo, lettuce, onion, the cooked burger, tomato slices and drizzle the top with the balsamic syrup.  Enjoy!

BBQ Beef Sandwich with Slaw

We love barbecue.  Almost anything barbecued, smoked, or smothered in barbecue sauce is good to us.  Two summers ago we all traveled to Tennessee for a family reunion and got loads of barbecue and one of our favorite sandwiches was topped with slaw.

When I make barbecue in the crockpot I like to generously coat the meat with a dry rub first and add sauce after it's cooked.  I make a batch of this rub and keep it in the pantry all the time. You should try it!  I used this great recipe.







BBQ Beef Sandwich with Slaw

3 lb beef roast
bbq dry rub (2Tb-1/4 c. depending on how much you smother on there.  I used a LOT.)
1/2 c. water
Bottle of barbecue sauce for finishing and serving
Pickles (optional)
Slaw
Buns

The Rub:
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. paprika
1 1/2 Tb black pepper
2 Tb granulated garlic
1 1/2 tsp salt

Mix together and keep in an air-tight container or ziploc baggie for up to a year.

Rinse and pat dry the roast and coat generously with the barbecue rub.  Put in a crockpot and add in water and cook on low 6-8 hours or until it falls apart when pulled with two forks.  If it doesn't pull apart, cook longer. Drain off the liquid and shred the beef and pour on barbecue sauce.  Don't over-do the sauce you want to just coat the beef and not over stir it or it will get mushy. 

Serve on toasted buns topped with coleslaw and extra bbq sauce and pickles on the side.