Almost Lasagna

Oct 31, 2011 by lovelypantry

 

There are some days when I am willing to make Lasagna, and there are days when I wonder why go through all the layering. Don’t get me wrong, we love lasagna. It’s a beautiful thing. This is a recipe that happened one day when I started to make lasagna but never quite made it. You just never know how things will turn out  in my kitchen. This was a great meal!

 

 

Add colourful veggies. Serve and enjoy!

 

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Chicken Parmigiana

Sep 12, 2011 by lovelypantry

I love to make dishes that are tasty and family friendly. They can be as simple or as fussy as I want them to be, since in the end, my efforts will be worth it. I am steadily appreciating the flavour of tomatoes (that’s right, I don’t like them so much) and I’m slowly incorporating them into meals a few times per week. Chicken Parmigiana was something that always looked great but I remember when I tried it some time ago, there was just too much tomato sauce. I decided to try it my way.

I went looking for a sauce that I was comfortable with. I found a Pasta Sauce by a brand called Healthy Choice. There was a limited variety from their line but I went with the Garlic and Fine Herb. It’s the only one that I use now. I’m very happy with it.

 

Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Breadcrumbs

1 Egg

6 Chicken breast cutlets, seasoned with salt and pepper {If you use whole breasts, you’ll have to thinly slice it length-wise in half to get a nice cutlet.}

1/4 Cup Gratered Parmesan Cheese

1 Cup Tomato Sauce

1/2 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese (or if you’re using sliced Mozzarella cheese, 1 slice per piece of chicken)

Olive Oil for browning chicken

 

Directions:

Turn on your broiler to  high.

In a large non-stick skillet, heat a few tablespoons of Olive Oil.

In a shallow dish, add bread crumbs and parmesan cheese.

Lightly beat the egg and pour into another shallow dish.

Dip each chicken breast into the egg to coat, then dip into the breadcrumb/cheese mixture. Shake off any excess. Brown each piece of chicken and be sure to do it in batches.

In an oven proof casserole dish, pour in tomato sauce to coat the bottom evenly. Place each piece of cooked chicken into the dish, slightly overlapping.

Sprinkle mozzarella over the chicken (or layer slices across the top of the chicken).

Place in your oven broiler at about 4 inches from the heat source for about 5-8 minutes. Allow the cheese to brown nicely. Serve with Pasta and Salad.

I enjoy this every time I cook it. Hopefully you will too!

 

Recipe adapted from Everyday Food.

 

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Sacchettini & Spinach

Aug 1, 2011 by lovelypantry

Oh how I wish I could say that I made this from scratch. However, I`m prone to pick up frozen pasta occasionally. There are so many to choose from and the varieties are so visually appealing. On a recent trip to the supermarket, I picked up a packet of Chicken and Bacon Sacchettini. These little pasta are beautiful and they taste great too. I simply followed the cooking instructions on the packet and served it over a bed of steamed spinach. The final touch was just a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. Now that`s what I call an easy mid-week meal! Sensible portions with well planned sides, wont break the scale.

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Braised Chicken in Butternut Squash Sauce

May 24, 2011 by lovelypantry

The original recipe used Bell Pepper but I used Butternut Squash because that’s what I had in my pantry at the time. Fair trade, I’d say. This is a favourite recipe of mine.

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1-2 Tbsp Cornstarch

2 1/2 Lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 Cup roughly diced onion

3/4 Cup diced celery

1 Butternut Squash, diced

2 Cloves garlic

2 Cups chicken stock

1 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme

2 Bay leaves

Coarse salt and ground black pepper – to taste

2 Tbsp cold, unsalted butter

 

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium high heat.

Toss chicken thighs in cornstarch, just to coat, shaking off excess. Add chicken thighs to pot (in batches) and sear on both sides until brown (3 minutes per side). Set aside.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Add onion and celery, sauteing until translucent (approximately 5 minutes). Add squash and garlic and saute 2 minutes.

Add stock, thyme, bay leaves and bring to a simmer.

Return chicken thighs to the pot. Cover and simmer gently for 45 minutes to an hour, until chicken is cooked through and the squash is tender.

Remove chicken thighs and bay leaves and puree sauce until smooth with an immersion blender. Strain. Return sauce and chicken to the pot and bring to just below a simmer. Season and stir in butter to enrich the sauce, if desired.

Serve over rice or whole wheat spaghetti.

Enjoy!

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