Saucy Parmesan Chicken

This chicken is SO quick and easy to make. It's another Kraft recipe. We paired the chicken with some Vietnamese noodles, topped with garlic butter, oregano and crushed red pepper. Delicious!

Ingredients

• 2 boneless chicken breasts
• 1/4 Italian dressing (I only had Balsamic vinaigrette and it worked out wonderfully)
• 1/4 Grated Parmesan cheese (I used Asiago)

Directions

1. Place all ingredients in large resealable plastic bag or container. Turn bag/container several times to evenly coat chicken with dressing and cheese. Lay flat so chicken does not overlap.

2. Refrigerate chicken 30 min to marinate. Preheat oven to 425. Remove chicken from marinade; discard bag and excess marinade (I poured it over the chicken before baking, to add extra juices). Arrange chicken on foil-covered baking sheet. Bake 20 min or until cooked through.

Easy Italian Stew

Another Kraft recipe. This is definitely a hearty and warming dish for those cold or dreary nights. It's full of flavor and would work well with some red wine and crusty bread. This makes about 5 servings, depending on how hungry you are.

Ingredients

• 2 T Italian Dressing
• 1 lb Italian Sausage
• 2 cans chicken broth (I only had 1, and it was plenty. 2 would've been too runny)
  
• onions, peppers, or other stir-fry vegetables (I used peppers, onion and snap peas)
  
• 1 can cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 cup macaroni, uncooked
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese (I only had Asiago and it complemented the dish quite nicely)
  

Directions

1. Heat dressing in large saucepan on medium heat. Add sausage; cook 8-10 min or until cooked through, stirring occasionally to break sausage into small pieces.

2. Add broth, stir-fry vegetables, beans and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Stir in macaroni. Reduce heat to medium; simmer 8-10 min or until macaroni is tender, stirring occasionally.

3. Ladle into 8 serving bowls and top with cheese.

Saucy Tomato and Pepper Steak Fajitas

This is a Kraft recipe for the steak, and we just served it in fajita wraps instead of on a plate. If you aren't doing fajitas, don't slice the beef. Just top beef medallions with the vegetable mixture.

Ingredients

• 1 tsp each chili powder and ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1.5 lb sirloin stead
• 1/3 cup balsamic vinaigrette dressing
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 1/2 each red and green pepper, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1/2 cup shredded Mexican cheese (we omitted the cheese)

Directions

1. Preheat broiler. Mix chili powder, cumin and cayenne; rub over both sides of steak. Place on rack of broiler pan.

2. Broil 4-5 inches from heat for 8 to 10 minutes on each side, or to medium doneness (150 degrees). Meanwhile, heat dressing in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add onions; cook and stir 3 min. Add peppers and garlic; cook 5 min or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Add tomatoes; stir. Cook 2-3 minutes or until heated through.

3. Cut steak across grain into slices. Place in center of fajita shell and top with vegetables and cheese.

Menu - 9/15 to 9/20

This week's menus all come from the Kraft Food magazine I get for free in the mail.

Saturday, 9/15

• Easy Lemon Chicken

Sunday, 9/16

• Sushi with Carrie & Dave

Monday, 9/17

• Steak Fajitas

Tuesday, 9/18

• Easy Italian Stew

Wednesday, 9/19

• Tomato Baked Chicken

Thursday, 9/20

• Saucy Parmesan Chicken
  

Easy Lemon Chicken

This is originally a Kraft Foods recipe that I clipped from somewhere. It's quite tasty, not too lemony, and overall, a nice change from our typical chicken dishes.

Make sure you use GELATIN and not PUDDING. I made the mistake of using lemon flavored pudding and the sauce was REALLY starchy and thick. It tasted ok, but the texture was bad. Really bad. Don't make the same error I made!

I also added some broccoli I had laying around -- I think any veggies would work well in this dish, so use whatever you've got in your fridge.

Ingredients

• 1 T oil
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 cups snap or snow peas
• 1/2 small red pepper, cut in thin strips
• 3/4 package (4-serving size) lemon flavored gelatin
• 1 T cornstarch
• 1/3 cup chicken broth
• 1.5 T Italian dressing
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Directions

1. Heat oil in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 4 min or until cooked through, stirring occasionally. Add peas and peppers; cook and stir 2 min.

2. Mix dry gelatin mix and cornstarch in small bowl. Add broth, dressing and garlic; stir until gelatin is dissolved. Add to skillet. Reduce heat to medium; cook 3 min or until sauce is thickened, stirring frequently.

3. Serve over hot cooked rice, if desired.

Chicken Gyros

Ever since our favorite Greek restaurant was bought out by a new and craptacular owner, we've been on the hunt for some good Greek food. I've never made gyros before, and though these aren't the traditional beef and lamb ones, they are quite tasty and really simple to make. View the original recipe, here.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 teaspoon garlic, minced- divided use
• 1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch strips
• 1/2 cup cucumbers, chopped
• 1/3 cup nonfat yogurt, plain or low-fat yogurt
• 1/4 teaspoon dill weed
• 2 gyro bread or pita bread
• 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced

Directions

1. Combine lemon juice, oil, 1/2 t of the garlic, mustard and oregano in a gallon zip top plastic bag.

2. Add chicken and seal bag.

3. Turn bag and gently move chicken around to distribute marinade evenly.

4. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.

5. In a small bowl combine cucumber, yogurt, dill and remaining garlic. Cover and refrigerate until serving. (NOTE: Cucumbers have a lot of moisture in them so if you want your sauce to be less runny really drain them well and squeeze the water out if you want.). I drained my cucumbers between some paper towels to get all the water out.

6. Drain chicken, discarding marinade.

7. In a large nonstick skillet saute the chicken for 7-8 minutes or until juices run clear.

8. Spoon half the chicken on each pita and top with cucumber mixture and sliced onion.

9. Lettuce and tomato may be added if you like.

10. Fold in half and enjoy. We served these with a side salad of lettuce, tomato, onion and mozzarella, drizzled with a light vinaigrette.

Menu - 9/2 to 9/4

Since we're leaving for Hawaii on Wednesday, I only had to menu plan for 3 nights! Only 1 new recipe this week though.

Sunday

• Nathan's Hot dogs, broccoli salad, and kraut. We were supposed to bonfire, but couldn't find a pit on the beach b/c of the holiday.

Monday

• Chicken gyros with salad

Tuesday

• Mozzarella stuffed meatballs, penne pasta and garlic bread.

The rest of the week will be filled with ahi poke, fresh sushi, and other fine Hawaiian delights! Mahalo!