A yummy recipe...

So I LOVE Italian food! I made this delicious Chicken Parmesan last night. It is so delicious now that I figured out how to make it right. I used to dredge it in Italian bread crumbs until I ordered it at Applebee's one time and they just fry the chicken breasts like they do their normal fried chicken. It was to die for so I decided to copy theirs and it is soooo much better! All you have to do is sprinkle some salt and pepper, dredge it in flour and fry it up. I use Lawry's Course Ground Garlic Salt With Parsley instead of plain salt and I fry it in canola oil because Brian doesn't like olive oil and canola is a bit healthier than vegetable oil. So then you place your fried chicken breasts on a cookie sheet. Spoon a little spaghetti sauce on top, sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and grated Parmesan. Place cookie sheet in the oven on broil for a few minutes until the cheese is a light golden brown like pizza cheese looks. Serve over a bed of pasta and sauce, any kind works fine. I used angel hair pasta. I promise if you try it this way you will LOVE it!!!

Chicken Scampi

Cut raw chicken breasts into strips or buy chicken tenders. Sprinkle with garlic salt. Melt butter in skillet, quite a bit of butter!!! Channel your inner Paula Deen for this one girls! This is pretty much your sauce. Saute the chicken in the butter. When cooked through, pour chicken and butter over hot, cooked, drained pasta of your choice. We use a pound of thin spaghetti or angel hair, usually. Then sprinkle with Parmesan and stir everything together really well. See why it is important to use a LOT of butter! Otherwise you just have tasteless noodles. Add more garlic salt at this point if it seems like it needs it. It's THAT easy!!!

I just love shrimp scampi but Brian hates shrimp and Matthew is allergic to fish. We have had a delicious Chicken Scampi at The Olive Garden that has a creamy delicious sauce. I decided to just make up my own version of a combination of both. It is so simple and really delicious!!! The best part is that EVERYONE in my family loves this recipe! Even, Matthew, a.k.a. the pickiest eater EVER!!! You can make this recipe as big or as little as you or your family need it to be. If you are making it for one just use 1 chicken breast and a little pasta and butter. If you are making it for a lot more people add more. It's very versatile

Pizza Pockets

If you have made the ham and cheese pockets I put on here a while back you will LOVE these pizza pockets!  So delicious and easy!!! I decided to try this variation the other night for Max's birthday dinner. They were a HUGE hit! This is what I did...

~Let Rhode's Rolls thaw and rise. You will need 2 rolls per pocket. I made 2 per person. (We had some left over and they were even delicious left over reheated in the microwave the next day. Just let them cool completely before closing the container or they will sweat and make the dough wet and slimy.)
~Squish 2 rolls together and flatten.
~Put a dollop of pizza sauce in the middle of pocket.
~Sprinkle with some mozzarella.
~Place desired toppings on cheese. I used cooked ground pork sausage, pepperoni, and canadian bacon.
~Close pocket by stretching dough around and pinch closed WELL. Place SEAM SIDE DOWN on cookie sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
~Spread SOFTENED butter (NOT melted, SOFTENED!!) on pocket. Sprinkle with garlic salt and parmesan cheese.
~ Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes or until dough is thoroughly cooked through.

The kids can even help make them if you have the patience for it that night. I did them myself that night but maybe I'll let them help another night. They LOVE helping make the ham and cheese pockets so I'm sure they will love making these!!!

Breadsticks by Stephanie H.

Mix & set aside:
1 1/2 cup warm water
1 tblsp. sugar
1 tblsp. yeast

Combine:
1 tsp. salt
1/3 cup sugar
3 1/2 cups flour
Add yeast mixture & let rise for 20 mintues. Bake @ 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

This recipe is fast, easy, yummy, and very versatile!!

I spread a coating of butter over the top before baking them and they are so yummy! You also can make them into rolls.

Italian variation:
Press into pan and spread butter over dough. Sprinkle with garlic salt and parmesan cheese. Bake as above.

Breakfast Variation:
Press into pan and spread butter over dough, then sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar. When it comes out of the oven and has cooled a bit drizzle with cream cheese glaze or frosting.

The Yummiest Lasagna I Ever Made

I'm not the best at taking pictures of food but you get the idea.

I've made this recipe so many times and it was always good. My husband really likes lasagna and he always likes this recipe but this time I changed it up a little and we both LOVED it!!! The recipe stayed the same I just changed up what I did so please be sure and read the INSTRUCTIONS very well if you want to give it a try.

LASAGNA
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
2 eggs
24 oz. large curd cottage cheese
1 tblsp. parsley1
lb. mozzarella
2 lbs. hamburger
lasagna noodles
3 lb. jar Prego Spaghetti Sauce

Brown the burger WITH A LITTLE ONION FLAKES sprinkled in (my kids hate onion and I was too lazy to wash the food chopper so I just used these and they never knew the difference) and some garlic salt. Add a 3 lb. jar of Prego Spaghetti Sauce to browned meat. LET SIMMER ABOUT 45 MINUTES to get the meat really tender and yummy! RINSE COTTAGE CHEESE IN COLD WATER(warm water will melt the cheese) AND DRAIN (won't be runny this way!). Mix parmesan cheese, eggs, cottage cheese, parsley, and mozzarella together in a bowl. Cook noodles to very al dente since they will continue to cook in oven. Spread a little sauce in bottom of pan. Layer noodles, cheese mixture, a little bit of sauce, noodles, A LITTLE MORE SAUCE,REMAINING NOODLES, remaining cheese mixture, remaining sauce, and lightly sprinkle some parmesan cheese over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for around 45 minutes to an hour. So tasty!!

GARLIC BREAD
Cut a loaf of french bread in half length wise and spread butter on each half. Sprinkle with garlic salt. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Broil until cheese and bread are golden brown. This is SO tasty! So easy too!

Chicken Fettucine Alfredo

1 lb. dried fettuccine
6 T. butter
1 shallot, minced (I just used plain onion and it was fine)
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup finely grated parmigiana-reggiano cheese (I just used grated Parmesan (not the Kraft stuff but grated like in shreds not powdery) because I could not find the other)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Fresh parsley, for garnish, optional

Cook the fettuccine until al dente. Drain, RESERVING 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water.

While pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a skillet. Add shallots and saute until tender. Add heavy cream and bring to a boil. Cook until sauce has reduced slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Return the pasta to the pot it was cooked in, set over medium high heat along with the reserved cooking liquid. Add the butter-cream mixture and half of the Parmesan and toss to combine thoroughly. Season with salt and paper to taste. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and garnish with parsley, if desired. Serve immediately.

I got this recipe from Emeril Live on the Food Network. He didn't add meat but Brian would never eat it without meat so I made it even more fattening! I sprinkled the chicken pieces with garlic salt and dredged them in flour and fried them in canola oil. Then I added them to the pasta when it was all mixed together. It is sooooo delicious! And the sauce is a breeze to make! The chicken took the longest but it is really an easy, yummy recipe. It isn't an every day kind of meal but it's nice to be able to make something yummy like that when you are in the mood for something really yummy but can't always afford to go to the Olive Garden! I'm sure it would be yummy to add some sauteed fresh mushrooms, too. Brian and the kids wouldn't eat it but I could always just put it on mine! :)

Hamburger Bun Pizzas

Hamburger Bun Pizzas

Now I know EVERYONE has had these before! My mom used to make them when we were little but I had forgotten about them until a few weeks ago and the kids LOVED them!!! Matthew and Max even ate two each. AMAZING!!! I let them make their own last night and they had so much fun doing it and the mess was minimal so it turned out to be fun for all of us. We won't be winning any magazine covers with the look of them but that's the fun part, right. Can you tell which ones Max made? To keep them apart we put 3 dabs of sauce on Matty's and 1 dab on mine. The others were self explanitory. I hope you'll all have fun making these really soon!

What you'll need:

hamburger buns
pizza sauce
mozzarella
whatever toppings your family loves

Bake at about 425 until cheese is cooked to your liking. How easy is that?!