Just A Little Baking

Last week I made some goodies. No dialogue just want to share the pretty pictures :)

Aluminum Chef

Hello again! If you've ready any of my cooking posts before you're aware that simplicity is a winning factor in helping me choose recipes to make. The one I made tonight is my own concoction created from minimal time and limited ingredients. 

Ingredients:

-Boneless chicken breasts (as many as you are serving)

-Mexican rice

-Black beans

-Milk

-Flour

-Seasonings (your choice)

I had a spare chicken breast from a previous meal I had made and wanted to have a well-rounded dinner as opposed to a sad single person dinner where I heat the chicken and dip it in some sort of ketchup or BBQ sauce. Instead I decided to cook some Mexican rice, adding in a half can of black beans to add some depth of flavor. 

Next I dipped my chicken into a bowl of milk and coated it with a combination of flour and multiple seasonings. Remember when you were a child and would get a "suicide" drink from the drink fountain?!? Well you should. For those of you who didn't have a good childhood this drink meant adding just a touch of each soda to your cup. I went old school with my seasonings and sprinkled a bit each seasoning I had and mixed it into my flour. If you aren't as ballsy as me, you can add a dash of salt and pepper. I then fried my chicken in vegetable oil on medium until it was golden brown and no more pink remained inside. 

Lastly, place the chicken over your rice and beans combination and you are set for a great dinner. The chicken was extremely juicy and the various spices added to the already flavorful rice layered with beans. It was a tasty treat that required absolutely no skills in the kitchen; it had my name all over it!

Mangez bien, riez souvent, aimez beaucoup

(Eat well, laugh often, love abundantly)

Aluminum Chef

Okay seriously y'all, this was one of the most delectable, melt-in-your mouth, amazing meals I have had recently. AND, it totally came in a box. This is they type of meal where it is so yummy that your taste buds force you to comment out loud about they joy they are experiencing. After each bite I had to express to the universe the deliciousness that was occurring.

Usually during my one new meal a week challenge I attempt to make something from scratch; however, I saw this sitting in the middle of Walmart and bought it on a whim. I can only imagine how delightful a chicken pot pie made by your grandmother might be, but I'm pretty sure this would give Granny a run for her money.

The magical creators of said Chicken Pot Pie in a Box are Velveeta. They provide everything except for the chicken. Instructions are blissfully easy to follow and the whole meal only takes 35-40 minutes to make in total. (Half of that is just letting it bake in the oven) I'm urging you to seek your local grocer and give this meal a try, you will be glad you did.

Throw in a great beer and this is definitely a dinner of champions.

The final product :)

Mangez bien, riez souvent, aimez beaucoup

(Eat well, laugh often, love abundantly)

Aluminum Chef

In this journey through aisles of Kroger I've never encountered before this has been my favorite dish by far. Albeit I'm too proud to ask an employee for help in finding what other people would deem as routine items, it might suffice to significantly shorten my grocery shopping times. This recipe only required 2 laps around the store, so I'd consider it a success. Along with better knowing the layout of my local grocer, I have also learned how to correctly spell parmesan cheese!

Ingredients:

-Boneless, skinless chicken breasts

-1/4 cup of milk

-1/2 cup bread crumbs

-2 tsps roasted garlic and bell pepper seasoning 

-1 tsp chives

-3 tbsp of butter

-1/2 cup chicken broth

-1/4 can of diced tomatoes

-3 cloves garlic (minced)

-1 cup heavy whipping cream

-1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese blend

-2 tbsp basil

I got this recipe off a blog and they were very specific about the brands of spices and seasonings used. However, I didn't have time for all that and I simply used a couple of seasonings that I knew tasted good with chicken and bread crumbs. So that part of the recipe is easily interchangeable. You combine the bread crumbs, chives and seasoning in a small bowl and mix thoroughly. (I also threw in some salt and pepper) Place the milk in a separate bowl. 

Next you are going to pound the chicken flat and dip each breast in the milk followed by the bread crumb mixture. Make sure you get a nice even coating before placing in a skillet on medium heat (where you have also placed the butter). Cook the chicken until browned on both sides and cooked through. This takes about 10 minutes. 

After the chicken is golden brown (above right) place to the side and keep warm. In the same skillet sauté garlic for 2 minutes. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil over medium heat. Stir in cream and tomatoes, bring to a boil and stir for one minute. Reduce heat to low; add parmesan cheese, basil, salt and pepper and stir entire sauce for about 5 minutes. 

Now you have your dinner ready to go. Just drizzle as much of this delicious sauce on your breaded chicken and add your veggie of choice. If you don't want to spend time making the sauce by hand, there are plenty of sauces you can buy pre-made which would suffice. But, this sauce is worth the extra effort. If you're looking to save time use canned vegetables or instant potatoes and skim the minutes from your side dishes. 

Mangez bien, riez souvent, aimez beaucoup

(Eat well, laugh often, love abundantly)

Gettin Crafty

   

A few months ago I had some free time on my hands and decided to get a little crafty. Obviously mustaches were involved. I was planning a Bachelorette party for my bestie and wanted a cute souvenir for each girl to take home with her. Since Friday night we were planning on guzzling wine I figured an etched wine glass would be a nice touch. For the initial glasses I taped a stencil to the glass and painted on the etching fluid. (It took a lot of coats and I would recommend using a different product for better results) 

The mustache glasses were easier because I placed a sticker and painted over the entire glass. This method required less precision and touch-ups. Next I waited and waited and waited before rinsing the glasses clean. This project was extremely easy and cost efficient. You can make any shape, initial, etc. all you need is a sticker or stencil. 

Below are the final products! Happy crafting :)

 

Aluminum Chef

Chicken Parmesan & Chicken Roll-Ups

This week I crafted 2 delicious dinners and I am posting them together b/c I want to and you can't stop me. So there. But enough sass, let's direct our focus back to the yummy meals I prepared this week. On Monday night I made Chicken Roll-Ups, this is a dish my Momma made all the time and I got the recipe from her.

Roll-Up Ingredients:
-2 packages of crescent rolls
-2-3 tbsp of sour cream
-1 can of Cream of Chicken
-Chicken breasts (pre-cooked and shredded)
-Cheddar cheese
-Paprika & Parsley

The first step is to combine the Cream of Chicken w/ a large dollop of sour cream and several dashes of both paprika and parsley. Add salt and pepper to your taste. My Momma's recipe has onions in it, but I would change that to onion flavoring or none at all because the onions are very crisp and I didn't like the texture profiles contrasting each other so starkly.

Anywho, you lay out the crescents flat and add chicken and a dab of sauce. Roll the crescents up and add a good amount of sauce on top. I decided to attempt half of my rolls with cheddar cheese since I had some extra.

You then place the pan in an oven preheated to 350'F for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. After tasting the rolls with cheddar and without I was unanimously in favor of the roll-ups sans cheddar. The cheddar didn't taste bad, but it muted the flavor of the sauce. Without the cheese present I could really enjoy the the chicken roll-ups much better.

 Chicken Parmesan Ingredients:
-1/2 cup of milk
-1 egg
-Breadcrumbs
-Olive Oil
-Your choice of red pasta sauce
-Mozzarella cheese
-Vermicelli
-Chicken breasts

Whisk your milk and egg together and dip each chicken breast in the mixture before dipping it in your breadcrumbs. Once the chicken is fully coated place in a skillet w/ olive oil and cook until golden brown on both sides. (Should only take 3-4 minutes). After it is golden brown
place your chicken in a baking dish and put a layer of mozzarella on top. Layer on a generous amount of your chosen pasta sauce, followed by another layer of mozzarella. 

Bake at 350'F for 20 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling.

While the chicken is cooking I boiled water and cooked my vermicelli to accompany the dish. This only takes about 6-7 minutes so you can wait and have both done at the same time. Once you remove your chicken parmesan from the oven, you place it over a bountiful amount of vermicelli. You could use spaghetti as well, but I like the thinner noodles for this.  


What I chose to do is only cook 1 chicken breast (since it's just me eating) and use the remaining noodles and pasta sauce for meals throughout the week. I kept the sauce in its original container in the fridge and put the noodles in tupperware. This way I am able to add olive oil, pasta sauce, and different toppings to my noodles each meal to vary up the flavors.

This dish was extremely tender and juicy and easy to make as well. If you are looking to impress that special someone or show off for your family and friends this is your ticket. Minimal prep time and all you need to add is a salad and some garlic bread and your feast is made.

Mangez bien, riez souvent, aimez beaucoup

(Eat well, laugh often, love abundantly)

Thoughts About Stuff

Monday night is upon me and I find myself snuggled up with my newly acquired Earl Grey tea and adorable yellow mug as I get inspired by contestants on Biggest Loser. Although I enjoy the show, the 2 hour run time leaves me with ample time to focus on other things during commercials and lulls in the show. This evening I have the urge to write and after reviewing my last few posts I decided that I had to write about anything beyond food. I enjoy my trials and successes with my Aluminum Chef challenge for myself, but I need to mix things up now and again.

Goals has been the theme of this week's episode and contestants are setting personal goals and challenging those in their community and America as a whole to set goals and improve their lives with small steps. I can relate to the lack of self control that many of these individuals struggle with except mine is not in the arena of food. I lack self control in other areas of my life such as self improvement, specifically in the spiritual realm.

Overwhelmed. This is the emotion I often feel whenever I attempt to set goals for myself. I start off extremely enthusiastic and ready to take on everything in the world. Lent this year has been a prime example. I felt like I needed to improve my relationship with God and Lent was an ideal jumping off point. Like every other time I set goals, this time I went overboard. I decided to give up several food and beverage items, add daily quite times, fast on Sundays, add more prayer, add more time in the Word, and exercise more.

As I looked forward to the events coming up I began to realize how inconvenient I would be to others if I tried to follow all these rules so I marked off a few. Then Lent began and I did good with no soft drinks, but as they days added up so did the amount of things I needed to accomplish each day. Instead of enjoying reading the Bible and praying I found myself frustrated with the chore ahead of me. I rushed through and got less out of it than before and it suddenly began to dawn on me that this is my pattern. I set too many goals and then when I can't do every single thing on my list I feel disappointed in myself and worthless so I give up on a lot of things.

My approach is what needs to change. I don't have a problem with food because I don't think about it excessively and make it a chore. I eat when I'm hungry and don't count calories or give myself reasons to feel guilty. Finally I am taking a cue from my healthy eating habits and applying it to the remainder of my life. I am happiest when I don't have a set schedule. This freedom allows me to not feel guilty because I don't set myself up for failure. I made a vague goal instead for this Lent to grow closer to God.

I am accomplishing my goal by attending church on Wednesday and Sunday nights every week. I love going to church and look forward to these services. I also am praying when I think about it instead of at a set time. These steps appear small, but they increase my desire to know God better and improve our relationship. They eliminate the mandatory chore feeling from previous attempts.

Now I pray, read the Bible, and attend church when I want to and it happens more increasingly as I am no longer forcing myself to out of obligation. I am so tired of feeling guilty and so I won't do it any more. Henceforth I am going to work on becoming a better person in small achievable steps. I should have known being an avid ready that small goals would work better for me than large ones because the books I read fastest are filled with a multitude of small chapters. When there is an end in sight I can strive forward more easily and with each new success I am more motivated to attempt a new achievement.

I challenge you to pick an area in your life that you want to make better and set a small goal. See what happens; you might just surprise yourself and triumph. I adore good writing and good quotes so I leave you with a few for motivational fodder:

With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts. -Eleanor Roosevelt

Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time. -Thomas Alva Edison

You are never too old to set another goal or dream another dream. -C.S. Lewis

Even if you fall on your face, you are still moving forward. -Victor Kiam