Where have I been??

To say that I have been a complete SLACKER keeping up with my blog posts is an understatement- and I apologize for that!  I will say that slacking on the blog is partially because The Test Kitchen has ALSO been slacking!!  

It's funny how your priorities change so quickly after having a baby--- when I get home from work now, instead of coming up with some extravagant meal to eat for dinner I just want to hang with my boy and soak up every second of quality time instead of slaving away in the kitchen!   I am perfectly happy eating a bowl of Cheerios or Chips & Salsa for dinner these days... and my poor Hubs has had tostitos scoops with melted cheese and salsa or a PB&J more nights than I can count on all my fingers and toes in the past couple of months I hate to admit...

But wouldn't you much rather hang out with THIS BOY than cook in the kitchen??

In an attempt to "meal plan" better the Hubs built me a chalkboard in the kitchen-- and I have to say that the weeks we actually write our schedule and menu on it, we eat-- and we eat well!  The weeks we don't write on it-- we don't eat!  WOOPS!  

Lately- our 10 month old has been really enjoying finger foods-- so my time in the kitchen has been dedicated to dicing up every fruit and vegetable imaginable for him, making mini muffins, meatballs ect ect... for the little man-- and by the time he is done with his dinner, I am DONE standing in the kitchen-- thank you Dominos and Pizzettas for delivering to our house and thank you Rucker Johns for the dinner "pick up" lane!!!

I will say that all of the Freezer Cooking I did pre-baby has really helped out because we are down to about 4-5 meals now which is AMAZING they lasted that long!!
Here are the links to my past Freezer Cooking Posts:
Freezer Cooking 1
Freezer Cooking 2
Freezer Cooking 3
Freezer Cooking 4

So my question to YOU my readers-- now that you have hopefully accepted my "slacker" apology-- what recipes do you want to see on the blog?   Quick & Easy, Crockpot, Freezer Cooking, Baby Finger Foods???

Let me know-- and I will try to get back on the cooking bandwagon!

In the meantime-- I think I am going to do a post on the "Freezer Cooking/Prepping" I did for baby this past weekend-- stay tuned!!

xoxo
Melissa

White Chicken Parmesan

My family ate A LOT of Italian food growing up... maybe because my daddio is Italian we all really enjoyed pasta and carbs carbs carbs.   I can't exactly remember when my mom started making White Chicken Parmesan but it is definitely a favorite of mine and we have it at least twice a month!  

This is a "go to" recipe because I always have the ingredients on hand!!
 

White Chicken Parmesan:

Ingredients:

• 4 Thin Chicken Breasts (I usually butterfly two breasts) pound slightly if needed
• 3/4 Cup Sour Cream
• 1 Stick Butter
• 4-5 Garlic Cloves Pressed
• Shredded Parmesan Cheese (about 1/2 cup)
• Salt & Pepper

Method:

1. Preheat Oven to 375 degrees.
2. Line a 9 x 13 pan with foil or spray with cooking spray(for easy cleanup after!)
3. Wash, Trim & Slightly Pound Chicken Breasts.  Place chicken breasts in prepared pan.
4. Place stick of butter, pressed garlic and a couple shakes of salt & pepper into a microwave safe bowl.  Microwave approx 30-40 seconds or until butter is melted completely.
5. Add sour cream to butter mixture and mix well.
   
   
6. Coat BOTH SIDES of chicken with the sour cream/butter mixture evenly using all mixture.
7. Top chicken with shredded Parmesan cheese (you can use more or less than 1/2 cup - personal preference!)
8. Place chicken in oven uncovered for 30 minutes (or until done).
9. Serve Chicken with a side of pasta and add homemade marinara from freezer cooking 3 if you really want a YUMMY dish!

** Pampered Chef DEEP COVERED BAKER METHOD:

• Instead of placing chicken in a foil-lined pan, place it in your deep covered baker and microwave on HIGH 8-9 minutes or until chicken is done.