Planet Hollywood's Chicken Crunch

Whenever I think of this recipe, I think of high school. Whenever my friends and I would go to the Mall of America we would go to Planet Hollywood (it is sadly no longer there) and all of us would get the chicken! This copy-cat recipe is not the same as the good thing, but I still really like it!  I also made Planet Hollywood's Creole Mustard Sauce to go with it. I don't have a deep fryer so I used a skillet instead and things turned out just fine! I used chicken breasts and cut them in half to make 'tenders'. This recipe is from the Cooking with Kare cookbook.

Planet Hollywood's Chicken Crunch

•  2 1/2 cups captain crunch cereal
• 2 cups corn flakes
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoon granulated onion
• 2 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
• Vegetable oil for frying

Coarsely grind or crush the cereal and place in a shallow dish. In another dish combine flour, onion, garlic and pepper; mix well. In medium bowl beat eggs with milk until well blended. Coat chicken with flour. Dip into egg mixture and then into cereal mixture. Place on waxed paper. Heat oil in deep fat fryer to 325 degrees. Fry several pieces of coated chicken at a time, turning after 3 minutes. Keep warm in low oven until all chicken is fried.

Mustard-Marinated Steak

I was slightly worried about making this recipe. I'm not a huge mustard or Italian fan, but thought I would give it a whirl anyway. I was awesomely surprised! The marinade is super easy and cheap, and it just gives the steak even more flavor. Again, I don't have a grill, so made it on a flat top but it still turned out delicious! The original recipe from Better Homes & Gardens calls for yam fries, which I did not make (I made mashed potatoes instead).

Mustard-Marinated Steak
Marinate: 2 hours
Cook time: 17 minutes

• 1 1/4-1 1/2 pound beef flank steak
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup bottled Italian salad dressing
• 1/2 cup yellow mustard

Trim fat from steak. Rub pepper into steak. Place steak in a resealable plastic bag set in a shallow dish.

For marinade, in a small bowl stir together Italian dressing and mustard. Pour marinade over steak; seal bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 2-24 hours, turning bag occasionally. Drain steak, reserving marinade.

Grill steak to medium doneness, turning and brushing once with marinade half-way through grilling.

French Tarragon Burgers

I loved this recipe! The mayo spread is extremely tasty! I forgot I was only going to make half of the recipe and made the normal amount of the mayo-so now I think I'm going to use it for sandwiches as well! I don't have a grill so I just made the burgers on a stove top and they were still amazing!

I used ground turkey instead of beef since it was what I had on hand. And the buns are just bread because the french bread I bought got old and hard, but it still ended up delicious! I also omitted the spring mix salad-although I think it can only add to the dish!

French Tarragon Burgers
 Serves 6
Total Time: 30 minutes

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 3 teaspoons chopped shallot, divided
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon or 3/4 teaspoon dried tarragon
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 loaves (1 pound and 20 inches each) unsliced French bread
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 pounds ground beef
• 4 cups spring mix salad greens

 In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, 1 teaspoon shallot, tarragon and garlic; cover and refrigerate.

Meanwhile, cut one loaf of bread into five 4-in. pieces. Cut one 4-in. piece from the second loaf; set aside remaining bread for another use. Cut bread pieces in half horizontally; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the salt, pepper and remaining shallot. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into six patties.

Grill burgers, covered, over medium heat for 6-8 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 160° and juices run clear.

Grill bread, cut side down, for 1-2 minutes or until toasted. Spread with mayonnaise mixture. Layer bread bottoms with greens and burgers. Replace tops.

Ravioli Skillet Lasagna

I absolutely LOVED this dish! It is something that you can basically have on hand at anytime and it super easy and quick to make!  I did end up cooking it a little longer to let the ricotta set a little more, but it still took me less than 30 minutes from start to finish!

Ravioli Skillet Lasagna

• 2 cups bottled light chunky-style pasta sauce
• 1/3 cup water
• 9-ounces packaged refrigerated or frozen cheese or meat lasagna
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 15 ounce carton ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
• 10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained

In a 10-inch skillet combine pasta sauce and water. Bring to boiling. Stir in the ravioli. Cook, covered, over medium heat about 5 minutes or until ravioli are nearly tender, stirring once to prevent sticking

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl stir together egg, ricotta cheese, and the 1/4 cup Romano (Parmesan) cheese. Dot ravioli with spinach. Spoon ricotta mixture on top of spinach. Cook, covered, over low heat about 10 minutes or until ricotta layer is set and pasta is just tender. Sprinkle individual servings with additional Romano (Parmesan) cheese

Quick Pizza Casserole

I haven't completely decided how much I like this dish, but I know it wasn't bad.  I used less cheese than the recipe called for, but probably should have used all 8 ounces and it would've been a little better! I did not have pizza sauce on hand, but used a mushroom & green pepper spaghetti sauce instead, which may have made a difference in the dish.  I also used turkey instead of beef, because it tastes the same and it's a little bit healthier!!  I cooked it a little bit longer than stated because the biscuit mix did not seem to cook thoroughly within the first 30 minutes.

I would definitely add to this dish. Pepperoni to make it a real pizza casserole, or mushrooms (just because I love them!), or any other pizza topping (olives, onions, you get the idea).

Q

Quick Pizza Casserole

• 1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
• 14 ounce jar pizza sauce
• 8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
• 3/4 cup biscuit baking mix
• 1 1/2 cup milk
• 2 eggs

Place beef in an ungreased 8"x8" baking pan; top with pizza sauce and cheese. Combine baking mix, milk and eggs in a mixing bowl; stir well until smooth. Pour over cheese; bake at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes, until golden on top.