Chicken Parmesan

Chicken Parmesan
Recipe submitted by Patricia Gaimari-Robinson & Graham Gaimari 
Original recipe by Tyler Florence & FoodNetwork.com

Don't forget the Italian dinner music, salad, bread and the Italian wine!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 3 tablespoons
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
1/2 bunch fresh basil leaves
2 (28-ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes, drained and hand crushed
pinch sugar
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 skinless, boneless, chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon water
1 cup dried bread crumbs
1 (8-ounce) ball fresh buffalo mozzarella, water drained
Freshly grated Parmesan
1 pound spaghetti pasta, cooked al dente

Directions:

Coat a saute pan with olive oil and place over medium heat. When the oil gets hazy, add the onions, garlic, and bay leaves; cook and stir for 5 minutes until fragrant and soft. Add some hand-torn basil.  Carefully add the tomatoes, cook and stir until the liquid is cooked down and the sauce is thick, about 15 minutes; season with sugar, salt and pepper. Lower the heat, cover, and keep warm.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Get the ingredients together for the chicken so you have a little assembly line.  Put the chicken breasts side by side on a cutting board and lay a piece of plastic wrap or wax paper over them. Pound the chicken breasts with a flat meat mallet, until they are about 1/2-inch thick.  Put the flour in a shallow platter and season with a fair amount of salt and pepper; mix with a fork to distribute evenly.  In a wide bowl, combine the eggs and water, beat until frothy.  Put the bread crumbs on a plate, season with salt and pepper.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high flame in a large oven-proof skillet. Lightly dredge both sides of the chicken cutlets in the seasoned flour, and then dip them in the egg wash to coat completely, letting the excess drip off, then dredge in the bread crumbs. When the oil is nice and hot, add the cutlets and fry for 4 minutes on each side until golden and crusty, turning once.

Ladle the tomato-olive sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with mozzarella, Parmesan, and basil.  Bake the Chicken Parmesan for 15 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly. Serve hot with spaghetti.

4 servings.

Looks delicious Graham Gaimari

Recipe submitted by Patricia Gaimari-Robinson

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Pumpkin Cheesecake Parfaits

Pumpkin Cheesecake Parfaits

Ingredients:

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
3 cups cold heavy whipping cream, divided
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar, divided
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, plus extra for garnish

Directions:

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, 2 cups cream, and 1 cup confectioner's sugar with a mixer at medium-high speed for 5 to 6 minutes or until thickened and fluffy.  Beat in pumpkin and pie spice until smooth.

Whipped Topping:

In a medium bowl, beat remaining 1 cup cream and remaining 3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar with a mixer at high speed for 3 to 5 minutes or until stiff peaks form.

Spoon cream cheese mixture into serving  dishes, and top with whipped cream mixture.

Garnish with pie spice, if desired.

Serve immediately or make several hours in advance and refrigerate until you"re ready to serve.

Limoncello Cake

Limoncello Cake

I make this cake with homemade lemoncello.  It is delightful in taste!  It is very lemony, moist and easy to make.

Ingredients:

1 cup plain spray
2 eggs
1/3 cup canola oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons lemon zest
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup limoncello liqueur
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 pinch salt (optional)

3/4 cup confectioner's sugar
3 tablespoons limoncello liqueur

Cooking spray
Whipped topping
Vanilla ice cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare an 8-inch cake pan with cooking spray.

Whisk together the yogurt, eggs, canola oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, and 4 tablespoons limoncello in a large bowl.  In a separate large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Gently stir the dry ingredients into the wet.  Do not over mix or the cake will be tough.  Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated  oven until top is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 35 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

Stir the powdered sugar and 3 tablespoons of limoncello together in a small bowl until smooth.  Poke small holes all over the top of the still-warm cake with a fork or toothpick. Spoon the glaze over the cake and spread with the back of a spoon.  The glaze will seep into the cake and add moisture.

Melon Ball Salad with Lime Syrup

Melon Ball Salad with Lime Syrup

This is a great tasting summer salad.  It's easy to make too!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons finely grated lime zest
1 cantaloupe (about 3 lbs.)
1 honeydew (about 4 1/2 lbs.)
1/2 baby seedless watermelon (about 2 1/2 lbs.)

Directions:

Combine sugar, lime juice and 1/4 cup water in a saucepan.  Stir over medium-high heat until sugar has dissolved, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and add lime zest.  Cover pan and set aside for 15 minutes. Strain into a small bowl, cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 2 hours. (can be made up to 3 days in advance.)

Cut each melon in half, remove and discard seeds and scoop flesh with a sharp 1-inch melon baller.  Place all melon balls in a large bowl, cover and refrigerate until 30 minutes before serving.

Pour lime juice over melon balls.  Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes before serving. Divide into 8 glass tumblers and garnish with mint, if desired.

Fresh Rhubarb Cake

Fresh Rhubarb Cake
Submitted by Lisa Henry VanMansum

Super easy to make and really has a nice "rhubarb punch" rather than overly sweet like some cakes. Because of the fruit on the bottom, it is more like a crumble, so serve it in a bowl.  Flavor of this dessert improves if you wait a day, so it is a great one to make a day ahead.  Enjoy!  Lisa Henry VanMansum

Ingredients:

4 cups sliced fresh rhubarb (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
Cooking spray
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 large egg
2 teaspoons grated orange rind
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine rhubarb and 2/3 cup sugar in a bowl.  Spoon rhubarb mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Beat 2/3 cup sugar and butter at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended (about 5 minutes).  Add egg, beating well.  Beat in orange rind and vanilla.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, level with a knife.  Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; stir well with a whisk.  Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Spoon batter over rhubarb mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Yield: 9 servings.

270 calories

Recipe submitted by Lisa Henry VanMansum

Serve with vanilla or strawberry ice cream

Do you need another delicious rhubarb recipe?  If yes, here is the best-ever rhubarb muffin recipe.

http://crowdedkitchen509.blogspot.com/2014/07/rhubarb-muffins.html

Chicken Cacciatore

Chicken Cacciatore

Cacciatore means "hunter" in Italian.  In cuisine, alla cacciatora refers to a meal prepared "hunter style" with onions, herbs, tomatoes, bell peppers, and wine.

Ingredients:

8 (6 oz) boneless chicken pieces
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 teaspoon olive oil, or more if needed
1 medium onion, chopped
3 Portobello mushrooms caps, sliced and cubed
4 minced garlic cloves
1 1/2 tablespoons flour, or more if needed
1 1/2 cups red wine
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoon oregano

1 pound spaghetti
Parmesan cheese
Parsley for garnish

Directions:

Sprinkle the chicken pieces with salt and pepper.

Cover chicken pieces in flour to coat lightly.

In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat and add the chicken pieces to the pan and saute until golden, for about 8 minutes on each side.  If the chicken does not fit in the pan, saute in batches.  Once chicken is saute, set aside.

Add the bell pepper, onion and garlic to the same pan and saute over medium heat until the onion is tender, about 8 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.

Add the red wine and mushrooms and simmer until wine is reduced by half, or about 4 minutes.

Add the tomatoes with juice, chicken broth and oregano.

Add the chicken pieces to the pan and coat in the sauce, bring to simmer.  Continue simmering over medium-low heat until the chicken is cooked, about 35 to 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally to prevent from sticking, until al dente.

To serve, mound the pasta on a plate or pasta bowl and arrange the chicken pieces and sauce on top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Garnish with parsley and serve with salad and bread.