Chicken Parmigiana

Good Tuesday morning!

The Gallery is full of our anniversary weekend pictures. As you can tell from the photos, the hiking, spelunking, horseback riding, etc. did not take place. We were EXTREMELY lazy, and since the weather was cold, gray, windy and rainy (my favorite kind of weather), it really just screamed, "STAY BY THE FIRE! STAY BY THE FIRE!" Which we cheerfully did!

NOTE - Our second Mystery Bag Party will depart this Saturday at 11:30 for a few hours of fun and fellowship. If all goes well, I'll be having another contest on my 400th post (which is only 75 posts away) for yet another Mystery Bag Party. I'll make sure there are testimonials from past attendees so you can make a decision about entering when the time comes. I'm looking forward to it, Girls (Dana, Patti, LeAnna, Tonya, Angie and Jonella). We're going to have a ball!

Only a few more days until the Special Guest will be revealed... and we're still having a little technical difficulty (I think). It's okay. Do not panic. We have plenty of time. And until we have everything on this end smoothed out, I'll give you two more clues:

4. She is a bit of a songbird and has a pleasant, if not above-average, singing voice.

5. I don't know if I've ever left her presence, whether during a short conversation or a lengthy one, in which scripture wasn't quoted. God and His Word naturally and easily comes from her lips. It is truly amazing.

Okay. I'm going to need a few guesses today. Put those thinking caps on and start shooting out some names.

Weekend Review

Mike and I have had our share of "not so good" anniversary celebrations. I've chronicled those already. However, Anniversary Number 22 will go down in history as one of our best anniversaries ever.

I had never been to Mentone before. It's only two hours from our house which is a plus, and Mikie had been there for a work retreat several years ago and loved it. It is part of Lookout Mountain and the views are just lovely.

Our cabin had not one, but two, fireplaces, a gorgeous deck, and open windows to all the views.

We stopped in Fort Payne on our way up to the cabin to rent some movies, and since it was time to eat, we ate at a Chinese restaurant beside the Movie Gallery. We like Chinese food and we love buffets, so when we walked in to the Friday night all-you-can-eat buffet with over 30 items to choose from, we were pretty ecstatic. (Remember. We are old and tired and we have three teenagers... It just doesn't take much to make us happy at this point in our lives.)

Friday night consisted of exploring the cabin, watching a movie by the fire... and wishing we had taken a to-go box from the Chinese restaurant.

Saturday was a gray day. We had only one thing on the agenda. I'll give you two words... Unclaimed Baggage! That's right. We were only 20 or 25 minutes from Unclaimed Baggage. I had never been before, but I had always heard about this great store in Scottsboro that takes lost and unclaimed baggage from airports and sells it at staggeringly low prices. I'll give you three more words... Oh, My Word! It was wonderful.

I bought Josh a championship Steelers T-Shirt which had never been worn (probably because they bought it right after they attended the championship game) for $4. He was thrilled. I also bought a couple more shirts for the guys. Brand new!

We stuck to our guns and only bought items we "needed." However, here are some of the items I would have bought just because of the prices and the fact I was standing in Unclaimed Baggage:

1 pair of skis
1 parka
1 pair of ski poles
1 pair of ski sticks (What is the proper name for the "ski sticks?")

By the way, I've only skied once and I may or may not ever ski again, but these things were cheap!

1 wedding dress

I'm also not planning on getting married again, but there were 20 or so wedding dresses to choose from... and they were cheap!

1 Coach purse
1 pair Coach shoes
1 black leather jacket
2 evening gowns
5 children's books
1 watch
1 Mineral Glo Eyeshadow

It was good Mikie was there. I don't know if I would have been able to control myself otherwise. I'm going back. Everything in the building was seasonal, so there were no summer clothes, etc. I'm planning a return trip in the spring or early summer to see what those poor flying people have lost since then.

Needless to say, it was a good day.

I'll finish up the weekend review tomorrow. There's not a great deal more to share, but share I must! I'll also add a few more pics from the weekend tomorrow.

Chicken Parmigiana

Okay. I promised a Martha Stewart recipe, and this one looks doable... and delicious! It is taken from Martha Stewart Living, February 2010.

You will need:

12 Triscuits
1/3 cup parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes (no salt added), with juice
1/2 medium onion (coarsely chopped)
2 teaspoons garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large egg whites
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Crush crackers, parsley, oregano and 1 teaspoon salt until finely ground. Season with pepper and transfer to a plate.

2. Blend tomatoes with juice, onion, garlic and 1/2 teaspoon salt until smooth.

3. Coat a 9" x 13" baking dish with oil. Lightly whisk egg whites and transfer to a shallow dish. Dip each chicken breast half in whites to fully coat; let excess drip off.

4. Dredge chicken in crumb mixture, lightly pressing to coat both sides.

5. Transfer chicken to prepared baking dish, and flip once to coat in oil. Bake until crisp, about 10 minutes.

6. Pour tomato sauce over chicken, allowing some sauce underneath each piece. Top with cheeses, and bake until bubbling and top is lightly browned.

Yum. The February issue of the magazine has many, many more doable recipes. This would make a great dish for a dinner party.

Also, in the Real Simple magazines I looked through this weekend, I found the simple, "quick" version of this recipe, and I'll share it with you, also.

You will need:

6 to 8 breaded chicken patties (Southern Meats carries these)
1 jar of Ragu (with meat)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400. Cook chicken patties as per instructions on package.

2. Remove from the oven. Pour 2/3 jar of Ragu sauce over chicken (just enough to cover).

3. Sprinkle oregano over sauce.

4. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over sauce.

5. Place in oven for another 20 to 25 minutes.

We had this simple version last night, and while I know it doesn't compare to Martha's version, if time is an issue, it makes a very quick, filling, delicious dinner.

Note - I would definitely prepare Martha's for a "company" event.

Stay warm today. Winter came back to Alabama. I told you it would! Tomorrow I have a party to share, Wednesday Wisdom and a few more clues about our Special Guest. Until then, have a fantastic Tuesday!

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting Belinda