Mom on the Make

Finding fun amidst the chaos of Motherhood

Easy Breaded Chicken Recipe

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Ok, you guys, I have a really easy chicken recipe today that you can use as a base for all sorts of chicken dishes.

I love the taste of homemade breaded chicken.

You know, the kind where you dip the chicken breast manually into flour, then egg, then italian bread crumbs, then you bake it in the oven for awhile until the perfect crispiness is achieved.  The taste comes out quite different than my frozen breaded chicken breasts from Trader Joe’s.

And, that’s saying something.

Because we love our Trader Joe’s frozen breaded chicken a lot.  However, the homemade stuff is just better, as per usual.

With this easy homemade recipe, you can easily make it into chicken parmesan by adding mozzarella cheese on top with marinara sauce.  You can eat it with a side dish of brown rice and veggies.  Or with biscuits and gravy.  The options are endless.

When I made this recipe a few days ago, we enjoyed it with brown rice and carrots.

The key to the flavor of this dish is the addition of a 1/2 cup of canola oil at the bottom of the pan.  It makes the chicken taste not just breaded, but borderline fried.  Think a healthier version of fried chicken.  Really good.

breaded chicken recipe

Set up your three bowls of flour, eggs and Italian bread crumbs. I just poured a bit of flour, a bit of bread crumbs and stirred up three eggs in the bowls. I did not measure the flour and bread crumbs.

breaded chicken

Dip chicken breast in flour. Roll it around until covered.

After dipping in the eggs, roll chicken breast in the bread crumbs for a nice coating.

After dipping in the eggs, roll chicken breast in the bread crumbs for a nice coating.

chicken breast breaded

After pouring half a cup of canola or vegetable oil in the bottom of a 13×9 baking dish, place in the oven set at 375 for 50 minutes. Turn the chicken breasts over after 25 minutes.

Breaded Chicken

All crispy and ready to enjoy!

easy breaded chicken

Easy Breaded Chicken Recipe
 
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Ingredients
  • 5 Chicken Breasts
  • Canola or Vegetable Oil
  • All purpose flour
  • Italian bread crumbs
  • 3 eggs
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Pour ½ cup of canola oil into 13x9 baking dish.
  3. Set up three bowls with flour, 3 eggs, Italian Bread crumbs.
  4. Blend the eggs together.
  5. With tongs, place first chicken breast in flour and roll around until covered.
  6. Then place in eggs until covered.
  7. Finally, place the chicken breast in the bread crumbs and roll around until fully covered.
  8. Repeat with each chicken breast.
  9. Place the chicken breasts into prepared baking dish.
  10. Cook in oven for 50 minutes. Remember to set a timer for 25 minutes to turn the breast over, then cook for remaining 25 minutes.
  11. Enjoy!

This is a recipe that I always forget about.  Its so easy, and I should utilize this more.  Hopefully this triggers some ideas for you and your menu plans.

What’s for Dinner Tonight?

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Today was the first day back to school for the kiddos.

For some reason, this Christmas break seemed longer than others.  We stayed home for the most part with a few local getaways thrown in, so that might have contributed to it, or maybe because Christmas day was at the beginning of the break , or maybe because having the position of Director of Entertainment for my three little ones every day, all day, is a bit daunting after 14 days.  Whatever it was, it seemed long.

So, this morning, the school morning rush began once again.

We started by not being able to locate Bam Bam’s Darth Vader lunch box for at least 15 minutes.

Until we realized, we had never removed it from his backpack TWO weeks ago when Christmas break started.  Oops.

At least, there was not any chicken or mayonnaise left in the box.  Only one z bar wrapper.  Phew.

Then I had to remember which of my three have hot lunch at our school on Mondays.  Only one of them. So that meant, I needed to whip up two lunches and one snack.

Anyway, we finally pulled ourselves together and arrived early to school.

Wow, the house was quiet.  So nice to hit the blog with sheer quiet.  I was supposed to go do a three mile walk, but the force  of my peaceful home would not let me put my sneakers on to brave the cold walking path.

I decided that I deserved to be in my quiet home today. 🙂

During my quiet time, I realized that I needed to get back into my meal planning routine for the week.  The planning kind of  (ok, completely) fell to the wayside in these past two weeks.

So, I decided to go with one of my favorites.  Easy peasy, healthy, warm, and the whole family loves it…….recipe is here…..

White Chicken Chili

It is on the stove now, and it smells so yummy.  Both of my girls have basketball practice tonight, so this is perfect, as it just sits warming on the stove as people come in and out of the house.

white bean chicken chili

Scoop of deliciousness!

 

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

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I love this pumpkin soup.

The soup is so creamy and very easy to whip up.    The pumpkin mixed with heavy whipping cream, ginger and cinnamon is a perfect flavor combination.

My favorite way to serve this gem is with lots of fresh ground pepper on top.

2012-12-30 19.56.15

Creamy Pumpkin Soup
 
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Recipe type: Soup
Ingredients
  • 2 cups chopped onion
  • ¼ cup butter, melted
  • 4 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth
  • 2 (15 oz) cans pumpkin puree
  • 2 t sea salt
  • ½ t ground cinnamon
  • ½ t ground ginger
  • ¼ t ground pepper
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
Instructions
  1. Saute onion in butter in a medium saucepan until tender.
  2. Add cans of chicken broth and , pumpkin, salt, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground pepper, stir well.
  3. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heate, and simmer 10 minutes stirring occasionally.
  4. Stir in whipping cream and heat through.
  5. Do not boil.
  6. Ladle into individual soup bowls.

Enjoy.  This is a keeper, for sure.

How to Make Homemade Apple Butter

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Yum.  I love apple butter.

I had never thought of making my own apple butter at home though, until last week.

Broadway is in fifth grade and the tradition at our school is to have a colonial feast while all dressed up in colonial garb.  There are a series of events throughout a two week period focused on learning about the activities and lifestyle of the early colonists.

I volunteered for the “mending the sails” day where the students had to mend their wind torn sails as the colonists had to do when the storms were too much for their handmade sails at sea.

For the colonial feast, I volunteered to make apple butter.  I wondered what I was getting myself into, but its actually pretty darn easy.

And, by the way, its delicious.  The taste is so much fresher and crisp.  Really, really good.

Pureed apples mixed with apple cider.  Spices are stirred in after you pour apple mixture in pan….

apple butter

 

We used the following spices.  We did not have apple pie spice in the cupboard, but these worked just fine…..

spices for apple butter

Here’s the apple butter after cooking for 3 hours at 300 degrees…

how to make apple butter

My completed apple butter in a jar…..

homemade apple butter

The suggestion is to refrigerate the butter for about two days, allowing the ingredients to settle together nicely.  Check out my festive fridge. 🙂 homemade apple butter

Here’s the steps to making your very own apple butter at home…..

How to Make Homemade Apple Butter
 
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Ingredients
  • 10 apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1 inch chunks (I used granny smith apples, but you can use red delicious as well)
  • 1 cup apple cider
  • 2 teaspoons apple pie spice (I used ½t nutmeg, 1t cinnamon and ¼t cardamom, ¼t ginger). You can play around with the spices to your preferred taste.
Instructions
  1. Place the apples in a large saucepan with the cider.
  2. Cover the pot and cook for about 30 minutes over low heat, or until the apples are soft.
  3. Cool, divide into two batches, and puree each in the bowl of a food processor or blender. (I used my Vitamix)
  4. Pour all of the pureed fruit into a 13 by 9 by 2 inch baking dish, sprinkle with the apple pie spice, and stir well.
  5. Stirring every 20 minutes, bake in a preheated 300 degree oven for 2 to 3 hours, or until your apple butter is deep brown and thick.
  6. Cool and then scoop it into a clean jar with a sealable lid.
  7. Store in fridge for 2 days before using for best taste.
  8. It will keep for up to 2 months in your refrigerator.
  9. Makes 1½ cups.

 

 

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

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I made this chicken noodle soup last night, and was very pleased with the combination of egg noodles, rotisserie chicken, parsley, marjoram, carrots and celery.  I love using rotisserie chicken in recipes like this one.  The chicken is so moist, and it makes throwing the recipe together much easier.

When its cold outside, and you want something warm and soothing, this soup is just the ticket.

And, as an added bonus, it is even better the next day, reheated.

homemade chicken noodle soup recipe

Here you go….

 
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Ingredients
  • 4 cups chopped, cooked chicken meat (I bought a rotisserie chicken and cut bite size pieces)
  • 2 cups chopped celery
  • 1 cup chopped carrots
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • ¼ cup butter
  • 8 ounces egg noodles
  • 12 cups water
  • 9 cubes chicken bouillon
  • ½ teaspoon dried marjoram
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 tablespoon dried parsley
Instructions
  1. In a large stock pot, saute celery and onion in butter or margarine.
  2. Add chicken, carrots, water, bouillon cubes, marjoram, black pepper, bay leaf, and parsley.
  3. Simmer for 30 minutes.
  4. Add noodles, and simmer for 10 more minutes.
  5. Note: You can even add more veggies than indicated above.

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