Wednesday, March 4, 2009
I’ve had this recipe bookmarked for a while, and for some reason kept putting off making it. I’m glad I finally got around to it though. It’s really simple, and very delicious. For mine, I followed the instructions and only breaded one side, but I still had extra breading left, so for The Boy’s I went ahead and breaded both sides of his chicken. This meal was flavorful, and I highly recommend it if you’re craving an Italian dish, but want to keep it healthy.
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Light Chicken Parmesan
Ingredients:
2 slices whole-wheat sandwich bread, torn into pieces
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon olive oil
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 large egg white
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (6 to 8 ounces each)
3/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella (3 ounces)
1 can (28 ounces) whole peeled tomatoes in puree
1 garlic clove, minced
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees, with rack in upper third. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil; set aside. In a food processor (I used the Magic Bullet Blender), place bread, Parmesan, oil, and a pinch each salt and pepper. Pulse until coarse crumbs form; transfer to a shallow bowl. Place flour in a second shallow bowl; season with salt and pepper. Place egg white in a third shallow bowl, and beat with a fork until frothy.
Dip top side of a chicken breast in flour, shaking off excess. Dip same side in egg white, letting excess drip off, then in breadcrumbs, pressing to adhere. (Do not bread other side.) Repeat with remaining chicken and transfer, breaded side up, to prepared baking sheet. Bake until breadcrumbs are crisp and browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven; sprinkle with mozzarella. Continue baking until chicken is opaque throughout and cheese is lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, place tomatoes, breaking them up with your fingers. Add garlic; season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until sauce has thickened, 6 to 8 minutes. Serve chicken with a generous amount of tomato sauce.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
I’ve been dying to make meringues for quite a while, I just never got around to it. My grandmother makes them, usually at Christmas time, and she often puts chocolate chips in hers. My good friend at work, Jamie, invited me and two other girlfriends over to her house to eat and watch movies. We are all trying to eat healthier so she created a menu of yummy but healthy foods. She was the consummate host, and served fruit with dip, caprese salad, and quiche. I figured this would be a great opportunity to finally get around to making meringues, so we could all still enjoy a cookie, but it would be really low in calories!
Not too long ago, I saw meringues dipped in chocolate on Beantown Baker’s blog, and I was inspired. However, I didn’t want raspberry meringues, so I searched until I found this Cooking Light recipe for Double Vanilla Meringues. I think I have some kind of mental disconnect, and I often rename recipes to my liking. For some reason I called these Vanilla Bean Meringues. No matter what you call them, they were delicious, and very easy to prepare. If you look closely you can see the little flecks of the vanilla bean in the meringues!
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Vanilla Bean Meringues (or Double Vanilla Meringues)
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar, divided
1 vanilla bean
3 large egg whites (at room temperature)
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325°.
Place 1/4 cup sugar in a small bowl. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean, and add seeds to sugar; discard bean. Stir well with a whisk.
Beat egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt at high speed of a mixer until foamy. Gradually add 3/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating mixture until stiff peaks form. Gradually add vanilla bean mixture and extract; beat until just combined. (Stiff peaks will take on the consistency of marshmallow cream.)
Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper; secure to baking sheet with masking tape. Drop batter by level tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet. Bake at 325° for 35 minutes or until crisp. Cool on pan on a wire rack. Repeat procedure with remaining batter, reusing parchment paper. Store in an airtight container.
Calories: 28; Fat: 0.0g; Protein: 0.3g; Carbohydrate: 6.7g
To dip them in chocolate I melted 60% Cacao Ghiradelli chocolate and just dipped the bottoms of the meringues. I'm not sure how Beantown Baker let her chocolate dipped meringues cool, but I have a stack of styrofoam egg cartons I've been collecting until I one day remember to actually recycle them, so I just placed the meringue upside-down in the empty egg carton to dry! It worked pretty well, and I was proud of my ingenuity.
Monday, March 2, 2009
I am going to take a moment to whine about wine. See, in many civilized parts of the country, you can purchase wine in a grocery store. But not here in TN. We finally got our Trader Joe’s but we can’t get Two Buck Chuck. When shopping at a Whole Foods in Atlanta, (the same one Alton Brown shops at!) I was loving all the different types of wine I saw. But that’s something I can’t experience at our Whole Foods here in Nashville. If you are a Tennessean who cares about this issue, check out Red White and Food for more info.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
It’s amazing how something as simple as cutting into cabbage can make you realize how great life is. How amazing God is. Even if you’re not religious, is it possible to look at something as beautiful as this red cabbage and not be amazed?
I haven’t disappeared. I haven’t blogged in a while, but my life has really begun a new adventure. My schedule at work has completely changed, and I’ve taken on new responsibility, and this brought me to a great career opportunity. Right now, life is good. I have MANY blog updates to come so stay tuned. And now, to take a feature I really enjoy in one of the blog’s I read (she often asks a question at the end of her post, and I really like this), let me ask you a question.
Is there anything in your life, that is so simple, yet totally eye-opening? For me, it was this beautiful cabbage. It opened my eyes to how simple, yet complex, and amazing life is.
**Per request, here’s the coleslaw I made with the red cabbage. I also used it in salads. I just never took a picture of the coleslaw, there’s no way I could of gotten it to photograph well, but it was mighty delicious! I saw the recipe on Tastespotting**
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