Roasted Tomato Basil Soup

I LOVE tomato soup. My favorite store bought soup is the Pacific brand. I like to add a dash of red pepper flakes and a sliced clove of garlic. It's the perfect lunch!

A few months ago I decided to try making my own tomato soup. I did a lot of research, tried a few recipes and finally settled on this version. It is easy to make and perfect on a cold night!


Roasted Tomato Basil Soup
1 1/2 pounds roma tomatoes
1 can (14 ounces) peeled tomatoes, whole
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cups fresh basil, chopped
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 quart chicken stock (I like the Pacific low-sodium kind)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tablespoon and 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
salt
pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Toss roma tomatoes, 1/4 cup olive oil, pinch of salt and pepper in a large bowl. Spread in one layer on baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes.

In a stockpot over medium heat, saute onions, garlic, 1 tablespoon olive oil, butter and red pepper flakes until onions begin to brown. Add canned tomatoes, basil, thyme and chicken stock. Add roasted tomatoes with liquid and bring to boil. Simmer uncovered for 40 minutes. Use an emulsion blender to blend the remaining tomato chunks. Garnish with fresh basil.

Filet of Beef and Corn Casserole

After Thanksgiving I decided that turkey, while very tasty, was not what I wanted to prepare for Christmas dinner. Peter wanted duck but I wasn't convinced so I settled on a filet of beef. I had to do some research because I wanted to make sure I didn't screw it up! I found this recipe on the Food Network site. It was a HUGE hit! I also made the gorgonzola sauce. Peter loved it but I wasn't very impressed. I may try another sauce next time.
I discovered this yummy casserole a few years ago on The Food Network. It was right around Thanksgiving so I took this side dish over to our family celebration in Alvin. Everyone said they loved it and I really hope they weren't lying to me!

I don't make this often, it's better suited for caloric blowout holidays, but it sure is tasty! You can skip the cheddar cheese if you're watching your figure.

Filet of Beef

1 whole filet of beef (4 to 5 pounds), trimmed and tied

2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

Place the beef on a baking sheet and pat the outside dry with a paper towel. Spread the butter on with your hands. Sprinkle evenly with the salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for exactly 22 minutes for rare and 25 minutes for medium-rare.

Remove the beef from the oven, cover it tightly with aluminum foil, and allow it to rest at room temperature for 20 minutes. Remove the strings and slice the filet thickly.

Corn Casserole
1 box corn muffin mix
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 package frozen broccoli
2 cloves garlic, chopped
8 ounces cottage cheese
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded (optional)
1/2 cup milk
1 stick unsalted butter
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine the corn muffin mix, milk, garlic and cottage cheese.

In a large oven safe skillet, melt the butter ovr medium heat. Saute the onions and broccoli until tender. Pour the corn muffin mixture over the veggies, sprinkle with cheddar cheese and bake in oven for 30 minutes. Slice, serve warm.

Luby's Macaroni and Cheese

Oh, how I love Luby's. I spent many a Sunday afternoon ordering the following:

Lu Ann Platter
Fried Chicken
DOUBLE Macaroni and Cheese
Red Jell-O
Cloverleaf Roll
Lemonade

Now, I know that is not a necessarily a healthy meal but it was THE meal of my childhood and sometimes a girl needs a little reminder of the state from which she hails.

I tried this recipe last week but it just didn't turn out they way it should. I gave it another try and it was right on! I think that the first time the water wasn't hot enough. This time after I removed the macaroni, I put the pot back on the burner and brought the water to a boil, again. I placed my mixing bowl right next to the stove and slowly added the boiling water, while whisking in the cheese. It was much creamier this time. I also like to put the dish under the broiler for a minute or two, just to give it that crusty, brown top.

Now I don't have to worry about convincing Luby's management to expand into Colorado...

Luby's Macaroni and Cheese
2 cups dry elbow macaroni
2 tablespoons dry nonfat milk powder
2 tablespoonsall-purpose flour
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 1/2 cups boiling water
3 cups mild cheddar cheese, shredded (not pre-shredded)
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook macaroni to package instructions. Remove from pot, keeping pasta water. Return the pot to high heat and boil.

In a large bowl, mix the milk powder, flour and melted butter. Gradually add the boiling water, whisking constantly. Add 1 1/2 cups of the cheese and keep whisking. Beat until smooth and creamy. Stir in macaroni, 1 cup of the cheese and salt. Transfer to greased baking dish. Top with remaining cheese, cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes.

Optional: place baking dish under high broiler until golden brown.

Lemon Garlic Butter Shrimp

I decided that this week we would eat whatever is on hand Monday through Wednesday. Thursday my parents arrive and I will be cooking up a storm Friday and Saturday! I was looking through our freezer and found some leftover shrimp. I searched online for a yummy seafood sauce and a lemon garlic butter sauce caught my eye. It fit the bill, it looked easy and I could prepare it with ingredients I already had in my kitchen. I did have to adapt it a bit because I didn't have fresh herbs but I think it turned out great! I also halved the amount of butter because yikes, the original recipe called for a TON of butter!

I served the shrimp over brown rice. A little tip- use equal parts water and chicken stock. This makes for much tastier rice! Skip the butter option altogether.

Shrimp with Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tablespoon garlic, sliced
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt
black pepper

Heat olive oil over medium heat in non-stick pan. Dredge the shrimp in flour, shake off excess. Fry in olive oil until golden brown. Remove, let rest on paper towel.

Melt the butter in the pan. Add the garlic and fry until fragrant. Add the oregano, remove from heat. Carefully add the lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon over shrimp.

Roasted Chicken and Brussel Sprouts

Recently I was reading Anthony Bourdain's Medium Raw. He writes,

"Everyone should be able to roast a chicken. And they should be able to do it well."

I read that and immediately realized that I did not know how to roast a chicken. What would Anthony think???

My original idea was to roast a whole chicken but I chickened out (haha) and decided to start with roasting chicken breast. I found this easy looking recipe and went for it. OMG, best chicken ever! I cannot express just how much I love this roasted chicken. It is perfection.

A few years ago I wouldn't have touched a brussel sprout. No way, no how. All of that changed when I tried the brussel sprouts at Beaver's back in Houston. That was also the night I tried turnips for the first time but I will save those for another post. I prepared brussel sprouts that next week and they were a huge hit! Now they are firmly in the rotation and if we go too long without having them Peter will kindly let me know.

I like to buy the pre-trimmed brussel sprouts in a bag but you can certainly purchase them on the stem.

I will blog about the macaroni and cheese later...I need to tinker with the recipe.

Roasted Chicken
2 skin-on chicken breasts
1 head garlic, unpeeled
2 sprigs rosemary
2 slices crusty bread
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons water
salt
pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in an oven-proof skillet. Once again, I like cast iron but any oven-proof skillet will do. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, cook skin down for fives minutes or until browned. Flip chicken, top with the garlic and 2 sprigs of rosemary. Transfer to oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until moist. Remove from oven and let chicken rest on a cutting board.

Add the white wine vinegar to skillet and scrape the brown bits. Add the water and simmer for 2 minutes.

Place the bread on a platter and top with the chicken. Pour the white wine sauce over the chicken and bread.

Brussel Sprouts
1 bag brussel sprouts, rinsed and trimmed
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
sea salt
black pepper

Bring three cups of water to a boil. Add the brussel sprouts and boil on high for 8 minutes. Remove and drain. After cooling, cut each brussel sprout in half.

In a large saute pan add the olive oil and garlic over medium heat. When you start to smell the garlic (before it browns, about 1 minute) add the halved brussel sprouts. Saute in pan until the brussel sprouts begin to brown. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.

Butternut Squash Soup

I tried butternut squash soup before but had never been very impressed. A few weeks after we moved to Denver, I was at Whole Foods and saw the biggest butternut squash I had ever seen. It was huge. I was inspired to make my own butternut squash soup from scratch. This is what you do when you have a lot of time on your hands! A little internet research led me to this recipe from the Food Network website. I made a few slight changes to my version but it's pretty much the same as the original.

I did have to invest in an emulsion blender but I have been able to use it when cooking a lot of other dishes so I don't feel like I wasted my money.

I like to top the soup with four slices of a french baguette topped with melted fontina cheese and chopped sage. It's heaven in a bowl and perfect on a cold night. Peter likes it so much that I make way more than we need, refrigerate it and serve it to him for lunch throughout the week. I have also kept in frozen for days and then made another dinner out of it later in the week. If you do this, make sure you add a touch of the chicken stock when heating the frozen soup in a pot. It will help it melt evenly and give it an even richer flavor.

Butternut Squash Soup
3 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut into 3/4 inch pieces (about 7-8 cups)
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, peeled, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup sage leaves, chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt
pepper

In large stockpot, melt the butter and oil over medium heat. Add onion and carrot, saute for five minutes. Stir in garlic, 30 seconds. Add squash and chicken stock, bring to boil. Add sage and boil for 20 minutes. Remove from heat, cool for 5 minutes and use emulsion blender to blend unitl smooth. Salt and pepper to taste.

Crostini

1/2 baguette, sliced diagonally into 1/2-inch thick slices

extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage leaves

6 thin slices fontina cheese 

salt

Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the bread slices on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sage. Place the cheese on top and season with salt, to taste. Bake until cheese has melted and the bread is light golden, about 6 to 8 minutes.

Goat Cheese and Sun Dried Tomato Chicken

This is another oldie but goodie. I love goat cheese in just about everything so it's no surprise that we end up eating this a lot. The first time I made this I used sun dried tomatoes packed in olive oil but I think it works better with the sun dried tomatoes in a bag. I would love to link the Whole Foods 365 Brand sun dried tomatoes but the web Gods won't let me. Boo.



Goat Cheese and Sun Dried Tomato Stuffed Chicken
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin
1 small log goat cheese, softened
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lay chicken on a greased baking sheet. Drizzle 1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil on chicken. Smear 1/3 log of goat cheese and 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes. Roll chicken and secure using cooking twine at either end and in the middle.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until chicken reaches 160 degrees. Remove cooking twine and serve warm.

Goat Cheese, Arugula and Mushroom Ravioli with Homemade Pasta Sauce

For the longest time if you asked Peter what his favorite dinner was he would have chosen avocado quesadillas. About a month ago I tried making ravioli and pasta sauce from scratch and the rest was history. After one bite Peter declared that the avocado quesadillas (while still very yummy) were no longer his favorite dish. We had a new champion.

I won't fool you, this is a very time consuming dinner to prepare. You need a few hours to spare in the afternoon in order to get everything done. Once I have my new authentic Italian pasta press (thanks to Mike and Cindy) the process will be much faster. For now, I am still rolling the pasta dough by hand. It's not bad exercise for your arms! I'll be buff in no time!

A big plus about this dish, beside the fact that it's delicious, is that it is very budget friendly. I have most of the ingredients on hand at all times. So, you spend more time making dinner but spend less money. It's a trade-off, I guess.

I like to stuff my ravioli with goat cheese, arugula and mushrooms but you can certainly experiment and try something new. I cut rather large ravioli so this recipe makes 8 large raviolis, 4 per person.

Goat Cheese, Arugula and Mushroom Ravioli
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs, plus 1 for wash
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup cornmeal, for dusting
1 log goat cheese, softened
1 cup arugula, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, chopped

Combine flour and salt on work surface and shape into a mound. Make a well in the center and add eggs and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Beat with fork. Gradually draw flour in circular motion and continue until ball forms. Cut ball in half, cover. Roll until paper thin, about 1/8 inch thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut into a rectangle. Brush egg wash (1 egg, 1 tablespoon water, beaten) over the entire pasta rectangle.

In a medium bowl, combine the goat cheese, arugula and mushrooms. Mix thouroughly.

On one half of the pasta dough, drop a teaspoon of the filling, 2 inches apart. Fold over the other half of the dough, like a blanket. Press air out of the pockets. Use knife, or large ravioli stamp, to cut into squares. Crimp edges with fork, unless you have used a stamp. Brush ravioli with egg wash. Dust ravioli and sheet pan with cornmeal, lay out to dry.

Add the ravioli to pot of boiling water. Cook until al dente, about 4 minutes, or until the pasta floats and is pale in color.

Top with pasta sauce and remaining filling. Serve warm.

Pasta Sauce

1 large can (28 ounces) peeled whole plum tomatoes, San Marzano style, drained and chopped

1 tablespoon tomato paste

3 tablespoons chicken broth

1/4 cup yellow onion, chopped

1 teaspoon garlic, chopped

1 sprig thyme

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

salt

black pepper

In a large pot (I use this one) over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and yellow onion until soft, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and thyme. Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes and let simmer, 5 minutes. Add chicken broth and tomato paste. Boil, reduce 1/3 volume. Add cream and cook until thick. Add butter, remove thyme sprig and keep warm until ready to serve.

Dutch Babies

My sister-in-law, Cindy, made these last Christmas. I was instantly hooked and I had to know where she got the recipe. Turns out it came from The Joy of Cooking. I was excited because I already had the classic cookbook in my kitchen!

Dutch Babies are super easy to make and you can top them with whatever you like. I prefer strawberries and peanut butter but I have seen them topped with powdered sugar, blueberries, apples and many other options! Yum! I cut the amount of butter in half because honestly, it was way too buttery for my taste!

Serve immediately, for the pancake loses its puff, and therefore its drama, very quickly.

Dutch Babies
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl whisk together the milk, flour, sugar and eggs until smooth.

In a cast iron skillet (or any oven-proof skillet but cast iron is ideal) over medium heat, melt the butter, coating the sides of the skillet. Pour the eggs mixture into the skillet and cook for 1 minute without stirring. Place the skillet into the oven and baked until golden brown, about 12 minutes.

Shrimp Tacos and Spicy Corn

I came up with these during the early days of my relationship with Peter. I was off for the summer and he invited me over to his place for an afternoon by the pool and then an early dinner. I was trying to impress so I offered to make dinner. As soon as I got off the phone I panicked because I had not been to the grocery store and quite honestly, had no idea what to make anyway. These were the days when I thought heating black beans out of a can was cooking. I managed to find all of the ingredients, minus the shrimp so I made a quick trip to the store, and just kind of winged it. I love that I can prepare the spread overnight and then the next day I can make dinner in less than twenty minutes. Peter and I really enjoy these tacos and they have been in the rotation ever since that lovely summer afternoon.

We have always eaten the tacos with a side of black beans with cilantro and lime. Tonight I wanted to try something new. I had some leftover corn from Thanksgiving so I went searching online for a yummy corn sidedish. I found inspiration here and there. I made a few adjustments and I think it turned out really well!

I think I know my husband pretty well. I know what he likes, what he dislikes, what to NEVER say to him, etc... One thing I didn't know was that he hates corn. Whaaaaat??? I had no idea. He made a funny face when I put the corn on his plate but I knew he would be nice and at least try it. He ate the tacos first and then slowly reached for the fork and put the teeniest bit of corn in his mouth. I was waiting for a "sorry babe, I just don't like corn" but he took another bite, then a bigger one and then a whole forkful. That corn was gone in under a minute. I felt victorious! I asked him if there was anything else he thought he hated that I could possibly cook for him and hopefully change his mind. He "hates" eggplant so watch for an eggplant post in the near future. I welcome the challenge.

Shrimp Tacos
1 pound EZ peel shrimp, cleaned, deveined
1/2 medium white onion, chopped
1/2 bunch cilantro, cleaned and chopped
1 clove garlic
1 small lime
4 whole wheat tortillas
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Combine the onion, cilantro, garlic, juice from one half of the lime and the extra virgin olive oil in a mini food processor. Pulse until a pesto like substance forms. Add more extra virgin olive oil if necessary. In a large storage container completely coat the shrimp in the spread. Store in the refrigerator for at least two hours. You can also let them sit overnight.

Divide the remaining tablespoon of butter into fourths. On medium heat drop one on the fourths of butter in the pan and coat both sides of the tortilla in butter. Then leave the tortilla in the pan until in begins to puff, turn over and repeat on the other side. Repeat for each tortilla. Keep warm in a basket or tortilla warmer.

In a large saute pan heat the remaining tablespoon of butter on medium heat. Add the shrimp and cilantro spread to the pan. Cook until the shrimp are pink. This should only take a few minutes. Stuff each tortilla with 4-6 shrimp, depending on size of the shrimp and top with any remaining spread. Serve warm.

Spicy Corn
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 red pepper, diced
1 teaspoon lime juice
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup white onion, diced
1 teaspoon hot sauce (Peter's favorite)
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon olive oil

Combine all of the ingredients, except the oil. Add the oil to a small saucepan over medium heat. Saute the corn mixture in the oil for 5-6 minutes. Serve warm.

Green Eggs

I'm not going to lie...I don't like most breakfast food but I am married to someone who LOVES breakfast. This is a take on one of P's favorite dishes from our old haunt in Houston, Baby Barnaby's. We are still looking for our favorite breakfast spot here in Denver so in the meantime P will continue to enjoy my version of his beloved Green Eggs!





Green Eggs
serves one

2 large eggs, beaten with fork
1/2 cup jarred artichoke hearts, chopped
1 handful spinach
1 small jalapeno, seeded and diced
1/4 cup monterey jack cheese, shredded
1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter

In nonstick skillet melt butter over medium heat. Saute the jalapeno for about one minute. Drop handful of spinach on top and wait until it begins to wilt. Add the artichokes and mix for about a 30 seconds. Add the eggs and scramble. When eggs are thouroughly scrambled and mixed with the jalapeno, spinach and artichoke hearts remove from heat. Sprinkle with the monterey jack cheese and serve warm.

Steak and Truffled Potatoes

About a year ago, P and I decided to start a new Friday date night tradition. No phones, no computers, just good wine, conversation and steak...plus the occasional Dateline episode. Our last few months in Houston we ate out a lot as we were trying to hit all of our favorite restaurants before we left town. Our first month in Denver we were trying new neighborhood restaurants. Now we are settled in and back to our fun at-home date nights.

A little over two years ago my dear friend Megan got married in Crested Butte. Her best friend (now sister-in-law and good friend of mine) Abby and I flew out early to relax and help with last-minute wedding preparations. One night in town, we discovered a super yummy french fry appetizer at a local sushi restaurant. It quickly became clear why they called them "Crack Fries." That was the night I fell in love with white truffle oil.

I recently decided to bite the bullet and purchase my very own bottle of white truffle oil. Good gracious! I had no idea how expensive it would be but it is worth every penny. I experimented with a few and there was a clear winner: Boscovivo White Truffle Oil. It is kind of hard to find (lucky for me the little grocery store downstairs carries it) but this one I picked up at Whole Foods is also very good.

I tried this excellent mashed potato recipe from So Tasty, So Yummy. I loved them so much I served them at our housewarming party and then again at Thanksgiving last week. Yummmmm...truffle oil.

The date night menu always consists of the following:

• A bottle (or two) of good wine, usually a Pinot Noir
• Some sort of appetizer, cheese, crackers, what have you
• Two big steaks
• Mashed potatoes or sweet potato fries
• Green veggie
• Good conversation, laughs

Perfection :)

Steak
2 steaks (I used rib eyes)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
sea salt
black pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In large, oven safe pan melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat until very hot.

Season both sides of steak with salt and pepper. Sear in pan 3-4 minutes on either side, or until browned. Place pan in oven and cook until desired doneness. Use a meat thermometer to check temperature. Let sit 5-10 minutes before serving.


Truffled Potatoes
2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon cream
2-3 tablespoons white truffle oil
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Boil the potatoes in salted water until fork tender. Warm the butter and cream. Drain the potatoes and transfer to a bowl. With a hand mixer, whip the cream and butter into the potatoes. Stir in the truffle oil, salt and pepper to taste. Divide the potatoes between two oven safe ramekins. Bake for 30 minutes until the tops begin to get golden brown.

Crab and Chive Puffs

A few weeks ago we hosted a housewarming party at our new place in Denver. It was a ton of fun but for me, the best part was all the cooking I did before the big event! I made goat cheese tomatoes, truffled potatoes, sliders, chocolate cupcakes and pigs in a blanket...er, puff pastry. It was my first time working with frozen puff pastry and I WAY overbought. I left the extra in the freezer hoping that one day I would stumble across a good puff pastry recipe. Last week I bought the current issue of Real Simple and there it was, a yummy puff pastry idea! I decided to make these as an appetizer for one of our Friday date nights. P loved them and they were able to tide him over until dinner was ready.

The original recipe served 20 so I drastically altered the amounts to just serve the two of us. I am not much of a baker so instead of using a 2-inch cookie cutter (that I don't own) I simply used a pizza cutter to divide the pastry into squares. I figure it probably doesn't affect the taste!

Crab and Chive Puffs
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup fresh chives, plus more for garnish
juice of 1/2 large lemon
sea salt
black pepper
1/4 pound lump crabmeat

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Using a pizza cutter, cut the pastry into 1 inch squares. Place on a greased baking sheet.

In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, mayonnaise, chives, lemon juice, pinch of salt and pepper to taste. Fold in crab.

Dividing evenly, spoon the crab mixture onto the pastry squares.

Bake, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, until the pastries are golden and crisp, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve hot.

Parmesan Chicken and Spicy Vegetables

I adapted this easy chicken recipe from So Tasty, So Yummy a few weeks ago when I needed a quick dinner idea. This was a big hit and is now one of my go-to favorites. I changed it up a little bit because I didn't have any parsley and I was out of bread crumbs. The first time I toasted a small piece of rye bread and smashed it to make the crumbs. This time I used a piece of crusty sourdough from Whole Foods. P let me know that the crumbs were better this time so I guess I will be using sourdough from now on!

The spicy vegetables are super easy and one my favorite side dishes but I love anything with a little kick! I prefer buying frozen broccoli (I don't know why, it just feels right) but fresh will obviously work too.

Baked Parmesan Chicken
2 chicken breasts, pounded thin
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon butter, melted
4 tablespoons breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss chicken and milk in bowl to coat. Add remaining ingredients to a plastic bag, toss chicken with the breadcrumb mixture. In a lightly greased baking dish, lay out the two chicken breasts, pressing any additional breadcrumb mixture on top. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.

Spicy Vegetables
1 cup broccoli (frozen)
1 small red bell pepper, sliced
1 cup whole baby bella mushrooms
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil

In a large saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the broccoli. Saute until no longer frozen then add the bell peppers and red pepper flakes. Add the sesame oil. Saute vegetables until fragrant but not limp.