Garlic Lemon Chicken

Garlic Lemon Chicken
from: See Jane Cook


Ingredients:

8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
3 cups panko breadcrumbs
6 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 to 4 tablespoons butter
5 to 6 garlic cloves, minced
Lemon sauce
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
¼ cup cornstarch
Fresh basil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Place chicken pieces between wax paper, flatten with a mallet. Place flour in a shallow bowl. Place eggs in a separate bowl and beat until combined. In a third bowl, add breadcrumbs. Coat both sides of chicken with flour, shake off excess. Dip in egg and coat with breadcrumbs. Place on a piece of wax paper. Repeat with remaining pieces.

Melt butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic. Place coated chicken pieces in pan (you may have to do this in batches). Cook until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Turn and cook another 4 to 5 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Remove from pan. Cover and keep warm.

For lemon sauce, combine broth, lemon juice and butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Dissolve cornstarch in a small amount of cold water until smooth. Gradually pour cornstarch into hot liquid, stirring until it boils. Cook one minute until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in fresh basil. Season with salt and pepper.

To serve, place one chicken breast on each plate. Top with lemon sauce.

****
Notes:  I used about 16 chicken tenders.  I didn't have fresh garlic so I used garlic powder, which was totally fine.  Oh, and I didn't use basil.  My kids tend to hate green things in sauces, generally speaking, so I opted out of using the basil.  And it was fine!

Verdict:  Holy Garlic Lemon Chicken!!!!  Delicious!!!!  Oh man... so very, very good!!!  And it LOOKED awesome too!  Definitely something to serve to company!  Everyone ate it and loved it!!  I served it over rice and everyone cleared their plate!

Short Rib Ragu

Short Rib Ragu
serves 6

2 tsp vegetable oil
3 lbs. boneless short ribs, cut into 3-inch squares
salt and ground pepper
1 medium onion, diced small
1 large carrot, sliced
1 can (28 ounces) whole peeled tomatoes
2 sprigs oregano or rosemary

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high.  Season short ribs with salt and pepper.  In batches, cook until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes total.  Transfer ribs to a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker.  Pour off all but 1 tsp fat from skillet, and add onion and carrot.  Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring, until vegetables are soft, 3 minutes.  Add 1/2 cup juice from tomatoes, stirring and scraping up any browned bits from skillet with a wooden spoon.

Transfer vegetables and liquid to slow cooker and add tomatoes, breaking them up as you go.  Add herb sprigs; season to taste with salt and pepper.  Cover and cook on high until meat is fork-tender, 6 hours.

With a slotted spoon, remove herb sprigs and transfer meat to a cutting board.  With a ladle skim fat from cooking liquid (about 1 1/4 cups).  With two forks, shred meat and return to cooking liquid.  Serve immediately.

***
Notes:  I used rosemary... next time I'll use oregano.  And we served it over egg noodles.

Verdict:  BORING.  Seriously, garlic would have probably enhanced this significantly!  Maybe more salt, and more pepper, too?  The meat was very, very tender... and I think we will enjoy it with a little more spice!

Photography:  I need to take a photo class... ugh!

Baked Rigatoni with Roasted Vegetables

Disgusting picture...  I should delete it.  But, I'm not.  Keeps me humble! 

Baked Rigatoni with Roasted Vegetables

2 small zucchini
2 small summer squash
1 medium onion
1 green or red pepper
6 Roma tomatoes (or small regular tomatoes)
5-6 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
4 tsp dried Italian herb mix
2 garlic clove, minced
1 pound rigatoni pasta
3 cups marinara sauce (use your favorite store-bought)
2 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Prepare veggies (except garlic) by cutting into 1-inch cubes. Place on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle salt, pepper and Italian herbs and toss to coat all veggies. Roast vegetables until tender (about 15 minutes). Remove from oven, add minced garlic clove and lightly toss veggies. Set aside.

Reduce oven heat to 375 degrees.

Boil pasta in a large pot of salted water for about 8 minutes, until almost done. Don't fully cook pasta because it will finish softening when the dish is baked in the oven later. Drain pasta and return to large pot. Add roasted vegetables, marinara sauce, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Gently mix until everything is combined. Taste to see if it needs a bit more salt or pepper for your taste.

Pour mixture into a baking dish. Top with the rest of the cheeses. Bake for 20-30 minutes until cheese is melted and pasta is warmed through.

***
Notes: I made this exactly as written!  No changes, no omissions, no additions.

Verdict:  Yummy!!  Everyone loved it.  Most of my kids picked out the red pepper, so I will most likely leave that out next time.  But, I will definitely make this again.  I liked the roasted vegetables to what is a typical baked ziti!