Parmesan Baked Chicken

Man, a lot has happened, and it's already been two months since I've posted! I have been cooking, I just haven't been blogging. But I did get married and things have been super crazy at work, so I'm just trying to do things as I can. Finally, back to it!

I do remember eating and making this dish. It was quite simple, and tasted delicious. Other than that, I pretty much have the recipe as is since I didn't make any other notes. Enjoy!

Parmesan Baked Chicken-adapted from 100 Best Chicken Recipes by Good Housekeeping
Total Time: 50 Minutes
Serves 4

• 1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 egg white
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 1/2 pounds chicken pieces

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside.

On a large plate, mix bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, cornmeal and pepper. In a pie plate, whisk egg white and salt.

Dip each piece of chicken into the egg mixture, then coat generously with the bread crumb mixture. Place chicken in prepared pan and continue with remaining pieces. Bake until chicken coating is crisp and juices run clear, about 35 minutes.

Mole Chicken

Whenever I go to a Mexican restaurant, for some reason I'm always a bit nervous to order anything with the mole sauce. I'm not sure why, but I think it's mostly because I've never tried it. Now that I've made it myself, I know it's not that bad! It has pretty good flavor and is really easy to put together.

Mole Chicken-adapted from 100 Best Chicken Recipes by Good Housekeeping
Total Time:  45 Minutes
Serves 4

• 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 4 ounce can chopped mild green chiles
• 1/2 small onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1/4 cup water

In a blender or food processor, puree tomatoes, chiles, onion, garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, salt and sugar until smooth.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium high heat until very hot. Add chicken and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer chicken pieces to a plate as they are browned.

Add prepared sauce, chocolate and water to the skillet. Cook, stirring, until chocolate melts. Return the chicken to the skillet and heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until chicken is cook, about 30 to 35 minutes. 

Pad Thai Chicken Salad

Thanks to this recipe, I think my new favorite is adding some noodles to a salad. I just gives it some extra oompf! The flavors of this were great and it was overall pretty easy to make.

Pad Thai Chicken Salad-adapted from Good Housekeeping
Total Time: 35 Minutes
Serves 6

• 7 ounces vermicelli rice noodles
• 1 pound chicken breast
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 cup mixed greens
• 1 green onion, diced
• 1 cups shredded carrots
• 5 radishes, sliced into half-moons
• 1/3 cup chopped roasted salted peanuts

Cook noodles according to package directions, then drain and rinse with cold water.

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Cook, over medium heat, in a large skillet, about 6 minutes, or until center is no longer pink. Let cool, then dice into bite size pieces

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together lime juice, fish sauce, brown sugar, canola oil, cider vinegar and salt. In a large bowl, combine all cooked ingredients and veggies. Then toss to coat with dressing.

Mahogany Roast Chicken

I've never made a whole chicken before. Actually, I've never made a whole any-type-of-bird before. And let me tell you, I was terrified! Just the part of the recipe that says, "Remove the giblets and neck from chicken"....

ummmmmm??

What if you do it wrong???

How do you know you got it all??

Well, let me tell you, it actually comes in a handy little bag that makes it nice and easy to know (who was the genius that thought of that)?! The only mistake I made...I tried to take it out the wrong end so it got a tad bit messy. But it worked out, so I'm no longer terrified of whole birds.

Anywho...back to the actual recipe. The glaze on this was absolutely wonderful, and with the exception of the time (more on that later), this was a very easy recipe. The chicken was juicy and cooked just right! The skin was crispy, while you couldn't get enough of it! As usual, I substituted seasoned salt & pepper for regular (which I noted below), however, you can always switch it back. Just a preference for me! This is one of my longer recipes to date, but if you have all day on Sunday, it doesn't take up a lot of your time. Just a lot of time being loved in the oven!

PS...LOOK AT THE GORGEOUS LOOKING CHICKEN!!!! (If you can't tell I'm a bit proud with my first bird experience)

Mahogany Roast Chicken-adapted from 100 Best Chicken Recipes by Good Housekeeping

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Serves 4

• 3 1/2 pound whole chicken
• 3/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoned pepper
• 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons dry red wine
• 1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove giblets and neck from chicken; reserve for another use or throw away. Rinse chicken inside and out with cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle seasoned salt and pepper on outside of chicken.

Place chicken, breast side up on rack in a small roasting pan. Roast chicken for 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare glaze: In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, vinegar and wine until sugar is dissolved.

After chicken has roasted for 45 minutes, brush with 1/3 of the glaze. Turn oven to 400 degrees and roast chicken, brushing with glaze twice over the next 30 minutes. Chicken is done when a meat thermometer reaches 175 degrees. Transfer to a platter and let stand 10 minutes before carving.

Meanwhile, remove rack from roasting pan. Add water to pan; heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring until browned bits are loosened. Serve chicken with pan juices.