Cheezy Chicken Parmesan with Zucchini "Pasta"

Serves 4

*Recipe taken from "Cook Yourself Thin"

For the tomato sauce and zucchini pappardelle
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/4 red onion, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
Salt
1 28-ounce can peeled plum tomatoes, preferably San Marzano, in juice, mashed (I used Roundy's Brand From Rainbow Foods)
1 sprig fresh basil (I used dry)
Pepper
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves (I used dry)
4 zucchini, thinly sliced

For the chicken
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus 2 tablespoons extra for serving
1/4 cup dried whole-wheat or white bread crumbs (I used corn flake crumbs)
1 large egg white, lightly beaten with a fork
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts split in half to make 6–8 large, thin cutlets
Pepper
4 teaspoons olive oil, plus 2 teaspoons extra for serving
1/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese (I skipped this, we aren't fans of it)

1. For the sauce, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion, garlic and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring, 1 minute. Cover, reduce heat to very low and cook until vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. (Check a few times during cooking; if vegetables begin to brown, add 2 teaspoons water and stir.) Add the tomatoes with juice, basil and another 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer, cover and simmer gently 5 minutes. Then simmer very gently, partially covered, until thickened, about 20 minutes. Season with 1/8 teaspoon pepper.

2. Meanwhile, using a mandoline or vegetable peeler, slice the zucchini lengthwise into 1/8-inch-thick long pappardelle-like strips, turning the zucchini and slicing on 4 sides only until you see the center seeds. Discard the centers.

3. Remove the tomato sauce to a bowl with a rubber spatula; no need to clean the skillet. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add the zucchini and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cover and cook until wilted, tossing often with tongs for even cooking, 8 to 10 minutes. Return the tomato sauce to the pan, add 1 tablespoon of the parsley, and season with 1/8 teaspoon pepper; cover and set aside.

4. On a plate, combine the bread crumbs, 1/4 cup grated Parmesan and the remaining chopped parsley. Place the egg white on a second plate. Sprinkle chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Dip the chicken into the egg whites, and then into the bread crumb mixture to coat completely; set aside on a large plate or platter.

5. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in each of two nonstick 10-inch skillets over medium-high heat. Add half of the chicken to each skillet and cook until lightly browned on one side, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip, and cook until chicken is firm, and lightly browned on the other side, 1 to 3 more minutes.

6. To serve, re-warm the zucchini in the tomato sauce over medium heat. Use tongs to make a “twist” of zucchini pappardelle on each of 4 plates. Lean chicken cutlets against the side of zucchini. Scoop 1 tablespoon ricotta onto each plate, and spoon remaining tomato sauce on top of the chicken. To garnish each plate, drizzle chicken with 1/2 teaspoon olive oil, and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon Parmesan.

Side Note: We have made this a few times so far and one time instead of cutting the chicken into cutlets, we hollowed them out and stuffed them with mozzarella cheese. Turned out to be delicious.

American Lasagna

Recipe from Allrecipes.com
makes: 4 servings
prep time: 30 mins
cook time: 1 hour 30 mins

INGREDIENTS

• 3/4 pound lean ground beef
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoons brown sugar
• 3/4 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 (29 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 6 dry lasagna noodles
• 1 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoons dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. In a skillet over medium heat, brown ground beef, onion and garlic; drain fat. Mix in basil, oregano, brown sugar, 3/4 teaspoons salt, diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add lasagna noodles, and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, or until al dente; drain. Lay noodles flat on towels, and blot dry.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, parsley and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
4. Layer 1/3 of the lasagna noodles in the bottom of a 9x9 inch square baking dish. Cover noodles with 1/2 ricotta mixture, 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese and 1/3 of the sauce. Repeat. Top with remaining noodles and sauce. Sprinkle additional Parmesan cheese over the top.
5. Bake in the preheated oven about 25 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

I had some fresh parsley on hand, so i topped mine with that, and served with some frozen cheesy garlic bread.

Honey Nut Chicken and Oven-Baked Fries

There is a restaurant here in Louisville called the Hall of Fame Cafe which has the best walnut crusted chicken - its in their Honey Nut Chicken Salad and its what I order every single time we eat there. Their chicken is fried so I wanted to try to make a healthier version. (And I really wanted fries to go with it.)

Honey Nut Chicken
(Serves 2-3)

1 package of chicken breasts
3/4 cup of finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup of AP flour
1 egg
1 T spicy mustard
1 T honey
S&P

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a baking pan by spraying with cooking spray. Butterfly the chicken breasts and pound thin. Combine egg, mustard, honey, S&P and whisk together in a shallow bowl. Combine flour, walnuts, S&P on a plate. Dip each piece of chicken into the egg mixture, then the flour mixture, then transfer to the baking pan. Bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Oven-Baked Fries
(Serves 2 -3)

2 Russet potatoes
2 tsp olive oil
Lawry's seasoning salt
Garlic

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Clean 2 large potatoes. Cut each potato into thin strips. Soak the fries in a bowl of hot water for approximately 20 minutes. Mix with olive oil and spices and spread onto a baking pan lined with foil in a single layer. Cook for approximately 20 minutes, turning about half way through.

Jen's Spicy Tex-Mex Chili

(Serves at least 8)

2 cans Ro-tel Original
2 cans diced tomatoes with garlic and onion
2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 large white onion, diced
1 large green pepper, diced
1 cup frozen sweet corn
1 pound ground turkey or beef
1-3 jalepenos, seeded and diced
1/4 cup tomato paste
3 T ground cumin
3 T chili pepper
2 T garlic powder
2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
Fritos for serving

In a large crockpot add all the tomatos and vegetables. Brown the meat in a large skillet, add 1 T each of cumin, chili pepper and garlic, when cooked through add to the crock pot. Add as many jalepenos and cayenne pepper as desired to adjust the spice to your tastes. Add tomato paste to thicken the sauce. Add remaining spices as desired. Cook for at least 4 hours on low (I usually put the ingredients in late Friday night to serve for lunch while tailgating on Saturday.) Just before serving add cheddar cheese and stir gently as it starts to melt. I always serve it over Fritos with sour cream, raw onion, and more shredded cheese available for topping.

Mom's Spaghetti

I'm sure everyone has their own spaghetti recipe that they love. My mom has been making this spaghetti all my life and it's my all time favorite spaghetti...I prefer it over any other meat sauce I've tried. Not to mention, it is definitely my "go-to" recipe because it is so easy and always good.

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground beef
1 small onion (diced) or frozen diced white onion
1 can of diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, & oregano seasoning*
1 can of tomato paste with basil, garlic, & oregano seasoning*
1 jar of red spaghetti sauce (I ALWAYS use Ragu but I vary the flavors...sometimes Parmesan and Romano...sometimes 6 cheese...sometimes Traditional)
1 box of pasta noodles (I use whole wheat noodles)
Grated parmesan cheese (optional)

*If you can't find diced tomatoes and/or tomato paste with basil, garlic, & oregano seasoning, that's fine...just get the regular kind.

Directions:

In a large pan, simmer diced onions in 1-2 T of olive oil on medium heat. As onions become translucent, add ground beef and cook until completely browned. Drain fat and water off of the beef/onion mixture and return to stove. Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and spaghetti sauce to beef/onion mixture, and stir well to combine all the ingredients. Continue simmering to heat all the ingredients, but turn the eye down some.

While preparing the sauce, cook pasta noodles according to directions.

After the noodles are cooked, I always add noodles to my pasta sauce directly and mix everything together. I find that it keeps better this way in the fridge and the freezer. I know some people prefer to add sauce to their noodles when they eat the spaghetti, so it's all a matter of preference.

Top with grated parmesan cheese and serve!