Easy Parmesan Crusted Chicken

½ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup grated parmesan

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (I flatten to even thickness with mallet)

4 tsp Italian panko

Arrange chicken on baking sheet. 

Combine mayonnaise and parmesan and spread on chicken. 

Sprinkle with panko.

Bake at 425 until thoroughly cooked, 15-20 minutes depending on thickness of chicken. 

Dump and Bake Chicken Orzo with Spinach and Sun Dried Tomatoes

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes

2 cups orzo
3 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth
½ cup heavy cream
1 lb rotisserie chicken
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper

1 tbsp Italian seasoning
8 oz sun dried tomatoes
2 cups fresh pinach
1 cup shredded parmesan

Preheat the oven to 425.
Wash and chop spinach.
To a greased 9x12 baking dish, add dry orzo, broth, heavy cream, chicken, seasonings, spinach, and chopped sun dried tomatoes with oil from jar.
Mix and make sure the orzo is completely covered by the liquid.
Bake at 425 for 40 minutes.
When it's done, add in the parmesan cheese and stir.

Adapted from recipe by Brooke Stepp

Alton Brown's Baked Meatballs

24 ounces ground meat (beef, pork, chicken, turkey, lamb, or any combination thereof)
5 ounces frozen spinach, thawed and drained
½ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 large egg
1 ½ teaspoons dried basil
1 ½ teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ cup bread crumbs

• Heat oven to 400ºF.
• Combine meat, cheese, egg, basil, parsley, garlic powder, salt, red pepper flakes, and ¼ cup of the bread crumbs in a large mixing bowl. 
• Using your hands, mix until all ingredients are well incorporated. Use immediately or place in refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
• Place the remaining ¼ cup of bread crumbs into a small bowl. 
• Cover a scale with plastic wrap, weigh meatballs into 1 ½ ounce portions, and place on a half-sheet pan. Using clean hands, shape the meatballs into rounds, roll in the breadcrumbs, and place in miniature muffin tin cups. Bake until golden and cooked through, about 20 minutes.
• Add to marinara and serve over spaghetti. Meatballs may be frozen for up to six months. 

Recipe recommended by Kay Henning (she used all ground turkey).

Notes:

I doubled the recipe and used half ground pork and half lean ground beef. 

I used Alpine instead of garlic powder and salt. 

Next time I will bake on a parchment lined jelly roll pan instead of muffin tin. The original recipe called for miniature muffin pan but the 1 ½ oz meatball couldn't possibly fit. I used a regular muffin pan but don't see the need for that. 

Southern Living Cheesy Sausage and Croissant Casserole

Ingredients

1 lb. ground pork sausage (such as Jimmy Dean)
1 ¼ cups (5 oz.) shredded Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. table salt
6 green onions, sliced
1 (13.22-oz.) package mini croissants (about 24), torn
Vegetable cooking spray
3 cups milk
1 cup heavy cream
5 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups shredded Gruyère cheese (about 8 oz.)

Directions

Cook sausage. Toss with Parmesan cheese, salt, green onions, and torn croissants and place in a 9x13 baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Whisk together milk, heavy cream, and eggs: pour over the sausage mixture. Cover and chill dish for 8 hours.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Uncover casserole, and sprinkle with Gruyère cheese. Bake 45 minutes or until golden. Let stand 10 minutes.

https://www.southernliving.com/recipes/cheesy-sausage-croissant-casserole-recipe

Pork Loin

In a bowl, mix ¼ cup kosher salt in 4 cups warm water until dissolved. Whisk in:

    2 T apple cider vinegar

    2 T brown sugar

    1 cup ice

Brine pork loin in mixture for no longer than 20 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 425. 

Place large piece of heavy duty foil in a 9x13 baking dish. 

Stir spices together in small bowl. 

Remove pork loin after brining for 20 minutes, rinse well, and pat dry. Rub desired spice mixture* on both sides of loin and place loin on foil in baking dish. Top with a little brown sugar. Slowly drizzle with 2 T lemon juice and top with several pats of butter. 

Bake at 425 for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, loosely fold sides of foil over loin (I leave plenty of room to check with meat thermometer). Lower oven temperature to 350 and bake for about 10 minutes; check with meat thermometer and return to oven if needed, checking every five minutes or so. Internal temperature should be 145 but temperature will rise even after removing from oven.

Let loin stand for 10-15 minutes before slicing. Reserve accumulated butter sauce to serve with loin. 

*spices I used:

salt / seasoning salt

pepper

Tony Chachere

smoked paprika

Brenda Gannt's Tomato Pie

1 ½ cups mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
2 cups shredded mozzarella
mild onions, sliced (I use a Vidalia)

2 pie crusts, baked and crispy (this recipe makes two pies)
4 or more large ripe tomatoes, sliced, salted, and drained
1 cup shredded parmesan
basil

Mix first five ingredients in bowl.

In each pie crust, layer:
tomatoes
mixture
basil
tomatoes
mixture
basil
parmesan

Bake at 350 until bubbly, 30-40 minutes.
Makes 2 pies. Approximately 200 calories per ⅛ pie.

https://www.facebook.com/102414758122226/videos/190529775462752/

Lasagna 2020

1 lb. lean ground beef 

1 lb. italian sausage links, removed from casings and crumbled

8 cups marinara sauce (67 ounce jar Prego)

16 ounces ricotta cheese

8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature

1 cup (2 ounces) grated parmesan cheese

1 package “no-boil” lasagna noodles

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Mix the ricotta cheese, cream cheese, and parmesan cheese in a plastic bag. Set aside.

Combine the ground beef and sausage in a large saute pan over medium-high heat and drain. Add the marinara sauce to the meat and stir to combine. Set aside.

Lightly spray a 9-by-13 inch baking dish (or two smaller dishes) with oil and arrange a single layer of uncooked lasagna noodles. 

Cover the noodles with the meat sauce. 

Add some of the cheese mixture by “piping” evenly over the meat sauce.

Top with a layer of lasagna noodles. Repeat in layers until you fill the dish. 

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes at 375. Uncover and bake until the cheese is bubbly and golden brown, 10-15 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving. 

Easy Chicken Parmesan

Coat boneless chicken cutlets in olive oil. Salt and pepper as desired.
Cook in electric skillet for about two minutes on each side.
Pour marinara sauce around cutlets.
Top chicken with fresh parmesan.
Cover skillet and simmer until cheese is melted.
Serve with pasta.

Broiled Parmesan Tomatoes

Easy and delicious - Paula Deen never steers us wrong!

3 14-oz cans tomatoes (whole or diced)
salt and pepper
1 stick unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan

Place tomatoes in baking dish. Season with salt and pepper and top with pats of butter. Sprinkle with Parmesan and broil 10-15 minutes, until cheese is bubbly.

Chanon’s Alfredo

1 pint (2 cups) whipping cream
2 containers (5 oz.) shaved parmesan
2 9-oz. packages fresh pasta
3 T. butter

Heat whipping cream in double boiler (or carefully in a heavy saucepan) and stir in parmesan until blended. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta and toss with butter. Add sauce and toss gently. Season with salt and pepper. Optional: Serve with grilled chicken or shrimp.

Serve with Emmett's marinated chicken...yum!