Oven Fried Chicken

3/4 cup butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup minced parsley
chicken pieces
2 cups dry bread crumbs
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp. pepper

Melt butter with garlic in it. Combine bread crumbs, pepper, cheese and parsley. Dip chicken pieces in butter, then in crumb mixture. Lay in a shallow baking pan on a rack until parially frozen. Place in labeled freezer bag. When ready to prepare, place again in shallow baking pan. Do not overlap. Bake, uncovered at 350 for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Mom's Pizza Dough

2 cups warm water

1 tbsp. active dry yeast
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. salt
5-6 cups flour

Put 2 cups warm water (as warm as comes from tap), sugar, salt and 2 1/2 cups flour in mixing bowl. Mix well. Add yeast. Mix well. Add the rest of the flour a little at a time until the dough leaves the sides of the bowl. Knead for 8 minutes. Roll onto a pan which has been sprayed iwth Pam and sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover with sauce and toppings of choice. Bake at 350 to 375 for approximately 20 minutes.

By the way, I (Jessica) have made this beforehand and stuck it in a ziplock bag in the fridge, then used it a few days later and it worked beautifully.

Also, this was actually a French Bread recipe, so if you want to make that instead of pizza dough, then let it raise once until double in bulk, punch it down, shape it for your French bread, and let it raise again until double in bulk before baking. Enjoy!

Chicken Noodle Soup

I made this soup for Bekah when she was sick, and both of our families love it! Here's the recipe, as requested! Also, it freezes well, so you can make a lot and freeze leftovers.

2 tsp. butter
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup chopped carrot
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 small potato, diced
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning (see below)
4 (14 oz) cans chicken broth
2 tsp. chicken bouillon
4 ounces egg noodles
2 cups cooked and shredded chicken
parsley

Melt the butter in a large pot.  Saute the celery, carrot and onion for 2 minutes. Add potato, thyme, poultry seasoning, chicken broth and bouillon. Bring to a boil. Add the noodles and chicken and cook on low for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley.

Ok, so for my notes: I don't have poultry seasoning, and so add my own spices as an alternative. The spices are what makes it so good. I found a recipe for poultry seasoning, and never actually make it but just add some of each of the spices that are included to taste. I also sometimes have added a little more bouillon or broth depending on how the batch is looking and tasting as well. Here is the recipe I sort of follow to replace the poultry seasoning, which makes the soup so tasty:

Poultry seasoning:
2 tsp. ground sage
1 1/2 tsp. ground thyme
1 tsp. ground marjoram
3/4 tsp. ground rosemary (I LOVE the rosemary!)
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. finely ground black pepper

BBQ Chicken Cobb Salad

I crave this one, pregnant or not.  So good!  This recipe is very forgiving if you don't have all the ingredients it calls for.  Yummy, yummy!

Barbecue Chicken Cobb Salad

12 cups romaine lettuce

8-12 ounces grilled barbecue chicken

8 ounces bacon, cooked and crumbled

2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 large avocado, pitted and diced

3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and diced

1/3 cup sliced green onions

½ cup shredded cheddar cheese

Zesty Blue Cheese Dressing and Dip

1 cup mayonnaise (do not use Miracle Whip; however, light mayonnaise is a good alternative)

½ tsp kosher salt

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tsp minced garlic (1-2 cloves)

½ cup crumbled blue cheese

1-2 Tbsp milk or buttermilk, optional

Mix it all together!!!

Fiesta Salad

Another salad staple at our house.

Fiesta Salad

Dressing:

3 jalapeno peppers, seeded

¼ cup white wine vinegar

1 clove garlic, minced

1teaspoon salt

2/3 cup olive oil

½ cup fresh cilantro

In a blender or food processor, puree the jalapenos with vinegar, garlic and salt.  Continue processing and slowly add oil, blending until emulsified.  Add cilantro and blend until finely chopped.

1 head iceberg lettuce, thinly sliced

1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 ½ cups chopped tomatoes

1 cup corn kernels (can use frozen)

½ cup chopped green pepper

1 cup shredded Monterey jack cheese

1 ripe avocado, sliced

4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

Combine salad ingredients, toss with dressing and serve.

ADD SHREDDED CHICKEN FOR A MAIN COURSE

Chinese Chicken Wonton Salad

Salads were the answer to all my pregnancy cravings this time around.  We started making this salad in January, and it lasted all summer long.  Even the kiddos looooove it.  Enjoy!

Chinese Chicken Wonton Salad

3 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts

1 head iceberg lettuce, torn into pieces

1 romaine heard torn into pieces

1 (11 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained

1 (8 ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained (we omit)

1 (4 ounce) package slivered almonds, toasted (we don’t toast)

¼ cup sesame seeds, toasted (we buy the pre-toasted kind)

1 bunch green onions

A few generous handfuls of Extra Crispy Chinese Noodles (the big fat ones)

Dressing:

¼ cup sugar

1tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

¼ cups white wine vinegar

½ cup vegetable oil

Mix together well.

Boil chicken breasts until cooked and slice into small pieces.  In a large salad bowl, mix together chicken and Chinese Noodles with lettuce, oranges, water chestnuts, almonds, green onions and sesame seeds.  Toss with dressing and serve.