Bruchetta on Pizza

Did you make this chicken? If not, you should. And then you should put the leftovers on a pizza. It was truly amazing!

What you'll need:

Leftover Bruchetta Chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces

Fresh Mozzarella

Fresh Bruchetta

Pizza Dough

2 Garlic cloves, minced

How you'll do it:

I used the Pillsbury pizza dough, so I followed the directions on the can. I placed it on an ungreased cookie sheet, added slices of fresh mozzarella and the garlic. I then cooked it, as the instructions said, for about 13 minutes. I then added the leftover bruchetta chicken and the fresh bruchetta and cooked it for another 5 minutes.

I then cut it and ate it.

A Picnic in the City

New York may lack green space, but we don't lack picnics. My roommates and I have had two in the last two weeks. The weather here has been pretty good during the weekends. The rain has finally stopped. At least, for the moment.

The thing about picnics, is that there is always something going on besides what's happening with your friends. There are people playing catch, frisbee, and all sorts of lawn games.

And in New York, we didn't experience ants. We got pigeons, lots and lots of pigeons.

And we had all sorts of food. It ranged from Jell-O shots, to pasta salad to different types of humus and red velvet cake. It was truly a New York experience.

And of course, there are the people. The people make the party.

But don't forget about the pigeons. They won't let you forget!
I'll be sharing some recipes from this picnic with you over the course of the week.
It'll be fun! I promise!

Did I Say I Liked Bruschetta?

Um, I mentioned in my last post that I'm in love with bruschetta, right?

Well, this dish helped solidify that love.

It was so good, so very good.  My roommate had to ask me to stop talking about it.

Golly, it was good!

And it was easy. And it warmed up really well. And it's something you should make right now.

What you'll need*:

4 thin chicken breasts

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1 egg

1/4 cup shredded parmesan or mozzarella

salt and pepper to taste

bruschetta

How you do it:

Preheat the oven to 375. 

Put the flour, bread crumbs and egg into separate bowls. Season each chicken breast with the salt and pepper.  Dip each breast into the flour, then the egg and then into the bread crumbs. I placed them on a tinfoil lined pan, for easy cleaning.  Add cheese to the top of the chicken breasts.  Cover pan in tinfoil and cook for 20 minutes.  Uncover and add the bruschetta. Cook for an additional 3-5 minutes.

 

Serve it up with a yummy salad and fresh bread!

*Recipe is adapted from The Taste of Home Cook Book

A Side for Everything!

I've decided that bruschetta is my spread of choice this summer.  I'm so in love with it, I want to put it on everything.

It's also pretty easy to make, so I can put it on everything.

What you'll need:

3 tomatoes

2 garlic cloves

1/2 tablespoon of fresh basil

How you do it:

Wash the tomatoes. Quarter them and scoop out seeds. Slice the tomatoes into bite sized pieces.  Mince the basil and garlic and combine with tomatoes.  Enjoy!

I took this yummy serving to a picnic. 

Semi-Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

My high school started an awesome 4 year culinary program when I was a senior. I was pretty excited to take the introductory course. I still remember complaining that they had started it right as I was getting ready to leave.

These semi-homemade cinnamon rolls were one of the first things we were allowed to make. I think the teacher was slightly nervous. It was her first year teaching and she was probably nervous about one of us kids setting an oven on fire. Having the entire high school evacuated because of a fire in her room wouldn't be the best impression ever, would it?

Could you imagine? So, we started off easy. But I swear to you, these were so good.

How you do it:
Use this recipe, but I did without the nuts.

Make sure that you make enough frosting for dipping!

Red, White and Blue...Chicken Cordon Bleu!

Chicken Cordon Bleu was always one of my favorite meals growing up. I would pull out the ham, scrape out the cheese and enjoy the chicken cutlet. What was I thinking?  I really have no idea.  

I was flipping through my trusty Home & Garden cookbook when I came across this recipe, and I knew right then and there, that's what I'm making for dinner. 

If I bought the ham, made it with the ham and ate the ham without complaint, without the thought of leaving the ham out...does that mean I now like ham? 

Um, no.  I tried to eat it alone, I wanted to like it, but no. I do not like the ham.

Do you see all the toothpicks above? I made sure that chicken wasn't going to fall apart.

And you know what?  It didn't!

What you'll need:

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

4 slices Swiss cheese

4 thin slices smoked ham

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 egg: beaten

1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs

4 tablespoons butter

toothpicks

How You Do it:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Pound chicken breasts to 1/4-inch thickness or until they are thin enough to fold. Place one cheese slice and one ham slice on each breast.  Roll up each chicken breast until cheese and ham are folded inside.  Use the toothpicks to secure the chicken.  Place flour, egg and bread crumbs in separate bowls, dredge each chicken breast in the flour, then the egg and then the bread crumbs.  Place them on a greased baking dish.  Add one tablespoon of butter on top of each breast.  Bake for 35 minutes or until the juices run clear.

Remove the toothpicks before serving...it will look better that way.