Chicken Parmesan Bake

Here's an easy weeknight meal that offers the taste of Chicken Parmesan without the hassle of pounding out, breading and frying the chicken. This recipe by Chef John was recommended to me via Grandma Honey's blog. I've made a few tweaks just to adjust for my own preferences, but for the most part have stayed pretty close to the original recipe.

Chicken Parmesan Bake

printable recipe
serves 4-6

olive oil
red pepper flakes
3-4 minced garlic cloves
4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 jar marinara sauce (I used Barilla traditional marinara)
8 oz mozzarella, shredded
4 oz parmesan, grated
italian seasoning, salt, and pepper
5 oz bag of garlic croutons

Preheat oven to 350F. Drizzle olive oil into a 9x13" baking dish and generously sprinkle with red pepper flakes and garlic cloves. I did not skimp on the pepper or garlic, but it was not over powering at all, so don't be afraid of it being too spicy!

Cut the chicken into 2-3 oz cutlets. This is optional but I felt it made the chicken more flavorful and ensured that the chicken was cooked through. Some reviewers of the original recipe complained that the whole breasts were not cooked through in the allotted time, but I did not have this problem when I cut up the chicken a bit.

Arrange the chicken breasts on top of the olive oil in the baking dish. Season generously with salt, pepper, and italian seasoning.

Spread marinara sauce on top of chicken, and sprinkle on half of the mozzarella and parmesan.

Distribute the croutons evenly on top and sprinkle on the remaining cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 350F for 35 minutes, uncovering for the last 15 minutes so the croutons have a chance to crisp up.

Serve with a salad and french bread.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

In a couple of days our dog Jack turns 1 year old. We got him a new squeaky toy to celebrate. Yes, I am one of "those" pet owners, at least a little. I mean, we have stockings for our pets at Christmas but I didn't go so far as to bake him a dog-friendly cake. I have to draw the line somewhere...

Here he is at one day old. He's the third from the right. Just kidding, I have no idea, but he's in there somewhere! Poor mama, I know how she feels...

Here he is at a few weeks old, when we picked him out. The puppies were still pretty much impossible to tell apart, they were all so darling, but my husband said he was the one!

We brought him home a few weeks later at the beginning of May, when he was about 8 weeks old. Here he is on his first day home. I think he was a little overwhelmed.

Here he is in July on Hannah's birthday. Hello, Jack, you grew fast! Ignore my ugly bare feet in the background...

And here he is a couple of months ago. Isn't he a beauty? We highly recommend the breeders, Carolyn and George at Merriman's Labradors in Canon City, CO.

He is everything we wanted: energetic, fun-loving, good with the kids, energetic, sweet, smart, energetic, loyal, and a great companion. Oh, did I mention he is energetic? Quite rambunctious, especially when new people come to visit. And of course, like all labs, he does love to chew. And we bust him on the couch more often than we'd like.

But in all, he's a great dog. Happy Birthday, Jack! We sure love you!

Today, as Hannah sat in my lap coloring while I played catch with a football with Nathan with one hand and threw a tennis ball for Jack to fetch with the other, I realized two things:

1) I am a really really really talented multi-tasker.

and 2) I am thankful for easy dinners like this one with three kids two kids and a dog (and cat, can't forget Oliver) running around my house.

Adapted from a recipe on allrecipes.com.

printable recipes

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

1 egg
1/2 cup milk
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into chunks
1 cup plain dried bread crumbs
1 cup oil for frying
8 ounces Swiss cheese, cubed
8 ounces cubed ham
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Beat egg and 1/2 cup milk together until combined.

Stir in the chicken chunks to coat.

Then drain and coat with bread crumbs. Heat oil in a large skillet to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Fry breaded chicken cubes in hot oil until golden brown on all sides.

Remove and drain on paper towels.   

Place chicken cubes in a casserole dish, along with the Swiss cheese, and ham. I added some sliced fresh mushrooms, because I like them and had some extra I wanted to use.

Stir together the soup with 1/2 cup milk.

Pour over casserole.

Bake in preheated oven until golden brown and bubbly, about 30 minutes. 

This meal is featured in Menu Plan 13.

 

Tacoritos

This recipe is a fun combination of tacos, burritos, and enchiladas. The key is to use HOT ground sausage, to give the flavor a good kick. I like to serve it with lettuce, tomatoes, and sour cream, alongside my friend Amy's Zesty Mexican Rice.

This recipe is adapted from one I found in a Taste of Home magazine last year.

*Note: this recipe can be easily doubled to serve 8, just bake it in a 9"x13" pan. Alternatively, you can double the recipe and freeze half before baking for an easy pull-out-of-the-freezer-and-bake meal for a busy day.

Tacoritos

printable recipe 

serves 4

2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
2 cups water
1 1/2 Tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 lb HOT pork sausage
2 Tbsp finely chopped onion
1/2 cup refried beans
4 flour tortillas (8 in)
2 cups (8 oz) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. 

Stir in flour until smooth. 

Gradually add water and bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 1 minute, mixture will start to thicken a bit. 

Stir in chili powder and garlic salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. 

In a large skillet, cook the beef, sausage and onion until the meat is no longer pink, drain off the fat. 

Stir in the refried beans and heat through.

Spread 1/4 cup sauce in a greased 9x9 inch dish, or I like to use my rectangular Corningware casserole dish.

Spread 1 Tbsp sauce on a tortilla.

Spoon a quarter of the meat mixture (about 2/3 cup) down the center of tortilla. 

Top with a handful of cheese (about a quarter cup).

Roll up and place seam side down in prepared dish.

Repeat with remaining tortillas. 

Pour remaining sauce over the top. 

Sprinkle with remaining cheese. 

Bake, uncovered, at 350F for 18-22 minutes or until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbly. 

Serve with toppings such as shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, olives, sour cream, cilantro or whatever your heart desires! 

 

This recipe is featured in Menu Plan 7.

Creamy Poppyseed Chicken

There's a teeny tiny possibility that this might not be the healthiest meal I have ever prepared. You know, because of the cream of mushroom soup. And the butter. And the sour cream.

However, there is also the teeny tiny possibility fact that this is the most amazing casserole I have ever tasted. Hands down. I think this is a pretty common recipe, but the version I found on my friend Nikki's website adds a fantastic twist: carmelized onions. And that, my friends, sealed the deal for me. 

*Note: this recipe serves 6. As usual I halved the recipe since my kids maybe eat an adult-sized serving between the two of them, so the portions pictured will be smaller.

Creamy Poppyseed Chicken

printable recipe 

1 onion, sliced into thin rings

2 cups shredded, cooked chicken (I used the leftover chicken from last night's Roasted Chicken)

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

16 oz container of sour cream

1 sleeve crushed Ritz crackers

1 stick butter, melted

1 Tbsp poppy seeds

Sauté onion in a tablespoon of butter.

In a bowl, mix chicken, soup, sour cream and onions.

Mix crackers and butter in a separate bowl.

Spread chicken mixture in a casserole dish or 9x13 in pan.

Spread cracker mixture on top, sprinkle with poppy seeds and bake at 350F for 30 minutes.

Serve over rice. 

Umm, yes, that is a bowl of fruit cocktail. Don't hate.

This recipe is featured in Meal Plan: Week of December 13-19.

Chicken and Rice Bake

When my son was born we received dinners from the generous ladies in our church and 4 of the 5 meals brought were variations of this dish! I'm not going to lie, we were a little bit relieved when the fifth and final meal was pizza, but this just shows how popular this dinner is. Here is my take on this comfort classic, enjoy!

Chicken and Rice Bake

printable recipe

1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can water
3/4 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 ground black pepper
2 Tbsp canola oil
2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 1 lb)
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 375F. In a 2 quart baking dish combine soup, water, rice, paprika and pepper.

Rinse and trim fat off chicken. Season with salt and pepper. I like to cut the chicken into serving size pieces. *Note: I only used one chicken breast in this picture as it was just my kids and I eating.

In a skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Place chicken in skillet.

Sear until slightly browned, a minute or two on each side.

Place chicken on top of rice mixture in dish.

Season with additional paprika and pepper. Bake covered at 375F for 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and rice is tender.

I usually find that the rice is a bit crunchy still on the edges while there is extra liquid in the middle, so when I pull it out of the oven I like to stir the rice up and replace the lid for an extra five minutes. The rice will soften and it will still be plenty hot for serving.

This recipe is featured in Meal Plan: November 15-21.

Simple yet satisfying.